Bijou

An underground city of gems, jewels, and rarities; a utopian civilization left behind by an ancient power lies far beneath the Magdurus Mountains. Thought to have been created by the mighty Seraphs long ago, the city of Bijou and its people have laid in dormancy, their final chance at redemption from the horrors of war. Intelligent and peaceful in nature, the Bijans as a race garner otherworldly features, made of rocks and minerals held together by a mysterious spiritual energy. Although these Bijans have lived in total isolation through history, recent earthquakes and seismic activity have led to their discovery, allowing them to see the world their creators onced feared would be destroyed. With a bountiful wealth of resources and trade materials, the Bijans believe they can help bring peace and happiness to the uneasy world above.

Geography

Bijou is located deep below the southern part of the Magdurus mountain range through an extensive interconnected labyrinth of tunnels. Towards the surface, the caves are held up by man-made tunnel supports from the previous exploitation mining from Blackwatch. Ignoring the warning signs dictating no one to continue any deeper will have explorers lost in a seemingly endless and ever-changing maze of tunnels. This magically enchanted tunnel system prevents intruders from ever finding Bijou, though the enchantment seems to have faded over the centuries, allowing recent seismic activity and archeology expeditions to finally discover Bijou over 2000 years later. The underground city itself is based within a deep-underground cavern of massive proportions, and is where the Bijans have carved out their home.

Architecture

The Bijan architecture is primarily made of stone, that of which is carved out with such intricacy and scale that it would be impossible for normal people to do. The styling cues and theme is said to have been inspired by Seraphic architecture, though there is little else Seraphic examples to cross-reference this to. Bijans also integrate Cierites into their builds, combining the different elements with stone to imbue them with different properties, such as giving them heat or cooling them down, or making them emit light.

Technology / Wealth / RICE

Having been sheltered for nearly two-thousand years, Bijan technology is practically non-existent compared to the regions above and around it. With very little beyond stone tablet writing, Even once they were rediscovered to the rest of the world, they did very little trading as most Bijans kept to their tradition and ways, not needing much from the surface in order to be happy in their daily lives. That being said, Bijans have much wealth in terms of Cierites.

Bijans don’t conventionally use rice the way many other regions do, instead using RICE as a religious, spiritual focus. Having been birthed of Seraph magic, the Bijians resonate and find comfort in being in possession of RICE, often willing to trade Cierites for RICE.

People and Culture

Fearing that the Ancient War between themselves and the Somnians would bring an end to all life in Cier, the Seraphs hid away great concentrates of life-giving magic under the Magdurus mountain range.

Bijians start their life as a gaseous-like entity whom slowly draws particulate and matter from their surroundings to from a skin of sorts, soon after moving onto pebbles, then rocks, and maybe even minerals; the end result being a rock golem-esque humanoid with durability that of the materials they’ve absorbed.

So that they would not engage in war and potentially die out, the Seraphs “programmed” these Bijians to be peaceful, opting against violence, and seeking pacifistic ways when met with confrontation.

Something unique to the Bijian Race is their unorthodox usage of Cierites. They are capable of illuminating cierites like colored lamps. Bijians are also capable of temporarily adopting the aspect of the many cierites present in Bijou, allowing them to briefly become an element of their choosing.

While it’s not entirely clear how they are capable of doing this, MicFortress scholars drew connections to how cierites are magic byproducts of RICE, and that both RICE and Bijians share their origins with Seraphs. It’s not uncommon to believe that Bijians using their life force to illuminate and utilize cierites is similar to Navians using their magic to fly.

Surprisingly enough, no Bijian as been said to have passed away from natural causes, meaning the lifespan of a Bijian has not yet been recorded as even the earliest Bijians have not yet expired. Given the immense life span, many pick up long-period activities such as masonry whenever they are not meditating.

Government/Religion

Bijou is run by a Socialist Theocracy headed by a council, in which everyone is given what essentials they need unless they are capable of procuring it themselves. Members of the council are usually the eldest and most spiritually attuned, and aim to make decisions that benefit their whole society rather than any particular single group or person.

The council often meditate and hypothesize what their creators would do to help the world become a better place, as they hold Seraphs in high regard in the form of a near perfectly preserved practice of Seraphism.

History

Fearing that their ancient war could end all life within Cier, the Seraphs left behind a final gift before their final campaign against the Somnians: life itself. Planted deep below the Magdurus Mountain range, past treacherous and endless caves lay the life force energy that would eventually become the Bijian rock people.

Having been hidden away from the rest of Cier, with no knowledge of the surface above, the Bijians lived in peace for the majority of Cier’s known history, only having been revealed through seismic activity that opened them up to the outside world.

Now aware of this strange new land above, the Bijians are hesitant, yet open to the idea of leaving the safety of their underground haven in order to reintegrate into unknown society of Cier above.