Vannois has been fading from existence over the past century, losing it’s trade, food supplies, and people. No longer do they have a dedicated leadership or even a direction of where to go. Vannois is one generation away from being wiped off the map unless Umbris can awaken the Forbears locked away in the hidden Vault.
Creative Corner
Share your own art and stories, or ask for critique.
TOPIC | The Fate of Vannois- A Lore Thread
Vannois has been fading from existence over the past century, losing it’s trade, food supplies, and people. No longer do they have a dedicated leadership or even a direction of where to go. Vannois is one generation away from being wiped off the map unless Umbris can awaken the Forbears locked away in the hidden Vault.
[img]https://www1.flightrising.com/rendern/350/376527/37652636_350.png[/img]
[img]https://www1.flightrising.com/rendern/350/483601/48360043_350.png[/img]
“I want to see the Vault,” Umbris demands of her sister, orange robes rumpled as of she had slept in them. In one hand is clutched a scroll yellowed and crumpled with age, its edges torn and chipped.
But Cecille only tilts her head, the skull mask looking back at Umbris impassively as faint blue lights dance around her head.
“No.”
“Why not?!”
“I know you have read the scrolls, I am not oblivious.”
“I know you have read the scrolls, I am not oblivious.”
“Cecille, we are dying! Our clan has been reduced to nothing! How much longer must we wait? How much longer CAN we wait?!”
“Much more than our sleeping ancestors lay in wait in the Vault dear sister. Creatures who must be held at bay with spells and technology. It is not safe for you to enter the Vault, much less with the intent to wake our elder brethren.”
Cecille gently takes the scroll from Umbris’ hands and tucks it beneath her shroud before turning to disappear around the corner and out of sight before Umbris can argue further.
“You must have Faith sister. They will awaken when they are needed.”
[center]~~[/center]
[img]https://www1.flightrising.com/rendern/350/483601/48360043_350.png[/img]
[img]https://www1.flightrising.com/rendern/350/693317/69331698_350.png[/img]
Umbris alights upon her outer balcony and slams the veranda door behind her with an agitated sigh, her hands still clenched tight and her head feathers in disarray. The room is cool despite the midday heat and sun shining through her carved windows. One of the perks of living in the Crystalspine Reaches: their homes were carved into the sides of the spires themselves and retained better consistent temperatures.
But it did little to ease Umbris’ rage in the moment. Not even the softness of her bed could quell the indignity rising in her chest. Cecille had treated her like a child and brushed off her concerns like nothing.
“Faith? Faith isn’t going to put food in our stores, coin in the coffers, or protect our already weak borders! Faith- pah!”
“Oh man, am I interrupting another golden rant session?”
Umbris only twitches as she turns to level a steely glare at Lios, who had slithered into her chambers (or had been waiting already) and was grinning at her from the ceiling. He dropped down with a graceful twist and stood up, raking claws through his wild crest.
“Cecille keeps brushing me off about the Vault- AGAIN. It’s taken months just to find the scrolls about them and they hardly contain anything useful! And then when I ask, she starts going on about ‘faith’ and dark secrets. I know there are monsters there but I don’t care about them. We NEED to awaken the Forebears before our clan turns to nothing but a memory!”
Umbris has to slump against her rattan chair as she finishes, suddenly exhausted from her outpouring of frustration.
“Only she and Cataracta know where the Vault is and how to access it. Why won’t they listen to me? We’re on the brink of disappearing.”
She suddenly can’t help the sob that wracks her, forcing her into a curled up ball in her chair. What would happen when there was no more people to bring food? When no more warriors were left to patrol their already weak borders? The schools and nurseries had been closed for over 20 years now, the markets more quiet than not. What stalls were left were often shuttered closed and the streets empty. They were at the mercy of their neighbors and merely one generation away from fading away.
Lios’ hand grasps her shoulder as he kneels next to her, squeezing gently as his deep blue eyes look at her.
“Don’t give up now. We’re so close, I can feel it. You’ve worked so hard and I won’t let your work go to waste. Just tell me what to do,” he says softly.
