𝓪𝓫 𝓸𝓿𝓸.

[mayest]

long ago, the gods slew their creator and scattered their body across the world. their eyes became the sun and the moon, their blood became the oceans, and their ribs became the steppes of svet padayet. it was here that the ancestors of the božanskikonji clan dwelt in the shadows of the gods. but the heart of the one being still beats, driving all who hear it to madness and war. debate rages over why the gods allow the heart to beat. some say the heart is the source of all life, and to destroy it would destroy all life. others say the existence of the heart limits the deception and backstabbing the gods are prone to. no matter how much they cheated each other, there is a limit. on this, the gods remain silent. but the wars fought over the heart must be preferable. it was here that the božanskikonji clan proved their loyalty and bravery to the gods. in each swell of war, they resisted calls from their fellow men to obtain the heart and dominion over the gods. perhaps they know what is at stake should the heart ever be uncovered and exposed to sunlight. like the gods, they remain silent. on the plains of heaven (the ravninyraya), the božanskikonji clan was bestowed the gift of great wisdom by zhiva (the goddess of wisdom and foresight) and the gift of extended life by volosko (the god of death). their culture has remained largely unchanged since the last war for the heart almost two thousand years ago. while other groups of men planted roots and formed sedentary communities, the božanskikonji clan has remained pastoral and nomadic. in the harsh and dry tundra, they follow wherever the water runs and the grass blooms. they keep large herds of yaks and tame the finest horses in the land. though they also have a reputation for being the deadliest warriors, they are peaceful and prefer to keep out of worldly matters. colloquially, they are referred to as the božanskikonji clan, the clan, konjis, or horsepeople/men/women, leading to the misconception that they were once horses. this is reinforced by the clan's tall and statuesque figures, long hair, and their inclination to wear horse-haired helmets. in their language, božanskikonji translates to "divine horses." and indeed, in several languages in the surrounding area, "konj" is a loan translation for horse. the average lifespan is eight hundred years, but some legendary figures have lived to over a thousand. this was gifted to them by volosko, the god of death. the božanskikonji clan does not treat him as such, however, seeing him as the god of rebirth or the god of new beginnings. to them, death is not the end. only another journey that all must take, and volosko is the shepherd that guides them. the božanskikonji clan does not worship him or give offerings, and he does not require it. in the end, everyone will give him worship and offerings, even his fellow gods. though they appear immortal to a normal human, they are still susceptible to the same injuries, poisons, and disease. their bodies are merely tougher and more resistant. they age normally until twelve or so (about the time they complete their walkabout) when the aging process slams to a crawl. most of their life is spent appearing to be in their twenties, thirties, and forties. aging doesn't resume until roughly the last hundred years of their life. the clan is led by the ataman (a-ta-man) or chieftain, which is determined through a tournament that is held thirty days after the previous ataman's death. though the position is not hereditary, it's expected that the previous ataman's child will prevail, as they've been groomed for it, but this is not always the case. in the case of maroš and artemios (ataman con's sons), the latter declined to participate, so it was all but certain that maroš would become the new ataman. the clan is organized into two groups: warriors (protivetras) and shamans (svetroms). training for both starts when they are young. the warriors are trained in hand-to-hand combat, swordsmanship, and archery. by the age of twelve, a young warrior must complete the pomiru or a walkabout, where they are sent from the clan with a small bag of provisions and dagger to walk around the continent. this is not only to test their skills but to teach them what the božanskikonji clan fights for. and what the other kingdoms fight for. upon their return, they are granted the title of voyin and are considered adults. meanwhile, the shamans are trained in healing, births, burial customs, and necromancy. they can communicate with the dead and reanimate (though they rarely practice the latter). marriage from outside of the clan is allowed, although uncommon. during the wedding ceremony, they are blessed by volosko with an additional one hundred to two hundred years of life. understandably, however, many rulers, nobles, and wealthy merchants from other kingdoms are not keen to send their daughters, who have spent their lives in luxury, to the desolate tundra, where they will be expected to sleep in small huts and tend to livestock. the bride price has never been worth it. while the božanskikonji clan breeds some of the finest horses in the world, they do not possess any great material wealth or commit to military alliances. there are no incentives for