AODH
Race: The People
Etymology: Celtic for “fire”
Age: Unknown
Occupation: Caderyn’s daughter
and First Blade of the Red Clan
Aodh is the firebrand daughter of Caderyn and the second in command (First Blade) of the Red Clan as her father performs his duties as Battle Lord on behalf of The People.
Any who may have doubted her place or lineage need only see her in battle to understand she was given nothing, and earned everything. Aodh swears absolute fealty to Caderyn as both Battle Lord and father. She defends his honor with every deadly arc of her blade. She wields words that cut just as deeply against those who would dare think to do otherwise.
It is not known if Aodh will ascend to Battle Lord given her temperament. The elders are far from discounting the possibility as Caderyn has no sons. More significantly, few are as skilled in battle as she. Aodh herself has expressed no interest in leading The People save to rid the world of the Muties and the Moncs.
The unusual coloration of Aodh’s hair has been a contentious point of gossip among many of The People. Clans seldom married outside their extended circles until Caderyn challenged generations-old tribal laws as he rebuilt the Red. Inter-clan pairings were previously used to satisfy honor of some past wrong, or as a bonding gesture between Clans. Barring these conditions, those who did were often the subject of ridicule or reduced “post” to the rest of The People. This tradition was strictly adhered to by the Red Clan until the tragic ambush.
The accepted narrative of Aodh is: Caderyn deliberately took a wife from another Clan (who had joined in his call to reconstitute the Red) that their daughter served as a living, breathing reminder of how The People must always look past their sense of pride in favor of the whole. True or not, Aodh has lived under this story since her birth. The identity of her mother remains unknown to all but Caderyn. Perhaps this is at the root of her “anger issues.” I’m told Dagda knows for certain, but nobody is so daring as to take her to task on the matter. Not even Aodh herself.
Many of The People adhere to the purist ways of old Clan rituals. Such individuals view this “outbreeding” as Caderyn’s selfish drive to return the Red Clan to its former glory. They viewed his open call to the Clans as a way to steal the most capable among them. The unifying effect this act alone has created bears evidence to the contrary. Inter-clan relationships were also cemented in unforeseen ways, where merit became the primary arbiter of one’s post rather than birth. Most regard the Battle Lord (and his hot headed daughter) with unconditional respect. They represent the future of The People as a whole.