Aelia Flameheart

Aelia quo Flammeus
Gender	Female
Race	Au Ra
Clan	Garlean
Citizenship	Garlemald
Age	37
Marital Status	Single
Occupation	Imperial Soldier
Orientation	Married to her work

"The mercy of the Empire does not extend to you filthy eikon worshipers."

Basic Info

LIKES ■ Warm showers ■ The Empire ■ Weapons

DISLIKES ■ Incompetency ■ Morning drills ■ Technophobes

OTHER ■ Alignment: Lawful Evil ■ Duties: Overseeing and issuing orders to underlings ■ Phobias: Needles, Flan, Mammets.

Appearance & Personality

Standing at between 5'1" and 5'3" (an above average height for an Auri female), Aelia could at first glance be mistaken for a child, but paying closer attention to her facial features one might be able to make out a few lingering signs of maturity - the occasional wrinkle, skin tight in some places around the scalp, a deeper voice - that demarcates her true age. Her skin is a tanned brown, natural from birth, and her hair a deep amber colour which is cut into a messy bob with a long fringe. Aelia's eyes are steel gray, and deep blemishes of black circles under her eyes are the result of her genetics, though without knowing otherwise could be mistaken for a sign of exhaustion.

Being an Auri woman, Aelia shows the scales and horns that are distinctive of her race, and they are a soft cream in colour, the horns curled and pointed towards her mouth. A short and sharp-looking tail protrudes from her rear, and like other Au Ra, it is capable of moving both consciously and unconsciously.

Aelia is usually, if not always, seen wearing the traditional Garlean Soldier uniform. Although her rank grants her allowance of the more elaborate and imposing suit of armour worn by other centurions, Aelia spends more time polishing than actually wearing it, preferring to keep it locked away for more ceremonious occasions.

Living up to her name, Aelia quo Flammeus has a fiery temper and a short fuse, earning her the name of Aelia Flameheart by those not native to the empire. Stubborn and ruthless, she punishes any who disappoint her - and due to her high standards, this is more often than not everyone who crosses her. Very early on upon meeting her, most Garlean soldiers have learnt that her appearance is nothing to be mocked, as the Auri woman packs a punch, and even her superiors are aware of the rage she unleashes upon her subordinates. Due to this, being assigned to the same Castrum as Aelia has become something of a punishment for new soldiers, or for soldiers who have failed their duties in some way.

Loyalty is Aelia's strongest quality, and while she is renowned for dealing merciless punishment for failure, she rewards those who exceed in their duties almost as fervently. As a result of this, she knows who to rely on for certain jobs, and trusts them explicitly (until they fail and are replaced with someone else). Indeed, any who are able to impress the Auri woman tend to be firm loyalists of the Empire, and many become enthralled by Aelia's commitment to Garlemald, willing to lay down their lives if it means carrying out her orders.

History

Most of this is a work in progress, made from lore and information gathered from any available sources as of patch 3.0.

I. Life in the tribe

Aelia was born Yoake Sukairīdā in 1540 to her mother, , who were living a nomadic existence on the edge of the borders of Garlemald. Her mother died at childbirth, after an already unfortunate stillbirth two years before. Her father was a sky-watcher - one who would read the clouds to predict the weather.

As a young girl, she would often watch the farmers of the tribe herd their animals, and lived a relatively lazy life. Though she was made to work once of age (at ten), and spent many of the hours of the day learning her family trade of sky-watching, there was very little excitement in her days. The only difficulty that Aelia grew up with was the beatings that she would often receive from her father. This began when she was eight, and continued every year, and every week, and every day. The beatings were not so severe as to stop Aelia from going about her daily life, but they would often give her stomach problems and damaged her stamina.

Though the tribe was mostly peaceful, the Empire came through the lands one day, aiming to march across their own borders to other lands. Even though the tribe proved little threat, the people were pacified and subjugated, with many of the tribes-men and women being conscripted. Aelia's father remained behind, to act as an adviser and teacher of his arts to the centurions and optio that were part of the cohort passing through. Her father disliked the Empire's desires, and formed a resistance faction in secret. They would meet under every other moon, and Aelia was brought along to the meetings, even though she remained silent, simply because her father wished to keep her in his sights at all times.

Even with the Empire occupying the tribe's lands, and imperials in daily contact with the tribe-folk, Aelia's beatings continued out of view of the occupying forces. After less than a month of attending secret meetings, living with imperials, being beaten, Aelia confided in one of the imperial officers she had befriended in a way. Aelia's father, and those who were plotting with him, were rounded up and executed. The girl shed no tears for her dead father.

Aelia's life began to improve; her stomach pains and wounded lungs slowly began to heal, and the Auri girl felt full of life and energy. Even though the occupying Garleans were swift in their subjugation of the tribe, and spared no suffering to those who tried to resist, they were kindly towards some like Aelia, who showed no resistance. Over time, many of the Garleans came to like Aelia's company among them, and she would start serving them meals and carrying messages. Deciding to cast her old life away, Aelia stopped using her birth name of Yoake Sukairīdā, and became Aelia aan Flammeus. With permission from the senior soldiers in area, she was escorted to Garlemald itself.