foreign dignitaries to "condemn" (their words) their daughters to a life of hardship and simplicity. southwest of the ravninyraya, past the zharit' desert and the towering obice mountain range, is the kingdom of ornefluer, a large, resource-rich country with a sea to the east and an ocean to its west. it's said that fluer, the country's patron deity, can be found with her hunting dogs roaming the temperate forests. she is the goddess of the hunt and tournament. unlike other kingdoms, magic is uncommon in ornefluer. only about one in every five thousand citizens are blessed with the gift of controlling an element (air, earth, fire, or water). with a population of sixty-five million, only about .02% have magic ability. at ten, they are sent to an academy where they are trained to develop and hone their magic. after graduation, they serve in the military, where a few elites are selected for the king's guards, a unit dedicated to serving and protecting the royal family. the current captain is thea walling, a young woman with an unbelievable knack for magic (she can bend two elements). because of their scarcity of native magic, the kingdom of ornefluer has had to focus on technology and industry to defend itself against its neighbors. gunpowder was invented here and, within the past one hundred years, so were trains, telegraphs, and electricity. much of this innovation is attributed to king constantin's heavy investment in scientific education and research. when he first came to power, he prioritized scaling back on unnecessary spending and reinvesting the money into education, the arts, and welfare programs. though he greatly admired and respected his predecessors, they had ruled with their egos and the common people suffered. royal expenses were slashed. several royal homes were sold or turned into schools. corruption was also investigated and quashed. these incentives (along with the discovery of a rich source of copper in the rostigebäume region) allowed constantin to move massive funds into social and educational programs, leading to its current age of peace and prosperity. it's a beacon of hope and promise against the gathering storm. since their exile from the ravninyraya, the small group of warriors renamed themselves the samovoljnikonji clan (wayward horses). now no longer nomadic, they have planted roots and formed sedentary and pastoral communities in the southeastern plains of ornefluer. the area is now referred to as nebesnyypodval and was granted tribal sovereignty by king constantin in his first act as king. though the clan is free to govern themselves within their borders, they are still under the jurisdiction of the crown. though they were once considered volosko's children, the horsepeople in ornefluer have not had contact with the god since their exile. there are several theories: 1) without access to krilaroot, they can no longer transcend to the spiritual plane. 2) because they now reside in another god's realm, they can't communicate with a different god. their connection is blocked. 3) because they didn't fight back against maroš and fled instead, constantin and the samovoljnikonji clan lost favor with volosko. because of this, outsiders who marry into the clan can no longer gain an additional one to two hundred years of life, and the shamans cannot perform their spiritual duties. the ataman of the samovoljnikonji clan is king constantin (formerly known as artemios). as he is also the king of ornefluer and lives in acacia, he is represented by his younger brother, dmitrik, who also acts as the ambassador for the clan. on playgrounds and in schoolrooms throughout every kingdom, children play a circle game called, "the marble king", wherein a group of children dances in a circle around a single child. the accompanying song tells of a king who would not bend even as a storm raged around him and the ground beneath him shook. "though the gods thought him a plaything he stayed squared upon his feet and behind him was the drumbeat marble king, marble king" while constantin has never faced a hurricane or an earthquake, the song highlights the admiration and awe of the king found in children even in other kingdoms. perception of him stems from the source of information and the context of the conversation. scientists and artists like him because of his investment in education and the arts, while some merchants criticize him for the high rate of taxes. if constantin is brought up in a conversation about the božanskikonji clan, someone may imagine him as intimidating and duplicitous. people don't know much about the clan, aside from their isolation, talents as warriors, and worship of volosko (while he is considered their patron deity, the božanskikonji clan does not worship him). by and large, however, the people of ornefluer and the surrounding kingdoms hold constantin in high regard. he is fair and benevolent, usually sending aid and relief to others. however, a small subset of the community and his royal court merely tolerate him while a smaller but still prominent group dislikes him. after two hundred and fifty years, they still do not see him as one of their own. if their king were to marry a foreign wife, those feelings might intensify and... history | ornefluer

