"Where brilliance is good and madness is better..."
Helovia Info
Helovia opened in February 2012! We are an active fantasy equine RPG
Where once the world narrowed into naught but gray dust and desolation, the gods called for life. Wielding the elements of fire and light, dark and wind, earth and water, spark and time, they have created Helovia. The realm is set within the mythical globe of Loorien, a planet rich with all variety of creatures and blessed with all manner of magic. Originally populated by nomadic, tribal characters, they've since grown into massive empires saturated with culture and history. Separated into four distinct segments of Helovia, called "The Regions," each band of horse strong enough and capable enough, took up the power and responsibility of leadership. Unicorns, old, wise and mysterious, took to the north, hidden in forests of mists and shadows and rarely making themselves known beyond their cliffs of the World's Edge. Equines, vast, organized and militaristic, split into two, one group went north to the Windtossed Foothills and the other group went south to the Dragon's Throat. Pegasus remained nomadic, making their homes in various parts of The Wilds in a migratory manner. For many generations, the land was peaceful and calm, but peace was never the way of the gods. With a clash of argument, war and bloodshed massacred Helovia, and in the aftermath, the realm was eerily quiet. Now, as newcomers sweep into this land, they are met with the lingering bitterness of the gods and the struggle to reclaim what was lost. Nothing remains safe or certain while sorcerers and soldiers alike brood and bide their time for revenge, honor and glory.
Site Wide Plots
Kaos :: The Beginning of the End ☼ - 6/2017 - Kaos placed Helovia in a time-bubble for a short period of time, but the Helovian gods are fighting back. But Kaos is powerful- far more powerful than anyone thought. This may be the beginning of the end of Helovia as we know it.
Kisamoa :: A New Kind of Kaos ☼ - 3/2017 - Kisamoa asks Helovians to help him restore the Spectral Marsh. Which side will you choose?
Invasions :: All Out War ☼ - 5/2/16 - New layout and the brand new invasion rules are up! Thank you for your patience and we look forward to getting started with this new adventure.
The Rift :: Gods Do Die ☼ - 8/2015 - Helovia Gods are saving the Rift from corrupt gods! Can Helovians band together against these foreign deities?
The Literal Ship ☼ - 2/8/15 - Oh no! You have to pair up for Valentine's day!
Sky Island :: Murder ☼ - 10/25/14 - Vesta has been found dead on the island, and the gods have called to you to solve the murder!
Sky Island :: Peace ☼ - 7/7/14 - An island has appeared in the sky! Clouds carry Helovians from the Veins to the sky.
Restoration :: We Welcome the Dawn ☼ - 9/21/13 - The sun has finally risen on this day, giving the land new light, but the Time God and the Sun God have yet to be seen.
Endless Night :: Broken Magic Plot ☼ - 8/30/13 - The earth god has returned and is walking across Helovia to heal the land. Every area can now be considered lush and prosperous, but the sun has still not risen.
☼ - 7/19/13 - The moon has risen in the sky, heralding the return of the Goddess of the moon. Lamp trees which light the paths have grown brighter, moon flowers which grow in dark places have begun to grow and prosper and the world is brighter, filled with a new hope.
Endless Night :: Dead Magic Plot ☼ - 6/22/13 - The gods of Helovia, in order to protect the world, have disappeared into the rift, leaving the world sunless, moonless and magic-less in their absence. Only the herdlands have a source of light, but lamp-trees with glowing leaves and branches sporadically line the popular roads and paths from place to place.
Doppleganger Plot ☼ - 6/20/13 - The God of Time is still struggling to close the rift though which the dopplegangers have come. He has requested that his brothers and sister assist in closing this hole, but without knowing why it opened, the task is proving difficult. Magic still remains faulty and hard to control, but the herdlands continue to be places of refuge for those who are fortunate enough to call these lands home.
ORANGEMOON cools off the lands with a a viscious force. Colder than normal, a sign of things to come during Frostfall, Helovia is bathed in a rich tropical lushness - albiet a cold one. The coastlines of the Dragon's Throat are pelted constantly by tidal waves, and the desert climate is humid but chilly. Ice begins to form early in the Aurora Basin leaving the winding trails slick and dangerous. The mists of the World's Edge coat everything in a glistening crystalline shine which encourages mould to grow everywhere. The Spectral Marsh is the only area which remains fertile, blissfully temperature and lush.
