Ar'liel is a runaway. Her parents, Aylvaris and Sylkas both live together in Ar'liel's childhood home, a secluded and vast homestead deep in the woods, as druids belonging to the circle of the forest. Aylvaris functions as the archdruid of their circle and is advised by her husband, Sylkas. Devoted wholeheartedly to their circle and its faith, Ar'liel's older brother Varan grew distant from his less devout little sister as the two grew up. The rift between them reached un-breachable depths when he ventured out into the world at age 150, following his official initiation into the circle of the forest by his parents in order to seek other potential candidates for training and initiation. Ar'liel, though still powerfully connected to the natural world, struggled to follow in her family's footsteps. Slowly growing alienated by her family’s increasing frustration with her refusal to adhere to their way of life, Ar'liel struck out only a decade after Varan at the (relatively) young age of 94. Ar'liel's family, fearful of their own circle’s secrets finding their way into the outside world with Ar'liel and her disregard for their religion, stole away her voice to prevent her from revealing any of the circle of the forest's secrets.

Upon leaving her home, she found refuge in the arms of a human sailor and druid named Nadja Seastride. Nadja taught Ar'liel the ways of the Circle of the Coast and helped her learn to control druidic magic using only whistles and song, allowing her to practice magic and connect with the sea without speech. Nadja also taught Ar'liel to sail and named Ar'liel the new captain of her ship after sustaining a career-ending shoulder injury while out at sea.

Ar'liel has devoted her life to amassing enough wealth to ensure a comfortable and luxurious retirement for Nadja, whom she harbors a deep and unconditional love for. She has retro-fitted Nadja's old ship, the Celeste, from a deep-sea fishing trawler to a warship and commands it as a ruthless pirate. Her crew of all-female druids masks the Celeste in an ever-present shroud of fog, helping to spin tales of a wandering ghost ship filled with treasure to lure in other pirates who would otherwise be hunting defenseless merchant ships.