Caltia the Eternal
God of Coniferous Forests, Eminence in the Troika of Woods, patron god of Halta (with Warrant).
Most call Caltia a hunter, for she spends much time amidst the evergreens seeking quarry for her bow. But some speak that she hunts not as a trade but by instinct, and ought more correctly be termed a predator. Indeed, it is well known to those who dwell in the forests she roams that if they encounter the God of Coniferous Forests they must stand firm, wether in awe, respect, or defiance, for if they let fear make them tremble or flee then Caltia will launch into the hunt and pursue them without mercy until they are slain.
In wake of the Great Contagion, Caltia encouraged the peoples dwelling in the coniferous forests of the Northeast to unite into the Republic of Halta. In this she was aided by the Lunar Exalts Silver Python and Rain Deathflyer, though some might say it more accurate to reverse the order: Caltia desired survival and expansion of her worship and her forests, but had little concern for how these aims were brough about, the structures and systems of Haltan society left to be determined by the Lunars and tribal traditions. It is an alliance and a realm which has served Caltia well: to this day all Haltans worship her to at least some extent, hunters and warriors most extensively, and their nation pursues her eternal war to purge the deciduous forests of her rival Golden-Eyed Jorst from Creation. Halta's alliance with the Bull of the North has broken this effort's long stalemate, allowing her Haltans to overcome Jorst's Linowan in decisive fashion. It would be now that the conifers ought sweep across the east to supplant Linowa's deciduous woodlands, the god's long-held dream, but this has not been the immediate result: Yurgen Kaneko demands increasing numbers of unforested fields to feed his armies, and Redwoods to equip them. Caltia grows impatient with such demands, and with Halta's accomodation of them.
Caltia's influence among the Forest Walkers of Halta is significant, and the prominence of her lover Glorious Jade Branch among them reflects this... but such relations are not one-sided, with the Walkers having been key in calming Caltia's aggressive instincts so that she would sign to the Treaty of High Order and Wild Roots with the Fair Folk. Caltia herself is not subject to the treaty as the Fae and Haltans are, roaming the forest floor at will. The Fair Folk among the roots are rarely her prey, but her predator's instinct holds when seeing them as much as with any mortal being.
Caltia has many enemies, perhaps due to her position or peraps to her nature, for she rarely hides annoyance or disrespect. Her hatred for Golden-Eyed Jorst is open, and none in Heaven or Creation doubt she would slay the Deciduous Drunkard if she could, and while she is not so aggressive towards the god of jungle forests Arilak the Unseen some observe that her dedication to her own forests having dominance of the East means Arilak would surely be next should Jorst fall. She is known to have been dismissive of the Sloth Avatar for its sluggish nature, blocking it from joining the pantheon of Halta and setting its Sloths as favoured prey.
Caltia's aggressive nature is far from unknown to her worshippers, and the senior leadership among the Haltans worry over inevitable confrontation with their Solar ally as interests diverge. Some seek ways to sooth such conflicts, but others now begin to take sides: with the Bull as the source of long-elusive victory, or with the God of Conifers as the only chance the Republic might have to end Kaneko in order to escape his yoke.
