TKF: EVENSTELL

TKF: EVENSTELL
THE PLOT:

The Sect is defeated in the Kolerin area, and life now seems hopeful for the DevaShrouds... Except for one thing. While they were cut off from the world, the Sect's influence has spread, a wildfire that ripped apart families and caused war between nations. It is currently a world-wide political debate about what should be done about supernaturals; some have turned to violence in their confusion and fear of the unknown. There is only one group of people that could help shed some light onto this debate; the DevaShrouds themselves... Specifically, their leader, Roy Isidore Broduer, and other important individuals that were involved in taking down the Sect.

The nation of Evenstell, known for their frigid climate, and decided to take the DevaShrouds in as refugees; to both house them, and to prevent what happened to Kolerin to ever happen again.  However... Word surfaced that a bank in Evenstell supplied the funding to Lucas and Julianne Shaw for the Sect, not that the Matriarchs knew that, of course. This leads to an investigation in what happened... And who really is the one to blame.

EVENSTELL:

- Name: Evenstell, pronounced like “Even-stell.”
- Government: Theocratic Matriarchy.
- Flag: (???)
- Size/Population: Large.
- Balance: About 67% mundane, 33% extramundane.
- Races: Primarily northern varieties, with spotted cats being very common, but other big cats, wolves, goats, and sheep can be rather common there as well. Has a spattering of other species.
- Landscape: Primarily cold-temperate plateaus and hills, framed with mountains. Evenstell has a long cold season and short, mild summers, though the southern half of the country does experience more warmth than the northern half, being at a lower altitude and closer to the equator.
- Inspiration: Arabia, Russia.
- Type: Theocratic Matriarchy - A government ruled by religious figures in the name of a deity, and in this case, those authoritative figures are primarily women.

- Bodies of Government: Matriarchs (Queens), Clergy (Religion), Order (Law).
- Current Matriarchs: Her Excellence, Lady Adara, Her Radiance, Lady Nianne
- Current Heiresses: Young Lady Lanaiyah, Young Lady Kiva

- Matriarchs - The Matriarchs are a pair of queens chosen from youth to be the figureheads and primary rulers of Evenstell. Sometimes, the pair have a sisterly relationship, and other times they are lovers, but both Matriarchs are forbidden from marriage with anyone aside from one another, and may not ever bear children, remaining "pure" from the touch of man.
- Heiresses - Students of the Matriarchs, a pair destined to become the next leaders of the nation. Their studies are rigorous, and extend beyond just the law and religion of their country. They learn geography, diplomacy, history, the cultures of nations surrounding them, and a multitude of other things, including various arts and sciences, depending on a particular Heiress's strengths and skills. Some are even trained in martial arts and swordplay, and others in medicine and healing. Oftentimes, the Heiresses become true Matriarchs when one or both of their mentors are deceased.
- Duties - Essentially being queens and princesses, the Matriarchs and Heiresses are the primary ruling force, and all final decisions are made by them, which can include forming peace treaties or alliances, declaring war, appointing high-ranking officials, creating or abolishing laws, and a multitude of other things. They do not have absolute power, but it is pretty close, considering only the Council can do much against them. The balancing factor is that there is almost always two Matriarchs and Heiresses.
- Deaths Among Matriarchs and Heiresses - Matriarchs and Heiresses are always seen as a pair, and no half of this pair can be replaced. This means that if one Matriarch dies, the other Matriarch is forced to remain as the sole ruler, or to step down and allow both Heiresses to step forward. If one Heiress dies, the Matriarch who chose her will not choose another, and the remaining Heiress will rule alone. If both Heiresses pass before their mentors do, the new Ceremonial Year will be held at about the time the deceased Heiresses would choose their successors, except the most high-ranking female clergy members will be the ones doing the choosing. If all Matriarchs and Heiresses pass, the realm will go without rulers until the next appropriate Ceremonial Year, when the high-ranking female clergy members choose the next Heiresses.
- Ceremonial Year - When the present Matriarchs feel the time is right, usually when they are somewhere in their thirties or even forties, they prepare to choose their Heiresses. It takes one full year to choose the Heiresses, beginning on the first day of spring, when the announcement is traditionally given. A holy ceremony is held on this day to prepare the Matriarchs, thus opening the ceremonial year. A grand festival is held on the last day of every month henceforth, and the Matriarchs are subjected to rigorous religious exercise, taking part in a multitude of different ceremonial acts to reach their goddess. Then, one year later, once again on the first day of spring, thousands of people flock into the grand castle to witness the choosing of the Heiresses. Early that morning, many families and staff of orphanages prepare adolescent girls for the ceremony. They are bathed, dressed in their finest clothes, their hair lovingly combed and decorated with a crown of flowers, as is tradition. Then, the girls are brought to the grand castle's courtyard, accompanied by one family member or caretaker. There they wait for the Matriarchs, while the thousands of onlookers stand raised up on platforms surrounding the courtyard, like a colosseum arena. When the sun has reached its highest point in the sky at noon, the Matriarchs emerge from a pair of ornate gates at the Eastern end of the courtyard... they are dressed from head to toe in ceremonial garb, and their eyes closed. High-ranking clergy members accompany them down a broad, short staircase, into the courtyard... There, the girls are lined up in rows, so that the Matriarchs may walk past each and every one, her hands held up, palms down, so her hands may pass just over the girls' heads as she walks past. Traditionally, the younger of the Matriarchs walks first, and then the elder. It is believed that the Matriarchs are able to sense the girls' connections to their goddess by passing their palms over their heads, in thanks to the long year of ceremony they underwent. When a Matriarch feels a strong instinct as she walks, she will stop, and rest a hand down on the head of the girl who was giving her this feeling. This is then her Heiress. Sometimes, a Matriarch must walk through the rows multiple times before choosing. Once both Heiresses have been selected, they will stand together in front of the gate, and clergy members will replace their flower crowns with beautiful tiaras, each with a jewel that is held right over the forehead, where Alaiyah's third eye is supposedly located. The girls are formally presented to the onlookers, and then a massive celebration is held. Families are given the chance to bid farewell to the chosen girls, since from then on the Heiresses will be living in the castle, where they will be molded into the next Matriarchs.

