19 November 2005

Prologue

In a small corner of a small country in a vast world, there once lived a man. There was nothing really special about this man; he was from the northern lands, was the son of a soldier who left for a war he did not return from, and had trained to be a warrior. He was only seventeen when he went to war, for all lands would be affected by the outcome and he loved his family so much that he wanted only to protect them.

Many men he'd grown up with, that had known him as a small boy, left with him for the south; much fewer in number returned home two years later. But the man did not wish to return to the north, for he had become friends with an elf from the eastern lands, and wished to see the splendor that he had merely heard of in songs and stories. They traveled far, and the man was amazed at what he saw in the east.

There were beautiful cities within the forests, along the lakes and rivers, where humans like himself and elves and even the mysterious Dreizen lived in harmony with nature. It was everything he had dreamed it, everything he had imagined, and the man fell in love with the east.

He remained only one year; although he dearly loved the east, he missed his family and friends from the north. The man nearly wept as he bid farewell to his friends and set off for home. He had not gone far when he heard a voice cry for him to wait.

The man had not expected the elf to follow him. He asked why, for he did not understand why one would want to leave such beauty behind. The elf replied simply that she did not wish to be apart from he whom she had grown to love. The man was surprised by his friend's words, for he had fallen in love with her nearly two years before, but had never said anything for fear that such a creature could never care for a mere human.

The man and the elf soon reached the northern lands, where the man was welcomed back by his grateful family. They were a bit leary of the elf maiden at first, not quite believing her to be a warrior but soon accepting that elves did things a bit differently than humans; and why shouldn't a woman fight to protect those she loved, the man's mother mused aloud one day. Were she younger, the woman said, she would have wished to fight alongside her son and the husband she had lost ten years before.

In less than a year's time the man and elf were wed; a full year later they had a son. The child was truly beautiful, a perfect blending of elven and human traits, his mother's eyes peering out from beneath a short crop of his father's jet hair. Their family, human and elf alike, fussed over the child endlessly, one of the elf's cousins saying that when the time came he would train the boy himself to be as great a soldier as his parents. Unfortunately those not related to the family held no love for the boy; elves simply mourned that the beautiful child would fall victim to the human curse of old age and death, while humans looked upon the infant with contempt and disgust.

Before their child's first year had passed, two friends from the east came to visit. A pair of Dreizen, twin siblings who the elf had known for years, had wished to see how life was treating the couple and to meet their child. The woman had been fascinated by how the elven features mingled so well with the human, while the man had merely been in awe of the new life. The twins remained for nearly a month, during which time they pleaded with their friends to return with them to Everwyld, but to no avail. In the end, the Dreizen left for the east, promising to visit again when they were finished their business in the coastal city of Krish'ne Torel.

Years passed, and the boy grew. He did not realize until his eighth year that the other children around him were taller and stronger, and that they were terribly hostile towards him. His parents, the only family he had left in the north as his grandmother and aunts had succumbed to illness in the previous winters, reassured him that he was normal; his Dreizen friends who visited every so often claimed he was special and need not listen to what the other humans said. He clung to their words, keeping them close to his heart.

When he was fifteen years of age, his father was killed when trying to break up a dispute between two of the men he'd fought alongside in the war so long ago. The news struck his mother hard, and she faded and died less than a month later. It was then that his cousin from the east came to him, taking him to his home hidden in Izul'ze Dreva. He was eager to learn what the elf had to teach him, although with it came a hard lesson.

He was not human, nor was he elf. He aged slower than the human children his age, looking no older than ten years; he aged faster than elves, as those he'd seen who appeared to be his age were actually nearly ten years his elders. There was no real place for him in the world, and this knowledge was bitter. In time he grew cold to those who might well love him, not daring to let them close. His cousin frowned at his actions, the elves who could look past his humanity and see a brother lamented that he was dead inside, but the man could not bring himself to care. All he had held close to his heart were gone, even the Dreizen who had claimed to care for him as if he were their kin.

He trusted no one. He trusted Dreizen even less.

Years passed. The humans he had known as a child were either dead or had grown old; the elves he'd lived with were reaching maturity. The man left Izul'ze Dreva with nothing in his heart save for bitterness.

In time, he was called by his cousin, begging a favour for the good of the world. Although he held no love for any creature, his mother's teachings resonated in his mind, and the man found himself agreeing to meet with his cousin in Krish'ne Torel.

And this is where our story begins....

