Inhabitants of Xorra'lei

Xorra'lei, a world with no sun but three moons. The night sky is constantly overhead, billions of twinkling stars pocked around three sister moons. Despite having no daylight, the planet is far from desolate or devoid of color and life. It is dense, verdant, and treacherous with thickly blanketed jungles riddled with bioluminescent plants and creatures. From towering serpentine trees, anemone-like bushes, writhing vines, ferns, and other uncanny flora and fauna. Their world is beautiful but savage, for here even the foliage has a taste for unsuspecting prey. Vents split the layers of the earthen crust, spewing heat from the core that warms the life around them. The gases they exude are toxic but the smothering plants that thrive around them detoxify the airborn chemicals; making the top surface safe to tread and tangled life to grow. Where the dominating jungles do not reach, it is far colder and sparse except for around the fiery lands. Flowing grasslands fade to craggy cropping, deep chasms full of darkness or fire too far for any root to touch.

The vast sea glows with a distant azure light, the world down below just as bizarre as the one above; full of gigantic leviathans, schooling predators, and forgotten secrets kept jealously. Admits the most jagged mountain ranges, the seismic plates shift frequently, forming gnashing teeth and maws of drooling lava. A ring of active volcanoes bars the rest of the world from a scorched valley at the center, here life is scarcer, larger, and more aggressive.

The capital of the Ao'morian race is simply called The Citadel, a towering fortress the color of glittering abyssal granite harboring the most precious of their secrets, the life pillar, Nod. A sacred structure of glorious intertwining crystal whose base is living flesh and wooden roots. This is the source of their entirety as a people; heart and soul. Here is the seat of the Arcanium, and here is where council is held among all the ao'mora tribes. A large majority of them live here but there are other smaller, but no less extravagant, settlements dotting all over their half of the planet.

The capital of the Astral race is simply called The Heartgrove, A sprawling dream-like grove nestled in the embrace of Yog's mighty trunk and surface roots, surrounded by large and flourishing plant and animal life. This is the source of their entirety as a people; heart and soul. Here is where the courts of Lunaeta and Seunoris meet and discuss life and politics both among each other and their respective courts. A large majority of them live here but there are other smaller, but no less extravagant, settlements dotting all over their half of the planet.

The two super continents of Xorra'lei are seperated by a band of tumultuous ocean and frequent storms, making contact between the two treacherous and nearly impossible. For now.


Although there is faith, there is no actual god or pantheon. Instead, the Ao'mora and Astral believe in the will of the whole, the conviction of their people manifest as a grandiose force all its own and the soul of their world. Through these combined wills, they fortify their connection to their own, their world, Yog or Nod respectively, and the greater universe around them by extension. No matter the strife or infighting between clans or courts, in the end they are all a part of one greater collective being and their places in it all have significance; purpose. It is their belief that the pillar/tree is their physical monument to this power as it is what gives them life, death, and legacy. Their planet is a holy site and they will defend it with their lives, a threat to her/him is a threat to them all and the defense of Xorra'lei remains one of the few purposes that can unite all of their kin beneath a single cause.

(OOC note:)Make no mistake, Yog and Nod are two names for two sides of the same entity, whether or not the Ao'mora and Astral realize this or each other.


Following a loose monarchy, the ruling clan has been The Imperious line since the beginning of documented history. Unlike the other clans, the Imperious have only ever had one living member: The Imperator. Their word above all else was considered absolute but their decisions were to be tempered by the Arcanium Council as well as representatives from all tribes. This provided a check and balance system so that they, as a whole, had a say and felt their voices were heard.
This method is not perfect since subterfuge, blackmail, and similar underhanded tactics were not uncommon to be used to color a situation in favor of one view over another. Fighting over resources, favor, and territorial disputes were somewhat frequent and tensions between different families would flare. It is no guarded knowledge that much of the disruption was impart thanks to the Arcanium and their desire to keep and maintain control over most facets of society; their clan being only second to the royal lineage alone. For a long time the Imperator kept the council in line and the negotiations open for the sake of peace and prosperity for all their people. However, with the former imperator's death, that channel of communication ended and the Arcanium seized political control in their absence. For all intents and purposes, the council is in power now.