Umbris drags in a ragged breath, wiping the dampness from her cheeks as she looks down at Lios. He had backed her since the beginning, when the merchants stopped coming more than once every three months. He had been with her when the nursery had closed and the caregivers had left. He was there when the last of their students had graduated in a mere class of five. He would be there no matter what.
“We need to find the Vault ourselves.”
“I’m a good tracker but Cecille and Cataracta use some sort of magic to travel there and mask their trails.”
“Then we don’t need them. We need someone else who came from the Vault.”
Lios’ eyes go wide at her suggestion and he sucks in a quick breath.
“You mean...”
“We need to find the Quiet Prince.”
“I want to see the Vault,” Umbris demands of her sister, orange robes rumpled as of she had slept in them. In one hand is clutched a scroll yellowed and crumpled with age, its edges torn and chipped.
But Cecille only tilts her head, the skull mask looking back at Umbris impassively as faint blue lights dance around her head.
“No.”
“Why not?!”
“I know you have read the scrolls, I am not oblivious.”
“I know you have read the scrolls, I am not oblivious.”
“Cecille, we are dying! Our clan has been reduced to nothing! How much longer must we wait? How much longer CAN we wait?!”
“Much more than our sleeping ancestors lay in wait in the Vault dear sister. Creatures who must be held at bay with spells and technology. It is not safe for you to enter the Vault, much less with the intent to wake our elder brethren.”
Cecille gently takes the scroll from Umbris’ hands and tucks it beneath her shroud before turning to disappear around the corner and out of sight before Umbris can argue further.
“You must have Faith sister. They will awaken when they are needed.”
~~
Umbris alights upon her outer balcony and slams the veranda door behind her with an agitated sigh, her hands still clenched tight and her head feathers in disarray. The room is cool despite the midday heat and sun shining through her carved windows. One of the perks of living in the Crystalspine Reaches: their homes were carved into the sides of the spires themselves and retained better consistent temperatures.
But it did little to ease Umbris’ rage in the moment. Not even the softness of her bed could quell the indignity rising in her chest. Cecille had treated her like a child and brushed off her concerns like nothing.
“Faith? Faith isn’t going to put food in our stores, coin in the coffers, or protect our already weak borders! Faith- pah!”
“Oh man, am I interrupting another golden rant session?”
Umbris only twitches as she turns to level a steely glare at Lios, who had slithered into her chambers (or had been waiting already) and was grinning at her from the ceiling. He dropped down with a graceful twist and stood up, raking claws through his wild crest.
“Cecille keeps brushing me off about the Vault- AGAIN. It’s taken months just to find the scrolls about them and they hardly contain anything useful! And then when I ask, she starts going on about ‘faith’ and dark secrets. I know there are monsters there but I don’t care about them. We NEED to awaken the Forebears before our clan turns to nothing but a memory!”
Umbris has to slump against her rattan chair as she finishes, suddenly exhausted from her outpouring of frustration.
“Only she and Cataracta know where the Vault is and how to access it. Why won’t they listen to me? We’re on the brink of disappearing.”
She suddenly can’t help the sob that wracks her, forcing her into a curled up ball in her chair. What would happen when there was no more people to bring food? When no more warriors were left to patrol their already weak borders? The schools and nurseries had been closed for over 20 years now, the markets more quiet than not. What stalls were left were often shuttered closed and the streets empty. They were at the mercy of their neighbors and merely one generation away from fading away.
Lios’ hand grasps her shoulder as he kneels next to her, squeezing gently as his deep blue eyes look at her.
“Don’t give up now. We’re so close, I can feel it. You’ve worked so hard and I won’t let your work go to waste. Just tell me what to do,” he says softly.
Umbris drags in a ragged breath, wiping the dampness from her cheeks as she looks down at Lios. He had backed her since the beginning, when the merchants stopped coming more than once every three months. He had been with her when the nursery had closed and the caregivers had left. He was there when the last of their students had graduated in a mere class of five. He would be there no matter what.
“We need to find the Vault ourselves.”
“I’m a good tracker but Cecille and Cataracta use some sort of magic to travel there and mask their trails.”
“Then we don’t need them. We need someone else who came from the Vault.”
Lios’ eyes go wide at her suggestion and he sucks in a quick breath.
“You mean...”
“We need to find the Quiet Prince.”