#even if trying to figure out concordian names &

[doodlebob54]

Because of brothership, there would be slight changes to my lore and in-game lore,[also if i hear anyone say "BuT, tHis iSn'T iN CanNon!" im going to break your knees]

First of Ten

Ten is Fawful and Peasleys child of divorce(btw he is trans masc and changed his looks and name) he is like a perfect mix of them both, before brothership he was an assassin, got hired by Zokket once he saw his skills, Ten has like Fawful a temper control issue as he more prone to snapping at people for inconveniences, it took him a while to warm up to Shun and Ecks and likes making fun of Zokkets miss-naming he does that with other extension corps, he has love for music and has made some of his own tracks.

Ecks, he was a hobo, stealing to survive and mostly spent his days trying to steal things from people using his speed, Zokket saw the potential in it as stealing the enemies power ups could be useful in battle, he is getting used to living in semi luxury as he was used to living on the streets, he is incredibly street smart but lacks the general knowledge, developed a sweet tooth after teasting the fresh cooked food for first time.

Shun, he used to work at construction lifting, have metal foundations moving rocks digging canals, and do all manual labours. His strength was noticed by Zokket as he could be used as a massive damage dealer. He got interrupted a lot because Ten and Ecks had low expectations for him due to the way he spoke and moved, making them think he is stupid and slow, but on quite the contrary he is an excellent listener and observer he gets things figured out quicker but gets no credit for it.

Zokket, he used to be Reclusas former childhood friend who passed away due to Reclusa ghloom radiation messing with his mind, causing him to fall in depression, out of grief Reclusa brought him back via mask that needs a host to form a body, Zokket become a twisted version of Reclusa friend as time went on, Zokkets free will complete hinges upon Reclusas better judgement, if Reclusa thinks he is making a bond with someone he imidietli removes any amount of free will Zokket had, he started liking the corps before Reclusa was nearly done baking in his egg and out of disgust and jealous he pulled Zokkets free will complete, it was a while for Zokket to get used to the corps, but sadly it didn't last long.

Reclusa, he was manifested from Bean Stars' lonelyness before she made the beanish people, Reclusa used to be a lot more friendlier in his first couple of years of existence, before getting the Idea to make his own people, the concordians, eventually he made a friend Zokket, but what Reclusa didn't know is that since he is a manifestation of lonelyness, that it was highly infectioness even in his early days as he wasn't allowed to be near beanish for too long or it will rub off on them, he didn't took the loss of his friend lightly and attempted to bring him back which resulted in him braking a rule which lead him to be stuck in a internal loop of death and rebirth where he can't never experience the world and get the feeling of satisfaction ever again, which caused him to get even more angrier and wanting to destroy concordians.

Cozette, they were questioning their gender identity before Reclusa took advantage of their dysphoria and turned them into Zokket while leaving a small percentage of their conscious left somewhere deep down.

[hjaltemod]

ah....i also wanna add my type0 ocs....

[peggysousfan]

A Wild Reign

Here is chapter 2! It had been split up because I am still writing the other half, which is dragging out lol, so here is what happens!

As the crowd begins to regain their composure, murmurs fill the silence of the arena. Their own Princess had competed for her own hand under false pretensions; a facade not even the King was aware was happening. To them, this was more of a twist of fate than they could understand, as for the King and Lord Steven, it was beyond comprehension. Harrison calls to order and dismisses the event with haste, taking his daughter's arm and swiftly proceeds to the castle.

"What in God's name were you thinking? Wh-do you know what it is that you have done!" He paces, his head hung low in worry.

"Father-" She hastens to reply, but his state is much too panicked for her to speak.

"Peggy you cannot do such things! This- O this will make a mockery of us." The King stops and looks at her with an eye that can only be described as anxious; as fear.

"The rules still apply do they not?" She smirks shyly, hoping to keep her father from loosing his head. "Am I not required to marry Lord Rogers now that I have succeeded in beating his hand in this competition?"

He stops and looks at her attire, the armor fitting well and glistening with the victory she had overcome. Much like her brother stood, she too had a stance that demanded respect and shown her skill in combat. As much as he has tried to keep his wit and understand of the gravity of this circumstance, he can not help but laugh at the situation in which he finds himself in.

"My darling, it does not work that way. You must marry a suitor." His smile, now dim, pleads with her. "You must marry Lord Rogers."

"Your Majesty I was simply doing what I thought was right. I cannot stand by and watch as a man towers over me and seeks to rob our Kingdom!" Harrison ceases his pacing and stands before the Princess, her words striking fear in his very heart.

"My dear you do not know that of which you speak."

"But I do, father! I do not trust Lord Rogers to be as allocating or assisting as he claims he will be!"

"Margaret we need all assistance we may come across. If we do not we shall fall!!" The King's bellowing voice echoes through the deserted quarter, leaving his words to settle in the Princess's mind.

What could the King possible indicate with such a statement? How could Astoria fall? As these such thoughts bound through her mind, she looks at her father with caution. Surly evidence of a collapse would have caught her eye. Or would it have?

"Father, how could that be?"

With a heaved deep breath, the King takes a seat at the council's table. His posture slouched and his soul heavy. Everything is not as it once was, and now Astoria will see the consequences of it. The Princess sits opposite of her father, silent, hoping he will speak aloud the thoughts that trample his mind.

"After the war we became fragile.... weak. Our defenses had fallen for many months, you do recall such winter?" Peggy nods in confirmation, her thoughts running wild as a steed, not knowing where to stop or find its calm. "The Concordian Empire took advantage. Robbed us blind!"

"How!? Surely they would have been too broken to create another uprising."

"I wish it were so, but alas it is not. Rather it is not an uprising and more so a rebellious lash of outrage given the peace treaty that was written and signed between the 4 realms." The King, exhausted, looks to his daughter, so bright and righteous. Quite the opposite to how he feels. "They placed a specter within our walls. Hidden among us, I'm afraid. They were able to breech our Kingdom with his assistance, and looted all the schillings and gold we had from the vault. We have nothing left."

