[IC] Ephae, A land of in-between

[OddnessApproved]

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The land of Ephae is always bustling around this time of year. Amongst all the kingdoms, cities, and towns throughout the whole land. Most decide to participate in the spirit of the season. The crispness in the air, lovers in blank stares, and children's giggles fill the hearts of everyone around. A winter carnival to remember! Around the season, Ephae is bustling with enthused souls. Most are trying to get their friends, families, and even pets something around this season.

Every year, around this time, a winter Carnival shows its face to the world for all they see. Street games, vendors, and contests are held during the winter season [12-26-2021 : 01-16:2021].

Attempt of contest, Clip

This contest is free of charge, and anyone can join. This is a clip! Everyone will be given cloth line pins with a name written on them. The name is magically incrested and will allow the individual to see the face and immediate surroundings of who they are trying to clip with the clothespin.

Prizes: Everyone will win something! If you are first or last, the randomized gift might be better than others. These gifts can be a handful of things from money to hats, a pet, or a simple little knickknack.

Want to participate? Find the vendor (staff OOC); they will sign you right up.

Rules? To discourage fights. Once signed up, you will receive information about another character (PC or NPC). You will also be receiving if you clip them, clip you, or both happen simultaneously.

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Besides the cheerful holiday, what is going on in Ephae?

During this happy season, the environment is lively and sends goosebumps up everyone's arms. The cities are packed with cheer, and families are beginning to take time for each other, relax by the warm fires, and bring up old inside activities like reading a book.

The Weekly Reps!
"Get one, get one! Prince Icarus and King of Yukar at war!"

If you decided to grab a paper and give a coin to the boy selling articles on the street corner in such weather. One would read about the recent incidents of Yukar and the Outland.

For decades none of the United Council of Ephae have shown any ill-will towards the Outlands, for they are not considered a threat for centuries now.
Out of nowhere, King of Yukar has decided to close their borders to the Outlanders and claim accusations of disruption of peace. The allegations include lists and lists of incidents about 'Outlanders' attacking trade routes, resource transports, and much more. The Yukar government believes that no one else would do anything except the Outlanders and their ruler(s) ordering them to or not regulating their people with laws to stop such horrendous acts.

The biggest bordered kingdom with the Outlands is Yukar which dramatically diminishes their passage to resources. Along with the lack of natural resources, the season of winter and death is amongst everyone. Prince Icarus has risen to the occasion to address this concern of his people's health. Requesting attention with the council and to see if the majority vote could be in his favor.

All kingdoms tend to be neutral towards the Outland and their rules till now, Yukar causing this divide. Though, Yukar could be confessing the truth of Outlanders damaging their property, giving good reason to place bans on borders.

The common folk of cities choose a side game and begin to speak out about their concerns with the Son of Dragons, Prince Icarus. Many people do not trust the powerful beasts till, for they could ruin the land and destroy whole cities with one breathe (fire breathing ones at least). Yukar is taking this into account and making it very clear, they are for the people's protection, and they do not want the Outlanders to overstep boundaries.

What are you going to do with such an intense occasion? A simple touch and that paper could be flying away in the wind and forgotten in an hour or two. Are you political by chance? Concerned that the once Great land of Aicosha could be taken wrong? What is going to happen with this upcoming council request?

[OddnessApproved]

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A single candle sat on the desk, slowly melting, as the overflow stopper began to overfill, causing liquid wax to drip on the hardened wood. White polish slowly was building up over time; an hour ago, the candle was completely new, and ink bottles were fuller.

The wind whispered through the castle and all of Ephae; a storm was somewhat brewing. Dapping of snow could be heard on the outer walls of the room and window, glancing to the frosted glass; Icarus let out a sigh which formed visible particles to disperse in front of him. His room was becoming colder and colder by each minute, but he seemed to be ignoring his physical discomforts at the time.
It somewhat helped to be a dragon in a cold area since he could fluctuate his temperature at minimal control. Colden air was beginning to upset the first few layers of his skin, but his internal temperature was fuming, and this could have been because his anger rose with the thoughts of King Gysia of Yukar.

Clutching his hand quickly, he didn't show any patience while snapping his quill in half. The after crips were fluttering and falling to the desk and ground while he let it all go, "Why would he do this to my people? We have done nothing wrong," vocalizing his concern aloud. The Outlands were in no condition, and Icarus had no documentation of Outlanders attacking any resources; he usually was on top of things. Still, he did not believe his people were trying to cause an issue with the other kingdoms.

