The World of Ralum

[Polycarp]

Asir Embadra

Once a holy place to the Shadan, the mountain-ringed basin of Asir (literally, â,¬Å"highâ,¬Â) Embadra has long been a forgotten land.  Only the coming of the Aludani in the early years of the Grand Embadran Empire truly opened this land to explorers, colonists, soldiers, traders, and adventurers.  Asir Embadra now is one of the most thriving lands in the greater Heartlands; the Concordant Haven is the only state in Jadanar where two races rule and live as equals, a state only beginning to realize its potential to be a significant power in the Heartlands and beyond.

[spoiler=Nomenclature]
â,¬Å"Asir Embadraâ,¬Â is the name of the former Thusmar located here under the Embadran Empire, but this name is only used by the humans of the Heartlands.  To the Shadan, it is Aserâ,¬,,¢asja-li, â,¬Å"the high holy place.â,¬Â  To the Aludani who first settled here after the Ruin, it was Inta-Om, â,¬Å"high home.â,¬Â  The residents of Asir Embadra do not have one set name for it; the Aludani and Humans still use their separate names, though â,¬Å"high homeâ,¬Â has also become a frequently used name in some human communities.

There are no such things as â,¬Å"Asir Embadrans.â,¬Â  Aludani and Humans from the Concordant Haven, which spans nearly all of the region, call themselves â,¬Å"A-Jemaâ,¬,,¢anâ,¬Â (Low Ayan) or â,¬Å"Solniâ,¬Â (Aludani) â,¬' both of these words essentially translate to â,¬Å"Havenites,â,¬Â or â,¬Å"those of the Haven.â,¬Â  In the Heartlands, â,¬Å"A-Jemaâ,¬,,¢anâ,¬Â (or its translations) is sometimes used, but more often the humans of Asir Embadra are called â,¬Å"A-Esirâ,¬,,¢an,â,¬Â literally, â,¬Å"the high people.â,¬Â

The Concordant Haven is a strange political entity that rules loosely over the aludani and humans of Asir Embadra.  The name was decided upon by a council of leaders from both races, and has been used since the first All-Father and All-Mother were installed in the dual monarchy.

Aludane and Low Ayan are both spoken in Asir Embadra, though High Ayan can also be occasionally heard.  Most native humans know at least some Aludane, and many are quite fluent; the Aludani usually know some Low Ayan as well, but they have a lesser aptitude for languages and have difficulty with some of the sharper sounds in Ayan.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Geography and Climate]
Asir Embadra is a collection of mountain valleys that run together in a fairly large basin.  The elevation is quite high, and the terrain is rather rough; though valleys are easy to transit, going between them involves rigorous hiking over hills and mountains.  Chariots are generally unsuitable save on established roads, of which there are only a few â,¬' the aludani have no need for them.  Each valley has one or more small rivers, which merge near the center of the basin to form the two dominant rivers, named after the first All-Father and All-Mother (Kusjdes and Lotau).  These flow south and east into the Ehar, eventually reaching the Shadan land of Cashuar.

As one might expect from an alpine land, Asir Embadra is quite cold compared to the plains of Ezannum and the Ehar below it.  Isolated from rainclouds, the climate is quite dry, with water provided mostly from the snow-laden peaks that ring the basin.  The elevation means that plants do not grow large, and there are few large trees in the region.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Inhabitants]
Most of the inhabitants of Asir Embadra are humans and aludani.  Humans make up a bit more than half of the population, though it is believed that this advantage is lessening thanks to the higher birth rate of the aludani and continued migration of their peoples from the Ehar.  The Concordant Haven has recently begun trade with the Dominate of Niirda, which lies far downriver of the Haven, and as a result Shadan and Halflings are being seen in Asir Embadra with increasing regularity.  Sarfeir are very rare, but the occasional explorer or itinerant merchant from beyond Feihera is not uheard of.  Saulzarel and Sabasslians know virtually nothing of this land.  It is rumored that cabals of Bharim to live in the valleys, and occasionally one taken with the Madness ventures into human and aludan society[/spoiler]

[spoiler=History]
The â,¬Å"High Holy Placeâ,¬Â was once a place of Shadan worship, a mountaintop land where the Shadan held rituals and sacrifices to Niiraun.  At some point, the land was abandoned, apparently after a particularly savage Bharim attack.  Shadan ruins can still be found all over Asir Embadra, weathered and overgrown with the ages.  The Manifest Ruin changed little, though since the place had already been abandoned, few found shelter here from the great tribulations of the time.

The first of the great mortal races to visit Asir Embadra were the Sarfeir.  The Sarfeir Dominion sent scouts over the mountains just after Feihera was absorbed into the Dominion.  The scouts reported that the land was fertile and promising, but the difficulty of the transit over the mountains and the increasing difficulties with the Narsurans prevented any long-term Sarfeir presence from being established.  A few border outposts in the mountains were eventually abandoned as the Dominion declined.

The Aludani, created in the distant land of Cendroun, were the next to arrive in the â,¬Å"High Home.â,¬Â  The Aludani migrated across the desolate wastes of Enshaleth, arriving in the wide steppes of the Ehar a generation later.  As their numbers grew, several tribes migrated further into the High Home, where the Aludani made their first contacts with humans: the occasional human trader or explorer who told them of the great and mighty Grand Embadran Empire that lay over the mountains to the west.

Contact was minimal until the reign of Hemechamshaf III, when an aludani druid known as Udo led his tribe, the Ousethi, to dominance over the other aludani of the High Home.  Enticed by reports of the great wealth and power of the Empire, he led a host over the mountains and laid waste to Alesira, whose inhabitants fled in terror from the â,¬Å"half-man, half-horseâ,¬Â raiders.  With every aludan under his command swifter than any human, Udo and his successors raided far and wide, striking into Narsura and virtually all of Embadra.  The armies of the Empire were repeatedly defeated by the more mobile aludan force, as the humans had not nearly enough chariots to beat them at their own game.  It took the brilliance of Tesfel the Evenhanded, a general of Narsuran birth acting on the orders of Hemechamshaf IV, to come up with a solution.  He organized a corps of experienced mountaineering soldiers from Aya, Tazria, Ocana and elsewhere.  Instead of trying fruitlessly to meet the aludan raids, Tesfelâ,¬,,¢s force crossed the mountains east into the High Home and made retaliatory raids into aludan land.  His strategy proved effective, though brutal and costly â,¬' it would take until the reign of Hemechamshaf VI to finally wrest High Home from the aludan and secure the land as a new Embadran province.

â,¬Å"Asir Embadraâ,¬Â was the name given to this land when the great valley was finally wrested from the Ousethi Horde of Aludani after decades of intermittent warfare.  Asir Embadra was the only Thusmarej (high province) that was not actually managed by a Thusmara (provincial governor) or a client king; the province remained in a â,¬Å"state of spears,â,¬Â essentially military administration, until the Malechus Hemechamshaf IX withdrew all Imperial soldiers from the province, citing mounting costs and diminishing returns from the perpetual occupation and defense of the region.  The two corps stationed there, however, refused to leave; over many years the soldiers had settled down with their families and were used to living in the high valleys.  The Malechus sent four entire corps to punish the troops for their disloyalty, but the natives knew the land well and ruined the expedition with an ambush that routed the Empireâ,¬,,¢s armies.  Hemechamshaf IX, furious at the defeat, pronounced that none of the rebels could ever return to the Empire and decided to leave them to their own devices.

