Cryas Darkstalkers Cast Bits

Cryas Darkstalkers Cast Bits

So, I only really have designs for the characters I have shown via lore blogs. However, I already do have thoughts for many of the other cast. So rather than wait till I have designs to make longer lore blogs, I'll give brief snippets about how each have changed for the mythos and their general role.

Jon Talbain:

He is still a werewolf, born in the wilderness of the northern forests of the United Kingdom.

His father is still Baraba Kreutz, while his mother now has a name: Cathwulf Talbain. Cathwulf has a pet dog, an Airedale Terrier known as Norward.

He still has an ordeal of being unable to fully control his werewolf form. It is via the help of many of the years that he eventually can learn to control his Qi and control his bestial form.

He will have a fairly northern accent thanks to his mother.

He does learn martial arts from a Japanese master he finds in the mountains of the main European continent. The master does go by the name of Gallon.

He does eventually become friends with Felicia and becomes a relative mainstay in the Rose household from his travels. Their relationship is strictly platonic, despite Ramona making sly remarks about Jon being a fine man for her daughter.

Victor Von Gerdenheim:

Victor's 'birth' year is changed to 1831. No current month or date as of yet.

Honestly, aspects of his lore are inspired by the story he had from the Udon mythos. One of the very few things I can praise about those comics.

Professor Gerdenheim sees Emily and Victor as not only his creations, but also his children. He wishes to use his knowledge to further improve them, especially Emily since her 'heart' is defective compared to Victor's.

He and Emily both speak fluent Germen, but eventually learn English. Victor does tend to talk in the third person, but eventually learns to better improve his speech over the decades.

After the events of Victor and Emily's introduction into the mythos, their goals both involve making their father proud in their own ways. Victor wishes to get strong to help protect the village and his big sister from those who would cause harm. Emily wishes to follow in her father's footsteps to continue his research so that one day his studies could be fully realized and help the people.

Demitri Maximoff:

He is born in Makai.

He plays an antagonistic role, generally being a menace and nuisance to the various protagonists in the Cryas Darkstalkers mythos and eventually to even a few individuals from the Cryas Chronicles reality.

After his failed coup against Belial, he, his castle, and those in it were banished to Earth as a sign of humiliation and contempt for the vampire lord. Not only that, but the vampires who remained in Makai were under heavy watch.

However, there was another added thing in Cryas Darkstalkers. Belial cursed Demitri that so long as he lived, Demitri's power would always never be able to reach its full potential no matter how blood he consumed. Not only that, but he couldn't pass through the Gate to return to Makai.

With no knowledge of the curse, Demitri's time on Earth is spent trying to feebly regain his power and more to once again rechallenge Belial. However, he does seek to try and make a base of operation on Earth.

Despite not being at his full power, he still proves to be quite a powerful creature of the night.

His hatred of Belial extends to Morrigan. In essence, those who bear the family name of Aensland are his mortal enemies and must be crushed under his heel so he can take the throne and power of the ruler of Makai.

He does still have his harem of women. They are Patricia, Elizabeth, Francoise and Angelica. They are the ones that he gives the best treatment to in regard to their duties him compared to all his 'loyal' subjects.

His clothing is gonna be changed. Despite my desire to make fun of Demitri and see him as this dumb onion head, I will take him seriously enough in my mythos. Thus, no skintight clothing. It was and still is stupid looking.

Despite being a Makain by birth, I will likely try to design him with some sense of coding to a region on Earth. For exactly where, I still need to think about that.

While he does speak in a way to give a sense of regality to his mannerisms, he is not above going more brutish and animalistic in his tone when the time calls for it.

Zabel Zarock:

His birth year will be completely different to better match the idea of when he rose to stardom as a metal musician. For now, a current year of 1968 is in mind.

He is born in Australia, but this time will have an accent and speech mannerism to match that along with his cultural love of metal.

He becomes a zombie at a relatively young age, in his early 20s.

Despite the short time span of becoming a zombie, he amasses power at an unbelievable rate.

He begrudgingly works under Ozom, with Le Malta being Ozom's middleman to insure Zabel upholds his end of the bargain.

Despite Le Malta's initial role, he actually grows to have a good friendly, brother like relation to Zabel. Zabel does treat him like he would anybody else but does grow to like his company.

Lord Raptor was his stage name when he performed. He still goes by that name a lot during his concerts as a zombie and when out killing for souls. Only a few people are aware of his real name of Zabel Zarock.

NO, he and Hsien-Ko are not a couple in this mythos. However, I would like to give an idea of what I plan. This next bullet point will be longer, but I need to stress this very badly.

