Setting
G'ael is a region of Northern Aslund that few know of, and fewer still have traveled to. Thick fog and rocky shores that dot its coast make it a dangerous region to traverse by sea, while the icy peaks to the west and south provide a formidable barrier by land.
Those that live within G'ael are largely divided into one of two divisions. Eastern G'ael, and Western G'ael.
Eastern G'ael is a dark land, its people dominated by superstition and fear. Well known for its rolling highlands and vast woodland valleys, this region was once a place of great beauty before the land grew sickly. Life in eastern G'ael is centered around the scattered settlements that make up this region. With little to no contact with neighboring towns or travelers, each settlement is self-sufficient and often sport night-watches and strict curfews. Outsiders are viewed with great mistrust and only barely tolerated until they move on. With woodlands teaming with feral werewolves and vampires who prey upon the unwary, this land is not for the faint of heart. The hostile conditions have bred a strong people, both resilient and resourceful, but also heavily influenced by paranoia. There is no regional economy to speak of within eastern G'ael, and coin based monetary systems are non-existent. What buying and selling occurs is done through barter and trade of goods and services.
Though once prevalent, the use of magic has not existed in eastern G'ael for hundreds of years. During the peak of its uses, the nobles of eastern G'ael began to delve into necromancy and the occult in search of the answers to immortality. Twisted by their misuse and dark purposes, the magic of G'ael grew tainted and with it the land. What magic still exists within these regions can no longer be wielded and simply serves to keep the undead scourges animated. Those reckless enough to try will typically find themselves overcome by its dark and twisted nature, and they themselves will soon join the ranks of the dead as shades and wraiths who haunt the night in search of magic to devour. Mages have long avoided the lands of eastern G'ael.
Within G'ael superstition runs rampant, but the nature of these superstitions can vary from region to region - as is seen with the werewolves of G'ael. While the people of western G'ael retain a strong fear and aversion to the vampires of eastern G'ael, werewolves are accepted and even revered for their ferocity in battle, and they play a significant role in keeping the western lands free of undead influence. However, once their affliction has taken hold of them and they become a threat they are typically killed or simply driven into eastern G'ael to join the feral populations. This systematic relocation serves to perpetuate the animosity towards werewolves by the easterners who view them as no better than the undead scourge that plague their lands.
See the Ulfhednar for more details.
The origin of the vampires within G'ael can be traced back to early necromancy at the hands of nobles. In their search for immortality, they delved into matters of the occult and dark magic. Their twisted experiments gave rise to the early vampires, a twisted abomination caught somewhere between the living and the dead. These creatures fed upon the flesh of the living and were soon ravaging the countryside. These creatures became known as the draugar (singular: draugr). Infused with the same greed and amorality they contained in life, these creatures can typically be found lurking in graveyards, looting the dead or feasting upon the corpses.
Despite early failures, the nobles of eastern G'ael were driven by their greed and a hunger for immortality. Regardless of growing pressure and resentment from the commoners, they redoubled their experiments so as to perfect the nature of the abominations. Their efforts proved successful with the subsequent creation of the vampires. Born out of dark magic and the greed within their human hearts, vampires are creatures driven by sinful desires and power. Almost all of the vampires living within G'ael are of noble birth, or descendants of nobles. This has given rise to the people of eastern G'ael going to great lengths to hide their nobility for fear of the vampires discovering them.
Eastern G'ael lives in a perpetual state of fear and conflict with the undead abominations that plague their lands.
(RP Notes: For those RPing within eastern G'ael please be mindful that eastern G'ael's culture and atmosphere is loosely influenced by a mingling of medieval western Europe, Romania, and fantasy. While other cultural denominations are present as well, they are often viewed as a peculiarity, and are few and far in between and often have quite the tale to tell as to how they came to live in such a place. G'ael is not a particularly advanced region, and it lacks in modern comforts. Any technology that exists in G'ael typically consists of what people carried in on themselves.)
The Shadow dissipated from the ground, her eyes closing before they sunk through the ground. In this room of darkness, a brewing cauldron for Olette's darker half, Ettelo could hear the heartbeats of the guards hasten behind stone faces and she smirked invisibly to her company. The body of Sandal twitched and curled beside Alcatone, and Ettelo rose from the guard's shadow with her arms outstretched.
"You're playing your part well, Sevra..." the Shadow hissed. "I'll be sure to applaud as you perish!"
Almost gracefully, Ettelo dropped her arms and the shadows of every guard shot up behind them as tendrils from hell. The shadows gave a devastating growl as they wrapped their arms around the necks of their bodies and pulled them into the ground, disappearing beneath them. Ettelo laughed cruelly as her henchmen held on, choking their guard and cooing as they flailed. She slowly dissipated back to the floor looking at Alcatone with hazel eyes...the eyes of Olette.
"Alcatone," the Shadow said with a sharp tongue, "keep an eye out for me."
"Do what you need to, Ettelo." The duke said with the small break he had before grappling with the hunter once more.
Sevra was a coward. She used her position to do as she pleased. She wasn't about to let two filthy monsters take away her crown. With a new squad of guards readily by her side, she disappeared into one of the chambers behind her throne, her voice echoing to bring torches.