Without the support of the Empire, the human colonies of Asir Embadra quickly fell under renewed aludan attack.  The aludani had not been totally expelled, only pacified, and soon the situation devolved into one of general hostility and open war.  Though much of the realm was fairly peaceful at any one time, skirmishes and battles between the races (and between rivals within each race) wracked Asir Embadra for decades.  The humans eventually fought a battle with the Aludani under the shadow of Auskeman, a towering crag in the east of the realm.  The humans, led by the warlord Nemunnem the Cold, slew aludani by the thousands.  The army fell upon their encampment, killing aludani children and elders.  Nemunnem (known to history as â,¬Å"the Repentantâ,¬Â), surveying the field the next day, was so horrified that he chose to fall on his sword, exclaiming that â,¬Å"on this field I have slain the soul of Man.â,¬Â  His lieutenant, Kusjdes Ash-Tree, was so moved that he sought out the retreating aludani and begged their forgiveness, and according to legend broke his spear in two before the elders, saying that he would never kill again.  The aludani and humans met for the first time in peace, and after several years of tense negotiation founded the Concordant Haven, to be ruled jointly by the races.

The Haven grew steadily in the years that followed, and was confirmed in its unified existence by the successful defeat of a warlike aludan tribe from the east, which the native aludan agreed to fight together with their human neighbors.  The borders of the Haven remained secure after that, with the declining Empire caring little and the aludani of the east checked in their expansion.  The Great Wave did not touch the Haven, and the enclave of men and aludani has remained intact and increasingly prosperous.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Politics and Power]
With peace in Asir Embadra so elusive for so many years, it was a miracle that a settlement was reached at all, and the balance and complexity of the settlement is a testament to the will of the peoples of the Concordant Haven and their desire for an end to uncertainty and strife.

The original council of humans and aludani decided that there could be no one leader; a leader might simply favor his or her own race.  It was decided that there would be two; one aludan and one human, one male and one female.  The two were to be married symbolically â,¬' humans and aludani cannot reproduce together, but the marriage symbolized the attachment of the two races, as well as the equality of the two leaders.  The races, however, were at odds at how to select these leaders.  The humans had a long tradition of monarchy, and scoffed at any proposal that was not hereditary.  The aludani ruled themselves by council, and rejected the idea of a monarchal family out of hand.  Thus, the humans opted to make their half of the monarchy hereditary, while the aludani ruler is elected by a council of elders.

The rulers are known as the All-Mother and All-Father, though the humans often call them the â,¬Å"Zaraâ,¬Â and â,¬Å"Zarasiâ,¬Â (though Asir Embadra is properly not a Zarate, nor has it ever been).  The two rule as one, and if one dies the other is also removed.  Each race then advances its own selection, the humans from the royal family and the aludani from their elder council.  The races take turns on appointing males and females; if the All-Father is human, when he dies (or leaves office due to the All-Motherâ,¬,,¢s death) the humans then select a female from the royal family to become All-Mother.  Because humans and aludani have a similar lifespan, this generally works out well.  As unforeseen accidents require plenty of available heirs, however, the human royal family is constantly being replenished, with concubines ensuring that the family is robust and large.  The â,¬Å"married coupleâ,¬Â does not always see eye to eye, but there have been many co-rulerships in which the honorary husband and wife were good friends and cooperated together for the good of the people.

The politics of Asir Embadra are quite complicated.  Because either ruler can veto the decision of the other, all policies must be worked out between them.  The human royal family and the aludani elder council constantly compete with each other for positions in the Concordant household, the inner circle of officials and functionaries.  So far, this has yet to result in open fighting, but â,¬' as is the case with most political systems in Ralum â,¬' the rare poisoning has happened.  Still, for all its infighting and competition, the system has held the society of Asir Embadra together since the days of the Empire, and shows no signs of decay.

The current All-Father is Sesoda, an aludan, and his wife is Meidiroe the Black (called so for her long, raven-colored hair), the human â,¬Å"Zarasi.â,¬Â  Both are known for their willful and stormy dispositions, and though the Haven has been at times at a political impasse, they show enough willingness to work together and have so far been good stewards of the realm.  They have recently begun establishing contacts with the outside world that were dropped years ago, judging that the rapidly changing political situation of the Heartlands is no longer something they can watch passively.  They are somewhat hemmed in, however, by the revived Kingdom of the Two Crowns, and both the Royal Family and the Elder Council have expressed worry over the possible expansionist aims of the Narsuran King.

The royal family, the lineage of the first All-Father â,¬' Kusjdes Ash-Tree â,¬' is much larger than any similar families.  It is essentially a class of society on its own; hundreds legally claim his lineage, and it is not uncommon at all to meet several members in a single ordinary day (at least, in the larger towns).  Though they are accounted some minor rights above a normal human, they benefit chiefly by being more prestigious than the rest.  Some members, however â,¬' far removed from any chance of succession, and disinterested in the power grabs and infighting â,¬' have little to do with the Family, and live out their lives as normal citizens instead.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Legal]
The Concordant Haven operates under three legal systems; one governs humans, one governs aludani, and one governs offenses and regulations that occur between members of the two races.  The human code is virtually identical to the Code of Hemecham.  The Aludani administer themselves without any set laws, preferring the edicts and judgement of their elders.  The legal system that fills the gaps between these systems is a simple code that regulates minor offenses, along with a stipulation that higher offenses be taken before a â,¬Å"Seat Council,â,¬Â made up of equal members of each race, which decides ad hoc punishments and decrees in such cases.  The Council is appointed by the All-Father and All-Mother.

Visitors to the Haven will find legal repercussions quite different depending on who it is they offend or injure.  Attacking a man with a weapon will result in a heavy fine and a finger being cut off, while attacking an aludan in the same way will get you thrown in a village trash pit to stew for a few weeks.  The Seat Council usually only arbitrates disputes between natives of the Haven; foreigners are typically subject to the justice of the race whose member was wronged.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Religion]
Malechism, the worship of the Empireâ,¬,,¢s bloodlines, has virtually died out among the humans of the Haven.  Nearly all are followers of the Nymph Goddesses, introduced to the region by the Aludani.  Their faith is tremendously popular here, and it is rare to find a practitioner of another faith.  Human priests of the Goddesses have traveled from the Haven to the Heartlands for years to spread the word of the new deities, and at home their temples have tremendous influence on public life.  All are worshipped in the Haven, but Yilmira, Imrile, Talsirra, Pirmaea, and Alhanna are the most popular among humans.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Economy]
The isolation of Asir Embadra has not produced a trade-based economy.  While trade in foodstuffs and other resources between valleys is common, little travels outside the basin.  Recently, the Shadan in Cashuar have begun trading textiles, salt fish, parchment, and other such goods to the people of the Haven by the two dominant rivers, which the inhabitants of Asir Embadra barter for their grain and abundant tin deposits.  Asir Embadraâ,¬,,¢s tin supplies are vast and valuable â,¬' they are unique in that the tin lodes are by and large not mixed with arsenic, making the production of bronze much less toxic than normal.  Unfortunately, the high mountains prevent any meaningful trade with the Heartlands.