Comments

notes —

[mayest]

the božanskikonji clan is based on the nomadic clans of eurasia; its language is based on russian and serbian. the kingdom of ornefluer is based on western europe and the united states; its language is a mixture of french and danish with a sprinkle of german and latin. the technology, fashion, culture, etc are based on mid- to late nineteenth-century western europe. inspiration for the verse comes from mortal kombat, avatar: the last airbender, black panther, greek mythology, and the works of j.r.r. tolkien. this is a love story but also a family drama. political intrigue and a war story. a parable, a modern mythology, and an epic. mistakes, accidents, and close calls; successes, suffering, and sacrifice. great acts of courage and vile acts of cowardice. lots of tripping and falling. this is a story of people uniting against the growing shadow.

pronunciation —

[mayest]

*not all are the actual phonetic pronunciation of their real-world counterparts.

• ravninyraya — rav-knee-why-ya (russian: plains of heaven)
• svet padayet — sv-et pad-yet (russian: the light falls)
• božanskikonji — bo-zak-ski-cone-e (serbian: divine horses)
• nebesnyypodval — knee-bees-knee-pod-val (russian: cellar of heaven)
• samovoljnikonji — so-mo-vol-knee-cone-e (serbian: wayward horses)
• korneplody — ca-knee-plo-duh (russian: roots)
• ornefluer— on-ya-flew (danish: eagle flies)
• acacia — uh-kay-she-uh
• obice — o-by-cee (latin: barrier)
• étsipáei — et-see-pie (greek: so it goes)
• wēnnuan — when-one (chinese: warm)
• maroš — mah-rose

flavor text + director notes —

[mayest]

