The sunset Elwens- viaquia, (vee-ah-KEE-ah), their Primal name is, meaning "people of the evening," "to feed on blood," or "bright sunset" depending on how it is translated- are a race apart. Chosen of the gods, they call themselves- or at least one god, the Sunset Lord, Dermand. Foul, the other races call them, especially the alalori, or dawn Elwens. Few other races have a good opinion of them, either. Not that the viaquia care; they are as above the lesser races of Elwens as the stars are above the earth.
Come among them, if you will- the sunset Elwens, the Children of Dermand.
PHYSICAL LOOKS
Viaquia have dark purple skin, the color of a perfect sky at sunset, as they would term it. There is less variation among their skin color than among many other races; it may range from fairly light to fairly dark, but it is always purple. Those with even indigo or dark blue skin are viewed as being of lesser breeds, and therefore lawful prey.
Viaquia's eyes are most often purple, or some variation of it; and while blue-purple skin is scorned, eyes that mingle some shade of blue with the lavender are prized. Other colors include royal blue, gold, deep green, and brilliant silver. Few sunset Elwens have dark eyes. Their hair is much the same: most often purple, but often mingled with other colors. There are records of one particular Line of the viaquia having strips of white, silver, and sapphire hair on a background of pure amethyst. Their beauty often fascinates the other races and makes them believe that there is a chance to redeem the viaquia.
The viaquia do not want to be redeemed, thank you.
Sunset Elwens often stand between 5'5" and 6'5", and, as with most Elwens, are thin by human standards (130 to 190 pounds for most). Their legs are unusually long for their size, and their center of gravity most often below the waist. They are smoothly muscled, and widely considered the finest fighters in the world; verini (see below) are often hired to teach students of other races how to use weapons. They are unusually graceful even for Elwens.
Viaquia blood, like their skin, is dark purple, and it can be hard to tell when one is bleeding. They bear mostly dark teeth, save for the two white fangs in front, which, like the fangs of some vipers, are retractable and can fold back against the tops of their mouths. They can run about seventy miles an hour for short distances, and live (notwithstanding violence) about fifteen thousand years.
EMOTIONAL MAKEUP
Viaquia have a sense of being "chosen," of being raised above the lesser rabble of the world. This is partially from their origins (see below), and their idea that only a particularly tough and strong people could have survived what they had to. They continue this practice in their daily life, and quite often every Line, every city, even every individual has strict standards that they, it, or he will never fall beneath. What these standards are, it can be hard to tell, and most viaquia will not willingly explain them. But they are there, and rare is the sunset Elwen who will deliberately violate his own principles (unless he violates a lesser one in the service of a higher). If a viaquia does go against his own will and code in order to help someone else, it is considered the greatest mark of friendship that other could ask for.
Not surprisingly, given this pride, most viaquia are grand philosophers and love to argue. A sunset Elwen will spend years working out to the minutest detail why he believes what he does, and why what he does should always work, and then try to go and find someone who can tell him differently. It is not unusual to see a pair of viaquia in one of their cities walking together, arguing more and more loudly; then they engage in a sudden flurry of combat. If nothing can be decided, they are likely to resume their chat as amiably as before.
Viaquia fear death perhaps less than any other Elwen race, even their own deaths. A sunset Elwen will almost never run from a battle. On the other hand, it is not unknown for a Child of Dermand to lay down his weapons and insist that he be killed by someone more valiant than he is. In areas where they are the stronger, they are mostly surprised when other races scream hatred at them. They won, after all, because they are stronger and smarter, and cannot see why others cannot simply accept that.
The only other trait that has been noted for many viaquia is a love of beauty, particularly the sunset. Some viaquia assign themselves as the guardians of something they find lovely- a forest, a spring, a particular person or thing- and exact long and cruel revenges upon those who despoil them.
MAGICAL MAKEUP
The magic of the sunset Elwens is known and widely feared. They have perhaps less abilities in sheer numbers than other races, but what they do have is widespread and powerful.
Common to all viaquia are:
The power of the God Dermand at sunset. Dermand, the Dusk Father, God of Fire, Blood, War, Sunset, and Vampires, long ago took the viaquia as His chosen people. He has made a covenant with them: as long as at least some of them are His clerics, He grants all their kind His power for a single hour at sunset every day. A viaquia in the throes of this cannot be defeated. This is why "attack a viaquia at sunset" is a well-known euphemism for suicide.
Flight. All viaquia can fly, though they have no wings. This ranges from hovering a foot or so off the ground (children) to experienced fighters and flyers (verini) soaring at several thousand feet. There is no known way to keep a viaquia from flying other than rendering him unconscious.
Drinking blood. All viaquia, as noted above, bear fangs, and at least once every few days they must drink blood. Sunset Elwen bodies are so adapted to this food that they can drink (or eat) very little else. Bland foods, such as some breads and cheeses, they can manage; and water to drink. But without blood, their minds unravel, and a hungry viaquia will attack anything that moves until he has eaten his fill.
Blood-sense. Viaquia can smell the blood of a living creature from a mile away; this radius increases to two miles when they are hungry. It is extremely hard to surprise them.
Summoning the Dark Kin. Elwens do not become vampires; they are incapable of it, as their bodies burn a few moments after death. Still, some races, such as elves, do leave bodies behind that can be animated by the power of the Sunset Lord and filled with the desire for blood, particularly if these people worshipped the Sunset Lord in life. The viaquia can summon and control these vampires at any time during the dark hours. During the day, the vampires cannot walk without being destroyed.
