Anara Starsong

A well-known character who will appear in-game at launch, Anara is a noblewoman, the youngest daughter of a warm and caring Duke. She was to be a future countess till she acquired seer-like gifts that she never asked for, gifts that have brought more grief to her life than joy. Chased from her home, losing everything, and taken in by a church that sees her ability to see the future as a gift. But in reality, she can't speak of the doom she sees in the future, unless she wishes to be condemned by society. She's destined to walk a lonely path to save the world from the darkness that she sees in the future, and she can't tell anyone...

Biography
At the tender age of six she started having strange nightmares that eventually turned into waking dreams. Initially, her family just thought she had an active imagination, but before long they realized she was having memories and flashbacks. Memories… that were not her own.

While they were able to hide her gift for a time, when she was eleven years old her Talent became public knowledge. She foresaw something that had not yet come to pass and, while she and her family were respected in the community, she was immediately accused of sorcery and her family had no choice but to send her away.

They had planned to send her to live with a cousin, but before that could happen they were approached by an organization that called themselves the Unseen University. Part school, part church, they claimed they could teach Anara more about her abilities and keep her safe. And so, at just eleven years old Anara left home and was taken to live within the cloistered cathedral that can only been seen by those who have the gift. The only way to find the Unseen University, is to be invited.

In addition to the difficulty in finding the University, anonymity is used to help protect the identity of its members. Upon entering for the first time they give you a new name in a formal ceremony. The name is often based upon your specific Talent or magical aptitude. In Anara’s case, they asked her to describe her gift, and what her abilities were. She said she could read the stars. That they twinkled in the sky and danced around like musical notes on a sheet of paper. Of course, she would learn later her gift was so much more than that. But as a result of her description, they named her Anara Starsong.

Anara lived for several more years inside the quiet, cloistered halls of the Unseen University. As she got older, her power began to grow. She realized that she could “see” both back into the past, as well as into the future. And her prophetic visions were never wrong. Once she realized this she began keeping a set of scribing tools by her at all times, as she couldn’t control when her visions occurred.

When she would awaken from her day-time dream she would write down all that she saw in a set of journals. Those who knew her well within the University took to calling her “The Seer”. Those who did not saw only the pages and books she carried around with her. Partially in jest, partially to be cruel, they began calling her the Keeper of Chronicles. They were not wrong.

Over the years Anara wrote down much that was not yet known about the past, and many things that had not yet come to pass.

While her time at the Unseen University was enjoyable, if a bit lonely, it wouldn’t last. When she was 21 years old she was struck down with a sudden vision while working in the library. It was unlike any vision she had seen before. It felt more like a message than a vision…. a warning. Was someone, or something, trying to communicate with her?

What she saw scared her. She saw an ancient being in a distant, unfamiliar place, awakened from their slumber by a Child of Mann… Then the scene flashed before her eyes and she saw destruction, chaos, the entire world turning to the darkness.

When she awoke, her path was clear. Still young and naïve, after having grown up in the quiet halls of the Unseen University, and unsure of her final destination, she gathered her belongings and the sizeable fortune left by her family and she left the relative safety and comfort of her childhood.

Today, nobody knows exactly where Anara is. But it’s said she wanders the lands, posing as a scribe or lore master, visiting villages, courts, towns, and castles, searching for the person in her vision who would one day bring about the darkness.

Quotes
Ancient Relic "There is rumor of an ancient relic handed down by the Antepyrovians that suspends the normal aging process. But what length would the Children of Mann go to, to obtain such an object? Would anyone be safe wearing something so coveted?"

Souls "It’s believed that when someone dies their soul returns to a great library called the Akashic Records. The library is filled with books and scrolls containing all of the deeds of every life a soul has lived. It’s in these chambers that a soul can read over their past lives and learn from their mistakes in preparation for their next life. It’s also said that every soul is born with a purpose. That they choose the precise time and place in which to be born so they can learn the lessons needed to attain enlightenment."

Akashic Records "Some people say that when your body dies, your soul returns to a great library called the Akashic Records. That within its halls are row upon rows of cloistered chambers each filled with books and scrolls containing all the deeds of every life you've lived. It's believed that within its chambers a soul can read over their past lives and learn from their mistakes in preparation for their next life. It's also said that every soul is born with a purpose, that they choose a precise time and place in which to be born so they can learn the lessons needed to attain enlightenment. If that's true, then I choose this life, my curse is my sacrifice and at the same time is my gift to the world but while my wyrd is one of loneliness, I will not relent, I will do what must be done to prevent the Awakening! It was Mann-kind who sealed away the ancients and it will be Mann-kind who releases them. Through our own ignorance we will set them free upon the world once more, and it has already begun, I have foreseen it. So I beseech you, if you are one of my Qin, a follower of the light, or a Virtorian who uploads the virtues we fought so desperately for. Then now is the time. Return to us Elyrian! Come now!"