Arkana Grey

Truth in Canto

Arkana's childhood and life in the jungle homeland of the Rava clan of Viera are briefly highlighted. This is no fault of her own or of any record keeper but a result of avid research and application of all things magical dating back to her youth. Her life under the canopy of the Golmore Jungle can be easily summarized by her intent expressed in the study and work as a practitioner of aetherial manipulation. To an outward observer, one might think such a thing as easily grasped by the beasts of the land via their breath or command of the environment is not worth extensive focus. Despite the wildlife managing to achieve a small degree of aetherial manipulation in addition to the citizenry manifesting feats of their own, it might be easy to assume this as no different from anything else in the realm. Doing so is folly, for the style by which Arkana achieved her magical puissance serves as a unique example of the myriad of traditions.

Her city name itself represents the unique intrinsic value that magic has to her life. Arkana Grey, as a name, was an identity she gave used to define both the mysterious and ambivalent nature of the manipulative arts she pursued, and further development would demonstrate an almost divine quality of control as a result of her Rava upbringing. Because of these things, her magic is not something to be merely scoffed at as the "normal ways" of life the Spoken of other lands might be accustomed to.

To further explain the principle, her distinct name can additionally represent a more natural way to express the concepts of her forest life before her eventual departure. During the many twelvemoons spent under the branches and stars of the jungle, she would seek initiation immediately after her coming-of-age into the mysteries of an uncommonly known sisterhood of Rava named the Galdur. Those that decide to join the ancient coven cast off their birth forest names and share one unique identity together as a group. The Viera, who form this branch, express how vital their work is and how even concepts such as the Green Word might simply be an outward and less magical expression of what the Galdur aim to achieve.

At its core, the Galdur become the workers of the aether intrinsic to the sea of emerald that designates their sacred ground. They're described as the speakers to the trees, something akin to Eorzea's Padjali, but at a notion that doesn't separate them and make them liege to the wood. In expression, the Galdur is the wood, and they make sure to maintain the forest's balance against any threat, whether external or internal. Their work takes full advantage of the Viera's lengthened lifespan, and it's not uncommon in the coven to see sisters who breach their 40th or even 50th nameday before getting past the First Order of their immaculate practice.

The Galdur work their mysteries using techniques that adhere to the doctrines of most of the healing arts available in guilds across Eorzea or in the spiritual practices of the Far East. One of the most noteworthy aspects of the work of the Galdur that define them from other traditions involves their heavy use of song and chants, using these to develop magical acts of dance and note that empower the verdant and vibrant nature of the jungle in sweeping cadence and step. Songs of the Galdur echo through the wood and can be heard by those extremely sensitive to its unique vibration as it carries on the wind. Words of power to strengthen the bark, melodies to promote the flow of the endless waters of the Zeirchele, and step to ensure the growth of new vegetation wherever it aught might weaken were but a few of the responsibilities of this unique sisterhood. Varied are the means of the natural preservation of the forest that have been tasked to the Galdur. To achieve these goals, the Galdur spend a lifetime only barely imaginable in the mastery of their method. One can only consider the strain then inflicted on the Galdur heightened by the vices of Ajora Glabados trapped in the ruins of the Orbonne Monastery, animating the undead and driving all manner of wildlife insane.

It is said that when the Galdur works on those with mortal constitutions, exhaustion flees the bones, and the spirit is invigorated to press on despite previous wear. A boon to those at their wit's end, Galdur workers, became more involved with the outside world after the Garlean Empire marched upon Rabanastre. The desert dwellers fled east to seek sanctuary in Golmore, and many were turned away. Fringe camps developed of refugees on the borders of the sand and the treeline, living each day as if it were their last, ever aware of the approaching warmachina. These camps found comfort in the Galdur workers who visited them and eased them with traditional medicines and acts of performance to boost their spirits. Among the refugees, many names developed to describe the Galdur and their work based on their respective cultures, but the common phrasing that would establish that had the most use titled the Galdur, the cunning folk.

As it is widely known that Dalmasca's geopolitical advantage and monopoly of the land trade routes between Ilsabard and Othard afford the citizens an extensive amount of wealth, vagaries of the upper class include parting with a great deal of these finances to acquire the company of Viera. Their small city-dwelling numbers give off a sense of mystery that only money could buy. Once word of these cunning folk reached the ears of the rich, sizeable contributions were spent on extending an invitation to the Galdur workers in the fringe camps to find passage into the imperially occupied nation. One patron, in particular, sought the cunning folk to assess the rumors of their performative abilities, as the individual in question also had a deep interest in the arts. Arkana would receive this particular invite in the form of a bid to join a theatre troupe. Considering both the imposing threat of Garlemald and a personal desire to learn even more magic beyond the boundary of the wood, Arkana would accept the invite after having worked a few years in the fringe camps. 

As it originated as a request for her abilities in dance and song on the stage, she nevertheless found unique opportunities to pursue her occult studies. She would seize every chance to visit the Great Library of Rabanastre when time allowed, balancing rigorous troupe expectations that shielded her from Garlean scrutiny with her quest for knowledge. Her patron would discover her personal mission and, with a kind and understanding approach, would endeavor to provide support while covering her tracks if the Garleans suspected foul play from her research. During this, she'd read and come to recognize principles of her Galdur tradition in books that featured journals of Nymian scholars who made the enormous trek away from their home in Vylbrand to see the then newly established Dalmasca. She'd acquire her own copy of the Major Arcana deck passing through underhanded methods, and also read annals of history documenting the ideals of the Amdapori in the Great Library. 

Years would pass until, eventually, the rising anger in the voices of the citizenry was too much to ignore. Arkana's patron, having been clued towards an attempt at a revolutionary movement, knew all too well that the might of the Garleans was not something to simply bow at the idea of hope. Her patron began investing considerable sums of their finances into the arrangement of refugee smuggling operations across the borders, imploring during the development that Arkana should take to a martial principle in addition to her immense and growing magical prowess. Within the patron's house was an impressive pedigree of spearcraft, and soon she found herself out of Dalmasca and hurried across the dangerous landscape of Southern Ilsabard past Bozja and Corvos, to eventually make her way to Eorzea. It is here in the wake of the Calamity and Liberation of Ala Mhigo she would honor her Galdur sisters and patron who financed her by aiding the weary and those in need of succor through her travels. Her power is not one to be mocked for the very life of Golmore, and the hopes of Dalmasca drive it forward.