History Literature / DraconisMemoria

# ''"The Waking Fire"'' (2016)
# ''"The Legion of Flame"'' (2017)
# ''"The Empire of Ash"'' (2018)

* OurDragonsAreDifferent: Drakes are native to the Arradsian continent (and ''only'' Arradsia - taking them off the continent causes them to drop dead), but are more remarkable for their blood, which can be used to empower a small number of humans. There are four subspecies of drake, Red, Green, Blue and Black. Drinking blood directly from the heart is [[spoiler:usually]] lethal even to Blood-blessed.

* WretchedHive: Almost literally - The Hive is a piratical port hidden in the Barrier Isles, established by a large alliance of pirate cartels known as the Directory. Possessing a surprisingly developed architecture and even a constabulary force of sorts, it has become a refuge for all manner of rogues, criminals and dissidents since being established, growing populous and wealthy as a result.

* {{Mutants}}: The Spoiled, the native inhabitants of Arradsia, are twisted, misshapen mockeries of mankind. Extremely primitive and almost animalistic in their behaviour, their bones are gnarled and mangled from birth and their flesh is marred by numerous scales, horns and spikes randomly growing from them.
** [[spoiler:It is eventually revealed the ancestors of modern Spoiled were warped into being this way by being exposed to a special crystal (and subsequently enthralled) by the White drake. After being awoken, the White begins to similarly Spoil thousands of colonists across Arradsia, confirming the Spoiled are not a single natural race.]]

* TheQuest: Much of the main story revolves around Clay being recruited to partake in a top-secret, highly risky and borderline impossible mission on behalf of the Ironship Syndicate – specifically, his task is to [[spoiler:locate and retrieve the legendary White drake]]. This journey eventually takes him and his companions across much of Arradsia, with action, intrigue, mystery and horror aplenty along the way.
** [[spoiler:In the sequels, this quest evolves from finding the White drake to ''slaying'' it, all while continuing to explore the secrets of ancient Arradsia.]]

* TheSavageIndian: The Spoiled have shades of this, being the native inhabitants of Arradsia whose culture is practically Stone Age compared to anyone else, they are universally hostile to the foreign colonists and are known to commit unspeakable atrocities upon any poor bastard unlucky enough to be taken captive by them. The Syndicate also maintains a price on Spoiled heads, much how Native Americans had a price on their heads in many frontier communities. This is downplayed, however, by virtue of the Spoiled being closer to [[{{Beastman}} beastmen]] than any real ethnicity in appearance and having no discernible form of culture or society.

* WretchedHive: Almost literally - The Hive is a piratical port hidden in the Barrier Isles, established by a large alliance of pirate cartels known as the Directory. Possessing a surprisingly developed architecture and even a constabulary force of sorts, it has become a refuge for all manner of rogues, criminals and dissidents since being established, growing populous and wealthy as a result.

* FantasticRacism: Everyone sees the Spoiled as basically subhuman, and not entirely without good reason. Foxbine especially absolutely loathes them and insists they are not people, being disturbingly gleeful at every chance she gets to kill them. The Spoiled themselves, of course, [[TheNativesAreRestless respond in kind, with dividends]].
** [[spoiler:Later on, the White drake displays this attitude towards humans in general. Its thralls refer to humans as "apes" and the White displays a mix of hatred and contempt for almost all humans it encounters, Spoiled and pure alike. The only exceptions to this genocidal disposition are the White’s chosen Blood-blessed.]]

[[StreetUrchin Claydon Torcreek]] is a petty thief and an unregistered Blood-blessed, who finds himself pressed into service by the protectorate and sent to wild, uncharted territories in search of a creature he believes is little more than legend. [[FemmeFataleSpy Lizanne Lethridge]] is a formidable spy and assassin, facing gravest danger on an espionage mission deep into the heart of enemy territory. And [[OfficerAndAGentleman Corrick Hilemore]] is the second lieutenant of the Syndicate’s finest ironship, whose pursuit of a band of ruthless pirates leads him to a far greater threat at the edge of the world…

The series excels at maintaining a fast, engaging pace while rarely feeling rushed, putting a new and well thought-out spin on a fairly basic magic system and world and seamlessly combining aspects of TheQuest, CloakAndDagger and WarFic into a consistent tone and narrative, eventually even veering into outright CosmicHorror territory as strange and disturbing revelations about the true nature of drakes, blood-blessed and Arradsia itself begin to emerge…

* PenalColony: Scorazin, TheAlcatraz of the Corvantine Empire, is a large walled-off city contaning the worst, most violent and dangerous criminals in the land. Known for its vast deposits of mineable ores, it was essentially repurposed into an open-air prison to ensure a constant supply of cheap labour to mine the oft dangerous and unhealthy shafts below it. These mines, along with the constables only "guarding" the walls, naturally make it a DeadlyEnviromentPrison, and the lifespan of prisoners after entering is counted in months if they are lucky. Since there is next to no direct oversight from the guards, the prison has evolved into a rather sophisticated WretchedHive, with its own political factions, currency and even cultural tenets.

