This story is an urban fantasy set in a dystopian world.
It begins in Virelia, one of the most developed countries. Virelia is divided into 14 districts, each separated by wealth, power, and status. Prestige rises as the numbers fall. For instance:
- District 1: Reserved for nobles, elites, and the powerful-clean, ordered, and near utopian.
- District 14: A decaying slum forgotten by governance-plagued by violence, broken infrastructure, and rampant desperation.
▪️Currency: Vey
Across Virelia and several neighboring countries, currency is measured in Vey.
▪️The Viran
Some individuals are born with an invisible tether to one of the five core elements:
Water • Air • Earth • Fire • Darkness
These people are called Viran.
▪️ The Affliction
Each core element inflicts a unique affliction upon the bearer-not as punishment, but as a side effect of resonance. The affliction is both physical and emotional.
▪️Power System
In this world, the stages of power are known by title.
Power Stages:
.Initiate
.Shaper
.Forger
.Veinborn
.Kyrios
.Hagios
.God (or something worse)
There are certain general conditions Virans need to meet in order to advance to the next stage of power.
Ranks:
Every stage beyond Initiate is ranked:
D → C → B → A → S → SS
Two Shapers may be worlds apart in strength based on rank alone.
Derivatives
A derivative is the unique, specialized form that a Viran's elemental power takes when it manifests.
Laws and Concepts:
A Viran's derivative grants a Viran command and power over a certain part of reality. Take, for instance, a Viran who may gain the Law of Gravity. He could invoke, change, and even rewrite this law. He could simply say, what goes up must never come down, and that is what becomes reality.
No two Virans can ever hold dominion over the same Law.
Resonant State:
When a Viran absorbs enough Vira (energy) to achieve deep resonance with their elemental affinity, they enter a trance-like condition called the Resonant State.
In this state, their soul is transported to a realm that is unique to them.
Resonant Arts:
Resonant Arts are elemental techniques unique to each Viran through their derivative.
Resonant Arts are divided into three ranks: Low-Tier, Mid-Tier, and High-Tier.
The Whisper Script:
The Whisper Script is a mystical grid or flowing stream of runes that only appears within a Resonant State meant to guide every Viran. It acts as a guide, helping Virans understand, shape, or advance their powers.
Counters:
These are abilities, techniques, or laws that directly negate, resist, or exploit the weaknesses of another Viran's power, whether through elemental opposition, environmental manipulation, conceptual interference, or overriding laws. For instance, someone whose derivative revolves around sound manipulation may seem nearly unstoppable in most cases, until they encounter a Viran whose derivative grants them control over the Law of Silence, allowing them to erase sound entirely within their domain.
Paths:
A Path is the soul's instinctive interpretation of its resonance with Vira.
Revealed the moment a Viran enters a Resonant State and sees their Whisper Script, a Path guides the form, style, and evolution of their techniques, shaping how their soul chooses to fight.
Some Paths manifest as objects, animals, or even abstracts. Others are far stranger.
——
Each stage of power represents a deeper resonance with the element. The power system leans toward cultivation. Techniques are developed by the Viran themselves and are powered by their reserves of Vira.
▪️Other Key Terms
Vira – Elemental energy drawn from the world, used to fuel a Viran's abilities.
Vessel – The inner construct where Vira is stored, refined, and circulated within a Viran.
VHQ - Viran headquarters. This is the central governing body that oversees all Viran activities. Within it are divisions dedicated to nearly every aspect of Viran life.
Aberrants- are beings with corrupted Vira that feed on Virans in order to survive.