Var'ik Decideous Forest Hills
History
Historical Overview
History by Age
Stone Age: Before 1E 0
Copper Age: 1E 1-1E 2200
Bronze Age: 1E 2200-1E 4400
Iron Age: 2E 0-2E 700
Ancient Age: 2E 700-2E 2200
Middle Ages: 3E 0-3E 2050
Early Modern Age: 3E 2050-3E 2600
Industrial Age: 3E 2600-3E 2700
Machine Age: 3E 2700-3E 2800
Atomic Age: 3E 2800-3E 2850
Space Age: 3E 2850-3E 2875
Information Age: 3E 2875-3E 2900
Genetic Age: 3E 2950-3E 3000
Awakening Age: 3E 3000-3E 3415
Twilight Age: 4E 0-4E 500
Geography
Var’ik Decideous Forest Hills is made up of three main geographical features. They can all be found in the name of the area. The forest part is rather obvious; the area is made up of forest. Forests in Var’ik are rather interesting, in fact. For instance, they only grow on the sides of the hills. Not a single tree can be found atop the hills, or in the valleys connecting them. Some of the forests grow only on the eastern side of the hill, while others grow all around the hill, engulfing it in a circular ring of trees. The forests are similar in composition, so the forests are all considered one, even though none of them actually connect in any one area.
They are a spectacular sight to see, however, as their growth patterns are very interesting and rare in the world. It is unconfirmed as to why they grow that way. The hills portion of Var’ik Decideous Forest Hills is truly a spectacular sight to see. The hills are what beckons travelers and passersby the most. Var’ik hills are on the larger side and can be seen some distance away from the borders of the area. Seeing those hills would make anyone mistake the area for a safe place; with its lovely multicolored trees and hills covered in a light fog. It just gives off an air of tranquility. They appear to offer a promise of safety and comfort.
In short, they most certainly do not. Another factor that makes the hills so beautiful is the mist and fog that is seen in the early hours for the mist, and periodically during the day for the fog. It gives the hills both a mysterious and also calm look. The final geographical feature found in the name is the “decideous” portion. Autumn reigns forever in the forest, a perpetual state of “fall” is all that exists season-wise. A passerby might take notice of the changing leaves if they were positive that the season of the region was spring, however, most take no note of it and just continue on their journeys.
The cause of this perpetual autumn came before the Sumas Kin'toni Clan, the kin’toni clan residing in the forest, had moved into the forest and made it their home. The corpses of the zu’aan tribe that had been slaughtered there are the sole cause of the decideous part of the name. The blood had soaked into the ground, and forever altered the chemistry of the soil. The water sources in the Var’ik area were also affected. This would cause some of the animal life to be affected, but the animals were not nearly as affected as the plant life in Var’ik. The flora and fauna all adopted a crimson look to them, and these red, even orange color, was now all that was found in the plants.
This fact was what caused deciduous to be added to the name of the Var’ik Forest Hills, and forever altered its geography.
Plants
In the Var’ik Decideous Forest Hills, one tree reigns supreme. The sar’ii tree is what it is called, and it makes up over 90 percent of the tree population in the Var’ik forest. This tree has two variants: the moon sar’ii and the sun sar'ii. The sun sar’ii was named after the sun as the trees only grow to the east, or where the sun rises and shines most brightly. The moon sar’ii was given its name as it grows following the lunar cycle. The two types are identical in appearance. They have light brown trunks that are not too thick, and big three-pointed leaves that grow all along the tree.
These leaves are multicolored: an overall red color, with dark green veins or stems that can be seen. Within the sun sar’ii is sap that at one point, was edible and quite sweet. After the mass poisoning of the land due to blood spillage, the sap had absorbed the blood, and this turned it into a rather toxic liquid. The sar’ii trees are really the only plant threat in the Var’ik forest. The other plants that are seen in the forest are rather mundane, and some are even safe to consume. The vin’urnmum bush berry is one of these plants. Vin’urnmum berries are bright red and grow in groups of three to one branch of the bush.
The bush itself is green and is abundant in berries. Vin’urnmum berries grow at throughout all points of the year, but the most growth occurs at night. During the day, the berry bush has been seen to close up, preventing the sun rays from touching the berries. Like the sap from the moon sar’ii tree, vin’urnmum berries are sought after by the natural wildlife. They are usually found accompanying the moon sar’ii and are found at the base of those trees. They grow year-round. The vin’urnmum bush is sometimes called the moon bush, due to its growth patterns and location.
