Story

Decades before the events of Myst III Exile, Atrus was exiled to Myst Island along with his grandmother Ti’ana and wife Catherine [see: Book of Atrus]. In making a new life for themselves, Catherine and Atrus had two sons, Sirrus and Achenar. As they grew up, Atrus sought to teach them about The Art, the D’ni skill of writing Linking Books to new worlds.

To teach them the elements that make up an Age, Atrus wrote the lesson Age of J’nanin, where the boys would come for their lessons. Three other Ages, Amateria, Edanna and Voltaic, was available to them to learn these elements. By combining what they learnt from these Ages they could access the final lesson on the Age of Narayan. Upon their arrival on Narayan, Atrus introduced his two sons to a man called Saavedro, who was to teach them the ways of his civilization.

The sons betrayed and manipulated the inhabitants of Narayan in order to get what they wanted, Saavedro saw what they were doing and sought to speak out against them. Civil war broke out upon the Age and the two sons fled the Age, no longer finding any value in it. Saavedro followed Sirrus and Achenar to J’nanin in order to confront them, instead he was beaten by the two and tied up. Tied to one of the Ages “Sun Scopes”, Saavedro watched helplessly as Sirrus and Achenar Linked back to Myst Island, burning their books in the process and trapping Saavedro on J’nanin.

Believing is family and home-world to be dead and suffering from decades of solitude, madness began to claim Saavedro. Until one day Atrus returned to J’nanin and opened the door for Saavedro’s escape. Finding the book Saavedro Linked to Atrus’ home in order to find Sirrus and Achenar, instead he discovered Atrus’ Journal of Releeshahn and planned to steal the book in order for Atrus to fix Narayan. Unfortunately Saavedro steals the book in front of Atrus and his friend “The Stranger” who arrives in Tomahna to make a trip to Releeshahn. Following Saavedro to J’nanin, The Stranger must take a Atrus’ lessons and Saavedro’s new lessons in order to make his way to Narayan and claim back Releeshahn.

Confronting Saavedro upon his home Age, The Stranger lowers the protective “Ice Shields” to reveal that Narayan had not been destroyed as Saavedro had thought, but was in fact flourishing. Overwhelmed with the thought that his wife is alive, Saavedro returns the Releeshahn Linking Book and returns home to find his wife, thanking The Stranger as he goes. The Stranger returned to Tomahna, taking the book back to Atrus and Catherine and closing one of the chapters of Sirrus and Achenar’s betrayal.

Characters

Atrus

Actor: Rand Miller
[ IMDB | Wikipedia ]

Atrus is descended from D’ni and Surface dwellers. His grandmother Ti’ana discovered D’ni and married Aitrus a guildsman of D’ni [see: Book of Ti’ana]. Their son, Gehn, went on to marry a surface dweller called Keta after the fall of D’ni. Gehn and Keta had Atrus who is 1/4 D’ni and 3/4 human.

Honest and noble, Atrus was left to grow up in the Cleft with his grandmother Anna (Ti’ana) after his father Gehn fled when his wife died during child birth. At the age of 14 Atrus was taken to D’ni with his father who had returned for him. Atrus however grew very disillusioned with his father and tried to escape back to the Cleft and to his grandmother Anna.

As punishment Atrus was locked in the bottom of K’veer, the island mansion in which Gehn had lived since he arrived in D’ni, with the Riven Descriptive Book. With the assistance of Anna and a Rivenese villager called Katran (Catherine), they managed to trap Gehn on the Age of Riven [see: Book of Atrus]

Atrus settled on the Age of Myst with Catherine, who he later married, and his grandmother Anna. He later had two sons Sirrus and Achenar who later betrayed him and his wife in their desire for riches the Ages in Atrus’ library held. Atrus was trapped back in the same room his father had imprisoned him in due to his sons schemes, he was later freed by a stranger who found the Myst Linking Book that Atrus had dropped into the Fissure [see: Book of Atrus]

Atrus later left Myst island to start rebuilding the D’ni civilization, with the help of other D’ni survivors and the people of Averone they began to rebuild on the Age Releeshahn (The Whole) that Atrus had written for them [see: Book of D’ni]. Atrus and his wife then settled in to their new home they called Tomahna, it was there they had their new daughter, Yeesha.

Catherine

Actress: Maria Galante
[ IMDB ]

Katran (or Catherine as she became to be known through Atrus’ mispronunciation of her name) was a native of the Age of Riven, written by Gehn. She was due to marry Gehn through an arranged marriage but it did not come to pass, instead she helped Atrus trap his father on the Age of Riven.

Catherine later married Atrus and had their two sons, Sirrus and Achenar. When Sirrus and Achenar betrayed their parents Catherine was tricked into returning to Riven, and thus captured by Gehn. Through the actions of the stranger, who had freed Atrus from K’veer, Catherine was rescued. She and Atrus later moved to Tomahna after the events of Terahnee [see: Book of D’ni] and had their daughter Yeesha. Catherine was also the author of the journals that were discovered and formed the Myst Novels as well as the basis for the Myst Games.

Saavedro

Actor: Brad Dourif
[ IMDB | Wikipedia ]

Saavedro was a native of Narayan, and was teacher to Sirrus and Achenar. When the brothers fled Narayan after starting the civil war Saavedro followed them to J’nanin to stop them. Beaten and tied up Saavedro was left on J’nanin with no way to get home for some 20 years. Over that time Saavedro became bitter and hateful from the belief that Narayan was destroyed because of the actions of Sirrus and Achenar. When Atrus returned Saavedro followed Atrus back to Tomahna and there he learned about Releeshan, thus begining his plan to take the Age.

After the events of Exile, Saavedro was able to return home, however whether his wife Tamra and two daughters survived the strife is unknown.

Yeesha

Actress: Audrey Uhler
[ IMDB ]

Yeesha (D’ni for Laughter) is Atrus and Catherine’s third child, born after Atrus had finished writing Releeshahn for the D’ni survivors.

Nicknamed “Desert Bird” she left her family at the age of 16 to head out into the world, this eventually lead her to D’ni. It was there that Yeesha began to learn of D’ni and their fall, it was there she met Calam a D’ni writer. Calam and Yeesha learned from each other and from Calam’s knowledge Yeesha became probably the greatest D’ni writer. It was also during this time she discovered the Bahro, The Least as she called them. A race that had been enslaved for 10,000 years. Calam was later killed, and Yeesha went on to discover that she was “The Grower” that a man known as The Watcher had prophesied about.

Yeesha crafted the Journeys for people to take, to teach them of the true nature of the D’ni and its Ages. Yeesha’s future has yet to play out, according to a line of text in Words Yeesha has or will have a daughter of her own.