Iris Psykia

This character profile contains spoilers for Dawntrail and may reference events up to Patch 7.3 "The Promise of Tomorrow."

Born in Solution Nine after dimensional fusion, this young artist struggled with levin sickness for much of their youth. Though best known as an independent game developer and as a stage designer and video editor for the Arcadion, they joined the rebel organization Oblivion to oppose to Zoraal Ja. With recent upheaval in their homeland finally seeming to reach its conclusion, they've returned to Eorzea, intent on painting this new world.

Basic Information

Name: Iris Psykia
Epithet: The Ephemeral
Aliases: Rainbow SpriteAge: 21
Height: 62 ilms
Weight: 109 ponzes
Build: SlenderSkin Color: Pale
Hair Color: Silver (Dyed Violet with Magenta Highlights)
Eye Color: Violet (Right), Pink (Left)Gender Identity: Genderfluid
Preferred Pronouns: Any, Usually They/Them
Romantic Orientation: Panromantic, Polyamorous
Sexual Orientation: Sex-ambivalent Demisexual
Romantic Status: Open RelationshipBirthplace: Everkeep, Alexandria
Residence: Solution Nine
Languages: Alexandrian (Common), Turali (Receptive)
Profession: Adapter, Game Developer, Sprite ArtistMain Discipline: Kallitechnis (Pictomancer)
Side Disciplines: Goldsmith, Culinarian, FisherFavorite Food: Strawberry Pellet Ice Cream, Tender Shortcake
Favorite Drink: Cinnamon Cream Iced Coffee
Favorite Game: Electronic Gaming, Motocross
Favorite Place: Mosaic

Appearance

Slight, petite, and pale, Iris cuts an unimposing figure. Their hair, dyed violet with magenta highlights, cascades over the left side of their face in a jaw-length bob fastened by a black hairband. Despite being physically frail, their hair hides a scar above their left eye, an uncommon sight among Everkeep's sheltered denizens.Matching their highlights, they favor colorful makeup of purples and pinks, adorning their eyelids, nails, and lips in the color with makeup used to bring out the natural reds in their otherwise wan skin. Their black eyeliner helps hide the slight puffiness around their eyes from a lifetime of staring at screens and overcoming illness.Their youthful appearance is generally attractive and well-kept with trimmed nails, few wrinkles, soft and unblemished skin, white teeth, a subtle, powdery perfume, and a minty smell on their breath. The slight undertone of paint fumes tends to overpower the fragrance when they've been at work, however.A plethora of piercings gleam along their face in silver including dimple piercings, side labret ring piercings, a tongue piercing, a right nostril piercing, and a left eyebrow piercing. Though not usually visible, fluorescent blue and pink tattoos in the shapes of flowers and butterflies mark their left arm and right leg, and a large, pink-and-blue butterfly adorns their back.Their fashion sense is typical of a denizen of Everkeep, favoring synthetic fabrics often woven with electrope insertions that enable dynamic temperature adjustment. They typically favor large jackets that help hide their small frame, and accessorize with a variety of rings, gloves, spectacles, and facemasks. They've also laced a few, violet iris flowers into their hair near their left ear.Their travel attire consists of a pearlescent white, waterproof, dirt-resistant jacket over a black sweater with underlying electrope circuitry. A black hood is usually pulled over their head, and when riding their air-wheeler or painting, they also tend to wear a black facemask to filter dust and fumes and prevent asthma attacks.Short, purple pants are worn beneath the sweater, long, sheer tights filling into their black boots with neon violet laces. At their back and left hip rest a brush and palette made of electrope and crafted by their own hand. The material and circuits within facilitate the changing of elemental aspect needed for their magicks.Recently, they've taken to a new, black outfit made of the same materials as their jacket but with additional considerations made to facilitate the flow of aether spellcasting. The outfit features a similar hood, a knee-length coat, and matching pants. Its electrope collar glows light purple with lightning-aspected aether.