Upon his first encounter with the sisters in the brush of Australia, he merely saw Hsien-Ko as just another jobber out to kill him. A buzzkill basically. Despite being stronger than her, something about her willingness to keep fighting despite being badly injured and losing sparked something in his heart and mind. Her ferocious fighting spirit lit a flame in him that made him respect her and even grow to find this sheila as quite the catch. He would throw the battle to let her 'win' and eventually make his escape after teasing her with his honest answer as to why he allowed her to live and win. I want to explore the idea of his crush on Hsien-Ko being built on his respect for her after that first encounter. While the sisters clearly would want him dead since he is a murderous menace, the dude proves to be too slippery to fully kill. If anything, he basically likes to annoy her when he can come across Hsien-Ko. Not only to see her react but catch more glimpses of her.

Zabel is basically a chaotic antagonist. While he generally is a terrible individual, he is quite the goober with how he just lives by his own rules. However, there will be times where he does lend a hand to Hsien-Ko based on the circumstances. It is not often but does occur.

After his first encounter with the Shao sisters, he has no intention to harm or kill Hsien-Ko. By proxy, this is the same for Mei-Ling, but only because she is related to Hsien-Ko.

He wants to gain enough power to kill Ozom so he can be free from him and just go about living his undead life his own way. He does hope that maybe in time, perhaps he could even somehow get his sheila to aid him in killing Ozom.

Sasquatch:

His father is the leader of their tribe and is known as Tundra.

Their tribe is located in the artic regions of northern Canada.

The Bigfoot race once lived in Makai, but eventually left via a gate that no longer is active. The original location of the gate that brought their ancestors to this land is regarded as a sacred place and holds major cultural significance.

I am still uncertain how big of a character and role he will play in the overall mythos, but the sisters do encounter him and the Bigfoot during their travels through the North American continent.

Rikuo:

I'll be honest, I don't really have anything in mind. He will get a redesign and his people will live near the region of Brazil. But overall, the merkin and Rikuo play no major role. Just will do things to build the world and stuff.

Oh, I guess I will refer to his race as Merkin. I could say Merfolk, but I already refer to Felicia's race as Catfolk. So, want to spread things out with my vernacular.

Anakaris:

Same as Rikuo, but I do at least have a story event in mind with him. But again, he is a minor character in the grand scheme of things.

Likely, time travel will be eliminated from his lore since I do not want to deal with such story elements. But still, Anakaris will be quite the powerful pharaoh.

And yes, he still has commandments.

Okay, I think I will stop here for now. Just give you a taste of lore cast bits. I'll give some more at a later date. Feel free to ask any questions and I'll be happy to elaborate. 😉

OI-!

Aura- San! Writer to writer, light and darkness, two peas and a pie! Just wanna say happy spooky month!

Oh, hello there ole chap. Happy Month of the Spoops to you as well! 👻

Cryas Darkstalkers Cast Bits 2

Check this out to see some information regarding some of the other characters I discuss about:

With that said, time to get into some more characters. Again, just some brief enough notes about each major character and their role in Cryas Darkstalkers.

Bishamon:

Same general backstory he has in the main timeline. A samurai who unfortunately fell prey to the temptation of the demon armor Hannya and demon sword Kien.

For decades, he went on a rampage throughout Japan, causing mass terror to the innocent civilians of Japan. Valiant warriors tried to stop this rampaging demon but would merely be more sacrifices to the bloodthirsty specter.

At some point in the late 1700s, he would have learned of the lands of China. Learning that such a landmass was far bigger than Japan, the demon relished the thought of oceans of blood and souls flooding the lands, ready to be consumed.

His activities would eventually reach the ears of Hsien-Ko and Mei-Ling, who would eventually track down and confront the heinous samurai from the east.

In essence, Bishamon would serve as the real first big threat the sisters would face in their journey, especially after they finally got a good feel as jiangshi warriors.

While it is a difficult battle as the samurai is quite skilled and empowered by the souls it has consumed, the sisters would prevail with their combined skills, tactics, and powers.

Upon defeat, the demon armor and blade lose control of their host, releasing Bishamon's soul. While the sisters are prepared to destroy the spirit in front of them, they would be stopped by Bishamon's wife, Orin. She too is a spirit, having cast aside her body to continue clinging to the mortal realm in order to find a way to free the man she loved.

Bishamon is found out to be fully aware of what has happened during his time under the control of Hannya and Kien. He wishes to repent for his failure to resist the temptation of those two caused the deaths of countless lives.

The four would eventually seal the cursed armor and blade in a special tomb per Mei-Ling's design. Bishamon and Orin vow to make sure none would tamper with the tomb so no one else would fall to the temptation of Hannya and Kien.

From then on, the couple would seek to work together to cleanse Bishamon of the sins that weigh heavy on his heart and soul.

Bishamon and Orin are basically the first allies the sisters make.

