Whazzat?

Whazzat?

By Draeme Saekyr

Summary:

Life in the airy skies of Fremorian remained free of hardships for Garamond Ferrous, the first son of Emperor Delancey Ferrous of Fremorian. At least until he reached the age of ten. Life took a horrific turn for the winged male. That was when another winged race of humanoids attacked the Skylands and destroyed his home. All but a few of his family members remained intact. They were all enslaved, including Garamond.

He learned shortly afterward that the people attacking his home were the original royal family-owned Fremorian and twelve other Skyland territories. Unfortunately for Garamond, he wasn’t aware of the bloodier aspects of his father’s rule.

Eight years later, in a vicious cycle of death and reincarnation. Garamond’s caught in a lighthouse that repeated his bloody demise at the hands of a cruel master.

Garamond has one attempt left to change his fate: He dies or escapes, but it comes at the cost of temporarily losing his wings. However, it was the only way to get free of the lighthouse. So, what will he do at the end?

Escape!

Garamond is no fool, nor is he interested in remaining a slave, much less living as a royal heir to any empire.

He and three friends, Emery Kiln, Rosanna Glass, and Lief Flora--also former royal heirs that want nothing to do with that life--have a simple goal. They want to travel to another set of Skylands reputed to be neutral.

Oliveras Neutral Zone.

Once they reach that location, they can settle and make new lives and identities for one another. Although Garamond might just decide on a change in physical attributes. He’s not keen to retain his gray-blue hair and light green eyes that signify his supposedly royal heritage. He was the only one in the family with that particular combination, and it gave him nothing but trouble growing up!

Not only that, but Garamond has to figure out his conflicted feelings whenever he thinks about two of his friends, Rosanna and Lief. He knows they’re in love, which he doesn’t mind because they’re perfect for each other. whlie he senses Emery’s growing desire for him personally. Garamond is wary of men in general due to his past. However, he also knows he’s uncertain of his own preferences because of his history. He’s not interested in relationships that require intimacy, so he’s been polite when rebuffing Emery’s advances. He doesn’t want to ruin the friendship, but he also doesn’t want to go further, especially when embarking upon a new life.

Locations:

Fremorian Skylands - Covers forty-thousand square acreage of seeded clouds meant to maintain the lives of winged humanoids and other avian-type species. Home to several emperor palaces and contains several prestigious academies that support harmony despite many leadership changes.

Malaise Emperor’s Palace - current leader in place. Altos Malaise regained control of Fremorian through infiltration and destruction of the Ferrous bloodline. Only four of the remaining heirs are kept alive. the reason for doing so remains a mystery to everyone who lives on eggshells due to the tyranny of the Malaise Emperor’s ruling policies.

Spiral Lighthouse Prison - Location of where Garamond Ferrous lived from ten to eighteen in the worst possible conditions. He was used as a sex slave and brutally abused. However, with each reincarnation and death cycle, Garamond became feistier, cunning, and vicious in dealing with his master and the minions that attempted to continue raping and beating him into submission. However, he’s lost his wings and use of his lower body due to paralysis and physical damage over the periods of cyclical abuse.

Oliveras Skylands Neutral Zone - almost the same vast size as Fremorian Skylands. The significant difference is that this neutral zone boasts more freedom of thought, livelihood, and academia. All people who flock to the neutral zone do so at their own risk. While they are given the freedom to do as they please. None of the individuals are guaranteed any rights to naturalization. That is unless they maintain some standardized education or business for ten years. Otherwise, if their information is sold to the highest bidder, individuals will be found dead or disappear at any given moment.

Not a paradise, true, but it is at least a place where freedom of everything is permitted.

Fantasy Peninsula - Just as the name suggests, it boasts a fantastical lifestyle that anyone can achieve if they desire. It is also the main entranceway into Oliveras Skylands. It encapsulates the southern portion of the Skylands.

However, it is one of four entryways and the least difficult to access. It has a bad reputation for elitism despite the reason for its existence, so those who’re of commoner status tend to shun this place when it comes to starting a business. The other three entrances are Gladiator’s Peninsula, Crystalline Caverns, and Aberdeen’s Peak.

Tremors Plateau - the main volcanic area where most blacksmiths work their craft. Here, fire elementalists can practically hone their cultivation and skills to immortality. Though that comes with a severe price. Suppose they leave the plateau before reaching the limit of their cultivation. In that case, they could die from a lack of immunity to colder climes.

Triste Cliff - As the name suggests, the cliff has a sad history of people dying from heartbreak. Whether it is legend handed down or actual fact. The area is notorious for people falling to their deaths whenever there is bad weather. Nonetheless, the site is beautiful and has more goodness than meets the eye. It is a vacation spot where people can hike, ignite their creative spirits, and it has an area where citizens live year-round. The hardest part is qualifying for a space to live. The citizens are all craftspeople of Mastery or higher in cultivation status. They also are teachers and maintain a high standard of education for all ages. It is one of the areas where academies flourish in Oliveras.

Gladiator’s Peninsula, the western gateway entrance to Oliveras Skylands. It is a place of fighting and dueling. Located off the west of Oliveras, it is uniquely suited to defend the borders alongside Triste and Fantasy.

This area is also famous for established academies emphasizing military might, status, and other weapons practices besides the typical weaponry. Martial arts cultivation is encouraged over weaponry, in fact.

Crystalline Caverns can be found in the northern portion of Oliveras. It is frigid, inhospitable, and known for an icy welcome to anyone who can’t handle freezing temperatures. It also has academies that focus on magical workings, spell castings, and runes. Featuring crystals, minerals, and other kinds of different materials. There is strict observance of rules if no one wants exile or banishment from this area. Other people of livelihoods might reside there, but it isn’t well-known.

Aberdeen’s Peak is in the eastern portion of Oliveras. It is rocky, filled with treacherous jungle, quicksand, and desert regions. Valleys and plateaus are fertile for farming and other agricultural cultivation. Mainly vast rivers flow through these lands. Many animals flourish in large populations because they’re food creatures only hunted during specific seasons. Therefore, this area is mainly wild and not encouraging for newcomers unless they’re farmers or cultivators of an agricultural bent.

People

Garamond Ferrous - Blue-gray hair, light green eyes, very tanned skin. He’s eighteen at the time of the story. His history is twisted and horrible. He doesn’t know how to function in society but is a sound archivist.

Emery Kiln: Black hair, black eyes, pale skin, works with different materials as a pottery artist. He creates beautiful ceramics as well. He’s nineteen and in love with Garamond Ferrous.

Rosanna Glass - knows how to make beautiful creations out of glassblowing and is also a prolific cultivator and martial arts master. Her age is roughly eighteen presently when the story begins. She has short brown hair, light green eyes, and pale, freckled skin. She’s in love with Lief Flora.

Lief Flora - Twenty years old, the oldest of the bunch. He has blue-grey eyes and darker highlights in lighter brown hair, with pale, freckled skin. He’s a former Gladiator, slave, and only recently broke free of a bad life. He also endured similar abuse as Garamond but managed to overcome what happened to him. He’s in love with Rosanna Glass.

More to come...