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Avras. The land drowned in eternal winter, struggling under a curse. Once a great kingdom, maybe not big, but thriving, which could be proud of its intellectual heritage, now is pushed into oblivion by the Unseelie folk.
Places:
Inamora
Tiyan’s village. As most of the villages, it’s buried under snow, opposing winter. Its inhabitants live mostly from the hunt.
When you pass the thick frozen woods, you will find yourself in a settlement almost swallowed by the forest, breathing under a thick cocoon of snow. People here are hard and remorseful, stripping death from meat and surviving despite being under a curse. The houses are made of wood and stone, not small, like one could expect – people spend in them most of their time, so they must be at least comfortable. People in Inamora work hard and have hard skin, yet they fear one thing – the fae.
Feirne
The home village of Ona. Once a last place of real resistance, now almost burned to stake.
Ona came from nowhere. But this nowhere was a village of Feirne, now cinders and ashes. Feirne was surrounded with a wall made of iron, and its people were hunting on lesser folk, very often succeeding. Their traps and science were reminiscent of old days, where knowledge thrived in Avras.
Arelt
The city that was taken into possession by the Praetorian Inquisition. People there are living much better life than villages of the woods. As long as they… repent enough.
Inquisition pretends that they don’t support the fey, that they fully took their role as protectors of Avras. But silently, they worship fey gods and give him sacrifices of “unbelievers’ ‘. Arelt is only moderately rich and the biggest city of the realm… but there lurk other dangers.
Ain’asel. Fey land. Thriving in winter, a dark place, where wind can eat the body to the bones and black magic sinks deep into the soil.
Places:
Dal’coler
Capital city of the fae. It’s stark and beautiful, in an ominous, almost primal way. Ruled by Lorian Ain’Dal. Life in Dal’coler is bathed in old blood and glamour.
Look at the branches biting through the stone walls, at stained glass windows hiding painted scenes of long forgotten atrocities. Dal’coler, a place of twisted darkness, rises like a sore tooth in the woods, among the Lons mountains, the second biggest mountains of Ain’asel. Its magic radiates on all lands, and it’s a place of gathering of all fey races.
Shadowlands
Place inhabited by shadow faeries, vassals of High Fae. The Shadowlands lay mostly in mountains, which separate Avras from Ain’asel.
Shadowlands are surrounded by eternal mist, hence the name. It’s both magic-caused and environmental. The vast black mountain lakes are a place of birth of all kinds of dangerous beasts. Shadow fairies are mildest of the fey kind, yet one never should underestimate them, they hold the key to the death kingdom. Among mountains, you can also find settlements of Bean Sidhes, warriors used by High Fae for bloody work.
Natsel’sorl
Land of Changelings. The night weavers, who keep goda asleep. Bound to their woven web, can’t leave their realm.
Changelings have most difficult task in fae realms. Fey gods feed on fae souls – hence the night weavers must keep them in perpetual dream state, so they never eliminate their darkest creations from the face of both lands. Natsel’sorl is woody and rainy, hiding forbidden mysteries of deep caverns, as well as fae portals, with which High Fae travel to various places on Ain’asel.
The Lesser Realm
Part of fae land, inhabited by the lesser fey. It bites through Shadowlands, like it guarded Dal’coler,so no one dared to go there without permission. Lesser fairies are most wild of the fae, and weakest magic-wise.
The Lesser Realm – wild, sick and untamed. Every guest/ trespasser that is not High Fae (who can control their minds) is subjected to vicious torment and becomes a plaything of the fey. They are closest to god’s soul, which forms a state of constant hunger in them. They are though used as messengers by the Unseelie Court.