Day 1: General Stuff

From top left to bottom right:

• The Seal of Seven. Countless planets felt the effects of the near-reality-ending event known as the War of the Light, and this symbol represents the seven worlds that banded together towards the end. They gathered all their magic and resources to defeat what is now known as the Exiled One and end its reign of tyranny once and for all. The Seal of Seven became the official symbol for the alliance they created after the war. In the present day, every major building in sanctuary cities (more on those later) bears its mark.
• Attempt at creating an art noveau door #1. The outer / older parts of Vivariiium have a softer, more fanciful aesthetic than the bustling metropolis at its center. Honestly I have no Idea where I was going with this one.
• Attempt at creating an art noveau door #2. This one I had more of an idea of what I wanted to go with it. They're double doors with solar panel glass framed by fancy metalwork.
• Attempt at drawing an actual building. A reeeally quick mockup of what the embassy in Vivariiium would look like.
• Keyshia Fields. Most likely the main character. Born on Earth, but then her human dad died and her fae mom jumped in after 16 years of radio silence and whisked her away to the fae realm. When some ancient evil kidnapped her mom and put her betrothed in a coma some years later, Keyshia was booted back to Earth by her elders in an effort to protect her.
• The Superlumen (last two sketches). One of the main ways to get from one planet to another. The Superlumen refers to both the portal arc (that relies on quantum magic to work) and the bullet train that ferries its passengers from world to world.

Day 2: Sanctuary Cities and the Exiled One

Sanctuary cities are named so because they were often the last bastion of safety and peace people had once the Exiled One made its way to their planet. Sanctuary cities all have some magical defense that kicks in when they come under fire, like conjuring a giant shield (like in the sketch), or phasing out of existence for a short time, or summoning a super-powerful being to beat the danger back.

People living in the cities weren’t completely safe from the Exiled One’s assaults, however. If it couldn’t murder them, it was perfectly happy haunting their dreams and torturing them with visions of their deaths. The mannequin-looking thing in the picture is how it usually appeared in these visions.

…Rounding off the page with a cute moth girl that works in / around the embassies.

Day 3: Plants

Plants are in every nook and cranny in Vivariiium. In businesses, on the streets, in the train stations… Plants hold a good bit of power, and most people keep them around for their magical effects, if nothing else. As a result, Vivariiium is absolutely stunning in the spring, and tourism goes way up in the warmer months.

(As a downside, pollen. Pollen is everywhere. There’s allergy med vendors on every other corner.)

Day 4: Keyshia Fields

Keyshia Fields is a human / faerie hybrid that’s just moved to Vivariiium. She’s a bright, compassionate, optimistic young woman who ends up working as a holistic healer out of her home.

If / when I ever start writing that webnovel, Keyshia’s going to be the POV character. The story will follow her as she immigrates to Vivariiium and readjusts to Earth life after being away for so long.

Day 5: Keyshia Fields (Part 2)

I was hoping to go into her history on this post, but upon starting this page I realized it needs a good bit of reworking, so ya’ll are just gonna get some tidbits until I can fix it

• She’s physically 23-ish, but she stayed in the Fae realm for a couple of years and time passes more slowly there than on Earth, so she’s significantly older than she looks
• Can manifest faerie wings on her back. They look like see-through butterfly wings. She barely uses them.
• She can control any plant in her immediate area, and can magically grow any plant she comes in contact with.
• Has healing powers; whenever she activates them spectral vines wraps around the injured area and stay there until the injury heals or she calls it off.
• Apple blossoms bloom in her hair when she’s happy.
• Wears her engagement ring (bottom left) on a chain around her neck.
• (I’m trying to decide whether or not to include soulmate marks in this setting, but if I do, that flower with the heart in the middle is probably what hers is gonna look like.)

Day 6: Cordelia Nejem

Cordelia Nejem is a therian (this setting’s equivalent to werewolves / animal shapeshifters) who’s lived in Vivariiium for about 50 or 60 years. She’s a snide, sarcastic smoothtalker that works odd jobs in the city to supplement her disability; her favorite job is as a bouncer at a rock / metal club.

