Mana Cetyri

Error creating thumbnail: File missing  Mana Cetyri
Error creating thumbnail: File missing
Gender	Female
Race	Miqo'te
Clan	Keepers of the Moon
Citizenship	Gridania
Nameday	7th Sun of the Third Astral Moon
Patron Deity	Norphica
Alignment	Lawful Good
Primary Class	Archer

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Basic Info

Mana is a young Miqo'te Archer from a small tribe of Keepers just outside Gridania. She is a bright and somewhat childlike adventurer, who always tries to see the good in people. She has only recently ventured outside of the Shroud to see the world - and it shows. With her timid manner and curious eyes, her lack of experience is painfully obvious. But while Mana tends to make simple mistakes, she is quick to learn and earnest in her desire to study everything about everything. The only thing more important to her than learning is helping people.

History

Mana was born to a devoted couple who had given up their polyamorous culture to commit to one another. Several years prior, her father had been a breeder for the tribe, and had sired a daughter with another of the females. She was Mana’s sister, Nema.

The girls were raised in the Black Shroud, just outside Gridania. Among a small Keeper tribe of five families, Mana and Nema grew up under the care of their respective mothers. While Nema was always a problem child, prone to tantrums and selfish demands, Mana was a ray of sunshine. Because of her bright, curious nature and fragile stature she was given more attention from the mothers of the tribe. Nema always resented her for this. The youngest sister was a daydreamer, a wanderer, an artistic soul. She sought the answers to questions ordinary children did not think to ask. She often got lost in the woods – following a butterfly here, or counting the trees there – and Nema would invariably be sent out to look for her. The tribe knew that Mana’s curiosity meant she was destined to leave the Shroud someday.

Although it was unusual in their tribe for a male to take an active role in the raising of his daughter, Mana’s father was her best friend and her hero. When her mother passed away shortly before her coming-of-age celebration, Mana was able to take comfort in her father – and he in her. She was also welcomed into the warm embrace of all of the tribe’s elder females, who communally accepted her as a daughter.

Mana’s first love was a bittersweet story. A boy in her tribe, Dren'a, whom she grew up alongside and always secretly admired, was selected at an early age to be a breeder. Because of his striking beauty, strong physique, and vibrant health, he was a favorite among the childbearing females of the Keeper tribe. Mana could accept that wishing for a monogamous relationship with Dren'a was selfish, since the tribe needed him to breed and thrive. But all the logic in the world did not soothe her heartache for him.

As her close friend, Dren'a came to confide in her that he was unhappy being a breeder – that he believed in “one true love”, despite how foolish it sounded. Mana saw reason to hope. She gave her virginity to Dren'a, believing they could be together forever. But her first time was nothing like what she had expected. Before they could finish, Dren'a broke down and told her in tears that he did not desire females at all. He was in love with a Hyur boy from the nearby city-state of Gridania, and they had spoken of a fairytale in which they could someday run away together.

Mana was heartbroken. But she realised that Dren'a’s pain mattered more than her own. That very night, she carried a message to Gridania to Dren'a’s lover and helped arrange for them to elope together. Her dear friend and first love cried when he saw the Hyur boy waiting for him outside the camp. He embraced Mana with tearful thanks and disappeared into the night with his love. Mana never saw him again.

As was her nature, Mana could never lie to the tribe mothers. She confessed what she had done as soon as Dren'a was safely away. There was a great deal of disappointment at the loss of their finest breeder, and needless to say, some anger at Mana. The girl hated to disappoint her family, but knew in her heart that doing the right thing was more important than her reputation. It strengthened her resolve when her father took her side and told her that he was proud of what she’d done.

The atmosphere changed beneath the Shroud in the following weeks. Mana was made to feel like a traitor. Her sister Nema had long since left the tribe in pursuit of independence, and now that her only friend was gone her father was all she had. Tragically, it was not long before he, too, was gone. The sudden passing of her father was the final push Mana needed to leave the tribe behind and venture out into the world. Her childhood was over. It was time for her to begin her life.