RELIGION:

- Deities: Alaiyah, the primary deity, as well as various servants of Alaiyah.
- Alaiyah: The goddess of time and history, an honored and beloved goddess who oversees time as a whole. She is generally portrayed as a feline with distinctly pointed ears, ash grey fur, and heavy-lidded orange eyes. Rather than hair, she has smooth feathers emerging from her head, resembling the shape of hair. The feathers often vary in different images of her, but the most common appearance for these feathers are shoulder-length and either white, mottled grey, or rust-colored. She has a small third eye set upon her forehead, but rather than seeing the present time, this eye can only see into either the past or the future. She can be portrayed as carrying a heavy, ornate shield, made from raw wood with the bark still intact and decorated with various leaves and small plants. Her clothing is a long, sweeping robe that is wrapped around her, and is often a multitude of shimmering colors, believed to be made from the fabric of time itself. (Name derived from Arabic “Aliya.”)
- Seasonal Celebrations - Considering the fact that they honor the goddess of time, it’s only natural for seasonal changes and the beginning of a new year to be celebrated. Festivals are held on the first day of each of the four seasons, with the biggest one being in the beginning of spring, which is also the first day of a new year in Stellan culture. The day is spent preparing grand meals and setting up decorations and stages, and once dusk falls, the citizens gather in the streets and kneel for an hour of prayer, with only firelight illuminating the streets. When the prayer ends, the party begins. Music and dance fill the streets with life, while girls and boys dressed in their finest clothes (often made particularly for these celebrations) are allowed to mingle and openly court one another. These celebrations are one of the few times when this is encouraged in public, and it as at times like this when courtship begins and engagements are made. Celebration often lasts late into the night, quieting down at dawn, which marks a day of rest before they all get back to their daily lives.
- Women - Unlike many religions on Earth, in this religion, women are revered. Women give birth to new life, thus creating time, in the sense that they create the life that will stretch on for a new generation. Their deity is also female, and perhaps those details are interrelated.

YOUTH AND FAMILY:

- Youth - Children are allowed to interact and play with one another as desired, but once they come to be of an adolescent age, their interactions may be restricted to family members and close friends (often of the same sex). This is to keep them from fooling around or being guilty of indecency.
- Courtship - All marriages and families begin with courtship. Individuals who are as young as ten or eleven may begin to seek out life partners, though courtship is only taken seriously in adolescents who are at least twelve or so and begin to resemble adults.
- Marriage - Naturally, considering their queens often marry one another, same-sex marriage is allowed in Evenstell. While it is less common than traditional marriages, it isn’t seen as strange or taboo like it can be in other countries, being just as normal in their society as opposite-sex marriage.
- Divorce - A heavily frowned upon and uncommon practice, divorce is generally only accepted in society if there were good reasons behind the separation, like abuse.
- Family Dynamics - Some families have given way to modern ideals, but traditionally, Stellan families were large and tightly knit. Important decisions are generally made by the family as a whole, be it just the parents and children, or including grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc. Everyone generally has somewhat equal standing, though dominant members of the family may emerge and guide the others.

