Featherstone
Fleet-fingered Father of Falcons
Art by Lucas Graciano
In the mountains of Farryn there is a city deep in the valley, unknown to the rest of the world. They flourish, living off of the food they hunt and gather, with few farms in the rocky landscape. This city, called R'lyr, is a place of legend. Why? Because they, the R'lyrans, are the only humans to learn how to tame and ride the beasts from myth: dragons, gryphons, and rocs.
The relationship started simply because the humans wished to learn how to deal with the draconic and avian threats that dwelled in the mountains when the settlers first came. The creatures avoided Man, preferring to feast on larger prey, but when given an opportunity - or if other food sources were scarce - they had no qualms about attacking humans or their livestock for food. Soon, the R'lyrans discovered that if the creatures were not hungry, they were no danger. Thus, the beginning of a relationship was born: they would leave the largest of their livestock on the moutainside for the monsters, and the monsters would take the carcasses in place of living game.
Soon, though, a man - or perhaps a woman, who they were has been long lost to tales of old - found that a relationship beyond simple peace could be developed with rocs. One day, while traversing the endless peaks of R'lyr, he stumbled upon a roc's eyrie. A chick the size of a pony was all that was left - no parents to speak of. The chick itself was thin, emaciated, for with the death or abandonment of its parents it had no nourishment nor protection. He took this chick in and raised it. Once it had fledged he returned to the mountaintop and released the creature. Two days later, when he had returned to his village he found it there, waiting for him. It would not leave. Thus, he learned to forge a partnership with the beast. To ride it, to hunt with it, fly with it.
With this new art, the Skyriders were formed. They are the wardens of the mountains, the keepers of ancient secrets, guardians of the people, and protectors of the law. And now you have found yourself among their ranks for the very first time.
Unfortunately, Dægmund didn't particularly fancy soaring more than she needed to without the warm thermals she reveled in, and so she left her new rider to hike up the worn staircase that led to the Eyrie. It was a series of caves and ledges carved into the peaks to offer shelter to the Skyriders' mounts, from the gryphons to the dragons to the rocs of all sizes, ages, and species. In the wild, the monsters would be in competition, and eat or fight each other more often than not. Without the motivation of hunger, however, they lived in relative, if sometimes uneasy, peace.
Dægmund's preferred roost was the highest peak in the Eyrie, atop the craggy spires where legend said the first Skyrider had found the abandoned roc chick. It was where her egg had been found by the General Theoluïn. The general had died many years past and Dægmund spent many a week alone in the Eyrie before Akyra had stumbled in, wounded. Dægmund had taken pity on her and brought her to the Skyriders' Headquarters in the town below. They'd been together ever since, for a decade exactly.
Akyra pulled her cloak more tightly around her as the snow began to fall, melting on her armour and face. She sighed. To the stars with this!
"Dægmund!" she called, finding the creature's presence in the back of her mind. She felt her bond's presence stir, listening. "Must you leave me to hike all the way up this accursed mountain? You do realize it's snowing, right?"
A soft chuckle sounded through the vaults of their shared mind. So, Dægmund had been aware, and merely left her to her own devices. "Are not you a strong one, Akyra? It is not all that farther. I'll fly you back down if you don't complain. Consider it...training, young eyas."
The Skyrider frowned but didn't debate it. Ever since the elder roc had taken her in she'd been a difficult mentor. Most riders learned alongside their bonds - raised them, even - but due to the rather unique nature of Akyra's and Dægmund's bond, the roc had taken on a teaching role. After all, she had been flying for many a decade before her new rider had even been born.
For better or for worse, Dæ had the rather harsh philosophy that either her rider was strong enough to be worthy of the title "Skyrider" or she would die. Though the roc did care about her mistress, as much as any raptor could, she had little regard for the difficulty of the tasks she gave Akyra. In the end, it did make her stronger, and that was of immeasurable benefit to a warrior.
Akyra stepped over the sharp stones as she crested the hill and looked over the white valley. The sky was a pale shade of icy blue, marred by gray clouds whose pale powder fell to the earth in soft clumps. She wondered what all this looked like to her bond. With eyes such as those, the eagle must've been able to see farther than her rider could even imagine.
Wind tore at the snow and the thundering of wings broke her out of her reverie, the thirty-foot-tall raptor alighting on the rocks behind her. The beast dropped its head to look her in the eye with her brilliant golden gaze. "If you'd like to know, all you have to do is hop on, you know."
Akyra smiled and put her hand on Dæ's beak. "Give me your wing and it would be my pleasure to fly with you."
If a bird could smile, she would have. Instead, the beast gave a contented fluff of her crest feathers and lowered her left wing to her rider, leaning down to make it easier for her to clamber on board. In moments she was seated at the base of the avian's neck and she leaned low over it, streamlining herself the best she could. Besides, it was easier to stay on when she could hang on with her arms, especially without a saddle.
Dægmund threw herself off the peak and dropped through the frigid sky, halfway folding her wings and letting the wind pick up, the world swirling past them like lighting. Akyra let out a whoop of joy as Dæ fanned her wings and took to the air.
This, here, now, was what made it all worth it. The struggle of training, the difficulties of living in such a harsh land, the numerous challenges of working with a creature so unlike a human. And yet, this bond of trust, this unique partnership...this is why she'd done it. She never felt so at peace as when she was in the air with her bond. This was truly meant to be.
In the mountains of Farryn there is a city deep in the valley, unknown to the rest of the world. They flourish, living off of the food they hunt and gather, with few farms in the rocky landscape. This city, called R'lyr, is a place of legend. Why? Because they, the R'lyrans, are the only humans to learn how to tame and ride the beasts from myth: dragons, gryphons, and rocs.