Much like the fae of Earth, the Astrals are split into courtly divisions, namely the Lunaeta court and the Seunoris court. Each individual born is sorted into one or the other depending on whichever cosmic alignment they are conceived beneath. Each court is headed by a prince or princess and directly beneath them is their noble councilmen whom will advice and speak on behalf of the common folk beneath them respectively.

The Seunoris Court live high in Yog's bows, where the clouds dance through networking spires housing glittering townships of fungal buildings and luminescent spores among their leaf beds. The rays of her burning core bathes life around it in the twilight radiance of her warm splendor. Ivory and pastels prevail the alien flora and glittering drifts like colorful swarms of fireflies play constantly in the warmed breeze whistling through the network of elevated living clusters upon branches and lichen outcroppings alike. What fauna exist here naturally is smaller and majorily harmless.

The Heartgrove is a place nestled at the bosom of Yog's massive body, elevated somewhat from the ground below and cradled in a network of her top-most roots and lowest of branches. Here is where council is kept between the two courts, a place surrounded by crystal growths, massive blooming plants, and spidering branches and roots for safety. This is also the location were all astrals are brought into the world, raised communally, and sorted into their respective courts.

The Lunaeta Court make their home in the shadow of Yog's massive body, where their nightly grounds intermingle with the sprawling dark jungles of their world. Here, night reigns in the bizarre undercroft of dense fungal marsh, craggy plant-choked crystal caves, glowing streams, and networks of tree-house cities connected by vines and constructed bridges alike.



The Ao'mora
Barring the nobility, the social structure of the ao'mora is quite distinct thanks to physical telltale traits. Split into two sub-types, they are either Illumae or Scion; the best way to tell being if they have one wing pair or two. The more wings and horns an individual has, the more powerful they are believed to be. Scions are the nobility among all clans and are allotted more prestigious opportunities but are also kept to higher expectations, responsibilities, and more severe punishment for crimes and reproach. However Illumae are not to be looked upon as if they were peasants because they are capable of becoming scions themselves if they are proven worthy; though the rites of this passage are obscure and guarded knowledge.

The Astral
Their social structure is less complicated but also less flexible for there is no means to change court or elevate one's station outside extreme or special circumstances. A commoner by blood will always be a commoner, as with a Noble and their lineage, barring any epic feat to raise one's status in the court hierarchy or by committing some egregious disgrace to lower one's standing. Pairings between commoner and noble are not terribly uncommon but aren't encouraged either, seen more so as a social faux pas to be discouraged of the nobility, and the standing of the offspring depends on whether or not the babe looks more like one parent or the other. Cross-court pairings are heavily discouraged, to the point of being forbidden, if only for the simple fact of sparing one parent the heartbreak of not getting to raise or see that child very often if it is sorted into the other court.



Universal social notes
The presentation and etiquette of either race is quite fae-like in verbiage and mannerism, if you know how to handle the fae, you'll do okay! Be aware, words have sway and should be chosen wisely. The lowest of the low for either kind are the slaves; other races that were either indigenous or taken from other worlds to be used as pets, laborers, or workers of all types.

No ao'mora or astral shall take another of their own kind as a slave and to be found guilty of having done so is a crime punishable by exile or worse. On the flip, to accuse another of doing so is considered a massive insult and, should an investigation be conducted and the accused be deemed innocent, the accuser shall be punished instead and must provide compensation for their accused party. Compensation varies from race to race and affected party to party

There is no battle for the sexes here as gender is just as much aesthetic as the rest of their individual composition. An ao'mora or astral may choose readily which they'd like to present as, which parts they want, or even change it at will should they wish. Sex to them is recreational, for pleasure, for closeness, or deciding disputes if they wish to settle tensions that way. It is not a means of reproduction as they do not populate sexually. Purely physical relations between each other, even cross tribes or courts, is not considered taboo since it means about as much as any one ao'mora or astral wants it to. All orientations are accepted with none being more natural than any other; its all about personal taste. However, to express judgement about another's choices in partners is a social offense and not looked at positively by others.

