Fantasy Nykios and Diianta | Legends and Lore

[Ambiloquous]

[class=bo] margin: auto; width: 90%; [/class]
Legends and Lore
[div class=bo]
Long, long ago, the world was split into two. Nykios, the World of the Night and Diianta, the World of the Day. Together they were called Iyanth-ei. They each had half the day govern but they weren’t happy with only half. Both of them fought and fought to control more of the day for many, many centuries. The fight destroyed mountains and seas, destroyed countless living things until they finally reached a compromise. On the hottest day of summer, Diianta decided to command the day. On the coldest day of winter, Nykios chose to rule the day. They hereafter became known as the Summer and Winter Solstices. And in spring and fall, the days where they both oversaw equal times were known as the Equinoxes.

Millenniums later... is when our story starts. In the world now, creatures change and landforms shift every day and night. Living things may be one thing during the day but something very different at night. People do not remember all of their memories and experiences in the day at night and similarly, do not remember themselves at night during the day. In this way, night and day achieved equal control over all living things and lived in harmony with their counterpart. Or did they?

While the world seems calm and serene at first glance, hidden tensions are again rising between Nykios and Diianta. In the year MCXXIII on the Jyncien calendar, people who remember both night and day are starting to rise...

And yes, I did just copy this from the interest check.

[/div]
​

[div class=bo]

Answers to Questions People Might Have:
Courtesy of people who posted on the interest check and in Discord. These were actual questions, people. And those were my actual answers. Cut, of course. Maybe tweaked a bit.

By the way, are there any sort of parameters for the roles of our characters?

They just have to be somewhat related to the archetype or the image the title sends. (Or it could be the opposite, like a ruler character who acts nothing like a ruler in the beginning but ends up like one.) I based my ideas off of tarot cards, Jungian archetypes and their archetype descendants.

You said that people don’t remember their other selves, right? I was then wondering, how did the kingdoms remember their hostility or even the other one?

They aren’t kingdoms, they’re a world with consciousness and feelings. Kind of like split personalities that know each other is there but only actually take control during either night or day. This world is always only night or only day, so there is no dawn or dusk or different time zones. There’s a backstory about the worlds that’ll be revealed later on about why the two hate each other and other stuff that may be confusing now.

So the people don’t even know night and day hate each other. They’re just chess pieces stuck in the spat between the two.

Also, I should add that people during the night think they’re sleeping during the day and people during the day think they’re sleeping at night. They have no idea how night looks during day and how day looks during night, they only have a general idea from books and stories.

Is it set in a more medieval or modern time period? My Roman numerals are a little rusty so I don't quite know what the year even is.

I do believe the year is 1123? (That was someone else replying. And they were right.)

It’s not specifically set in any time period but it’s definitely not modern. I guess it would be on the more medieval side though. But if you like another period, feel free to base it off that.

If people just think they were sleeping, but in actuality just don't remember, does that mean that nobody ever actually sleeps?

Ding, ding, ding! We have a winner! I was wondering when someone would ask. Yes, nobody sleeps. Nykios and Diianta want to outdo each other so much that they shave their lifespan to keep everyone awake.

It was mentioned that even the landscape changes between Night and Day, so is it just constantly shifting? Or is it more of an instantaneous change when the cycle changes?

Almost instantaneous for things that move long distances and much slower for things that move smaller distances or almost don't change at all. All of it takes half a minute. Everything ends up where they need to be exactly at the end of the 30 seconds. So things that move a centimetre look really slow and things that move kilometres look like they teleport. It's kind of like a scene change in a play, with your characters as the actors except they don't know they're the actors.

During this time, most people black out, but your characters don't have to.

If your night self dies, does the day self survive?

There are three choices Nykios and Diianta can make when a person dies:

One: The other side just disappears when they die. They don’t change back when things shift. AKA, the true death. (An example, a person everyone assumes died but hasn’t found the body.)

Two: Fake killing the person but leave them alive (in a coma, most likely) somewhere during their time in control of the world so people don't find out they've actually died. (Could also be more short term, actually, if they "died" during the day, they could also truly die again right after at night, making it an accident of some sort.) It isn't a problem for the two to lengthen a lifespan a bit, considering that all the species are all supposed to be bacteria right now.

Three: Move their consciousness to a new body modified to exactly how the original was. Don’t think that the two can create life though because they can’t. They can make things like vessels and false cells. They can only change things that already exist. They also can’t affect personality or mentality, the things that make a person a person.

