mythology + species.

[blunderbussed]

Mythology

The world is born.
When the world was born, life began.

From the world, Tierrhagan, were born two deities, both guardians of the this world’s separate realms: Hresia of the Fiery Wing, she who held dominion over the boundless sky, and Sindhrra of the Quaking Earth, he who held dominion over the lands and all things below. From there, these gods created lesser beings to love and nurture the world just as they did, made in their own image: from the Goddess were born the winged people of the sky, those with affinity to the air and vast powers of the mind, and from the God were born the scaled people of the earth, those with affinity to the land and vast powers of the body.

The gods also created one more being, both like themselves and not, to keep eternal watch over the whole of Tierrhagan and keep it and all its life from harm. This entity was named Rhunis, the Watcher, and while he was not made in either deity’s image, he was granted similarly vast power from the world itself.

Life flourished, the world prospered, and all was well.




The world suffers.
But this peace was not fated to last.

Rhunis, in his eternal watch, came to be dissatisfied with the simple peace of Tierrhagan. In it he saw not harmony but rather stagnation, and he believed that it was his duty to fix it.

From Tierrhagan, he raised a weapon of phenomenal strength and beauty—a weapon which was only to be his in the event of the world falling to some great danger, and such was the purpose for which it was raised. He took this weapon to the place between earth and sky, the only place where these two realms would meet, and called to the gods: “Come Hresia, come Sindhrra! Come see this lovely Sword I’ve found!”

This was enough to rouse their curiosity, and so they came. When their eyes fell upon the Sword, they were overwhelmed by its beauty and astonished that Rhunis could have come into possession of such a thing. They asked him again and again just where and how he had found it, but each time Rhunis kept coy with his answers, only further stoking and inciting their curiosity. Finally he asked both of them to look after the Sword, as he had matters elsewhere in Tierrhagan to see to, and left it in their care.

Still awed by the Sword’s majesty, the gods were left with a vital decision. Surely Rhunis could not be trusted with such a weapon, lest his allegiances sway and he turn its power against them—but which of them would take it? Each of the gods wanted the Sword for themselves, and so they fell into quarrel; when the quarrel could not be settled, they fell into violence, and thereafter war.

Their battle tore the world asunder, and many of their people were slain in the fallout of their wrath. Rhunis, seeing that his plan had gone too far, quickly returned to stand between them; he was very nearly torn in half for his efforts, but he took the Sword again and swallowed it whole, thereby removing the very source of their conflict. Once the craze of battle had left them, leaving them free to see the results of their quarrel, the gods were aghast—how could they have let themselves be so blinded by fear and envy, that they could cause such ruin to their beloved home and children?

To amend this, they first punished Rhunis for his folly by banishing him to a pit of rock high in the sky from which he could still fulfill his duty, and granted him freedom to move from it only when it was in full light of the world below. To ensure that such a catastrophe would never occur again, each deity bound themselves to the other’s realm—Hresia to Sindhrragan, and Sindhrra to Hresiagan—thereby sealing their powers into dormancy for the world’s own protection. With the sealing of the gods, so too came the sealing of life-giving magic throughout the world, and so only through worship by their respective peoples would the gods be kept alive. Though Tierrhagan would never again flourish and prosper as beautifully and peacefully as it once did, with enough time, it would surely heal.




The world is fated.
Though the world may someday heal, it is ultimately fated to be torn asunder once again.

So it is said that, upon one of his visits to the world below, Rhunis will one day raise the Sword again by his own hand—but it shall inevitably fall from his grasp. The Stone, that which calls its power from Tierrhagan, and the Hilt, that which guides its destructive path, shall too be scattered over Tierrhagan. Whomsoever takes up all three at an altar of the gods shall be granted immense power, that of the gods themselves, and be elevated to their lofty seat in their place.

But the gods will not take such challenge to their power lightly, and so they will break free of their bonds and wreak war once again. With this shall Tierrhagan be plunged into a trial of destruction and flames, and whether Tierrhagan will survive this trial, much less which gods will be the victor, shall remain to be seen.