It is in his final statement fear strikes her heart. She is to be married to a man, rule as Queen, in hopes of restoring their lands. If she does not succeed, Astoria as they know it will crumble into nothing. Thousands of lives lost, homes vacant or destroyed, war after war with no defense. Woman and children starving, their bodies feeding off of their very bone...

What if marrying Rogers does not aid their oppression? Her marriage, her reign, would all be for nothing more then to be in the history books as a failed Kingdom. A failed rule. At such horrid, dreary thoughts, her body acts before her mind can think properly. She stands and walks away, her pace quick as a storm.

"Margaret? Margaret!"  The King calls after her, but she simply cannot hear. The sound of her heart pounding is too deafening to listen. Her legs continue to run, and yet she knows not where to. Anyplace but there...

Before she is aware of where she has stopped, her feet stayed planted, the leather souls beneath sink down into the march of the forest. It was not until she saw a familiar figure, one now etched in a position in archery, that her heart began to calm. She walks towards him, her pace slow and sure.

The knight releases his arrow, succeeding in hitting his target. As he begins to celebrate, his mood uplifted from his day, he senses he is not alone. Cautious, he turns swiftly behind and sees none other than his lifelong friend, the Princess.

"Peggy! I saw what you had done at the jousting tournament," Daniel laughs, "I must admit that was quite the....show." He stops in his amused statement and ponders her somber expression. "Peg? Are you alright? What are you doing here?"

"I-I don't know what to think, Daniel. I don't-" She stops abruptly and looks about the trees, wishing her duties did not prevent her from explaining her troubled state ."I simply wish to not be alone. Father... he has set my wedding day." Although this is not the entire truth, it is partial and enough.

"Oh... That is jolly news," He feigns a smile. His support secretly misplaced.

"He has chosen Lord Rogers as my husband. I do not wish to marry him."

"Could you not request another suitor?" At his suggestion she shakes her head in sorrow.

"Let us not speak anymore of it." Her mood only deepens into sadness the longer they converse on her troubles. "My only wish is to escape this place, if but for a moment."

Daniel looks out to the lightened sky, a fixture of beautiful, vibrant, color, and then back to his dear friend. Such a stark contrast between them. One filled with grace and glee, the other filled with misery and dejection. Peggy's state shakes his very core, his heart shattering at her sullied manner.

In his mind he finds but one way to lift her from the slums of her fears and thoughts. The knight takes the Princess hand in his own and stands before her. "Come. We shall bid this place goodbye and flee to anew. If only for a moment?"

"Where did you have in mind?" The solemn sadness within her eyes dims as the light of hope surfaces through.

"You shall have to wait and discover the answer yourself when we reach our destination."

She beams a cheeky smile, one in which he interprets happiness and tease. They walk hand in hand towards the stables, readying the horses as they go. But before they may depart, Sir Daniel glances at his beloved friend and laughs. Peggy in turn gazes up and questions his amusement. He then answers with a gesture towards her clothing- she has not removed her armor.

"May I ask... is that Micheal's armor you wear?"

"It is indeed. I hoped it would be a stoke of luck to win the tournament." The knight smiles sorrowfully and the Princess, too, hangs her head low. "I miss him too." They young friends embrace before pulling apart. The metal of their armor clinking together as one.

"You may wish to change before our ride. A more comfortable attire for our adventure." In response she nods in conformation, asking him to avert his eyes. "Why?" He asks cautiously, but she only chuckles and shoves him lightly until his eyes are on the horse and not herself.

As he stands and saddles the majestic beast, he hears the sounds of metal clinking to the ground. Curious, Sir Daniel turns his head over his shoulder and quickly averts his gaze. The Princess was in nothing but  that of her chemise. With a swift clearing of his throat, he began to toss the saddle on the horse, avoiding the direction in which his beloved had stood.

"I really must speak with a armourer. If not to change the weight of the armor, then that of the design. It is preposterously difficult to withstand for so long. I don't understand how you do it, Daniel."

"With much difficulty myself, your highness. I hear that plated armor is what is best to wear. It is more comfortable, and suited better for movement and fighting. In my own confession I must say, it would be a blessing from God himself to see myself."

More clothes shifting is heard from behind him as he pulls the bridle atop the horses mane and head. She neighs  beside his ear, the breath hot on his cheek. Sir Daniel chuckles lightly,petting the beauty as he finishes.

"Good girl," As he is distracted, Peggy seizes the moment and proceeds to take his helmet. "Are you quite finished, Peggy? The horses are ready for travel. Peggy?" He turns every which way but sees no sign of the Princess. Once he notices his helmet gone, a sigh releases from him; his eyes shutting in defeat. "Ever the games you play, your highness"

Sir Daniel stalks around the wooded barn, searching for the Princess. Weary as to where she could have gone. As he turns a corner of hay, a laugh behind him catches the knight off guard, as does the hands and body grasping him from behind. A pair of legs wrap around his waist, and the arms do so around his neck, a cool metal clinking against his cheek.

"You didn't expect such an attack, did you?" She asks, continuing to keep him in her hold.

"Very amusing, Princess. May you release me and return my property, or shall I have to do so myself." An underlying tease within his voice.

"Mmm I must admit I would love to see you attempt to try."

"Is that a challenge, you highness?" The woman in question huffs a breath, hot against his neck.

"How many times must I tell you, Daniel. You mustn't be so formal when its simply the two of us."

"Very well, I apologize Peggy." She laughs, tickling his neck through the helmet o'er her head, causing a shiver down his spine.

"Good, now what- Ah!" She shrieks as he swivels suddenly. He laughs knowingly, causing her to grip onto him tightly. "Daniel!" Around and around he spins, her head becoming dizzy. He then takes advantage of this and sits down, causing her to release him and sit as well.