Asir Embadra is known also for the production of Tulo Root paste, a thick substance with an earthy mint flavor that produces local numbness and acts as a light stimulant.  The locals enjoy it quite often, though recently it has become quite fashionable among the elite of Cashuan society.  This forms an increasingly large part of Asir Embadraâ,¬,,¢s exports.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Magic]
The original aludan settlers of Asir Embadra came with a strong druidic tradition, and that tradition has remained among the Aludani.  Because it is viewed as central to Aludani social and cultural organization, however, the tradition has not been shared with the humans of the Haven, among whom druids remain somewhat uncommon (though some still feel themselves called to serve by the Nymph Goddesses).

The humans were the first to introduce arcane magic, in the form of a handful of Battle-Arcanists and Poets that traveled with the expeditionary forces of the Empire.  The humansâ,¬,,¢ superior aptitude for arcanism has given them a continued hold on the vocation of arcanist, but many aludani have found inspiration in the poetic tradition.

Redbinders are surprisingly not uncommon here, due to the esteemed status in which they are held by the aludani.  The humans of the Haven have become accustomed to living with them, and human redbinders â,¬' while they still may be shunned by their local communities â,¬' are often given some level of acceptance in broader human society within the Haven.  Aludani, certainly, have nothing against such individuals, viewing the â,¬Å"curseâ,¬Â of the redbinder as a blessing and a sign of a great destiny.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Culture and Food]
The isolated nature of Asir Embadra has led to the creation of a somewhat hybridized aludan-human culture distinct from that of the Heartlands humans or the aludani of the Ehar.  People of the Haven, whether human or aludan, are suspicious of outsiders but more open to alternative cultures and thought than most peoples of the Heartlands.  They dismiss the traditions of the Heartlands as irrelevant to their multiracial society, though the humans of the Haven still owe much of their culture and society to those same traditions.

The humans of Asir Embadra are used to wearing much heavier clothing than their relatives in the Heartlands.  They favor trousers, uncommon among Embadrans, as well as several layers of cloth and woolen tunics of different shades.  These are worn such that each layer pokes out from under the layer on top of it around the sleeves and waist, so that bands of shade and color are present all along the forearms and hips.  Womenâ,¬,,¢s fashion is similar, with multiple dresses stacked to give the same colorful borders.  More color is indicative of higher social standing.  There is but one sumptuary law in the Haven: no common human may wear green, as that is the color of the Royal Family, and reserved for their members.  It is usually easy to distinguish members of the Family in this way, though they will sometimes obscure their lineage simply by wearing no green.  Men and women both are known for their wool caps; in men, these are in the Narsuran style, while in women they are tall, peaked cones with tassels hanging by the cheeks.

Aludani of Asir Embadra often wear similar tunics, unlike their eastern brethren who go bare-chested or with hide wrappings up to the mid-chest.  They wear the â,¬Å"back-hangingsâ,¬Â traditional to the aludani, essentially blanket-like skirts that go from the front to back of the â,¬Å"horse sectionâ,¬Â of their bodies.  They rarely wear headgear, but do often braid or fork their facial hair, something not done by aludani outside the Haven.

Meat is an uncommon dish in Asir Embadra; aludani do not eat it, and humans only occasionally enjoy fowl or mutton.  Like Embadrans, humans of the Haven eat many dishes inside Simaj, circular pieces of soft flatbread, but have adopted a taste for Abirm (a fermented yogurt-like drink) from the Narsurans.  The Aludani eat largely in the traditional manner, with shared meals out of a single large pot, but have been adopting human simaj as well.  They have learned the art of beermaking from the humans and turned it into a hallowed art; aludan beer from the Haven is considered by those who know to be some of the best in Jadanar.  Humans and aludani alike use Tulo Root in cooking, humans especially in the preparation of meats.  As the leaves are inedible, Tulo tea is not possible, but humans have learned to use the root mash as a base to ferment a heady liquor with the numbing and stimulant properties of Tulo root.  This is a common drink among the humans of the Haven, who are reputed to handle their alcohol quite well.  After a day of work, it is common for the men of human communities to join in Tulo liquor drinking, accompanied by blessings to Alhanna.  Sometimes, the occasional aludan in the community will join them in this.

As good timber is rare in Asir Embadra, buildings are made out of stone or sod.  The humans of the Haven are accomplished workers in stone.  Some aludani live in the traditional fashion, with long huts made of interwoven branches, but more now live in stone-walled longhouses with branches forming only the roof, in a combination of human and aludan styles.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Cities and Towns]
Most humans and aludani live in small villages and farming communities, though humans are slightly more given to the urban life than their four-legged neighbors.  The largest town in Asir Embadra is actually two towns, Marar and Osjmeia, on opposite sides of the River Lotau.  The river is wide and has never been bridged, but the two keep in constant contact through a whole system of river barges.  Together, they form the main port at which the Shadan conduct their missions of trade and diplomacy in Asir Embadra.  The cities together have around eight thousand souls, perhaps five thousand of them human.

The oldest human town is Sessara, a slurred form of â,¬Å"Zaraâ,¬,,¢s might,â,¬Â once the main citadel of the Imperial Corps of Asir Embadra and the seat of the Spear-Court that ruled over the Thusmar.  The citadel itself was allowed to stand after the Pact of the Haven was enacted between the two races; the pact stipulated that all other fortifications in the land be dismantled as a gesture of human goodwill.  It now serves as the traditional court of the human Royal Family, and Sessara â,¬' though only boasting six thousand people, mostly humans â,¬' is a hotbed of familial intrigue.

The town of Olu, initially an aludan settlement, is the home of the Seat Council and the official residence of the All-Father and All-Mother, though they are elsewhere more often than not.  Though the town typically only has four or five thousand souls in the town proper, there are usually several thousand aludani camped around the town depending on the season.  During the meetings of the elder council of the Haven, the population of the area can surge to ten thousand or more, with aludani from all over the Haven coming to confer, discuss, argue, and learn.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Sites of Interest]
Skenkhiddarâ,¬,,¢s Lair â,¬' Not all of Asir Embadra is under the control of the Haven.  In the far north, the Ice Mountains have fallen under the influence of an undead Sarfeir known as Skenkhiddar.  The humans of the Haven call him â,¬Å"Manasâ,¬,,¢skeil,â,¬Â the cold and cruel one.  A Sarfeir sorcerer in service to some fearful power, Skenkhiddar was transformed into a lich, and has bound the long dead Sarfeir of the lost Marak-Feihera to his fell service.  From his citadel, called Skenkhiddarâ,¬,,¢s Lair or â,¬Å"the North Tower,â,¬Â his ghoul army raids and sacks settlements in the dead of night.  The Tower itself is an old border fort from the days of the Sarfeir Dominion, though it is now rumored that Manasâ,¬,,¢skeil is expanding it, digging a tunnel towards the buried realm of his mysterious underground lord.

