# LORE OF AETHERIS
## The Seven Dragons, Seven Cities, and Seven Guardian Houses
Long before recorded history, the Seven Primordial Dragons walked the world of Aetheris. Their power shaped mountains, seas, storms, and civilizations. They were neither gods nor beasts, but ancient forces of nature whose influence touched every corner of the world.
Eventually, the dragons chose to enter a great slumber.
Each dragon now sleeps beneath a sacred city built around its resting place. For centuries, those cities have flourished under the protection of ancient guardian bloodlines entrusted with safeguarding the dragons and preserving the balance of the world.
No one remembers a time before the dragons slept.
Most people believe they should never awaken.
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# The Seven Primordial Dragons
### Fire Dragon
Represents:
* Passion
* Courage
* Creation
* Destruction
### Lightning Dragon
Represents:
* Innovation
* Change
* Speed
* Ambition
(Fire and Lightning Primordial Dragons are siblings)
### Earth Dragon
Represents:
* Stability
* Tradition
* Endurance
### Sea Dragon
Represents:
* Adaptability
* Healing
* Emotion
### Storm Dragon
Represents:
* Freedom
* Transformation
* Chaos
### Shadow Dragon
Represents:
* Memory
* Secrets
* Protection Through Concealment
### Light Dragon
Represents:
* Truth
* Justice
* Revelation
(Light and Shadow Dragon have always been at odds)
---
# The Seven Dragon Cities
Each dragon sleeps beneath a city dedicated to its protection.
Every city maintains:
* A Dragon Academy
* A Guardian House
* A Dragon Vessel
* Temples and Religious Orders
* Military Forces
* Noble Families
The only city currently named in official lore is:
### Pyraeth
The City of Flame.
Home of the Fire Dragon.
Seat of House Veyrion.
The remaining six cities have yet to be named.
---
# The Seven Guardian Houses
When the dragons entered their slumber, they entrusted their protection to seven great bloodlines.
These Guardian Houses became some of the most influential families in Aetheris.
Each house is tied to one Primordial Dragon.
The Fire Dragon's guardians are known as:
### House Veyrion
**Motto:** *Our Flame Never Fails.*
For centuries, House Veyrion has protected the sleeping Fire Dragon beneath Pyraeth.
The identities of the remaining six Guardian Houses need names histories etc.
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# The Seven Dragon Vessels
Every fifty years, a child is chosen.
These children become known as Dragon Vessels.
To the public, becoming a Vessel is considered one of the highest honors in Aetheris.
Vessels participate in ceremonies, festivals, and important religious events.
What most people do not know is that each Vessel carries a fragment of their dragon's power.
Seven dragons.
Seven vessels.
Seven fragments.
Why this tradition exists remains one of the greatest mysteries in Aetheris.
The Fire Dragon's current vessel is Kaida's male best friend, if you want more info on him, please DM the Founder.
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# The Dragon Academies
Every city maintains its own Dragon Academy.
Children typically enter the academy at thirteen years old and remain there until adulthood.
Academies serve as a combination of:
* School
* Military preparation
* Magical training
* Leadership development
Students learn:
* History
* Combat
* Bloodline Magic
* Politics
* Survival
* Dragon Lore
Most graduates eventually enter military, civic, religious, or guardian service.
Pyraeth's academy is the Fire Dragon's Academy.
The names and traditions of the other academies remain unwritten.
---
# The Prophecy & The Dragon Awakening
One of the oldest mysteries in Aetheris is an ancient prophecy connected to the sleeping dragons.
The exact wording of the prophecy has been lost, altered, disputed, or hidden throughout history. Countless scholars, priests, oracles, and rulers have spent generations debating its meaning.
What remains clear is that the prophecy is somehow connected to:
* The Fire Dragon
* The city of Pyraeth
* House Veyrion
* The awakening of the dragons
* The future of Aetheris itself
No one agrees on how these pieces fit together.
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## The Great Divide
Over centuries, two opposing factions emerged.
### The Eternal Vigil
Comprised primarily of priests, priestesses, oracles, and religious leaders, the Eternal Vigil believes the dragons must remain asleep forever.
To them, the sleeping dragons represent stability.
Peace.
Order.
Civilization.
They believe awakening the dragons would plunge the world into chaos.
Many members of the Vigil have become convinced that House Veyrion plays a central role in the prophecy. Over time, some extremists within the faction begin advocating for the destruction of House Veyrion in order to prevent the prophecy from ever coming to pass.
Their goal is simple:
Protect the world by ensuring the dragons never awaken.
They are also the ones responsible for creating the Dragon Vessels every fifty years believing that by putting pieces of a Dragons power into a child's body, they are weakening the Dragon's power and keeping them deeper into their slumber (little do they know the ritual does literally nothing to the Dragons and was actually a ritual the Dragons themselves created to honor their strongest human warriors and bloodlines).
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### The Awakening Covenant (Want to come up with a better name)
A far smaller and far more secretive faction.
The Awakening Covenant believes the opposite.
They believe the world has become stagnant.
That humanity has forgotten its purpose.
That the dragons never intended to sleep forever.
To them, the prophecy is not a warning.
It is a promise.
A promise that a new age will come.
An age in which dragons once again walk the world.
Through ancient texts and forbidden research, the Covenant has come to believe that the Seven Dragon Vessels are not merely guardians of the sleeping dragons.
They are keys.
The Covenant believes that if all seven Vessels are gathered and offered to the dragons, the Seven Primordial Dragons will awaken.
Many members view this sacrifice as tragic.
But necessary.
Seven lives in exchange for the rebirth of an entire world.
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## The Hidden Irony
Neither faction fully understands the prophecy.
The Eternal Vigil seeks to stop it.
The Awakening Covenant seeks to force it.
Both may be helping fulfill it.
One of the central themes of Aetheris is that fear of change often creates the very future people are trying to avoid.
As powerful groups move against House Veyrion and hunt the Dragon Vessels, ancient forces begin to stir beneath the mountains.
The closer humanity comes to preventing the prophecy...
The closer it may come to fulfilling it.
---
## The Awakening
Most people believe only seven dragons exist.
They are wrong.
The Seven Primordial Dragons are merely the oldest.
Beneath the mountains, forests, deserts, coastlines, and forgotten places of Aetheris, countless dragons sleep.
Thousands.
Some are ancient.
Some are young.
All remain connected to the Seven Primordial Dragons.
When a Primordial Dragon awakens, others begin to stir.
When the Seven awaken, the world itself changes.
Ancient magic returns.
Forgotten creatures emerge.
Old powers rise once more.
The Age of Sleeping Dragons ends.
The Age of Dragons begins.
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## Current Lore Questions
These mysteries remain open for development:
* What is the exact wording of the prophecy?
* Why is House Veyrion connected to it?
* Why does the persecution of House Veyrion contribute to the awakening?
* Are the Seven Vessels truly keys to awakening the dragons?
* Is the Awakening Covenant correct, mistaken, or only partially right?
* What happens to a Vessel if a dragon awakens?
* Why did the dragons choose to sleep in the first place?
* Did they ever intend to wake again?
* What role will Kaida Veyrion play in the coming age?
The answers have yet to be discovered.
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# What We Still Need To Discover
The world of Aetheris is still being built.
Many mysteries remain unsolved:
* Names of the remaining six cities
* Names of the remaining six Guardian Houses
* Names of the remaining six academies
* Names of the Primordial Dragons
* Cultural traditions of each city
* Military structures
* Festivals and holidays
* Famous historical figures
* Bloodlines and magical abilities
* Creatures that inhabit Aetheris
Welcome to the Archives of Aetheris.
The dragons sleep.
For now.
