Kyana

Overview
Epithets	Goddess of the Stars, The Defiant, Grandmother
Favored People	Chaja
Element(s)	Spirit, Water
Alignment	Neutral Good
Iconography	a candle, the stars, a weeping eye
Values	Perseverance, prophecy, defiance, sympathy, suffering, comfort
Worshippers	Shamans, astronomers, the oppressed, refugees, revolutionaries, seers, counselors

History

Kyana is among the oldest deities in the pantheon, appearing in an age before sapient life walked Avendar. A servitor of Jolinn, She was given stewardship over the natural cycles of the astral, that realm of mind and soul where thought meets form and spirits dwell. But as Avendar's first life began to evolve and their experiences rippled across the astral, questions about the purpose of the world grew within her. Why were the Overgods building Avendar? What trajectory would life follow? Jolinn's answers spoke of community, protection, and the beauty of free will, but they did not satisfy Her need to understand the whole pattern. Kyana thus turned Her gaze to the sky and to the abyss of Night, seeking to glimpse the lay of Avendar's time in its entirety.

This act would change the goddess forever, as She saw the Sundering that would scour the world and every tragedy that would follow: every war, every loss, every mortal sorrow. The weight of grief was unbearable, and She has wept ever since, Her tears filling the dark of the sky to become the stars themselves. This was Her first act of defiance: to take the overwhelming sorrow of prophecy and transform it into light, scattered across the night sky in patterns that sing of futures yet to come. The stars are both Her grief and Her refusal to surrender to despair; small flames against the endless dark.

When the magical storms of the Sundering began to abate, the first chaja emerged in the Brintors. There they established their first mountain strongholds, where the young lineage took a particular interest in the stars they could see so clearly. Atop Mount Khorak, Kyana appeared to the chaja to bless the lineage as Her chosen people, and reveal to them means of divining the future in the patterns of the stars to see the shape of what may come. These prophecies shaped chaja history in profound ways, such as the prophecy that prompted the chaja to retreat from the surface to the upper reaches of Kutlaset, just in time for the aelin to colonize the Brintors and be subsequently exterminated during the War of Fire. Not every or even most attempts to avert painful futures succeeded, but the attempts mattered. To try and fail is the way of Kyana; to surrender without struggle is unforgivable.

The coming of the ch'taren and Rystaia Lightbringer forever altered Kyana's domain. Upon arriving in Avendar, Rystaia wove the essence of Her dead twin into the astral to create the Weave, necessary to sustain the ch'taren outside of their home plane. This fundamentally altered the astral realm's nature, disrupting the natural cycle of birth and death and throwing its balance into disarray. Tension between Kyanan tradition and ch'taren innovation persists to this day as a result, though both groups often find common cause against greater evils.

In the modern era, Kyana's worship has seen resurgence. Through prophecy, perseverance, and the small lights that defy the dark, Kyana's influence endures.

Goals and Methods

Kyana's primary objective is to guide mortals toward averting preventable suffering while enduring that which cannot be changed. She does not promise victory, but that the struggle itself matters. Her followers are taught to distinguish between fate's inevitable currents and its negotiable eddies: to know when to fight, and when to bear witness with dignity. She encourages the study of prophecy through Her stellar language, painted on the night sky in Her tears. The stars shift and change, and their lay sings of futures both near and distant, with great celestial events often marking turning points in history. Her oracles learn to interpret these patterns, and their prophecies are recorded in hidden, carefully maintained archives. The revelation of prophecy is a delicate and uncertain art for mortals, however, and Kyana only expects that Her followers act with wisdom.

Kyana embodies and values perseverance in Her followers. She teaches that endurance through hardship is its own form of victory, and that those who continue when all seems lost often find unexpected strength. This applies equally to physical ordeals and spiritual struggles. A Kyanan facing their prophesied death will march toward it with open eyes, seeking not to escape but to meet it with purpose. Failure in defiance is preferable to passive resignation.

As the ancient steward of the astral realm, Kyana also bids Her followers to care for that wounded domain. The Weave's introduction disrupted balances maintained since before mortal memory, and enclaves of Her followers work tirelessly to mitigate ongoing damage. They destroy troublesome shades, cultivate useful astral entities, and teach sustainable interaction with the realm of mind and soul. This places them in occasional conflict with those who view the astral purely as a resource to be harvested.

Kyana accepts followers of many alignments, though chaotic individuals find Her methods frustratingly deliberate. She particularly welcomes those who have suffered greatly, offering them not false comfort but the tools to transform their pain into purpose. Her worship is strongest among the chaja, but humans, ethron, and even ch'taren may find meaning in the stars.

Organizations

Grand observatories and star-wells attract acolytes and pilgrims alike, but individual followers may spend years in solitary meditation. Her following is divided into several distinct traditions:

The Oracles

"The stars show what may come; wisdom lies in knowing when to speak."

