Kendra Kandlestar’s mother was named Kayla Kandlestar. She disappeared, along with Kendra’s father and brother, in the world beyond the magic curtain of Een, when Kendra was just a baby.

Kayla led a life not all that different from Kendra. She was born as Gayla Griffinskitch and, at the age of twelve, was apprenticed to study as a wizard under her brother, Gregor Griffinskitch. Gayla was significantly younger than Gregor, and their relationship was often more like a father and daughter. Gayla was very headstrong and she often argued with her brother.

After her apprenticeship finished, Gayla married Krimson Kandlestar and, as is the custom with Eens, changed her name to match his. This only increased the divide between Kayla and her brother; he was furious with her decision, thinking that she should have kept the Griffinskitch name.

Kayla and Krimson had two children, Kiro and Kendra. Kayla became a very powerful sorceress in her own right, though not entirely a popular one in the Land of Een. She had very strong ideas about the history of Een. She thought Eens should explore the outside world, whereas most Eens preferred to hide and keep safe behind the magic curtain. Winter Woodsong, the Eldest of the Elders, encouraged Kayla’s inquisitive mind, but others on the Council of Elders, such as Burdock Brown, despised the sorceress for her brash, untraditional behavior.

Kayla’s brother also felt that she was too reckless and wild in her beliefs and the two continued to have a tempestuous relationship. Finally, after a heated argument with Gregor, Kayla took her family and disappeared into the wilds of the outside world.