Yughal Qestir

Yughal Qestir
Of the Angelic Fingers
Gender	Female
Race	Xaela
Clan	Qestir
Citizenship	???
Age	31
Marital Status	Widow
Family	Father (Gholani Qalli) - Deceased; Mother (Nayuli Qalli) - Living; Husband (Ayanir Qalli) - Killed; Friend (Nomin Dazkar) - Living; Son (Nagho Qalli) - Unknown

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General

Yughal Qestir is a native Xaela of the Azim Steppe who since her teenage years has always been entranced by the music that her family and her clan take great pride in. She was taught the Morin Khuur at a young age by her father, but intially did not warm up to it until her parents played for her when Yughal was particularly disheartened one night, and since then has depended on music to help soothe her heart in times of strife. It was found later that Yughal had a particularly gifted talent for playing the instrument, and her family garnered a considerable amount of respect for her talent. Though her vocal talents did not exceed that of many others in the tribe, it did not bring her down, as she found more than enough solace with her instrument, which more than compensated for her vocal shortcomings. Though now she does not often play, it is when she is in a very somber state that she looks to the power of her music to soothe her depression. Despite having faith that her missing son is still out there somewhere, she nevertheless fears the worst, and atop all of the traumatic experiences she has been through and her bouts of vengeance towards the Oronir and Dotharl, she has not smiled in some time.

Plot

While to much of the Azim Steppe she is known as Yughal Qestir, she actually belongs to the Qalli tribe as Yughal Qalli, a gifted musician believed to have died with the Hotgo during a Dotharl attack. She was a talented musician in her tribe who quickly rose to fame for her skills. Well into her young adult years, her talents with the morin khuur only became more pronounced and melodic, enrapturing the hearts of those who chanced to hear her play. She was given the title by her parents "the Angelic Fingers," making her "Yughal of the Angelic Fingers" amongst her peers. She has played with some few others in her tribe in a number of gatherings, and therefore there are those in the tribe who know her personally. Among them was a man named Ayanir Qalli, one that Yughal had known since childhood, and eventually one with whom Yughal began to share a romantic relationship with after many days of playing together.

One night, Yughal's father grew ill, by a terrible sickness besides, and Yughal was at a loss as to what to do. Despite her expertise with the morin khuur, she had never once wielded a weapon, and so lacked the ability to hunt or properly defend herself in a fight. Ayanir, however, was capable of such, albeit not professionally, but enough to handle himself, so he volunteered to help Yughal find a means to cure her father's ailment. Meeting companions of the Dazkar, Ayanir journeyed with them to their home, where one of the huntress's husbands prepared a food that could help ail Yughal's father's condition. Ayanir hurried back without haste, the man's wife accompanying him back to the Qalli to ensure his safe return.

The fates were not kind. By the time he had returned, it was too late. The illness had taken his life, and her father died in his sleep. Yughal lied buried in tears and despair at the sight, unable to cope with her loss while her mother tried to console her. Ayanir was beside himself, unable to figure out what else he could do for her, until she realized he had returned. The two of them caught each other's glance, and following a sorrowful apology from Ayanir, he embraced her to try and comfort her.

Being a friend to Ayanir, Nomin Dazkar stayed with the couple and their families during the funeral rites for Yughal's father, before returning to her home, adding that they would always have a friend among the Dazkar. To this day Yughal carries with her her father's garments, believing that they would protect her on her journeys to come later, and to keep her father close to her heart.

Some few years after the event, Yughal and Ayanir would have their first and only child, whom, with her mother's help, was named Nagho, after both her parents. Nomin's family also came to visit, bringing with them food and other items to help with the celebration as music was played. Despite everything, Yughal's experience of watching her father die in front of her was a traumatic experience, and she thus would spend some nights playing somber music to help her cope with it. When her son also began to show the same talents as her mother, he began to play with her, and the resulting bond between the two of them grew with each day they played together. Eventually Yughal and Nagho became inseparable.

One night after they paid their respects to Gholani, the two began to make their way to Chakha Zoh, an area where she and her family frequently visited. However, almost midway through their trek, they were ambushed by a group of Xaela. Though they did not disclose their names, the attire and demeanor of most of them suggested to Yughal that they were of the Dotharl clan. Nevertheless, Yughal held her son close for fear of them taking him away from her. When they threatened to cause her harm, an arrow was loosed and interrupted them. It was Nomin and some few huntresses of the Dazkar. Though outnumbered, her group was not without skill, and quickly scattered and confused the group into retreating, saving Yughal and her son. After the commotion had died down, Yughal wished to learn from Nomin and her tribe how to wield the bow, so she could better protect her family. All she could do was hold her son and do everything in her power to never let him go should they have gone through with what they were planning on doing.