Updated 10:20 AM
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Language IV

This post is shorter even than the last language post since it's only for a few minor phrases and words that will come up at some point... and be almost immediately translated. This is more for my benefit although when I publish I'll include either an index or an appendex with pronounciation guides on the words that are used.

• Oze'ir sarek'xen: (oh-zhe-eer sahr-ehk-zehn) Original sin; oze'ir is the Dreizen word for 'sin' or 'not virtuous' while sarek'xen means 'first' or 'original.'
  
  
• Xa li'rek: (zah lee-rehk) 'I am' or 'my name is;' basically an introduction.
  
  
• Ado zen marita: (ah-doh zhen mah-ree-tay) Please calm yourself; please calm down. Zen is the word for 'you' when referring to a male; marita means 'please.'
  
  
• Zenatek'hal: (zhen-ah-tek-hahl) Half-elf or elfling; Dreizen hold a great deal of respect and affection for halfbloods such as their own race and have no qualms against defending them from those who would harm them. A more affectionate term is zen'ta (zhen-tah).
  

Updated 10:06 AM
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18 November 2005

Characters II

This post is to give some background info on the supporting characters who appear; most of the characters mentioned here are either allies/friends of the main cast, although there are a few minor background characters mentioned here as well.

• Name: Denevir (deh-neh-veer)
  Race: Elf (Eastern clans)
  Age: 2,567
  Hair: white
  Eyes: silver-blue
  Bio: Denevir has a few ties to the main cast. The elf acted as Micah's guardian and mentor when his parents passed away, and he fought in at least one war with Karanya. With Adonai he has been an u'na zoren (pronounced ooh-nah zhoh-rhen) or teacher in the healing arts. Denevir has no ties to Zentral.
  
  
• Name: Morgan Ravensdark
  Race: Human
  Age: 37 at time of death (deceased, mentioned only)
  Hair: black
  Eyes: brown
  Bio: Morgan was Micah's father, and the time of his death gives some clue to his son's true age. (he was 22 when Micah was born). Karanya and Adonai make allusion to having met Morgan when he was in his late twenties, meaning that they knew who Micah was before even speaking to him for the first time as the met him as a small child.
  
  
• Name: Illiana Ravensdark (ill-lee-ah-nah)
  Race: Elf (Eastern clans)
  Age: 153 at time of death (deceased)
  Hair: silver blond/white
  Eyes: silver-blue
  Bio: Illiana was Micah's mother who passed away while her son was still fairly young; although elves are long-lived she chose to tie her life force to her husband's so that she would be able to go with him into the afterlife. Denevir was a cousin of hers, and both the Dreizen twins recall having met her at the same time as Morgan.
  
  
• Name: Wraithe (rayth)
  Race: Zentral
  Age: 26
  Hair: purple-black
  Eyes: black
  Bio: Wraithe may or may not be related to Zentral; he never really gives a straight answer when asked. He does not much care for Zentral's father, and he honestly doesn't like much of anyone. However, he is willing to help... for a price.
  

Updated 11:41 AM
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17 November 2005

Language III

This post doesn't go much into words, more into a few of the phrases that the twins use in OS. Formatting is the same as in the previous language posts.

• Nehere sh'rokan karan karan: (neh-heh-reh shoh-roh-khan kah-rhan kah-rhan) Someone thinks he's very bright. Used by Karanya as an insult when she is offended by a bigotted person.
  
  
• Seran kibare he hile: (seh-rhan kee-bah-reh heh hee-lay) You are probably correct. Adonai's confirmation of his sister's words.
  
  
• Nemerba zerens'ho karan na zoren: (nay-mehr-bah zeh-rhens-hoh kah-rhan nah zho-rhen) It's never good when morons try to sound smart.
  
  
• Anahai kre'ele nemerba: (ah-nah-high kray-eh-lay nay-mehr-bah) Even a moron would agree.
  
  
• Dreizen mala ne zoren: (dray-zhen mah-lah nay zho-ren) If they were any smarter they'd be Dreizen.

This is about where they switch back to common, as they opt to insult the humans in a language they can understand at that point.

Updated 6:10 PM
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16 November 2005

Language II

Continuing from where the last language post leaves off. Formatting remains the same.

• Zere: (zhe-reh) Given as a negative answer. It can mean 'no,' 'not' or 'never' depending on what it is in response to.
  
  
• Anahai: (ah-nah-high) Given as a positive answer, usually meaning 'yes' or 'always.'
  