Onyx Ring â,¬' The Onyx Ring is a strange and ancient relic from the dim ages of the Progenitors, long before the Spellwar.  This much has been divined by arcanists â,¬' but its purpose and power is still unclear.  Originally, it is believed the Ring was some kind of circular structure or one or more circular arrangements of standing stones, all made from what modern arcanists call â,¬Å"shade crystal,â,¬Â which seems to be virtually indestructible.  Nevertheless, the Ring was gravely damaged at some point; the stones were almost totally obliterated, leaving only a few overgrown pits where great stones once stood, and some remnant shards of whatever once stood.  It is reputed to hold great power - or at least, to have held it at some point - but none know how to tap it; the ruin represents a magic far older than arcanism.  The valley was once haunted by the minions of Skenkhiddar, but recently, a new threat has displaced them: a Bharim sorcerer, taken by the Madness, has taken control of the Ring and skulks there, dotting the valley with the bones of his victims.

The Veiled Grove â,¬' One of the only groves of full-sized trees in Asir Embadra, the Veiled Grove is a stand of old and sprawling willow trees by the banks of the Kusjdes River.  The grove was always considered holy by the Aludani, and was chosen to be the location of the marriage ceremony of the rulers of the Haven.  The grove is kept by a circle of aludan druids and an oracle, a nymph called the Vision-Willow who gives prophecies to visitors.  The grove is otherwise unoccupied except during the Marriage, when aludani and humans surround the area in great pavilion tents, celebrating and praying before and after the ceremonies.

Tesfelâ,¬,,¢s Retreat â,¬' The Imperial General in command of the initial invasion of the High Home, Tesfel the Evenhanded, eventually retired his military command and chose to retire in the land he had won for the Malechus.  His men arranged to build him a home high in the mountains in the west of Asir Embadra, near the highest point of the very pass that bears his name, where the first Imperial expeditionary corps crossed into aludan territory.  Ã¢,¬Å"The Roost,â,¬Â as the soldiers liked to call it, is an impressive â,¬' if not huge â,¬' semi-fortified mansion in the clouds.  The rooms are partly dug into the rock, but despite this, the home is comfortable and well-furnished.  The Roost is now administered by the human royal family, and functions as a watchpost for the Concordant Haven, as well as a depot, inn, and tavern for travelers going over Tesfelâ,¬,,¢s Pass.[/spoiler]

[Polycarp]

Aya

Though now peripheral to the political and cultural nexus of the Heartlands, Aya was once the heart of Embadran civilization and power.  It was here that, according to legend, the first human ruler declared himself and his people free of the Shadan yoke; it was here that the first Embadran empire was founded, an achievement that would one day provide the foundation for a Grand Embadran Empire.  Now, Aya is a church-ruled tributary of Marmeira, but as empires rise and fall, Ayaâ,¬,,¢s time to lead may one day come again.

[spoiler=Nomenclature]
The people of Aya are known as Ayans; they almost totally pure-blooded Embadrans who have seen little comingling with the other nations of men.  Until the Years of Swift Arrows, having Ayan blood â,¬' specifically, the blood of the Malechid dynasty â,¬' was seen as a crucial component of any claim to leadership over the people of Embadra.  Many Ayans migrated west to Marmeira, Kaytium, Parzasa, and Alesira, as well as east to Tazria.  Most modern humans of Embadran ethnicity can claim Ayan blood, though few have any records proceeding back to the age of Malecha and the first free humans.

The Ayans speak High Ayan, a direct derivation of Shadan, from which Low Ayan (spoken chiefly in Kaytium and Marya) is in turn derived.  The High Ayan of Aya itself has maintained its own dialect to an astounding degree, and â,¬' unlike the High Ayan spoken in Marmeira â,¬' has changed little since earier days.  High Ayan in the Ayan dialect is considered by other Embadrans to have a â,¬Å"refinedâ,¬Â accent, despite the fact that Ayan peasants speak it along with Ayan noblemen.  Often, Embadran rulers, nobles, courtiers, and scholars will adopt an Ayan affectation to seem more noble, traditional, or well-educated.  Shadan is commonly heard in Aya, as Shadan, halflings, and humans from Balshiha and the Dominion proper are common visitors to this land.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Geography and Climate]
Aya is a roughly crescent shaped piece of land, centered around the Gulf of Demaphio, and surrounded on the outside by the towering peaks of the Embadran Mountains.  Only in the south is an easy land transit to foreign lands possible, where the Ayan plains merge with the wide Marmeiran countryside.  Ayaâ,¬,,¢s geography is defined by these features; in the north and east the land is a dense succession of small river valleys fed by mountain snowcaps.  To the south, Aya resembles the Marmeiran landscape â,¬' a very gently rolling plain, dotted occasionally with a copse of trees.  Though Ayaâ,¬,,¢s arable land is not vast, the constant rains and accessible rivers make the farmland it does possess uniquely productive all year round.

Aya has a moderate climate, kept that way by the nearby ocean, though the high mountains that nearly encircle the realm keep rainclouds from straying far.  Aya is thus well known for its rain, which can come at nearly any time of the year.  It is equally well known for the cloud cover that seems omnipresent in all but the southmost regions of the country.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Inhabitants]
Aya is populated predominantly by humans; few others have access to this relatively remote land.  Shadan and halflings are frequent visitors, however, and maintain homes and businesses in many Ayan port towns.  A Sarfeir or Saulzarel in Aya would be a wondrous (and perhaps fearsome) oddity.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=History]
Aya was a distinct â,¬' though considerably larger â,¬' land before the Manifest Ruin, a subject Zarate of the Dominion of Niirda.  Its original name has been lost.  Its primary fastness was not the citadel known as Cha-Aya, but in the wake of the Ruin, Cha-Aya had the distinction of being the only such citadel that was not either in ruins or underwater.  It took several decades before the humans of Cha-Aya were willing to admit that they had to appoint a new Zara despite the fact that the Shadan were nowhere to be found.  This new Zara was an older warrior named Kus.  When he died only a few years after his appointment, the Ayans chose a young warrior as the next Zara, called Malecha.

Only a few years into Malechaâ,¬,,¢s reign, the Shadan Legate Masheich arrived at Cha-Aya, sent by Thaua, the Dominate of Niirda.  Masheich was welcomed warmly by many â,¬' after all, the Shadan were the godlike creators of the humans, and their absence since the Ruin had caused much apprehension.  Malecha, however, saw things differently.  As the famed Ayan chronicler Mandan wrote in Deeds of the Malechids,

Though in theory Aya is ruled by Uneid, the High Priest of the Temple of Malecha Eternal, in practice he does the bidding of the Marmeiran Zara Basheilgashaf the Fair-Haired.  The priesthood is allowed considerable autonomy in local affairs, and administers commerce, law, and reconstruction without much Marmeiran interference.  The High Priest, however, is not allowed to keep a standing army, and plays no role in foreign affairs.  Relatively distant to the power centers of the Heartlands, Aya thus is a frequently overlooked borderland realm.  Even the Shadan do not keep an embassy in Aya, preferring to be closer to the center of real power in Marmeira.