Cotm
Character of the Month for
June, 2017
WEAVER, Corporal of the Aurora Basin, is a relatively recent addition to Helovia and has taken it by storm. Branded with the seal of Death on her chest, intrigue and interest follow both her past and present. Though she is assuredly beautiful, her sometimes sharp personality reveals that there is more to this uni-peg hybrid than meets the eye. Proving herself able on the battlefield in the Basin’s warrior ranks, we can’t wait to see her test her mettle against the looming Kaos happenings! Congratulations!
Helovia RPG was created by Tamme and Blu and coded by Tamme also known as Schwartze. All coding, palettes and imagery are copyrighted to the website and are not for use outside of Helovia. Thank you to our ServerMaster for hosting Helovia. A special thanks goes to Neo for all of her coding help and fixing Tamme's errors, Boom, for her loyal service and creation of the Time God, and to Ali for her consistent contributions and dedication.
There is a dragon in the meeting space, and Fire Dancer cannot help but believe it to be Mirage.
It must be her, her likeness, her memory, etched forever in fragile glass. Spotted once during a gathering of the herd, the statue is remarkably prevalent in her mind. The girl has thought often and little about that dragon; it lurks, relentless, in the back of her mind, but it is a thread she is reluctant to pursue, a rabbit hole she fears traveling down. So have passed the days, the weeks- with denial and uncertainty, a false belief that if she ignores the history that binds her to this place, perhaps she can build herself anew.
This is not the case. The greater her aspiration to forget, the larger her lineage's presence becomes in her mind, until it becomes so great, so significant, that she cannot disregard it. And so at noon she slips away, her brother riding high upon her rump, her body a ray of sunlight between the misty trees, her heart thundering in her ears. She will face it today, Fire Dancer has decided; she will at last acknowledge the presence of her aunt, the influence of the DragonHeart which prevails through this land.
Except... it's small. As the girl reaches her destination her thundering heart begins to still, incredulity marking her moon-slashed face. The statue, the dragon, the creature of her dreams... it is small, insignificant, a brittle thing that barely reaches her breast, a meaningless totem, a lie. Slower now, reluctant, the pair approach, copper child peering through the braid of her forelock, shadow brother staring with alert golden gaze. It could still be her, he suggests softly- but that's the problem, is it not? All this time Tandavi has been trying to avoid the remnants of her family within this land.
But maybe this is all that's left of them, in the end.
The thought is devastating; she is crushed by it, far more than she should be, but who can blame the child? She came here hoping to find herself, to regrow roots long since neglected, only to find that new life has grown over them- that she truly is all that remains. Her mother is gone; her uncles are lost; her cousins are missing; her aunt is dead, and all that remains is a glittering statue, a poor simulacrum, a half-forgotten dream.
With shuddering breaths the girl steps forward, approaching the statue, moon-slashed head bowed; she presses her face against its cool surface, a grimace marring her delicate features, and sighs.
"It's okay, Maasi," the Fire Dancer murmurs. "I remember. I'll never forget."
________________________________________________
Open! Tandavi wants to give a history lesson on Mirage and the Qian
There is a color that shines through your skin
And the smoke filled you up
Like the moon on the wind
Isopia and her two dragons, had been sleeping in a nearby tree.
The demi-goddess was cloaked in her raven-form, and so was much, much smaller. Even her newborn dragon companion was larger than she was in this body. The trio of black, bronze, and gold, were nestled together, deep in sleep. However at the sound of Tandavi's voice, Babel awoke, immediately identifying the kitsune as food. This thought immediately roused Hubris who explained that companions were friends and not food, but this did little to dissuade the gold. Finally Isopia awoke, and, ignoring the argument between the two dragons, instead peered down at the golden mare standing before the statue.
Isopia opened her beak, and tried to cough so that Tandavi would be alerted to her presence and would stop whatever personal monologue she was about to begin. It wasn't fair to think you were alone, when you really weren't, and Isopia who put a high price on privacy, would not rob others of it.
