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Posted: Tue Feb 05, 2013 12:11 pm
✥ Makai
Geography: Makai is made up mostly of forests, meadows, and swamps, with ancient ruins littered throughout the land from a time long forgotten. While much of Makai is enveloped in the comforting light of day, there is a place where light can barely reach, and that place that lies beyond the Riftwood is said to be cursed.
Population: Most people live in Lumena, though some live rural on the edge of the forests and in Clarus Arbor. Only the dark-natured Spiritus and Past Spiritus live beyond the Riftwood.
Leadership: Makai is ruled by a Royal Family, though the blood is not always the same. If an heir is not produced, high-ranking knights compete for the crown through a show of courage, intelligence, and strength. If an heir does exist but does not intend to marry, their partner may also be decided for them in a similar manner. The King and Queen share power equally, though the king is expected to be physically capable of leading his knights when need-be. Decisions for the people are often made through meetings with their royal council, high-ranking nobles who watch over parts of the land and report to the King and Queen of any dilemmas or welfare situations. In times of crisis, where the royal family is in danger, leadership is passed onto the three leaders of the Cerberus Knights.
Technology: Makai is very rustic, victorian-style in its level of technology, though there are some varying ways of inventive magic or ability that mimic modernization. People enjoy many levels of comfort from their mana-based technology, though most of these things are not obstructive in day to day life. Things such as cars do not exist, and people rely on horse and cart and ship for longer journeys, though some small flying devices exist if the person using them can muster the right magic. The postal service consists mostly of bats of varying sizes and shapes, but mostly for small messages.
Creatures: There is abundant wildlife that lives in the forests and other areas of Makai. Mixed with them are some darker creatures that witches have long since been educated on how to avoid, such as Jack-in-chains, Willowisps, Trolls and other such things. In the darker parts of Makai, in the deep parts of the Rifwood and beyond lurk Riftborns, shadowy monsters of many shapes and sizes who have unhealthy appetites for witch hearts. However, these beasts do not often leave the comfort of the darkness, but make it very dangerous for a witch to wander in.
★★★★★
Lumena Castle Town The most populated place in Makai. It is an extremely large and diverse town, part of which is vertical. Half of the town is integrated into the castle that ascends toward the skies, and many people live directly in the castle itself. The actual part of the town itself begins to spread out the farther away from the castle it is.
Clarus Arbor A rural town filled with homey cottages and small farms and vineyards. The people here live a more humble life than their city-dwelling counterparts, but enjoyable nonetheless. Regardless of the population, there is a very popular pub in Clarus Arbor where Hunter-Witches meet up before trekking into the forest or mountains, after some creature or another.
Woodfall Woodfall is a vast forest filled with dappled sunlight and clear streams and springs, but home to mighty and dangerous beasts. There is one town that is integrated into the trees themselves, which is also called simply 'Woodfall'.
Riftwood A vast forest that grows darker the deeper you go into it. Pure light cannot reach past its depths, and because of this, it is a land where many Riftborn creatures dwell, and wicked and vengeful spirits haunt. Still, it produces many valuable ingredients, but some who venture too far in have never been seen again.
Swamp of Sorrow A dark, boggy swamp within the Riftwood. It is said to be a cursed ground where many souls still linger, weeping and craving to drag the living in with them. There are peculiar ruins left, as if a city once stood there, but its origins are mysterious.
Asphodel Meadows - Seemingly endless meadows full of nocturnal flowers that bloom light when the dark settles upon them. While it seems peaceful, it is a dangerous place, where a strange power emanates from. Deep within the meadow is a sone labyrinth, where the "Gods Sword and Shield" are said to lay dormant. Though a peaceful place, many have become lost in the depths, their skeletons now entwined with flowers.
Styxia Ruins - Well-preserved ruins of a very ancient city that lay deep under the Asphodel Meadows, reached only now by a series of labyrinthine passageways mottled with gnarled trees and unusual effigies. Many scholars journey here to research the Nine Heroes and the curses and magic surrounding their lore, as Styxia contains a large cathedral devoted to them.
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Posted: Tue Feb 05, 2013 12:12 pm
✥ Makai Castle

The grand and ancient castle of Makai has been standing for centuries, and while much of the town and Makai Academy has been integrated into its architecture, there still are many secrets only a few seem to know. Many hidden passages and corridors open up to ancient secrets, and the castle itself stretches deep below the ground, where only the most trusted by the royal family have access to.
The castle itself has many indoor and outdoor chambers, streams of pure water make their way through many of the main passages in their decorative canals, and suits of armor (some who have become homes to the long-departed spirits of their owners) dwell in the halls, often making unnecessary remarks to passersby.
The Noble Quarter - The highest point of the castle is home to the royal family, those of noble blood, and the highest valued scholars. Only they, and elites of the Cerberus Knights, are permitted entrance under normal circumstances. There is a large park-like area with a grand fountain that trickles pure water, and on each side, a gargantuan greenhouse, abundant in rare and precious flora.
Makai Academy - Below the Noble Quarter is the famed Makai Academy, which schools magic-inclined witches from ages 14-18. There are many amenities for use by the students and teachers who dwell there. On each side is a dormitory for the boys and girls, along with gender-separated bathhouses that are also shared by other residents.
Library - The Library has many floors, all filled to the brim with bookcases that loom like towers in a city. There are broad windows that let in an abundance of light, and the ceiling itself is a giant glass dome that lets light pour in. There are deeper parts of the library that descend deeper, where the forbidden texts and scrolls, and even relics of the past, are guarded. The Library is rumored to be haunted by a violent "Man-eating" book called Grimtooth who aids in keeping people away from the restricted areas.
Barracks - On the lowest part of the castle are the barracks, where the knights and blackhearts dwell and train together in their elaborate indoor training grounds and obstacle courses. Each area also keeps a well-supplied armory.
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Posted: Tue Feb 05, 2013 12:14 pm
✥ The Shadow Rift of Poena Privus
The land without time, life, or light. No light brighter than dusk reaches this place, and never has. Once, long ago, it was a castle that thrived as much as that of Lumena, one ruled by a Spiritus King. However, when the ancient war manifested, it consumed the king's rule and destroyed the Spiritus' home. As the tragedy continued and darkness threatened to consume even the witches, the Nine Heroes stepped in, freezing the remains of Poena Privus and those remaining in it within a time curse, letting them sleep, until bit by bit, the curse chipped away, and they began to awoke. Life stirred once again in the timeless land, but it remained dangerous, and dark, as ever. Many dark-natured Spiritus have joined their awakened brethren from the past here, plotting victory, revenge.
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