Ayanna

Not part of Riordanverse The following article/section is from the Tristan Strong continuity under Rick Riordan Presents and not the Riordanverse canon.

Ayanna
Biographical information
Gender	Female
Age	12-14
Residence	Alke
Item	Staff
Status	Alive
Physical description
Eye	Dark
Hair	Dark
Species	Unknown
Behind the scenes
Appearances	Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky Tristan Strong Destroys the World Tristan Strong Keeps Punching The Gum Baby Files

“	Boy, I can pilot whatever I chose. I’m fine- you clean your own house. You tell me where we're going, and I’ll get up there, got it?	”
–Ayanna to Tristan in Tristan Strong Keeps Punching.

Ayanna is a girl residing in Alke who accompanies Tristan on his quest due to her skills as a pilot.

History

Ayanna was born in MidPass and trained to be a pilot. She befriended another pilot in training during this time. However when the Iron Monster Attacks began, he became infuriated about would attack any iron monster he saw. They learned of this and laid in wait one day outside the Thicket and, despite her warnings, he went out and was killed.

Tristan Strong Trilogy

Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky

She and a dozen others save Tristan Strong and Gum Baby from a fleet of Bone Ships. She is cautious around Tristan and happily greets Gum Baby, informing her she has been gone a year. They land and head back to the Thicket. After the Midfolk are ashore, she explains MidPass and Alke to Tristan before Brer Fox senses something. They head to the Thicket and are ambushed by fetterlings. She is too stunned to do anything until Brer Fox sacrifices himself and she rushes to the Midfolk to safety and urges Tristan to run.

A day later, she unknowingly snaps him out of a conversation with Uncle C and takes him to John Henry. When she asks the folk hero to go out and find more Midfolk, he rejects her request and she leaves. Soon she joins the two and Sarah and Rose when Brer Rabbit explains his plan to have Anansi fix the hole in the sky. When Brer Rabbit reveals he and Anansi were working on a Story Box before everything happened and that Tristan can find it, she volunteers herself and Chestnutt to go with him. When Tristan says no she walks out of the room. As she and Chestnutt are readying the raft Tristan arrives but she stops him from getting on. He says he was afraid before and the God's told him to go and she relevantly allows him to get on and the three set out.

As they fly over the Burning Sea, they take about their fears and she reveals her dislike of ambushes. Ironically almost immediately they are attacked by a stowaway fetterling. It is revealed to be Gum Baby who blames Tristan for her failure. They survey the Golden Crescent before splitting up, she goes with Chestnutt while Tristan goes with Gum Baby. They regroup before going to Nyame's Palace. They enter the palace and find a statue of the god and a trap door. Tristan tells the story of how Anansi gave humans stories when a booming voice is heard. They realize the statue really is Nyame restrained and paralyzed by iron monsters. Tristan continues the story to lure them away from the sky god and tells her and the others to touch a statue. Tristan throws Gum Baby at a statue that comes alive and takes out the bosslings, but takes them to Nyame. They plead with him for the story box and she becomes angry when Tristan reveals he was hiding that those taken by iron monsters are alive. The sky god agrees but reveals be does not have it.

They go to Anansi's Palace and Tristan finds a hidden entrance. They find a room full of dissected fetterlings and Tristan realizes what Anansi and Brer Rabbit were working on and realizing the box is hidden in the Ridge. She readies the raft and they talk about the city's defenses and transportation from the bottom of the mountain to the top. When they arrive the Ridge's defense systems attack them but she and Gum Baby take them out before landing in the train. They ride in the trash car for a few minutes before fly into a tunnel that leads to the Ridge. However they are soon apprehended. The four are brought before a spirit who believes they are the thieves responsible for the abduction of their citizens. She watches as Tristan tells the Ridgefolk a story on how he caused the chaos. However the Abiyoyo he created during the story starts attacking the Ridgefolk and she teams up with Thandiwe and they and the rest of the Ridgefolk take out the monster. They are given the Story Box but seconds later a man arrives asking for it who introduces himself as High John. When High John says MidPass is solely occupied by iron monsters, she becomes shocked, but Tristan calms her down. When Tristan wakes up she helps him to his feet and is happy when Thandiwe decides to join them, but is shocked to learn the state of the Story Box. She and her companions discuss whether to go back to MidPass or take the Story Box to Nyame. When the Ridge is under attack, she requests to Tristan that they run, but he chooses to fight instead. After the Hullbeast breaks down the door and she theorizes Tristan is attracting the iron monsters, he agrees to retreat but she and Thandiwe are separated from Tristan and Gum Baby by a swarm of brand flies. When High John returns and helps defeat the iron monsters, she is revealed to be badly branded and not breathing. She is loaded onto Old Familiar and flown to the Golden Crescent to get better healing as Tristan talks to her.