The Oracles are Kyana's prophetic scholars, maintaining observatories, recording celestial patterns, and seeking meaning in the mathematical language of the shifting stars. An Oracle's training is monastic and demanding, and students learn astronomy, mathematics, and history. Oracles are often perceived as manipulative, and not without cause. They understand that revealing a prophecy can be counterproductive, and they carefully choose when to speak, when to withhold, and when to act. This pragmatism unsettles those who prefer absolute honesty, but Kyanan prophets argue that prophecy without wisdom is mere noise, and strategic silence is not the same as Serachelian deception. Multiple sects exist, each with their own interpretive methods, yet even rival schools acknowledge successful prophecies from their competitors -- a grudging admission that no single tradition holds a monopoly on truth. This path attracts primarily spirit scholars, psionicists, and academics disinclined to Chadraln's equanimous archiving of the world.

The Unyielding

"I have seen my death in the stars. I march toward it anyway."

The Unyielding embody Kyana's doctrine of defiance through action. They are warriors, champions, and martyrs who defend the doomed, challenge the unchallengeable, and stand against darkness even when the stars promise defeat, taking on quests others deem hopeless. They wear their scars proudly, viewing each as proof of their perseverance as the bearers of candles in dark places. This does not make them reckless, however, for they are meticulous planners, knowing that defiance without competence and preparation is merely suicide. They are fierce opponents of fatalism in all its forms, which brings them into direct conflict with followers of Kurion or other dark gods. This tradition primarily attracts warriors of all types, but is embraced by many who suffer great hardship.

The Astral Wardens

"The stars reflect in still water; the astral reflects in still minds."

Where the Oracles look outward to the heavens and the Unyielding march into physical battle, the Astral Wardens turn inward to the astral realm's wounded landscape, viewing themselves as the inheritors of Kyana's ancient duty. They train in techniques of mental discipline and spirit magic, learning to navigate the astral without physical form and shape the pliable eddies of thought and spirit. They cultivate useful astral entities and servitors, shaping ancestor-spirits that contain the memories of wise teachers and monitoring regions of dissonance or stagnation. Their methods are older and more structured than ch'taren techniques, relying on ritual and structured spellery rather than intuition and the Weave. Many Astral Wardens view the Weave as invasive, maintaining that while the Weave cannot be undone, its most deleterious effects can be mitigated. This path attracts psionicists, spirit scholars, and those with shamanic inclinations.

Individual Followers

Kyanans vary greatly in methodology and alignment, though they all share a heartfelt desire for the best possible world and perseverance in the face of hardship. They do not shy from difficulty or failure, understanding that suffering is inevitable but believing that how one endures and responds to suffering defines their character. A Kyanan may weep -- their Grandmother does -- but they do not surrender to despair. The behavior of Kyana's following can appear paradoxical, however. They value order and planning (prophecy requires both) yet willingly violate laws and social conventions if the stars suggest a better path. A Kyanan will lie, cheat, or break oaths if they believe it serves a greater purpose, a stance that earns them both admiration and distrust.

Worship of Kyana is relatively rare in Avendar's population centers, the majority of Her faithful living in or under the Brintors. Kyana worship is strongest among the chaja, for whom She is both deity and ancestor, but She is sought out by many lineages. Humans who have endured great hardship, ethron who respect Her marriage to Elar, and caladaran who appreciate Her emphasis on foresight and discipline have joined Her following. Ch'taren occasionally worship Kyana as well, though their goddess' history can lead to tension. Many Kyanans are drawn to professions that require endurance or foresight. Among adventurers, She welcomes warriors who defend the weak, psionicists, and spirit scholars. Within mainstream society, astronomers, philosophers, and laborers find meaning in Her teachings.

Those who find favor with the Grandmother are marked with the Sigil of the Stars.

Relationships

Kyana is a reclusive goddess, interacting directly with few deities in the pantheon. More chaotic deities generally find Kyana's deliberate methods tedious and ignore her. Orderly deities appreciate Her foresight but distrust Her followers' pragmatic flexibility with laws and social conventions. Among the gods of the light, She is respected by many but trusted by few. Her romantic relationship with Elar is the subject of many myths, and their divine child Nariel is the ethron's maiden goddess of the hunt. Rystaia Lightbringer presents Kyana's most complicated divine relationship, as both seek to prevent suffering and vanquish evil, yet the clashing of their domains remains a sore point.

Among the gods of darkness, Arkhural is Her most outspoken enemy. The Reaver's glorification of domination and sadism conflicts with every principle Kyana holds, and the Arhakhla's enslavement of chaja during the War of Night marks him as Her eternal foe. Rveyelhi has recently become an active opponent as well; the toppling of his temple and worship in Earendam was accomplished with Kyanan aid, and the Tyrant does not forget such slights. Lilune and Kyana share the sky, and their relationship is mercurial befitting the Muse of Madness' nature; Lilune encourages the kind of conquest and bloodletting that Kyana opposes, yet She appreciates endless perseverance in pursuit of a goal even in the face of failure.

Among the Overgods, She maintains closest ties to Jolinn, from whom She inherited compassion and the drive to preserve life. Iandir respects Her foresight but disapproves of Her followers' willingness to violate laws and social order in service of prophesied outcomes.

Within the chaja trinity, Kyana represents the elderly matriarch. Elanthe Her divine offspring with Lilune, complements Her by preserving chaja heritage and narrative arts where Kyana focuses on their future, though Elanthe's preference for drama and conflict can clash. Kurion represents Her philosophical opposite: where Kyana teaches defiance of fate, Kurion preaches resignation to dread inevitability.