| "The Curving Wake rests only once, In the time after dawn when the moon sleeps. If you're awake to see the time when the sky is empty, then you're in that moment. The moment when the world ceases to be, and then, begins anew." |
| "If you have a Nojhkva'onn, you can obtain anything. If you have many Nojhkva'onn, you can go anywhere." |
| Journey - Guidance - Knowledge - Protection |
| The Curving Wake, as the world was known, is a series of islands that exist on a planet primarily made of water. There is no mainland to speak, simply a stretch of islands that create a ring over the water, and are shared by all who dwell there. Back in the time of the Before, the Curving Wake was a bustling trade world. Not only did it offer a vast supply of materials, the lands of the Overgrowth also had rune quarries to offer. Those who were able to make the journey across the seas to the Overgrowth, and return, then anything was within their ability to obtain. Many outsiders used to come through the Archway seeking to trade their goods for these runes. Raw and unfocused these runes were easy to imbue with energies and secrets. They were sought after most for their ability to store almost anything. Knowledge and Spells were a common currency of the runes, but it was not unusual for a rune to carry songs or memories instead. These runes were called Nojhkva'onn, which loosely translates to "waking runes". In the worlds beyond the shore of the Curving Wake these runes were seen as symbols of highborn status. But over time the amount of outsiders coming through the Archway began to diminish, and the worth of the runes to worlds beyond began to fade. No one quite knows what happened to stop the trade routes from remaining active, or why the Archway leads to mostly empty worlds now. Some whisper of a war that rippled through the systems. Though if such a thing were to be true, surely, the Curving Wake would not have been left untouched by it. There must have been some other reason for the decline of outsiders. Some other trade world that had more to offer than the Curving Wake had. Whichever the reason was, trade among the inhabitants of the Curving Wake and neighbour planets continued unhindered. Nojhkva'onn retained it's worth, and adventurers still made the long journey across the seas to seek out the quarries. The Overgrowth, as it is referred to, is a land found across the waters where - as the name would imply - plant life has taken over. It is not a safe area, full of dangers that could easily kill with just a touch, and no light reaches the underbelly of the Overgrowth. Rune quarries are found throughout this land, but one must make the tedious trek through hungry woods to find them. Rune quarries are wells of magic, pools of glowing crystal that are often found in the darkest areas of the Overgrowth. Once a well is found it can only be used once - when the stones in the well are removed, the well dries up. There was always competition among locals to find the runes, as they offered much in exchange - one could gain Knowledge, Protection, Guidance, or even a Journey to another world if they had enough of them. The Whispers of Rekura came to the world of the Curving Wake when they were young, and were raised by the locals as if they were originally born there. The Curving Wake was home to a large range of sentient creatures - some close to Raveen in appearance, though lacking the Element alignments and having lighter builds to make flight more easily obtainable. Everyone that lived on the Curving Wake had wings. And that was something that even the Whispers of Rekura, within their first week of finding themselves stranded there, were given. Whatever their Elemental Mutations had been before, the world itself had changed them and shifted them to fit into the world they were now a part of. This didn't translate to their IriKan, whom went from being invisible presences in the minds of the WoRs, to being visible entities that were tied to the individuals. They each had three, though all were gained at different moments in their life - with the last of them taking form when the WoR reached adulthood. These IriKan seemed to take on forms that would benefit the WoR most, from being defensive spirits, to curious sentries. Though not fully sentient themselves, they could communicate through senses with their bonded WoR, and seemed incapable of experiencing pain or dying. It was not unusual for a WoR to make use of their IriKan when journeying across the seas to the Overgrowth. Though the locals of the Curving Wake jokingly accused the WoRs of having an unfair advantage in the quarry hunt, it never hurt to bring more runes into the trade market. The Curving Wake was a world that knew not of war. The only dangers were those of false trade, and the Overgrowth. The Archway was a silver gate that once led to worlds far away, but now only led to neighbouring worlds. One day the Whispers of Rekura appeared on the islands. One day, years later, the Whispers of Rekura disappeared from the islands. Not even the knowledge found in the runes could explain why. |