Pyron:

Serves as a major villain during the time frame that serves as the Vampire Hunter part of the mythos.

He is still an alien that was born on the planet Hellstorm. His evolution leads him to become an energy-based lifeform that takes the form of a living flame.

While he initially reveled in his self-proclaimed ascension to godhood via consuming his home world and traveling the cosmos to seek strong warriors and worlds to consume and fuel him, he eventually grew bored as he didn't get to have a good challenge.

Being a warrior at heart, while he did like to win, he more found pleasure and meaning in life via a rousing battle. Even when he limited his powers to be on equal footing with the many warriors he fought, he wasn't given the best showing and still triumphed.

In a sense, I see Pyron like a Saiyan. What he wants is a good fight. His godhood was more of a hinderance as he was the most powerful. But by being the most powerful, he had no worthy foes. Thus, his life lacked meaning. While he had bouts of dread over the prospect of no worthy battles, he would never allow himself to wither away. The only way he would die is via in battle.

I still have it so far that he did visit Earth at one point. However, I am not sure when he will in my mythos. Certainly, it would still be far in the past, but I am not feeling the time of the dinosaurs.

He is far more vulnerable to magical based attacks.

Jedah Dohma:

Serves as a major villain for the time frame of Cryas Darkstalkers that would be the Vampire Savior aspect of the story.

He actually has two people that were confidants of his. Ozom, like the original timeline, and now Sierra de Gilman.

Ozom is still a conniving, power hungry manipulator that eventually gets Jedah killed via a ploy he manages to play on Jedah. However, it will not be involving the Gate as the idea of that is different in Cryas Darkstalkers.

Sierra is a noble of the House of Gilman. She is an intellectual and philosopher. She actually forges a genuine friendship with Jedah as they have many discussions about the nature of Makai, political affairs, the future, their interests, their thoughts about various subjects, and doing what they can to assure their lands were kept in high spirits.

Jedah has the ability to hear souls. He has explained that souls give of special sound waves that sound like a song. In this way, he can learn about the individual, such as their lives, abilities, and aspects.

Jedah has noted of a very dull humming sound that he has never been able to pinpoint. It has come at random intervals and appears to be the hum of a soul.

His body is still that of a special, sentient liquid. With this, he can perform many physical alterations to his form for appearances, offense, and defense. The form he presents himself in is one of his choosing.

His traits and abilities are linked to his ability to wield souls. The more he can absorb, the more powerful he can get. While many beings can do this as well, Jedah is unnaturally gifted in this aspect.

Physically, he is not the mightiest. His magical abilities can become quite potent. His ability to manipulate his blood to create many forms of weaponry and attacks are incredibly versatile. However, what makes him a truly dangerous individual is his godly ability of regeneration thanks to his ability to utilize souls efficiently and his liquid body.

He plans out his goal far more carefully and thoughtfully in this mythos. In a sense, you could say he is stronger in this mythos due to not basically bum rushing his plans.

The Soul Bees still serve as minions for him in order to help carry out his plans.

Q-Bee:

She, along with her race, will get major redesigns. I am not a fan of the design she and the Soul Bees have.

'Q-Bee' is just a title. As for an actual name she has, she doesn't have one.

At the time of Jedah's revival and eventual creation of the Majigen, the current Q-Bee is a marvel of rapid adaptation. During Ozom's reign of the Dohma Lands, he nearly drove the Soul Bees to extinction. This triggered some drastic changes in the mindset of Soul Bees. While they are primarily driven to eat, reproduce, and survive, the ones who become the Q-Bee of the hive would slowly gain better intelligence over the decades of his reign.

While Q-Bee is not an intellectual, the one during the events of the Majigen has the ability to better plan things out for the survival of her race beyond instinctual reproduction and consumption.

While she serves Jedah, she only does so out of necessity and to ensure the survival of her hive. However, she and her Soul Bees are grateful of the chances for more meals under his command.

Under Jedah's orders, she and her fellow Soul Bees eventually lead to the death and consumption of many of the servants and families of the Noble houses. The only exceptions are Morrigan, Demitri, and Sierra.

Q-Bee rarely ever speaks using 'I'. Instead, she commonly uses 'we' or 'this one'.

I am so far thinking of potentially 3 different types of Soul Bees. Q-Bee, the largest of the Soul Bee race that have the capability to reproduce and are the most capable in combat. P-Bees, smaller Soul Bees that aid in the care of young Soul Bees, along with maintaining the hive. P-Bees can still fight as well and are not to be trifled with. Then I would think there are smaller Soul Bees that basically serve as Drone-like Soul Bees. They merely exist to serve the Q-Bee in combat. I'll figure things out more.

Lilith:

She probably has one of the biggest changes in Cryas Darkstalkers in regard to how her story goes and motives. Brace yourself for some big notes because I have given a lot of thought to Lilith as she is a big player during the time of the Majigen stuff.