Ayaâ,¬,,¢s sole influence comes from its religious position.  Pilgrimages to Aya are on the rise since a low point at the fall of the Empire, and the High Priest has authority over Malechist sects abroad, such as the Temple of the Conquerer of Nations, the Temple of the Crimsonhanded, and the Temple of the Uniter and Preserver.  This influence is limited because of the fractured nature of the post-Empire Heartlands.  The Malechist priests of Kaytium, for example, are bound to be more loyal to the Kaytine Zara Brensimar than a distant Ayan High Priest.  Still, the clergy of Aya uses this authority whenever possible, constantly looking for ways to aggrandize itself and insinuate its moral and political authority into foreign lands.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Legal]
Aya is fully devoted to the Code of Hemecham, which is taken as near holy scripture by the priesthood.  It survives in a totally unadultered form in Aya, and is carried out efficiently and effectively by the High Priest and his appointed constable-clergymen.  The High Priest prides himself on running an ordered, law-abiding state, and endeavors to make sure it remains so.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Religion]
Malechism is the only approved religion of Aya.  The Shadan are tolerated along with their devotion to Niiraun, but any human deviations from the faith of the Empire are ruthlessly extirpated.  Anaedans are especially hated; Aya is the only land in these â,¬Å"followers of the one true powerâ,¬Â are executed for their heresies.  Augeidhans are not treated as harshly, but face fines and expulsion if they are found practicing their faith.  Worship of the Nymph Goddesses is permitted graciously, so long as it is in addition to, rather than instead of, the state religion.  Religious tithes are required of all save the Shadan and their servants, whether they profess the faith or not.

As might be expected, Aya is structured in the image of the priesthood, and religious holidays and observances are public, widespread, impressive affairs.  Priests are present at all levels of government, administering secular and civil affairs as any other bureaucrats.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Economy]
Ayaâ,¬,,¢s economy is small, like its population, but in spite of Aicaiounâ,¬,,¢s ascendance it continues to play an important role in trade with Balshiha, Tazria, and the Dominate of Niirda.  The ability of the land to produce grain and other foodstuffs, while respectable, is far eclipsed by Siyan and Pharesaa, and thus the export economy relies on mineral trade.  The Embadran Mountains are plentiful sources of silver, tin, and lead.  Tinâ,¬,,¢s importance to bronzeworking has assured Ayaâ,¬,,¢s continued relevance the southern Heartlands.

Aya is agriculturally self-sufficient, and its imports are dominated by goods used by the priesthood â,¬' incense, cloth, spicewood, and gold.  Copper is also imported for domestic bronzeworking purposes.

Aya uses Imperial coin for large transactions, but as with most places in the Heartlands, coinage is used almost exclusively by merchants, priests, well-off adventurers, and others with means.  The coinage of the Dominion is seen, though uncommonly, and is accepted in most port towns.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Magic]
Philosophers are reasonably common in Aya, especially those affiliated with Malechism.  A Malechist sect of the Celestial Hierarchy exists here.  Arcanists are less common, though certainly some of the Shadan practice arcanism.  The exception to this is in Nestinasj, where arcanists are quite common.  Druids are forbidden to use their powers in Aya, save for ceremonial purposes in their own temples.

Redbinders are greatly feared and hated, even more so in Aya than in other Heartlands realms, but the Sacred Protectorate is loathe to do anything about it.  The powerful community of redbinders in Nestinasj would look dimly on any open persecution, and the Sacred Protectorate is afraid enough of their presence that Redbinders are typically "escorted" to Nestinasj and otherwise unmolested.  This does not stop the occasional superstitious peasant mob from indulging in persecutions of their own, but the High Priest routinely denies any connection with such riots.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Culture and Food]
Ayan culture is similar to that of the Marmeirans, though with Shadan and other eastern influences.  Embadran dress generally consists of a knee-length tunic, covered by an ankle-length wrap.  Embadrans favor certain color combinations deemed to be properly asthetic.  Some of these combinations are indicative of certain bloodlines, nations, and traditions; green is traditionally a color of nobility, and orange often represents western descent.  Women wear dresses; in Aya, they are in a very Shadan style, conservative and high-necked with spiralling stripes of dark color.  Peasants and workers usually wear a simple skullcap, while wealthy and upper-class men wear peaked felt caps.  Women do not typically cover their hair.

Embadran food generally is based around simaj, circular pieces of soft flatbread used to contain or complement other foods.  Mutton and fish are the most common meats in Ayan cuisine, though meat is only commonly consumed by the rich.  Ayan food is notoriously salty, and while other Embadrans may be used to similar food, other folk of the Heartlands are often put off.  The frequent rain in Ayaâ,¬,,¢s hilly highlands is perfect for growing lurei, a plant used for tea and seasoning throughout Embadra.  Lurei (pronounced loo-ray) tea is commonly consumed by all members of Embadran society, especially on colder, rainy days.

Ayan culture is defined by its age, and Embadrans travelling to Aya often view Ayan architecture and traditions to be rustic and quaintly old-fashioned; the more cosmopolitan realms of Marmeira, Parzasa, Kaytium, and Alesira have all undergone more rapid cultural change than Aya ever has, especially considering Ayaâ,¬,,¢s isolated nature even during the best years of the Grand Embadran Empire.

Drinking is frowned upon by many denizens of Aya, perhaps mimicking the notoriously abstemious culture of the Shadan.  Alcohol is usually found only in the homes of peasants, and the few taverns that exist are generally seedy and low-class.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Cities and Towns]
The oldest community in Aya, Chayan, takes its name from a colloquial slurring of Malechaâ,¬,,¢s citadel (Cha-Aya).  The town is long past the height of its influence and has long been eclipsed by Ayaâ,¬,,¢s more prosperous port cities.  Because it is the location of the Cha-Aya (for the most part, still standing) and the Temple of Malecha Eternal, however, Chayan remains inhabited, and an important town for its cultural, historical, and cultural history.  It is the official capital of the Sacred Protectorate, and the residence of the High Priest.

Ayaâ,¬,,¢s largest city is Teyal, a thriving port city that was sheltered from the worst effects of the Great Wave.  It was originally only one of three such cities, next to Agalein and Hurize, but both of these were annihilated by the Wave.  Teyal was Ayaâ,¬,,¢s de facto capital for a few years, between the destruction of Agalein (the old capital of the Thusmar) and the rise of the Sacred Protectorate in Chayan.  Teyal is the principal port of call for merchants coming to Aya, and has enjoyed unprecedented growth â,¬' unlike much of Aya, which has stagnated for years.

The largest inland settlement is Nestinasj, nestled in the upper reaches of Aya where the Embadran Mountains and the Shadowveil meet.  Nestinasj is an important location for Ayaâ,¬,,¢s farmers, especially lurei farmers, to barter and spend free time.  It would be otherwise nondescript save for its distinction as the oldest center of human Arcanism.  Riashe Ashfingers, third Zara of the Malechid dynasty, founded a school for arcanism here to bolster the arcane defense of his empire against the ever-dangerous Shadan remnants.  Demaphishaf the Fireblooded, founder (or re-founder) of the Neo-Malechid dynasty, declared Nestinasj to be a location where Redbinders would be allowed to come and live without persecution.  Though this was supposedly to study them, Demaphishaf himself was believed to be a Redbinder, and his motives may have been closer to his own heart.  Regardless, it has remained such a sancturay to this day; the city has never been conquered since those days.  It always eluded capture during the Shadan occupations, and even such anti-Redbinder rulers as Hemecham the Victorious shied away from â,¬Å"dealingâ,¬Â with Nestinasj.