Equipment

Electrope Raincoat:Interlaced with electrope circuitry, this modular raincoat uses elemental transformations to maintain a temperature of 20-degreees in Alexandrian units, offering protection from extreme heat and cold. It offers additional protection against electric shocks and its material resists water and cleans easily as one might expect of a raincoat. While usually kept white, its colors can be glamoured dynamically. The jacket's electrope components also promote Iris's aetherial flow when spellcasting, making it a valuable piece of equipment.

Respirator:Usually worn during travel or in crowded areas, this facemask aids Iris in controlling their breathing while also filtering out dust. When activated, the electrope circuits can also filter polluted or stagnant aether, and even prevent drowning by filtering out and converting pollution or water into clean, breathable wind energy. Iris has to clean its filter roughly once a month for upkeep.

HoloTerminal:Carried at Iris's hip, the electrope geometries within this tablet-shaped personal terminal not only provide aspected aether in place of the paints typically used in a pictomancer's magicks but can store a considerable amount of information, render complex imagery such as Iris's three-dimensional virtual paintings, and display these via holographic projection. A small button near the power button allows Iris summon their Air-wheeler A9 from afar and, when in Yyasulani or Everkeep, it can remotely access the Alexandrian subnet.

Chromatic Wand:An electrope device heavily modified by Iris, this paintbrush works in tandem with their terminal to serve as a focus for their magicks. Closer inspection reveals arcane geometries etched onto its surface that accelerate the aetherial flow from tablet to brush. The head of the brush contains two smaller styluses that can be used to channel noncombative magicks or to paint on their HoloTerminal.

Air-wheeler A9:Designed and built in Alexandria, this single-rider flying vehicle uses electrope to convert lightning to wind energy, which it expels to produce levitation and propulsion. While air-wheelers are extensively employed by the military, the A9 is a civilian model and does not come fitted with armaments. Iris has added a holster for their brush and tablet to the design. A private air-wheeler is uncommon even among Alexandrians, reflecting wealth in credits.

Everlink:An Alexandrian variant of a linkpearl, this small orb of electrope comes in a case of one-hundred and permits communication across long distances without fear of weather interference by using lightning energy to transmit sound via electromagnetic waves. While only made for Everkeep and the dome, the effective range is far longer than a common linkpearl. Iris often used these to coordinate with other members of Oblivion. They can also be used to play audio recordings saved on the HoloTablet.

Vacuum Flask:A ten-ilm long beverage container that keeps hot drinks at-temperature for twelve hours and cold drinks for a full day. Though Iris usually puts chilled water inside, they've also used it to store iced coffee or energy drinks purchased in Everkeep.

Perfect Meal Bars:Though formulated to never taste dull and sustain for a full day, Iris only uses their supply of perfect meal bars purchased from home if they find themselves running low on funds or unable to eat anything else, preferring to sample the fare of other cultures unless painting out in the wilderness with no easily-available food source.

Contact Lenses:A pair of clear lenses imperceptibly cover Iris's eyes, correcting their naturally poor eyesight. Wearing them can become tiring, and so they also own a small collection of conventional spectacles.

Glamour Prisms:Though when asked, Iris refers to "hair dye" or "makeup," much of Iris's appearance is maintained through the use of glamour magicks for their eye makeup, lipstick, nail polish, and hair color. Their natural appearance is seldom seen, as the glamours can last a week before needing to be recast.

Aetherolectric Bass:A standard electrope bass guitar made in Solution Nine, Iris bought this black model with blue and violet accents around the time they began working at the Arcadion. Though they never monetized their playing, they used the instrument to build their motor skills.

Personality

Iris is a quiet, soft-spoken person by nature, not given to outbursts of extreme emotion. Though passionate about their art and other interests, they're shy around large groups of people and tend to hide their face to avoid having their facial expressions read. Their blunt, matter-of-fact way of speaking can unintentionally offend.Far from unemotional, however, Iris carries a deep love for the people of Alexandria that compelled them to rebel against Zoraal Ja as part of Oblivion. Even before that, their steely determination saw them overcome debilitating levin sickness, learning to walk at the age of fifteen after years of physical therapy.Iris has a strong sense of pride and hates feeling looked down on or underestimated. They developed a reckless streak as a teenager, leading them to their death on three occasions in various accidents. Fortunately, being raised in a wealthy, well-connected family helped to offset the costs in credits and souls at the time.They also feel strongly against imperialism and war, having taken the history of the Storm Surge to heart. Iris also feels strongly against the soul management system, believing Alexandrians should remove their Regulators and return the souls to the aetherial sea.Since the deaths of their parents and defeat of Zoraal Ja, Iris feels somewhat disconnected from Everkeep. Taken by an incurable desire to explore the world beyond the dome, they hope to bring back artworks of places they visit in their journeys and encourage more Alexandrians to venture out into the world.

