#tales of kenah

[advancedscoutkappi]

DWC November Day 1: Instinct/Neglect

@daily-writing-challenge The sun had not come up quite yet, the moon still bathing the dunes in its light. A chill still hung over the small camp as it did each and every morning. Kappi was sleeping peacefully for the first time in some time. That is, until the sleeping pallet he was on was suddenly flipped and he ended up underneath it flailing frantically. His panic soon disappeared though as he heard a very familiar laugh and voice.

“Kaypee, what are you doing?! Get up ya lazy bag of bones!” She wailed in between giggles.

“I am up, dunes…why am I up? The sun is not even up yet so why do I have to be?” Kappi scowled and shoved the mat off his back, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes as he stood.

“Because we are supposed to greet the sun you grub. AAAAND you are supposed to be training! You complain about how my skills are better but yet here you are, sleeping in when you should be honing those skills!” She scolded, crossing her arms across her chest and glaring at him disapprovingly. He grumbles loudly but does not get a chance to protest further as Kenah snatches his ear and drags him out by it.

The sun had just begun to peek over the rocks as they finally arrived, casting long shadows over the sand beneath their feet. The rocks surrounding the small clearing showed obvious signs that this was a common training spot. Each scratch, cut and claw tells a tale of the vulpera that came before them. Kappi ran his fingers along a few of them, pausing on one of them that he knew his sister had made. She was always so good with her blades, he could not believe that she had missed this badly.

“I remember that one.” She says as she smiles. “I missed so badly, I am surprised there is not a faceprint in the stone.” She pat his shoulder firmly and draws a dagger from her belt.

“What are you talking about? You were always perfect with the blades.” Kappi spat back, scowling at her a bit as if comparing where she was to where he was in his mind.

“Kaypee, Kaypee, Kaypee. I was not and still am not perfect. I had to practice for hours each and every day. Had to hone my skills and instincts until it was something that my body did without me even thinking about it.” She punctuates this by throwing a dagger at the target to their left and centers the bullseye without even looking. Kappi blinks then squints at her, throwing a hand up in frustration. “No, that is not the way, Kaypee. Let's go, let's see you throw.” She says, reaching over and pulling a dagger from the back of his belt. He squints and mocks her, snatching the dagger and throwing it at the target much as she had..and clips the bullseye, though not dead center. She shoves his shoulder and cheers all while he looks on in disbelief. 

“That…that was just luck” He stammered, still in disbelief it even hit the target.

This is where Kenah shakes her head, walking over and pulling the dagger free. “No, Kaypee, this is what I have been trying to tell you since you began training. You have even more natural instincts than I did at your age. You just are not applying yourself.”

He tilts his head and stares at her, ears twitching, almost as if he was truly starting to listen to her for the first time. She sees this and nods, moving in close and throwing an arm over his shoulders. “Now let’s get started, Kaypee.”

[hexephre]

ten years ago i drew six of my male ocs in different coloured shirts. now i am revisiting the concept, only much better drawn, and with more recent ocs! only one of the ocs is repeated across both versions, but he's had a decent design upgrade since then, too. from left to right: cirrus, sunstill, raikas, levi, ciran, and hexephre (my sona in male form). choosing who to put where was tough, not half because most of my ocs' theme colours are green or blue LOL. only three of them ended up with their theme colour.

[hexephre]

this was inspired by an art-tember/tober prompt, but i actually forgot to use the prompt at all in it lmao. oh well, it still got me doing art, and that's what matters! i wrote about my art process using this piece as an example on my schlaugh.

[hexephre]

her name is tentatively seliach, but i'm worried that it might be too reminiscent of celiac. she's named after sheliak, which i believe is a... star? ...in beta lyrae, one of the points of the asterism lyra. vega is the brightest star in that system. the only reason any of this is relevant is because it's where i got the inspiration from, and space is cool. STAR FACTS.

i wanted to play more with design today, so i drew a character who before now had no design. all i know about seliach is that she's tied into vega's story. i'm thinking a disciple at the temple of the prophets.

she's not necessarily more or less divine than your average mortal - i just had this halo idea floating around and i love me some abstract geometric designs.

[hexephre]

A quick first-pass doodle of a new Drakavel.

Drakavel, also known as the City of Dragons or the City of Knowledge, is a floating giant stalagmite anchored to the Plateau of Spires. Originally claimed by a Dragon for her lair a couple millennia ago, it has grown from a small family and their Companions and their families into one of the few settlements large enough to call itself a city. (The Dragon still lives to this day as more or less the mayor.)

