They are things not of legend, but of myth, of those stories told around campfires in order to build up the most primitive of fears. Children are warned of them, that if they do not behave, the Lamrion will come for them. Or worse, they will join the ranks of the cursed Lamrion. Teens tease each other of the Lamrion's existence, pushing each other in the darkness and calling out into the night in order to tempt them, but for many years, no one has seen a sign that they exist.
Until now.
The stories say that they were fairies, but an awful deed had cursed them to live underground to escape the terrifying rays of the sun. Before their curse, it is said that they were members of a tribe of fairies so beautiful that neither painting nor sculpture could ever duplicate them. Their skin was a perfectly blending of creams and pastel pigments and their hair seemed to be bleached of all color, but the sunlight brought out hues unimaginable as they moved. Sleek and tall, their delicate hands wove not just blankets or clothing, but trees, trees as beautiful and breathtaking as their makers. A passerby would mistake these trees for a normal willow, but closer inspection would reveal the mastery of the craftsmen. The individual threads could be seen at a close distance and they caught the light much like the hairs on the Lamrion for the Lamrion always put pieces of themselves into their work.
The Lamrion were perfect, the first beings created by Aura. She cherished them and her world was peaceful in order to please them.
But the shores of Shaman brought terrible tidings.
The girl was heavily scarred and her black hair differed so greatly from that of the Lamrion. As she laid unconscious, the Lamrion hunters talked amongst each other, watching the tides steadily begin to cover her. They debated on whether or not to bring her into their home or leave her for the "lesser fairies" to find. In the end, Lorraine was brought into the heart of the biggest of the woven trees, the Kysalun.
The Lamrion Council debated for months on what to do with this seemingly lost child, but while they debated, Lorraine, a girl and distant girl, blended into their culture and ways. She made friends easily, but the mysterious circumstances surrounding her entrance into Shaman keep the Elders from allowing her to gain promotions as she grew. It was only when the Prince, Alradur, married her that she confessed to him in their marriage bed,
"They followed me here, my love. I am not them, they are not me, but they are always with me."
Prince Alradur did not know this, but the ancestors of Mallos had entered Shaman. This was before Aura cast a spell upon her world which stopped those of other worlds from retaining their powers upon entrance.
The Prince, our dear Prince, was concerned over the sanity and safety of his wife. Any sort of enemy was unheard of during these times in Shaman and the thought of something so sinister following his wife was beyond what he could understand. He did not warn the Council when news of "lesser fairy" villages being destroyed reached them, when stories of beings that could turn an entire forest into flames instantly began to circulate. The Lamrion, the greatest people that ever existed in Shaman, were idle as Mallos' ancestors began to destroy their world.
To protect themselves, they wove an intricate labyrinth of which only the Council knew its secrets, but the labyrinth was quickly defeated as Mallos' ancestors tore through the weaving and entered the city. In their desperation, they called upon Aura to save them, finally acknowledging the enemy in Shaman. Aura's power was enough to drive Mallos' ancestors away, but the world of Shaman felt anger and betrayal toward the Lamrion people.
Legend says that it was not Aura that punished them, that it was the world itself that cast the feeling of guilt and shame upon the Lamrion. During the night, all of them went through a transformation. Their pallid, perfect skin was darkened so that it looked burned and their hair fell to the ground as they were stripped of their beauty. Everyone with Lamrionian blood became covered with these dark scales, their fine wings turned to leathery attachments, their noses flattened, their incisors lengthened, their noses pressed flat, and claws grew from their hands. All of them were moaning and groaning during the night as their bodies changed and when the sun rose, their screams echoed through the kingdom. The sunlight burned them greatly and, in their pain, they began to build a city below the now Shady Labyrinth, a territory that would never see full sunlight again. Yes, even the sun is too ashamed to look again. The territory has a labyrinth beneath the labyrinth, a place where the Lamrion hide from the world and wait for a time when no one would remember their story.
Perhaps that most terrifying part of this story is where Lorraine witnessed the decaying bodies of her husband...and son. Prince Alradur succumbed to the enchantment while Prince Valahur, their sun, wilted before her eyes. The only one in the kingdom without Lamrion blood, Lorraine was unaffected as she watched the people that accepted her turn to ash. Still today, during a particularly silent night, her screams can still be heard through the territory. The loss of her husband and son weakened her and no one is quite certain of what happened to her when the sun rose. The story says that she was gone and Aura had left in mourning of the loss of her precious Lamrions.
The Lamrions still exist today, but their memories have basically been wiped. They have hardly a recollection of their past lives. The only feeling that they have is guilt...and shame. The presence of normal fairies, the uncursed, angers them to extremes. The blood of the beautiful and noble is too tempting for them to ignore. Many of fair maiden have become victims to their now vampyric ways and children should never go through the Shady Labyrinth alone.
This is the cursed race of Shaman, the race that today's fairies only mention in a kind of Boogeyman reference, but their existence is definitely real, especially that of Valahur, the now Heir of the lost Lamrion kingdom.
He ventures outside of the Shady Labyrinth, looking for something that he cannot remember. Before he arrives, the victim can hear the wails of his distraught mother and when he gets there, well...no victim has survived to tell the tale. Some say that he takes them to the underground labyrinth as trophies while others say that he not only drains the blood from them, but he consumes the bodies as well. No victim has ever been found, dead or alive. Like the other Lamrions, his eyes are white and cloudy for none of the Lamrions can see what the world now is. It is unclear whether they are aware of Time for Valahur should have been long dead by now. It may be part of their curse, to forever live in their guilt and shame.
There is a song that the older kids sing to the younger children to frighten them,
One, two, three
He won't come for me
He knows that you are too tasty
Grab your knife
Cause some strife
It will never lead to your safety
Fly away, if you may
But he will always find you
Valahur! Valahur!
Your mother weeps as you walk
Does she know what has become of you?
Bolt the doors, if you must
Close the curtains, sprinkle dust
Nothing will ever save you
Say a prayer to Aura
But do not expect aid
For even she is ashamed of him
Valahur! Valahur!
Live forever in your sin.
Description
The Race: The Lamrion
The Leader: Valahur, the forgotten Prince
The Description:
- Black, burned skin
- Adversity to sunlight
- Vampyric disposition
- Long, pointed teeth that extend past their "lips". (They really do not have visible lips anymore)
- Leathery, full wings
- Over six feet tall
- Flattened noses
- Hairless
- Only talks in screams
- Lives in an underground labyrinth
- Very sensitive senses
- Quick flight
- Fire has no effect on them; only the sun. Even light rays cast on them cannot do anything because only the sun knows of what they did. Their shame is their weakness.
Legend Says: They will lift their curse if they repay their debt to Shaman.
How to Tempt Them: - Singing Valahur's song (which tempts him, not necessarily all of them)
- Boasting of your virtues
- Abandoning a child
- Any fight at night
- Walking alone at night
Created by Shenan
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