History

Born in Everkeep nine years after dimensional fusion, Iris suffered severe levin sickness, keeping them paralyzed from the waist down or more for most of their youth. Encouraged by their mother, they found a gift for magic through the medium of paint, and learned how to work the arcane geometries that power electrope technology.Iris's magicks helped lessen the symptoms and, over years of physical therapy, they learned to walk and run. Their art saw them hired at the Arcadion as an adapter and graphic designer, but after its shutdown they abandoned their Regulator and spent their teenage years rebelling against the tyrannical King Zoraal Ja.Since the breach of the dome and massacre at Everkeep, Iris has found themself in a slump. No longer content with remaining under the levin-filled skies of their homeland, they desire to see the world beyond the dome and bring back fantastical images to inspire their countrymen to explore beyond Alexandria's borders.

• Recent History

Stormbreaker

Named for the greatsword wielded by its nameless, androgynous, silver-haired hero, this electronic game was one of the more popular independent titles published within the last decade in Everkeep. Its tale takes place during the Storm Surge, and its use of graphic violence and depictions of death in a time before Regulators underscores an ultimately optimistic story of opposition in the face of oppression and hope in the face of despair.In its story, the hero possesses the power to heal levin sickness and take in the magic of the storm, healing the world slowly as they visit Alexandria, Lindblum, and other locales, richly-detailed and based on historical depiction.With each victory, the hero gathers allies and the burden of the lightning within them grows more debilitating as they experience symptoms of levin sickness taken from Iris's own experiences and those of others. Despite this, they press on.The final conflicts of the game take place not with levin-addled monsters, but the leaders of the world's warring nations who first sought to use, and then sought to destroy the hero as they become known as the Warrior of Light (a title taken from ancient Alexandrian fable). This culminates in a confrontation with Kuja, a flowery antagonist whose sudden rise to power within the hero's homeland of Alexandria mirrors that of the King of Resolve Zoraal Ja.Iris developed Stormbreaker under the handle "Ephemeral" and developed its story, aesthetics, and gameplay mostly on their own with some help from their parents. While its dark fantasy traits and modern-day allegory sparked controversy, they also drove its popularity. It's not uncommon for people to know the handle "Ephemeral" from Stormbreaker.

Timeline

Years After Dimensional Fusion0: Dimensional fusion brings Alexandria to Tural.9: Iris is born in Everkeep with severe levin sickness.12: Iris begins experiencing strange dreams of another world.13: Thaumas encourages Iris to draw to build motor skills.14: Queen Sphene starts visiting Iris once per week.19: Thaumas nurtures Iris's innate talent for arcane magicks.21: Iris begins to undergo physical therapy to learn to walk.22: Iris begins working on their independent role-playing game, Stormbreaker.23: Iris begins studying advanced electrope adapting in hopes of joining their mother in Origenics.24: Iris first walks without assistance. They're employed at Mosaic. They publish Stormbreaker later that year.25: Iris fails to enter Origenics. They're hired by the Arcadion to produce graphic art based on the success of Stormbreaker.26: Iris begins dating the Arcadion fighter Tonakwa, also known by his stage name "Anax."27: Anax advances into the heavyweight tier of the Arcadion.28: Anax is ascended following his retirement bout. Iris doesn't hear from him again, which greatly disturbs them.29: Geode invites Iris to join Oblivion as an adapter.30: The dome is breached with the construction of Vanguard. Iris steals classified Origenics files from their mother's databank.