  
• Nubara ne lethe nai saha zerens'ho: (new-bah-rah nay leh-thay nigh sah-hey zeh-rhens-hoh) The individual words will be gone into later. The phrase means "Bad omens come on an ill wind." The word nai was defined in Language I; zerens'ho contains the word for 'never,' the word itself meaning 'never good' or 'bad' when used in conjunction with saha.
  
  
• Saha: (sah-hey) 'Omen.' Its meaning, good or bad, is determined by whether a form of zere or anahai is used in conjunction with it. A good omen is called saha anas'ho, the later term meaning 'always good' or 'forever good.'
  
  
• Nilia: (nee-lee-ah) Depending on the suffix or prefix, this means 'son of the Great Ocean Dragoness' or 'daughter of the Great Ocean Dragoness.' The prefix is kre (denoting a female descendant) and the suffix rho (used for male descendants). Unfortunately, there are no known descendants of the dragoness Nili in the world.
  
  
• Shi'kolo: (shee-khoh-loh) 'Evil' or 'wicked.' This term is rarely used by Dreizen as it is the strongest word in their language for evil; when paired with the word ryhe it means 'most evil' or 'greatest evil.'
  
  
• Ryhe: (ree-hey) 'Most' or 'greatest.' It is rarely used by itself, acting for the most part as a descriptor.
  
  
• Naza: (nah-zha) Elder sister.
  
  
• Niza: (nee-zha) Younger sister.
  
  
• Kita: (kee-tah) Younger brother.
  
  
• Kata: (kah-tah) Elder brother. All four terms for siblings are used only when saying 'my older sister' or 'my younger brother;' when addressing one's siblings most Dreizen use a shortened form of their given name, such as 'Karan' for Karanya or 'Nai' for Adonai (the two Dreizen protagonists)
  
  
• Per'fal: (beh-ruh-vahl) Mother. The shortened form peru (beh-ruh) basically means 'mama' and is used by young Dreizen or those close to their mothers.
  
  
• Vaz'rya: (vha-zoo-ree-ha) Father. The short form vazu (vah-zoo) can be translated as 'papa' or 'daddy' depending upon whether the Dreizen using it is very young or a near-grown female (male Dreizen tend to use the full form or the short form rya or 'dad.')
  
  
• Zoren: (zho-rehn) Depending upon how it's used, this can mean either 'smart,' 'intelligent' or 'instructor.' The phrase u'na zoren means 'teacher.'
  
  
• Endare: (ehn-dah-ray) 'Whole' or 'entire.' Usually used with krish'ne as in 'not if you were the last person on earth.'
  

Updated 10:14 AM
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15 November 2005

World I

The world the story is set in is very much like the one we live in. The only real difference is that cities and forests are often intermingled, which doesn't always work out for the humanoid and animalia species involved as each is infringing on the others' habitat. There are some places where coexistence is possible; those are the main townships and cities that the story takes place.

• Krish'ne Torel (kuh-reesh-nay tore-el): A small city/town by the Egyrian Sea. Krish'ne Torel is reknown for its fishing industry, as well as being one of the few cities in the region that can boast to having ties with the Elder Dragon gods. Unfortunately, the wealth of the city has flagged in recent years with the passing of their beloved Linara Kre'nilia, the last living descendant of the Great Ocean Dragoness Nili.
  
  
• Egyrian Sea (eh-jeer-ee-ahn): One of the most beautiful bodies of water in the world. It is nearly the size of the Great Ocean, and is the home to many species of fish and aquatic dragons. Many city/towns make their livelihood from the Egyrian as the creatures from its waters are said to be one of the richest delicacies in the entire region, if not the world.
  
  
• Everwyld: A city in the middle of a great forest, Everwyld is one of those rare hybrids where humanoid and animalistic species live in peace and prosperity. One would think that the city would falter as they prohibit any damage to the trees surrounding them; however, the vast majority of Everwyld are elves and Dreizen, which makes coexistence simple as both races have an affinity to nature. The minority human citizens are those who prefer nature to industry, thus the city functions well on all levels. Travelers are welcome, but those with intent to harm are punished severely.
  
  
• Izul'ze Dreva (ee-zhul-zay dray-vuh): The largest mountain range in the world. Izul'ze Dreva consists of several peaks and valleys, some as deadly as they are beautiful. One does not venture into the realm unless he has a learned guide or is himself from the region.

More on the peaks and valleys of Izul'ze Dreva will be mentioned in a later post. For the most part, these three regions are the central locale for the entire story; two of the main characters are from Everwyld while at least one is originally from the Izul'ze Dreva range.

