Odeara - The Era Of Embers

A Page From Rickert's Journal

Odeara is a world wreathed in a veil of war and destruction. The people here would like nothing more than to fight for the rest of their days, like rabid animals going for each other's throats.

Yet, I feel like it should be noted the peace within the respective countries should be admired as well. On the main continent they call Girah, two countries are present. Kyran in the east, and Gahlne in the northwest.

I hail from Aseria from the western continent, named solely after our country since we are the only inhabitants.

Kyran's music is lively, much like what you'd hear at a festival. They use a long bowed instrument using strings, as well as flutes and small drums. Gahlne is quite mellow, yet suited for slow dancing at a ball using many stringed instruments called a frillarp. It leaves a slight hum in the air after the string is plucked, almost making it sound ethereal.

The cuisine of both countries have similarities and differences. Ghalne uses a spice called Cersesepice, and it has a sharp taste, like fermented fish. However, when they mix it with rice and seafood caught in the bay, it enhances the taste of fish and shellfish by an absurd amount. It cuts through the oil held in the meat of the fish, and lets the flavor shine through. Kyran uses a unique spice as well, collected from a flower called a Heaven's Ladder. The petals give a sweet honey scent, and the pollen tastes like sweets a child would eat. However, the part they use is the stem. When crushed, it releases an oil that tastes like a garlicflower or when ground up dry, it smells like savory honey. I say the change in scent is due to the labor put into preparing the Heaven's Ladder.

Yet these two are both at each other's throats. I may be close to the reason why, but something is telling me to leave and go back to Aseria. Certain stones I've found seem to react to environmental stimuli. I've been told to leave them alone, as they inflict people with the Ember Plague. A citizen of Kyran showed me what it does, and its a suffering existence. Their body feels like fire, and their blood seems to cause them pain. It isn't fatal in any way, but it is a cruel way to continue living. A tent full of about hundreds of elderly and children, all in horrendous amounts of pain. Yet, there are no people of able-body. Miners who would have most likely found these diseased stones. The people of Kyran seem to belive the Plague is Gahlne's creation, echoed by their royalty. Gahlne believes the stones are Kyran's creation, and wish to study samples but there is no way to obtain a shard without it entering your body. My hypothesis is it may be a variant of mana crystal, one that permanently bonds itself with its human host. Normal mana crystals are usually found in inactive volcanoes, and shine with a brilliant blue hue.