Quickly realizing what their position must look like, Peggy tucks her legs underneath her, away from his waist. Had any one  saw such a thing, the kingdom would buzz with gossip, and Peggy, nor Daniel's reputation would ever be the same. The Princess would be seen as a tease, a whore easily gotten to. And Daniel? He would loose his position in knighthood along with everything he had worked so hard to achieve.

"I told you I could get you to release me. Now, my helmet?" She looks up at him his back to her, his head turned over his shoulder.

"Only because I allowed you to do so." Sir Daniel guffaws  and stands, taking her hand in his as they walk to the horses.

"If you say so, Peggy. Then it is." She removes the metal from atop her head and place it in the spot she had thieved it from.

"Hm, I must  say it is about time you learned that. And all it took was years of training." She jests, poking at his side.

"Aha! Much more vigorous than training to become a knight." He retorts, shrinking away from her teasing touch.

"Daniel!" He laughs jollily and grabs her hand in his won before she could advance. Peggy then at this looks up at him and tries her other hand, only he too catches it.

He smirks knowingly, realizing her troubles seem to have begun fading from her mind. Perhaps this is how he may keep them at bay.

They stand for a moment, staring into the golden light in the others eyes. A quiet sense taking over their being. The Princess calms her stance, standing straighter and towards her knight. Sir Daniel does the same, the forms but a few breaths apart. Every second passes, the closer they stand, all of time ceasing to stop. But it was to be in this moment the horse neighs loudly, needing its bridle fixed. The two pull apart, reality setting once again. As does the moment that lead them here, Peggy running from her father's words. Such sully takes hold of her once more. They mount and take leave, traveling beyond the gates and through the trees.

The wind is soft and quiet, brushing through the air. The ever still quiet, giving in to Peggy's somber mood. But how may Sir Daniel uplift her her? As if a light from heaven had shone upon his mind, an idea had formed; a song. He begins to sing bache bene venies, starting out soft and quiet, only to grow in sound, louder for her to hear. She looks to him, a small smile upon her face, giving into his playful nature. Together in harmony, soprano and baritone, the contrast of their voice fills the air with life and light. Their voices ring through the wind, carrying them along their journey. As they stop soft and low, they laugh in harmony, both moods uplifted in joy.

Ever still was the silence to follow, until Peggy's voice began to ring through the air once more. The tone of Los set gotxs recomptarem echoing through the wind. A light laughter leaves them once finished with the song. An uplifting manner surrounding them.

For only a few moments the continue on their journey. The wind calming and the horses neighing lightly, their hoofs following the trail into trough the clear woods. A trail long since known in the Princess's mind. A smile appears on her lips, a pleased expression upon her features. It is not until the pair have stopped that she questions their destination.

"May I ask why it is you have brought me here?"

Daniel looks over at her, a flit of a smile visible on his lips. She catches it and tilts her head curiously. It always fills her mind with wonder at the possibilities for that smile. The one he has when he plans something; whether it be mischievous or simplistic. Peggy can never discover the reason until it is present.

He dismounts his horse and ties the reigns around the trunk of a tree. Peggy sits and waits, reaching out as he holds her waist to assist her fall. As she lands on her own two feet, she stands before him, their faces but a breath apart.

"Thank you, my good Knight." She grins with amusement.

"Of course, Your Highness." Moments pass before they pull apart, the lingering feeling between them never parts.

As they walk side by side, the princess glances to her left, witnessing Daniel in an odd posture. Much relaxed and saddened. More so than his attempted smile as before. Rather than impose on a question, she takes his hand in hers, walking to the reservoir ahead.

The mystic, cold waters, laying flat in in its dark  infinite color and depth. The luscious green grass surrounding the water, such beauty and tranquility. A bird from afar whistles its song, echoing through the tree. Such peace fills her soul as the two walk along the land. They then take an abrupt stop, much to the princess's surprise. With an inquiring question on her expression, the knight laughs and sits upon the ground, motioning for her to mimic his posture; and she does. Sir Daniel then lies down on the ground, the grass a fickle feeling upon his cheek, so thin and wispy. As that wispy of the clouds above, floating high in the sky, there in the mist of heavens gates they surly fly. Peggy looks to him, such ease showing from his features. Relaxed and content. She looks to him and back at the peace above, gratified in this blissful moment of quiet. The princess lies down as well, upon the bared grass beneath, resting her head upon her knights armored shoulder; comfortable and pleased. As darkness falls upon her eyes, she feels nothing but the welcomed embrace of Sir Daniel, sleep filling her mind.

It is not until the sun begins to set, the colors vibrating in the sky, that the Knight opens his eyes and wakes the Princess. They must journey back home. Peggy's mood is much more at ease as they travel. The silence no longer stiffing, but pleased. As she returns to her chambers, a faint smile hidden on her lips, she shuts the doors behind her, happy to have her knight by her side. Such peaceful sleep had not been bestowed upon her in many months. Had it not been for the laws of the land, her own choice of a lifelong partner would have been the one she knew since childhood. The one man she falls for more as the days pass. If only God could give a helping hand and relieve her of the dreadful days to come. A wedding she does not wish to attend; her own.

It is with the following days the wedding is set. This day in which the princess marries her betrothed and starts her life anew. A life she hopes to render a positive change.

Within 3 days time the royal wedding is hosted. A grand event for all the Kingdom to celebrate, and yet not everyone was pleased with this turn of event.

"Are you ready, Your Highness?" Angela asks, her head peeking through the large metal door to Peggy's chambers.

The Princess stands in her deep blue, silk dress. The trail of fabric hanging from her arms and leading from their feet. The Juliet-styled dress soft on her skin, trimmed in gold. Upon her head lies a veil trickles in jewels, her crown the only topping needing to be set.Angie smiles encouragingly as the Princess takes her leave; starting anew.