Updated 4:02 PM
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Characters I

This profile is for the main characters in the OS world. You'll note that none of them are human, although each one has a character flaw of some sort. Supporting characters will be discussed in a later post.

• Name: Karanya Sharan (kah-rha-nee-ya shah-rhan)
  Race: Dreizen (dray-zhen)
  Age: unknown; older than Adonai
  Hair: blonde
  Eyes: iridescent
  Bio: Karanya is no great beauty... or so she believes of herself. Raised by her people to be a great warrior, Karanya usually prefers to let her sword, daggers or fists do the talking. Most men are intimidated by her; a select few find her blunt nature attractive. She never gives her age when asked, merely stating that she is 'older than Nai' if someone persists. This does not help as all the siblings are twins.
  

• Name: Adonai Sharan (ah-doh-nigh shah-rhan)
  Race: Dreizen
  Age: unknown; younger than Karanya
  Hair: auburn
  Eyes: iridescent
  Bio: Adonai is one of those men for whom the term 'beautiful' is more accurate than 'handsome.' As customary with Dreizen twins, he was trained in healing arts and magick while his elder sister Karanya was molded into a warrior. Adonai is as quiet, calm and gentle in nature as his name suggests; however, he does not give his heart away easily and will come to his sister's defense in times of strife like the dragon gods he is descended from.
  

• Name: Micah Ravensdark (mike-ah)
  Race: Half-human/Half-elf
  Age: appears to be mid-twenties
  Hair: black
  Eyes: silver-blue
  Bio: Micah is the son of a human male and an elf maiden who left her people for her one true love. As a result, he is not fully accepted by either people as he ages slower than humans but faster than elves. He is much older than he appears to be, a fact that helps him more often than not. Micah has no love for anyone, but shares his mother's love for nature and will do anything in his power to protect the world around him... even if it means traveling with 'dragon filth.'

• Name: Zentral (zen-trahl)
  Race: Zentral
  Age: 10,000
  Hair: purple-black
  Eyes: black
  Bio: Zentral cannot remember his true name, merely going by the name of his demon race. He has no true language as is true for all his kind, instead adopting the languages of those he encounters after only hearing it for a moment. Zentral has lived for well over several human lifetimes, and as a result has seen kingdoms and ages rise and fall several times over. He wonders often how humans can forget the mistakes of their past, forgetting that they are not as long-lived as he is, and laments that the races of the world cannot live in peace. His hate is reserved only for his father, a Zentral known only by the Dreizen word for darkest evil.
  

Updated 1:59 PM
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Language I

Most of the languages spoken in the world I'm creating are much like the main languages of our reality (mainly Latin-based languages) but two of the principal characters speak Dreize. Pronounced dray-zhe, this is the spoken language of those who are decended from the Elder Dragon clans. Names in Dreize have a specific meaning, most of the time tied to personality traits, although occassionally they can translate to something as mundane as Earthen or Lacking Spirit.

Format:
Dreize word/term: (pronounciation) translation and use

• Nai: (nigh) Usually translated as 'wind,' although the more correct translation would be 'as the wind' or 'like the wind.' Normally it is used in names, although sometimes it's used in sayings such as "He runs near as fast as the wind" and "Bad omens come on an ill wind."
  
  
• Nya: (nee-ya) 'Wind' in the commonly used form. Usually attributed to wind as in a heavy storm, it is also used by sailors and all who make their living near the sea. It can also mean 'golden wind' as many Dreizen girls with blond hair have nya somewhere in their given names.
  
  
• Karan: (kah-rhan) The general translation of this word is 'bright' or 'brilliant' in reference to colours. It is infrequently used save for in names for the most part, although on occassion those who speak Dreize will use it to ridicule someone of the common tongue who is acting in a foolish manner.
  
  
• Ado: (ah-doh) 'Gentle' or 'calm.' This is used to describe anything from temperment to touch to the weather.
  
  
• Krish'ne: (kuh-reesh-nay) Basically, 'the world' or 'the earth beneath the feet.' Dreizen use this often in naming villages and townships.
  
  
• Tor: (tore) 'Sea' or 'lake,' depending upon whether the suffix following is el or al. The name of the township Krish'ne Torel translates to 'the land by the sea.'
  
  
• Sharan: (shah-rhan) Depending upon gender, this means either 'son of the Great Dragon King' or 'daughter of the Great Dragon King.' It is used as a surname by those Dreizen who are direct descendants of Shar, the Father God of the dragon race. At this time, there are only two living descendants of Shar in the world.
  

Updated 1:13 PM
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