City of Saturniidae

Chapter One: Cyler

"Mom, where did the Fea come from? " The little Princeling asked his mother, cuddling up for bed.

"Well, no one truly knows. Many believe they are the That they are monsters, Creatures of the dark, But I think that they come from the mother. Rinera, Queen of the gods, loved the idea of magic, and imbued it in her children. " the Queen said lovingly, stroking her son's head. " She brought them to this land, and they flourished. When her husband, the king, became jealous, wanting to show off his own power, He created Humans."

"Why do people think that the Fea are monsters?' the little prince asked in confusion and exhaustion. He laid his head down on his soft pillow, practically asleep. 

"Alright, I'll tell you a little bedtime story as you fall asleep." the queen snuggled next to her son and started the tale.

" A long time ago, a fairy Queen met with one of the brand new human Kings, wanting to create an alliance, hoping that this new son wouldn't decline after so many of his ancestors did.  The new King and the Fairy Queen held a celebration after the two came to a delightful compromise, an alliance that  benefited both equally." The Queen stroked the Princelings head as she spoke.

"For years all went well, the fairy Queen's subjects helping out the humans with crops and such, until a sudden raid from the King pillaged the fairy Queen's capital. The soldiers kidnapped and sold many Fea, stealing, destroying homes, it was a massacre. The Queen didn't know how to stop the sinful humans and prayed to the mother, wishing for a safe place where the Fea could live in peace.The Mother heard the prayers and the screams, and saw the pain and fire. With all she had in her, she created their Oasis."

"The six Islands!" the Prince said excitedly.

"Yes the six islands, all to represent the different magic the Fea shared, the Nexus being its core and holding the Mothers magic. The Fea protected the Nexus, where it is believed that a new deity was born, a true blood child of the Mother. Though like all legends, one must have its downfall." The Prince's eyes closed but the Queen was loath to leave such a story without an end.

"The day the Fea were saved, the mother was struck down by a furious husband. When he went for her children, his anger at the Fea's 'special' treatment. The mother fought furiously, screaming his sins and casting the human world in fire." the Queens words caught, her voice barely audible.

"A void was created around the Nexus, the Mother protecting her most precious thing. Everyone will remember the screams, the battle of gods created by the greed and jealousy of mere mortals."

Cyler woke up from his dream, rolling onto his back. Cyler was very young, Around eight years,  when his mother told him of the Fea's story. A few months later, she was murdered in her sleep. The killer was never caught

Cyler untangled himself from his bedsheets, noticing the closed curtains and unlit hearth. He awoke before the servants, again. Cyler had been having many dreams that always seemed familiar but either something in the memory was mildly wrong or something was happening that never happened. Sometimes he would be sitting by a fairy peacefully in his secret home, but that would nor could ever happen.

Cyler left his large canopy bed and headed to his wardrobe he pulled out a comfortable shirt that was a creme color. He added a caramel vest with gold buttons and his trousers were a light beige. He laced up his onyx boots that reached the bottom of his knee. He buckled in his longsword and stashed his exploring dagger in his boot.

He ran a hand through his hair, his other occupied with a lantern he had grabbed from his room. He snuck down from his balcony, using the thick vines that none of the gardeners could cut. He wandered through the gardens, his mothers pride and joy. The kingdom of Jasper, named after its founder, was one of the richest and prettiest kingdoms in the region. Though was completely morally bankrupt in Cyler's opinion. All of Jasper was built on the blood, sweat and forced magic of the Fea. surrounding forest and mountain range were filled with Fea that had

Humans have always been curious why Fea run from their supposed paradise. Many want to believe that the Fea have accepted they are lesser than humans, but Cyler thought that something happened, that they were sent into a spiral of pain after the war, and picked the lesser of two evils.

Cyler opened one of the secret passages that have long since been forgotten. It was in a secluded area in the maze that is the castle gardens. His Mother once showed it to me. She told Him it was their special place, and that when he was older, she would show Cyler the door to freedom. She didn't though and it took him years to find it.

There was a statue of a beautiful angel, veiled in a long shawl. There was a small button on her back that would reveal a spiral staircase under her platform. The stairs were silent and very dark, the lantern the only source of light. The stairs led down to a round room, a table and chest the only things occupying the space. When Cyler first came to the room I almost broke his neck on the stairs, not prepared for the sharp drop of the first step.

The chest originally only filled with a map of the whole castle grounds, including the secret passages that littered the grounds like veins, As well as a master key that Cyler was delighted to find. It now holds a few things Cyler had collected from the castle and stored in there, like an eternal fire torch made with a bit of dragon scales.

The thing is, that even this room has its secrets. Cyler moved to the wall behind the stairs and pressed a stone that was in the wall with the toe of his boot. Rumbling filled the air as two stone doors sank into the floor, revealing two dark corridors. The Corridors lead in completely different directions. The one to the left leads the throne and through the castle. The one to the right, the one he entered, led outside the castle walls.

The corridor opened out to a beautiful clearing surrounded by a forest that stretched to the Corix ocean. It was a normal home of Fea, a hunting ground for the Jasper people. Myths said that the forest held a portal that helped the Fea move between worlds but no one has ever found it. Cyler raced through the tunnel, wanting to get to the end.

With a lantern in his hand, Cyler pushed a small button in the wall, Rolling the massive boulder out of the way. The opening revealed a beautiful meadow that was surrounded by willow trees gently waving in the breeze. The willow trees were on the bank of a crystal clear river that was filled with large fish. The River was rather fast due to the new melted snow of spring but by summer's come, it will be perfect to swim in. The long grass moved in waves, coming to Cyler's knee and was soft to lay on. Wild flowers and clovers flourished in large bundles all over the meadow.

On the edge of the meadow was an old stone house, in pristine shape from the ancient magic of its original owner. It took a long time searching for the silver key that unlocks the house. Cyler found it in the library, laying in a book that was created by old mages long since killed at the hand of his great-grandfather after one tried to take the crown from him. The door gilded open, not a single sound coming from it as it rested on its hinges.

The main room and kitchen were bare, only a few very simplistic pieces of furniture that Cyler had used plenty of times to escape. Cyler placed the lantern on a hook by the door and moved to one of the other rooms, the master bedroom of the house. A desk was filled with parchment both blank and otherwise. Many papers were letters to his mom when he felt like he needed her guidance. Some pages were letters too and from some of the smaller villages that didn't get recognition without Cyler's help. The pages he cherished the most, however, were the book pages that he wrote, hoping to one day publish.

He stayed there till the barest hint of sun showed on the horizon. Cyler grabbed a letter from his three cousins, witches that rule one of the neighboring countries. His cousins had to hide their abilities, given to them by a nature god that saw the good they could do with the power. Many mistook the magic given to humans by certain gods as a sign of worship for the felled god, and would give witches and the few mages a difficult time. Cyler's oldest cousin married to the sweetest King in a country that works with any that use magic, including the Fea, and therefore, Cyler's cousins flaunt their superiority.

The letter entailed how the three were doing and that they were sad that they hadn't seen him in so long. The letter told him that they would try to convince Cyler's father to let him see them, but if they had to, would kidnap Cyler. The letter spoke of a gift, calligraphy pens, that the witches wanted to desperately give to Cyler.

Cyler grabbed a few other letters and parchment to deliver to his father, and headed back. The sun peeked out behind the horizon and Cyler hurried to his room. He snuck in through the balcony of his room using  vines, that seemed impossible to get rid of.