Vargus Archive

Elunis

Overview

A kingdom in a vast jungle full of plants and animals found nowhere else in the world. The people of Elunis are largely very spiritual and believe that all living things have souls. As such, they have the utmost respect for the jungle and built their cities as large series of treehouses to avoid clearing any of the trees.

Because of their respect for life, many are pacifists and the kingdom lacks a military outside of the royal guard and the local Watchers. There is talk of this changing however, as they have received threats of invasion from Zian, which has caused much unrest among the people.

The Haunted Forest

When someone in Elunis dies, their body is cremated and the ashes are spread across a certain area of the jungle in order to nourish the trees, giving life even where there is death.

This part of the jungle is said to be haunted by the ghosts of the fallen, but this is not entirely accurate. It is full of spirits which are manifestations of powerful emotion taken visible form. It is not the souls of the dead haunting the forest, but the sorrow from all the mourners who have been there across history.

The spirits are harmless and will normally flee if approached, but their presence makes the air itself heavy with grief and most do not go there unless they have to.

The Order of Enlightenment

A cult founded in Elunis whose goal is to spread the idea that demons have souls as well and deserve the same respect as any other life, despite evidence to the contrary. While their beliefs haven't caught on among the masses, the cult is large enough for there to be a branch in every kingdom.

Their members are well known for their loyalty to the Order as well as their street protests and anti-Watcher demonstrations, which many folks would describe as "gruesome and disturbing". The cult's public face does not match its true intentions.

The cult's leader believes herself to be the chosen one of the god of destruction, and that she would ultimately "lead true believers to salvation". What this entails is unclear, but the end goal is the subjugation of everyone not in the cult.