Cordelia will most likely be the secondary main character. The plan is to have her meet Keyshia at some point (most likely through Keyshia’s healer business) and act as her guide through the city. They’ll also become friends – veeeery slowly.

Day 7: Cordelia Nejem (Part 2)

Cordelia is a former adventurer who moved to the city in hopes of putting that stuff behind her. She doesn’t remember anything before she was turned into a therian, and she wandered around until she ran into an adventuring party that took her in. That gets fucked when the party ends up killing a Peacekeeper, one of the Exiled One’s most devout followers. In response, the Peacekeepers murdered nearly the entire party, with only Cordelia and one other person surviving the attack. The pair then when on a revenge mission, obliterating the Peacekeepers’ network and killing most of their leaders in the area. The pair then went their separate ways, with Cordelia dropping off the map for a few decades before resurfacing in Vivariiium.

And now for some tidbits!

• Her animal form is based on a melanistic African leopard.
• In this setting, therians can transform under any moon phase, and the phase a person is born / turned under determines what secondary power they get. Cordelia transforms under the new moon, and she can regenerate from most injuries insanely fast.
• She has three tattoos:
  • A scroll tattoo on her right arm (bottom right)
  • A tattoo of the Big Dipper on her left arm (in the middle; this was something else in the other picture but i changed it)
  • A vaguely geometric symbol on her back (middle-ish right)
• The only spell Cordelia has used, can use, and probably will ever be able to use is a summon item spell. Cordelia puts the symbol on her back on most items she owns, and she can use that symbol to teleport any of those items to her location.

Day 8 + 9: NPCs

Jacqui Sparks, urban explorer and borderline conspiracy theorist, is a human that’s lived in Vivariiium for ~5 years. They’re a standoffish loner who doesn’t take no for an answer. They stay with their draconic grandparent above xer restaurant. They may end up being a main character. I haven’t decided yet.

Hanamori Reika, aspiring adventurer, is an anifel (basically a kemonomimi) that’s native to Vivariiium. She’s an overly-friendly ball of sunshine and can brighten any room. She lives in the same apartment building as Cordelia.

Day 10 + 11: The Fae

In ancient texts, the Fae are described as “forces of nature given humanoid form”. They are near-literal embodiments of the elements and are said to be the progenitors of most of the magic on Earth.

During the War of the Light, the Fae squirelled themselves away in their self-made Realm, sitting most of the conflict out. When the Exiled One was finally defeated and the remaining deities started repairing what was left of the universe, the Fae learned that – thanks to the deities rewriting the laws of magic – that many of their non-elemental powers would be nerfed or taken away altogether. This caused a rift among the Fae: those who were okay with the reworking if it meant they could return to Earth unmolested, and those who were incensed that they’d be losing some of their most powerful abilities. When all was said and done, most of the Fae left the Realm. Only a select few chose to stay, allowing them to keep all of their abilities.

Pictured above are two water Fae. The one on the left is a Terran Fae, a descendant of the Fae that left for Earth. They’re about as tall as humans when they reach adulthood, and they live for about 500 years. Their wings are made of pure magic and they are often translucent. Their “hair” is a manifestation of their element – a fire Fae’s scalp would be aflame, and an air Fae’s head would be covered in clouds. Terran Fae also have markings that are evocative of their element; the markings of the one above are suppossed to mimic waves crashing on the shore.

The Fae on the right, on the other hand, is known as a Court Fae. They are descended from the Fae that chose to forsake Earth and stay in the Realm. However, due to the now-decaying nature of the Realm, their bodies have begun to morph into something more alien. Whereas the colors on a Terran Fae are bright and saturated, a Court Fae’s coloration is more likely to be dull and muted. Their “hair” is longer than their terrestial cousins, and their wings are fully composed of their element as well. The Court Fae eschew elemental markings in favor of a random part of their body (usually a limb or their torso) being fully composed of their element. Their souls also have an unusual property: they solidify and crystallize as the fae grow older, forming something like a jewel that eventually settles on their forehead, chest, or stomach.