Further east, the town of Esirul dominates one of the few passes over the Shadowveil into Abria.  The pass is not easy or terribly safe, but during times of danger on the seas the pass of Esirul is the only alternative for caravans to and from the Dominion of Niirda.  Only a few thousand live there now, but Abrian caravans and explorers heading to the northern Shadan domains often pass through this sleepy mountain town.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Sites of Interest]
Cha-Aya â,¬' The Citadel of Aya is an ancient structure, built during the Age of Progenitors by human labor as one of many garrison fortresses in this region.  It has been besieged many times in this age, and over the centuries the damage dealt to it has left it in a rather sorry state.  Though most of the citadel still stands, some floors have caved in and the exterior wall is almost gone from local recycling of the stone blocks.  Its use is limited to the occasional religious ceremony, as it is no longer in any shape to be used in a serious military function.

The Temple of Malecha Eternal â,¬' Hemecham the Victorious established one of the centers of Malechism, the state religion, in Chayan to commemorate the rule of Malecha and celebrate his divine bloodline.  The Temple was always the nomially holiest site of the Empire, though in practice the Malechusej paid greater respects to the Temple of the Uniter and Preserver in Kaytium, where the bloodline of Halkadrim and Hemecham was worshipped.  The Temple itself is a columned temple complex around a central stepped pyramid, upon which rests a silver-covered dome of Shadan craftsmanship.  Within its many buildings are located hosts of minor shrines, sacrificial altars, purifying baths, civil and ecclesiastical offices, treasuries, archives, and cloisters.  Under the central dome is the Dwelling of Manifest Subliminity, where only priests are allowed; supposedly, the ashes of Malecha and the rest of the Zaras of the early Malechid dynasty lie beneath the marble floor.  Nearly every Embadran Malechusej visited this room twice; once during the long coronation process, and once after his death, when his body was carried to each of the greater Temples before being cremated and coming to rest in a mausoleum built by the Malechus during his life.

The Gardens of Emla â,¬' The first Ausahchalid Zara, Aushachal Many-Talons, married a Balshihan noblewoman named Emla who had little desire to be in Aya, nor any love for Aushachal himself.  Their marriage is the topic of the Song of Sorrows, a Tazrian epic poem about Ausashalâ,¬,,¢s long and ultimately vain attempts to win the ladyâ,¬,,¢s heart.  Though it is not really known how accurate the Song actually is, the mist-shrouded gardens found in a northern valley of Aya are believed by many to be planted by Emla in remebrance of her homeland.  The garden is beautiful and expansive, though without any to tend it, the plants run wildly in every direction.  The garden is dotted with ancient statues, said to be gifts of fine Shadan craftsmanship from her husband in Chayan.  Though few travel here, those that do often bring back fantastic reports of a figure in the mist or the ghostly weeping, often attributed to a restless Emla who still wanders the gardens, mourning for her distant home.

Sanctum of the Art â,¬' The Sanctum, founded in Nestinasj by Zara Riashe Ashfingers, is the first known human school of arcanism.  The complex itself is large but not terribly impressive, being built for a very practical purpose â,¬' the training of arcanists for war.  Over time, as the neccessity of fighting the Shadan faded, the Sanctum became more holistically devoted to the study of Arcanism generally, and its students would later found similar schools throughout the Heartlands.  The Sanctum is still active today, specializing in evocation (in the spirit of its old purpose as a war academy) and research into arcane theory, facilitated by the redbinder presence in the city.  The Sanctum has kept the same rules since its inception, and those wishing to enter its halls in study or use its archives must first swear an oath of loyalty to Malecha Weaponbreaker, his house, and the freedom of humankind.[/spoiler]

[Polycarp]

Cosmology, Powers, and Scions

Iâ,¬,,¢m putting my work on the Heartlands on hold for a while to expound a little on the more universal aspects of Ralum and the powers-that-be.

[spoiler=Cosmology]
The World of Ralum is a single plane; all the various Realms are physically accessible to one another, save the Ethereal Realms â,¬' the Whitewaste and the Great Mist.  As far as the mortal races are concerned, there is nothing beyond Ralum; once over the edge of the great disk, one is consumed by nothingness, or manifest madness, or perhaps great and monstrous creations of the most ancient deities.

Ralum can be used as part of a larger cosmology; the Shadan tale of the None and the creation of Ralum implies the existence of another being from â,¬Å"outside the worldâ,¬Â that first convinced the None to begin its work.  If this is done, it must be remembered that the magic of planeshifting would be utterly foreign to nearly every power; even the Scions are likely unaware of the presence of other planes.  The discovery of a whole multiverse beyond the bounds of Ralum would likely be revolutionary, and a very dangerous and difficult secret to keep.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=The Four Material Realms]
Ralum is divided into four distinct material Realms.  The â,¬Å"First Realmâ,¬Â refers to the side of the disk on which the continent of Jadanar (among others) is located, the focus of my work so far.  Because most mortals are unaware of any other realms, however, they may use â,¬Å"Ralumâ,¬Â or â,¬Å"the worldâ,¬Â to refer only to this Realm.  In the Age of the Progenitors, the First Realm was the Realm of Creation, where the Scions were created and where the Shadan Dominions flourished.

On the other side of the disk is the Second Realm.  This is where the great Bharim Empire was founded after the flight of their race from the Shadan.  Of it, little is known.  How did the Manifest Ruin affect them?  Is it still a Bharim land, or is everything dead, or did their Saulzarel slaves form their own Realm-wide empire?

Between them lies the Inner Realm, which has been detailed previously.  It is the only physical connection between the two; if there is a way to â,¬Å"cross overâ,¬Â by going off the edge of the disk and onto the other side, nobody seems to know it, and few would try.

The disk is surrounded by the fourth and final Realm, the Outer Realm.  The Outer Realm was originally a vast nothingness, but after the Dictum of Four the Glimmer Scions were exiled to this blank land, charged with watching over all of Ralum for their penance.  Their progeny, the celestial races, over the centuries constructed great hollow spheres of ether pulled from the Ethereal Plane.  Upon these â,¬Å"globesâ,¬Â are built the civilization of the celestials, a mighty and grim hierarchy that surveys the lower Realms with an eternal melancholy vigilance.  Unlike some heaven of eternal delights, the celestial realm of Ralum is a cold, quiet, somber place, awe-inspiring and beautiful â,¬' but without laughter or hope.  Mortals know little of this, however, though they can see the Outer Realm.  The sky to the average observer is not full of stars (â,¬Å"starsâ,¬Â to a mortal of Ralum refers to what we call shooting stars, objects â,¬' or beings â,¬' falling from the Outer Realm), but rather vast globes of translucent ether, ranging in size (but all of enormous proportions), drifting slowly through the night sky.  For comparison, the moon seen from earth would be thought an unusually small such globe.  These celestial spheres are big.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=The Ethereal Realms]
Two Realms exist that cannot usually be reached by any physical means, though portals are rumored to exist.  In the terms of normal D&D, they are â,¬Å"demiplanes,â,¬Â though that term is meaningless in a cosmology in which there are no planes.  They are closely analagous to the Plane of Shadow and the Ethereal Plane.  They are coexistent with the material Realms, and can be used by those with great knowledge and power to travel large distances quickly.

