Ash'lorath Orianna

"If i die... "Spritz" will be her only truly close friend left." -"Dune" to Liadan Thelmallow 

Many of the inhabitants of -Somnia continents go their whole lives thinking the known world rests upon those lands. This misconception is held only because those who have it do not travel. While it is true that the vast lands of Perluxia, Prim'terra, and Visperin hold a great deal of diversity of life, it quite literally only scratches the surface.

In fact the oceans swell with their own nations, kingdoms, and cultures. The regions the surface races come into contact most often, however, lie beneath The Merid Sea that stretches between Perluxia and Prim'terra. It is home to a triad of civilizations that are collectively known as the Tricoral Alliance and are individually made up of the Sovereignty of Edric’mer (Merfolk), the Kingdom of Scaler (Tritons), and the Sashtha’tire Ascendency (Mori’accaia/sea elf).

It is among the third of those great peoples that we meet Ash’lorath Orianna. As an infant she was placed outside the Conclave of Deep Sashelas within the Zeesara Trench. The only hint to her origin was the word Orianna sewn into the seasilk cloth she was wrapped in. She was given the name Ash’lorath after an old legend that spoke of the night that their patron deity, Deep Sashelas, had once been lured into the deepest abyss of the primordial ocean by a rival god. It had been saturated with magic and made him unable to know which way was up. Fearing he would be trapped forever and unable to guide his people he cried out in despair. Then a glowing blue sea wisp appeared and began guiding the lost god home. The sea wisp became known as Ash’lorithar, or Fate Finder, and was believed to be a lost spirit of the old world that could connect to those who have veered off their path and help them find themselves once more.

After spending some of her formative years within the Conclave cooking and cleaning for the Priestesses, she bonded with one in particular. The two women fell in love but were unable to stay together due to the priestesses vows. In Ash’loraths grief she fled the conclave and spent many years living on the lower paths of the city of Istaar. She learned to adapt quickly in order to survive on her own and even steal when she had too. Eventually she fell in with another homeless woman whose street name was Vixen. Vixen taught her all of the street skills she would need to survive and in return, Ash’lorath (who simply goes by Ashe now), would prepare some of the finest meals out of the most modest of ingredients. In the end they eventually went their separate ways. Ashe had heard about a surface town called The Drift. It was a place not on any land but a makeshift flotsam made up of various ships and structures. It ultimately became a floating city and had buildings both above and below the surface to cater all travelers' needs. It was a hot spot of trade between the surface races and the aquatic.

At The Drift she worked as a cook in one of the taverns until she discovered a way to season and dry fish in such a manner they would almost never go bad. With that she started her own shop on the merchant level called “For Cod’s Sake” and raked in the coin from sailors. She also put Vixen’s lessons to use and networked herself everywhere she could. Now between her wealth and contacts she has become known as the unofficial Queen of the Drift. Nothing happens there she doesn’t know about. Recently in a deal to arrange for some artifacts collected from within the Zeesara Trench to be smuggled into the Kingdom of Terras she was surveying the cargo when an odd blue glimmer drew her eye to one in particular. After focusing on the object the shimmer faded. Perhaps it was her imagination, but now something on the item drew her attention even more. It was a partial crest several thousand years old. The symbol translated to the word Orianna. She bought the artifact immediately and now wonders if it’s somehow connected to her own unknown fate.

The Hammer

"I'm the only one who has seen his face!" -The List, a troll assassin shortly before his death.

Not much is known about the anonymous leader of The Hammerhead Gang in The Drift except that he is brutal to his enemies.

"May the Purple Star guide you home!" - a curse spoken by sailors of the Shattered Sea that is disguised as a blessing.

One of the Seven Wanderers, named such by astronomers who realized they did not behave like normal stars, the Purple Star was still surprisingly consistent. This leads sailors and travelers to sometimes use it as a guiding star. Legends even state it will guide you to what you want most in the world. These attributes and legends are often encouraged by the star itself as it whispers in the lost soul's dreams. In the end if one relies too much on it, it will betray them and lead them to their death or worse, which has led to certain communities who know its nature to subtly curse strangers who insult them by falsely suggesting they use the star as a guide.

It can do this because the Seven Wanderers are beyond ancient entities who have become these deity-like living stars of various bright colors who each have a deeper name. The Purple Star's name is Caiphon and they are most often associated with a male voice and form when they appear in visions or create a physical form.

Caiphon is the one out of the seven mostly likely to directly communicate with mortals on -Somnia, and even give aid when asked. This aid comes with a price though, as connecting to the Purple Flame can have maddening effects on ones mine. Caiphon also extends the same fickleness he has as a guiding star to those who rely to often on his help, often driving them permanently insane or leading them to ruin. How long it takes to betray those using its aid, and why, is impossible to predict as its motivations are to alien for mortals to grasp. This is a trait all of the Seven Wanderers share.

Those with extensive knowledge of the Seven know that they have another collective name. They are called the Eldest Stars because they exist outside of the Great Cycle of creation to destruction to creation again. They each manipulate the world as each cycle progresses, but Caiphon is known to be the most involved.