Hooks

Rumors

Recent History

Dawntrail

Crossroads:Returning from a brief voyage to Eorzea in response to word of the funeral for Queen Sphene and the victims of Code Blood, Iris woke to visions of the past that ripped them from their slumber.After a visit to Mosaic and reminiscing on their missing boyfriend, the former Arcadion heavyweight Anax, they met up with the rest of Oblivion at the Backroom. Geode took notice of their state of mourning and offered comfort, which Iris refused.At Praxis Park, Iris picked up their namesake flowers to honor their mother, Electra, and brusquely refused the offer of a neo-regulator. Stricken with flashbacks of the day of Code Blood during the ceremony, Geode shook Iris from their reverie, and they fled.Riding their air-wheeler to the Outskirts, Iris met with Anax's mother Tokwa, who now wore a regulator after losing her husband and son while both were still young. They shared a meal, Iris recalling how they found community in the Outskirts thanks to her and Anax.Seeing Tokwa's grief, Iris decided to return to the altar and lay down the flowers for Electra. Instead, Iris saw the Simulant, a fake Sphene claiming that the late Queen never died and noticed their regulator-wearing countrymen's memories being altered. Overwhelmed, Iris suffered another panic attack and vomited.Determined to rid Alexandria of whatever threat lurked behind the imposter, Iris cut off communications with their friends outside of the dome and focused all their energies to the Backroom. However, after a few weeks, they suffered a seizure caused by overwork, and Geode forced them to return beyond the dome and rest.

Seekers of Eternity:While in Limsa Lominsa, Iris met Tsilēdze, a man from the northern reaches of Xak Tural and a former Landsguard and Arcadion fighter. The two formed a budding romance, and he decided to return to Alexandria with Iris to support them and their mutual home.By the time Iris returned to Everkeep, the true Sphene had entered Oblivion's care, coalescing in the break room. While this frustrated Iris, the revelation that their allies from beyond the dome possessed a method to cure levin sickness astonished the young adapter.With the prospect of life without their disability on their mind, they looked to Tsilēdze for advice. They found themself unsure if they were willing to take the plunge, or even if they needed it given how the symptoms had unusually lessened over their life.Tsilēdze told them that others having it worse doesn't mean they should have to live with it, and as if on cue the sentries and vehicles of Everkeep began to malfunction. Paralyzed by levin sickness and terrified, Tsilēdze protected them from the sentries and pushed them out of the path of a malfunctioning air-wheeler.Realizing that they could better protect others without their disability, and realizing that Tsilēdze's words were true, and they truly desired to be free of it, they decided to return to the Backroom and undergo the treatment (which involved a flying pig).The moment the treatment was over, they realized how much of a weight levin sickness was on their body, even when they didn't know it was there. Their muscles felt less tense and sore, they felt less heavy, and their occasional seizures vanished entirely (though the fear of them remained).They briefly trained with Sphene in the break room, then when they felt strong enough, went to Tsilēdze in the Outskirts to improve their magicks by helping keep the roads clear in Yyasulani.