When they arrive at the Golden Crescent she and Chestnutt are brought to a Mmoatia, fairy, who heals them. They are fully healed and she greets Tristan after the battle and is shocked to learn Anansi has been impersonating Brer Rabbit. She and the rest of her group go to watch Anansi's sentencing and she hugs Tristan goodbye.

Tristan Strong Destroys the World

As Tristan returns to Alke, she meets him as she is riding with Keelboat Annie on a work study program. She catches Tristan up to date on what happened since he left. When he mentions the Shamble Man, she pulls him aside and he explains what happened to his grandmother. They go to tell Annie just as a skull breaches the river from the side of the boat. As they climb on the boat she laughs as Tristan freaks out, after she explains that the Talking Skulls are harmless, they head to the Golden Crescent. She becomes confused when Tristan reuses to demonstrate his powers. When they arrive she explains how the residents of the Golden Crescent are working at rebuilding. When they get ashore, they are greeted by Junior who greets her and insults Tristan. After Tristan accepts an offer to race Junior to Nyame's Palace, she reluctantly acts as referee. Later she returns with Gum Baby, who crashed her raft into tower while looking at a rainbow, and in forms them that the Shamble Man is in Nyanza, a city in the Grasslands. When they reach the docks, Keelboat Annie let's hear sail and things get off to a rocky start.

After Tristan is swept overboard, she, Junior, and Gum Baby track him down to the Grasslands and help him fend off DJ Kulture. After rapping vulture is defeated, they head to Nyanza. After an hour the raft returns and, after cleaning it the best she can, allows Gum Baby to pilot it. When Tristan reveals Anansi escaped, she is shocked and, as Gum Baby mocks him, the raft crashes and they jump into a dried river bed. They are taken inside by invisible guards and she is on her guard as they are escorted through the empty city to a certain location. After they chase after Gum Baby, they are reunited with Chestnutt. The rabbit explain the city is close to a growing storm and their patron goddess, Mami Wata, is missing. She listens as Chestnutt believes that Lady Night can fix the SBP and expresses her theory that the Shamble Man is a God of MidPass.

As they fly back to the Golden Crescent, she lets Gum Baby fly and they crash. As the doll hides, she and the others are surrounded by security and, as they are about to be let go, their boss has them brought in. Their boss introduces himself as Big Big and he takes her club along with Tristan's bracelet and Junior's satchel. He has a servant named Cookie take them away. When they are far enough away, Cookie informs them that Big Big has contacted the Shamble Man and agrees to get them out with their belongings if they help her find her skin. When they realize she is Lady Night, Gum Baby breaks in and unknowingly distracts Big Big as they get the skin. They succeed and the boo hag has him return their belongings as he is bound in a cloak. Lady Night offers them a meal as thanks and offers to fix the SBP. Lady Night takes them to a booth in the back and throws the SBP in a pot of Jollof Rice. After the Boo Hag explains that Tristan has to use stories to finish the fixing process and risk attracting the Shamble Man. She and Junior offer moral support as Tristan convinces the patrons to tell their stories of the iron monster attacks. It works but attracts plat-eyes. She, Lady Night, and Junior herd them to the stage as Tristan uses an app on the SBP to see their story. Soon the Shamble Man attacks and Tristan calls him by his true name, Brer Bear. As a fight breaks out, she is shocked to learn that John Henry is dying and learns of Junior's true identity as Stone Thrower, one of Anansi's sons, as they escape the juke joint. As they fly, the sun rises and she and the others try to tell Tristan that he is not to blame for the current state of Alke. She tells him everyone from MidPass is dealing with trauma and, when Anansi suggests Brer Bear might be being manipulated, he sets course for the Maafa.

She reluctantly flies over the Maafa and urges Tristan to cut it short and leave. They learn that to mask imbued with Uncle Cotton's essence was taken and they narrowly escape when it sends droves of iron monsters after them. As they ask Tristan about their next move, he realizes where Brer Bear's hideout is, MidPass. They fly over what was the Drowned Forest and into what remains of the Tree of Power. They find Mami Wata and Tristan frees her just as the tree starts to implode and the water goddess, with Tristan's help, saves them. As they wonder what to do next, Tristan says he knows where the rogue god is and what his plan is. As they fly, the others introduce themselves and Mami Wata reveals she saw her flying over Nyanza a few times. When they reach the juke joint, they find it abandoned and in ruins. However they soon find Lady Night and a group of warriors from the Ridge. She watches as the boo hag and water goddess joyously embrace each other and are soon joined by the arrival of Keelboat Annie. However seconds later the storm reaches the Golden Crescent and they realize Brer Bear has arrived.