[merigreenleaf]

World Building June 2018 - Days 27 & 30, Transportation & Weather

Transportation varies a little from country to country, but I'm going to focus on Concordia since that's my main location and the place I know the most about. They don't use animals for transportation, although there are people on the continent who still do, especially in more distant/hard to reach locations. In Concordia magic often helps power vehicles, but isn't always used. 

Transportation in Silveridge: In the cities, particularly the capital Silveridge, people frequently use self-propelled means of movement or public transportation. Self-propelled often means bicycles or small vehicles that are also pedal-powered, but I've come to the realization that Concordia has roller skates. There's just something about the idea of these people in their billowing robes and gowns drifting down the streets that's so Concordia's aesthetic. The country is flat, the weather is nice, and the cities have paved streets and sidewalks, so I can see roller skates being perfect for when you want to get somewhere fast when you don't need a larger vehicle that would get stuck in traffic. What probably happened was someone made skates on a whim after visiting the continent and seeing people ice skate where it's colder, and people thought these wheeled shoes looked interesting, so it took off. In a health-conscious place with lots of healers and medics, arthritis and knee problems aren't really a thing, so I can see adults doing this, too. I think the healers would love this because it would get an otherwise not very sporty population to actually exercise.

If this isn’t someone’s thing or they can’t use bikes or skates, there are also magic-powered motors that can run the small vehicles or that came be combined with pedaling to store that energy in the battery for later. How much do you want to make a bet that someone is trying to find a way to put a motor on roller skates, too? I have my money on Sol. If someone doesn’t want to own their own vehicle, there's always public transportation. In Silveridge and the largest cities there are elevated trolleys that run above the street or you could hire someone to take you somewhere.

More info under the read more link!

Roads and Rivers: As for outside the cities, I want to mention the roads first. The original roads branched out from Silveridge and connected the first cities, with each read a different color matching the city they lead to. (The cities and towns are all named after colors because aesthetic.) These roads were made with some sort of material or magic that's since been lost, though, because no one has quite figured out how to duplicate them. They haven't needed to be repaired, even after centuries, and they remain the color they started without fading. There's a common saying in Concordia that's used whenever someone is boasting: “Yeah, and I bet you built the roads, too.” It isn't to say that the newer roads are poor, just that those ones need upkeep every once in a while even when some of them are built/upkept by arcane artists with stone magic. (Magic eventually runs out and has to be refilled and part of what the Artisans do with their time/magic is stuff for the community.) With nice roads everywhere, this allows people to even take the pedal-powered vehicles outside the cities if they choose, although generally for traveling longer distances people are going to use larger ones that are powered by wind. Think sails attached to the roofs and you have the right idea. There are also a lot of rivers that run through Concordia and it is an island, so sails are also seen just as often on actual boats. Public transportation from city-to-city is generally by boat unless you hire someone to take you somewhere directly.

Hovering Vehicles: I've mentioned the wagon homes my carnival performers drive/live inside. These are sort of a cross between motor homes and small houses, but they hover about a foot off the ground. This is useful to the carnies because they frequently travel off-road to camp or get to places and they also travel on the mainland where roads aren't so nice. Hovering keeps the wagon from getting stuck in the mud, for one thing, and allows them to cross over small bodies of water without trouble. It's possible that the magic in the wood tricks the wagons into thinking they're floating on water, not air, or maybe it’s that whatever surface is under the wagon is repulsive to the wood and it wants to stay a certain distance away from it. This hovering works best in Concordia where the land is flat; they have more trouble driving these over rough or uneven terrain, but it's still easier and smoother than things on wheels. Generally the Protectorates are the other people who own hovering vehicles and that's because they're the ones who travel the most besides the carnies. They guard and handle trade, so their vehicles are mostly for storage. Magic isn't a secret on the continent and things that are magic-powered do get traded outside Concordia, but hovering vehicles are rare enough that people outside the country are awed (or at least confused) by them.

Non-Concordian Transportation: Outside Concordia things are mostly wind and water powered. Sail-powered vehicles aren't uncommon elsewhere on the continent and boats are frequent, too. Every country is accessible by ocean or rivers; the one that's land-locked is next to a huge lake that connects to the sea. The ships aren't large because they're designed to stay near the coast and it's a little easier to get magical parts (like sails) from Concordia than it is to get something like an entirely magical boat built there. I mentioned before that Concordia is always willing to trade with other places, but they make sure their own are covered first. This basically means Concordians get things free or at a steep discount. In the case of vehicles it's usually a discount, unless it's something like someone needing a wheelchair or something similar if they have trouble moving around, in which case it doesn't cost them anything because it's health-related. Public transportation in Concordia is free, too, because this is something that would be paid for with taxes.

Weather: I don't have much to say about this prompt, so I'll include it here since it ties into transportation. I mentioned that Concordia's weather is nice and this is true year-round. Their island is pretty far south (matching up with the southernmost parts of the main continent) so it rarely gets colder than a few short snow flurries in winter. This means snow doesn't weigh down the roof of floating wagons or clog up the streets or freeze the sails. It does rain, but not usually enough to flood or cause much trouble there, and they've long since worked out drainage and sewers. Concordia doesn't get much in the way of hurricanes or things like that and I think it has to do with the land magic protecting itself. This always makes me smile because it's such a far cry from the barren, tiny little rough island the place started before the magic woke up! Over on the continent it does get colder the further north you go, obviously, and there's no land magic to protect things, so travel there is more iffy than it is in Concordia. To sum up, Concordia has mostly nice weather and the weather on the continent varies based on where you are, but nothing is out of the ordinary. Montglace gets a lot of blizzards and snow almost year-round, but that place is mountains way up north so that's to be expected, and the people live underground anyway.

If I ever get to doing more with my other worlds, though, the place some of the original Concordians came from has magical purple lightning lancing across the ground, so that's kinda fun. And by fun I mean it's one of the reasons not many people live there anymore lol.