The Promise of Tomorrow:When the attacks began anew, Iris became a sentry's target once again. Though they panicked at first, they made quick work of it with their newfound skills and were able to defend their neighbors. After the battle, they learned of the murder of their comrade Geode.Iris and Tsilēdze went to visit the back alley where they first met Geode. Shortly after Anax's "ascension," he'd found them furiously tagging the street with Anax's image and struck up a conversation, being a fan of the heavyweight and believing Iris one as well.Though the graffiti was no longer there, replaced with Sugar Riot's, the memory of that meeting remained. Feeling inspired, Iris painted a new image of Geode in the alley. By the time they finished, the public announcement rang out, promising an end to mortality.With the Preservation leader Calyx's endgame closing in, Iris could "hear" the darkened thoughts of the citizenry and decided to use what few images of Tural and Eorzea they'd managed to create to bring peace to them. By showing them the real world beyond the dome, and sharing with them their own story, they managed to convince some few to reject neo-regulators.The two went to the Outskirts after hearing of the severity of the situation there, Iris caring deeply for the people. To their horror, Tokwa had obtained a neo-regulator of her own, and one of her own neighbors nearly attacked her for it. Iris managed to talk the man down, shaming him but also empathizing with him, and their words convinced both him and Tokwa not to become Endless.With 5,000 registered neo-regulators, those wearing the devices suddenly became catatonic, tempered thralls of Necron, a deity born of the fear of death itself. While immune to enthrallment, Iris's ability to hear others' thoughts made them vulnerable to this grasping darkness. Yet it also allowed Iris and Tsilēdze to search for and protected those with neo-regulators who'd been out in Yyasulani's wilderness at the time, ironically sparing the defenseless citizens death at the fangs of opportunistic wildlife.In the weeks that followed Necron's defeat and Sphene's speech, Iris worked to help cure the tempered, though they took healthy breaks and spent spare time painting portraits of Alexandrians and Everkeep. They noted how strange people outside the dome thought them to be, and felt showing images of their home and way of life could demistify them and help others see them as a people.When the day of Meso Terminal's signal came, they'd decided to wear a regulator one more time and unlock their memories. With the support of Tsilēdze, they shed tears for the father they'd forgotten, the mother, lover, and comrade they'd lost, and the true end of the terror that had choked Alexandria for years.Boarding the train to Shaaloani together with Tsilēdze, Iris prepared to return to Eorzea with inspiration renewed and hope in their heart. They left behind a thank you to all those who supported their game and to their comrades in Oblivion, modeled recreations of places they'd visited beyond the dome in Tural and Eorzea. They also recreated Everkeep and the Outskirts under clear, cloudless skies, shifting from bright, sunny day to starry, moonlit night.

Into the Mist:Sometime after leaving Alexandria, Iris and Tsilēdze visited the uplands of Urqopacha, and boarded an airship to see the Ja Tiika Heartland before finally boarding another ship, this time bound for the island of Old Sharlayan.

Tsilēdze

Iris first met Tsilēdze at the Bismarck, when Oblivion sent them away for a break after noticing their deteriorating health from overwork in the wake of the simulant's first appearance. Seeing that they were in need of help, he sat and related with Iris through their shared experiences in Alexandria, patiently listening to their worries.The kind and gregarious Tonawawtan hails from a village to the north of Yyasulani and lived under the dome for thirty years, being on the last train before Alexandria fused to the Source. He made an immediate impression on Iris; they quickly felt an attachment to him despite their usual tendency to avoid or push away other people.

Tekawte Wanzih'pya

A strong and loyal Tonawawtan viper who loves the people he cares about openly and honestly. Acting before he realized Iris's origins, he saved their life when a levin sickness attack nearly caused them to choke to death on their meal in the Quicksand.As a Yyasulani native, Tekawte was quick to judge Iris for the crimes of their people, only to find their receptiveness and validation of that anger surprising. Since then, the two have formed something of a friendship, the first one Iris has made since leaving home.

Katekka Sokopehyen

The surrogate younger brother of Tekawte, this hot-blooded gunslinger first met Iris the day his brother saved their life. Having only just reconciled with Tekawte, his fear of Alexandrians and his fierce protective instinct keep him wary of Iris's intentions.Despite this, he's not objected to Iris's presence openly since their first meeting, and is hardly impolite to them. Iris seems to enjoy his company about as much as they enjoy Tekawte's, even if they're less casual in how they address Katekka by comparison.

Eleksander Cirillo

An astromancer of Sharlayan of considerable talent, Eleksander is heir to the prominent Cirillo name. As someone who can speak on aetherological phenomena, Iris often finds themself awestruck by the mage's gorgeous displays of celestial magic.Bearing the ability to glean the surface emotions of others, Lex often finds himself struggling emotionally. Lending him an ear, and later aiding in the destruction of a deeply personal artifact, Iris found in him a confidant to entrust with their feelings in kind.