Lilith is still born as a Soul Shard, one of the thirds from Morrigan's Soul. In a small pocket dimension of Belial's creation, this fragment of Morrigan's soul was left to basically rot, away from Morrigan. However, because Morrigan's soul was rather abnormally strong, even a third of her soul was able to do unusual things, beyond the fact that Morrigan even survived the soul shattering with no ill effects. Because this happened when Morrigan was young, the soul had cloudy fragments of Morrigan's memories that played effectively at random and on loop. This goes on for centuries, this shard only 'awake' for intervals to recall these memories. Not only that, to just be 'aware' that it was still around.

Lilith is found by Jedah still, but things are different regarding circumstances and why he allowed her a body. As Jedah was creating the Majigen, in the boundaries of the void, he heard the faintest sound of a soul. Upon discovering it as he realized the odd place it was in, he realized it was just a shard. By listening to the soul shard's broken song, he realized that it belongs to Morrigan. But the odd thing was this shard somehow had a sense of self awareness. Broken and primordial, but the fact it had a sense of knowing it existed was remarkable. Here is the difference: He only gave the shard a body in a strange sense of both mercy and curiosity. At the time, he had an argument with the only other being that was a friend to him. A close confidant. Unlike Ozom however, she never backstabbed him. However, she (Sierra) was against Jedah's plan and told him to reconsider, especially as Belial was out of the picture. But he refused. Despite his plans meaning she will also become one as well, he gave her a chance of mercy to live out her remaining time as an individual, unlike the other nobles who had already been slaughtered and sacrificed to the Shintai (except Morrigan and Demitri). In a fleeting moment, he allowed this shard to have a chance to experience life, even if fleeting.

In Cryas Darkstalkers, Lilith doesn't seek to return to Morrigan. The idea I am going with Lilith is basically like the Replicas in Kingdom Hearts, a subclass of Nobodies. To put it simple, Nobodies are beings without hearts…initially. They have a body and soul but lack hearts. However, they in time would develop new hearts as they would begin to forge new bonds and create memories. In time, they become whole once again. In this case, this is what I am going for with Lilith. In essence, she isn't a succubus. She is effectively a Soul Shard. She has no soul of her own initially, just a body and mind. But in time, something would start to trigger in her. However, this doesn't mean she still doesn't seek Morrigan. She seeks her for different reasons this time about. See after she was given a body and was with Jedah for some time, as she dreamed and her mind began to solidify, she then could truly wonder about this girl she would see in her dreams. Jedah never answered her, merely telling her they were just her having lucid dreams. But Lilith didn't accept this. In time, she would leave Jedah as she got fed up with not getting an answer. She needed to know because for her simply, she doesn't know who she is. She only can vividly remember meeting Jedah, him telling her the name she has, and that she was wondering around in a daze till he found her and nursed her to good health. She thinks this girl holds the key to who she is. Upon meeting Hsien-Ko, Mei-Ling, and Caisla (OC of mine, will explain at a later day) in the Majigen as she wondered around, the sisters would think the girl she is seeing in her dreams might be Morrigan. That is Lilith's catalyst to join with the trio, along with the fact they were willing to help.

The body she initially has is at the mercy of Jedah. Her body was the amalgamation of part of his blood and part of the shard's power. His magic and what the shard had is what keeps her body together. At any moment, Jedah could just end her if he so wishes, but he chooses not to. However, his death would result in the collapse of her body, which isn't discovered till it is too late.

She has a familiar in the form of a bat made of energy. Unlike Morrigan, she treats this bat like a friend and is very close to them. This bat familiar is eventually named Ori.

No, she doesn't use the last name 'Aensland'.

Huitzil:

In Cryas Darkstalkers, both the name Phobos and Huitzil are used.

Phobos is the name of the robots that Pyron commands.

Huitzil is the name given to the last remaining Phobos unit in existence. He is named by the homeless Mexican boy, Cecil.

He follows the kid as when he was found amidst some rubble by Cecil. Somehow, he causes the Phobos to become active. However, their memory has been heavily damaged, and they lack a master to listen to. Upon seeing the child and eventually running diagnostics and calculations, the unit makes the decision to follow the child as its new servant.

Overtime, Huitzil and Cecil form a genuine bond close to that of brothers.

They get wrapped up in the events of the Majigen because a portal opening in Mexico near them allowed a Soul Bee to take the child as a snack. Huitzil would follow the kidnapper in order to save Cecil and exterminate the Soul Bee. However, they would wind up stuck in this strange realm.

