Isänie

Dark were the days of Isänie, mother of the Merientei, as she stared beyond the coast of her home and far into the infinite blue. Cold wind, a breath of winter, passed her by—a stark reminder of the necessity of their journey ahead. Still, she would have to wait before she could mourn the loss of her home and kin. Once they survived. If they survived.

Personality

Many stories are told of Isänie by her descendants, and of her heroic deeds and determination to get her people away from the dying lands of the north. But little knowledge remained of her personality beyond what was required to tell the stories.

Though quiet, Isänie enjoyed company and worked hard to ensure everyone around her had whatever they needed. She cared for her own appearance a great deal, but rarely spoke of that of others. And she enjoyed engaging in creative crafting of clothing and jewelry, and was apparently quite the woodworker—a skill she learned from her father before the cold took him.

Appearance

Dark of hair, black of eyes, pale of skin. Those were among the common phrases used to describe Isänie. She held herself to a high standard in appearance as well as behavior, never seen slouching in the mud or witnessed in worn out clothing. She kept her hair and clothes tidy and clean almost to the point of obsession, and enjoyed the weaving of new items to wear when she had the time.

On her neck Isänie wore a wooden depiction of a crow, created by her mother of whom she otherwise knew very little. It was supposed to bring her wisdom and protection both in equal measure, and though she could not swear on its effectiveness, the amulet never left her neck.

Life

Isänie's father was a great seer and could, according to stories told by his descendants, see past the veil which had descended over past and present, making divination all but impossible. After the Day of Tremors shook the northern continent, he began to speak of lands beyond theirs, and how they would make ships to reach those unknown shores.

That promise of future days could easily have faded into obscurity, had not Isänie taken his words and spread painful hope to the desperate hearts of southern Tenwä. It was almost a claim too good to be true for her people, as the days grew dark and cold, and food became a luxury.

A leader of considerable charisma and determination, Isänie brought together not only her clan, but the tribe she called kin, and convinced them to build ships and cross the seas with her. Seafaring was not an entirely foreign concept to the Allorï, but none among them had ever dreamed of crossing the deep blue depths, and not all were convinced by her words alone.

In the end three ships left the shores of Tenwä with Isänie, and she knew of few other tribes who had tried their own luck constructing seafaring vessels, though had no time to offer aid. Fourteen days went by before they saw land again, and it was much thanks to Isänie's words the ships did not turn around before the sighting.