Anstarra Silverain

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Anstarra Silverain
A starry night.
Harbinger of the Dawn
Gender	Female
Race	Miqo'te
Clan	Seeker of the Sun
Citizenship	Gridania
Tribe	Lynx ('She')
Birth Name	X'anista (told to no one)

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Character

General

This is the tale of a girl, grown from a savage tribal upbringing into an upstanding patriot of the Alliance. Her existence is dualistic, between the happy, normal(ish) life she has with the Harbingers of the Dawn, and her second life as an adventurer, monster-hunter, dungeon-delver, and all-around unsung hero. Which is how she likes it: unsung. To most people, she's just a pretty girl who's pretty good with a lance.. or bow.. or blade.. or book.. or turn of phrase. Whatever the day calls for.

Appearance

Anstarra stands somewhat on the short side for female miqo'te.. which of course puts her far beneath most midlander hyurs, though she carries herself like someone bigger. She has full, sensuous lips, pale green eyes and the blue-marked white hair characteristic of her sept of the Lynx tribe (when it's not dyed, that is). She has been described as beautiful, a trait which has alternately cursed and blessed her existence.

Though she moves with supple grace and lightness of step, Anstarra is somewhat heavier than she appears; this is owed to a dense, high-grade musculature that renders her far stronger than her appearance would suggest (though she DOES look athletic and toned, one would not suspect what her muscles can do, until one touches them), comparable in power to a male roegadyn of similar athletic propensity. This trait is a genetic one, possessed of all members of the Falling Stars sept.

Behavior

People's first impressions of Star tend to be positive. She has a pleasant, welcoming demeanor, open to discussion on a broad variety of topics. If one doesn't look too deeply, she can come off as a dilettante, willing to go along with whatever is happening, to joke and smile and flatter as the situation requires. Among closer friends and acquaintances, one can begin to glean a deeper, more complex picture. She has a startlingly deep mind, and is always interested in learning more about the world.

One thing that does not change between acquaintances and close friends; she is flirty. A touch here, a smile there, a brush of the tail... she loves physical contact, and getting people to like her for her body. There is, in her mind, a distinction between simple sex and true intimacy. Most will never know the latter, with her; as for the former, well... if her interest is piqued, if someone seems particularly deserving and shows interest... who knows what can happen?

Anstarra likes to observe, and get to know people. Of late she's even taken to writing notes, observations on happenings and people around her. As a result, she has a reputation for being bookish, which amuses her privately, and she does little to dispel it. Some might call her devious, but to her mind it is simply a form of playfulness; after all, if someone really wanted to know what she was like, they could just ask. In the meantime she lets them keep their assumptions, as she makes her own.

Combat

General

Anstarra lives and fights with spear in hand, or at least she used to. Her tribal sept's weapon of choice, the short spear, was the only thing she brought with her when she left home, other than the clothes on her back. As such, she is very much at ease with it, and with any other polearm; she is rarely seen without one. Tribal proclivities aside, the spear suits her temperament, as did the training of the Gridanian Lancers' Guild, once she joined it: direct, unhesitating, focused. She has always been a prodigy with the weapon, and is ready to draw in an eyeblink, to defend her friends or her cause.

She moves lightly, but hits hard. Very few unnecessary flourishes; if she's fighting to kill, she's deadly serious. If it's a spar, she will likely be grinning; she loves a good challenge, the exchange of blows, the dance and flow of weapons and muscles. There is something beautiful about her when she fights, as if she has become more complete in some way.

In recent days, however, Anstarra has not been seen with a spear. Not since returning from her disappearance. Instead, it is more common to spy her training with bow, or fist weapon, or even sporting an arcanist's grimoire (though this might just be her notebook). She makes no claims at excellence with these weapons, though her natural abilities and a lifetime of physical training render her a formidable combatant all the same. As of yet she has offered no explanation for the absence of the weapon which so defined her life.