Hoo boy, quite a lote. That is all for now. As always, if you have any questions, feel free to ask me! I'll be back in time with more bits of lore and stuff. 😎✌️

The Sahrijinn

In Cryas Darkstalkers Cast Bits 3, I had made mention about a race of beings known as the Sahrijinn. I want to discuss about this race of beings from Makai as they are quite important in terms aspects of world building. So first of all, what is with the name? Sahrijinn is the combination of the words sahri (سحري) and jinn (جن‎,). Sahri translates to basically 'magical' while jinn is a term many of have heard. Sometimes, jinn are angelized into the word genie. However, I was really against the idea of using that term genie. Still, the idea of the Sahrijinn are these magical beings who have quite the skill with magic of varying kinds depending on the different Sahrijinn among their race. Among the Sahrijinn are the Marid, Jann, Ifrit, Sila, Vetala, and Shaitan. Let us briefly talk about each group of the Sahrijinn.

Marid have the ability to bend spacetime and thus are able to create portals. However, they generally are limited to areas within the dimension they are in. They do however have a sensitivity for nexus points which can allow them create portals to areas outside the dimension they reside in. However, should enough energy be used, Marid can create brief nexus points to other dimensions if they are aware of other dimensions in the universe. The Marid were the first to find the nexus point to the afterlife of Makai, Inkai. They also used their abilities to open the nexus point that would eventually become the Gate. Marid have the capability to manipulate gravity, part of the reason for their ability to warp spacetime. This can allow them to fly without the need for wings or use of wind. Another notable trait of the Marid is their generally smaller size compared to the other Sahrijinn. However, the Marid are capable of entering into a state of being that increases their size exponentially known as the Unbound State.

Jann are beings with a powerful affinity for the wind. This allows the Jann to be capable of powerful forms of wind magic, from the lightest of breezes to the most devastating windstorms. This wind magic also allows them to control the atmospheric conditions of the areas they are in, inducing different forms of weather. The Jann have an affinity for desert areas, preferably finding oasis to hang around in. While they lack wings, they can fly via the use of wind currents. Due to almost being one with the wind, the Jann have a natural love for travel. During the exodus from Makai, they helped lead their fellow Sahrijinn as they traversed the unknown lands of Makai till finding a nexus point that would become the Gate. Once on Earth, they helped in making the first explorations of the ancient world. Their findings helped the Sahrijinn when it came to forming their own realm.

Ifrit are those who have a love for fire and battle. With their control over the heat, they are capable of producing using various forms of fire magic. Interestingly, they are capable of also absorbing heat, both from living beings and the air. Their bodies are capable of absorbing a high amount of heat, though when reaching critical levels, they must expel out the excess heat lest it prove to be fatal. Among the Sahrijinn, they are great warriors with a knack to fight and employing different battle tactics on the field of combat. Ifrit were the ones to help establish the first sense of civilization among the Sahrijinn, both in the ancient times in Makai and later on once the Sahrijinn left Makai.

Sila are shapeshifting beings that like to mimic the form of other beings in the name of fun. While they can be tricksters and like to get involved with others, they do have generally good intentions or just want to have fun. Once the Sahrijinn left Makai, they were among the first to interact with the ancestors of humans. Their interactions would lead to the first hybrids of Sahrijinn and humans.

Vetala are natural born psychics. Their psychic capabilities range from telekinesis to mind reading. Not only do they have these psionic abilities, they also have quite the high degree of intelligence. They purse to learn much in the way of knowledge no matter how big or small. Even in death, their stubborn pursuit of knowledge will lead them possess bodies, preferring the bodies of the recently deceased so as to not compete with control of the body. While they theoretically could keep doing this so long as they have a fresh supply of corpses, they usually only keep this up till they are content with the knowledge they know. Their incredible intellect helped lead to the creation of the realm for the Sahrijinn.

Shaitan are known for their way to weave words and sway conversations. While they lack the psychic abilities of the Vetala, the Shaitan have been noted of having a very uncanny ability to read the body language of others and get into the heads of the ones they converse with. This made them quite powerful in the form of political affairs during the time in Makai and later on with many other beings on Earth. Magic wise, they are fully capable of making use of dark based magic. Not only that, but they also have the ability to make use of various toxins that they can form from within their bodies. They can use these toxins to defend themselves should they be in a tight spot. The toxins from within a Shaitan can cause various effects from nausea to as serious as muscle spasms and temporary paralysis.

