Eslura
| Type | World |
|---|---|
| Ruler | The Sacred Head, with four Sacred Rulers |
| Notable sites | The Sacred City, Blighburrow, Ovallia, Zybersia, Galecrest |
| Notable inhabitants | Eslurians, Olphins, Trolls, Nelazgians |
| First appearance | Sacred: Eslura's Calling |
Eslura is a world of four elemental kingdoms, each governed by a Sacred Ruler bound to one of the four Sacred Books. The Books' energy is what sustains the land itself; should all four fail, Eslura dies with them.[1] At the centre of the four kingdoms stand the ruins of The Sacred City, once the capital where all four elements converged.
Eslura is reachable from Earth through a cave portal in the woods near Camp Tossbridge. It is by that route that Beatrice Tidal arrives, and is chosen as Sacred Head.
Geography
Eslura is an island continent. Its four kingdoms sit at the compass points of a broad interior, with the ruined Sacred City between them. Beyond the settled land lie the prison island of Morgaedion offshore, the canyon city of Varaar beneath the northern desert, the peak of Alakyer, and, across the water, the hostile territory of Veskadoth.
The Veskadoth Tunnel System is being dug beneath all of it. Every mapped line leads to the Sacred City.[2]
The four kingdoms
Blighburrow
Kingdom of Land. A city hidden under garden rooftops, in the shadow of the great tree Gewa. Ruled by Alistair Archibald.
Ovallia
Kingdom of Water. An oceanside city of marble and fishing docks, watched over by a lighthouse. Ruled by Lumikki Otsby.
Zybersia
Kingdom of Fire. A desert city of sandstone, now ransacked and largely abandoned. Its Ruler, Elmryn, was murdered.
Galecrest
Kingdom of Air. A silver city that floats in the clouds on chains. Ruled by Millennium Loftwind.
The two moons
Two moons cross Eslura's sky: one large and golden, one smaller and purple. When they eclipse, the golden covers the purple. That conjunction is the High Moon Festival, the only occasion on which Galecrest descends from the sky and The Council convenes.
Creation
A stone fell from the sky and was shared between the goddess Aezaros and the god Nelazgus. Aezaros used it to make the first five Eslurians. Nelazgus stole it and used it to make the Nelazgians in their image, but shaped by darkness and death.[3]
That stone is the Eyearke Stone, and it remains the most dangerous object in the world: it can create, manipulate life, and call up all four elements. The Sacred Head is its intended bearer, as the true descendant of Aezaros.
Government
Each kingdom keeps its Book in a Sacred Chamber, and each Ruler commands a Sacred Guard distinguished by the masks and colours of their kingdom. Above the four Rulers stands the Sacred Head, who holds authority over every Guard in Eslura.
The office had stood vacant since Amelia Lunala failed to cast Obellius Kalaar into oblivion, and was widely believed lost, until the five-fold symbol appeared on Beatrice Tidal's wrist.
Peoples
The Eslurians are the descendants of Aezaros's first five. Alongside them live the Olphins, a reclusive swamp people scattered after their kingdom at Treenode fell; the Trolls; and a great many talking beasts who hold office, run businesses, and command armies without remark. The Shifters were thought exterminated in the War of Shadows, though some survived.
The Nelazgians are not of Eslura's making. They are spreading across it.