"Did you want us to go?" She asked, and though it was through the mouth of a raven that she spoke, her voice remained the same as it always had. Many knew her in this form, and so she assumed Tandavi would recognize her as well. That and the deathly-markings that adorned her avian face were more or less of a giveaway. And she was the only one in Helovia with two royal companions. For Isopia, there was simply no hiding in anonymity anymore. She had nothing to do but embrace it.
If only remembering and forgetting were as easy as flicking a mental switch. Yael would trigger and splice the current so many times, there would likely be a fire, and then her whole brain would meltdown. Perhaps that’s what had happened? A sort of nuclear reaction to literally everything that happened right before. The end of before. Before here. Before time could be separated into three distinct eras of her life, before she woke up somedays wanting to stay in her dreams.
Her dreams have been alive, with days spent in itchy sking and a sense that there's been something stirring in her blood. Something making her dream of the golden, winged, great fire-breathing lizard she used to be. The one that turned a desert to glass to protect her daughter, the one that brainwashed and stole a Princess to protect her Kingdom, who spouted flames at wyverns and set a forest ablaze. Her nights are colored in flickers and glints, her days in a needling, pointed sense of something else.
But, like her dreams, the dragon statue stirred something in the little golden mare. Easy to miss, Yael is sure she must have walked past it’s vicinity several times until it practically tapped her on the shoulder. By the time the gilded mare realizes what is occupying her mind and makes her way to the figurine, two others are already there - well, a mare she doesn’t really recognize and - oh! It takes her a moment before she finds the familiar dragon in the trees, but the companion’s companion aren’t known to her. Except - the markings were Isopia’s. Well. Yael wouldn’t spoil her fun. Instead, she addresses the four of them, asking “Does eet seem to speak to you too?”
Maude had only been to the statue a few times, finding something about the glass dragon insidious. Perhaps it was just her imagination, a child’s mind elongating the fangs, and adding a snarl to the lines of its scaly maw which were not truly there, but it frightened her. Like anything which made her feel that way, the girl went out of her way to avoid the thing, unless she was asked there directly, or accidentally lost track in her wandering, and stumbled on it.
So it was today.
She is humming to herself (as she almost always is) preoccupied with the most elaborate concept she has contrived for a song yet, rather lost in rearranging words, and finding new lines. An homage to the Gods, it is a song she wishes to teach her mother, so that, maybe, they might sing it together in praise of them; though the girl has never gone with her dam on her morning meditations (and been allowed to stay, at least), she fancies the idea of one day getting to. Though she is aware she has a lot of growing up to do between then and now, the bouncy, cheerful child cannot help but come up with things to do, for the day when she can at last stand to stand in silence for so long.
Silence is easily found when she realizes where she has wound up, however, that old fright at the sight of the dragon statue rising up inside of her, all cold and hot at the same time, and she wants to backpedal away, except that there are other people here. Their company somehow makes the gaze of the dragon that much less severe, and, though her knees are still a bit wobbly, and she definitely doesn’t feel like humming anymore, the child is awfully curious, and finds herself making her way towards the gathered individuals.
Lots of them are dragons, she notes, looking up in the tree at the pretty, scaled creatures. She likes companion dragons well enough, despite her silly worry over the statue being somehow dangerous, and admires their handsome shine before her eyes fall, with a beaming smile, on Tandavi.
“Oh, hello again, miss Tandavi!” she cheerfully intones, coming to a stop alongside Yael (and offering her a sweet smile, too), not quite catching that the chestnut is quite somber this afternoon, to preoccupied with the purely bizarre number of dragons about, “what are we all doing?”
She asks, wondering, with a shudder, if the statue had moved or something.
& I know that God exists
’cause I’m holding her in my arms
She wants to stay here, uninterrupted, lost in her memories, reflecting upon her youth - but of course, the world has other ideas. Natraj sees the duo of dragons first, an uncharacteristic assembly that glimmers in the tree, observing through a collection of dark, intelligent eyes. Even the raven is far larger than the tiny fox. He paws at his sister, sending a mental message, an image of strangers, and the Fire Dancer sighs.