When Nomin escorted the two of them back home and apprised her family of what happened, Ayanir was beside himself, and decided he would accompany Yughal with her, regardless of her protests. She did not want to lose neither Ayanir or Nagho the same way she lost her father, but he repeatedly reassured her that he would be just fine, as he stated before that he was more than capable of handling himself in a skirmish. Yughal still had her doubts but she eventually gave in. From that point on, the three would travel to Chakha Zoh and Reunion together. Though that may have been just what they wanted.

Coming close to the site of Chakha Zoh, they found the area in a state of disarray as a group of tribes were fighting amongst one another. Amongst them was the Dotharl. In the midst of the altercation, one of them noticed the presence of Ayanir and called out his name, spurning the others to look in his direction and discover him with Yughal. Not long after the group of Dotharl began to surround them, demanding retribution from the Qalli for the death of one of their brethren suggesting that Ayanir had come in contact with this group before. When Ayanir attempted to reason with them, unsure of their aggression, the leader of the group stepped forward, who had remarked that a band of Qalli were responsible for his brother's death. Before Ayanir could explain the situation, the Dotharl cried out in retaliation and attempted to confront him. Fearing the worst, Ayanir told Yughal to run, to which she refused. Nearly sparking a conflict, the Dotharl were suddenly stopped by a sling of arrows. Out from a distance came Nomin and her hunting group, threatening to fight the Dotharl should Ayanir and Yughal come to harm. The gesture was returned, albeit discreetly, by the flinging of a fire spell, which dispersed the Dazkar group. Soon after a fight broke out between the two, dragging in Ayanir, who suffered several shots protecting Yughal. Nomin struck the archer with her own arrows, downing him while her group attempted to drive them off. One Dotharl raised his axe in an attempt to kill Ayanir, when Yughal's instincts took over. She took her bow and with one sling of an arrow fired it into the man's stomach, sending him to the ground. One of the Dotharls saw the sight as he went for Ayanir with her axe. With no other way to defend himself he attempted to deflect the swing with his hands. The woman managed to break his grip before slashing his rib open, sending him careening to the ground. Yughal's face went pale with shock as he fell, screaming Ayanir's name before running to him. The Dotharl woman attempted another confrontation before another stopped her, remarking that they had done enough and this served as punishment for the Qalli since he would die from his wounds. In the end Yughal didn't violently react to her. She could only focus on making sure Ayanir was okay. Ayanir eventually died from his injuries, and the trauma came back in a scream that would later be her last. Having now lost both her father and her husband, Yughal descended into a deep bout of depression. The only one capable of consoling her at this point was her own son, who had remained in the Qalli village with the others during this event.

Over the course of the next several years, Yughal and Nagho continued to play together, but more so at the behest of her son, as Yughal had begun to lose the will to play on her own. Every week she and her son would visit her father and husband's graves and play melodies for them. While in Reunion, Yughal happened upon the shop of a Kha who was selling some foreign material. Amongst them was an old tome, within its pages words of the arcane. At the end of its pages bore a signature --- Yhanabi Nabi. Though it was written in the Eorzean language, she could feel the magic pulsing from its pages, hinting that it was no mere book. With what little coin she had left, she purchased the book in an attempt to understand its words. Upon bringing it back to her home, she discovered that her son was capable of reading the words within, much to Yughal's surprise; Nagho had been learning how to speak the common language from some of his Kha friends who frequently consorted with others outside the Azim Steppe. Though some of the meaning of the words still escaped her, she began to understand that the tome functioned as a medium to cast spells, something that reminded her of another Xaela clan she knew of, however less so than the many others. Numbering in less than the 100, the mysterious Xaela clan, who after being attacked and losing over half their numbers to a Xaela raid which also affected their once neighboring clan the Hotgo, was known for their clairvoyance and their intuitive thinking, exposing them to and facilitating their use in the magic arts. They had however decided to isolate themselves from the mainland of the Azim Steppe and take refuge in the mountains, in order to avoid another catastrophe as the one they had been through. It is believed the magic they practice can be determined by the color of their limbal rings. With extensive help from the surrounding Xaela tribes in the mountain range, she was able to locate them, bringing to them the book which she had brought. However she left her son in the care of her tribe during her excursion so as not to expose him to any danger.