--------------

Almost caught up with these challenges! I have two more to do, although I might skip the “important people” one because I’ve already talked about all the different people in Concordia and about governments in general, and I haven’t worked out enough about the other countries to really know who’s important besides the people in charge yet. Then once I’m caught up here, I have a ton of writeblr stuff to catch up on that I’ve been tagged in/replied to over the past two weeks. Vacation was great but really put me behind!

Tagging my world building peoples. Let me know if you want on or off this world building list (I also have a separate list for short stories/moodboards if you’d want on that one) and please please feel free to tag me in any writing thing you share. I love seeing what people are working on! <3 @ageekyreader @lynnafred @worldbuildingwren @theguildedtypewriter @toboldlywrite @wchwriter @ghostsmooches @lady-redshield-writes @reeseweston @bluemartlet @dreameronthewind @forlornraven @pen-for-sword @homesteadhorner @shadow-maker @loopyhoopydrabbles @emptymanuscript @madmooninc

Day 1 (Intro to my writing/series) / Day 2 (Geography) / Day 3 (People) / Day 4 (History)/ Day 5 (Civilization & Architecture) / Bonus: Art Theft  / Day 6 (Gender & Sexuality) / Day 7 (Economy) / Day 8 (Government) / Day 9 (Religion) / Day 10 (Holidays) / Day 12 (Elementals) / Day 11, 13, 14 (Language, Plants, Food) / Day 15 (Technology) / Day 16 (Magic)  / Day 17 (Medicine) / Day 18 (Fashion) / Day 19 & 20 (War & Weapons) / Day 21 (Fun) / Day 22 (Work/Education) / Day 23 (The Sky) / Day 25 (Pockets) / Day 24 & 26 (Art & Places Unexplored)

[merigreenleaf]

1, 49, and 50 for the triad :D

Yay, trio questions! Thanks!

01. What does your character’s name mean? Did you pick it for the symbolism, or did you just like the way it sounded?When I started writing this series I was on a kick where I really loved Old English words, so when I looked for names for my Concordian characters I used ones that come from that language. I picked “Adair” because it sounded light and airy and happy like he is. The meaning is “rich spear” and obviously no symbolism lolol. With Blythe I was originally writing her pretending to be a boy, back in the first draft when this was traditional medieval fantasy (which lasted less than a draft before I hated it and changed everything about the world lol), so I wanted a name that has been used for girls and boys. The meaning is “carefree” which also really really doesn’t fit. For Etri and Sol I knew I wanted names that sounded French for the country they came from, so my husband who knows the language a little picked out the word étranger and gave it a phonetic spelling with a twist, turning it to Etraunjei. Since it means “stranger” or “foreign” this name actually fits.

49. What is something that your character has nightmares about? Are these frequent? Do they heavily affect your character’s mood?Adair doesn’t have nightmares, but he does develop a bad habit of sleepwalking when he’s anxious or worried- like bad sleepwalking, like walking across the city sleepwalking. The other dorks figure out that he doesn’t do this if one of them is with him, so if Blythe and Etri can’t be, Sol or Dray are. Basically at least one dork has an Adair snuggled with them most nights lol. His mood is mostly just confused when he wakes up and he isn’t where he started. 

Blythe tends to have not so much nightmares as memories. She’s a telepath with an Artisan’s photographic memory and part of this can manifest in her brain playing back her own memories exactly as they were. This isn’t horrifying or anything because it takes a lot to scare Blythe, but it is incredibly annoying and she tends to wake up irritated. Fortunately this doesn’t happen too often because she’s good at grounding herself even while sleeping.

Etri is the one most prone to nightmares out of the three. He has some bad memories that feed into his anxiety and his nightmares are going to be about his past in Montglace or about something bad happening to someone he loves, usually because his dream-self failed to protect them. He’s been getting these since long before he met Adair and became his sentinel because originally these dreams were about Sol. They still are sometimes, it’s just now they’re also about the other dorks. He tends to wake up from these feeling anxious, cold, and shaking, sometimes going into an anxiety attack. These nightmares don’t happen too often, but often enough. They were worse back when he was a kid in Montglace, though, because he didn’t have anyone until he found Sol and even after he figured out that Sol was his twin he wasn’t allowed to stay with him because they couldn’t let anyone know that they knew they were related. Since they left as teenagers it’s been better because Etri always had Sol with him at night and now he also has Blythe and Adair and even Dray around. And I’ve made myself sad with this question. Really, it’s not a huge deal because the dorks always have the other dorks around. It doesn’t really matter which other dork is with them because any will do in a pinch. They’re family.

Question about how they confess love under the read more.

50. If your character confessed love to their crush, boyfriend, girlfriend, etc, what would they say?Oh gosh. This is actually something I was thinking of earlier today when I was trying to figure out when my dorks say “I love you” the first time. I think with Etri he gets all poetic about how much he loves Adair, comparing him to the sky and how Adair’s like his north star because their link means Etri can always sense where he is. Sorta like this gives Etri guidance to where he belongs in life. Adair would LOVE this, but if Etri tries it with Blythe, she’ll probably just affectionately call him a dork and give him a tight hug. She likes knowing that he loves her, but he doesn’t have to be so mushy about it.

Blythe… she’s not so good at actually saying “I love you.” She’ll say it more as “I don’t want you to get hurt” or “stay and sit with me” (when normally she prefers solitude) or calling them “my dork” instead of “a dork.” She’s not one for confessing her love and would get really embarrassed if/when it comes to actually saying how she’s feeling. I think Etri and Adair both figure out that she’s in as deep as they are when she tells them without hesitation that she wants the triad link and she wants to stay with them because earlier she’d been hesitant about being called Adair’s sentinel and now she’s embracing that role.

Adair wishes he could say something suave and poetic, or even just a really well placed pun, but he’s just going to be a spluttering, blushing mess who can’t get words to work. He’d probably just finally blurt out “Iloveyoutoo!!!” all in one excited word. I don’t think his love ever comes as a surprise though because he wears his heart on his sleeve and is so affectionate.