Originally (that is to say, both in-story and from a design point of view) Drakavel was just a giant stalagmite. There’s a couple of theories about how these stalagmite-like structures formed on the plateau, considering there’s no stalactites above to drip down, but research into the makeup of the rock suggests a scattering of Egresis (antigravity) magic caused specific points to rise over time. But the magic in this particular spire was so strong that it literally ripped the mountain out of the ground. Others in the area have gone and floated off entirely. Drakavel was tied down to prevent it from Going Somewhere.

More dev notes below!

As you can see from the notes, the exact layout of Drakavel is likely to change. I like the idea of smaller rocks surrounding the main one that have broken off over the years, but I think I only want 3-4 large main sectors.

The Spire is the main-est one, where governmental and scholarly happenings are centred. Despite best efforts, some citizens haven’t failed to notice the disproportionately Draconic makeup of the Spire’s working and living population.

The Market may or may not stay, depending on how I feel about it. It may just be that markets pop up all over the city, but I have a significant portion of working-class characters who could be centred here if the story finds it opportune. 

The Crescent is pretty much the poor district. It may be a little heavy-handed to physically separate it from the rest of the city but if I’m going to be splitting it up anyway I may as well? I dunno, maybe I’ll rethink this. I’m always torn between wanting to make the city’s leaders benevolent and actually helpful, and having it be more realistic in terms of passive discrimination and things falling by the wayside.

[hexephre]

i’ve been thinking about vega lately. an astronomer and visionary, generally miserable under the tyranny of her parent, she will probably find her own way out of her predicament. the details are still a little vague.

fun fact: her outfit displays the core colours of mianism - the lavender of the sky, the green of the plant life, and the brown of the soil. something like that, anyway. as always, everything is subject to change.

[hexephre]

For a while I got super into these geometric emblem designs and made a bunch for the different factions of my Flight Rising lair. They also correspond with various Tales of Kenah characters because, surprise, my FR lair is almost entirely comprised of dragons representing Kenah characters.

In order, they are: the Spire, the Guard, the Merchants, Port City, the Resistance, and the Flight. More info about each faction and the reasoning behind the designs below the cut!

The Spire: for those who run the governmental centre of the City of Drakavel. The design represents the central geographical feature of the city, an enormous stalagmite-like peak rising out of the ground, within which the founders carved caves to be their home. At the point of the Spire a holy symbol hangs suspended in the air, at once an offering to the Maker and a beacon to those seeking the city.

The Guard: for those who protect the city’s safety and peace. Modeled after the first leader of the city guard, the design represents his wings folded across his back, with his trailing feathers crossing.

The Merchants: for those who make up the working class of Drakavel. This one’s probably the most literal of the bunch: a set of scales in perfect balance and a coin in the middle.

Port City: though not all of my dragons outside of Drakavel live in Port City, this is the emblem they all share. It depicts another spire on the plateau, by the sea, which acts a lighthouse. (Boats can’t actually go all that far because Kenah’s oceans are incredibly dangerous.)

The Resistance: a small faction of... okay, they’re just a group of disgruntled youths. I don’t actually even know what their problem is yet, plot wise. Probably classism. The arrows had something to do with, like, piercing the heart of the problem, while the rotational symmetry was akin to yin/yang balance stuff, maybe? I don’t actually remember.

The Flight: bad guys. This one combines two other symbols I created for the elements of Apathis (death or lack of energy, more or less) and Egresis (anti-gravity). Reasons are... spoilers :3c

[hexephre]

Sentient Species of Kenah: Zethyls

Imagine a centaur. Now put horse ears on its head. Now replace all the horse parts with the parts of another four-legged animal. Swap the front feet for large, simplistic hands that look somewhat like paws. You’re now imagining a Zethyl.

Zethyls embody the Soul Principle of the Self, and tend to be concerned with what could be.

Zethyls have “handpaws” on their front legs. These primitive hands are capable of gripping and pulling objects, though they lack the finesse required to do such things as writing, sewing, or surgery. Zethyls aren’t typically too concerned with clothing their lower torsos, though again it’s more common in city areas or places where people’s work is less concerned with whether or not clothing will catch on something. Zethyls tend to be stocky and strong, and lack the sensitive wing membrane along their backs that restrict Dragons from carrying large loads. Zethyls often pull carts or carry saddlebags when transporting goods.