Backstory Connections

Electra Psykia:Iris's mother who spent most of her time working as an adapter in Origenics. Though Iris admired her greatly growing up and once wished to join her in Origenics, they had a falling out after Iris joined Oblivion, abandoned regulators, and learned more about the horrific inner workings of Origenics.Electra, worried for her child, urged them to continue wearing their regulator out of fear for their life. Yet, ironically, she used her last soul to save another's life during the attack on Everkeep. As she wore a regulator, Iris alone retained the memory of her life.Unknown to Iris, Electra sabotaged their application to Origenics, fearing that the special qualities of their soul—the Echo—would make them subject to testing, but also fearing reprisal for her role in hiding those qualities from her superiors. She bore her child's ire in life, but in death her electrope-lined jacket is a comfort to them.

Thaumas:For years, Iris's father was a mystery to them, as they still wore a regulator when he died. However, after the restoration of memories to the people of Alexandria, Iris has confirmed Thaumas to be the man who spent time tending to them at home, inspired their love of 3D modeling and art, and bought them their first brush stylus.A laid-back man who worked as an adapter at the Arcadion in charge of designing the battle arenas for fighters and overseeing the promotional videos, Thaumas both gave Iris their job there and protected Iris's identity when their run as Rainbow Sprite came to its catastrophic end halfway through their cruiserweight run.Recognizing the early stages of psychonekrosis in Iris's fall, he tried to convince the AAC president to come forward. When he refused, he attempted to go public but was slain by mechanical soldiers, only later revealed to be the work of Calyx through Everkeep's systems.Until the defeat of Necron, Thaumas survived only in the air-wheeler and stylus wand he gifted to Iris, both of which they cherish dearly.

Anax:A heavyweight heel from just before the generation of fighters that produced Howling Blade and Wicked Thunder, Anax's personas in and out of the ring couldn't have been more different. When he saw Iris, at the time a barista at Mosaic, struggling with symptoms of levin sickness, he immediately came to their aid and remained by their side until he was certain they were okay.Shortly after, the towering half-Tonawawtan known to the public as "Striking Meteor," became Iris's first partner. He introduced them to his home in the Outskirts and helped them connect with others.Though he promised to keep in contact after ascending, Iris was left alone with no word from him. Bizarrely, he spoke not even to his own, beloved mother, whose inquiries were repelled by the AAC.To try and reunite with him, Iris made their ill-fated Arcadion debut as Rainbow Sprite, using the soul of a Twitherym, an Alexandrian subspecies of fluterini. They failed, losing in the cruiserweight semifinals due to a seizure caused by levin sickness.Anax has since emerged from stasis, alive and well. Though he no longer uses the soul of a Lunyucaua'pya to fight, he plans to return to the ring someday soon.

Lore Connections

Endless Sphene:Suffering from levin sickness for the whole of their childhood, they received frequent visits from Queen Sphene. Their feelings on her are complicated, as many of her choices made her an enemy of Iris, and, like many Alexandrians, they haven't been able to process her death in light of the simulant's appearance.

Cahciua:As a member of Oblivion, Iris was acquainted and worked alongside their leader, the Shetona heroine Cahciua, who would often and to Iris's mild irritation, compare their "fussiness" to her favorite topic of conversation: her son Erenville.

Shale and Geode:Senior members of Oblivion, Shale is Iris's senior as an adapter and since the death of Cahciua the organization's de facto leader. Geode was the leader of the Earthen Sky Hideout, though most of his duties now keep him in the city.While Shale's new responsibilities supply Iris with no shortage of work to help her decrypt and decipher new information, Geode's also kept an eye on Iris's physical condition, often requiring they take breaks from Everkeep and teleport outside of the dome.

Gallery

Out of Character

Character profile for Iris Ephemeral on the Mateus server of Final Fantasy XIV. Thank you for stopping by to take a look!I'm over 30 years old and I wish to roleplay with players and characters 18 years of age or older. I'm LGBTQIA+ friendly. My character is demisexual and genderfluid, typically using they/them pronouns. I myself am black and queer, and I use she/her pronouns.Walk-up roleplay is welcome, encouraged, and appreciated. I'm generally lore-abiding but I don't expect other players to know the game's lore inside and out. I also observe the time bubble but I don't expect, far less demand, others to do the same.I like short-term and long-term roleplay. Dark and mature themes are okay, provided there's a warning and consent between participating parties.