THE CIEFIANS

The Ciefians are a celestial race that resides in the Realm of the Sky. They each have a pair of dragon wings on their backs, and they come in many sizes and colors. The average Ciefian lives to be about 4,500 years old. Their skin is 3 times tougher than that of a human, it is made of tiny scales. They are most noticeable on the back of the hands. They do not have a red color to their blood, rather, it is silver. Additionally, a Ciefian’s hair even from the day he or she is born never grows nor changes.

Ciefians live under the rule of a Kusagren, or king. The first Kusagren was selected on account of being worthy, not depending the ruler-ship on royal or noble blood. A Manein was a son and a Sasa was a daughter of a Kusagren. If he were married, his wife was not called a queen, but a Juon. The current Kusagren and Juon is Jopp and Rahab Solais.

A Ciefian is born into its family with a full head of hair and wingless. When a Ciefian child reaches the age of 4, their wings at last start to grow out of their backs and develop. To celebrate this child’s wing obtainment, the parents take the child to the sacred Temple of the Sky, where the child is blessed and ministered to by the legendary being known as Quirinus.

In the Realm of the Sky, there is no currency. The Ciefians trade or give freely to each other for what each of them might need.

In regards to a Ciefian’s diet, it is a strange and unique one. There are many different types of food and preparations done for them, one example of these foods being the dragonberry, which is a dark fruit with a sweet taste.

Dragons are abundant in the Realm of the Sky, but they are not dangerous creatures. They hold strong claws and have tough scales, and often are taken as pets, yet are released when they become too big to keep within a home.
As for their homeland, the Realm of the Sky, it is not a part of Aijeleth-Shahar directly. The only means of passage into this celestial realm is by means of a mysterious mist that falls in Aijeleth. How this mist came to be is still unknown, though some believe it is composed of the particles of long deceased Ciefians welcoming foreigners into their land.

When a Ciefian dies, a ceremony for the deceased is held outside of the grand Temple of the Sky. After such a ritual, the white stone coffin of the dead Ciefian is brought into the basement of the Temple of the Sky, where it is placed within a white labyrinth of catacombs.

THE ARIOCHESE

The Ariochese are a people very similar to humans, yet they hold a longer life span (around one to two thousand), and numerous differences in hair and eye color. While it would be unusual for a human to have olive-colored hair, it is possible for these people. Also, the normal life expectancy for the natives to Arioch is over one thousand years, which extends far behind the one century humans have to live.

The Ariochese pride themselves with simplicity in their lives, and are coming out of a relatively fixed feudal system. They are very open and kind to strangers, even at the risk of endangerment to themselves. Due to their very open-mindedness and caring attitudes, there is little poverty in Arioch.
The King of Arioch, Zanoah, was a very benevolent, yet firm-grounded ruler. However, his reign did not last long, as he was murdered by one of the five dragons Diomedes had sent out to destroy the “inferior masses.” After his death, the Queen Evony took his place in authority until her son, Hadlai, would come of age to take his father’s throne.

THE DAIGONIANS

The Daigonians are the elven race of Aijeleth-Shahar, who live in Manisola. Their life span consists of around three to four thousand years, and throughout this time their keenness of hearing still is sharper than those of the other races.

Daigonians also live under the rule of a king and queen, currently King Fenaraz and Queen Kinneret. The couple had planned to step down in power in order for their son, Fallince, to take over their rule, but it was soon discovered that he was in alliance with Diomedes and his plans, and was disposed of due to the Prophet of Aijeleth-Shahar, Quirinus. Since not having any other children of their own, the king and queen have looked to their niece and nephew, Parvaneh and Sagel, for the possibility of the royal family continuing through either of them. King Fenaraz is also the first royal ruler out of the three continents to try in bridging the gap between the very rich and poor.

The Daigonians have a rather isolationist lifestyle, in that problems of foreigners are not important in their lives, unless such external issues affect them. Soldiers continually guard the outskirts of the continent and rarely aid other armies, such as the Ariochese or Azrians, in battle.

THE AZRIANS

The Azrians have a very distinct composition in regards to both male and female characters of this race. Men are born with a rich, deep skin-tone, while the women are usually extremely pallid in complexion. The contrasting colors are throughout the continent of Heath, and the race is very proud of their people, to the point of condescending behaviors.
The Azrian king and queen, Acheron and Hermia, seek to build up their race and living area to the best it can possibly be without appearing arrogant to neighboring continents. While both rulers appear very firm and defensive, they are quite open to reason in their decision-making, and hold many advisors on all kinds of matters.

However, before these two came to power, a law was passed that no intermarrying shall take place between an Azrian and another race. This was a mixture of a superior attitude and a fear of mixed children, for it has been shown in the past the amazing strength of those with Half-Azrian blood. To prevent such power from rising up, this law came into effect, and even Acheron and Hermia have not gotten rid of the law themselves.

The desert areas of Heath are lacking greatly in vegetation, therefore the continent relies heavily on outside imports to their land for food and other resources. Also, Magog, the southern-most city in Heath, is now abandoned save for the followers of Diomedes.

THE SHADOW RACE
The Shadow Race live in the Depths, a separate realm that is able to be reached only through torn fabrics in Aijeleth-Shahar. Every member of the race lives to be about four to five thousand years old, and dress lightly due to the warm climate. The Shadow Race members are split up into special tribe groups, each sector specializing in certain talents and wares that allow each tribe to intertwine and share amongst themselves. There is no currency in the Depths, yet sometimes services can be exchanged for favors.

The society is mostly female-dominated, in that women are the heads of households, and the queen of the Shadow Race, Bhagiratha, holds a position of authority greater than her husband, Gandharion.
Shadow Race members hold to a strange lifestyle, in that they combine the ideas of “pleasure and pain” into their grueling, daily lives.
Every member of the race owns a wichant, which is a gold, palm-sized medallion. It is worn around the neck, and its main purpose is to serve as identification. Also, with each new spirit of a creature or person claimed by its power, the magical ability of each member increases, for the tribes are efficient in sorcery. Each newly added soul creates a new design upon the wichant, signifying higher and higher rank with more power, and complex designs on their identification objects as proof.

The Shadow Race holds a polytheistic culture, their main deity being a goddess, resulting in their female-dominated lifestyles.