Races
On two major continents of Arhka, Zultar and Venin, reside four intelligent races. All of them are either immortal or have a lifespan that far surpasses a typical human’s due to the ith'rya on the planet. As a result, their cultures have changed and evolved at a slower rate.
Derus
Appearance: Like centaurs, Derus are humanoid from the head to the waist, with an animal’s body holding them upright on four paws, hooves, or claws. Unlike centaurs, the animal half can be anything four-legged, even draconic. Because of a close union with nature over thousands of years, the Derus’ appearances have evolved into something even more surreal than the Teregians. Hair, mane, tails, eyes, skin, fur, hooves, claws, and horns can be any shade of color, but they usually reflect the environment in which the Derus live. (i.e. A Deru ram from the north mountains would have light-colored hair and fur, dark eyes, and frost-resistant skin.) Their eyes have no pupils, resembling orbs of color. Their ears usually reflect their animal form (i.e. cat ears for a catlike lower torso.) From head to foot, they adorn themselves with things from their environment like some Teregians and Vampires covet jewelry.
Society: Built on a strong foundation of shamanistic and druidic principles, the Deru society is very closely in tune with the happenings on Arhka. They are highly sensitive to both the messages of the Oracle and the fluctuations of ith’rya within nature. Not much else is known about them, as they prefer to remain reclusive and mysterious even to their Dragon friends.
Unique abilities: Content to spend their lives in the deepest enchanted crevices of the world before Dragons drew them out, they obtained vast knowledge regarding the workings of ith’rya. They’re the only species to exist that can transform themselves into another form using innate ith’rya. Like Vampires, they can project illusions and are capable of mind control, but they are religiously against the art of invading another living being’s mind. Instead, they use this ability much like empathy, to gain the trust of another and persuade the information out of them willingly. Of all the creatures on Arhka, Derus are the closest to being able to manipulate their environment. Their presence has been known to amplify the effect of ith’rya in an area as they will it to.
Location: Derus are known to reside on Venin with their allies and friends, the Dragons.
Dragons
Appearance: Wings, razor claws, leathery skin, thumbs on the “hands”, tails, and the ability to walk on four legs or two is a shared trait among all the different species of Dragon. Beyond that, Dragons can resemble anything from a snake to a dinosaur. Heads are the in the range from velociraptors to vipers, crocodiles to sea horses. Skin is as impenetrable as the exoskeleton of an insect, and is composed of a vast range of color and markings. Wingspans compared to their builds dictate the type of fliers they are. Some are quick, agile “sprinters”, while some are built for steady endurance flights. Some are better for straight motion, while others are better at aerobatics.
Society: Dragon society is built upon and encourages honor, loyalty, justice, and equality. Dragons aren't subtle creatures in speech or action, with their individual beliefs and feelings made clear to all. They are aware of being naturally intimidating creatures and make efforts to be tactful and unimposing.
Their government is decentralized, with different Circles of Judges presiding over each matter of Dragon society. The Judge overseeing a particular matter makes the final decision after hearing all sides of the story. Due to the potential power (and possible corruption) of a Judge, the Circles are allowed to check and balance each other and oversee the patterns of decisions belonging to individual Judges.
Unique abilities: Overall, Dragons are second only to the Derus in their natural affinity toward ith’rya, producing any number of elemental breaths from their innate power. They are the only species of the four that are capable of producing an elemental effect that has nothing to do with the environment they’re in. Their claws, spikes along the back, or their tails can be used to concentrate either shadow or eternal ith’rya for long-ranged or short ranged attack. Unlike those from the continent of Zultar, they have no strict guidelines about which of these forms of ith’rya to use.
Location: Dragons can be found on the continent of Venin, across the ocean from Zultar.
