Background[]
When Gillian's mother, Luna Asturias, was pregnant with Gillian and Jax Asturias, she became sick and her Aura would deplete constantly. At the time, the same would happen with Jax. It was thought to be a condition until they realized Gillian’s Semblance had been draining them. An emergency procedure was needed to save Jax from being drained, and Luna died in the process.
When Gillian and Jax were kids, their father, Finn Asturias, told them stories of Malik the Sunderer, the first king of Vacuo from 1000 years ago. He would explain they are the ancestors of Malik, as the Asturias family shared a crown-shaped birthmark, and he and Gillian were the first twins of the family to share the claim to king and queen, as their father claimed they were both born with the birthmark.
Gillian discovered her Semblance in her childhood, and was trained to use it by her father. Due to his low Aura, Jax would have to be supplied strength by Gillian, and as such became close to her through that.
When Gillian decided to be a Huntress and applied to Shade Academy, he followed her and applied as well, forming a team with Argento Pocoron and Rosa Schwein. In the academy, Gillian would become the top of her class, and strike a bond with Carmine Esclados, who would become convinced she was meant to rule and teased her with the nickname "Queenie."
Over time, Jax would grow arrogant despite being a weak fighter, and would be expelled from Shade Academy, convincing his team to follow suit. The group would form The Crown, with the goal of restoring the monarchy with Jax as queen and king. The Crown would hire Carmine and Bertilak Celadon, as well as others, to use their powerful Semblances to build an army to pulverize Shade and take over.
After the Fall of Beacon, Gillian prepared files on powerful students, including information on Team CFVY. She would also conduct experiments on the Grimm, attempting to give them her Aura to see what would happen, only to find that it would drain Aura from her instead of accepting it.
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RWBY: After the Fall[]
During RWBY: After the Fall, Gillian and Jax would order Carmine and Bertilak to capture the Caspians, only for them to fail.
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RWBY: Before the Dawn[]
In RWBY: Before the Dawn, as The Crown continues to capture people, Jax uses his mind control to dominate them entirely.
Gillian situates herself in the Crown Bunker, where she prepares for the incoming attack on Vacuo with Rosa Schwein. Whilst investigating The Crown, Team ROSC, along with Fox Alistair, Octavia Ember, and Sage Ayana, discover Gillian and Rosa in the bunker, talking about their war. Gillian nearly snaps when Rosa uses a Scroll in front of her, though her partner retorts they need to use a Scroll to get by.
As Gillian steps up from her throne, she enters a room filled with sleeping people, draining their Aura for herself. As the group realizes her Semblance, they also sense Bertilak in the room amongst the bodies. Gillian tells Rosa to bring her army into the room, as a large group of Crownsmen enter, alongside Argento.
After Umber Gorgoneion and Carmine capture Yatsuhashi Daichi, Jax puts him under mind control and declares they're about to launch their long-awaited attack. Gillian and Rosa protest, but are force into helping launch it.
During the attack, Jax orders Gillian and Carmine to stay at The Crown's bunker, to her dismay. Impatient, the two decide to make their way to Vacuo so that Gillian could be seen by the people. Before they can go, however, the two are impeded by Velvet Scarlatina, and Octavia Ember, who battle Carmine. Gillian and her friend attempt to escape, but come across a large natural fire Dust crystal. Octavia uses the Dust to her advantage, blowing up the bunker and possibly killing Carmine. Gillian, however, manages to escape and go to Vacuo.
As the Battle of Shade wages, Gillian arrives soon after the first wave of the Grimm, being able to properly control the battlefield with her Semblance. Coco Adel and Scarlet David fight Gillian, the former of which points out that Gillian's birthmark looks more like a brand, despite her father's claim that she was born with it. Coco asks if Finn branded her or if she had done it to herself - Gillian examines the mark following this, suggesting the former. When more Grimm arrive, Gillian, still distracted by the exchange, is picked up into the air by a Ravager. She manages to escape its grasp, only to find another wave of Grimm coming into the city.
While the fight continues, she and other Crownsmen hear a message from Fox, who tells them the Grimm are attracted to Aura, especially powerful ones. She realizes that he means that the Grimm are now only targeting the Crownsmen, who had super-powered Aura and as such were more vulnerable to being magnets. She is then shocked to hear Sun Wukong's message about uniting against The Crown, revealing their abductions and tyranny, which causes the citizens to unit against the Crownsmen as the organization begins to fall.
Low on Aura, Gillian pleads with Jax to escape with her, but he insists on dying with his creation. Gillian attempts to drain his Aura as a motivator, but he uses his Semblance to force her to give him more strength. Jax is then tackled by Yatsuhashi, and the two wrestle both physically and through their Semblances. Gillian decides to aid Yatsuhashi, transferring Jax's Aura to him, and the Huntsman uses his Semblance to wipe Jax completely clean of all his memories, lobotomizing Jax and leaving him in a vegetative state. Following this, Gillian and the rest of the loyal Crown members are arrested, and incarcerated in the city.
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Volume 9[]
In the Volume 9 Bonus Ending Animatic, Gillian and Jax are shown to be recruited by Tyrian Callows and Mercury Black in order to restore Salem's strength of numbers, having been broken out of prison. Jax has seemingly recovered from his incident with Yatsuhashi, and is happy to reunite with his sibling.
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