The life and times of

Mithra Jinjahl

By Mithra Jinjahl

past and family

She was born in Ilsabard in the year 1552 of the Sixth Astral Era, somewhere between Dalmasca, Bozja and Corvos. The eighth child of Sahja Jinjahl and Khuja'to Chelewae, she was a devout follower of Menphina - as most Keepers are.

In her early years, she showed interest in the arts as well as dance, much to her mother's delight. She came from a large family - her mother, Sahja; her father, Khuja'to; three brothers, and five sisters. Of them, she is the second-youngest.

Though she loved them all, she was particularly close to her older brother, Sahja'sae, and her younger sister, Yahvi. They were inseparable, whether in study or hunting or other duties.

They are also the only known survivors of their troubled past.Her brothers are Sahja'a, Sahja'to, and Sahja'sae, as Keeper tradition dictates.Her sisters are Kothra, Mholi, Pyha, Qina, and Yahvi.

Exodus and loss

1562. Sixth Astral Era. A great column of light had struck Bozja. Despite having no ties to the nation, Mithra and her family knew of the Garlean invasion - knew of the troops' movement through the neighboring regions.

Four years passed. Garlean activity increased in their surroundings. Sahja Jinjahl decided her family would leave their home and flee Ilsabard, seeking sanctuary to the west - in Gyr Abania. Mithra's father, Khuja'to, refused to leave, however.

Their trek across Ilsabard and into Gyr Abania was struck by tragedy after tragedy - illness and wounds took Sahja and Mholi from them, while Kothra disappeared into the night, never to be found.

After two tumultuous years, what remained of their family - now led by Sahja'a and Pyha - finally emerged from the wilderness into the Lochs of Gyr Abania, and what few hopes they still harbored were dashed.

Ala Mhigo had fallen to the Garleans.

seeking sanctuary

Seeing what had become of their supposed sanctuary drove Pyha mad. She cursed the gods for the tragedies that befell her family, and shortly after, died alongside Sahja'a as they drew fire away from Yahvi and Qina.And so, only Sahja'to, Qina, Sahja'sae, Mithra, and Yahvi remained. Determined to reach Eorzea, the five managed to contact the Ala Mhigan resistance through a woman named Yda, and were to be smuggled out of the country and into Gridania.

Baelsar's Wall. The final barrier between the tired and ragged Miqo'te and sanctuary. And yet, fate had not had its last laugh. Far from it, in fact.

During their escape, Sahja'to, Qina and Sahja'sae were discovered and the latter was captured. The others fled, though in the ensuing chaos, only Sahja'to, Mithra and Yahvi arrived safely on the other side of the wall.

And so the surviving members of Sahja Jinjahl's family emerged into Eorzea, nearly three years after leaving their home. Their trials did not stop there, however.

Gridania's Refusal

Loss. Death. Pain. Hopelessness. Ruin. Safety seemed within grasp, a chance to rebuild. A chance to have a home again.

Though Mithra and her family had escaped the Garleans, they could not escape the preconceptions the people of the Black Shroud had formed against Keepers of the Moon. Seen as poachers, butchers and thieves, they were summarily cast out of Gridania and told to never return.

Sahja'to broke then, and having heard of other Keepers in the forest, sought to live up to the lofty standards the Gridanians had placed upon him. He cast his lot with that loose-knit "family" of Shroud-bound Keepers, the Coeurlclaws.

With only Yahvi by her side, the remaining two Jinjahl girls fled south, toward Ul'dah and its promise of a new start. With no gil to their name, Mithra did what she could to secure passage for the two of them.

Though she would hate the journey, she would have no regrets.

Blade's Justice

With her mind and body steeled against the assault on her self-respect, Mithra arrived in Ul'dah with her sister in tow, immediately seeking citizenship for the two of them. She was not prepared for the unscrupulous nature of Ul'dah, however.

She had no skills as a merchant or craftswoman, nor the strength to become a Blade or Flame. And so she became a dancing girl.

Gil by gil, night by night, she clawed her way out of destitution, bringing Yahvi with her. She would make a friend, another dancing girl. S'alihya Alih was her name, a Seeker of the Sun.

No matter how hard she tried, however, there was little use for a dancing girl with few skills and few places to learn new ones. Opportunity came knocking, however, when a well-to-do nobleman hired the services of S'alihya and she.

And yet, it did not come without a trial. At the nobleman's manor, he ordered Mithra restrained as he drugged S'alihya, his nefarious intentions becoming apparent.

It was then that a burning light erupted in Mithra's heart, and she felt her body moving faster than she could think. She wrestled free of her ropes, grabbed for the bodyguard's sword, and a moment later, it was planted ilms-deep in the nobleman's heart.

a woman reborn

Murderer.Was it murder if it was to protect another?She was not considered worth protecting.A rich man was killed to save a dancing girl.In the eyes of the rich, it was a murder, and so judgment was passed. Mithra was given a choice - accept her fate, or pick up a sword and fight it.Unbeknownst to her - and the rest of Ul'dah - the Blessing of Light had roared to life within her.She would conquer their challenge with ease.She would become a Paladin, wielding the arms and bearing the armor and oath of Ul'dah's crown.She would meet a fellow Keeper, a scholar of Sharlayan, wandering in the Sagolii. Johyuh'sae Vashai.She would fall in love with him.She would be betrayed, time and again; see allies fall, turn, flee. She would befriend dragons, destroy corrupt monarchs.She would fight to free the downtrodden from Imperial control.She would cast aside the sword and pick up the cane, to heal a broken world and bring to it soothing night.She would triumph over the masterminds of the world's cyclical demise.She would bring hope to the hopeless, and even in her own dire hour, reach out to understand and help others.She would free a little bird from its cage, and give it a reason to smile again.She would marry the scholar.And yet, she is ever without time to settle down.