As she and Gum Baby fly the group to the Golden Crescent, Tristan, Mami Wata, Keelboat Annie, and Lady Night imbue a quilt with stories. They find Brer Bear and Nana Strong at the coast and land. She watches as Tristan tries to talk to the rogue god. She, Gum Baby, Keelboat Annie, and Lady Night watch as Tristan and Mami Wata remove Brer Bear's armor and mask. However once he is free of the mask's control the storm continues to grow worse. She and her companions, along with Brer Bear, hide under the keelboat from the storm. She and the others pile on to the keelboat to get to Tristan's world as Alke falls apart. She makes it through, but is separated from the rest. Two days later, Tristan sees a picture of her coming out of a gas station with Junior and Gum Baby in modern clothing on the SBP.

The Cursed Carnival and Other Calamities: New Stories About Mythic Heroes

The Gum Baby Files

When in Jackson, Mississippi, she tells Gum Baby to stop listening to Tristan's message to the displaced Alkeans and scolds her for listening to the message out loud, fearing they would be seen. Gum Baby then rests on Junior's head and the bus they were hiding behind pulls away. Ayanna uses one of Junior's stones to clean sap off her staff as best she can. The three see a group of campers are Junior and Ayanna's age about the enter the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum. As they plot their next move, the counselor, Ms. James, mistakes Ayanna and Junior for campers as Gum Baby hides behind Junior. The teens go with Ms. James as she takes Ayanna's bat and has Junior check in his bag. When they enter the museum, they fail to notice a gray cloaked figure close by. As they get into the elevator, Gum Baby rips herself free from Junior's hair, causing him to yelp and Ms. James takes notice of her. Ayanna says she is a stress relief object, but Ms. James does not allow her to keep Gum Baby for the trip and drops Gum Baby, Ayanna's bat, and Junior's pouch into baggage check in. As Ms. James escorts her companions to the elevator, Gum Baby notices a figure made out of gray cloth get in with them and, with help from Granny Z, she gets out to help them.

However she and Junior are blamed for Gum Baby's mess due to a security guard finding a sap covered stone on her. Ms. Fields takes the teenagers to her office and Gum Baby watches as she scolds the two and says she is looming for their permission slips and will call their parents. She gets a call from Larry, who cannot find the permission slips, and Gum Baby enters to try and save them and that she found the ghost. However they tell her to return to the lost and found before she gets them into more trouble.

They are brought to the exhibit on Ida B. Wells by Ms. Fields and Larry walking to the exhibit with Ayanna and Junior in tow. The ghost appears, visible to everyone, and drapes itself over the curator and security guard. As it stretches towards the printing press to erase Ida B. Wells, Gum Baby makes a replica of Ever's journal and says the names of Evers, Hamer, and Wells. Junior and Ayanna join in and the ghost goes to grab Gum Baby, however it's tendril gets stuck on her and Gum Baby fires a ball of sap at it.

In the lobby, Mr. Clyde wheels the sap covered ghost, believing it to be part of an exibit, as Ms. Fields demands answers from Junior and Ayanna after none of the counselors can varefy if they are campers. Granny Z comes over with Ayanna's bat and Junior's bag and says they are with her, and their parents are coming soon. Ms. Fields accepts this and leaves. Granny Z says she will take them where they need to go and that someone wants to talk to them. Ayanna speaks into her staff and Mami Wata replays, says Tristan is missing.

Tristan Strong Keeps Punching

She is separated from Junior and Gum Baby during a Coffle attack and treads water for hours before being rescued by Memphis Jones. A week later she meets up with Tristan in New Orleans. As she, Tristan, and Memphis head back to the River Queen, she tells Tristan his grandmother that she told them to return to the boat. She then explains how she was separated from Gum Baby and Junior and shows Tristan a mask worn by one of their pursuers. The three make it to the Mississippi and she and Tristan get aboard the River Queen. After returning to his cabin, she hugs him just as Gum Baby arrives with the SBP and teases the two. Gum Baby hands the SBP to Tristan and asks to speak with Ayanna privately.

