Monthly Archives: September 2024

People: Dragons

Posted on by under Appendix

– individuals who embody a kind of element in the universe, defined both physically and metaphysically
– able to manifest in varying forms which are always distinctly draconid, depending on function and context
– they wield forces according to their element
– names: 3-4 syllabic holographic

– they have scales, horns, ridges, and claws
– reflective eyes
– forms can be flying, winged, serpentine, bipedal, two-handed, two-eyed, humanoid, or elementally diaphanous
– are they large or are they small? their spirit is enormous, however the physical form is appropriate to the setting
– their limits can be somewhat set and affected by others present
– they often appear to humans as a scaled draconid humanoid

– contextually genderfluid
– genderfluid pronouns in shared society, pronouncing both feminine and masculine aspects

– born mature in mysterious and unique circumstances from multiple progenitors
– live and die on cosmic timescales, defining the living universe
– the conception of a new Dragon requires at least 8 other dragons to bring it into being
– ‘e starts ‘er existence in another plane
– Dragon birth doesn’t happen often
– they can be killed; it does occasionally happen, though ubiquitously traumatic
– there is a possibility that when they manifest physically that they can be killed
– they don’t see time as linear, or even bifurcating

– they have little idea how to control their spatial dimensions at first
– hatching is definitely a unique occurrence each time
– sets their root existence; becoming spatial means one is not in other places
– must occasionally retreat via sublimation to the Tabula Rasa (see Places), a mutable dimension of conceptual draconid interaction

– many, but not multitudinous
– rare in presence; a planet visited by dragons might have six
– solitary and interactive
– each Dragon is different from all other dragons
– not really a matter of how many there are or how many planets they inhabit; they’re here, there, nowhere and everywhere; they exist, they live, and we know some of them
– while necessarily not planet-bound, one may keep a presence on one in particular

– after being recognized as people, collaborated interdimensionally with Humans to begin the Pan-Galactic Imperium
– counted as citizens of the Imperium, they possess elemental prerogatives independent of human politics
– address their realms elsewhere in the universe while remaining aware of their mode of interaction with a particular civilization
– they have had wars that happen mostly elsewhere
– Dragons fighting in the human-perceivable world may be mostly ritualistic
– a real war of Dragons against Dragons occurs in other times and wheres
– but always always affects other living beings

– Dragons have a strange likelihood for equivalencies to surface; this serves to make them people to all people, in a way; certainly not gods
– they translate into different dimensions; in ours, they have hearts, and they bleed
– Dragon purpose can be really intense and fulfilling
– naturally inclined to support discovery
– they respond to matters of their elements

– for the dragontaught, there’s only one in every few Magus generations that have really taken to the friendship

– they are meant to be known
– power of their element grows with understanding
– willing exchange is more mutually beneficial than conflict or brutality

– scales can be removed from the body
– when removed, they take form in matter as an elementally-related material
– or may be metasymbolically physically transformed into a boon, a dragongift
– Dragons organize memory and connection with their scales
– may sometimes communicate with each other by matching scales

People: Aquarii: First Contact

Posted on by under Appendix

When humans made first contact, they were attracted to the system by energetic anomalies. This was actually communication, transport and broadcasting infrastructure, and they had well anticipated the arrival of another sentient people. Eventually it was discovered that Aquarii had a form of interplanetary travel – with their modulations they’d developed a way of creating wormholes for individuals and groups. They expanded our network of habitable planets, and they welcomed humans to their own system once they’d examined this new people thoroughly. The society of co-evolved Aquari/Symbias planets was more like signal beacons and lighthouses between different kingdoms with the occasional small party of emissaries.

Peoples: Aquarii: Leadership & Society

Posted on by under Appendix

– Small to big loghouse/treehouse structure tribes, some stable, some nomadic
– Elders & Accomplished in magical meeting rule by accord
– they have always had a local tribal leader/conductor and a spiritual reinterpreter
– planetwise, they hold councils
– there are maybe 6-28 tribes per planet
– high councils are termed octaves, 8 + 1 relevant/shuffled representatives – they have a special planet for that to which the Imperium has never been invited
– the Sendsingers are a guild and count as a planet in their home federet administration, but they aren’t concerned with most planetary affairs

some guilds:
– Sendsingers
– Grove tenders / heritage
– translation guild
– innovators (multimedia)