Species

Tiresians.
“People of the sky,” originating from the land of Resia (Hresiagan), supposedly made in the image of their patron goddess Hresia. When their homeland began to die, they were forced to flee in their entirety to Sindaris, and only in the nation of Harstide were they accepted and allowed to settle. Compared to the humans of Sindaris, they are extraordinarily long-lived, often living for two centuries or more, and have mysterious powers of the mind and emotion. The Sindrian environment is far different from what they had been accustomed to in Resia, however, and so adaptation has been very difficult for their kind.

Their anatomy confirms that at one point in the distant past, these people were winged and airborne, but they have since adapted to live solely on solid ground and whatever is left of their wings is purely vestigial. These vestiges include exceedingly pronounced shoulder blades, raised ridges down the back, low bone density, remarkably thick skin, and black sclera. While in recent generations some of these traits have been shown to have adapted to Harstide’s primarily hot, arid climate, for the most part they remain the same.

Apart from these characteristics, there is one other that marks them as significantly different from humans, and that is both their method of reproduction and concept of gender (or non-, as it were). To compensate for their long lifespan, those with any reproductive capabilities are rather rare, and those who undergo the difficult, sometimes dangerous method of sexual reproduction are mutually impregnated. While Tiresians can naturally and visually distinguish between those who can and cannot reproduce, there is otherwise no trace of sexual dimorphism among their species, and the concept of “male” and “female” gender is beyond them.

Due to the rarity of conception, those with the ability to reproduce are considered to have that as their sole obligation in life, and those who do become impregnated—karyati—are treated with reverence and absolute respect. Once the child is born, however, the karyat is not expected to actually raise it; this task is delegated instead to zolyati, or most often a single zolyat, who acts as the child’s primary caregiver and sole parent from the moment of its birth. Traditionally, a Tiresian will feel a closer emotional bond with their zolyat than their karyat, but many Tiresians trace their heritage through both the zolyati and karyati lines.


Sindrians.
“People of the earth,” originating from the land of Sindaris (Sindhrragan), supposedly made in the image of their patron god Sindhrra. While they once populated the whole of Sindaris, the advent and rapid spread of human settlements and civilization forced them to retreat to a remote corner of the continent south of Harstide; though their numbers dwindled after this forced isolation, in recent generations their society has begun to thrive once more. For the few similarities they share—their long lifespan, their method of reproduction, and their lack of “gender” as understood by human culture—as well as their association with Sindhrra as opposed to Hresia, they are considered counterparts to the Tiresian species, but these similarities are far and away outweighed by their differences.

Compared to the slender, avian anatomy of Tiresians, Sindrians are brutish and reptilian; their bodies are scaled, heavily muscled, and adapted for living in the mountains and under the earth. As a result of this adaptation, their eyesight is extremely poor, and they rely primarily on their senses of smell, touch, and taste instead, which are drastically heightened to compensate. Their snouts are long and serpentine to account for this heightened sense, and while their arms may appear to be of awkward length and musculature for a bipedal species, they are incredibly deft with their hands and claws. Because of this anatomy, however, they have significant difficulty speaking any language that is not their own; likewise, the native Sindrian language is notoriously difficult for any non-Sindrian to speak and learn.

Also of note is an additional sense that is solely theirs, and that is their sensitivity to magic: they can easily detect ley lines of the land, tap their power and manipulate it to their bidding. This is not recognized as a gift of Sindhrra but rather Rhunis, and is said to have only been gained recently by their isolation into the Harstidian southlands. According to legend, Rhunis—whose primary fount of worship is closest to this region—took pity upon the suffering Sindrians, and taught them how to seek out and make use of the earth’s magic so that they would come to master the harsh environment rather than fall victim to it. Today they continue to be recognized as the sole race of Tierrhagan with true domain over magic and its power.

Although their method of reproduction and the rarity thereof is nearly identical to that of their counterpart Tiresians, culturally, Sindrians are not nearly so solitary when it comes to raising their young. While those individuals capable of reproduction are similarly expected to have that duty as their focus in life, they take just as much part in the care and upbringing of their child as every other member of their community. These communities are typically small but very tight-knit, and no matter what grievances an individual Sindrian might have with another, their familial bonds cannot be broken, and they will invariably stand together in the face of adversity or an outside threat.


Humans.
BLUH BLUH EXPANSIONISM


Pythians.
BLUH BLUH HYBRID SOLDIERS

image credits:
myrllok @ deviantArt
Ruth-Tay @ deviantArt
craftvillain @ Tumblr