information i want to include but don't know where else to post. tbh, it's mostly a reference for me. this information is subject to change, and will always be considered as a work in progress. constantin his exact day of birth is unknown since the horsepeople do not have a system of time. but he was born during the cold and dry season in the ravninyraya. after fifteen years of living in ornefluer, queen wilhelmina held a birthday party for him on november 6 (the day he and the exiled horsepeople crossed into ornefluer). since then, people have considered this day as his birthday. unlike other horsepeople, constantin does know the year of his birth. during his walkabout, he learned what year it was. after his exile two hundred and fifty-five years later, he worked backwards and figured out his age: five hundred and twenty-five years old. he has never told anyone how he got the scar on his neck. the only ones who know are the horsepeople. in fact, he has never told anyone why he and his followers left the ravninyraya. the only people who know the exact reason are himself, dmitrik, and maroš; and dmitrik's mouth is shut as well. the other horsepeople have guessed the reason but also don't reveal the reason. it's horsepeople business. of course, there is speculation, with a few people correctly guessing the reason. loves the theater, especially comedy. it's so well-known that, whenever he visits an area, the local theater will switch their shows to comedies. loves strawberries (takes strawberry jam in his tea). has a horse named butylka (bottle in his language) and a dog named arakhis (peanut); but since not many people know his native language, they assume the names are deep and meaningful. they ask each other if maybe the names are his ancestors'? his sword's name is "zora" (dawnbreaker). the medals on his chest: the tree of the order of wilhelmina — an honor given to those who attain the highest rank within the order of wilhelmina, a social group dedicated to providing free medical care. the boutellievre medal — an honor to outstanding benefactors whose donations have had a transformative impact upon the life and work of the andværd university. gods imagine the toxic, dysfunctional, and irritating dynamic of the greek gods. so, by and large, the gods are not beings anyone should want to interact with because it will likely end badly. the people of the continent pray and give offerings to the gods in their own way but avoid them. each god has their own region of influence that none of the other gods can interfere with. doing so would only provoke interference from the other gods so they keep to their own land. fluer | the goddess of the hunt and competition. she loves games, winners, and, most of all, she loves to win. she can transform into an eagle or a hunting dog but is usually human: brown hair, green eyes, a short green chiton, and a bow and arrow. volosko | the god of death and a pretty chill guy. he's tall and thin, wears a simple tunic, and usually carries a shepherd's crook. he guides spirits to the afterlife. zhiva* | the goddess of wisdom and foresight. her people are known for their divination abilities. cynwrig* | the god of the sky and wind. the de facto leader among the gods. both humble and arrogant, merciful and merciless, his temperament is volatile. *note | none of these names are set in stone. i have no problem if you want to claim and alter them, except for fluer and volosko. i kept the other gods deliberately vague so feel free to claim them as well idc horsepeople (božanskikonji + samovoljnikonji) power-wise, they are at the level of captain america, or thereabouts. on a clear day, they can see up to twenty miles away. they have no written language. all traditions are passed down orally. each individual has a unique identifying emblem that they draw, cut, or sign on things but, other than that, nothing. they have a secret second language that is a series of whistles that can be heard from a greater distance whenever it's really windy on the ravninyraya. they have no system of time. no calendars, no clocks, and no birthdays. they will mark days since a certain event (i.e., it's been 98 days since artemios left on his walkabout, or artemios was born 257 days after his mother discovered she was pregnant). other than that, they have no way to tell the passage of time except for the changing seasons. the younger generations in the samovoljnikonji clan (those born in ornefluer or were children when they arrived) have birthdates and birthdays. but the older generations (like constantin or dmitrik) don't celebrate their birthdays. krilaroot | a glowing, green fern found on stream banks along the svet padayet. it emits a sound similar to a ringing bell. the