Later as they pass Old Angola, she and the other's voice their desire to keep going, even the River Queen wants to move forward. However Tristan sees something and, after taking her's and Mami Wata's hands and putting Gum Baby on his head, he gets them to see the ghostly old mansion surrounding the prison as he realizes it is a former plantation. Tendrils dragging spirits into it, including the River Queen. Mami Wata tries and fails to break the ship free as she is ensnared by the tendrils and the others try to free her. Just then they notice a small shack transforming into a monster with King Cotton on the porch. He taunts them as he thanks Tristan for freeing him and giving him the strength he needed in Alke. He introduces the shack monster as Old Angola and leaves to find the Alkeans as Old Angola attacks. Tristan is locked in a state of anger until she snaps him out of it and tells him to help Mami Wata.

They manage to break free and escape. After putting an exhausted Mami Wata in her cabin, Gum Baby steers the boat as she and Tristan inspect the damage. As they do, Tristan comes over to her and she tells him a story about a friend she trained with was lured to his death because of his anger. Tristan promises to keep a leveled head as they go to take the wheel from Gum Baby. Soon they reach a fork in the river and find three steamships, two beached and a third upside down. As they question if it's a trap, they hear a cry for help as Tristan goes to help and falls into a trap set by Patty Roller. After escaping, Tristan tells the others what happened and tells them his theory on what Cotton's plan is, to gather the stories of African Americans where they suffered from the most. After looking at a map, she predicts that Cotton's next target is Fort Pillow north of Memphis, Tennessee. Anansi becomes elated and reveals he has sensed various Alkean signals from Memphis and believes his son is their. As Tristan tries to tell the trickster to not get his hopes up, he scolds Tristan for failing to find Junior and reveals he has put in a request to Nyame to be taken out of Tristan's custody, be given his true form back, and have Tristan removed as anansesem. Mami Wata sadly confirms it and places Tristan on probation until they hear back from the sky god, confines the boy to his cabin, and confiscates the SBP.

After Gum Baby gives Tristan a pep talk, she sails a boat with the three of them to Memphis and they take a taxi into the city. They get out by the Memphis Zoo and see High John flying on Old Familiar. They find the zoo in ruins and see two masked figures in cloaks, Harold and Darla, inspecting birds in a partially destroyed aviary. They realize they are looking for Old Familiar as Gum Baby successfully sets a trap and, after the two are subdued, She and Tristan walk over to question them. However they recognize Tristan and Harold tries to call the police and pin everything on the boy, but Old Familar swoops down and grabs Tristan. Later after High John fades, Tristan picks her and Gum Baby up in an self driving SUV, Old Familiar, and find Thandiwe.

They walk down a hallway as Thandiwe explains she and High John ended up their fleeing Alke and the old woman who owns the facility let them stay rent free if they help out. They emerge on a catwalk overlooking an indoor skate park as Thandiwe explains how she and High John helped get the word out about the place, leading to more run away and troubled children seeking refuge there. A girl hurts herself and the princess of the ridge folk goes to help. When the others arrive the girl notices John, a spirit, despite not possessing an adinkra. They realize the girl, and the others, are in danger if Cotton finds them and they call a meeting. After everyone meets by a bowl, Thandiwe and another girl perform skate tricks as they wait. After everyone is present, Tristan tells them magic is real, however one boy thinks Tristan is crazy until he activates his power and she and Thandiwe show of their items and Gum Baby reveals herself. The kids cheer just as someone asks what is going on. An old woman who Gum Baby addresses as Granny Z appears and sends her and the others to eat as she speaks to Tristan and John alone.

Soon an explosion is heard and they find a group calling themselves the redliners charging in and saying they called the police. Just then Granny Z comes over and orders them to leave. Soon Patty Roller arrives on a talking horse haint, Twennymiles. When Granny demands they leave, the lights go out and the children start screaming. Patty and Twennymiles get away with a child, Chayse, as she, Tristan, Thandiwe, John, and Gum Baby chase after her in Old Familiar. As they follow the haints, they go into a distorted world to follow them. They eventually find themselves at an outlet mall twenty miles outside of Memphis and Tristan remembers the horse from a story his grandmother told him. Everyone has a bad feeling, but Tristan believes they are hiding in one of the stores and he gets out. She and the others, save for John, follow him into a store called Patty Roller's Wig Emporium. She and Thandiwe get out and charge outback with Old Familiar. They arrive and find Tristan and Gum Baby fighting Breakers. Soon after they arrive the Breakers disburse and the group finds Gum Baby motionless.

