Anu

The anu are the spiritual leaders of the fír suthr.  Rumoured to be mages, the anu are a secretive cabal who live and operate outside of normal fír suthr society.  They are called upon not merely to oversee all matters of faith, but as impartial oversight in important elections (such as the appointing of a new ard rídh), and to mediate disputes.

In addition to their priestly duties, they are also historians, lawyers, counsellors, healers and, of all things, bards.  The fír suthr believe the anu to be powerful mages, gifted by various deities or ancestors with remarkable powers.  As such, their word carries a greater weight than that of even their own kings, the ard rídh included.

As historians, they are keepers of knowledge and are expected to be able to memorise and recount the entire history of the fír suthr from the inception of time to the present.  As lawyers, they are the people to whom all turn when a law is unclear or requires interpretation or even changing.  They counsel kings and herders alike, from all manner of issues from matters of state to when might be a good time to change pastures, what weather to expect in the coming weeks, or how to care for a sick animal or family member.  As bards, they have the power to satirise kings; and act that has led to the voluntary death of more than one ruler.

Little is known of these religious leaders, as they are famously reticent to share their knowledge, claiming that not all can be or should be known by all.  Indeed, they believe this themselves so deeply that they take twenty-two years to train until they are permitted beyond their sanctuary on Tír Arnbjorn (exact location is unknown) to begin practicing on the isles.  They are the only people who may travel between the islands on the Southern Archipelago without first seeking permission of the appropriate rídh, and they have a reputation for infuriatingly arriving or vanishing suddenly and without explanation.

Like all positions of power, inclusion in the ranks of the anu does not depend on gender.  Not just anyone can become an anu, however.  First, the person must be a wyrdr, that is, they must show some touch of the Wyrding (also called the Gift.  It is unclear what that might actually mean, though it seems that, perhaps, they mean magic of some kind), by the age of seven.  If they do, they are collected by an anu, taken from their families and homes, and raised in the sanctuary, where they are taught the Wyrding Way (the secrets to being an anu, one might assume).  Becoming an anu means divorcing oneself from one's family, clan and island identity.  It cannot be an easy thing for a child.

Strangely, for all the rights and powers they are afforded in fír suthr society, the anu eschew any display of such power.  They wear no jewellery or ornamentation (save for talismans), and simple smocks or robes in grey or white wool, with accoutrements being entirely utilitarian.  Many carry a large walking stick or staff as they journey, leading some to speculate that the items are necessary to the working of their craft.  This has not been proven, and it is likely the staves are merely walking aids.  After all, the anu travel frequently and for long periods around the islands, lending their expertise where needed.

The anu have their own hierarchy; the actions of any anu must be sanctioned by the Council of Elders, who may or may not be led by a hierophant, depending on the needs of the group and of the southerners at the time.  There have been few hierophants in the history of the anu.  One was elected during the events that led to the rise of the Great Man, however.  One Gudbrandr, who journeyed with Anders Mac Agmundr from Tír Arnbjorn to Ardea following the Harrowing of the South, was such an anu.  He served faithfully in that position until his death.