roots are dried, grounded, and then steeped in hot water, allowing the drinker to transcend to the spiritual plane and converse with their ancestors and volosko. misc. one of ornefluer's most famous pastries is "kouign-amann", named after the country's founder, queen aminata. the baker who invented it, however, could not spell so "queen" became "kouign." she was also terrible at judging how big letters should be and ran out of room on the piece of paper advertising the buttery and layered pastry (she also misspelled aminata's name). ornefluer geography + climate ornefluer has a total area of 3,619,210 square meters (3,326,753 square miles of land and 292,457 square miles of water). it is slightly smaller than the united states (at 3,809,525 square meters). take the united states, smush the west and east coast in, and stretch the northern and southern states until they resemble wings. it takes roughly a week on the train to travel from the east to the west coast. it used to take four months. in the dead of winter, the water around acacia sometimes freezes over. there are a few stories of people able to walk straight from the capital to the philemon isles, a distance of roughly sixty-five miles. ornefluerian culture/fashion ornefluer has a deep reverence for printed media, stemming from the revolution of the dignity when they continued to openly criticize king amboise, even after many offices were shuttered and journalists arrested. in a statement following the arrests, amboise referred to newspapers as "literary slop" whose only purpose was to "sling and slander." the next day, political cartoonists had a field day drawing caricatures of the king shouting at cows, walls, and inanimate objects, "fling and flander", "bling and blander", and "cling and clander." almost three hundred years later, the first phrase is still used sarcastically whenever someone whines too much. constantin's accession to the throne marked a change in fashion. a new king, a new house, and a new era. previous ornefluerian fashion was characterized by opulence and ostentation — silk, lace, ribbons, powdered wigs, and large hoop skirts (think rococo fashion). afterward, women's fashion was simplified to lightweight muslin dresses that revealed the natural body and were designed with a high-waisted silhouette. powdered wigs were abandoned, being seen as old-fashioned, but still remain key pieces of attire in the judicial system and domestic sphere to this day. men's fashion was simplified to darker colors and minimal adornments (think early 1800s fashion). inspiration was taken from the horse people: long, flowing dresses for women and riding costumes for men (although, in the samovoljnikonji clan, not all horse women wear dresses but the gender division in ornefluer society is more delineated). up until then, information about them was largely unknown to the greater public. but, after the publication of constantin's autobiography, interest and fascination with the horsepeople exploded, becoming apparent not only in fashion but in fine arts, interior design, and male leisurely pursuits. male courtiers copied the king's style and female courtiers styled themselves to fit the king's preferences (known as "the new day look"). a third and possibly apocryphal reason for the drastic shift in fashion was an attempt by nobles to discourage attention into their finances. constantin's first priority as king was to address what he criticized as "excessive royal spending." he slashed royal gifts, raised taxes on the gentry, and ordered investigations into government officials. perhaps to appear poorer than they actually were, courtiers and nobles eschewed their richly designed and priced outfits for simpler clothes. of course, this simplicity only lasted for a decade or so before some of the grandeur began to creep back in, at least in women's fashion. they still wore high-waisted dresses with no padding but ornate decorations returned: silk, gold thread, jewels, and curls piled high (along the lines of 1810s fashion). the colors of men's suits remained largely dark and neutral with most of the colors and embellishments coming from elaborately designed waistcoats. it never returned to the previous heights of extravagance. how current ornefluerian fashion looks is up to you. as long as it remains in the nineteenth century, i don't care. how constantin looks and dresses now was how he looked and dressed a century ago (mostly; i imagine trousers are fuller and coat waistlines have dropped. so a bit of change in his wardrobe but nothing as drastic as when he first came to the throne). but i don't mind if you want to keep your character in her original or native fashion style. please let me know your thoughts!

