Welcome to Permia
In the modern day, the humans and ferans still remain in a state of sporadic conflict. The most powerful human government is known as the Empire, with its capital, Sanctum, being located in the northern hemisphere, while the Council, an alliance of feran tribes, is located in the southern capital of Ashkar. The humans living in the Empire maintain a constant dependence on clockwork and steam-powered technology, including the all-important alchemy kits that allow certain humans to perform alchemy, while the ferans prefer to tame beasts to suit their purposes and train their mind and body in the spiritual arts.
The Red Moon in the sky above Permia shines its red light across the land on the night of the Moonglow. It is said that the souls of the damned travel there, where they leave their worldly sins before ascending to the heavenly plane of the Infinitum, origin of alchemy.
Isenbarr
A bucolic town that combines traditional charm with modern construction. Once an ancient fortress, it ceased to be a location of strategic importance long before Imperial unification and was left abandoned for centuries.
However, it was resettled in recent times as the Empire expanded to the northeast and became a hub for trade in the region. An airship departs monthly to Sanctum, but those who arrive here find it difficult to bear the extreme cold. The land remains as wild and inhospitable as always outside its walls.
The Empire
The Empire contains most of the human population of Permia, and rules from the Imperial capital of Sanctum, said to be an ancient clockwork machine of enormous magnitude. The ruler of the Empire and leader of the Church of Auris is the Divine Empress, though she lacks the influence of the other two tenets of the Imperial government, the High Court and the House of Nobles.
The Empire makes heavy use of mechanical devices known as "clockworks", powered by steam or alchemy. The storage of alchemic energy using the rare mineral aetherion is what has allowed the Empire's technology to flourish across the world, becoming an indispensable tool of traveling alchemists.
The Council
The feran populace prefers not to live under a central government, and instead is composed of tribes which follow different tenets. The major tribes are allied under a government known as the Council. Based in the ancient capital of Ashkar, the elders of the Council rival the Empire in their military strength and spiritual power.
Many ferans believe in an animistic religion, in which the elements of alchemy are manifested by beings known as the Spirits. However, the Church calls this blasphemy, as it suggests that the Goddess does not possess jurisdiction over all of alchemy. This difference in belief is only part of the reason that the Empire and the Council face longstanding tensions.
The Art of Alchemy
Alchemy has long been known as a means by which living creatures are able to manipulate the forces of nature through the use of elemental energy. Only a select few are able to channel this energy, and even less are willing to complete the intense training required to hone one’s mental focus and become an effective alchemist. The ability to become an alchemist is said to depend on environmental factors as well as heredity, but ferans have been known to be more attuned to the alchemic arts.
Due to their constantly changing nature, elemental energy contained within living beings cannot be harnessed easily. Therefore, alchemy often requires a “catalyst”, a material containing a large amount of energy, in order to manifest it through an alchemist’s body. Aetherion, a clear, brittle crystal of solidified aether, is often used as a means of storing the energy of a catalyst in an extremely compressed form. These crystals are in turn stored in vials, which an alchemist can then use to release the energy in a time of need. While expensive, they are a mainstay for alchemists everywhere.
A device known as an “alchemy kit” is often used by humans to transfer power from a catalyst into a crystal of aetherion or another device, while most ferans can perform such an act unassisted. While the energy can be released in a pinch, the presence of an alchemist amplifies it immensely.
Familiars
For an alchemist to fully manifest their power, they must possess a Familiar. Familiars are created when an alchemist performs a sacred ritual, binding their life to that of a creature. They are known to help ease the burden of manifesting alchemic power by sharing the consciousness of their master. However, humans and ferans are unable to become Familiars themselves, or the resulting clash of minds would undoubtedly result in death.
Alchemists without Familiars do exist, though they are extremely rare. They are known as the Unbound, and their mental states are highly unstable. For this reason, they are deemed a hazard to public safety lest they abuse their power, and are usually imprisoned by the Empire.