They drive north in silence and meet up with Mami Wata, Nyame, and Keelboat Annie aboard the River Queen. Tristan waits outside a room as she and the others talk. When she exits, she silently passes by Tristan. The River Queen comes to an abrupt holt near St. Louis as she tells them to come outside. They head to the bow to see half a dozen ships occupied by redliners, who demand they handover Tristan quickly as they need to move. The gods stand in front of the boy as he sneaks away. As he looks for a lifeboat, Ayanna spots him and says they are friends and she will help him. Thandiwe arrives and teases the two as she shows them a new raft. The three and John skirt around the Illinois side of the river as they struggle to think of their next move. When Tristan reveals he brought Gum Baby and Tristan and the girls hug, he thinks he knows where Cotton is and says John can help. Tristan tells her and Thandiwe John's story as he subconsciously takes control of the raft and flies them to the middle of nowhere. They use Gum Baby's phone to find that they are over a place called National City, but only see fields. After the girls question how John could find Cotton, Tristan realizes Cotton is hiding them in a different realm. The girls take Tristan's hands and they see a city being built out in fire. They find the train station and discover the missing children with pieces of Alke in them being herded on to a train. They spot Old Angola, having almost tripled in size, as they plot their next move. After deciding to take out the plantation monster, John stands up. They evade the plantation monster to the best of their abilities as the train with the spirits departs. Thinking quickly, Tristan tries to read the stories of all the persecuted at one. He succeeds for the most part, but becomes a target for Old Angola. The plantation monster attacks the raft and Tristan falls off.

She and Thandiwe search for hours but find no trace of Tristan before returning to the River Queen. Later the other gods come to the river boat as Tristan calls to tell them he is on a train and found Junior, but that King Cotton has his bracelet. The gods panic as she asks Tristan for a location, he reports that they are heading to Chicago. She and Thandiwe meet up with Tristan, John, and Junior and they figure out a plan to stop Old Angola. They head to Oakland Beach as she realizes that all their final battles have happened on a beach, when a group of Redliners blocks them. They tell the children to turn around as members of Rolling Thunder and residents of Bronzeville come out and rally against the Redliners. As the hate group retreats, Tristan and the others advice, but he gives John High John's pouch and tells him to stay behind. When the four get close enough, they see King Cotton syphoning energy from the living plantation as Patty Roller and Twennymiles watch. Cotton then acknowledges Tristan and company.

She keeps Tristan calm as the haint taunts them and fights him with Thandiwe and Junior as civilians run away. They strike to no avail as Cotton goes to grab Tristan, fortunately John Henry appears and blocks the haint. Cotton attacks John Henry with little success as she and her friends regroup. They watch as Cotton almost over powers the steel driving man and help get civilians away safely. Just then the other gods arrive and box Cotton in, however Tristan realizes it is a trap and warns the gods to late as Patty Roller leads hundreds of breakers into battle against the gods. She, Thandiwe, Tristan, and Junior make it to the River Queen and watch as the gods fight King Cotton's forces. The gods put up a fight but soon grow tired. As the others want to help the gods, Tristan refuses. The others berate his decision until he says they should not fight King Cotton, but rather Old Angola. As the others ask how he plans to sneak up to the moving plantation, Tristan points to the sky as Old Familiar flies up to them with Brer Bear, Brer Rabbit, Anansi, who is freed from the SBP, and a fourth passenger on his back. As Junior stairs at his father and the girls discuss a sneak attack, Tristan jumps into the beach and towards Old Angola. She watches a he takes out both the living plantation and King Cotton.

After the battle, she and the others congratulate Tristan as he exits the ruble that was Old Angola. She, Thandiwe, and Junior are given an apartment down the street from Tristan's, paid for by Granny Z, and the four start school together. A month after the incident, upon arriving in home room, they learn their teacher, Mr. Tyson, has moved to Delaware and their new teacher, Mr. Kwaku will be in shortly. When Mr. Kwaku arrives, the four of them, especially Junior, are surprised to learn he is Anansi.

Appearance

Ayanna is a round, short girl with honey-brown skin who is around Tristan's age, maybe a year older. When he first meets her, she has dark hair styled in two thick braids that are pulled behind her neck, and wears gold snake bangles curling around her arm, a sleeveless gold tank top, black pants with gold trim that stop mid-calf, and brown sandals with beaded straps that tie around her ankles. Later, after the climactic fight, she wears her hair half-braided and half curly afro. 

Personality

Ayanna is shown to be a cautious but caring person. She care for the well-being of her people and is willing to do anything to help them.

Abilities

• Polearmsmanship: Ayanna is skilled with a staff.