(For the record, Keyshia is part Court Fae. Which means I’ll need to tweak her design. Again. Arrrrrgh.)

Day 12: The Fae (Part 2)

A bigger sketch of that Court Fae from yesterday.

The Court Fae struggle with going anywhere that's not the Realm. With the magic holding it together decaying, the Realm is on its last legs. This renders any spell needing a large amount of magic (like a portal or a summoning) absolutely useless as they will backfire horribly no matter what you do, effectively stranding the Fae in the Realm.

It’s possible for a Court Fae to find a way around this problem and leave the Realm, but then they’d run headlong into another one. Realm magic is toxic as hell, but Court Fae have gotten used to it over generations. Going to Earth or any planet / plane of existence with a healthy magic flow would be such a shock to their system that they’d die within a few minutes after arriving.

Anifel and therians are getting the spotlight next!

Day 13 + 14 + 15: Anifel

(content warning for talk of slavery and a mention of sexual slavery. let me know if i need to warn for anything else. also the names of the types of anifel are placeholder names. i’ll probably end up changing them later.)

Anifel is a catch-all term for the descendants of the slave race created and maintained by more powerful races before and during the War of the Light.

The first recorded instance of a successful specimen resides in the journal of an otherwise-unremarkable biology mage sponsored by a demonic noble. From there, knowledge of anifel creation was expanded and refined, and anifel were soon being traded to other powerful races such as angels, elves, dragons, and the Fae. When the War of the Light reached Earth, the anifel trade exploded. Some races started using anifel to supplement their workforce while their own went to war. Others used them as cannon fodder in their armies, unwilling to sacrifice their own in a conflict that they thought – from their perspective – would be over quickly.

Centuries after the initial experiments, the anifel race is a thriving, fully-recognized sapient race that can be found in almost every sanctuary city on Earth. There are three types of anifel:

• Light anifel, who have animal ears and tails but are otherwise humanoid. Their ancestors were usually house slaves, whether they were assigned to the kitchen or the bedroom. They stayed on the property, catering to their masters’ whims and wishes.
• Medium anifel, who have the top half of a humanoid, and the lower half of the back of an animal. They used to be the slaves that did the more labor-intensive work tilling the field and doing odd jobs for their owners at and away from the manor. They were also used as padding for the workforce in factories in areas that had such facilities.
• Heavy anifel, who have a humanoid top half, and the entire torso and lower body of an animal serving as their lower half. These were almost always military thralls, or the guard / attack animal of a particularly powerful member of the ruling class.

Anifel are a hardy and healthy race, and enjoy a 120-year lifespan. Most anifel are mammals and birds, although there are a few reptile and amphibian anifel out there. Their eyes and hair can be any color under the sun, but their animal coverings are very close to the colors and patterns that occur in nature, even though they may be more saturated. Their body tends to have patterns and markings reminiscent of their fur / feather / scale pattern, which manifests as darker patches of skin. Their pupils mimic the pupils of the animals they’re based on – for example, a domestic cat anifel would have slitted pupils, a goat or sheep anifel would have rectangular pupils, and so on.

Day 16: Keyshia Fields (Part 3)

Keyshia is part Court Fae, but the combination of being part human and growing up on Earth has made her develop more like a Terran Fae. She has markings and energy-based wings, but her markings are sparse and small, and her wings have noticable leaf vein patterns. The only definite Court Fae trait she has is the soul crystal on her chest, but it’s tiny compared to anyone else’s.

Her Fae development stops dead in its tracks once she’s taken to the Realm. Her body had to divert most of its energy to keep itself healthy against the corruption and decay she found herself surrounded by.