General Things​

Jyncien Calendar

Jynciens have 12 months in their calendar and each of the months are numbered. Just think of them as the months of the Gregorian calendar. Theirs is the most widely used calendar and may have different names in certain parts of the world.

Eg. The fifth month of the year MCXXIII.

Day and Night

Day is literally day (only the 12 hours of Diianta). Night is literally night (only the 12 hours of Nykios). Each half a cycle.

Hours

The 24 hours in a day idea is generally accepted in most of the world.
12 hours for Diianta and 12 hours for Nykios.
The sixth hour of Nykios would be considered midnight and the sixth hour of Diianta would be noon. No need to call it hours or numbers if your character's culture decides differently.

Eg. The sixth hour of Nykios.

Cycles

A cycle is a day without saying day. A time period with both day and night. 24 hours. Not in use by most people. Archaic word from books long ago.

[/div]

 

[Ambiloquous]

[class=bo] margin: auto; width: 90%; [/class]
Species
[div class=bo]These are the species that the characters are or have interacted with. Not including special species that don't fall into common knowledge or came from uncommon means. If you have a problem, do tell me and I'll fix it.
In alphabetical order.[/div]
​

[div class=bo]
Dracoling

Spoiler

• Humanoid lizards that are believed to be related to dragons.

Erden Witch

Spoiler

• Subspecies of witch that specializes in rocks, minerals and soils.
• (Has nothing to do with Verdants.)

Fae

Spoiler

• A species with more strength, speed and dexterity than humans.
• They have heightened senses, mainly smell and hearing, and are also known to have swift healing.
• Physically, the Fae are much like the elves; pointed ears, graceful build, eerie beauty. They also have slightly elongated canines.
• The Fae cannot tell a direct lie.
• They possess a natural affinity to magic, and it varies greatly from individual to individual. Most common are the elemental types of magic though.
• The Fae have a long lifespan, ranging between 300 to 500 years.
• The Fae have very primal instincts when it comes to mating. They tend to be territorial and protective around their chosen mate.
• The Fae suffers from fertility problems, making it difficult for them to reproduce. As a result, children are valued greatly amongst them.

Golem

Spoiler

• Golems can be made of various substances, almost anything if there’s enough of it.

Human

Spoiler

• Nothing to say here. Just like you and me. Unless you are a Martian, if so, like your next planet over neighbours.

Käarguja

Spoiler

• A species of serpentine people distantly related to snakes and certain reptiles. They are generally humanoid in shape with snake-like features.
• They believe they descended from the ancient serpents but there has been no factual proof so far. People who live close to them know that they like to tell tall tales and speak about grand stories that do not really happen.
• Many assume Käarguja have poisonous fangs, but evidence shows that not a single one of them has ever been toxic.
• They are flexible and step smoothly, almost seeming like they're gliding from far away. There are no ears on the outside of their heads (the structure still exists on the inside) but they can hear through vibrations. They cannot blink because of their nonexistent eyelids, giving them quite the creepy stare. Eye scales are grown to protect their eyes, taking place of skin flaps.

Korrigan

Spoiler

• Korrigans are female entities who are associated with rivers and wells. They are sometimes described as fairy-like creatures with beautiful golden hair in folk tales. Most typically have long hair, loose white garments, and delicate, translucent wings.
• Their songs and firelit performances often lead travellers astray. They can lure men with their beauty and have the power to make them fall in love with them. If a man falls in love with a Korrigan, they will cause his death.
• The Korrigan are said to injure anyone who dares interrupt their dance beneath the trees with their deadly accuracy with a bow and arrow.

La-er

Spoiler

• Tailed beings of great charm, people are often warned about the La-er.
• They are as versatile as the world is, rarely having a community that is purely of their own species. They merely care for themselves and often leave their families as soon as they hit their adolescent stage.
• Born naturals at subtle manipulation, La-er exude an aura that makes them seem trustworthy and likeable. This often makes them invaluable in businesses or anything that requires social interaction.
• Knowledge of what they are is widespread and people who are aware of their powers are not so easily manipulated. There are some businesses that refuse to partner with any place that would bring a La-er to a meeting in fear of being manipulated. The La-er reputation has mixed views upon the general populace.
• The La-er, however, is not a common sight. Very vulnerable to sickness during their child state, there is a 90% child mortality rate in their species. It is speculated that this was a curse from way before, passed down from one La-er to the next. Scientifically, the growth of a La-er proves to be deadly to a child as their immune system is not fully functional until their adolescent stage. If they manage to survive, they tend to live very long lives. Currently, there is no known way to help a La-er child.
• The La-er typically take multiple partners in their lifespan but tends to give each one equal parts of their affection.
• Their lifespan reaches up to 300 years.

