Labyrinthyyne

The Labyrinthine is a twisting maze of tunnels, cliffs, arches, and chasms that create a honeycomb of stone and sulfur. Smoke and heat rise from the desolate depths that yet remain unmapped, none have ever found the bottom but the Theisssiesc say it is the passage to their chained God, Keltaren. The deepest parts are a pilgrimage for the Silent Monks and depending on how deep they go not all return. This strange rock formation was created by volcanic pressure in ages past, it is said there were 2 types of stone created that meshed together. But when the Great Flood came, one type proved to be resistant to erosion and one not, and that stone was hollowed out to reveal the strange landscape that is revealed today. Whether this is true or not, this area has some of the best iron and corundum mining, as well as many sulfur deposits and varied hazardous minerals. They export large amounts of iron, sulfur, silver, minerals, gems, and corundum, and also deal in manna nodes (geodes).
Those who dwell in this region are feared even by fellow Theissiesc, their skin is grey and shrunken, and their frames are skinny and wiry beyond what seems humanly possible. Indeed, in the first Sanctian Incursion many questioned their status as humans, debating whether they were human, some type of degenerate elf or even another race entirely, as speculated by the regularity of vampirism among them. Those who do not travel, which is many of them, never see the sun for either the billowing clouds of sulfur and smoke that choke out sunlight or living in perpetual shadow in the deepest reaches of civilization. Those who live nearer the "surface" get sunlight, but only that which manages to wade its way through the thick smoke. Those who live deeper see none. Vampirism is not considered a curse, but a blessing. There are essential energies (we call it Vitamin D on earth) that one gets from the sun that both the Labyrinthians and vampires lack, and alongside vampirism comes the ability to extract these energies, and more, from blood. To them, vampirism is commonplace, not a thing revulsed and feared. If one is born with Severin Morghulis, or Fixed Neutrality/mortality (a genetic allele rendering one immune to either Severin Vampiris or Revis Vampiris (attained or contracted Vampirism)) they are considered to be cursed. These poor folk generally either die, often at a young age, move to new lands or live a sickly life. A select few learn to sustain themselves through magical means.
Of the Labyrinthine Vampires, there is a phenomenon known as "Char Ustosi Vampiris", meaning "Vampire born of Ash/Cinder". They are said to be uniquely gifted and cursed both. Though there are many born as such, the degree of "intensity" varies, and those most affected are very, very powerful individuals and also quite rare. It does not seem to be a genetic condition, not one that is hereditary. If a clan moves to almost any new area of the world they cease to bear offspring with the condition, and it seems no more common in lineages whose parents and grandparents are all affected by some chance, there are no long family lines of more or less powerful Ashen Ones. Effects reported include innate arcane talent, ability to breath sulphur and smoke freely, smouldering skin appearing like red-hot coals along fissures (more among the more powerful), increased height and strength, ability to forgo food or Sustaining Energies (including that provided by the sun), a taint in the soul, abnormal moods and temperaments, altered senses, clairvoyance, and even revenmancy and undeath. It is not known what is true and what is not by the outside world, though it is known that different individual Charred experience different effects from others. If the nature and origin of this is known to the Labrynthians it is unknown to all others, both for others fear of and silence around Labrynthians, their ignorance of it and for Labrynthians secretive and reclusive tendency that far outpaces that of the famously secretive and suspicious natures of Theissiesc in general. Architecture in this region is carved into the rock, with imported rope and timber utilized among those nearer the surface. Winding stairs, ramps, ladders, and ledges are carved into the already winding natural stone structure, creating a veritable maze that outsiders get lost traversing. They carve houses, halls and other structures from these, often connected with narrow tunnels and postern like openings, creating a man-made honeycomb within a natural honeycomb of stone. Labyrinthine communities are often likened to writhing, twisting anthills. One with claustrophobia would never last a minute in this realm.
Portals are known to be used extensively in many places, used especially to "bridge" long gaps and chasms and to connect Labyrinthine "municipalities" separated by masses of stone. In some places, where rock structure is so chaotic and twisted in nature portals are used to simply get from houses to houses, with portal halls to connect communities. In some extreme cases, portal halls are all that make a community, where portals to peoples houses all lie within one portal hall, but not linked geographically. This happens more as one gets deeper underground, where a labyrinthian would open a portal to some unknown place in the deeps and build a house there among the pitch darkness. After millennia, the races who live in this vast expanse have almost all become quite proficient in the use of Portals, the Labrynthians set up large occulories which greatly enhance the arcane powers of one attempting to create a portal, with the aid of priests and seers. These are used to transport those whose time has come to feast upon blood to the surface world, to a specific place, to feed. Many can transport groups, some very large, to distant locations. Generally between 1 and 5 will travel at a time, in some cases a dozen or a few dozen (which can be used as raiding parties by a THeissiesc High Lord's army when needed), and there exists a massive occulory that can transport a hundred with only 6 hours rest in the heart of the Labyrinthine nexus. Like many other Theissiesc, they live in communities, clans, and holdfasts, though they almost never feud amongst each other. They keep watch on the forsaken areas and on the depths of the dark, for ratmen dwell here in larger numbers than perhaps anywhere else in the known world, and though quite timid and scared of the light, they will band together in unimaginable numbers and attack others when pushed out of their homes by other ratmen clans or other unknown causes. The labyrinthians probe the darkness always, always deeper and further, searching for the entrance to Keltaren's prison and watching for the dreaded precursor race alike, for devastating wars have been fought between the two, as the forgotten peoples of the old, pushed into the deeps of the world, world strive to regain a foothold in the new and spell ruin to its inhabitants.
No one knows the population of the Labyrinthian Theissiesc, some say only a few hundred thousand, some say millions and millions, even tens or hundreds of millions, under the earth. There is no way to know, but it is estimated that there are untold masses of Theissiesc living under the earth in isolation, and once in a while some group of them, previously unknown to others, will turn up at a Labyrinthine nexus. It is known, however, that there are many ancient wars that rage under the earth between the Theissiesc there and other forces, including the Old Ones. It is said that there are Old Gods who fled deep underground, and continue to wage war against Keltaren's people to this day, as well as older powers yet that thrash about, unwilling to give up on this world lost to them in history long forgotten even by the Old Ones of the last aeon. Some have even said that some of these underground kingdoms of Theissiesc may not even yet know that Keltaren was cast down, or that some Keltar must have found him by now and strive to free him, or live along with him in is prison, though if there are any in the world who know these things for certain they are not likely mortal. What is known is that sometimes, on rare occasions, when the spirits of the dead ancestors of the Theissiesc or other Keltar are summoned to battle as all Keltar cultures do on occasion, sometimes Keltar show up who no one recognizes as belonging to any recognizable culture, and some are shaped barely resembling humans, though their souls certainly are, which is often put down to the influence of having lived deep underground for ages, though again this is only speculation. These underground kingdoms are often classified as "labyrinthian", even though there are some that are known to rule themselves entirely separate and are not connected to the Labyrinthian nexus, and some live in underground areas connected to the surface by winding tunnels connecting to other parts of the surface world, though where these tunnels lead to and where these underground kingdoms lie under in relation to the surface world is not even guessed at.

Alternative Names

Labyrinthine, the Labrinthine, the Deeps, the Underground Kingdoms, the Underground Vampires, the Pale Men

Demonym

Labyrinthine, Labrinthian, Deep-dweller, Pale Ones