With all that knowledge laid out, let me give a brief history regarding the Sahrijinn. In the ancient times of Makai, the Sahrijinn came upon a strange ore that was discovered by some Jann. Upon interacting with the ore, it showed them strange visions of what was later interpreted by some Vetala scholars as potentially the origins of Makai. Among this, it also made them aware of the existence of the soul, the essence of an individual. Not only this, but the visions also showed of a realm where the souls go to rest. Thinking it best not to walk around with a piece of ore as they desired to find this realm, it was eventually carved into a gemstone to be fitted onto a ring. This ring would be known as the Ring of Isis. Eventually, the Sahrijinn found the nexus point to Inkai, which would be opened by a Marid. There, they marveled at the otherworldly land they saw before them, feeling the strange energy emitted by this realm. Not long afterward, they came upon some souls. From them, the Sahrijinn were amazed to learn that these souls were of the ancestors of many beings long ago. Learning of their ways, their knowledge, and even piecing together more about the potential origins of the lands they walked, it was a wonderful time for learning all sorts of knowledge. However, this wouldn't last forever.

At the time, the Sahrijinn were a powerful tribe. While not the largest in number, they had the advantage of having the greatest magical potential together as a race. Because of this, they brokered treaties with other tribes. Among them was with the Aensland Tribe, led by Zeruru. While he wasn't the friendliest, he stuck to his word with the treaties that were placed. Eventually, word of the existence of Inkai was spread. While initially with good intentions to spread knowledge of the collective origin of all, this eventually led to a great conflict. When others were shown Inkai, among them being some emissaries from the Aensland Tribe, it was soon found out that souls had power. Not only that, but they could also be absorbed to obtain power with the consequence of destroying the soul. When the Sharijinn eventually found out about this, several Marid not only sealed the portal to Inkai (trapping some demons who were in there) but managed to use their power to move the nexus point somewhere else. While the souls in Inkai could be safe from further tampering, this could not stop the now known knowledge of soul absorption. The leader of the Sahrijinn of the time, Solomon, confronted Zeruru about this. As the argument grew heated, Zeruru killed Solomon, not only absorbing his soul, but also taking the Ring of Isis. This not only led to the discovery of the great power held within a Sahrijinn soul but sparked a major conflict as other tribes sought after power. In time, many of the allies of the Sahrijinn turned on them and those who did stick with them would either be wiped out or eventually turn on them for their own safety. The only ally they had left were the Bigfoot Tribe. While the Sahrijinn were powerful and the Bigfoot were incredible warriors in battle, they were easily outnumbered by the sheer number of tribes. Eventually, they sought to flee, find another nexus point and leave these lands behind.

It took time, but they eventually discovered a nexus point in a far-off island of a great mountain. There, the Marid opened what would become the Gate. However, to deter pursuers, several Ifirt and Shaitan used their combined abilities with fire and toxins to ignite the mountain. Once they passed through the Gate, all of the Sahrijinn imbued their magic into several Marid to scramble and seal the Gate. Hopefully, the other tribes would not be able to find them. Finding themselves in a new land, they eventually acquainted themselves in this new realm. Luckily, the species here were not of any problem as they were practically like animals. The Bigfoot tribe would eventually go their separate ways, bidding the Sahrijinn good luck. As time went on, the Sahrijinn would discover a species of great intrigue. Primitive at the time, these beings would be the ancestors of humans. Several Sila were the first to interact with these beings. In time however, the Sahrijinn felt it best to eventually isolate themselves from all other lifeforms, still scarred by the events that went down that caused them to leave their homeland. While it took much time, they eventually found a new nexus point that led to a pocket of nothingness. Based on both their memories of their old homeland and the new lands they saw on what would be known as Earth, they constructed a new realm for themselves in this void. Jannah, the realm of the Sahrijinn, was to be its name and the new home of the Sahrijinn.

While mostly keeping to themselves, the Sahrijinn still visited the new realm they found, interacting with creatures and what would become humans. Infact, several of the various Sahrijinn would eventually mate with these beings, eventually producing hybrids. Over the years, these hybrids would eventually dilute the Sahrijinn blood they had. However, it would remain, potentially being the basis for humans to have the ability of magic. Some of the Sahrijinn in time also sought to stay in this new realm permanently, integrating with these beings and hybrids.

Sometime after they did establish Jannah, the Sahrijinn were visited by a strange, but otherworldly race of beings. These were the Angels, observers of the universe and carrier of the souls to Reikai. The Sahrijinn were without a doubt frightened by these new beings but would be calmed when they realized these ethereal beings were not hostile. If anything, the Angels were curious by these new beings they see before them. Despite no words beings said, the Sahrijinn, felt further calm as the Angels merely only observed them for some time before eventually leaving. This wasn't the last they saw of them as they would see them again as their fellow Sahrijinn would die. The Angels would come to retrieve the souls of the dead. While anxious at first, they eventually came to realize these Angels were taking their fallen to a new afterlife, one for this reality. It wasn't Inkai, but elsewhere.