Latrodus

Spoiler

• Latrodus are spider humanoids. They have different spider parts in their humanoid forms. (Bottom half spider, spider legs on back, face is warped with huge fangs, etc.)
• When made angry they will bite with amounts of poison dangerous enough to paralyze a large animal for a couple of days.
• Although their eyesight isn't very good, their sensors (small, nearly invisible hairs on arms and legs) and webs are very good at detecting objects and noise around them.
• Known to be cannibalistic, females may choose to eat their mate (in spider form), although it’s not necessary.
• Some parents will house their children until they can control their transformations, but others decide to abandon them to their luck when they're born.
• They start as regular baby spiders with random changes into humanoids after birth. After two or three more months, they can usually control their transformations.
• They can live up to thousands of years old. Oftentimes, they look younger than their age. They age quite slowly for a species.

Moleskwi

Spoiler

• The Moleskwi are a group of mole-like people that live mainly underground, in intricate tunnel systems.
• They are very closed off from the outside world and rarely trade, preferring to live on their own. Although they are withdrawn, they will let travellers in if they have nowhere to stay.
• Generally, the Moleskwi live with their extended family and don't have many neighbours around them because their tunnels stretch out for very long and there's just no room.
• When they take a partner, they usually keep them for life. Family is considered one of the most important values in their culture.
• They usually have varying degrees of bad vision but always have acute hearing and touch.
• Their bodies are shorter and necks stouter than humans but they have much more powerful arms to dig their homes and some even have claws similar to those of moles. They are generally heavier than humans, despite their small stature.
• The Moleskwi have lifespans of about 60 so years, late 60s usually being their upper limit.

Oni

Spoiler

• Onis are able to hide their horns and tails, appearing as a natural human being. It is often used to trick people into a false sense of security.
• Onis come with varying skin tones; reds, blues, grays, and greens. An oni can change it's skin tone to a human's if they so wish.
• Onis possess a hidden third eye that will only appear to grant them strength when pronouncing curses or blessings. It will often show up on the center of the forehead, varying in colours.
• Can have fangs or tusks, never both unless they're cursed with it. They never have unnaturally colored horns.
• Onis don't have outward reproductive organs and due to this, some are seen walking around with no clothing.
• Onis stand around 5'0" - 6'0" because taller would be unnatural.
• If an oni finds a suitable mate they will stay with that person for the rest of their lives, only seeing other people if their mate is infertile. Onis are incapable of having more than one child at once.
• Parents will often leave their child for long periods of time while the child is still living with them. Some people believe that onis can "overcome" their original wickedness and become protective guardians. Onis often leave their parents when they turn fifteen in human years.
• If an oni's child dies the parents will separate from each other and their "magic" will be weakened for a while. Some think this is due to grief.
• Female onis have a softer figure, while males have a tougher physique.

Philryn

Spoiler

• Philryn were originally created in sets of paper dolls.
• Most of them start off as just regular paper crafts after creation, unless they’re offspring. Although they might start off as regular paper dolls, they are usually still aware of their surroundings.
• These creatures are much more fragile than most, and usually stay with family until they find a spouse.
• They can reproduce, but don't often choose to do so.
• Life spans range from 40-100 years of age, but can go up a few hundred depending on materials, quality and conditions.
• After they are magically alive, their figures grow and continue growing over time.

Shaerus

Spoiler

• Shaerus are humanoid creatures with an innate ability for healing. These creatures tend to live secluded in mountain terrains to better perfect their abilities and to avoid most human interactions as their abilities can be sought after and exploited.
• Though they are believed to possess "magical" abilities, their skills truly come from an evolved mutant gene within their DNA to control and manipulate protons (one of the subatomic particles that make up an atom).
• A healer’s ability often depends on their age and discipline.
• In order to be able to master their abilities, Shaerus often sacrifice some physical part of themselves in order to understand other species who are unable to regenerate. It is said that if a Shaerus heals this physical ailment, their mutating abilities will become dormant.
• Often mistaken for elves, but Shaerus’ are usually less petite.
• Their society is driven by social status, highborns often possessing greater mutant abilities and strengths in their healings thanks to their DNA configuration. Lowborn beings often possess weak skills due to recessive alleles (two forms of a gene that make up a physical trait. Just know that it's not always good. Or bad, really, if we're being honest here) and are unable to survive in the harsh mountain climates.
• Shaerus are known for only taking one mate in their life who is expected to be of the same class. Lower class citizens are often impoverished and left to fend for themselves. It is nearly unheard of for Shaerus to take in a mate of a lower class, let alone a different species.