Standing up caused the chair to squeal against the hardened ground, which was tile or rock of some sort, his bare feet hardly having ridges, so his footsteps were quiet even to himself.
Pacing around the room, he stroked his fingers into his hair while approaching the window and viewing the storm outside, "What am I going to do?" asking while trying to think of an answer for himself. His kingdom was in ruins even after 300 years, and he couldn't fix everything at once. If he could, the place would most likely be flourishing again, but he didn't want to cause any issues with the other kingdoms, at least for the time being.

Touching the cold glass, he was thinking of things he could do, though he did not want to make any rash decisions at this time. He would be meeting with the council within the next couple of weeks, and he couldn't afford to do something foolish under their view.
Coldness stayed on his palm when he took his hand away from the glass, and a handprint began to form where he once was.

A repetitive chirping began to ring from behind him as he glanced over his shoulder. Chuckling with a smile that started to initiate its way onto his expression, "Only mother can understand you," he stated while almost partially forgetting one of his siblings was in his room.
The child was not looking for a regular human but would be confused with a cute pet if one did not know any better. The elongated snake showed white fur all over its body, small horn nubs beginning to form on his head, and four legs hiding under itself.

Going over and picking the youngling with careful intent, "Let's bring you to mother, you do not need to watch me while I worry about the kingdom," Icarus explained while walking out of his room. The small furred dragon wrapped itself around an arm to anchor it from moving or falling, adjusting its wings while looking up at its eldest brother. Younglings cannot change form as maturer dragons do, so they are very vulnerable. A reason dragon parents do not inform others about the children they have.

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Interaction(s): NPC

[OddnessApproved]

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIYHOb6vQ20

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Walking down the darkened corridors of the castle, his eyes flickered from the dark gray-blue color they usually are in glowing ice burst eyes. Looking through the hallway and walking without much effort, he was making his way to his mother, so the youngling wrapped around his arm would be safe.

His destination took about fifteen minutes to walk, and he opened the chamber doors without a single knock. Entering underground locations of the Aicosha castle, a natural structured room carved out from the mountain.
An open area at the top allowed natural light to come in along with the snowflakes that luckily found themselves landing in the natural hot springs of the land, "Mother," his voice echoed amongst the walls of this room.

In the middle of the hot springs, a tree, blossoming, stayed healthy looking and had water pouring from its roots without any halt. A woman of silver-white hair laid in the springs without a worry in her mind. Other small younglings were swimming in the pound with their mother, enjoying the room, the heat, and the freedom to roam such an area safely.

Her eyes fluttered open while her soft pink lips formed a faint smile as if she was tired, "Yes, my eldest?" she called out while sitting up, she was completely nude, and her long hair hid her body from the world. Being the goddess of fertility, she did not see a woman's body as indecent, and she allowed herself to roam this room without anything on.

Stepping into the hot springs with all of his clothes on, he seemed unbothered by the fabric absorbing the water, "I bring you, Tophic," approaching his mother without hesitation.
She appeared tired and kept the positive expression on her face as if naturally it was that way forever, "Tophic, that is where you have been," she said while giving a single light laugh and taking the youngling from Icarus.

When the child was removed from his arm, he reached out, caressing his mother's cheek, "Are you feeling well?" he was concerned about this tired attitude. His mother nodded while pressing her cheek up against her son's embrace, "I am fine. The children have been wearing me out, and I can feel her calling for help," she explained with light gasps in between some of her words as if this was a lot for her to do.

Standing there, he thought for a moment before giving a faint smile in response, "I know you are their mother, but you need to take care of yourself. Do you need anything?" he asked, ignoring that she felt the tree of life passing. His mother was one of the many beings connected to the tree, and she brought this up quite a lot.

Shaking her head, "No, I will be fine. Your father will be coming soon," she chuckled, "I will make him get me the things I need. You know he loves that," she seemed as if this was somewhat of a game. She could order the god of war around.

Nodding his head, "He loves it even if he is dramatic about it," he stated while moving through the water. Allowing his hands to go in and out of the warm liquid, causing waves and ripples.

"I do apologize that the younglings bother you; I know you have a lot of pressure from this world on your shoulders. I will try harder to keep them out of your areas," his mother was speaking up since he had to bring back one of the younglings quite a lot. Not all the younglings were even related to him, but they were safest in the hot springs within the mountains. Not able to regulate their body temperature by themselves, it was winter, and they needed someone to watch them.