Actual fruitful reproduction is less fluid and of greater significance, both on a personal and social level. Gender determines nothing, instead, should children be desired or needed, steps must be taken to begin the process. Both Ao'mora and Astral may have sexual relations with others that don't belong to their species, however they cannot reproduce with them for they do not procreate through sexual/physical means. Consider them the same as being sterile in that regard.

For an Ao'mora pairing, they must gain permission from the council, the two (or sometimes more) will be escorted to the pillar chamber where they must approach the crystal together and place their hands upon its surface; their essences are absorbed and their wills judged. Only two may intermingle successfully but it's not unheard of for one individual to have multiple partners they wish to share their essence with. Should the combination be seen worthy, an egg will materialize within its resplendent structure and the pairing(or group) is allowed to stay at the Citadel until their progeny is born from the pillar. Once the offspring is free and assessed by the caretakers, it is given to the parents and they may remain at the capital or take it back with them to their own clan to rear as they wish. Children are considered sacred and are raised communally, illumae and scions are not segregated until they are of mature age. Children born from cross-clan parents are extreme and rare cases, since these kinds of pairings are usually only permitted to settle disputes, end feuds, or join families together in the hopes of more political standing. There are no hybrid elements or colors, any resulting offspring are one element or the other, although they can still have traits of both.

For an Astral pairing, conception of offspring is a more communal event and pairings are more likely decided by the members of the court council than by two particular astral desiring to procreate. Though there are exceptions and some pairs have managed to sneak into the Heartgrove to commence the ceremony, this is extremely rare and not usually possible. More commonly, when it comes time to usher in a new generation, the courts call upon selected individuals with desirable traits or status to come together and join their hands to Yog's heartspot to mingle their essences. It is not unheard of for more ideal individuals to have multiple partner pairings and being called upon to create children is, generally, seen as a great honor regardless of one's relationship with the astral they are being paired with. Refusal is a rather big faux pas and may be seen as worthy of punishment. When a worthy pairing has offered their essence, the joined energies create seedlings which will stay within Yog's tree-like body until the fruiting season where her middling branches begin to bloom with smooth teardrop-shaped translucent fruits containing baby astrals. When the children are ready to awaken into the world, the branches will lower and the fruits may be harvested and opened to remove and collect the newborn children. These children may be raised communally after being sorted to their proper courts or taken to be raised specifically by individuals or family units.

A child's court is determined by when their fruiting 'batch' becomes ready for harvest, either during the star alignments of Seunoris or Lunaeta. Typically, individuals of darker color combinations are born from Lunaeta batches and those of lighter colors are born from Seunoris. This is not always the case but it's the usual norm.


Much like human culture, certain abhorrent acts are considered universal crimes, such as rape, murder, assault, and grand theft. When someone is accused of a crime, they are detained, whether willingly or by force, and are escorted firstly to their local tribe leadership or family for judgement and then, should the accusation be heinous enough, be sent to the capital or the next court hearing to stand trial before the grand Arcanium Council or the joined High Court. All accused are afforded a hearing, witnesses and evidence are collected, and a course of action is decided among the hearing members as well as a jury of the accused's peers if necessary. If the party is found innocent, they will be absolved of their charges and inquisitors will be sent with them to investigate the tribe, court, or specific family for unfounded conduct. If guilty, then the accused is branded a criminal and their ear tendrils are docked, or their limbs solidified as a sign of their fall from grace. Depending on the severity, the punishment differs in both time and conditions. When time is served and the criminal decidedly welcomed back into society, they may be taken to the healers so that the marking process can be reversed and their tendrils or limbs restored.

(Ao'mora only) Petty crimes are served with jail time in the Citadel dungeons while worse offenders are given to The Dwellers to be detained beneath the deep ocean, usually in isolation. The worst of the worst are either handed over to the Warmongers to be made into soldiers or pit fighters, potentially earning vindication through rigorous penance, or exiled from the planet altogether: a fate worse than death.

Exile from their homeworld for either Ao'mora or Astrals is reserved for the worst of the worst and is never a thing to look forward to for it's likened to ripping one's soul away from them for their misdeeds.