* MadScientist: The RedBaron Mad Artisan was a famous Corvantine scholar and engineer obsessed with Arradsia, scouring the continent far and wide while inventing and designing hundreds of wondrous machines and innovations. More than a century after his mysterious disapperance, his notes, designs and exploits are still highly sought after by researchers, engineers and treasure-hunters of all sorts, be they from the Syndicate or the Empire.

* PenalColony: Scorazin, TheAlcatraz of the Corvantine Empire, is a large walled-off city contaning the worst, most violent and dangerous criminals in the land. Known for its vast deposits of mineable ores, it was essentially repurposed into an open-air prison to ensure a constant supply of cheap labour to mine the oft dangerous and unhealthy shafts below it. These mines, along with the constables only "guarding" the walls, naturally make it a DangerousEnviromentPrison, and the lifespan of prisoners after entering is counted in months if they are lucky. Since there is next to no direct oversight from the guards, the prison has evolved into a rather sophisticated WretchedHive, with its own political factions, currency and even cultural tenets.

* MadOracle: The most widespread religion in Mandinor is the Church of the Seer, centeredaround the figure of the Seer, a semi-legendary prophet granted visions of past and future. The Seer’s most important prophecies revolve around the Travail, an apocalyptic event when drakes are foretold to fall onto the earth from a tear in the sky to enthrall all of mankind to their will. In modern days, theories range about the origins of these theories, from being simply gibberish ramblings of a lunatic to being a particular form of Bluetrance unknown to later users. Nevertheless, the Seer’s teachings retain an ardent following even amidst the ascending "age of reason" around the world.

* {{Mutants}}: The Spoiled, the native inhabitants of Arradsia, are twisted, misshapen mockeries of mankind. Extremely primitive and almost animalistic in their behaviour, their bones are gnarled and mangled from birth and their flesh is marred by numerous scales, horns and spikes randomly growing from them. [[spoiler:It is eventually revealed their ancestors were warped into being this way by their contact with a White drake.]]

* WeHaveReserves: The Corvantine military is renowned for this approach, Grand Marshall Morradin in particular. Spanning the better part of a massive continent, a callous disregard for the loss of manpower is also not entirely unwarranted in their eyes, which makes it no less grizzly to behold.

* ItMustBeMine: Both Lizanne and Clay quickly notice – and become unnerved by – the obsessive hunger overtaking their employers when it comes to [[spoiler: discovering the White drake]]. [[spoiler: Turns out, they were right to be worried about it…]]

* DragonRider: [[spoiler:The unique, quasi-familial bond Ethelynne shares with Lutharon allows her to use the mighty Black as a mount, though it is less Ethelynne "riding" the drake and more Lutharon giving his adoptive mother a piggyback ride. Which takes absolutely nothing away from their frightful potential in battle.]]

* TheDon: Keyvine, "the King of Blades and Whores", rules over the Blinds slums with an iron fist and has complete control over all organized crime in Carvenport. Which means trying to screw him over is asking for major trouble – something Clay ''really'' should have known…

* DraconicAbomination: [[spoiler:The White has less in common with modern depictions of fantasy dragons and much more with the ancient view of dragons as malicious demonic serpents. Though similar in appearance to a Black, the White possesses a human-level intellect, continent-spanning MindControl over other drakes, can corrupt humans into its Spoiled slaves and communicate with specific Blood-blessed through telepathy, all while remaining in a deep slumber. Most importantly, it is utterly malicious, cruel and vindictive towards any who stand in its way, viewing itself at the apex of all natural species. It is less dragon and more scaly Cthulhu.]]

DraconicAbomination: [[spoiler:The White has less in common with modern depictions of fantasy dragons and much more with the ancient view of dragons as malicious demonic serpents. Though similar in appearance to a Black, the White possesses a human-level intellect, continent-spanning MindControl over other drakes, corrupts humans into its Spoiled slaves and can communicate with specific Blood-blessed through telepathy, all while remaining in a deep slumber. Most importantly, it is utterly malicious, cruel and vindictive towards any who stand in its way, viewing itself at the apex of all natural species. It is less dragon and more scaly Cthulhu.]]