I really like that you asked this question because the trio professing their love is going to be a thing that happens in book 2 and I have to sort out how it happens. They’re dating by then, but none have jumped on the “I love yous” yet mostly because they don’t want to push Blythe before she’s ready.

(These questions are from this ask game. Please feel free to send me more numbers for my dorks!)

[merigreenleaf]

OC Tag! (#1 - Adair)

Even though I'm months behind with tag games, I'm going to do this most recent one first just because it looks super easy lol. For this I was tagged by @jesse-is-inarguably-purple and I'm going to answer this for Adair partly because he is technically my main character, but mostly because he's super easy to answer questions about.

GENERAL

Name: Adair Cerulean (although by the end of book 2 his last name becomes Travellarri and Cerulean moves to his middle name)

Alias(es): His main nickname that almost everyone calls him is Addy. Etri affectionately calls him Toadstool and Blythe calls him Ducky for a while. The triad is a little weird with affection lol. (”Toadstool” comes from Etri’s culture/language and is a term of endearment and “Ducky” is because the first time Blythe meets Addy he’s wearing pajamas complete with ducky slippers.)

Gender: male (he's trans)

Age: 18

Place of birth: Sagewood, Concordia. Basically a small town in the middle of freaking nowhere.

Spoken languages: Concordian. He's picked up a small amount of other languages just because he traveled a lot as an apprentice cartographer, but doesn't know any other ones fluently. He picks up a little Montglacian because it's Etri's native language.

Sexual orientation: so very very pan

Occupation: Colorweaver (illustration/illusion mage) and novice cartographer. In Concordia art=magic.

APPEARANCE

Eye colour: pale brown, almost amber

Hair colour: black

Height: 5'5"

Scars: the black tattoo-like skin discoloration that covers much of his skin (he channeled Etri's magic for a bit and it stained him). He has a few scars from surgeries and being a klutz, but nothing major.

Burns: nope. He's far too good at cooking to burn himself and he avoids fire otherwise, unlike the other dorks who perform with it.

Overweight: not really. He's just not in shape.

Underweight: With all the food this boy eats? No way.

FAVOURITE

Color: bright sky blue (his second favorite is purple because it's the color of his magic)

Hair colour: I don't think he has a preference

Eye colour: Doesn't have a preference here either

Music genre: He loves the music the carnies play because it's fun and loud, unlike the traditional boring music the Artisans play/enjoy.

Movie genre: n/a for the setting

TV Show: n/a

Food: piepiepiepiepie (Okay, he'll eat anything except parsnips but pie is his absolutely favorite)

Drink: tea. His culture is big on tea.

Book: Honestly, Addy's not a big fan of reading. He'd rather be drawing or painting or hanging out with his friends or something.

HAVE THEY

Passed university: He's just about to do his culture's equivalent, hence the change in last name.

Had sex: yes

Had sex in public: definitely no

Gotten pregnant: no

Kissed a boy: yes

Kissed a girl: yes

Gotten tattoos: no although most people assume this is what the skin discoloration is

Gotten piercings: no

Had a broken heart: it was complicated, but I'd say yes. Mostly he was just relieved when it was over though

Been in love: heck yeah

Stayed up for more than 24 hours: yup, trying to get a project done on time as an apprentice. He ended up using too much of his magic and knocked himself out for most of a day. The worst part was that he knocked paint over when he passed out, it landed on the cat, and the cat got it all over the house. As soon as he woke up, his master handed him a mop. He learned not to do that again.

ARE THEY

A virgin: no

A cuddler: oh heck yeah. Just ask any of his friends lol

A kisser: he loves this, too. Look, he's just a huge fan of affection

Scared easily: Yup. He's not very brave.

Jealous easily: nope. He's too cheerful and forgiving to be jealous.

Trustworthy: Absolutely.

Dominant: hahahaha no way. He generally relies on the other characters to push him into acting. He gets better at decision making, though.

Submissive: Despite the previous answer, not really. He doesn't like obeying what other people want him to do, but he also doesn't like having to have a say in someone else's life. He mostly just wants to be left alone.

In love: Considering how mushy he is about Blythe and Etri this is a definite yes lol

Single: nope

RANDOM QUESTIONS

Have they harmed themselves: not intentionally. He's made some bad or dumb choices because he's a teenager and wisdom isn't exactly his strong point, but he doesn't generally take risks compared to the other dorks.

Wanted to kill someone: He's too forgiving for that even with the antagonists. I can't say that he hasn't wanted to hit his ex boyfriend with a chair, though.

Ride a horse: no. Concordia doesn't use horses for transportation and I'd imagine he'd be terrible at it and fall off if he ever had to.

Have/had a job: Not quite. He's still in the college equivalent of his career so he doesn't technically work until book 3.

Have any fears: Addy is the least brave of my MCs- he's terrified of heights, doesn't like deep water much, he's kind of iffy about being alone, he's afraid the other Artisans going to figure out that he somehow screwed up his magic and linked himself accidentally to Etri and Blythe...

FAMILY

Sibling(s): just a younger sister. Firedrake becomes like an older sibling, though.

Parents: Adair's the only MC whose parents are all still a) alive and b) he knows where they are. He doesn't get along great with them so he doesn't see them much, though. (Fun fact, Addy has a dad and two moms because of Artisan tradition being triads. His master and her family are another three parents in his life, so while the other dorks don't have any parental figures he has too freaking many!)

Children: not yet but in a few years he does. (Another fun fact: his daughter is an MC in a later book. Probably. I still have to write the dang thing lol

Pets: currently just one cat, but he has a habit of picking up strays so he's going to end up with more pets. @ageekyreader wrote me a fanfic where he brings home a hellpuppy by accident and I consider that pretty much canon lol

This was a lot of fun to answer! I’m not sure who’s done this yet, so feel free to skip it if you have. I’ll tag @lynnafred @writersblockeveryday @the-gay-hufflepuff @franzelwrites and @rainbow-pages but if you want to do this consider yourself tagged!