The relationship started simply because the humans wished to learn how to deal with the draconic and avian threats that dwelled in the mountains when the settlers first came. The creatures avoided Man, preferring to feast on larger prey, but when given an opportunity - or if other food sources were scarce - they had no qualms about attacking humans or their livestock for food. Soon, the R'lyrans discovered that if the creatures were not hungry, they were no danger. Thus, the beginning of a relationship was born: they would leave the largest of their livestock on the moutainside for the monsters, and the monsters would take the carcasses in place of living game.
Soon, though, a man - or perhaps a woman, who they were has been long lost to tales of old - found that a relationship beyond simple peace could be developed with rocs. One day, while traversing the endless peaks of R'lyr, he stumbled upon a roc's eyrie. A chick the size of a pony was all that was left - no parents to speak of. The chick itself was thin, emaciated, for with the death or abandonment of its parents it had no nourishment nor protection. He took this chick in and raised it. Once it had fledged he returned to the mountaintop and released the creature. Two days later, when he had returned to his village he found it there, waiting for him. It would not leave. Thus, he learned to forge a partnership with the beast. To ride it, to hunt with it, fly with it.
With this new art, the Skyriders were formed. They are the wardens of the mountains, the keepers of ancient secrets, guardians of the people, and protectors of the law. And now you have found yourself among their ranks for the very first time.
Please use the above links to review lore and submit a character prior to posting. All characters are a part of the Theta Squadron.
AKYRA "JÄGER" AQUILA
Commander of Theta Squadron
Akyra climbed up the winding staircase, wind whipping at her blue cloak and plastering her short, umber bangs to her forehead. The frigid air bit at her fingers and nose as it did every morning. Now, in the middle of Coryza, the coldest season of the year, it was freezing enough to make her extremities go numb. She wished that Dægmund would hurry up. Though she'd grown up in the mountains of R'lyr - and, thus, the ice and snow - she wouldn't say no to a warm pile of feathers right about then.AKYRA "JÄGER" AQUILA
Commander of Theta Squadron
Unfortunately, Dægmund didn't particularly fancy soaring more than she needed to without the warm thermals she reveled in, and so she left her new rider to hike up the worn staircase that led to the Eyrie. It was a series of caves and ledges carved into the peaks to offer shelter to the Skyriders' mounts, from the gryphons to the dragons to the rocs of all sizes, ages, and species. In the wild, the monsters would be in competition, and eat or fight each other more often than not. Without the motivation of hunger, however, they lived in relative, if sometimes uneasy, peace.
Dægmund's preferred roost was the highest peak in the Eyrie, atop the craggy spires where legend said the first Skyrider had found the abandoned roc chick. It was where her egg had been found by the General Theoluïn. The general had died many years past and Dægmund spent many a week alone in the Eyrie before Akyra had stumbled in, wounded. Dægmund had taken pity on her and brought her to the Skyriders' Headquarters in the town below. They'd been together ever since, for a decade exactly.
Akyra pulled her cloak more tightly around her as the snow began to fall, melting on her armour and face. She sighed. To the stars with this!
"Dægmund!" she called, finding the creature's presence in the back of her mind. She felt her bond's presence stir, listening. "Must you leave me to hike all the way up this accursed mountain? You do realize it's snowing, right?"
A soft chuckle sounded through the vaults of their shared mind. So, Dægmund had been aware, and merely left her to her own devices. "Are not you a strong one, Akyra? It is not all that farther. I'll fly you back down if you don't complain. Consider it...training, young eyas."
The Skyrider frowned but didn't debate it. Ever since the elder roc had taken her in she'd been a difficult mentor. Most riders learned alongside their bonds - raised them, even - but due to the rather unique nature of Akyra's and Dægmund's bond, the roc had taken on a teaching role. After all, she had been flying for many a decade before her new rider had even been born.
For better or for worse, Dæ had the rather harsh philosophy that either her rider was strong enough to be worthy of the title "Skyrider" or she would die. Though the roc did care about her mistress, as much as any raptor could, she had little regard for the difficulty of the tasks she gave Akyra. In the end, it did make her stronger, and that was of immeasurable benefit to a warrior.
Akyra stepped over the sharp stones as she crested the hill and looked over the white valley. The sky was a pale shade of icy blue, marred by gray clouds whose pale powder fell to the earth in soft clumps. She wondered what all this looked like to her bond. With eyes such as those, the eagle must've been able to see farther than her rider could even imagine.
Wind tore at the snow and the thundering of wings broke her out of her reverie, the thirty-foot-tall raptor alighting on the rocks behind her. The beast dropped its head to look her in the eye with her brilliant golden gaze. "If you'd like to know, all you have to do is hop on, you know."
Akyra smiled and put her hand on Dæ's beak. "Give me your wing and it would be my pleasure to fly with you."
If a bird could smile, she would have. Instead, the beast gave a contented fluff of her crest feathers and lowered her left wing to her rider, leaning down to make it easier for her to clamber on board. In moments she was seated at the base of the avian's neck and she leaned low over it, streamlining herself the best she could. Besides, it was easier to stay on when she could hang on with her arms, especially without a saddle.
Dægmund threw herself off the peak and dropped through the frigid sky, halfway folding her wings and letting the wind pick up, the world swirling past them like lighting. Akyra let out a whoop of joy as Dæ fanned her wings and took to the air.
This, here, now, was what made it all worth it. The struggle of training, the difficulties of living in such a harsh land, the numerous challenges of working with a creature so unlike a human. And yet, this bond of trust, this unique partnership...this is why she'd done it. She never felt so at peace as when she was in the air with her bond. This was truly meant to be.
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