A Place Untouched By Time
In the southeast of Ostenland lies Virginwood, a massive stretch of forest frozen in time. The Primeval Era may have passed long ago, but in the Virginwood, it lives on in defiance of the passage of time. Forever untamed by humankind, these woods are a time capsule, a refuge for ancient beasts of unmatched might. Giant, timeworn trees rise into the sky, overlooking the verdant horizon that stretches towards the shore. Lush vegetation overruns the forest floor, ensuring that only those adapted to the region's terrain can easily traverse it. Creatures once thought to be lost to time roam these woods, and many will kill intruders upon first sight. As the saying goes, by entering the Virginwood, you become part of it, one way or another.
The Lost Society
In 1923 1E, Nicholas Weidner, a renowned archeologist from Luet, led his team to the northern edge of Virginwood bordering San Cardel, where a huntsman reportedly found ruins. The team confirmed the existence of the reports once they saw the old moss-covered remains of a stone structure. Day by day, the archeological team uncovered more overgrown ruins in the woods, along with old tools and the remains of an old road leading out of the woods. As the excavation continued, workers began reporting that they would see unknown figures watching them from the woods. When they attempted to approach the mysterious figures, they would dart into the woods with inhuman speeds. Despite these sightings, they continued with their work until they found the remains of an old village overtaken by nature.
Since the beginning of the excavation, Nicholas Weidner and his team were under the belief that they had found a lost human society dating back to the Ancestral Era. However, one of Nicholas's associates had a different conclusion, that the village was in fact elven, and the original inhabitants had evolved into a new elf species and abandoned their old home to live among nature. Nicholas initially rejected this idea, though he began to reconsider it upon learning about more sightings of the mysterious figures in the woods. According to the workers' reports, the figures are lanky humanoid creatures with sharp facial features, horns, and digitigrade legs.
Unfortunately, the excavation was becoming too dangerous to continue, as workers had spotted the Virginwood's more hazardous denizens nearby. One worker died trying to escape from a sizeable feathered serpent known as the Piccupiente, while an unknown assailant ambushed another during the night. Chaos ensued when loud crashing sounds could be heard, followed by a booming roar that all for miles could feel. Much of Nicholas's and his team's work were lost in the mad rush to escape, leaving many artifacts of this lost society reclaimed by the Virginwood.
Garden of a Goddess
"Geweihte watches us from her garden and laughs at humanity's attempts to rule over the natural order. Mankind's day of reckoning will come, and there will be nothing left of us once it comes." - Erna, Holzlyth shaman.
Huddled on the edges of the Virginwood, the Holzlyth Cult chant their prayers to the Geweihte, the Antlered Goddess of nature. These cultists are in tune with the land, shunning the idea that humanity is above nature, instead choosing living in service to it. The great cities of Nostrinia are an insult to the world's natural order, an everlasting assault on Geweihte's vision. The Virginwood is Geweihte's domain, a great garden that she maintains and defends with the forest's beasts. They live close to their goddess, preparing for the Day of Reclamation, in which an ancient titan would rise from the sea and smite humankind for their arrogance.
Ismael of Golden Leaves
The elves of San Cardel tell the story of Ismael of the Golden Leaves, a man whose family had burned to death in a house fire. He was guilt-stricken, for he believed that his family could've saved them from the flames if only he had the courage to rescue them. His cowardice tormented Ismael, who entered the woods to pray to the High Will for penitence for letting his family die. According to the story, as Ismael continued to pray, a golden leaf slowly fell to the ground. He continued to pray as more golden leaves fell onto the environment around him, forming a circle around the praying elf. Slowly, flames began to burn within the circle; still, Ismael did not stop his prayer. The fire soon reached him and crept up his body, and still, he continued to pray. The flames engulfed his body, but Ismael did not scream in pain, for this was the penitence he prayed for had come. Soon, all that remained of the man was ash and a circle of golden leaves on the forest floor.
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