Ularys

Ularys of Saim-Hann, formerly Ularys Bladewind, is an Asuryani Aeldari currently walking the Path of the Outcast in the Veil sector of the Imperium. Events have brought her path in line with that of a small strike force of Aeldari assembled from many craftworlds, with whom she currently travels.

Early Years
Like most Eldar of Saim-Hann, Ularys was born into one of the great clans of Wild Riders, noble houses of warriors who prize their clans' honour and daring. In her case, she was born of Clan Bladewind, a minor clan with few deeds to their name. The creation of a new Eldar life was cause for great celebration among Clan Bladewind, and congratulations were given by chiefs of even the greatest clans. There was hope that she would grow into someone to help bring great deeds and honour, and she was taught the ways of the Wild Rider from birth. When the time came to embark down her first path, it was no surprise that she went to the shrines of Khaine to bring honour to the name Bladewind.

Path of the Warrior
While she took easily to the jetbikes she was trained on and always viewed them with fondness, she did not feel the call of the Shining Spear. She felt a need to explore a broader approach to warfare, and viewed the Aspect of the Dire Avenger as best encompassing the flexibility war could demand. She knelt before the exarch Yrnalliaren and was trained in the use of Khaine's gifts.

She took to it easily, and always strained to learn faster and accomplish more. The name of Clan Bladewind was on the line. But whenever she was pushing too far, Yrnalliaren would have her tested in competition with fellow student Atascas, and his easy defeats of her would show her how unready she yet was. Then, one day, Atascas lay defeated at her feet, and she was ready for her first battles.

She brought triumph to the name Bladewind time and time again, shredding mon-keigh, orks, illMureead, even some daemons. And through it all, she fought side by side with her old sparring partner Atascas, protecting him when needed and getting protected in turn. Their fondness grew as their list of deeds did, and in time they pledged themselves to eachother, and even began the arduous process of conceiving a child. Then, one day, Atascas lay defeated at her feet, and she was ready for battle no more.

Path of Grief
She had performed well enough through the rest of the battle, her war mask hiding the horror of the loss of her future. It is said she slew the oddly-bulky mon-keigh who killed her beloved, another great deed for the wall of Clan Bladewind. But there was no way for her carefully constructed mask to hide the losses of that battle. When the mask came off, she was confronted with emotions no teaching of Khaine could prepare her for. The funeral did nothing for her. Those who bore the bodies home, the grievers meant to bear the whole of the grief that the Aeldari should feel, Ularys would not allow them to take her grief from her. It was proper that she would mourn for him, and let none take that from her. The Path of the Warrior had taken enough from her, and she felt her ambitions sated. Let her learn of this new emotion.

The Path of the Grief is a deeply respected path among the Asuryani. Who has more to grieve? There is a mournfulness that pervades so much of their people, too much for a person to handle. And so a few people specialize in grief, feeling it to its fullest, and taking on the regrets of the whole species. Atascas was the first figure Ularys mourned, but to walk this path, one takes on the burdens of others. She would patiently hear out the grief of the others of the Craftworlds, share in the pain, let it cut her to her core, understand it deeply, and alleviate the grief the other feels. She would take on the weights of others, learn to understand them, and heed the words of those who trod this path before on how to handle them. She became quite good at it. She developed keen insights on grief and loss, and managed to take on a heavy share of all the pain that Saim-Hann would feel, leaving the rest of the craftworld to move on.

The Challenge
She was deep into the Path of Grief when old ghosts came back. The strangely large mon-keigh she had encountered a lifetime ago, the ones that had taken Atascas and her future away had come to avenge an insult. They keenly remembered their defeat at the hands of Saim-Hann, and challenged the honour of those who had slain them. At any other craftworld, they would have been ignored, or perhaps slaughtered, but the Wild Riders of Saim-Hann took such challenges seriously.

Each Clan with a member who killed from their number had a champion picked out to meet a challenger from the enemy ranks, and as the only Bladewind to have done so, Ularys was nominated the champion for her clan. The enemy agreed to the standard jetbike duel of Saim-Hann, one that ended only on first blood, but she still felt the stakes keenly. The indignity of losing at the signature sport of the Wild Riders to a mon-keigh would have been stakes enough, but it was agreed that if she lost, the deeds she had won against the mon-keigh would be erased, and the enemy's honour restored.

She lost, and her deeds in her earlier battle were lost with the match. What's more, she was the only Eldar to lose that day, all other clans fielding active warriors rather than mourners. She lost all claim to her triumphs over those who had taken her beloved. Her clan took on the shame of being alone in the craftworld to be defeated by mon-keigh at the traditional sport of her people. Her honour was almost entirely wiped out, and her name seen as an embarrassment to her clan. Could she manage her shame? Perhaps. But the lifetime she had spent practicing that seemed to have robbed her of her ability in what her people demanded most. She had learned all she could from her path, she realized, but found the idea of locking herself into some other path inconceivable. She would only stunt herself in something else, and in her time at the Shrine of the Dire Avenger, she had learned the virtues of flexibility. And what's more, whatever she did, she would be seen as a stain on her family's name.

Path of the Outcast
She had to leave. She had to see life beyond the path, beyond the clan's expectations. She had lived the life she was born into, and needed to see what else there was. She had tasted Saim-Hann, and tasted death, grief, and shame. It was time to see the rest of the galaxy.