Nelri Concept - III

Legend has it that during the reign of Phoenix King Ruzael the Dreamer, it was believed he gained the throne namely for his strong friendship to Rothelim the Farseer-- with whom Ruzael regarded as a sworn brother. Though despite this Ruzael's ascendance was actually prompted by the elder courts for his charisma and credibility among the Ailyrenai people. They dreamt of using him to restore their power and favour among them, and such was their vision ever since Rothelim came to power.

However, Ruzael had other plans. Because of his past with Rothelim, he was already aware of the corruption that plagued the elder courts. Yet at the same time he was increasingly concerned with their people’s future, given the rising threat of Ishian shapeshifters, who were integrating into every corner of nelri high society, without as much as a whisper. And his remedy for it was perhaps just as devious as their desire was in corrupting the nelri’s purest bloodlines with their own, as it was believed Ruzael called upon in secret the special services of a fenelan who served as his instrument in sniffing out the pretenders among them. Her skill, however, is what many scholars believe earned Ruzael his ‘Dreamer’ title, as the fenelan was a seer.

Ironically, despite her involvement, she was never named. Romantics far and wide for centuries have tried to deduce who she really was. Some say she might have been Ruzael’s half-sister, though this belief has been greatly forgotten in favour of the ideal that she was unrelated to him and was an unsung lover of his in the days he served as a general to one of Rothelim’s greater hosts. It is also believed she was the leading reason for his mysterious disappearance that lead to the elder courts crowning in his place Natharidel the Reserved as the third Phoenix King of Ailyrenai; a nelan who fulfilled what many expect Ruzael never became: the lover of Rothelim and Esha’s first daughter and later goddess of the nelri, Sehera.


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Anyhoo, after I drew: [link] , I wanted to capture its tone style in reverse; basically light skin and dark hair as opposed to dark skin and… yeah. And it worked out much better than I expected, even after nearly staking my comp through the heart for its inhumane rate of program stutter and freezing. Hence another reason in why I prefer drawing weapon concepts of late. For some reason it can handle them … save for the latest two, because I was drawing them at twice the scale of the norm. *sigh* Still, enjoy, and comments most welcome!

Artwork // Nelri // Lore - © Kristopher P. Love