Al’mum is a type of root vegetable that is native to Var’ik Decideous Forest Hills. The whole plant is edible, but the really tasty part grows under the ground. The above-ground portion resembles grass, just quite a bit longer than the grass that grows locally. This part of the plant has been described as being bitter, but ultimately rather good. The root is a dark red and tastes sweet. Al’mum is so fascinating because the part that is not exposed to the toxic soil is bitter, and the part that is exposed is sweeter. It is a small bulbous root and only grows about 3 inches below the dirt.
There is evidence that the zu’aan tribe that had once ventured into the forest had a local dish that was focused around the al’mum root. For that reason alone, it has been declared a delicacy of the region, as the kin’toni clan discovered that the al’mum root had absorbed a lot of blood, and could therefore be consumed by them.
Animals
Many animals inhabit the Var’ik Decideous Forest Hills. Just one of these creatures is the toty alba. Toty alba are birds of prey and feed mostly on the akith that scurry throughout the hills. These birds are about a foot tall with large faces. They have extremely sensitive hearing and amazing eyesight; this allows them to hunt the akith from high up in the skies. Adorning their large faces are small and stiff feathers that create a disk around their faces. Toty alba have light bodies fixed with large wings. They are covered in soft feathers which help keep their flying quiet.
On their feet are sharp talons. These talons help them catch their prey and kill them mid-flight. These birds do not go after large prey and leave most other creatures alone. Another animal that can be found in the Var’ik forest is the muv’edae. Muv’edae are medium-sized creatures that are covered in black and white fur. They are nocturnal creatures and live in burrows underground, or within sun sar'ii. Muv’edae have powerful jaws and large claws on their feet. This helps them build their underground burrows. They are omnivorous but choose to eat rodents over the local flora and fauna.
They are rather muscular creatures, even with their short necks and flat bodies. Muv’edae don’t weigh much, but they are still fearsome hunters. To rodents, of course. Out of all the animals, they repopulate the fastest in the forest. The babies only gestate for a few weeks, so this helps keep the muv’edae population up despite the poisoned water that flows in the Var’ik forest. Ikthvoi are probably the animal to be feared the most in the Var’ik Decideous Forest Hills. These creatures are four-legged predators. They travel and hunt in packs and are social creatures.
Ikthvoi are carnivores through and through, and live on a rather consistent muv’edae diet. They are quite large creatures and can rival an average kin’toni when it comes to height and hunting abilities. Due to their social nature, ikthvoi have developed a way to communicate. They howl to alert fellow members of their pack. These creatures are rather fascinating, but should ultimately be avoided. A more docile animal in the Var’ik forest is the ceruva. Ceruva have dark reddish fur on their backs and light red fur on their bellies. Male deers have larger antlers than their female counterparts. The females, however, have more branched antlers.
Ceruva aren’t large creatures, only a few feet tall. They mostly live atop the hills or in the valleys, and usually, avoid the forest part of Var’ik. While they do enjoy the sap of the moon sar'ii, it seems that ceruva have an instinct to avoid the trees, and therefore put more distance between them and the blood. Because of this, ceruva tend to live longer than the other forest animals. They are also the only creatures that can be seen from outside the forest hills by any travelers.
Historical Timeline of Ages
| Age Name | Dates | Controller |
|---|---|---|
| Stone Age | Before 1E 0 | Unknown |
| Copper Age | 1E 1–1E 2200 | Unknown |
| Bronze Age | 1E 2200–1E 4400 | Unknown |
| Iron Age | 2E 0–2E 700 | Unknown |
| Ancient Age | 2E 700–2E 2200 | Unknown |
| Middle Age | 3E 0–3E 2050 | Unknown |
| Early Modern Age | 3E 2050–3E 2600 | Unknown |
| Industrial Age | 3E 2600–3E 2700 | Unknown |
| Machine Age | 3E 2700–3E 2800 | Unknown |
| Atomic Age | 3E 2800–3E 2850 | Unknown |
| Space Age | 3E 2850–3E 2875 | Unknown |
| Information Age | 3E 2875–3E 2900 | Unknown |
| Genetic Age | 3E 2950–3E 3000 | Unknown |
| Awakening Age | 3E 3000–3E 3415 | Unknown |
| Twilight Age | 4E 0–4E 500 | Sumas Kin'toni Clan |
| Unknown | Unknown | Unknown |
| Unknown |
|
Unknown |
| Unknown | Unknown | Unknown |
This article is written by Vanessa Margo. Copyright 2026 Vanessa Margo. All rights reserved.