The Whitewaste is anything but white.  It is called this because Shadan creation myths say that the None originally lived here, just one more particle in a vast realm of endless, roiling, riotous, brilliant energy.  When the None created Ralum, it drained nearly all the energy from the Whitewaste to create its masterpice, turning the Whitewaste into a cold and dismal domain of shadows.  The Whitewaste now is much like the Plane of Shadow in traditional cosmology, only far more bleak and desolate (if that can be imagined).  It is not a reflection of the material Realms, even a warped one, though sometimes material things do â,¬Å"bleedâ,¬Â into the Whitewaste.

The Great Mist is Ralumâ,¬,,¢s ethereal plane, called by many names: the Realm of Ghosts, the Fog of Time, Cloudhome, and so on.  It is essentially the same as the Ethereal Plane of standard D&D cosmology.  Its origins are not mentioned in the Shadanâ,¬,,¢s creation myths.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Transitive Magic]
There exists a peculiar bar to certain spells operating in Ralum.  Teleportation effects cannot take one between Realms.  A person in the Inner Realm can teleport to anywhere within that Realm as per the spell, but a person who crosses into the First Realm can only teleport to places there.  Thus, the only known ways to cross from one side of the disk to the other involve either crossing the Inner Realm physically, using the Whitewaste or the Great Mist as transitive planes, or using a plane shift effect.

Plane Shift and equivalent spells function as conveyance between Realms, even the material Realms.  A caster on the First Realm could shift to a material Realm like the Second, or to one of the Ethereal Realms.  Either way, the caster has no control over where they end up.

Spells that access the Astral Plane (assuming you have not added in a greater cosmology that includes this plane) are either unavailable or must be suitably modified to make use of one of the Ethereal Realms.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Death and Renewal]
What happens to mortals when they die?  Unlike some other campaigns, the answer to this question is generally well known, for a variety of reasons.  Ralum recycles its spirits.  This process is known by the Shadan as the Eternal Law.

When the body dies, the soul is carried elsewhere â,¬' nobody is sure â,¬' where it is slowly cleansed of its memories, and eventually returned to a new body.  Different soul types are incompatible with each other; a human could not be reincarnated as an aludan, because one is a Shade soul and the other is a Spirit soul.  An aludan could be reincarnated as a tree, however, or a human as a rabbit or a Sarfeir.  There are four types of souls (Shade, Glimmer, Gloom, Spirit), each descended from a certain group of Scions.  All mortal races detailed so far, including the Progenitors, are Shade souls (with the exception of the Aludani, who are Spirit souls).

The actual process of reincarnation is totally unknown.  Where do souls go?  Are there some souls, because of â,¬Å"enlightenmentâ,¬Â or their great wickedness, who are not reincarnated?  Why are mortal souls reincarnated?  There are no good answers to these questions.  What is known is that the process of â,¬Å"scrubbingâ,¬Â memories puts a certain statute of limitations on attempts to raise the dead.  Every month that passes, about 10% of the soulsâ,¬,,¢ past memories are lost, until after about 10 months it remembers nothing.  Someone raised from the dead after at least a month will have some amount of memory loss.  If they have been raised before the loss of all their memory (they have at least 10% left) this can be regained with a heal spell; if it is all gone, only a wish or miracle will restore their memory.

After some indeterminate number of years â,¬' apparently sometimes as short as one, other times several â,¬' the soul will be reincarnated in another body.  Nobody is sure how a new body is selected; some say that a good life will be rewarded with a higher form, while others say it is random, and still others say it is all according to some greater plan.  Attempts to resurrect people once they have been reincarnated automatically fail.  It is possible to resurrect someone regardless by slaying them in their current form and resurrecting them using some trace of their old form, but they will still lack all of their memories from their old life.

How is all this known?  The Niiraunshein speaks about the process of reincarnation, and the Bharim apparently taught the principle to their creations, the Saulzarel.  The best research, however, is magic.  About one in every 1,000 mortals remembers their previous life (a fairly significant proportion); for some reason, the process of cleansing the memory does not always work perfectly.  They only retain 10-90% of their memories, but the phenomenon is well-known enough to be commonly accepted, and in fact the average mortal is more shocked by an albino than a â,¬Å"recaller.â,¬Â  A wish or miracle will also restore oneâ,¬,,¢s memories from a previous life in full, though this is only an option to the most powerful arcanists and philosophers.  Such magic, for all its power, seems to be unable to go back any farther than one lifetime.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=The None]
There is one creator.  It is called many things by many beings; the names for the Great Creator are far too many to list here.  It is male to some, female to others; some account it as evil, some as good.  Some believe it is active in the world and walks among us, and some say it does not even know of the existence of mortals.  The Shadan call it the None, and this is the term we shall use here.

Virtually nothing is known of the None.  The Niiraunshein states that the None created Ralum out of the contents of the Whitewaste, in order to prove to another deific being that it was unique; by its logic, only that which created could truly be unique.  It populated the new world with the Scions, but found that it could not communicate with these lesser spirits.  Some intermediary was necessary, so it created the Arbiter, its manifestation within the material world, a fusing of material energy and the â,¬Å"divine nothingnessâ,¬Â of the None.  The Arbiter served as the Noneâ,¬,,¢s representative to mortals for ages, though it seldom interfered in their affairs after the Dictum of Four.

When the Unspeakable (a Bharim artifact weapon of tremendous power) was activated in desperation at the end of the Spellwar, it began going amok and destroying everything.  Nations were obliterated and whole continents sunk beneath the waves.  To destroy it and spare creation, the Arbiter sacrificed himself and utterly annihilated it.  Much damage had already been done, however, and that great upheaval is what is now known as the Manifest Ruin.  The Arbiter was never seen again, and since the Ruin there has been no contact with the None.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Scions]
The Scions were the original creations of the None, crafted to populate Ralum.  They were incorporeal spirits, but still made of ether or some other nebulous form.  At their creation, there were 32, 8 for each type of soul.  Led by their Firsts, they pondered what they were to do with their new existence, until the Arbiter was created to communicate a purpose to them.  The None was disappointed with their actions, however â,¬' perhaps expecting them to share in his own perfection â,¬' and as punishment for their unsatisfying nature, they were confined to material forms.  The Glimmers were the most damned of all, being sentenced to watch over the rest in the distant Outer Realm.

Scions are beings of tremendous power; they are still bound in matter, however (though most have ways of changing their forms).  Most keep themselves safely away from mortals, though some have known habitations upon Ralum or within the Inner Realm.  The Glimmer Scions, for their part, live exclusively in the celestial spheres.

