- Posting Speed
- One post per week
- Slow As Molasses
- Writing Levels
- Douche
- Preferred Character Gender
- No Preferences
There were certain truths which were as irrevocable and as unchanging as the stars themselves-- precious flickers of certainty in a world otherwise characterised by a lack of it. The Commodore had always ruled Nirnaya and always would. To contemplate heresy, to entertain even the thought of it, was to welcome the just penalty of death. And Iyalisai Jiang was never, ever content to sit and do nothing.
Oh, if only she'd been born a scion of one of the greater realms! If only she'd been born in mighty Engines, where the spires and towers ascended as if to pierce the very hull of the world, high above Nirnaya's most populous and certainly most affluent realm-- or in Generators, whose bustling streets, replete with vibrant street bazaars and colourful fabrics and wandering poets plying their trade, had always seemed to Iyalisai to have a million lives all their own.
Instead, she gazed out from her window upon the lonesome cobblestone streets of Library, and frowned. The grim buildings of her father's fiefdom, all jagged points and sullen stone, cast strange and gnarled shadows against the dim light of the setting sun; beneath them came and went a threadbare few passers-by, a couple of bedraggled students, a few aides and retainers departing the estate for home, a pair of corpse soldiers patrolling together and singing a quiet song. The breeze carried the soft notes they sang up through the open window where Iyalisai sat, leaning on the windowsill with her cheek resting gloomily on her hand, and somehow, they seemed to only deepen her malaise.
"While out hunting, oh the secrets I saw,
lurking in the shadows of the starlight,
hiding in the corners of the world--
oh, the secrets I saw, while out hunting..."
She'd heard it a hundred times. Life was boring. Library was boring. And though in her youth she had been able to count on accompanying her father on his visits to the more exciting realms, as of late, he'd been too afraid of the machinations of his kin to part ways with his fiefdom.
That left Iyalisai bound to the estate. Bound to Library. Bound to her boredom.
She sighed, and, smoothing the folds of her sari, she stood and drew herself to her full height-- she had, as all Jiang progeny had, inherited a pale imitation of the Commodore's deific height, to say nothing of the moss green eyes and densely coiled curls which similarly typified her kind. She'd also inherited the inhuman strength and swiftness of the Jiang family, which perhaps made her go-to form of entertainment a little cruel.
"Arhat!" she called out thunderously as she stepped out of her chamber, a broad grin plastered across her face; the halls were long since accustomed to her voice, untempered by thought for volume or pitch, and they seemed almost resigned in the way they passed along her call in echoes. "Come out from wherever you're sulking and spar with me, will you? I promise I won't throw you out of a window this time!"
Honourifics
-ji is the standard honourific; it is gender-neutral and connotes polite respect, used between equals who do not know each other very well or acquaintances who are not quite close friends. It can also be used as a standalone word to politely refer to somebody ('Excuse me, ji, may I speak with you?'), or as an expression of uncertainty or a request for clarification similar to 'huh?' It is expressed in Speech by holding one's hand up, palm facing outward, and then turning it to the side.
-jian is an honourific reserved for close friends, family, and lovers; it indicates affection and endearment, and use of it towards strangers is considered unseemly unless you're an old person. Then you can use it all you want. It is expressed in Speech by holding one's hand out with the palm facing to the side, and then turning it palm-upward whilst closing the fingers into a gentle fist.
-kutti is an honourific used for children, and children alone; referring to an adult with as -kutti is not unlike calling somebody a squirt, and given the disdain and condescension it implies, it will not be taken well. It is expressed in Speech by pressing the index and middle finger tips to one's thumb.
-val is the standard honourific used towards aristocrats and the less prestigious Jiangs, a term of general respect for those of a higher status. Knowing which Jiangs merit this honourific versus higher honourifics can be a dangerous matter, but one generally knows instinctively whether it is appropriate. It is expressed in Speech by holding one's fist out, palm up, and then opening the hand.
-kanam is a term of outright veneration, used towards the more powerful Jiangs by all lessers, including their own kin. Failure to use this term where it is merited is quite literally a matter of life and death, as omission of the honourific implies failure to display appropriate worship toward the Jiang family, and in fact there have been aristocrats who have been punished severely for referring to non-Jiang aristocrats by this honourific, as such use implies anybody to deserve the same level of respect as a Jiang. The one exception is the Commodore herself; Tamar Jiang is not addressed with the -kanam suffix, or with any honourific, for that matter. It enforces the notion that she is above even the highest honourific. It is expressed in Speech by pressing one's palms together and holding them before one's face.
Jantu is more often a word than an honourific, though in some parts of Bridge it is used in the -jantu form. Literally translating as 'worm' in one of the ancient dialects of Pyha, it is the single most blatant show of contempt one can display, and referring to somebody as such will earn you at the least a fistfight-- at worst, it could get you killed. It is expressed in Speech by flicking the thumb against the middle finger.
Jiang: A general term for the progeny of the Commodore. By reputation they're a conniving, ruthless lot, willing to do anything to gain favour before the Commodore or their own direct superiors, but more than a few harbour secrets of their own, and some are perhaps more human than they'd like to think-- more curious, more selfless, more loving. As they are directly descended from the Commodore, they are commonly associated with her physical features: her immense height, her hard-boned face, her coiled black hair and cold green eyes.