Zethyls have two sets of most (all?) internal organs, including vocal cords. This allows them to sing with two voices at once, harmonizing with themselves, though they will only ever be able to sing one sound with the two voices since they only have one mouth. This, combined with their particularly magical nature, allows them to employ magic the other species can only imitate, even working together. Zethyls are apt to be storytellers and bards, and their oral tradition is rich with myths and legends. Their dual-voiced singing magic allows them to weave stories like no other species, and Zethyls have an affinity toward divine Vision. Some, but not all, Zethyls are capable of planetary magic, and those who are can usually only command one aspect.

Zethyls live an average of 400 years. It’s enough to be getting along with, but not so much that they stagnate. Most Zethyls are quite social, but a Zethyl’s loyalty is to their family first and foremost. They tend toward monogamous heterosexual pairings, though again this may be different for Zethyls living in mixed-species communities.

[hexephre]

art prompt: “island.” (i think. that’s what i named the file anyway.)

ive had this concept of floating islands with waterfalls in my head for a while now. where’s the water coming from? a lake? where does the lake get its water? why doesn’t it empty out? is rain enough to keep it going?

i wanted to mess with new brushes for this one and it was such a good idea.

[hexephre]

art prompt: “slap” (probably)

i just wanted a laugh really. it’s always funny seeing stoic people get caught off guard

[hexephre]

STORY: TALES OF KENAH

Full name: Vark of the Runus Species: Nauvin Dragon Gender: trans AFAB male Pronouns: he/him Height: 160cm / 5'3" Body type: draconic (four legs, two wings) Alignment: lawful good Traits: serious, unsociable, logical Interests: linguistics, history, storytelling

Vark is a huge nerd. That's all you really need to know about him. Every Kenan Dragon has an innate need to hoard a particular object: for Vark, it's books. But in a society where the printing press has yet to be invented, literacy is fairly low and books are still written and made by hand, meaning each one is quite valuable and hard to come by. Vark owns, like, 2.2 book. Mostly scraps and shit. He can, however, read and write in several languages, including Kenan Standard, Draconic, and a bit of Wevlish and Zethylan. (It's not so hard to be a polyglot when you've lived for a couple hundred years without much else to do.)

Vark is a runt, and of a subspecies that tends to run small, no less. when the story begins, he lives in a small, kinda shitty territory that he patrols meticulously to defend it from pretty much no one because it's not worth much to other Dragons but it's about all he could secure for himself. He sometimes works with a Zethyl in the neighbouring village to transcribe old texts. Whenever he asks enviously where she got all these texts from, she gives a vague non-answer.

Fun fact: many Dragon subspecies lack secondary sexual characteristics, so it's kinda hard to tell at a glance what a Dragon's packing in their trunks. (Note: Dragon pants are not in fashion.) Because of this, Dragons are generally more accepting of non-cis genders. Kenans generally offer their preferred pronouns when they introduce themselves. Other species have varying degrees of queer acceptance but that's a story for another time!

[hexephre]

good morning i am very tired and i have a midterm exam today

here is a dragon nose boop

[hexephre]

STORY: TALES OF KENAH Full name: Lyphrys Archaere Species: Wevlin Gender: pangender Pronouns: any (I use they/them for consistency) Height: 176cm / 5'9" Alignment: ? Traits: stoic, nihilistic, disciplinedInterests: training???

i haven’t posted lyph yet? what am i DOING i haven’t posted any of the main kenah crowd either so i guess it’s ok

Lyph goes by many titles - Prophet, Champion, Messenger - but ultimately it boils down to one thing: they are responsible for seeing the downfall of the Dragon of Death. Prophets surface once in a lifetime or less, identified by their extra pair of wings, and always come equipped with knowledge far beyond mortal capabilities, given to them by the Maker Herself.

Unfortunately, Lyphrys doesn't really give a damn about saving the world. Which is why it's good there's a magical compulsion in place to make them do it anyway!

Lyph gravitates toward simple pleasures - vices, perhaps - and seems to avoid making meaningful bonds with others. To be fair, it does get a little annoying to be recognized as basically a mythological figure. Lyph tends to go about their business with a cloak over their wings to be a little less conspicuous.

There's so much about Lyph I can't talk about because it might be spoilers... Given that I haven't written the reveals yet, I can't be sure what is or isn't important information to withhold. But then it's going to be years before that gets revealed in any public capacity anyway.