Serious

Though it is known that Anstarra graduated from being a mere Lancer to learning the ways of the Dragoon, few know the extent to which she perfected her art. To wit, she does not fight with all her skill, most of the time. When she does, against foes of true evil or the deadly beasts of the dungeons she explores, she becomes a whirling dervish of destruction; blows almost too quick to follow, landing like bolts of lightning among her foes. A battle between her and one of comparable skill is a wonder and a terror to behold.

It is yet unknown as to whether Anstarra still turns to her spear in dire straits. Even for her frontier duties at the Maelstrom's behest, she wields the bow, at least publicly.

Tendencies

Likes

• Fish, red meats, rich sauces, sweets (particularly chocolate), alcohol.
• Sunrises, strong wind, lightning, dappled shadows on clear water, pure cold weather, snow.
• Physical activities, such a sparring, climbing, swimming, athletics, and sex. Learning new things.

Dislikes

• Raw meats, too-spicy food, seafood which isn't fish, tepid drinks (she prefers very cold or very hot).
• Rain, dull and overcast weather, too much sun when it's particularly hot, humidity.
• Boredom, discussions which spiral in a circle, threats to her friends, condescension, hypocrisy.

Hobbies/Talents

• Physical activities as a whole come to her easily and satisfy certain instinctive desires to move, and do.
• She loves learning; her education was stunted as a tribal child, and her mind absorbs new content like a sponge. Magic in particular fascinates her, and aether sciences as a whole.
• Social interaction. Anstarra has studied and since adopted many noble mannerisms, and can easily integrate with high society. She can also dress down and slum it on the docks, but has not had reason to do so for some time.

Other

• Anstarra is a Lieutenant with the Maelstrom. She earned her officer's commission for acts of heroism and leadership during the assault on Castrum Meridianum by the Alliance. Her duties sometimes weigh heavily on her, but she is loyal to the Alliance. {Essentially, when I am off at work, so is she~}
• She never speaks of her childhood and family, except to a very select few intimates.
• Anstarra relishes actual combat, but despises senseless conflict, especially among fellows. She has nothing but disdain for those who would betray or work against their comrades for their own interests. This disdain can translate into violence. She does not consider physical altercations to be a sign of deep wounds festering over; rather she perceives an almost purgative role in simple brawling, after which problems can be set aside.

Relationships

Family

Anstarra comes from a sept with what are considered 'traditional' values among tribal Seeker of the Sun miqo'te (strong patriarchal bend aside); as such, her father was a Nunh, and she has a fair number of brothers and sisters, both younger and older than her. Though her sire was prolific, the sept's brutal customs combine with nature's own hazards, keeping the population relatively stable.

Anstarra does not talk about her family.

There are good reasons for this, foremost being that she hates them all and would love nothing more than to see her whole sept fall into a volcanic rent. She also doesn't want anyone to go looking for them; not only would this possibly lead them back to her, but the world does not need more Falling Stars miqo'te wandering around, in Anstarra's opinion.

At this time, both her parents are dead, and the only sibling whose existence she can be sure of is X'zarann Silverfall. Her one older brother, and now technically her Nunh. She wants as little as possible to do with him, despite him being perhaps the only living being who could explain her true heritage. He, on the other hand, sees her as his destined mate, the perfect female upon which to father a dynasty that will last until the end of days. Anstarra would gladly slit his throat, but she feels she owes him a debt; he publicly murdered their father, and enabled her flight from the sept in the chaos that followed.

What she considers her true family are the hyur couple and their son who found and adopted her, a year after her escape. Living deep in the Shroud, in harmony with the elements, they eke out a living as herbalists of some small repute. Among Anstarra's happiest years were those spent with them; she still visits from time to time, and they welcome her home. Still, this connection she keeps private; she tells herself it's for their protection from her old sept, and while this is true, some part of her also yearns to keep this one part of her past pristine and untouched by the world.

Friends

The Harbingers of the Dawn, she collectively considers to be friends (and in a sense her true family). She has befriended numerous interesting individuals within and without their ranks.