Greater strength. Viaquia are the strongest of the Elwen races. This strength does not depend on muscle. They can bend bars, shatter chains, and fling opponents across the room when enraged. They do not like to use their strength in combat most of the time, preferring the elegant moves they are trained to, but they will not hesitate to use it as a last resort when hungry or in danger.
Found among some sunset Elwens are:
The illusion gift. Some viaquia- perhaps 1 in 500- are born with the ability to create illusions. This gift, like some mage-gifts acquired later in life, can be honed and refined, until the sunset Elwen produces illusions perfect in every way: audially, visually, olfactorially, and even impermeable to the touch and taste. Mastery of the gift this far is rare, but not unknown. Viaquia illusionists are usually honored and kept close to the center of power in the communities where they live.
Bloodfire. It is believed that Dermand taught this skill to the viaquia long ago. Some singers, who are trained by the clerics, can turn the blood in the veins of attackers to living fire. These are consumed from the inside by the flames. Needless to say, viaquia are highly feared for this ability, and some enemies will desert the battlefield as soon as a viaquia starts to sing.
ORIGINS AND MODERN SETTLEMENTS
The viaquia were born from starlight in western Kemiebeyst, in the Vantel-Realm (where many of them still live), a country rich in everdusk meadows and eveningsong trees. They early came to worship Dermand, who delighted in their beauty and their singing as they wandered under the stars, said by some to be the most beautiful songs of the Elwens. But some of the sunset Elwens, concerned about the effect that the Dusk Father was having on their race, went to Sarastaa, Lord of the Dawn, and begged to be changed from the form in which Dermand, as they believed, (rather than the stars, as was the truth), had put them. The Dawn Lord asked permission of neither the Sunset Lord nor the silver stars, and his children, the alalori or dawn Elwens, immediately made life miserable for those who had remained viaquia, slaying their children and casting a curse on them they believed would doom the remaining sunset Elwens to slow death.
The sunset Elwens returned from exile, however, two hundred years after the giving of the curse, and the dawn Elwens found to their shock and horror that the magic they had intended for destruction had gone awry. It had given the viaquia the ability to fly, the ability to drink blood, and a familiarity with hardship that has served them well ever since. In a battle of which songs are still sung, the viaquia leader Valconn slew the alalori leader Geldereth, who had first taken his people in search of the Dawn Lord and who had come up with the idea of the curse. The dawn Elwens retreated, and the viaquia moved forward to take their place as one of the most powerful of the 'darkened races.'
There are notable populations of viaquia in the following places:
The Vantel Realm. As noted above, this was the cradle of the race, and regarded as holy. The viaquia here peacefully share territory with the great, purple-scaled, evening dragons.
The Dusksong. A realm of three viaquia cities in extreme northeastern Fhevu, near the land Elwen city of Velwenacron. The land Elwens make a point of mounting regular expeditions to "clear out the nest of vipers," but they almost never achieve more than a few minor victories.
Valconn. A viaquia city in central Caladariz named after the legendary hero. These sunset Elwens are more "sophisticated" and less withdrawn than their cousins in other places, and Valconn is a center of the Punishment- an ongoing effort to repay the dawn Elwens for what they did to the viaquia so long ago, as well as the crimes they have committed since.
Vishoon. A city of viaquia on the Acrad River, straddling the western trade route to Rowan. This is the most war-like of the viaquia cities, and maintains an uneasy peace with its neighbors.
Alell. This is perhaps the largest single viaquia city in the world (Vantel and Dusksong have more people, but not in one place). Located in the northern Nymari, it specializes in procuring slaves (though slavery has officially ended in Arcadia) and prey for the Pens of other viaquia cities.
LANGUAGES
All viaquia speak some descendant of Vanela, the ancient tongue of the Vantel Realm. Unlike most other Elwen races, there seems to have been no god to give the words to them. Dermand has helped to form the language, but most of it is a creation of the viaquia themselves.
There are too many viaquia tongues to list them all; over the years, many small groups have wandered into inaccessible places or thrived in the wilderness under the noses of their neighbors. These are the most influential:
Marifa. The modern language of the Vantel Realm, it has perhaps the largest vocabulary of any tongue in Arcadia save Primal and Aril, because of the inclusion of words from Malappa, the nearby tongue of the evening dragons. There is a small but dedicated group of alalori missionaries who try to learn the language and then use it to preach the gospel of Sarastaa to their fallen cousins. The viaquia usually spend some time laughing at their mispronunciations before they kill them.
Alogondon. The Dusksong Language, as the land Elwens of northern Fhevu call it. This language is a tongue of war, used by the viaquia to communicate with ships of their overseas kin that come at times secretly to the shores of Arcadia.
Hamath. The tongue of Alell, and a good deal of the slave trade that is sponsored by it or originates in the city.
Virrilindin. The carefully cultivated 'Language of Poetry' of Valconn. The sunset Elwens of Valconn have taken pains to put about 'their side of the story,' as against the "rumors" the alalori have spread for centuries. Part of this has led to the reforming of Virrilindin, now a graceful and musical tongue. Those who agree to help the sunset Elwens in the Punishment often speak it when they go traveling, and the viaquia of many other realms understand it.
More to come, I promise.