[merigreenleaf]

OC Tag (#3 - Blythe)

I guess I’ll do this for the rest of my MCs, but I’ll do them once a day or something like that so these posts aren’t all at once. Here’s Blythe’s and I’ll do Dray, Etri, and Sol later this week. I’m not tagging anyone but if you want to fill this out, consider yourself tagged! (I am tagging @lynnafred so you see this though.)

GENERAL

Name: Blythe Bladedancer

Alias(es): "Blythe Bladedancer" *is* her alias despite her using the name something like 90% of the time and her nickname to her friends being "Blade." Her real name is Dreihda Soldat. ("Soldat" is her title as a Protectorate; Protectorates traditionally don't have last names because the title is more important.) She never liked her real first name and once she became a carny she picked a nickname, partly because that's what carnies do and partly so that the aunt she ran away from couldn't find her. To make things extra complicated, once she takes Adair's new surname at the end of book 2, her name still has titles in it- she's officially "Healer Dreihda Travellarri Soldat" but she tends to just keep using "Blythe Bladedancer." I can't blame her lol.

Gender: cis female

Age: 20

Place of birth: Silveridge, Concordia. (She was born in the capital city but her father traveled around a lot as a Protectorate when she was a kid. Protectorates guard art and artists and are as close as this culture gets to soldiers.)

Spoken languages: Because of her training/upbringing as a Protectorate, she's fluent in at least three. Two are Concordian and Galenvoy, but I haven't named the other countries on the continent yet to figure out the other languages available. She also picks up some Montglacian from Etri.

Sexual orientation: grey-romantic heterosexual

Occupation: Healer. She starts off an assistant healer with a carnival troupe, then joins another troupe later as the lead healer.

APPEARANCE

Eye colour: dark brown

Hair colour: dark brown

Height: 5'10"

Scars: You'd think someone trained with weapons from childhood would, but nope. Healing magic has always given her body the ability to heal almost instantaneously, even before she could actively work this magic. 

Burns: Ditto here. It would take a lot to burn her and not have her skin immediately fix itself.

Overweight: no

Underweight: no. Blythe is muscular and in incredibly good physical shape.

FAVOURITE

Color: earthy colors, generally dark greens, browns, and deep reds.

Hair colour: She thinks having a favorite hair color is silly. It’s just hair.

Eye colour: She's also answering this with "it's silly" but she absolutely loves Etri's blue-green. She just won't admit it because that would be admitting she’s had a crush for a while.

Music genre: No real preference. Part of her carnival act is dancing with swords (hence her alias) and as long as she can do that, she doesn't really care.

Movie genre: n/a for the setting

TV Show: n/a

Food: there's a chocolate pie-like dessert that I haven't named yet that Adair manages to bribe her with at the start of book 1.

Drink: probably water. She's boring like that lol

Book: Mostly she just reads books about plants and herbs and the healing patterns that other healers have come up with. (Healers work their magic by tracing specific patterns onto specific spots of the body.)

HAVE THEY

Passed university: She's a fully licensed healer, so I suppose that's a yes. She learned on the job from another healer, though, not formal schooling.

Had sex: yes

Had sex in public: no

Gotten pregnant: no

Kissed a boy: yes

Kissed a girl: no

Gotten tattoos: She has a flower on her ankle in remembrance of her father (it was his favorite plant) and I think she might have something marking her status as a healer but I haven't yet decided what.

Gotten piercings: No. I think she's tried but piercings close up too quickly because of her healing magic. Ooo, this is making me realize that she probably wears clip on jewelry though!

Had a broken heart: not romantically, but yes when her father died. They were very close.

Been in love: Not until Adair came into her life and she realized that crap, she'd fallen for him and Etri. 

Stayed up for more than 24 hours: fairly often in her position as a healer. No matter how late she goes to bed she’s always up with the dawn being super awake and it annoys the CRAP out of the other dorks.

ARE THEY

A virgin: no

A cuddler: not really, but Etri and Adair like cuddling and she won’t turn them away either.

A kisser: also not really

Scared easily: No way.

Jealous easily: I'd say no. She's too busy trying to live her own life to care what other people are doing.

Trustworthy: Very. She feels very strongly about her oaths as a healer and the confidentiality that goes with it and is bluntly honest to everyone anyway. She’ll never lie and she’ll do exactly what she says she’s going to do.

Dominant: heck yeah. She's the character who wants to make sure everyone else is in line and doing what they're supposed to be doing. The other dorks tend to defer to her decisions.

Submissive: This woman has never been submissive a day in her life. 

In love: I suppose she'll reluctantly agree that yes, she is. She loves her two dorks even if she thinks they're ridiculous and hopeless half the time. Most of the time. Okay, all the time.

Single: nope

RANDOM QUESTIONS

Have they harmed themselves: Blythe... takes risks. Not for no reason, but if someone is in danger, she's going to put herself into a dangerous situation to get them out regardless of who they are. This is partly because she's almost invulnerable and partly because she takes her role as healer very seriously. This happens with rescues and it happens with healings when she puts too much of herself into them. Basically she always has to be a hero.

Wanted to kill someone: LOL! Let's just say the vows of a healer are all that keeps her from going off and punching people on a regular basis. Some people are just so dumb they deserve to have some sense knocked into them. 

Ride a horse: I feel like Blythe tried to learn this when she lived in a different country as a teenager and didn't like it much. I think she's too stubborn to let another intelligent being have a say in where she goes lol.

Have/had a job: Yup, she's been a fully trained healer for probably a little over a year. She also has an act with a carnival troupe where she dances with blades and knives, and she shares a knife-tossing/juggling act with Etri. Later she becomes one of Adair's sentinels (bodyguards/spouses) and that's sort of an extra career right there, but Etri handles most of the sentinel responsibility so she can focus on being a healer.