{This section is still under construction. Feel free to add your name, I'll toss on a comment sometime~}

• Barbarccia Valadis, the woman who complicated her life immensely.

• Faye Covington, a big sister of sorts, and symbol of nobility.

• Jihl Wilzuun, a sweet girl who salves her, and whom she is protective of.

• Lan Darklyn, a fellow in arms, and ally.

• Lost River, a warrior with a troubled history.

• Mimiru Miru, a onetime lover, now tentative friend.

• Ophelia Rainteau, a onetime lover and now friend.

• Val Nunh, a comrade in devotion, and fellow warrior.

• Verad Bellveil, a dubious duskwight of not-unconsiderable charm.

Enemies

Anstarra doesn't count many SPECIFIC enemies to her name. In fact, the only one she could name would be her brother.

• X'zarann Silverfall, her Nunh, who had her kidnapped by cultists and subjected to strange aetherial experiments. He has his own agenda, to be sure, though if it involves dragging her kicking and screaming back to the tribe he hasn't shown it yet. Though he unsettles her, and she considers him a threat, Anstarra is unaware of his role in her kidnapping and as such has no CONCRETE reason to stab him should he show his face. That may yet change.

Beyond this, she considers several organizations or states to be her enemies, as do most good people of Eorzea.

• The Lambs of Dalamud; in addition to generally being evil jerks, they kidnapped her, secreted her to a ruined old Amdapori Keep, cut her open and strategically inserted materia at focal points in her body in accordance with some ritual. The materia were subsequently removed (by Barbarccia Valadis) upon her rescue (by S'honji Hayakawa, Mimiru Miru, Val Nunh and Anstarra's brother X'zarann Silverfall Nunh) and yet their energy had dissipated into Anstarra's aether by then, and they crumbled to dust. Two patterns had been described by the materia: on her chest, the constellation representing Azeyma, the Warden (Anstarra's deity) and on her back, that of Althyk, the Keeper.

• Garlemald; specifically the special task force which faced off with the Harbingers, and stole a strange orb somehow related to Leviathan, which had taken up residence in the Harbingers' Primarch Zularti Vensar's head where his right eye should have been.

• Dravania; Anstarra's job with the Maelstrom is as liaison to Ishgard in Coerthas, and before serving with the Harbingers she undertook Dragoon training directly from the source. She has maintained strong ties with many other Ishgardian dragoons, as well as minor members of the Great Houses, and considers Ishgard's enemies to be her own.

Rumors

Common Rumors

• "Likes the cold, don't she? Seen 'er fightin' half naked in the snow, up in Coerthas. Crazy, 'f you ask me, but easy on the eyes." - Maelstrom Sergeant
• "Miss Silverain is a welcome client, affluent and fairly spoken. Nobility in the making, no doubt." - Ul'dah Banker
• "An excellent lancer. It's no surprise that she was able to receive Dragoon training in Ishgard, despite how insular they are. Natural talent like that is not to be spat upon." - Wood Wailer

Moderate Rumors

• "Shady. Yeah, she has a retainer, this fine elezen fellow, and I seen him talking to the kinds of guys you don't bring to tea parties, you know? Making contacts, that sort of thing. You didn't hear this from me." - Brass Blade
• "She used to be more fun. Struttin' the walkways and docks, showin' off 'er legs.. never turned down a dance or a drink. Or what comes after, 'f you catch my drift." - Lominsan Sailor
• "It's peculiar, but I could have sworn her eyes used to be a different shade of green. And several moons prior to that, different again! Very odd." - Goldsmith

Rare Rumors

• "She has a family out in the Shroud. Adopted, obviously; hyur, all three of them, herbalists who study the plants growing deep in the wood. They must have the Elementals' approval, they've been out there for years now." - Gridanian Woodworker
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PC Rumors

• "Truth be told, I don't know much about her. But she is a reliable and hard working woman. She is one of the members of the Harbingers and that means that if you mess with her, I will put you in the ground." -Lan Darklyn
• "A very charming woman with a good sense for nonsense." - Verad Bellveil
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