Day 17: Therians

While I finish the write-up for the therians themselves, I figure I’d share this chart of their powers. Therians transform on the moon phase they were born / turned under, and their moon phase determines what psychic power they get. Just in case anyone can’t read my handwriting:

• New moons and waxing crescents get astral projection.
• First quarters and waxing gibbous moons get telepathy.
• Full moons and waning gibbous moons get empathy.
• Last quarters and waning crescents get precognition.
• And void of course moons (more on those later) get a screwed-up version of all of those, turning them into reality warpers.

Day 18 + 19: Therians (Part 2)

How the therian race came to be is nigh-impossible to track. Every culture, geographical area, and time period seem to have their own creation myth for them. If you ask five people from the same pack about their creation myth, you will get seven wildly varying answers. This has helped the therian race be seen as simultaneously one of the most storied and one of the most mysterious races on Earth.

Therians are this setting’s werewolves, except the animal form can be based on any mammalian predator. The animal form is almost always taller than the humanoid form. Its fur mimics the patterns and colors of the animal it’s inspired by, and they have a mane that mimics the humanoid form’s hair. A therian in humanoid form can be told apart from an actual human easily – their gold or silver eyes with slit pupils will give them away. Born therians can be told apart from someone that was turned into one in a similar way. A turned therian will have a giant bite mark scar somewhere on their body (usually on their arms or legs), embossed with gold or silver to match their eyes. A born therian has no such mark.

Therians enjoy heightened senses, enhanced agility and speed, and – most impressively – potent psychic abilities. They have always been sought out for these qualities, but when the War of the Light went into high gear, they were straight-up hunted for them. Larger, older packs saw this coming and managed to drop off the map, leaving younger packs and standalone families vulnerable to constant harassment and attacks.

Attempts to enslave therians did not go well. Isolate a therian from their pack and their psychic powers become unstable and turn on their user, making the therian a dangerous liability. Put too many therians together and no matter what species they are or what pack they came from, they will move heaven and earth to get free (this is how a lot of slave revolts started – there is at least one therian- and anifel-specific holiday commemorating just how badly an enslavement attempt went).

In present day, individual therians and families trickle into the sanctuary cities, but most packs decline their help and influence. The Starveil pack of Vivariiium buck this trend – their territory isn’t formally a part of the city, but Vivariiium includes the pack in their census and the pack extends their hospitality to Vivariiium’s citizens.

Day 20: Therians (Part 3)

Therians are one of the hardiest mortal races on Earth, but they are also the most vulnerable to magical corruption. When a therian’s psychic power becomes uncontrollable and turns on its user, they become a void moon, a creature capable of ripping holes in reality.

There’s two main ways to make a therian go void:

• Screw up the Turning ritual. This method only works with people of other races looking to turn into therians. In astrology, there is a concept called void of course. Put very simply, it is when the moon exits one sign, but has yet to make it to the next. This dead space between signs is marked by stagnation, instability, and unpredictability, and can last anywhere from a few seconds to three days. In theory, messing with the timing of the Turning ritual so that it starts or ends in a void of course would be the simplest way of producing a void moon, as psychic energy during that time would be primed for malfunction and backlash. In practice, the elders of the pack and anyone in charge of the ritual would be keeping track of the moon’s signs specifically to avoid something like this.
• Isolate the therian. This will work for any therian. Therians need to be sociable and be around their pack, especially when they’re young and / or freshly Turned. Separating a therian from their pack and support system will cause their moods to tank and their minds to break down. The longer they are isolated, the quicker the breakdown will occur, and the quicker their powers will go haywire.

A void moon loses access to their humanoid form, and their animal form will be twisted and deformed into something eldritch and alien. It is possible for a therian to come back from this state, but the prognosis will not look good.

Bonus: a bunch of cordelias

drew this to tweak her design... but mostly to get a handle on her hair. it kiiiiinda got out of hand

(so this was supposed to be the last art i did for artslam – but i missed the deadline for it i didn’t even do a thing for every day like i was supposed to orz)