I hope you enjoy this world building bit! This is important beyond just establishing some prehistory of Makai, but also some backstory of this race as eventually a Sahrijinn will be a main character in Cryas Darkstalkers. Feel free to ask questions and I will be glad to answer. Till next time ya'll! 😄✌️

Hsien-Ko and Mei-Ling Lore Bits 3: Rewrite Edition

During the research for a video essay I am working on, I have come across information that has shaken the foundation of what I have thought about Hsien-Ko and Mei-Ling. While my AU is free to do what I want, I would like my interpretations of Shao Hsien-Ko and Shao Mei-Ling to be based on the foundation of what was established and either expand, change, recontextualize, or add ideas to make them feel like the best they can be. With some additional flavor text that works for the mythos they are in.

With that established, I feel I need to look back at the last 'Lore Bits' I made for them and change information. Rather than edit what was there, I'll instead grab information from each one that must be changed and say how it will be changed here for this Lore Bits on them. A time capsule of what I wrote before with the information I had back then. If I don't bring anything up, then the information on Lore Bits 1 and 2 are still canon to Cryas Darkstalkers.

To begin, Lore Bits 1:

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Hsien-Ko and Mei-Ling Lore Bits

Want to give some scattered bits of lore information regarding the Shao sisters in Cryas Darkstalkers. Help to give you a bit more insight i

Due to the incident that made the sisters aware of what happens when a jiangshi tastes blood, Hsien-Ko and Mei-Ling refuse to eat any meat-based food if it wasn't prepared by them or a very trusted individual.

Blood is no longer an issue as that idea was based on misinterpretations from the Darkstalkers Wiki based on a panel from a manga. They are free to eat whatever they want! That includes the mentioned Blood Sausages in Lore Bits 1.

Oh... turns out that is the only thing as looking back at my 2 Lore Bits, that was the only thing. 😅 However, I did make other things not under the banner of Lore Bits. So let us look at those and see what must be changed. First of all:

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Dark Embrace/ Xié è De Yōngbào(邪恶的拥抱)

During the 'Hunters of the Dark Saga' (around the late 1900s), events lead to Hsien-Ko and Mei-Ling coming across an unusual disturbance in

No longer will this Burst going forward be referred to as Dark Embrace/ Xié è De Yōngbào(邪恶的拥抱). Instead, it shall be known as:

腐敗的拥抱 (Fǔbài de Yōngbào)/Corrupt Embrace

It makes better sense in terms of naming as the Burst was obtained via the Corriyami and the Qi of the sisters effectively corrupting one another in a mixture. While yes, the idea of the name of Corriyami is 'Dark Corruption', I already have a character who has a Burst that can basically mean 'Dark Embrace'. Plus... Corrupt Embrace sounds very cool to me.

Another thing to bring up since it is mentioned in the post: Afflicted with nightmares and even being taunted by her inner darkness, it all comes to a critical point during a battle with a large group of Corrupted, beings who fall victim to Corruption.

Without going into too much detail, the whole 'inner darkness/jiangshi' bit with Hsien-Ko is no longer part of the mythos as that has no bearing at all in the original lore. Just a fabrication. While I liked the idea... I decided to ultimately scrap it as there are other ways Hsien-Ko can deal with the consequences of becoming a jiangshi without the idea of some sentient inner demon in her mind.

Also, Hsien-Ko actually can't sleep proper without the help of Mei-Ling. I'll explain in another Lore Bit.

Onward to the next thing to edit:

After a scuffle with some xianshushi and talking with one of the shifu closest to their mother, they were banished from Xianmencun for their own safety.

Reading the official source I found, I actually want to tweak things. So here it seems to imply there being more shifus. Nah, only Mingxia was a shifu. The lore makes a clear statement that the only practitioners of the sorcery that is on display was only her and the Shao sisters. While I am gonna go with this idea of scarcity in Xian Men Cun, I want to have it to where Mingxia did at least have some other woman that she vetted and saw their potential to utilize magic. A small school of xianshushi of varying levels.

Another thing is that in the lore, it makes clear how their village was basically razed to the ground during the raid. I will go with that idea so there is no real sneaking out and stuff. No banishment.

Next:

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AuraNova26

These are official ref sheets I have made for Hsien-Ko Shao and Mei-Ling Shao of Cryas Darkstalkers. Very proud to detail not only their ful

On both sheets, the term 'ofuda' will no longer be used. While that is the official term in the og lore, that is a term with ties to Japanese Shintoism. Not sure if you noticed, but the sisters are Chinese and no mention of practicing Shintoism. Instead, I will be going forward using the following terms: talisman or 護身符 (hùshēnfú).

To reiterate, the inner jiangshi entity is no longer going to be part of Cryas Darkstalkers. So that Xienian, ignore it. However, her eyes going red is still a thing when she does go berserk.

Overall, in time do need to update these sheets with more accurate aspects, like Hsien-Ko's body frame, an update I want to make to the keyhole on her qipao, and edit the text.