The glass is cool and soothing; she is loathe to raise her face from its embrace, but rise she does, black gaze seeking the trio of intruders. One of them is gold, and this catches the quiet mare off guard, fragile memories blurring behind her ears, familiarity burning like tears in her eyes. There is something familiar about the raven, too. Tingling sharply in the back of her mind, the girl feels some strange hostility toward it, though she cannot place why. The magic that coats it is green and sanguine, dusty and bronze. Why does it set her so keenly on edge? "Why do I know you?" she wants to ask. "What have I forgotten?"
Instead she answers: "No."
There are more, and the girl turns, embers dancing on her copper skin as she tries to reassemble her thoughts. A mare of gold, distantly recognized by her proximity to other healers in the herd meeting, her voice thickly accented (and again the child thinks of Mirage, the lilt of her voice and the hum of her songs) - "Yes," she answers quietly, soft surprise in her alto voice. "It tells me about the past. What does it say to you?" It seems she is not the only one moved by the diminutive statue; what does it mean to this stranger, she wonders? To the transformed raven who lurks in the trees?
The last to arrive is the pretty child she met in the fall; Fire Dancer smiles at Maude's cheerful greeting, the curve of her lips softening at last that severe facade, breaking through her quiet discomfort and igniting something warm within her breast. "Hello, Maude." The greeting is punctuated with a sharp bark from Natraj. The fox jumps gracefully from his sister's haunches, running to further address the child, as well as offering a bright, vulpine smile to the golden pegasus. He is the antithesis to her distance, the translation of a desire for closeness she cannot quite express. She watches him for a moment, her smile widening, her affect softening.
Then she glances back at the raven, and her shoulders grow tense.
What are we all doing? Maude asks, and before she can think about it the girl blurts back - "Remembering." It is a strange answer, but to the Fire Dancer it seems right; she nods as though to confirm the thought, letting her gaze drift back to the dragon, which seems to be looking at her, encouraging her to go on.
She swallows.
"Do you know who Mirage the Dragonheart is- was?" the girl corrects, a sharp stab of pain piercing her heart. "She was Queen here, many years ago, until she disappeared in the endless dark. She was the first equine to rule the Edge - before her, only unicorns were allowed to live here." The girl has heard this story so many times, it feels as though she lived it - and for some of it, she did. There is a wealth of history, a million tales, and all at once the Fire Dancer wishes to tell them, to share her memories, unburden herself of secrets.
The question is, do they want to know?
There is a color that shines through your skin
And the smoke filled you up
Like the moon on the wind
Isopia listens, keen of course to soak in anything that relates to Helovia's history. She has only ever heard whispers of Mirage...she knew the mare could transform into a dragon, and was she the first to have a royal dragon bonded to her soul? There was the war ... was it Mirage and her kin who had won, banishing the unicorns to the Basin? Fragments of stories that she had heard mixed with anecdotes and dissolved into mere legend, until Isopia had no idea what parts of what her mind was telling her were real, and which were only fantasy and fabrication.
Although a few others had gathered as well, given that she was high in the tree, safely wrapped in her raven's body, Isopia did not feel the desire to leave strong enough to actually do so. Besides, this was her home now, and she was making an effort to be less...less...well, less Isopiaish.
"I've only heard fragments. But I would hear more, if you know it." Isopia said, her beak clacking as it came together, oddly punctuating her words. Hubris too was interested, but Babel was not. Instead, the gold stared down at the kitsune, wondering what it might taste like, and why it had so many tails.
Laughing at Natraj’s jubilant greeting, the filly drops her nose to nuzzle and nip playfully at the kitsune’s soft black fur. She’d be happy to keep playing with him for the rest of the day, of course, but is also quite curious about why, exactly, they are all gathered about the glass dragon. So, when the answer that Tandavi gives everyone at last broaches the air, Maude finds that it’s not so difficult to look away from the cheerful fox-creature, to listen to whatever words come next.
Snuggling down in the grass, as she is apt to do during story-time (a rather common occurrence, when one is the daughter of a storyteller), the girl would welcome both Natraj and Yael to find a place with her, but is otherwise happy to simply listen. Tucking her knees up, and gently resting her chin in the nook between them on occasion, the girl is immediately enthralled with the subject.
She certainly had heard of Mirage, whom her mother shared bittersweet regards toward, having lived among those who had been booted from the wood by the former Queen. Everything Tandavi says lends truth to what her mother had told her, especially the most horrible of all: only unicorns were allowed to live here.