CLOTHING:

- Casual - The cold weather must be taken into account when one looks at the traditional garb of this country. A simple shirt and pants pairing leaves a seam between the top of the pants and bottom of the shirt that allows a cold draft to get to the skin. Thus, both men and women in Evenstell tend to wear tunics that extend about to the middle of the thigh, though women may wear ones that reach below the knees as well. The tunics have pleats or slits in the sides to allow freedom of movement, and are worn with pants or leggings. Sweater-dresses and turtlenecks are also common, and many outer-wear garments have a lining of fleece on the inside. A common garment for women is a shawl with a hood, often with plush fleece around the neckline to act as a scarf.

**More information about Evenstell is on the Revamp page, if you are interested in knowing more.

RULES:

1.) Don't be an asshole, which means to be kind, courteous, and involving others, especially when it comes to planning out ideas.
2.) Please don't Godmod or make your characters OP. You could possibly ask another RP member to look over your character profile to see if there should be any changes.
3.) Please no excessive gore/sexual activity (i.e. rape). Doing the do is okay, but please have it to 'fade to black', although some foreplay is acceptable.
4.) Please let the group know if you're going to do something big, and make sure you have permission to do so. It would be a good idea to use the 'Revamp' page to talk about possible ideas, instead of cluttering up the actual RP and make rereading the posts difficult and time consuming.
5.) Do not pressure another RPer into doing something they don't want/like (i.e. shipping one of your characters and one of theirs together, but they don't want to). This falls under the 'don't be an asshole' rule. Just don't.
6.) It would be a good idea to update old character files and clean out the ones that are no longer used before you start to RP. Submit them in 'Chirpy's Detailed Character Catalog', and make sure to update them often.
7.) HAVE FUN! RPing is not supposed to be stressful... And if you are feeling stressed, please let us know, so we can figure out what caused the problem and how to fix it, before it gets worse.


**I will add more rules to this page as I see fit, but most are a given within the RPing community. However, just let me know, and I will add more rules, just in case we need them.

(SAVE)

(So is posting allowed here?)

(Yes.)

(Alright gimme a bit to come up with a starting post.)

(If you can't come up with anything, I'll start.)

(Me: I got this!

Brain: *sparks and shuts down*

Me: :n: I dont got this...)

(*grabs jumpercables* I got this. >:3 

Roy: ...You don't even know 'ow zey work. 

>A>' Neither do you! 

Roy: ...True.)

(Yeah I think I'll leave the intro post up to you Blueh, my brain is just dead right now.)

(*goes to crack knuckles* *breaks fingers* I got this.)

Roy couldn't believe that the war was over... Sure, some time passed, with his healing wounds, but he still couldn't believe it. Julianne was... gone. Not that he saw her die-- he was too busy trying not to die himself-- but it was still just hard to believe, after all the pain, terror, and unrest that she caused.

However, there was one thing he was looking forward to... Getting the hell out of Kolerin. Sure, he had good memories here... And bad ones. A lot of them. But there was no way that they could survive this way any longer... Thank the Gods for Evenstell... If they didn't give us aid, I don't wanna know how we would have turned out...

Relief was coming in a few hours via Isaac to bring the DevaShrouds, and other refugees, to Evenstell. The Safekeep was buzzing with activity, as everyone prepared and gathered whatever belongings they had to go with them. For many, it was the clothes on their back, and whatever family and/or friends that they had.

"Hello, Earth to Roy! I'm trying to talk to you!"

Roy snapped out of his daze, pulling his jacket tighter around himself as he turned to face the voice; he didn't even hear Stone come up behind him as he stood just outside the doors of the Safekeep to get some air. He was already somewhat worried about what was ahead... "S-sorry, I was zhust zinkeeng... Whaht deed you say?" A small, white cloud appeared in front of his face, his hands stuffed into the pockets of his jacket.

Stone gave him a somewhat exasperated look, his blue eyes shining, "Your family sent me to grab you before you caught something... We all know how cold Evenstell'll be. I'm also kinda surprised that you separated yourself from your sweet little cabbage."

Roy felt his ears burn a little, and he let out a small, annoyed noise, "Whaht, I can't zink in peace?"

"I think the problem is that you think too much."

"...True."

"Then get your butt inside and chill for a bit before we leave... I think everyone would appreciate it."

"...Fine." The bat followed the redhead inside, and let out a breath at the warmth that engulfed him. Now he felt better... But he still couldn't shake that worried feeling of the unknown that would become a reality in a few hours.