Have any fears: Just about the only thing that scares her is the thought of something hurting her family and not getting there in time to help them. Honestly, though, I think she's afraid of her own heart half the time. She's certainly had a long-term fear of becoming a sentinel. (Then it happens and you can’t pry it away from her lol.)

FAMILY

Sibling(s): She’s an only child but years ago she and Firedrake decided they were siblings-by-choice. They both constantly wonder why they made this choice lol

Parents: both dead. Her mother died when she was a baby and her father died when she was a teenager. Sometimes it's risky being a Protectorate, depending on the job you're assigned.

Children: not yet, but she does in a few years with Adair and Etri.

Pets: At the moment just Adair's cat. She bemoans having the cat around all the time but she actually really likes cats.

[merigreenleaf]

World Building June 2017 - Day 7, Economy

Here I go, starting to catch up! For “economy” I'll be copying and pasting in my answer for last year, then adding a bunch more to it. I'll be doing this with a few of the themes that are more country-related than capital city-related. (Last year I focused on the country as a whole, this year I’m trying to focus on the capital.)

My favorite way of describing Concordia's currency is through the eyes of my imp character new to the human world:

On his journey south, Talan had discovered that humans used something called ‘currency’ to acquire things. Here the currency was a kind of flat metal disc with a picture of a smiling human stamped into one side. At first he couldn’t comprehend the point of these discs, but after a series of misunderstandings he learned that humans didn’t appreciate the taking of items they considered theirs, even if they weren’t currently using or wearing these things. After they stopped chasing him and he had time to think this through, Talan had reasoned that these discs grew inside small bags, like how some human food grew on plants. It stood to reason: everyone carried these bags around and everyone pulled discs out of them in order to acquire objects. When he had asked someone where to get one of these bags of discs after finding every bag in the market shops and stalls empty, they made that loud, sharp noise that humans did when they found something amusing. When they had stopped laughing, one explained that he needed to work to earn the coins that were inside bags.

The “smiling humans” he talks about are important figures from Concordia’s history and coins are the main unit of currency. The coins are colorful, just like everything else in this place. Concordians do use a bartering system, as well. If someone can make/fix something that someone else needs, this will also be seen as a valid form of exchange. In a culture where a lot of people make/build/fix/create, there's lots of opportunity to barter.

Trade is the main reason that Concordia is as prosperous as it is and it’s generally the trade of their inventions and art. Earlier in the country's history more of their trade was food-based; this was actually the first thing that they traded back when their creative efforts were directed towards survival and in aiding farming. There still is some food-based exports because the land is so healthy (thanks to the earth magic I've mentioned before) and their master chefs are magic-users, but that second one falls under “art trade” and the first is generally in specific things like tea and wine. Concordia would rather make sure food goes towards all of the citizens having full bellies than in selling it for a profit at the cost of hurting their own. I’m still working on what things Concordia might import in- likely specific kinds of woods, metals, clays, etc that the country itself doesn’t have. Those things would be in more abundance on the mainland than on their small-ish island. I'm thinking they import raw materials and export the things created with these. This means that while Concordia is the most technologically advanced culture on this continent, they do share their creations with whoever is willing to trade with them. Most countries are more than willing because who wouldn't want a steady stream of items that make life easier? I can only think of one nearby country that tends to shun anything Concordian and even then I think Galanvoth lets some trade in if just so their wealthy can have something their poor do not. 

Speaking of this subject, there isn’t supposed to be a “wealthy” class in Concordia. There aren't nobles, there aren't families who hold too much money and pass it down for generations. Technically the Artisans are at the top if just because their creations are what make the country the most money and because they as a group have been around for so long, but they have more interest in making things (and then giving much of this away as gifts) than they do in obtaining wealth. That said, they do enjoy getting presents back in return, so their houses are always filled to the brim with doodads and pretty things. Part of what goes into being an Artisan is giving back to the population as a whole; in fact, this a requirement of the master artists who need to devote some of their time and energy into enhancing magic/creations that already exist, repairing them, creating new helpful things, or otherwise helping in some way. They also don't tend to hoard money by trying to keep it in their family. The only major exchange of money between artists is that every master gifts their former apprentice enough to last a year until the once-apprentice is finished the project that will promote them (this is basically so the young artist can study and improve without needing to worry about earning an income in that time), but after this it's tradition that each artist make their own way on their own merits and skill. That's part of why there aren't family names- an artist's surname becomes their middle name and they pick a new surname once they become full-fledged adult artists. Family and friends may help with giving the young artist help or possessions, for say a new home, but that's about it. Any money the artisans have at the time of their death would go partly to children or former apprentices (who have the same status as children), but most is likely willed into the direction of their choice- maybe a project that was important to them in life. Concordians are a very family and community oriented people.

I said “not supposed to be a wealthy class” a second ago because there is a problem. Some of the merchants (specifically art dealers) are trying to set themselves up as the people at the top, reasoning that without them, the country would be much worse off. This causes problems with the distribution of art and money, which has in turn created the need for a group of people who steal back from these merchants. Concordia generally works well- except when it doesn’t. But with some exceptions, the population is treated well. No matter your income or your occupation, children are given an education up until somewhere around the age of 16 or 17, assuming they weren't apprenticed into a trade before this. Healers will help anyone who needs it; it’s just expected that if you earn more money, you donate more. No one is truly at the point of poverty; if they can work, there’s some job that they can be given to do, and if they can’t work, there’s enough of a system in place that they’re okay. Basically there’s enough income and technology in place to keep the population afloat. Obviously there are going to be people who try to game this system from any place in the society (the merchants are just the biggest offenders), but after many generations, Concordians have realized that *helping* other people generally makes for a more functional society. It probably helps that they have Galanvoth next door so they can see first hand how backwards things can be under a different kind of system.