Lyra - Saint of the Avenging Flame

Her death really is the most remarkable thing. Dying peacefully during the Dread Wars? That's unheard of. That feat alone makes her divine in my opinion.

— Darius Kaseidis

From "Lords of Death - An Account of the Dread Wars" by Lucius Lengallen:

"The period following of Ceres Vikara in 52 YoD is often overlooked as a sort of "clean up operation", with few noteworthy characters or conflicts to mention. How wrong they are can be proven with just one look at one of the most interesting figures of the entire period: Avenging Angel Lyra."

On Foreign Shores

"When she arived to study at Orothian in 51 YoD, the northern hemisphere was still reeling from the first and greatest of the Dread Wars. Yet there was a fragile sense of peace as Ceres' acolytes were hunted by a weakened Hierarchy and the second generation of Necromancers had not yet risen."
"A daughter of high Teamari nobility, it was only natural that Lyra study at the most prestigious of the great temples. That Kugiren was still under siege probably played a role as well. She quickly distinguished herself in the area of Pyromancy, becoming well known for her unique ability to create a mane of fire that she used in combat."
"Like most of her peers at Orothian she was a member of the Pacifist Party, calling for demilitarization as the threat of the undead appeared to have been vanquished. Her heritage made her an especially attractive choice for membership on the Council, as it promised to finally normalize relations with the old south."
"In 71 YoD, she became the youngest mage to ever sit on the Arcane Council and strongly pushed a policy of de-militarization and reconciliation with her continent of birth."

Angel of Vengance

"Ironically it would the latter policy which would cause her turn from dove to warhawk:"

Culling of Mythra

"Teamar had largely escaped the chaos of the Dread Wars and was seen by many as a refuge. That changed in 81 YoD, when the Dreadlord Nicross attempted to kill off the entire population of Mythra in order to start his own realm in the south. Lyra killed him but lost most of her family in the attack. It was a wake-up call in the worst way possible."

Operation Rolling Blaze

"When she returned to the Council in 86 YoD, she brought with her all the rage and thirst for vengance she had accumulated back in Teamar. Her support brought the warhawks back into power and from then on the Hierarchy would once again take the offensive, going so far as to burn entire countries to cleanse undead infestations."

Crushing the Heirs

"As others begun to sound the alarm on the rise of the second generation of Necromancers, Lyra focused her attention entirely on the remaining Dreadlords. Four of them, Soulblighter, Scream, Tear and Nighthunter, fell by her hand and with them ended the cursed circle that had first embraced the gift of undeath over one century earlier."

False Sense of Security
"Thus began the era known as the "False Peace". From 117 to 169 YoD, there were few signs of undead activity. Small outbreaks here and there, with most of the remaining undead wandering around in the empty lands beyond the Barrier Zones. Land was reclaimed, new realms were founded and people began to prosper. But a new danger was growing in the shadows. Not in the form of an all-crushing tide like what Ceres Vikara had unleashed. But as a slowly spreading malignant disease, born in hidden cults and secret covens. Lyra unfortunately had a big great part in their eventual success, as she saw the matter settled with the death of the last Dreadlord and turned the Hierarchy's attention towards rebuilding."

Redemption

"When the dead resurged on the 170s, Lyra saw the result of her actions in the form of millions of innocent victims. She fell into a deep depression and remained locked in her mansion for nearly a decade. When she emerged in the 190s, it was once again to wage war on the undead."
"For over a decade, she blazed her way across the Mortal Plain. No matter the enemy, no matter how vicious the fighting, she would always be in the very center of the action. There can be no doubt that her actions now saved as many people as they had previously doomed. But they came at a high price. She burned out. For the rest of her life, she was confined to an advisor role before dying peacefully at the age of 231."

Its what makes it so difficult to judge her. What weighs more heavily? Her mistakes or how she tried to fix them?

— Allana Venis, Hierarchy Historian

Status
Goddess of Fire and Purity
Avatar of the Teamari
Life
31 YoD >>> 232 YoD (died 201 years old)

Species
Human
Affiliation
Orothian Temple
Arcane Council
Circumstances of Death
Died peacefully in her sleep.

Burnout

The body's internal mana system is basically a muscle, just much more flexible as it regenerates much faster and can be used far long than regular muscles. If stressed for too long it can start to degrade, however. Without time to recover this can eventually cause the system to burn out, either limiting or outright destroying the body's ability to use mana.

Goddess of Fire

Already revered during her liftime, Lyra beame an object of worship following her death. Both as a symbol for the fight against the undead and an avatar for those seeking vengance. She also became an idol for those operating in the field of pyromancy. The first mention of her as more than just an idol dates back to the late stage of the Dread Wars, almost a thousand years after her death. While no cult is solely dedicated to her, there are at least a dozen churches that call her either saint or deity today.

by Daena Key