Lance had grabbed the last of his belongings and was loading them onto one of the airships. This was nuts. He'd only ever left Kolerin on business, never before had he been in the shoes of a refugee now he wouldn't wish this sort of hell on even his worst enemy. Kolerin was gone, the country was wiped off the face of Terra by a simple push of a button. His influence in the realm of arms dealing was severely compromised as now he was unable to operate at full power. Without a major business front to operate out of there was little chance he'd be able to retain his prestige and wealth. Of course that was the last thing on his mind right now. The majority of his brain power focused still on getting Zero Evey and Libra out of this gods forsaken place and staying alive. Hopefully when they were safe in Evenstell, he could give the two their independence, and let them live their own lives as Ryan would've wanted for them.

Umbra however worried him.

His crimes in Kolerin before the disaster would no doubt be brought to light once again. If that was the case, Lance feared for his safety.

The wolf in question made himself known though, slinking out from the shadows, arms crossed over his chest.

"I'm not going." he said.

Lance lifted a brow, "Why not?"

"Lance...you know why I can't leave this country."

The vulpine sighed, "Umbra you can't stay here either. Remnants of the Sect are still out and about, if they find you they'll kill you on the spot."

"But at least I'll have my freedom."

Lance hesitated long enough for Umbra to continue

"Look, Lance, I get it. You care. Everyone does. But I absolutely refuse to live as a caged animal. Isn't that what we fought for? Isn't that why a lot of the Devas died for? We wanted freedom from oppression, from subjugation under the Sects rule so that we wouldn't end up in cages for the rest of our lives...or if you were like us...like Zero like Evey like me..."-he paused "I'd rather fight and die out there then spend the rest of my life locked up in a cell despite having fought for our freedom."

Lance sighed, "I see your point, but Umbra, guess who wouldn't want to leave you behind? You're looking at one of them, now I know you can name the other two. You committed crimes. Now you must face them."

The wolf gritted his teeth then turned to leave, "Give me a few days and let me think it over."

"Of course."

"Jonah..." Roxy leaned against the kitchen cupboards, her arms wrapped around herself as she watched her said boyfriend pack their belongings away, with Storm overseeing inventory. She sounded worried, and it showed on her face, "I... I know Evenstell wants to help us, but... You're technically an illegal cyborg. And I... I don't know what they'll do with you. I'm scared they'll take you away..." She looked away for a moment, feeling a million conflicting emotions, "I just... don't know what to feel right now, with that possibility looming over our heads. You're safe here, but..."

Jonah froze in place for a moment but continued packing, "I know...it's been bothering me too. So the way I see it we have to either hide it, meaning I have to start wearing longsleeved shirts from now on. Or I need to ask Lance if he's got any ideas. The guy's gotta have a trick or two up his sleeve."

He stopped packing and hugged his girlfriend, "Everything's going to be fine. Trust me this is a good thing."

"I-I dunno... I guess it could work. Evenstell isn't built for short sleeves after all..." However, she still sounded a little doubtful, "Do you think you could ask Lance still about it...? I know your prosthetics are one thing, but everything else... Not so much."

He sighed, "Yeah..."

"Okay... Thanks. Let's just... Finish packing up first, then we'll see what happens..."

He let go of her and turned back to packing what few things remained.

"Storm, how's the inventory looking?" The wolf asked.

The kanine robot peered out from the hallway, "Everything seems to be in order. All provision have been stored for transportation and all data has been either deleted or saved as desired. I estimate we will be to departe from Kolerin in approximately two hours."

"Alrighty," he then smiled a little bit turning to Roxy, "I'm curious though, hun. Do you know if Evenstell is in a different time zone? Cause if it is I'll be jet lagged as fuck."

"We'll all be jet lagged as fuck. But I'm not sure. It's a lot bigger than Kolerin itself, so I wouldn't be surprised if there were timezones, but I dunno which one we'll be landing in."

"Okay so you're just as blind as I am going to this place." Jonah mentioned picking up the backpack worth of stuff he had managed to procure over the passed year or two. How long had it been since the Fall?

"We should be going soon." Storm said, "Our flight will be departing in approximately one and a half hours."

"Thank gods this isn't a regular flight out of the country otherwise we'd be screwed." he patted Roxy's shoulder assuredly, "C'mon, time to go start new lives in Evenstell."

He seemed so optimistic about this new place, probably because after they arrived he would be applying for dual citizenship so as to be able to buy property. Two at least. One for a home which to build with Roxy and the other for something his family would've wanted to see, the restaurant. He felt giddy inside but did his best to keep it at bay.

~

Lance looked at his watch, "Damn it."

Umbra looked up, "What is it?"

