Vael'Zira

"Bleed well. Yggdrasil is hungry tonight."

— Vael'Zira

Character Overview

Vael'Zira, known as The Yggdrasil's Shadow, is the current Verdant Lord of the Kaelari and one of the eight stars of Astralis. Born to the Vael tribe of dark elves, she rules over half of all elvenkind through her connection to the deep roots of the World Tree.

Zira is a master huntress whose primal ferocity and unwavering loyalty to Yggdrasil's will have earned her both fear and respect throughout the forest realm. She wields the legendary bow Nirvethil, born from the blackened roots of Yggdrasil, and ranked 13th among the Thirty-Two Treasured Weapons by the Providence.

Abilities & Powers

Root's Whisper

A transcendent ability that allows Zira to commune directly with Yggdrasil's vast root network. Through this connection, she can sense all life within the forest and track any creature across vast distances. When she draws upon this power, the very ground responds to her will.

Primordial Hunt

An ancient Kaelari technique passed down through generations of Dark Elves. Zira has mastered all seven traditional forms of this hunting style, each designed to take down different types of prey—from swift forest spirits to massive wyrms.

• First Form - Silent Stalk
• Second Form - Piercing Fang
• Third Form - Blood Moon
• Fourth Form - Root Bind
• Fifth Form - Shadow Strike
• Sixth Form - Wyrmslayer
• Seventh Form - World Ender

Nirvethil's Curse

The power granted by her bond with the black bow Nirvethil. Her arrows become vessels for Yggdrasil's hunger, feeding the World Tree with each kill. Those struck by her arrows find their life force drawn into the root network, strengthening the great tree. The more she hunts, the stronger both she and Yggdrasil become.

Verdent Tongue

A gift that manifested in Zira from birth. It gives her the ability to communicate with creatures of the deep forest. Wolves, bears, wyrms, ancient forest spirits and the Yggdrasil itself acknowledge her authority.

Physical Appearance

Vael'Zira embodies the wild essence of the Kaelari. Her skin bears the deep, bark-like coloration of her people, marked with intricate tribal tattoos that seem to shift like living shadows. Her hair flows like midnight, often adorned with bones, feathers, and trophies from her hunts.

Her eyes burn with an amber intensity that reflects her predatory nature—sharp, calculating, and utterly without mercy when the hunt begins.

Zira's build is lean and powerful, every muscle honed by years of tracking through the darkest parts of the forest.

She wears armor crafted from the scales and hide of forest wyrms, reinforced with blackened wood from Yggdrasil's roots. Trophies of her greatest hunts hang from her belt—claws, teeth, and preserved hearts that serve as both decoration and intimidation.

At her back rests Nirvethil, the pitch-black bow that seems to absorb light itself, housed in a quiver made from the hollow bone of an ancient forest Wyvern.

Backstory

Born to a pair of Kaelari hunters deep within the root-shrouded depths of the great forest, Zira's destiny was apparent from her first breath. She did not cry as other infants do, but instead gazed upward at the massive roots of Yggdrasil with an understanding that unsettled even her parents. They say she heard the World Tree's voice before she learned to speak.

By age twelve, Zira had mastered the art of the hunt, moving through the forest with a grace that seemed supernatural. She walked fearlessly among the most dangerous predators, speaking to them in their own tongue, earning their respect through strength rather than submission.

When the time came for her Hallow Hunt—the sacred trial of dak elves where young Kaelari are sent alone into the deepest parts of the Great green forest with only a dagger, to bring back a worthy sacrifice for Yggdrasil—Zira disappeared for three moons. She returned dragging the massive corpse of a forest wyrm, its heart still beating in her hands. The elders had never seen such a prize from one so young.

At eighteen, she became the youngest elf ever chosen as one of the Nine Lords of Kaelari.

But Yggdrasil had greater plans for her. In a ceremony witnessed by both Alarion and Kaelari, the World Tree itself chose Zira as the new Verdant Lord of Kaelari, granting her dominion over half of all elvenkind.

The light elves of Alarion whisper of her unruly nature and primal methods, but none dare voice their concerns in her presence. Zira cares little for the politics and gentle governance that occupy most rulers—she leaves such matters to the Verdent Lord of Alarion. But when the forest bleeds, when war comes to the sacred groves, when the balance must be restored through blood and bone—she is the first to rise.

It is said that the forest itself falls silent when she draws Nirvethil, for all creatures know that when Yggdrasil's Shadow nocks an arrow, blood will flow to feed the hungry roots below.