flavor text + director notes (pt 2 😬) —

[mayest]

ornefluerian economy the monetary system is based on a gold standard, where "the currency is backed by gold reserves" and "each unit is worth a specific weight in gold"¹. in recent years, however, there has been support within the treasury department and banking industry for a floating exchange rate, which allows the currency's value to fluctuate in response to foreign exchange market events. troubles in the east have prevented a strong push though. coins penny (1¢ and the only piece of money with constantin's image, leading to it be colloquially referred to as "connies"), nickel (5¢), dime (10¢), quarter (25¢), $1 dals (paper money) $5, $10, $20, $50, $100 for everyday transactions, common people use coins and $5 and $10 notes. $20, $50, and $100 are mostly used by the wealthy, the business sector, and the government. the average daily wage for an entry-level factory worker in acacia is $3.50 (manual labor jobs in other parts of ornefluer hover around the same number). the average price of milk (including delivery) is 15¢; bread is 3¢; a stamp is 2¢. a one-way, second-class train ticket from acacia to ville desailes (on the other side of the country) is $15. rent for a two-bedroom apartment in a newer area of acacia: $22; price for a 1/2 acre land in the suburbs outside of the city: $650. land prices drop the further away from acacia. ornefluerian monarchy when a new ruler takes the throne, they are expected to publish an autobiography of their life up until that point. for every subsequent decade, they are expected to add chapters. naturally, since constantin lives longer than a normal human, his autobiography is quite thick and heavy. each ruler's crown and throne differs. before their coronation, the prospective ruler is tasked with entering (*fluer's sacred forest*) and locating a dýnami tree, a rare tree that grows only here. since it's hardwood, it requires several dozen whacks to fall (constantin fell it with one swing). afterward, they must drag it out of the woods. the majority of the wood is used for the throne while the remaining wood is used for the base of the crown. the prospective ruler is then required to shoot (*an undetermined number of gold arrows*) using fluer's bow. these arrowheads make up the rest of the crown. some rulers keep the arrowheads as is. others have the arrowheads bent and manipulated a little (for example, salinas). but others have the arrowheads melted into other designs. for example, the arrowheads on nacogdoches's crown resembled the leaves of a dýnami tree while ospreay's arrowheads resembled an eagle's feathers. (i haven't decided what constantin's crown looks like.) the house of nidsûr amboise | he was in his 60s when he gave the samovoljnikonji clan sanctuary in ornefluer. he never let constantin forget it, throwing it in his face many times apropos of nothing. his friendships and associations were treated as transactional. during his reign, the government transitioned from an absolute monarchy to a constitutional monarchy (which could be argued was partially spurred by amboise's dishonest personality and financial mismanagement). the last time ornefluer went to war was under his reign (which is also a reason why the monarchy no longer has absolute power). wife: -. reign: 29 years (constantin was there for the last 9). nacogdoches | (amboise's son) a true renaissance man and a great lover of nature. unlike his father, nacogdoches was a good, kind king. many parks and gardens around ornefluer are named after him. he is constantin's model as the perfect king. his first wife, honnorée, died giving birth to salinas. people, however, know mostly of wilhelmina clerveaux, his second wife and the mother of delphine. their love story has been immortalized in many plays, novels, and poems. before becoming queen, she was a commoner; a doctor from a country south of ornefluer who saved salinas's life. she founded many hospitals and medical research facilities, including queen wilhelmina's royal college of medicine. reign: 42 years. salinas | (nacogdoches's son by his first marriage) hard and unkind like a stone but a shrewd and talented politician (constantin learned the art of negotiation from him). resentful over his more popular and well-liked sister, delphine, he ordered the removal from the royal garden of all the (*white flowers*) that were gifted to the royal family after her birth. wife: bambri. reign: 24 years. burl | (salinas's son) your typical spoiled, arrogant, and sometimes cruel prince. had he lived longer, he may have matured into a good man and decent king, but he died of tetanus at 26. wife: unmarried. reign: 4 years. ospreay | (delphine's son; burl's cousin) more inclined to be found in the woods, the training yard, or racing horses than in a conference or a schoolroom. but any shortcomings were offset by his charms, likability, good looks, and good heart. constantin liked him the most out of the six kings he served. (for years, a rumor persisted that constantin was ospreay's real father because the boy was tall for his age and very athletically gifted. previously, there were whispers of constantin and delphine being romantically involved as they seemed their happiest with each other. it seemed only natural that marriage would happen. for whatever reason, nothing tangible happened, and all rumors died when ospreay continued aging normally after his twelfth birthday.) wife: -. reign: 58 years. ignace | (ospreay's son) last king of the house of nidsûr. prissy. not athletically inclined but very musically talented. a great patron of the arts. he was married for 23 years, but no children survived until adulthood. after his death, his sister, oudine, and her children declined the throne, as they had lived in another country for decades. wife: theophile. reign: 37 years. ornefluerian society as it's a constitutional monarchy, the people vote for their representatives in the house of commons. both men and women over the age of eighteen have the right to vote. the official language of the kingdom is orneord (on-ya-wood), which is a mixture of french and danish with a sprinkle of latin and german. ornefluerians speak with french accents while constantin speaks with a russian accent. it's not super apparent if you conversed with him one-on-one, but is obvious if you listen to him speak with an ornefluerian. the titles used are french: madame, mademoiselle, monsiuer. the hierarchy and titles for nobility are based on the british aristocracy. the king and queen are referred to as "your majesty" (though, personally, constantin is not fussy about titles and wouldn't take offense being called by his first name). troubles in the east there has always been problems with bandits and highwaymen in the east, especially in areas where the local government's hold was tenuous. but, within the past 5-7 years, the bandits have become more brazen and organized. they have gone from ambushing lone carriages on isolated strips of roads and attacking remote villages to attacking large caravans and walled and largely populated towns. the exact cause is a mystery, though constantin believes his brother, maroš, is responsible. additionally, some groups of bandits are described as having "skeletal bodies" and being "immune to both blade and fire." but fewer people place any stock in these rumors, ascribing them to fear and propaganda (though perhaps these people are dismissing the rumors out of fear and propaganda). opinions vary on the influx of foreign refugees. some citizens and government officials call for closing the border while others want to set an extreme cap on the number of immigrants admitted. most citizens, however, welcome the refugees. perhaps though, they are only so because they are under the assumption that, once the troubles in the east are resolved, most of the refugees will leave. or perhaps they are just following the behavior of king constantin, who stresses their role in the world should be a safe harbor for those in need. indeed, that is the reason why refugees travel to ornefluer; they have heard stories of their noble king and prosperity. as the country is so far west, the troubles have not touched their borders. though the ornefluerians are not ignorant or unaware of the troubles in the east, perhaps they are naïve and haven't fully grasped what's going on. to be fair, their last major point of upheaval occurred almost three hundred years prior when the government transitioned from an absolute monarchy to a constitutional monarchy in a largely bloodless conflict known as the "revolution for dignity" during king amboise's reign. their last war was also three hundred years prior. it has also been mostly peaceful on the continent.