Niamh Cinn Oir

"The effect this place has is not only to extend life and warp the mind, but to stop the souls of the dead from ever leaving. And if you have spoken to Niamh, you will know that a person less deserving of such a fate never lived."

- Edgar the Axe

Niamh Cinn Oir (Niamh of Golden Hair) is an ancient ghost encountered in Aeternis

Background
Niamh was a member of a Pict tribe inhabiting north-eastern Scotland in the fourth century CE, who discovered the caves of Wick. She and her sister, Sasha, were forced into the caves as a human sacrifice during a solar eclipse to return the sun to its rightful place. The ceremony saw people come from a hundred miles away and the girls entered the caves to meet the God Sun... However, they wound up lost, traveling through the byzantine corridors for years on end, slowly succumbing to grailstone. The beasts that lived in the caverns below drove them back and prevented them from penetrating the lower realms. Eventually, they managed to find a way below. Sasha became enamored with the ancient buildings below and separated from her sister. It was then that Oisin came, with dark hair and a cloak clasped with an amulet. Oisin spent a year with Niamh, before Sasha returned and he left to return to his people. Niamh tried to follow him, but the long years in the caves and the influence of grailstone rendered her vulnerable to sunlight. Oisin left, promising Niamh a reunion in the future.

Niamh was later killed while sitting by the watering hole, near an ancient Byzantine well. A creature attacked and dragged her body into the well, where it would remain for centuries, kept from decaying by grailstone. It is entirely possible that this creature was, in fact, Sasha, as long term exposure to grailstone caused her to heavily mutate and become one of the most dangerous creatures in the waters underground, terrorizing man and animal alike. It is entirely possible that the creature that attacked Niamh by the ancient

Interactions

 * Niamh is encountered in the well room. She provides a little bit of background on the habitation of Aeternis after the extinction of the Byzantines. Her body has the key to the chest in the mine maze, which contains Oisin's amulet that can be used to drive Sasha back.
 * Talking with Niamh is tricky, as pointing out the fact that she's dead will cause her to disappear, as will incessant questions about things she has no knowledge of, like anything that happened after her death (construction of Aeternis etc.)

Behind the scenes
"Niamh 'golden hair' was a member of the Celtic tribe called the Solenta, who originally came upon the caves of Dunstanburgh about 1900 BC (see History). She was forced into the caves as a human sacrifice by the Druids in a fruitless effort to appease the evil demons within, The Druids kept sending miners into the caves in an attempt to extract the valuable Grailstone, but each expedition was brutally driven back or lost. Eventually and reluctantly the site was abandoned and the Solenta moved on.

''Deep underground, lost and alone, the beautiful Niamh survived.

''As mentioned in Celtic mythology, Oisin came upon her several hundred years later in his wanderings. They fell in love, but any attempt to leave the caves made her ill and weak. He turned his back upon the world and joined her in the caves as her lover. When she died tragically several years later, he left and returned to Ireland. He of course died shortly afterwards of old age, terribly alone and astounded that three hundred years had passed in his absence.

''In 1364 the Guardians came upon her ghost whilst exploring the caves. Touched by her sad beauty they moved her bones above into the holier surroundings of Aeternis. She resides now in the Chapel Minor on Level Two,"

- Design document


 * Niamh is a reference to the Celtic myth about Tír na nÓg and was written as such in the design document. Her role was only slightly altered: She was originally a Byzantine tribeswoman, not a Pict, and her ghost would be encountered in the chapel, where the guardians would have interred her.

Gallery
 Niamh Body.png|Niamh's preserved body 