The hunter slammed Alcatone into a table, a small piece piercing his forearm in the process. Without pause, the duke threw himself at the hunter, tackling him to the ground. The hunter did his best to keep Alcatone from making any attempt to attack him, but the duke roared and rammed the piece of wood that jutted out from his arm into the strangers gut. The man screamed in agony when Alcatone followed up with his claws, digging into the hunter's chest.
As Alcatone dug his claws in deep, he tore the cloak away. Alcatone pulled back from his attack the moment their eyes locked.
The Silhouette possessed Sevra's shadow and appeared behind her silently as she fled. Ettelo rolled her eyes stubbornly and grabbed Sevra's hair, whipping her back into the ground.
"I'm curious to see how to transition your crown to me," Ettelo sneered. Her hazel eyes stared daggers at the Queen, who was being bound by Ettelo's foot on her throat. It was a seemingly unfair advantage shadows had over humans, as they could not physically retaliate back...fortunately for Ettelo, Sevra did not seem too aware of how to get rid of an angry shadow.
"Should your crown float to me on the river of your blood?" the Silhouette asked, jabbing her heel into Sevra's neck. "Do I take your body and devour you from the inside? Or should I slaughter you like a lamb and feed you to your kingdom, who's starving and helpless?"
Sevra, overcome with fear, began laughing maniacally. She laughed but her thoughts were all on her crown. She couldn't lose it. What would her brother say?
"You can't kill me! I... Can can give you all that you want! Without me you have nothing!" She struggled to speak with Ettelo crushing her throat.
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Ettelo leaned forward, looking at Sevra with a terrible smile. Her foot pressed further into the queen's throat. "No, you are mistaken. Without you, I will have no headaches. You've proven to be such a waste of my time."
"I don't understand. You...that was long ago. I don't...." Alcatone's head was filled with questions and thoughts. None of which he could quell.
The hunter laughed at Alcatone's confusion. "You and I both know the answer to that. Magic, my dear vampire. I've never hunted a whole family before. Killing them in front of you will be such sweet revenge."
Alcatone leapt towards the hunter but landed on an empty cloak. The hunter's voice surrounded him. "Not today, animal."
Sevra struggled to maintain consciousness. "But...I'm...the queen. You...should bow...to me."
"You aren't a queen. You're the resting place for a piece of metal."
Ettelo abruptly stood up and grabbed Sevra by her hair. She dragged the wretched Queen back to the room where her henchmen and Alcatone awaited. She pulled Severa up to her feet and dug her nails into her neck.
"You will crawl to Duke Ragnovah and you will be civil, or you will be dead," the Shadow said cruelly, and raised her foot to the Queen's knee. Ettelo thrusted her foot against Severa's bones and bent the knee backwards, then dropped her to the floor.
He watched the queen scream in agony and hold her now contorted leg. Tears streamed down her eyes as she crawled to the duke. Her hand reached his boot, clinging at his leg.
"Please!" She coughed, "Help me! She's insane!"
Alcatone reached down and lifts her by the throat with ease. His voice was cold and unforgiving, "What was it you said about pets, leashes, and play things. The vampire's been eyes held no remorse.
"I told you to be civil, didn't I? Whoever taught you that screaming and begging was civil needs to rethink a few things," she scoffed. She looked at Alcatone for a moment, then returned her stare to the queen.
"You've done a shitty job of running your kingdom, Sevra. And, you've insulted my friend here by threatening his family."
"What was the man's Name?" He asked, patiently waiting for the woman to speak. He held her higher as he did.
"Please! I beg of-"
The vampires grip tightened, causing Sevra to choke for air, "WHAT! IS! HIS! NAME!"
"I ... Don't... Know..."
Alcatone looked at Ettelo, "Is her body necessary? Your thralls look hungry"
"Not yet," she said, staring directly at Sevra. "She's afraid, and she's not telling us something."
The shadow leaned in towards the shivering queen. "You're not afraid of us killing you, are you? You're afraid of someone else killing you!!"
He paid no attention to the broken queen. Alcatone watched the corpse of Sandal as she spoke. He felt terrible for the boy's fate. Sandal didn't deserve this. Alot of the corpses didn't.
"Let...me go.... Please." The queen sobbed.
Ettelo's eyes narrowed as her lips curled upright.
"And I'll let you live if you bring that creature back to Alcatone. He was in your court, you know damn well who he is."
"Please! He won't be here!" She began crawling to the shadow. "He has his own land"
"Please! He won't be here!" She began crawling to the shadow. "He has his own land!"
"If he is elsewhere," she said, "then you will bring him here."
Alcatone knelt down and eyed the wood still in his arm. Without any hesitation, he yanked it from the arm leaving a large and bloody mess on the floor. He gritted his teeth, he removed his coat and tore a piece of off. The vampire carefully wrapped it around the wound tight.
"Because I don't want you," she said, spitting on her. The Shadow turned to Alcatone, looking at him with hazel eyes.
"You ok?" she asked, folding her arms.
"You must...burn three of our signal fires. He will come." She dared not move for fear of her ruined leg.
The duke looked at the corpses, "You heard her. Light the torches."