Scions are not â,¬Å"godsâ,¬Â in the traditional D&D sense.  They cannot grant spells and have no portfolios.  There is no Scion of death, law, merchants, luck, or seafarers.  Scions, like mortals, have their own goals, desires, and vendettas, and are not paragons of any alignment â,¬' they can change as easily as mortals can.  The only sense in which a Scion can grant spells is to transform certain mortals into conduits for arcane energy; these mortals are known as Sorcerers.  The magic of a Sorcerer, however, does not actually originate from the Scion; the Scion simply maintains the link between the Sorcerer and the source of magic, whatever that might be.  Thus, like a D&D deity, a Scion can cut off all spells to a servant that displeases it.

Most Scions are not worshipped; the exception is Niiraun, the Lord of Grey, and God of the Shadan.  The Shadan revere him as a deity, partially because he was able in the distant past to banish the remaining Shade Scions into the Inner Realm (Thispus was killed by Niiraun, Tacha had long since manifested as an Archsoul and been banished, Ivreesha and Pagraha had departed with their followers, the proto-Bharim, and Tenaildin was away.  It is said that when she returned, she was so stricken with grief for her banished friends, that she walked into the sea and never returned).  These Scions are now known as the Ven, the Forgotten Lords, and their very mention by Shadan is considered heretical.

Scions have many names; the ones referred to here are their names as per the Niiraunshein, which coincide with the names found on the Cliffs of Junduo in Taun.  Scions apparently have genders, as they generally seem to appear exclusively as either female or male.  There are believed to befour males and four females of each type.  With some, like the Spirit Scions, even the most knowledgable sages arenâ,¬,,¢t quite sure which ones are which gender, as they are virtually never encountered by mortals.

Scions are thought to be immortal, but obscure histories report a few that have apparently been slain.  It is unknown what the truth of the matter is.  An appendix follows this post, containing the names of all Scions.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Archsouls]
To those mortals who know of them, the Archsouls are embodiments of all that is grotesque, villainous, and terrifying.  They are the self-appointed outcasts of creation who seek nothing more than to destroy that which gave them birth.  They have rejected the Dictum of Four and the Eternal Law, and make war upon the None and all his creation with all their strength and drive.

Not all the Scions accepted the Noneâ,¬,,¢s decree that they be henceforth banished into material forms (the Dictum of Four).  The Niiraunshein states that the four Firsts, the rulers of the four groups of Scions, conspired to rebel against their creator.  Together, Tacha, Enesul, Heshon, and Naesa, the most powerful of their kind, manifested as Archsouls and attempted to overthrow the Arbiter (the Noneâ,¬,,¢s manifestation in Ralum) and their fellow Scions.  They were defeated, and fled into the Inner Realm.

An Archsoul is a being which has found a way to break â,¬' or at least loosen â,¬' the bonds of reality upon itself.  Gravity, physics, time â,¬' these are all part of the material cage that confines normal beings.  Archsouls batter against this cage, seeking to tear themselves free from the Dictum of Four by pure force of will.  The process yields tremendous power, but is also terribly taxing on a material being â,¬' all Archsouls are known to be terribly insane, their minds warped beyond sense and reason, their bodies polluted and twisted to horrible forms.  They inhabit the shadowy line between existence and nonexistence, with their minds nearly disconnected from their bodies.

Archsouls are twisted, unimaginably hateful creatures that loathe everything, including themselves. They hate all life not because it has slighted them, but because all life is a reminder of the Dictum of Four, and all life was created by that which they hate most: the None, the creator of Ralum. Since the None, however, seems to be impervious to any attempt to harm or even confront it, the Archsouls attempt to cause it grief in the best way they know how: destroying its creation. To reduce the world to nothingness would mean the ultimate failure of the Noneâ,¬,,¢s â,¬Å"projectâ,¬Â that is Ralum.

The original Archsouls have multiplied since their first manifestation.  A few Scions have since joined them.  Occasionally a mortal creature joins their ranks, seemingly inadvertently; perhaps the Archsouls touched them with madness, or perhaps they stumbled upon some terrible secret.  Regardless, when an Archsoul manifests, it means certain doom for their former communities.  Archsouls go quickly insane, and do not appear to be capable of death.  They merely reform elsewhere when â,¬Å"slain.â,¬Â  There are rumors of some mad individuals who willingly seek out the power of the Archsouls, giving themselves to the insane domination of the Four Firsts for the mere taste of escaping reality.

While few mortals know of the Archsouls as such, the names of the Firsts are commonly known names that are anethema to most mortals.  Saying the name of an Archsoul is believed in many societies to bring the wrath of the Firsts upon the speaker; they are alluded to by other names (â,¬Å"Timewraithâ,¬Â is a common one for Tacha, First among Shades).  Balshihans are known to exclaim â,¬Å"Names of the Firsts!â,¬Â as a particularly crude and blasphemous curse.  Even those who use these expressions, however, seldom have any idea that the Firsts are called â,¬Å"Archsouls,â,¬Â or what exactly an Archsoul is.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Axiomites]
The Arbiter created certain â,¬Å"creatures,â,¬Â for lack of a better word, to aid him in finding and correcting breaches of the Eternal Law and the Dictum of Four.  They were created rather late in his existence, leading some to believe he knew of the coming of his own death; others believe that Ralum, in the throes of the Spellwar, had simply grown too chaotic for one being (even a divine being) to deal with personally.

It is uncertain whether Axiomites are actually â,¬Å"alive.â,¬Â  They do not have souls, and are thus not bound by the laws they are charged with enforcing.  They range from the least â,¬' Watchers, little ethereal orbs that seek out transgressors â,¬' to the four mighty Hounds of the Arbiter, mysterious beings of Scion-like power that are said to be charged with the destruction of the greater Archsouls.  Their names, handed down in the Niiraunshein, are all palindromes and nearly unpronouncable: Aundnua, Ktimsusmitk, Jahahaj, and Csennannesc.  Most are known by other, more easily remembered names in local folklore.  Axiomites are feared as malevolent ghosts by many mortals, but they are profoundly disinterested with mortal life, existing only to find those who transgress upon the Noneâ,¬,,¢s laws: Undead, souls trapped in constructs or magical prisons, those who have been raised from the dead prematurely, and Archsouls and their minions.  They seem to have some sense of scale, and seldom bother lesser undead or those who are raised from the dead on a single occasion.  The more one tampers with life and unlife, however, the more likely one is to attract their attention; their â,¬Å"attentionsâ,¬Â are one of the reasons greater undead, like liches and vampires, are so rare.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=The Scion List]

The following is a list of all the Scions by type; the Firsts are listed, well, first.  Those in bold have manifested as Archsouls, those in italics are non-Archsouls known to live in or have been banished to the Inner Realm, and those in (parenthesis) are believed to be dead.

I. Shade Scions
- Tacha
- Chalethus
- Shilda
- Tenaildin
- Niiraun
- (Thispus)
- Ivreesha
- Pagraha

II. Spirit Scions
- Enesul
- Trasibus
- Felmai
- Parikatir
- Baua
- Seishal
- Menaia
- (Asul)

III. Glimmer Scions
- Naesa
- Zirrah
- Pratelhamine
- Bahirassa
- Ispar
- Evracha
- Aedun
- Demarigus

IV. Gloom Scions
- Heshon
- Nebaubrigal
- Thagus
- Maccrab
- Selbe
- Ebredun
- Aolthear
- Vezalgremar

[/spoiler]