II. Raised by the Empire

Aelia aan Flammeus's life as a soldier begins in Garlemald, with her conscription and training starting less than a month after arriving. Seeing the sights of the capital - with buildings that reached up to the skies, magitek-powered objects at nearly every street corner, and the flags that hung proud from every building, caused Aelia's heart to swell with pride. She wanted to spread such marvels to the rest of the world, and inspire the people of the land to live as comfortably as those in Garlemald.

This is not to say Garlemald didn't have a darker side. Aelia was aware of the division between the wealthy and the poor, and saw first-hand the corruption of power in those who held a monopoly on some of the more valuable resources within the Empire. Though Aelia once thought to confront this evil, as she journeyed deeper into the mires of vice she saw things that horrified her, and quickly turned tail, trying to forget that which she saw. Her idealism crushed, she instead turned her mind to training harder, wishing to rise to a position where she could ensure the lands conquered by the Empire would remain free from the grasp of such evils - then she would turn her attention once again to Garlemald.

Aelia was offered several positions as an Optio at different front-line campaigns, but she always refused. As the requests became more numerous and pushy, Aelia's temper grew shorter for each one, until a release of anger on one of the messengers put a firm stop to any such offers coming ever again. This changed Aelia's reputation in several ways, and high-ranking officers kept her under a close watch for many years, during which she was not allowed to leave for any missions or campaigns.

III. The Empire grows

The Empire's ambitions grew loftier over time, and soon had all of Hydaelyn in its sights. Aelia joined many frontline conflicts against Garlemald's neighboring regions, and quickly became renowned as a fierce and loyal soldier.

IV. Campaign into Eorzea

In an overwhelming victory, Garlemald lay waste to Ala Mhigo. This was to be the first of many victories, and the path to a swift conquest of Eorzea, but then something happened that none predicted - the emergence of primals and destruction of the Empire's flagship Agrius.

V. Life in the castrum

After the chaos that ensued following Nael van Darnus's unleashing of Bahamut upon Eorzea, and the sacrifice of Louisoix Leveilleur, the Empire needed time to reevaluate its offensive strategy. To make matters worse, a small battle of succession in the homeland meant that Gaius van Baelsar was left without orders. Choosing his own path of victory, he began to establish outposts all over Eorzea to gather information and prepare for his checkmate.

All seemed nearly at an end once Ultima Weapon's power brought fear to the city-states. In a surprise counter-offensive, a force of free adventurers dealt a series of crippling blows to the Empire's occupying forces, culminating in the destruction of Castrum Meridianum , Ultima Weapon, and a large number of imperial supplies.

Combat

Trained from a young age by the Empire, Aelia employs a mix of traditional gladiatorial arts with Garlean style. Normally seen wielding a Garlean standard issue sword and shield, there is nothing exceptional or noteworthy about her equipment, though all Garlean equipment is far superior to anything made in Eorzea.

Her armour is strong and lightweight, with the fiber able to block a surprising amount of damage, and resistant to tear and piercing strikes.

Miscellaneous

RUMORS Some of these rumors are untrue or are greatly exaggerated. Please feel free to add your own rumors under PC! ◢ Common Rumors (Easily overheard) ■ "No! I...I don't want to talk about the centurion! She'll hear me!" ■ "There is nobody more committed to the cause than Quo Flammeus." ■ "That one? We call her 'Flameheart', Gods be with you if you attack any Castrum with her in it, adventurer." ◢ Moderate Rumors (Moderately difficult to overhear) ■ "Some say she takes orders from the Emperor himself..." ■ "You seen those tired looking eyes and those dark circles under them? She must push herself too much." ■ "I don't see why we need to rely on Allagan technology. All we should do is point Quo Flammeus at the eikons and be done with it." ◢ Rare Rumors (Very difficult or rarely overheard) ■ "Some say she took a leave of absence to look for a husband, but came back to the army two years later twice as angry! Wonder what happened in that time..." ■ "When she gets really angry, her tail quivers a bit and then stays still...it's how you know when to stop spouting excuses and get ready to be beaten." ■ "For someone on the front lines, she really seems to hate fighting, like, proper fighting." ◢ PC Rumors (What other characters are saying about Aelia) ■ ((Add your own here as you meet her!))

RELATIONS ♥ Romantic Interest ♥ Platonic Love ♥ Sexual Desire ● Good Standing ● Neutral Standing ● Poor Standing ● Felix Drake - Aelia finds this man insufferable. Which doesn't mean she doesn't like him, but Felix - like most - walks the tightrope of 'almost cheeky enough to get his face punched in.' ● Eva cassel - A woman as stubborn and proud as Aelia herself, the Auri woman can't help but despise this midlander for her ruthlessness and cruelty. In other words, she likes her.

Character Inspirations & Notes

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