Speechless: At some point in Nirnaya's past, a strange affliction of unknown cause appeared which robbed its sufferers of the ability to produce or comprehend speech; those stricken with the malady became known as the Speechless. Due to the prejudice they have seen endured-- it is not an uncommon belief in Nirnaya that the Speechless are untrustworthy, that they are morally and physiologically flawed-- they have formed something of a unique, tight-knit subculture distinguished by the distinctive, full-body tattoos they wear and the language of hand signs they use, known as Speech. Earpieces exist which the Speechless can use to understand spoken speech, but amongst themselves, they prefer not to use them.
Soul: What is it that gives the Jiangs their immortality, their strength, their mandate to rule over lessers? It is their Souls-- strange works of technology poorly understood even by the sorcerers who create them. Each Jiang is imbued with a Soul at birth; it prolongs their lifespan, it grants them tremendous strength, and it retains their memories, their feelings, their loves and their hatreds. In some sense, a Soul becomes an imprint of the Jiang imbued with it-- and if they should die, a ghost.
Corpse soldier: A unique element of Library society is its corpse soldiers-- dead bodies imbued with life anew by Vidvansa the Necromancer, ruler of Library, and tasked with keeping the peace in her realm. They are known for their love of poetry, of story, of singing and dancing, but most denizens of Library view them as, at best, puppets on Vidvansa's strings, incapable of self-determination and will; furthermore, many find the distinctly non-human aire about them to be more than a little unsettling.
-ji is the standard honourific; it is gender-neutral and connotes polite respect, used between equals who do not know each other very well or acquaintances who are not quite close friends. It can also be used as a standalone word to politely refer to somebody ('Excuse me, ji, may I speak with you?'), or as an expression of uncertainty or a request for clarification similar to 'huh?' It is expressed in Speech by holding one's hand up, palm facing outward, and then turning it to the side.
-jian is an honourific reserved for close friends, family, and lovers; it indicates affection and endearment, and use of it towards strangers is considered unseemly unless you're an old person. Then you can use it all you want. It is expressed in Speech by holding one's hand out with the palm facing to the side, and then turning it palm-upward whilst closing the fingers into a gentle fist.
-kutti is an honourific used for children, and children alone; referring to an adult with as -kutti is not unlike calling somebody a squirt, and given the disdain and condescension it implies, it will not be taken well. It is expressed in Speech by pressing the index and middle finger tips to one's thumb.
-val is the standard honourific used towards aristocrats and the less prestigious Jiangs, a term of general respect for those of a higher status. Knowing which Jiangs merit this honourific versus higher honourifics can be a dangerous matter, but one generally knows instinctively whether it is appropriate. It is expressed in Speech by holding one's fist out, palm up, and then opening the hand.
-kanam is a term of outright veneration, used towards the more powerful Jiangs by all lessers, including their own kin. Failure to use this term where it is merited is quite literally a matter of life and death, as omission of the honourific implies failure to display appropriate worship toward the Jiang family, and in fact there have been aristocrats who have been punished severely for referring to non-Jiang aristocrats by this honourific, as such use implies anybody to deserve the same level of respect as a Jiang. The one exception is the Commodore herself; Tamar Jiang is not addressed with the -kanam suffix, or with any honourific, for that matter. It enforces the notion that she is above even the highest honourific. It is expressed in Speech by pressing one's palms together and holding them before one's face.
Jantu is more often a word than an honourific, though in some parts of Bridge it is used in the -jantu form. Literally translating as 'worm' in one of the ancient dialects of Pyha, it is the single most blatant show of contempt one can display, and referring to somebody as such will earn you at the least a fistfight-- at worst, it could get you killed. It is expressed in Speech by flicking the thumb against the middle finger.
Jiang: A general term for the progeny of the Commodore. By reputation they're a conniving, ruthless lot, willing to do anything to gain favour before the Commodore or their own direct superiors, but more than a few harbour secrets of their own, and some are perhaps more human than they'd like to think-- more curious, more selfless, more loving. As they are directly descended from the Commodore, they are commonly associated with her physical features: her immense height, her hard-boned face, her coiled black hair and cold green eyes.
Speechless: At some point in Nirnaya's past, a strange affliction of unknown cause appeared which robbed its sufferers of the ability to produce or comprehend speech; those stricken with the malady became known as the Speechless. Due to the prejudice they have seen endured-- it is not an uncommon belief in Nirnaya that the Speechless are untrustworthy, that they are morally and physiologically flawed-- they have formed something of a unique, tight-knit subculture distinguished by the distinctive, full-body tattoos they wear and the language of hand signs they use, known as Speech. Earpieces exist which the Speechless can use to understand spoken speech, but amongst themselves, they prefer not to use them.
Soul: What is it that gives the Jiangs their immortality, their strength, their mandate to rule over lessers? It is their Souls-- strange works of technology poorly understood even by the sorcerers who create them. Each Jiang is imbued with a Soul at birth; it prolongs their lifespan, it grants them tremendous strength, and it retains their memories, their feelings, their loves and their hatreds. In some sense, a Soul becomes an imprint of the Jiang imbued with it-- and if they should die, a ghost.
Corpse soldier: A unique element of Library society is its corpse soldiers-- dead bodies imbued with life anew by Vidvansa the Necromancer, ruler of Library, and tasked with keeping the peace in her realm. They are known for their love of poetry, of story, of singing and dancing, but most denizens of Library view them as, at best, puppets on Vidvansa's strings, incapable of self-determination and will; furthermore, many find the distinctly non-human aire about them to be more than a little unsettling.