Shapeshifter

Spoiler

• Creatures that have no form, they can usually take on the form of two species, one of them usually being something abundant in the world. Their less common form is often larger and stronger than the naturally appearing species the form is based off, but not magical in any way.

Tumael

Spoiler

• The Tumael species are a subspecies of bird people.
• Mainly having a humanoid appearance, they only sprout wings and sharp, avian eyes. They are often called "winged humans"
• Despite being mostly humanoid in nature, Tumael, depending on the type of avian that they take after, do migrate. If not, they make a conscious effort to make their home as warm as possible to combat the winter. They have a natural instinct to also stock up provisions during this season.
• They typically only have one mate for the rest of their life, often moving together as soon as they have bonded.
• They have a sharp sense of sight and smell than most species, some even having sharp eyesight despite it being night. This allows them to stay alert during their flights. However, they also have brittle bones so that their wings would be able to lift them up.
• The average lifespan of a Tumael varies by the avian species but they often live up to 80 years with some outliers reaching up to 100, but they're often unable to fly anymore.

Veela

Spoiler

• Veela are beautiful, young mountain nymphs often clad in white.
• In stories, they are often accounted for stealing children from mothers who condemned them to hell, but are also told to be quite caring towards peaceful creatures.
• A common ritual of theirs a bath under the moonlight while performing dance and song.
• These species are prone to getting involved in relationships, but also quickly breaking them off. According to stories, Veela will die if they experience true love.

Verdant Witch

Spoiler

• They are thought of generally as witches that have plant-related magic, powers or something of the sort. It's not a secret but it's not well known either that they descended from plants. They're plant-people.
• A few hundred years ago, an eccentric genius of a botanical master spliced together a bunch of plants with some human embryos to create the first generation of verdant witches. Their name came from the other species that didn't know what to make of these mostly-green, plant-like people. (Witches are a totally different species altogether.)
• Their "plant-related powers" were just traits from the plants that mutated and didn't get lost in the splicing-with-human-embryo process.
• Verdants aren't very fertile so they rarely have any offspring. Even if they do, they only raise them for a few years at most and the relationships between parent and child are quite shallow.
• Some young verdant witches do have guardians, though, which are kind of like parents. They teach them their history, world knowledge, their abilities and all that stuff that they can use to live a life. Very rarely do you find a guardian because most verdants just can't be bothered to try to raise the younger generation.
• They are pretty loose with their partners and can break them off anytime, anywhere. They don't have the concept of marriage or family.
• They can live up to hundreds of years (maybe even thousands, but it hasn't been that long yet) by virtue of their creator. What other species consider elderly would be considered quite youthful by verdants.
• Verdant witches can be tiny and can be huge, depending on what plant they descended from. They can also look more plant-like or more human-like, depending on how they were put together (or how their parents were put together).

Vezuli-Chymur

Spoiler

• Vezuli-Chymurs are creatures with many weasel traits and habits. Some cannot be differentiated from humans until close up but some also look particularly animalistic.
• They often kill more food than they can eat to save it for later meals. Although, they do eat quite a lot, about half their weight.
• Chymurs are quite territorial and have fierce hunter instincts, not afraid to kill almost anything. They also don't usually make their own homes, preferring to take the homes of those they've killed or eaten.
• Legend states that if one catches a Vezuli-Chymur and steals a hair on their underbelly, they will gain great wealth. Another story tells of how a Chymur killed a giant by eating its way up to the heart while it was still alive.
• They're often great dancers, with fast reflexes, body control and rhythm sensitivity. Oftentimes, they will dance after they've defeated a great foe.

Wendigo

Spoiler

• Clawed creatures with a thin frame and ashy skin tones, often wearing bones of their prey or tattered clothing. Bones can show, especially around the ribcage.
• All wendigos are seen as malevolent, cannibalistic beings. They are ssociated with the winter, the north, coldness, famine, and starvation.
• Wendigos come in two forms. Human Wendigos, those who bond themselves with a humanoid, and Animalistic Wendigos, those who never bond and grow in proportion to the meals it eats. It's common for wendigos to bond with hurting, greedy, or half-dead beings.
• If wendigos bond with a being that doesn't want the bond they can separate. However, if the being stays in contact with the bonded wendigo for too long it'll be unchangeable.
• Wendigos don't experience the fullness of their being until they leave their parent's behind and start living a life for themselves. They're very territorial.
• Wendigo children are called "pups". If a wendigo dies while they have a growing child, another wendigo will usually take up the role as a parent. Wendigos will never stray far from their children.
• Female wendigos will resort to eating their spouse if they are unable to harvest enough humans.
• Female wendigos have a bosom, while males are flat-chested.
• Wendigos are naturally tall, most of them standing anywhere around 6'0".