Stopping before he got out, playing with the water a little before answering. His eyes softened at the thought of his mother taking his actions in such a way, "It's not that," he stated while reverting back to thinking. Icarus closed his eyes and inhaled deeply, "I just don't want them to see me like this, mother," he informed her before getting out of the water. Walking right out of the room and closed the doors behind him.

Cammera held Tophic in her arms while watching her son leave the room. She felt terrible that they had to put so much pressure on him at a young age, but they didn't believe anyone else could unite Aicosha with the United council of Ephae, and they all needed that to happen.

Icarus walked down the hall, his eyes piercing the darkness, as he heard a noise. A small mouse scuttering across the hard cold stone floors of the castle, he shook his head, and he headed back to his room, "I have to not mess this request up..." faintly talking to himself before a sigh left him. Messing up the meeting with the council could cause many issues for the Outlands, which they do not need anymore.

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Interaction(s)
⁌ NPC - Tophic, younglings (sibling)
⁌ NPC - Cammera, goddess of fertility (mother)

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Reference picture for the chamber

[OddnessApproved]

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cej2O-mem64

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Making his way back to the room, he stopped at the assumably his door before entering it slowly. Shutting and locking the door behind him so no more surprise watchers would be coming in for the time being. Glancing over to his desk, which was overcrowded with papers, rewritten letters, and extensively more.

Only being gone for around an hour, Icarus felt the coldness of the desk chair and any type of breathing that came from him tried to consolidate within the atmosphere. Though, like always, this quickly dispersed throughout the ambiance.

Picking up another quill which was not broken, he began to write on a fresh piece of paper, and he was figuring out how to reply to the leaders of the united council of Ephae. The main issues were going to derive from what the leaders thought was right, which he understood, but they needed to not punish his people for what someone else was doing. The king of Yukar is making false accusations in Icarus's eyes, and he needs to fix this misunderstanding quickly.

Glancing out the window and patio doors, he thought of something that could be considered a bit foolish, "Should I?" he tried to talk himself out of it, but he wanted to know what was going on at the borders.
These accusations have been stated to be around night. While travelers made their way in and out of the kingdom of Yukar. Standing up and placing the quill to rest, Icarus decided to open up his balcony doors.

Snow blew into his room with soft shivers climbing his feet and legs. Tiny snowflakes hit all over his body while he stepped out onto the snow. For his whole life, he watched the snowfall in Aicosha, and his parents spoke of times when the snow would only fall in certain areas, now it taints all the land.
With a movement of his hand, the doors closed before he stepped up onto the edge of the ridge. Glancing down, he allowed his body to fall into the void of the mountains. The once beautiful Aicosha mountains were the tallest, and they helped separate Aicosha from Basen.

Plummeting to the ground, he allowed his body to spread out while the fabrics he wore flapped in the wind. Aggressively beating through the snow and pressure of gravity dragging everything down. Watching the ground, smoke began to come from his eyes before the form of a human disappeared. I need to know. A giant white-furred dragon rose from the depths of the mountains and darted up through the sky.

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[OddnessApproved]

King of Yukar

Reference picture

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Yukar was a kingdom that did not tolerate disorder or someone invading their lands and causing massive damage to their trade routes. These trade routes were linked to every domain, city, or place in the United Council of Ephae someway, shape or form.

When attacks on the main route that goes into Yukar and connects Basen and Raitish, the king decided to get meetings requested and in process. The first meeting was going to be with King Yolaf of the Northern regions, the ruler of Basen, and the king was not enthused with the idea.
The Basenites have always been rough around the edges, he had had to deal with Yolaf's father in the past, and hearing the stories of how Yolaf was when it came to envoys or others - He was bracing himself.

He couldn't help himself while riding in the carriage except to twist at his long blonde hair. The king of Yukar looked as young as his adoptive daughter, no one knows what the royal bloodline is of Yukar, but they are said to be a fae species or hybrid. They tend to have platinum blonde to light brown hair, purple or pink eyes, and fair skin. They live up to three times longer than regular humans, but they do not look a day of twenty-five till they hit about two-thirds of their age.

♱Arrival at Basen♱

When the carriage halted, he sighed while looking at the mountain range with the city built into it. It was a beautiful sight except for the thought of how difficult the people were here, "It is time," he whispered under his breath while putting on a smile.

"Sir, would you like us to go along with you?" one of the individuals in the carriage asked while readying to get up with his king.
Waving the guard off, he seemed to disapprove of this idea, "I should go seeking Yolaf alone," he stated while helping himself out of the carriage and walking down the snow-ridden street.