"Issac's ships are making their last flights today," he mentioned, a total lie but a good one and well presented to boot, "Umbra you need to make a decision like now. I'm begging you, come with us. Be with Evey and Zero again."

"What would I be able to do in an Stellan prison, Lance? Be Libra's tough uncle that's in jail? That one crazy family member he talks about on the fucking kindergarten playground? I refuse."

"Umbra...I'm not leaving the country without you."

"Yes, you are."

"No I'm bloody not."

"Lance, my argument still stands. I will not go to prison. Not of my own accord at least. If I got to Evenstell, I swear I'll run as soon as we get there."

Lance bit his lip, "Will you stay in touch at least? If you go on the run I mean."

"Yes."

"I'll take that. I won't stop you from trying to run. Though that's not to say the Stellans won't try."

"They can try to stop me, I'll just kill them like I did the last ones that tried to ring me in."

"You have to promise me something though."

"What's that?"

"If I tell them that you fought for us that you fought in the war to defeat the Sect despite being a prisoner for multiple counts of first degree murder, if they arrest you you won't fight back. Go quietly for the sake of the rest of the Devas."

Umbra pondered this, what was the likely hood of him being caught? The Stellans probably didn't know about his killing spree caused by the mod he was given those few years ago. Plus he specialized in stealth tactics. Yeah...there was no way he was getting caught. Maybe going to Evenstell wasn't a bad idea.

"Very well. If they catch me I'll go quietly."

"You have to promise me and Evey as well."

"Alright. I promise you and Evey, though she isn't here to hear it that should I be placed under arrest at anytime while in Evenstell I'll go quietly."

"Thanks Umbra...c'mon let's get you packed up and ready to go. Issac's last ship leaves later on tonight."

(Isaac: ... That is a big lie. This is the first run.

Shhhh, he's saving Umbra... And I need to think of a post... XD)

(Alpha: I second that. >A>"

Well, Roy and Stone are currently free and not doing anything, and I can really pull any of my other characters to do stuff before Evenstell arrives with Erik and everything. So it really depends on what you want to do.)

"Oh yeah, you'd set off all the metal detectors to kingdom come..." Roxy couldn't help but smile a little at that, even though conflict still clawed at her insides. She went to grab her own bag of personal belongings... Which really wasn't that much, since she was pretty much picked up off the streets of what was left of Redwillow... Don't think about that... You just gotta keep going forward. We'll start anew. We all need it...

Laura was with her mother and sister as they prepared to go... Her family had been recently reunited, and she had been rescued from the Sect after being kidnapped and held captive. It had been an awful experience for everyone, but now it was over and they were all leaving Kolerin... probably for good...

Meanwhile, little EJ was with the Brodeurs. He had one brother driving airships and his sister tending to her own family, so just like he lived with the Brodeur family, he would be traveling with them. The little cat had already carefully chosen what items to bring from his temporary workshop, which ended up just being a favorite wrench and some small bundle of wires that was probably a gadget in the works. Now he was in the little apartment they had called home, padding his bag with his clothes to protect the lump of technology he was tinkering with. He was wearing some jeans and a hoodie, his usual, and shrugged on the backpack as well. That was it... His whole life in one bag as he prepared to go to a foreign country... He nervously wandered out into the main room, wondering if Rachel and her parents were ready.

---

Evey was very nervous... She wasn't exactly a legal citizen. Or a legal person. She didn't have a birth certificate, was never on a census... she had lab records. That was it. What would a foreign country think of that? She was anticipating being separated from her family, at least for a while so they could investigate... The ermine anxiously paced around the room more than necessary as she packed a bag for Libra, who was relaxing on the floor with a toy.

(Bonnie: Welcome to the club, Evey... eno")

Rachel was honestly glad to get out of Kolerin... There were too many bad memories associated with it. Too many people close to her had almost died for her liking. However, she was scared about what the future had for them... Especially for her and EJ. She had about half of grade 10 under her belt, while EJ never went to school in the first place... Evenstell would help with that, right? Just focus on getting there okay... And then we'll see what they have to say...

She looked up from her bag as she knelt on the floor when EJ approached her, and brushed some of her hair from her face, "Do you 'ave evairyzing...?"

Ali was up ahead a ways from the Brodeurs, backpack only half on as she waited to board. This wouldn't be her first time flying out of a country, considering Kolerin wasn't her native country not the Evenstell, the country they were going to was exactly home either. She'd know her way around at least having been through there once before. Unless she changed her mind about how the dragons operate, returning home was not an option. She cringed at that thought, there was no way she was getting knocked up, not at this young an age. She wondered if there would be someone else when she left this gods forsaken place. It was always possible.

(You have your princess, Ali. ouo

Lilly: ./////.)