Vatuh Urath (wip)

  Vatuh Urath

IN THE FAR SOUTH OF IVRAS, the dense Sunless Jungle slowly turns into a wet and misty cloud forest, creeping up the highland plateaus that marks the start of the coastal mountains. It is a treacherous landscape with steep cliff sides, deep ravines, and rivers that appear and disappear into the ground. Deep caverns and sinkholes add further danger, and tangled vegetation, dripping with moisture from the swirling clouds, covers the ground and makes it hard to traverse. The stones are slippery and wet.

The air is thick with cold mist and fog ‒ clouds ‒ and smells of old, old earth; of decaying leaves and fresh rain, and of thriving greenery, of moss and fungi and dew. Large gnarled trees, their branches covered with thick carpets of moss, lichens, and epiphytes reach towards the veiled sun.

On a craggy mountainside, hidden from prying eyes by the ever-churning mass of clouds, lies the Urath stronghold. A massive, sprawling structure, the remnant of a once-great fortress or monastery, clinging to the cliffside like the corpse of a spider still stuck in its web. Large parts of it are overgrown, reclaimed by the frothing mass of vegetation; tree roots cracking stone and vines and lianas climbing the tall spires.

The only way to get there is to walk ‒ and climb ‒ a perilous path carved into the mountainside, the rocks slippery and unstable underfoot. The route is marked with stacked rocks: carved into grimacing, weathered faces, covered with moss and algae.

It has been the home of the Vatuh Urath clan for centuries. Very little is known about them, except their prowess in fighting and combat; it is said they are trained since childhood in a variety of weaponry, espionage, undercover warfare, and survival skills. Some say they are bound together by blood, an extended family of fierce Wild Mages and their kin ‒ others adamantly believe they are a community of outcasts and exiles, embracing those who dare the wilderness to seek them out.

Perhaps the truth is somewhere in between.

They are loyal only to themselves, and those who pay them: taking on work as mercenaries, monster hunters, assassins, spies, guides, and guards. It is said that a Vatuh mage, whatever their powers may be, will find a way to use them offensively; to weaponize even the most meek and meager of magical skills.

Every member of the clan is marked with the Vatuh tattoo: a stylized mountain with three peaks, crowned with a cloud. Other tattoos, signifying skills, status, and ties, are common as well, as are many other motifs, often with a magical or obscure meaning.

(WC --)