History: the delviian race

Among the various races of the world, the delviian (dell – vee – ehn) race is perhaps the most peculiar. It soared above all other races in its vast knowledge and technology. It went from a population of just over two billion to just two individuals in less than a year. It is now almost entirely enslaved by men.

Most Like:
delviians look very similar to men. They do grow to be a shorter height than men, and most delviians are covered in brutal scars.

Fast Facts:

• The word delviian always remains lowercase and uncapitalized. This is required by all delviian slave-owners.
• The hearing of a delviian is so spectacular, they can hear a butterfly flapping its wings a quarter-mile away.
• The skin of a delviian is such that it recovers from minor wounds in seconds, healing right before your eyes.
• delviians know how to navigate by the stars by age five, and at seven years of age they can speak Elvish, Dwarvish, Human, Aeirry , and the old delviian tongue.

Short Description: The most intelligent race in the world.

(hi)story:
The story of the delviian race lies among the most sorrowful tales.

Before its decline, the delviian race had little to no contact with the outside world. It sustained itself in all manner of living: food, transportation, culture, and education. At the start of 1 [b.e.] (the year the delviians use to mark their defeat), the race had a large change that affected them for the rest of their existence.

It was at the entrance of the new year now christened 1 [b.e.] that the Air Dragons started their failed conquest of the world. These dragons had been sleeping since the world’s beginning. Unbeknownst to the delviian race, the large, dark labyrinth of the Air Dragon’s domain lay just fifty miles off the coast of Delvay; it was not coincidence, then, that Delvay became a prime target.

The dragon attacks devastated the unprepared delviians, who had set up defenses mainly for ground or sea attacks. The only survivors, who lived on the southwestern coast, fled in five large ships. To this day, Delvay has yet to be seen by any delviian again.

While enroot, the small fleet sank in the midst of a great maelstrom. Four passengers managed to stave off the angry whirlpool, launching out into the open sea in two small lifeboats. By the time they reached land, only two remained alive; what food that had been salvaged disappeared during the long weeks they were adrift.

Fate cast his hand into the plot then, for the survivors were male and female, soon to become a couple, then a set of parents. They had been living near the shore for a year, hoping that others had lived through the maelstrom. Eventually they despaired and turned inland.

An unmapped land (as of now) named Altavia was famous for its slave-trade. It sent out parties of scouts who raided homes, villages, and even nurseries, all in search of potential profit from human trafficking. The miserable delviians encountered upon one such scouting party. They were quickly captured, bound inside of wagons, and carted the long miles back to Altavia. On the way, the delviians were given less food than they had eaten on the ocean.

When they arrived, a merchant party bought them. The delviians made a large mistake of telling their new masters of Delvay. Since delviians are so human-like, up until this point their captors had thought that they were dealing with other men. So, upon learning that they owned the entire body of a newly discovered species, the merchants immediately set out to find a way to enslave all of the parents’ offspring. They stole the child from its mother, and promised the bereaved parents that they would never see the infant again until they signed a promise. The parents, overcome by grief, signed the paper without even looking over it. When the baby was returned, the parents realized what they had done to their people. It was too late. delviians do not lie, nor do they go back on a promise.

After many years the race has been bred and dispersed to all human lands. However, individuals are still too expensive for a noncombatant to own; only the military has them in common use.