Hmmm, kinda about it. I'll be making a Lore Bits 4 for them to go over some new aspects about them I do wish to share. Look out for it in due time. :)

Mei-Ling Design Notes and Inspiration 2/2

If you stumbled on this randomly, please go read part 1 first before engaging any further. Please and thank you.😊🙏

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Mei-Ling Design Notes and Inspiration 1/2

Unlike her younger twin, Mei-Ling actually went through a large degree of changes compared to both versions of her design in the main timeli

With that disclaimer said, now we gotta talk about the Dark Embrace Burst for Mei-Ling. To be frank, most of the origins of how I came to give it to her and Hsien-Ko is basically already stated in Hsien-Ko's design notes, so you can go there to get an idea.

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Hsien-Ko Design Notes and Inspiration

One thing about Cryas Darkstalkers is my desire to not only write and think of the characters differently based on official information and

However, I would like to talk about some aspects of Mei-Ling's design in this form. The first time I drew her, it was super simple.

The first big note of change was with @capyguava rendition of Mei-Ling.

The additional markings on Mei-Ling's face were honestly beautiful, so I reworked her face to incorporate some of those ideas. Later on, made a render that fully showed of some other details.

The markings at her legs and feet and the mirror on her back. Having the mirror on her back was not only a call back to how the mirror was on her in her main timeline design, but also just really love the idea of how all that Qi and Corriyami in her body just sprouts out from there. This shot from her ref sheet shows off how there are some changes to the mirror as the story progresses.

The latest full render of her Dark Embrace steps up to show how her shadow can really look.

However, I want to give special notes to these two commissions made by O_C_o_r_v_o and aamiraglia.

I love the ideas they gave with the way her shadow can look. Like a flame or like water. It is sublime and I want to keep these in mind for future illustrations. Last note about the shadow: the shadow dragon. While the form her shadow can take is only limited by Mei-Ling's imagination, I really want to note the dragon. In a way, it is a form of catharsis for Mei-Ling. Utilizing the form of a dragon to bring down those who oppose her and Hsien-Ko. But also, it makes her feel connected to her mother as the shape of the dragon is similar to their mother's dragon form. The memory of that night is still quite strong. Makes it feel like her mother is aiding her in battle. It is ferocious in appearance, like Mei-Ling in this burst. But it is still eerily beautiful in a way with its majesty, like Mei-Ling.

Now to talk about Mei-Ling when she was human.

Off the bat, she doesn't really look that different compared to the major changes Hsien-Ko underwent when she became a jiangshi. However, I still wanted there to be some kind of difference. The biggest thing would be her hair. This is where Murai Shinobu comes back into the picture. I cannot say enough my love for her designs of Hsien-Ko and Mei-Ling and how much her 'Share' doujin means to me and helped to influence some aspects of the sisters for me. In a way of tribute, I wanted Mei-Ling's hair as a human to have the same general style that Murai draws for Mei-Ling: a straight bob cut.

Overall, rather normal and nice for this young mystic warrior. Her hair color was also different. While Hsien-Ko as a human had cool shades of black hair, I wanted Mei-Ling to have more warm shades of black for her hair. Not too drastic a change in hair color when she becomes a jiangshi. Her eyes were also changed. Again, kind like what Murai did, I went for some shade of brown for Mei-Ling's eyes. As for her clothes, once again a bianfu. As a twist, the colors of this bianfu are the reverse of her later beizi's color scheme. Also gave her red trousers as to keep her whole color scheme being very warm and vibrant.

In Darkstalkers, some crossover games they have appeared in, and even a number of anthology stories, Mei-Ling has been shown to be able to move and talk. To represent herself, she has a simple cartoon face of a pair of eyes and a mouth.

That is all well and good, but I wanted to go further. I got inspiration from this very funny random sprite of a card of the sisters doing a costume swap.

With that swap, Hsien-Ko became the ofuda. However, her ofuda form has her hair and a hat. I wanted to do the same for Mei-Ling. My first time drawing that is shown in the 'Jiangshi Tongue' piece I made.

Expressive and cute. However, when going about making the ref sheet, I stumbled upon this picture made by the wonderful artist skm_nnm.

I adore the idea of Mei-Ling being able to fly like a little paper spirit! Which… to be fair she is. So that detail is now part of her ofuda form for Cryas Darkstalkers. Some tweaks here and there, namely making her still feel like she is paper being and thus flat but giving enough details to her hair and hat in this form.

That should wrap things up with this very long two-part blog. I hope you can understand my sheer love and adoration for both sisters, especially showing a lot of love for Mei-Ling as she really deserves it. 😊💛

Lot of searching and thinking with an end result I am super proud of. I hope you take care and have a good day!