Teregians
Appearance: Unlike their cousins, the Vampires, Teregians look as fearsome as they are exotic. Their fangs are shorter than Vampires’, but very visible at any time. Skin, hair, and eye color can be any shade of color. Hair is often two or more shades, but skin and eye color tend to be one color. Though they share the same features of flawlessness and catlike eyes as their cousins, their eyes glow continously. Combined with the fangs and long, pointed ears, the Teregians can look demonic. They love anything shiny and will adorn themselves with complex jewelry. Many have multiple piercings, although this is considered uncivilized among the high class.
Society: Teregian society has only recently come unto its own. Though they strive to be more like the Dragons in honor and justice, they are also a lot like their Vampire cousins in subtlety and multi-layered agendas. Teregians are also driven toward innovation, ingenuity, and acquiring any new technology they can in their attempts to advance beyond their primary enemy, the Vampire.
In the realm of governing, the Teregians took from Elise's stories of her Earth government, and have nominated their successful rebellion leader, Zayr, as the "President." The three primary cities Teregians reside in have "Houses" that oversee the needs of the residents, but Zayr is recognized as the ultimate deciding figure when it comes to the overall needs of the Teregians. He's allowed complete decision-making control to see through the times of crisis and emergency, but only during those times. Even then, his decisions can and will be reviewed by the Houses at a later date.
Unique abilities: Though Teregians also feed on the blood of the living, they evolved to absorb negative energy found within the soul as well. Since both sources nourish them, Teregians can go for far longer without any blood and still retain their full range of power. This power draws on eternal ith’rya, the power of light and life. It’s the opposite to the shadow ith’rya of the Vampires, but potentially just as destructive. Though Teregians are lacking in the capacity of innate ith'rya compared to Dragons and Derus, they make up for it with extensive use and knowledge of ith'rya crystals.
Location: Teregians are at war with Vampires on the continent of Zultar.
Vampires
Appearance: Far from the look of the Undead, these creatures are built for deception. They bear the strongest resemblance to humans of any race on Arhka, with the exception of catlike eyes used for seeing in both light and dark. Their features are flawless, and yet they have been known to blend in perfectly among humans (looking the most like young adults). Even their fangs are hidden until they reach a state called Blood Fury.
Society: The Vampire government is almost exactly like the Roman Empire. The Vampires have an Emperor (more like a dynasty since it's passed through the family line of the Transyns) and a Council of representatives (called Elders) from each section of the Vampire dominion. There is only one from each sect elected, no matter the population. Like the Roman Empire, the Vampire Empire is subject to corruption and intrigue, though much more controlled given that the older the Vampire, the more powerful s/he is.
Due to the successful Teregian rebellion, the Vampire government has been broken down. Though they have been humbled and have learned much from their position as refugees from genocide, Vampires are a proud race to the core. They are convinced they will eventually dominate again, though Prince Transyn and most Vampires with any power left plan to do things differently if it occurs.
Unique abilities: Like Vampires of all mythical lore, the Vampires of Arhka use strictly powers of death and shadow (called shadow ith'rya). These powers can be used for healing as much as for destruction, but they specialize in the deceptive arts: illusions, mind control, nightmares, and other forms of trickery. They can also open rifts on Arhka to another subspace (they call it the Shadow Realm), and potentially summon minions from it. Given how much power this takes, especially to control the minion, most Vampires will instead use the Shadow Realm to travel through, and to hide for surprise attacks.
Blood Fury is a state Vampires can enter at the brink of starvation to gain several hundred times the power (and some new tricks) at the cost of draining their capacity of ith'rya exponentially. The longer the Vampires are in this state, the more ith'rya it takes. Once they've depleted their ith'rya, they will automatically drop out of their Blood Fury. Given how much it takes out of them (and that they have to be starving to do this), the only way they can use it again is to rest and feed to replenish their ith'rya, and then wait until they are on the brink of starvation again.
There is a way the Vampires can counter this nasty side effect. They can band together as a group (the bigger the group, the greater the effect) and enter a Blood Fury state simultaneously, sharing in each other's ith'rya link instead of relying so much on their own. This also allows a temporary telepathic link in which they can do much scarier things.
Location: Vampires vye for dominance against the Teregians on the continent of Zultar.