Fun fact: Lyph's design is heavily based off an old design of the character Hexephra, before I switched to an anthro dragon. It felt like a shame to toss the old design, so I stole it from myself. I won't say I don't have my personal favourites among my characters, but I try my best to give them faults and obstacles, same as any other character, and Lyph has their own world and life to distance them from me. They definitely have a lot of shit to deal with, don't worry.

[hexephre]

Sentient Species of Kenah: Wevlins

Wevlins are basically winged kemonomimis: Take a human, replace their ears with bigger and probably pointier animal ones, and give them a tail and a pair of wings. Wevlins have a unique accordion-like wing structure that allows the wings to have a larger surface area while still being compact when not in use.

Wevlins embody the Heart Principle of the Self, and tend to be concerned with what will be.

Wevlins are the most populous of the four species, and probably the most social. Wevlins will live with their families, with others, with anyone. Wevlins frequently form polyromantic families, with multiple adults acting as parents, either biological or otherwise, to a great many children. Tracing a Wevlin’s family tree can be a bit of a tangle, but it’s important if you don’t want fucky genetics.

Wevlins find pride in what they create: the most notable Wevlins in history tend to be the ones who have created tools to aid others or to increase efficiency or innovations to improve quality of life. Most Wevlins have access to 1-2 elemental aspects, though having 3 isn’t unheard of. Wevlins are also fairly magically flexible, and can pick up other types of magic with ease. 

The average Wevlin lives around a hundred years. It’s not a lot compared to the other species, so they tend to busy themselves with various projects and goals throughout their lives. It can take seven or eight years for a Wevlin’s wings to grow and become strong enough for flight, though many can be seen gliding short distances and falling safely from heights from the age of four or five.

[hexephre]

Sentient Species of Kenah: Dragons

Dragons are, in the most basic terms, large (usually) winged reptiles. They come in a huge range of sizes, from dragons smaller than a human to many stories tall. (Plus an outlier who may be the size of a mountain, but we don’t talk about Dragons Georg.) Aside from that, almost anything goes - they can have two legs or four, scales, leathery skin, fur, feathers, horns, spikes… From a design perspective, I don’t want to limit myself!

Dragons embody the Mind Principle of the Self, and tend to be concerned with what was.

Dragons are the most magically powerful species on Kenah, and are deeply attuned to the planetary elemental balance. Each Dragon has access to three aspects, though none may be in direct opposition to each other (eg. a Dragon with Lumia cannot also have Skadis). Dragons are so strong, and their numbers so few, that each one’s power over their elements can actually shift the planetary balance.

Draconic social norms stem mainly from much older individuals and millennia of tradition, as well as Dragons’ natural tendency toward solitude. Territory is a Dragon’s most valuable social asset; its worth is based on size as well as physical and magical resources. To many older Dragons, a Dragon without a territory is a Dragon who cannot make a name for themselves, and to decline a territorial challenge is a greater dishonour than to lose a fight in defending one’s land. Territorial disputes are common and often heated.

Although some Dragons certainly fit the old Terran stereotype of terrorizing or razing small villages, there isn’t actually any benefit to eating virgins vs. non virgins. Alliances may spring up at borders with other Dragons or with non-Dragon settlements, and this is where the second most valuable asset comes in: every Dragon has a natural disposition to hoard something. The hoard item can range from sand (fairly easy to hoard, but they probably want a lot of it) to ancient Draconic texts (good luck, scrub).

Due to their lifespan, Dragons tend to be unconcerned with progress and change, as they perceive it to happen so quickly around them with or without their influence. This does seem to be changing with the younger generations, however, as they spend more time in close contact with the other species.

[hexephre]

STORY: TALES OF KENAH

Full name: Xéari of Terra Species: Sorrel Dragon Gender: cis female Pronouns: she/her Height: 200cm / 6'6" Body type: wyvernic (two legs, two wings, no arms) Alignment: lawful-leaning good Traits: anxious, selfless Interests: drawing, gardening, geocaching

this is Xéari, the protagonist of Tales of Kenah. she used to be a human on earth before she got Portal Fantasy'd to kenah (the continent where ToK takes place) and turned into a dragon. she is a soft anxious bean who just wants to find her missing parent and get home. but she's also curious about flying and not being a tiny person anymore. (fun fact: she used to be 5'2" and is now 6'6". this is still pretty small as dragons go, though.) good thing there is an epic journey ahead of her!

she has a habit of getting into trouble by lowkey martyring herself to save others. also has a habit of twisting her tails together when nervous, which is often.

(note: i'll mostly be typing her name as xeari because accents are annoying.)