Peoples: Aquarii

Posted on by under Appendix

– originating from eight planets in the Aquari Home Federet; citizens of the Pan-Galactic Imperium
– conjugated as Aquari:Human, Aquarii:Humans, Aquariid:Human(adjective)
– names: adjective + nature
– since we can’t fully reproduce their language, their place and person names are descriptive translations, like Russet Song Valley and Far Pitch

– bipedal mantid-cephalopod bodies
– suedelike skin covered in tiny vibrational hairs called setae-villi
– two main arm tentacles (no suckers, but electrostatic gecko grip suede that’s usually smooth and dry except when picking things up or gripping) – a circular mane of vibrational tendrils, plus a mustache of them on many of the men
– a beak mouth for eating
– audio-visual range frequency abilities in their natural communication
– high empathic perception
– somewhat taller than humans
– tribally-aligned uniquely colored carapaces
– their upright, two-legged bodies are covered in armor like carapaces
– strong, mantislike hind legs
– intelligent and compassionate black eyes
– carapaces vary in color, pattern and shape by tribe

– the young start in round shells protected in dreaming seashore beds with a lovegiver where they can already sing & color
– go through successive moltings & imaginalize into the modern bipedal-tentacled form when they can walk away from their molting
– start with short tendrils
– align by markings from group infancy and are raised tribally
– referred to as our-children
– can individualize in recombination to migrate tribes
– they mature in the company of their conscious Symbias tree groves, which maintain their ancestral linkage
– pair mating

– they use very little fire technology, prefer humidity – shape wood with song for their homes
– artistically-oriented culture
– all professions are a form of art
– technology, evolution and culture are centered around vibrational color/sound modulation
– we perceive it as what we call art, and to them it’s direct communication creating lasting structures of and monuments of multi-layered thought
– they love to share their art

– their language is audiovisual
– includes tones that humans can’t hear
– they have some emotions humans don’t have
– we can see their color-visual cues more clearly when applied to certain media
– they are very good at replicating human language sounds
– with some effort, they can color-emote for the human spectrum, but they are always able to read wavelengths off each other
– uncannily perceptive, coming from a culture that habitually sees thoughts and emotions publicly
– tentacles and tendrils are part of their emoting apparati, both visually and in producing vibrational control
– some can ventriloquize friction, the distance breeze

– Humans and Aquarii don’t often fight, the temperament is no longer there (since a long while back)
– they make everyone’s lives more fun, cooler, healthier, and more beautiful; simply put, they’re some of our favorite people and there’s a mutual natural reluctance toward conflict
– they also uphold powerful strategic keys of the Imperium, like the transgates
– with their hidden Groves and secret council planet too they may seem closed in some ways
– but they’re also extremely accommodating, helpful and fair

– no Aquariid defense (or attack) is like any other Aquariid defense or attack
– they’re situation-responsive and capable of extreme unpredictability using light and sound waves, which are intrinsic building blocks of our perceivable reality

– they don’t use much clothing or weaponry
– they do decorate themselves
– not very many technological objects
– commonly used are staves, wands, pendants, beaded scarves – they prefer swampy or rainforest environments

– Sendsingers enable modern intergalactic transit
– sendsinging is a deep craft with high responsibility
– linking those massive distances and bearing up to the task makes the nature of their voice rather different
– sendsinging requires a change of voice
– sendsingers pledge allegiance to no one planet

– common professions in the Imperium: artists, performers, special effects people, Sendsingers, natural builder terraformers
– herdspeople and foragers above and below water, sonic songs allow communication with other species
– they pride themselves on very earnestly developing interspecies communication praxes, like a new musical instrument or different scale
– charming communicators, powerful runners/jumpers/climbers

– the Aquarii have a pet type – a sluggie, like a friendly bean bag
– sort of a leathern styrofoam-pellet slime mold with a personality
– not actually slimy, snorfles, aids with projection in Symbias groves
– they’re a responsibility with their own moods, but they’re very joyful and able to bring harmony in tune

Online Appendix Incoming

Posted on by under Updates

Hello, dear reader. I’ll be adding the appendix material to the online posting free version of Bones of Starlight on this website. This’ll be happening over the next couple of months.

In the popdown menu at the top, there’s the new Appendix page. There, the contents will be hotlinked as they’re added; though, they’ll be visible in the usual post scroll.

For those who want the hardcover appendix volume, it is available for $22 from new booksellers as:

Bones of Starlight, The Appendix: Learning Country
by Eva L. Elasigue
9781944416188

Like here, for instance: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/bones-of-starlight-the-appendix-eva-l-elasigue/1145947067?ean=9781944416188 or by request wherever you buy new books.