The Shrouded Isles

The Shrouded Isles (formerly Grius) is a small chain of islands in The Free Isles and home to many Spiritfolk, including Charoth, Dont, and Kyl'il. It serves as the headquarters of the Nine Shrines Adventure Agency and the home of Markus, Gregor, Ashe, Thog, Kyr, Inien, Harlock, and more. The name of the collective isles in Ishtolan is Ishir.https://twitter.com/elfowlgirl/status/1458256622116118528
== History ==
Two thousand years or so ago, humans and spiritfolk across the island remained at war. While the Warlord wished to remain at war, the other spirits sought peace, and they were bound to the Prison of Lights by a human.
500 years later, The Shrouded Isles became an Alarani colony. It later gained its independence and was known as the nation of Grius. Various Alarani mages also organized spiritfolk-killing raids; this is how the term 'godslayer' came to be, used to describe humans who can wield arcane magic.
Naturally, the native spiritfolk did not stand for this and conflicts arose, often times resulting in numerous deaths on both sides. However, humans eventually gained dominance and established Grius.
Some time after, a Grecian mage rebelled against one of the deities his people came to worship, Charoth. This was because the next child to be sacrificed to the god was the mage's son, whom we know as Kyr Fiore. He managed to return Charoth to his wisp form, but his 'dying' shriek summoned creatures of ink, which rampaged across Grius, killing all its populace. Though separated, the father and son were the only surviving humans.
The mage could not bring himself to kill Charoth completely, even though he had the means - the iconoclasm spell. Eventually, as his reincarnation cycle progressed, the spiritfolk grew attached to him and stayed with him. Over the years, the mage raised Charoth as a son, until before the events of The Shrouded Isles (arc), when he felt his life coming to an endhttp://3rdwheelandthe4thwall.tumblr.com/post/117187563391/kiers-dad-charoth-and-charoth.
After the death of the mage, Charoth was enraged that the one he cared about had passed on. In his anger, Charoth became a large shrimp-like creature, killing any who happened to be near or on the island, as well as messing up the general death cycle. 
Charoth was later defeated by the team of Ashe, Markus, Gregor and Kyr, with Gregor delivering the final blow to the death god. Afterwards, through a very unorganized performance, the team explain the importance in acceptance of death to Charoth, with Charoth returning to his smaller form. Afterwards, the team create the Nine Shrines Adventure and Dines at the old Nine Shrines Bar, making the isles their center of operations.
Little change on the shrouded isles occurred, until after the Big War in Onorhant, where literal crate-loads of new settlers arrived along with the return of the team of Nine Shrine Adventure and Dines. The Shrouded Isles remain as a still mostly unsettled place, however with the new settlers and the group of adventurers residing there, it is gradually growing both in fame and population.
=== The Shrouded Isles (arc) ===
== Culture ==
Before Grius, spiritfolk worship was common, the most influential gods being the Nine of the Nine Shrines, including Charoth and the Fox-King. The paths to their shrines were connected by the Nine Shrines Bar, which serves as a balancing ground between them, but throughout the years, five of them were destroyed. 
In the initial Alarani invasion, Charoth was spared by the godslayers and even given sacrifices, as his followers gained prolonged life.http://3rdwheelandthe4thwall.tumblr.com/post/128186413666/the-nine-of-the-nine-shrines-the-zeth-and-the
Despite the islands' scattered geography, Grius' culture used to be mostly uniform, with different islands serving different purposes. Being an Alarani colony, Grius possibly retained many of its cultural aspects and its language. The spiritfolk of the Isles have their own language, Ishtolen.
Their measurement system was once rooted in colonialism. It has since been changed to whatever the "Lark" system is, with the lark replacing the jiffy and being roughly equivalent to a bird pound. The smaller version of the lark is the Lark's Tongue which is one eighth of a lark. There is also the Willy and the Nilly, with one Willy being roughly equivalent to 20 pigeon feet.
"Gooftown" is a local district or city on the isles, with uncertain city limits. It is apparently supposed to be demolished. One of the rules of Gooftown is you must make fart sounds if you talk about farts. Gregor hates Gooftown, as does Kyl'il. One part of Gooftown's outskirts was a clown house full of bananas before Gregor demolished it. it has apparently existed for thousands of years.
=== Spiritfolk ===
Spiritfolk are the original denizens of the Isles. They are often described as deities, since many of them possess deiform powers. See main article Spiritfolk.
On the Isles, as Spiritfolk live effectively for hundreds if not thousands of years, reincarnating constantly, their existence often ends up funneling into a fairly restricted niche and worldview. Thus, the isles have created a school of sort that employs a practice of mutual tutoring, where a group of teachers, led by Dont as a homeroom teacher and head mastered by Kyl'il and Markus teach students lessons and analyze the unique properties in each student. Once their skills, strengths and passions have been examined they are aided in growing and blossoming those aspects of themselves while being assigned a partner who will help them rise above their shortcomings and show them a different perspective. To get there, one must pass the River of Treachery/Teachery or go through the Prison of Lights.
== Known islands ==
=== Ishir ===
A group of spiritfolk live in a village on this island, including Dont. Kyr also has his house here.
=== Tesir ===
Kyr grew up on this island. Xandal lives in a pond near his family house.
=== Kinir ===
This island used to be the hub of Grius.http://3rdwheelandthe4thwall.tumblr.com/post/118372635516/names-ages-and-why-did-jay-spell-it-like-that Many wisps float about it. Kyl'il has made her home here.
=== Azhel ===
This island has been used as a prison ever since the Prison of Lights became unusable. Orien, the spiritfolk Warden, oversees it. A human Warden used to also reside here, but there had not been anyone befitting the title in 500 years.
=== Talthir ===
The island where Grius' theater stage and the abandoned brothel lie. Rat lived here during the events of Deck of Disaster.
=== Nine Shrines ===
A series of shrines for the former deities of the Shrouded Isles can be found here, as well as the Nine Shrines Bar, though all the patrons of them save Charoth have since left. Five have fallen into disrepair, leaving only four that can be reached.
The only known shrines are that of Charoth, and the Fox-King, including her mansion and villa.
=== Meteor Island ===
See page.
== Characters from the Shrouded Isles ==
* Kyr Fiore
* Kyl'il
* Charoth
* Dont
* Orien
* Xandal
== References ==
Category:Nations
Category:Locations