Meet The 4 Fantasy Creatures of Merora
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The continents of Merora and Jatrador and the wastelands to the north were plagued by terrifying fantasy creatures throughout their centuries-long histories.
The humans have now all but forgotten the persecution faced at the hands of such unnatural forces since they were all but driven from the major cities of the continents by the Grand Priest Uvren. But the supernatural danger was never completely extinguished.
Even though the Grand Priest taught the creatures to fear the daylight and the sigils of his people with deathly reverence, still they endured, forced into the shadows of the land.
Hunting on scraps and driven to the brink of extinction, the monsters of the night continued to pose a threat to the cities of mankind. Fortunately, there are those in the world who have not forgotten the legacy of the Grand Priest, and they stand strong, protecting the cities of man and keeping their citizens blissfully ignorant, for it is safer and easier that way.
But what creatures still lurk in the shadows of Merora and Jatrador? If the citizens knew, panic would consume…
Vampires
Vampires plagued the land of men during their formative years, but following the Grand Priest’s cleansing, they receded into the shadows.
The vampires of the continents have a dichotomy of humanity within them. Though they all share the curse of vampirism and the need to feed on the blood of the living in order to sustain their unnaturally youthful bodies, there are those who can control their animalistic instincts and those who succumb to their sanguine lust.
All vampires, however, possess great speed and enhanced strength.
For vampires on the continents, all have the desire to feast on the blood of the living, and nothing tastes sweeter than the ruby nectar that comes from mankind. However, those who give in to their desires begin to lose the humanity they had in life.
It is unknown why, but those who have lived a life feeding on humans become feral, deranged creatures, no longer recognisable as their former selves.
The librarians of the Order believe that in the world that was, the vampires were able to control their form while drinking human blood through magic now long lost, but like so many things in the current world, the truth has been lost, banished to the wastelands possibly never to be unearthed.
If a vampire so desires, they can feed on the blood of livestock and other animals to salvage the scraps of humanity that were left with when they were turned. These vampires are able to keep their mortal features, living in an eternal, youthful undeath.
The only betrayal of their form was their pale skin, unable to keep the pink complexion without blood pumping through their veins, and their elongated fangs to puncture their victim’s flesh. That and the fact that if anyone knows them for a prolonged period of time, they will not age at a normal pace, if at all.
Whereas the feral vampires will attack on instinct, lunging and raging in furious hunger, the vampires in control have a much higher degree of thought, able to use their minds as they had in life.
While sunlight does not directly harm a vampire, the feral vampires remember that daylight is when the hunters come calling. They’ve learned to fear it with a desperate rage over the centuries. Even the controlled vampires try to avoid the sunlight as it may lead to their pale skin betraying them. And the holy Order of the Brotherhood doesn’t make the distinction between controlled and feral vampires – they kill all on sight.
Because the in-control vampires can maintain their appearance and keep hold of shreds of their humanity, they are often able to live among humans amicably if they remain on a strict path and remain unfound.
There is a small guild of such vampires who have deemed it their responsibility to put their endless time to good use and to actively protect humans, mostly by keeping an eye on the mystical forces in the world that may fall into evil hands.
The best way to dispatch these fantasy creatures is to decapitate the head or burn the body. These are the only reliable ways to ensure the demonic creature remains dead.
The creatures are vulnerable to silver, which burns upon skin contact, and there are reportedly a number of magical items that can both hurt and kill vampires, but many have been lost over the centuries.
Werewolves
Werewolves are not as common as vampires on the continents, and they’re less able to control their animalistic form and urges. As such, they have been hunted more than vampires.
Werewolves are controlled by the cycles of the moon, their curse directly linked to the waxing and waning of their lunar controller. It is uncertain why those afflicted with lycanthropy are subjected to a celestial body, however. Many librarians of the Order have dedicated their lives to werewolf research, and they are still no closer to discovering the secrets of the species.
When they turn, werewolves take on the form of shaggy, muscular, humanoid wolves, their teeth and claws elongating, their muscles becoming sinewy and strong, capable of moving at ferocious speeds when on the hunt. There is not much in the world that can strike fear into a fully changed werewolf, and it takes several soldiers of the Order to deal with just one lone wolf that wanders too close to the city borders.
Werewolves are vulnerable to a number of herbs, including wolfsbane, which can weaken a transformed werewolf and even cause a change in some. But they are most affected by silver, which will burn their flesh in a worse manner than vampires. If their beating heart is punctured by silver, it will kill them painfully.
Werewolves do share something with their monstrous kin – they, too, possess a dichotomy of change. The werewolf is driven by the thrill of the hunt and the need to feast on flesh, yet, whereas the vampire loses its control the more it feeds on humans, the opposite happens within the lycanthrope community.
Those who give into their urge to hunt and kill, be it human or animal, over time begin to slake the primal lust of the hunt that resides within them. As a result, older and more aggressive werewolves can actually control when they change during the right lunar cycle and even extend when they can for short periods outside of the regular cycle, though this comes with considerable practice and control.
Revenants
The lands of Merora and Jatrador are filled with magical energy. Under the ground, the land pulses with dark magic ready to be tapped into. However, it is not something to be taken lightly, and those who have tried have often failed with deadly consequences.
Much of the old magic is now stored only in repositories of books, and there have not been tales of anyone practicing the dark arts in recent memory.
Those who take it upon themselves to indulge in necromantic practices often try to raise the dead for gain or protection.
These revenants are the reanimated corpses of great warriors or lowly peasants, and all have a pale, deathly look about them as they have literally risen from beyond the grave.
Revenants lack a degree of higher thought and are mindless creatures that loyally follow the necromancer who raised them to a fault. Despite their appearance, they are imbued with death magic that makes them deceptively strong and almost as feral as vampires or werewolves in their pursuit and attack of anyone deemed unlucky enough to have crossed the necromancer.
As a result, they tend to make loyal bodyguards for those who have the magical knowledge to control them.
For those who cannot keep control of the raised forms, the revenants will go into a kind of madness, unsure of why they have been woken. No longer driven by stronger willpower, they will lash out in a state of confusion and anger at anyone unfortunate to cross their path.
The only way to dispose of the revenant is to decapitate their head. The severance should be enough to break the magical bonds that rose the creature from its grave, but it’s often wise to burn the bodies too, as it is thought a powerful enough necromancer can sustain or even recreate the bonds that raised the revenant again.
Forces Beyond
With the existence of supernatural powers and magics able to raise the dead, it is no wonder that in the books of the old world, there is plenty of mention of spirits and other corporeal entities that can cause harm.
If the body of a fallen soldier can be raised from its grave, then it does stand to reason that the soldier’s soul could be brought back and controlled as well.
In the dusty tomes of magic that have remained hidden for an eon, it’s said that spirits could cross over from the death realm into the living, but it required an incredible amount of willpower and energy to help the spirits pierce the veil between the two worlds.
Whether the spirits of the fallen are the only entities that inhabit the realm of the dead is a more debated topic, as there were those long ago who believed that more powerful entities dwelt beyond the realm of the living and that with enough energy and will power, they could be summoned to the realm of the living.
Those beliefs have long since disappeared with the passing of time, but if they were correct, the entities that dwell there may not have…
Want to Know More About The Fantasy Creatures of Merora?
When The Dead Rise is the first book in the world-building series set in Merora. Follow Azerrad on his quest to save humanity from the evil fantasy creatures that hide in the shadows.