More to be added when other characters are made. Or if I think of some interesting ones.
Steal the species!​

[/div]

Places
[div class=bo]In brackets are the night/day forms of the place.[/div]
​

[div class=bo]
Day

Jynciea City (Hyphonius)

• A large, well-known city for their flourishing architecture and ancient intellectuals. Seven out of ten history-changing inventions were thought of within these glided walls and at least five out of ten were brought to life in the white-walled workshops. Schools of thought are littered around like common weeds and even roadside stalls sell oil paintings. It is a very popular tourist destination, especially for fine art apprentices.

Mord'eau Forest (Kokanduja)

• A lush, deciduous forest home to many strange and peculiar flora and fauna. It seems almost otherworldly to many but is deadly to those ignorant. With corrosive and toxic plants and hallucinatory water, very few people can come in and walk back out alive. Most of the creatures in Mord'eau may be small, but those in the know would never try to disturb them. They might just snuff their little life out otherwise. The safest things here might actually be the megafauna, though they do have great destructive power as well.

Ekrisma

• Farming village half a day’s ride from Jynciea.

Night

Hyphonius County (Jynciea)

• A bustling county owned by a dictatorial but business savvy lord. It's known for an immense black market, unnaturally cheap labour and an underground slave trade. Whatever service or item is needed, if people can't find it in Hyphonius, then they probably can't find it anywhere else. Creatures can start almost any business in the county and be as unscrupulous as they want, as long as the business fee is paid on time and they don't wreck the place... too much.

Kokanduja Grasslands (Mord'eau)

• A dry grassland that never sees much rain. It has little diversity on the surface and intense summer dry spells that kill off many creatures aboveground every year. Though there is not much to see on the surface, underground, there are burrows and tunnels for the many species that call this place home. It is common to fight for space and food to survive the harsh lands, some critters even resorting to cannibalism on their dead comrades' bodies.

Both

Vuori

• This city is an ancient civilization carved directly into the steep terrain of an unknown mountain. When the first Shaerus settlers arrived into the continent, they made their home with the native species of the lands. Soon after, their race began to become threatened after word of their abilities spread. In order to preserve their kind, they ventured against harsh climate to reach a peak of the tallest mountain they could find, battling against the elements and self-healing themselves in order to survive until Vuori became a well-established city centuries later. Within their society, highborn Shaes reside towards the peak, enjoying the luxuries of flowing water, protection, and better-built buildings. Lowborn Shaes reside towards the bottom of the establishment, having to weather harsh environments with less developed homes and buildings.

Spoiler: Image Reference

More to be added... If you have ideas, do give 'em!​

[/div]

​

 

[Ambiloquous]

[class=bo] margin: auto; width: 80%; text-align: center; [/class]
Plot Movers
NPCs that I don’t wanna call NPCs.


Cirocco Müller
The Requester
Gender: Male
[div class=bo]
The part-time guide for the journey.
He was the one who posted notices in random places (I think one was on the underside of a beehive) to find those who remembered both day and night.

Spoiler: Outward Image

Outward Image:
A generally amiable guy who talks a bit too fast and moves a bit too fast. He often disappears and generally leaves the group to do their own thing. He leaves people to solve their own problems and doesn't care much if people get left behind, as long as the bulk stays. He travels at his own pace (which is quite fast) and expects others to do so as well.

Appearance:
Tall, lanky and slightly shaggy. He has loose brown hair that looks dull copper on a good day and mudlike on a bad. A somewhat forgettable face if one ignores his eyes. His eyes are surprisingly big, with an iris that looks like molten bronze. Even though he is usually seen under the sun, he never has a tan. Seems to be in his thirties, maybe early forties.

Wears a leather vest so old, it no longer looks like leather and pants that land somewhere on the brown-to-orange spectrum. His shirt changes every time he disappears but it somehow always manages to be in the same rumpled state as the last.

[/div]


Astëri
?
[div class=bo]

Spoiler: Description

An ethereal, golden-haired soul with a charming smile.

[/div]​