It was about a twenty or twenty-five-minute walk from the city's base to where the king's location was, the castle inside of the mountain. Getting to the gates and announcing himself, no one answered, so he looked around. He was waiting to be accepted into the Basenite royal halls.

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Location - Basen, Royal halls
Interaction(s) @Dark Cloud King Yolaf of Basen

[Dark Cloud]

King of Basen

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As plain as the snow-covered stones outside his keep, it was clear as day that the proud leader of Basen was aging. Yolaf middling in his years had lines creasing upon his forehead as he furrowed his thick eyebrows seeing the young lordling outside his gates. It seemed the youthful King of Yukar had finally decided his royal envoy's weren't enough to get the stubborn mountain lord to listen, a move that impressed Yolaf as much as it irritated him.

Clenching his jaw tightly, Yolaf strode through the snow-covered courtyard to the mighty gates "Open the gates!" it was unacceptable his guest had been left to wait out in the cold, the guards obviously didn't recognize the garb the boy was wearing but Yolaf certainly did "But what of your orders m'lord?"

"My orders were for envoys not royalty!" Yolaf growled hoarsely, soon after the gate slowly screeched open allowing the man on the other side entry "Leave us, you already made a fool of yourselves best not make an idiot of our nation!" with that the two guardsman left leaving both rulers in the empty courtyard.

"I'm assuming this is important if you came yourself." shifting the weight of his heavy fur cloak draped over his shoulders and folded his well-defined arms "Explain." he motioned for the other royal to follow as he turned and began walking towards the keep.

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Location - Basen, Royal halls
Interaction(s) @OddApproved King of Yukar

[OddnessApproved]

King Iolas Gyasi of Yukar

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Rocking on his heels while waiting for the gates to open, he wouldn't be surprised if they did not open at all. The United Council of Ephae made it, so the five kingdoms were 'allies,' but that did not mean everyone was friendly to each other - it only allowed trade routes to stay open, untaxed passages, and no outbursts of bloodshed. This treaty has caused peace amongst the region with these kingdoms, and everyone seemed to be acceptable for the time being.

Glancing around, he saw some of the common folk staring. He was not surprised since he was wearing such flashy clothing, bright red and gold which were the colors of the Yukar royal family. King Gyasi was in such an expensive appearing winter outfit since he knew that Basen was cold around this time of year.
The winter wonderland was usually cold, but they had their harsher months, so he rubbed his mitten-covered hands together before stepping back when the gates began to squeal open. A force from the gates caused snow flurries to puff into the air, which caused a smile to form on the old king's ageless face.

King Yolaf seemed not to wait for anything when he approached Iolas Gyasi, which the blonde-haired royal gave an appreciative smile that he was not ignored or rejected right away.
Depending on who you were and how old, King Iolas Gyasi could be an extremely hard-headed man and held onto grudges quite often. He was someone that took things to heart even if he said he didn't; he did.

Bowing to the other king for a greeting, "King Yolaf," he said with a faint smile and a bow of pleasantry. Seeming somewhat cheerful when it came to first impressions since he hadn't visited Basen in years.

Could it be impatience of the royal being in Yolaf's presence, or did the older man want to get this discussion over with? Either way, they both knew that this was essential if they wanted the trade routes to be safer.

"Yes," he said while following the royal inside. King Gyasi seemed to switch instantly when it came to business. The cheerfulness fell away, and a severe expression appeared in his eyes.
He was sighing at the thought of what had been happening. "I do not know if you read the news or if it has gotten to you. Our trade routes have been constantly attacked for the past week or two. These attacks do not appear to be easing up anytime soon," Iolas informed the other king while staying a few feet behind him at all times to show respect.

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Location - Royal house of Basen
Interactions - @Dark Cloud King Yolaf

[OddnessApproved]

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Delayed interaction between King Iolas of Yukar and King Yolaf of Basen
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[OddnessApproved]

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What a timeless time between Christmas and New years day. Most individuals will crowd around the capitols of their kingdoms to watch the gunpowder shows that they host every year!
Resolutions, love, arguments, and many things are made on such a night. A night of fun, mischief, and some might add on... regrets. The capitols always have a plan inside for the colorful shows they put on tonight.

Everyone have a beautiful night, a fantastic morning, and a great new year!
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P.s. I have heard that the lakes of Phesian have a wonderful show and festival around this time of year!