Sure, Maude was a unicorn, and so was her family, but what about Gawen, Vesper, and Mister Mesec? What about Miss Tandavi, and Miss Lyanna? Where would they live, if they couldn’t live here? And, most befuddling and hurtful of all to think about, why would their wings or absent horns cost them the chance to live in such a wonderful place, among such a wonderful family? How was that fair, or rational?
Stolen from her dark thoughts by a talking bird, the filly looks up at the tree with surprise and wonder, almost getting to her hooves to inspect the curious conundrum further. However, she manages to remain seated, but only barely so, moving her wide and exhilarated gaze back to Tandavi when she feels she’s admired the magic bird long enough.
“Yeah, me too,” Maude answers, using what Isopia has said as a lead, “what was she like? She certainly sounds like she was strong, and noble, a lot like King Tembovu.”
It had never really occurred to the growing healer that women could be warriors too. It was a bit naive of her, to be sure, considering that the head of the military in her very own homeland was a female, but the child had also never met a woman who could be deemed anything other than, well, ladylike, or at least been exposed to a side of them which didn't suit the youth's previous thought that girls did not fight. Completely enamored with the idea of a warrior Queen, the girl waits with a dreamy stare for information about the Dragonheart.
& I know that God exists
’cause I’m holding her in my arms
Maude comes trotting up, and Yael smiles to herself. She is such an inquisitive little girl, polite, and seems to be everywhere in that special way that children do; turn your back and the next instant, they’re halfway across the herdland, chasing fireflies or hopefully something else that is relatively harmless. But Tandavi (as Maude calls her) begins to speak, and the golden mare must chuckle a little before her response. “Ah, vould you believe me eef I said eet reminded me of my past too? A very deeferent vone, I’m sure.” She pauses briefly, tilting her head to one side. “Ah, but also a part of me I t’ink I xad forgotten. A strong part.” After all, it can be difficult to be seen as strong when so much of the world is measured by size, and not quality. Just ask any man.
Mirage…
The name is utterly without significance for Yael, except as it pertains to the mysteries of her former Desert.
The Dragonheart...
Now that makes her long, golden ears stand straight up, piquing in interest at her title (which is another question to ask, from someone who seems to know much about Helovia’s formative years). Though to be honest, anything to do with dragons seemed to immediately demand Yael’s attention these days. Like the other two - the raven and Maude - the golden pegasus is already drawn in to this tale of speciesism and the heroic Queen. ”Please. Do go on…” she adds, litled voice betraying a childish eagerness. Her wings ruffle as she settles herself in for the story, one leg cocked in relaxation.
It’s unnatural for the young woman to have settled along these rigid shores. To have made an effort to plant her roots here, after what had had happened to her family. It was in her blood and bones to keep moving on, to keep exploring the world for new and better pastures. The things they would witness across vast expanses...
A wistful sigh escapes the warrioress.
How things have changed.
Ru continues to walk amongst the grounds. Surprised to find new and novel things of the Edge with each passing stroll. But they are there, and everywhere – small treasures to be discovered, secrets to unravel in its expanse. Without a voice, it proves difficult trying to find someone with the patience to listen – to understand, and hopefully provide direction. Thus she is ignorant and naïve of the land’s history. Subject to listen most times, nod and shake her head. Perhaps by chance, she stumbled upon the group – a glass dragon statue and a bronze mare at the center of their attentions. A half moon marks her face.
Ru hesitates, slowing her pace and scanning their faces between murmurs. The crow wasn’t someone she could easily recognize, despite the facial markings. She did not know better – considering her limited knowledge on magic and its vast reaches. How strange it was to find that crow speaking to them, accompanied by two passive serpents.
Carefully the dunskin pegasi crept closer, enough to hear their words. Though not close enough to hopefully gain their attention. She wasn’t sure yet, if these were the types of meetings she could insert herself into. Despite the child that resided among them, they seemed to be acquainted already.
As quietly as she could be, Ru settled beside several trees. Leaning her head against the rough bark of one large trunk.
And catching Yael's familiar voice, reaching out with a; “Please. Do go on…”
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