Alter Aeon The Great Library

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Note - as with any topic, researchers should question the reliability
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documents, not verify accuracy.

AABN:  37389
Title: a book entitled 'Vespers and the Fallen'

Purnima is the least of the planes of light. A realm of shadowy, starlit
seas and rugged landscapes, it is realm of quiet beauty. No angelic choirs
throng there. Scattered camps and villages are to be had, but there are no
major centers of civilization, save for a handful of bastions established
by angels from higher planes.

Beyond these few outposts, in the camps and villages, live the vespers.
'Vesper' is a general term for angels that live on the fringes of celestial
civilization. They are outcasts from angelic society, as they reject the
complex hierarchies of the upper planes in order to live as they choose.
Most vespers are strongly inclined to do good, or at the very least, battle
evil. The most brash can be petitioned by mortals to serve as crusaders.

Vespers may be angels of any sort, even very powerful ones, but there are
several celestial races that have been vespers for as long as been
remembered:

Marut - giant angels clad in golden armor, with grainy, stone-like flesh.

Diwata - orange-skinned beings with small bat-like wings on either side of
their heads. When defeated, their heads can break away from their bodies
and fly to safety. It is said that given enough time, they can grow a new
body.

Amaya - hairless beings with white skin and glass-clear eyes

Apsara - these all female vespers are about the size of halflings. They
have long blonde hair that can move and grasp like tentacles.

Drules - bred from a mixture of demonic and angelic bloodlines, these
dark-skinned vespers have wings with black and white barred feathers. Some
drules take on the kindly traits of their celestial heritage, while others
are as fierce and wicked as the cruelest demons. Drules are the only angels
that can travel to the plane of elemental darkness and survive.

There are other races of vespers that have fallen completely from glory.
Filled with prejudice against mortals, demons and angels alike, they are
quick to take offense and many attack on sight. They roam Purnima,
waylaying travelers with all the grace and discretion of common bandits.

There are several famous vespers that have, for good and ill, played
crucial roles in history.

Korven Tal was once a fiery redeemer from the high plane of Luam. Before
the Great Wars, he took offense that another angel was given a captaincy.
He abandoned his choir and took in with a band of lesser vespers on
Purnima. Eventually, consumed by jealousy, he heeded the flattering words
of Seti Tal. Fallen at last, his very nature changed from a being of flame
and light to one of darkness. At the end of the wars, he was imprisoned in
the sea, where he suffers in a troubled sleep until this day.

One of Korven Tal's followers, Paynal, followed him to Purnima. When he
transformed from light to darkness, Paynal fled from him. Unable to return
to Luam, he heeded the petition of the false god Huitzilopochtli, and
became his messenger.

Another of Korven Tal's followers was a celestial hound named Fenrir. Loyal
to his master, he followed him into exile, and Fell with him.

In more recent times, a young tortapin from Crepuscula the Eternal Dawn
grew restless. Forsaking his home, he dwelt for a time in Purnima.
Eventually, he heeded the petition to become a crusader. Anticipating
bloodshed, he arrived in a green flame, crouched for battle. Instead, he
found himself in the midst of a peace talk between the dwarven city of
Khal'Uktar, the Kurita Province of the Dragon Empire and the Aztec Empire,
being brokered by the Order of Harmony. A kannushi priest of the Order
called him to serve as a neutral mediator. Humbled by this calling, the
tortapin helped establish a treaty between the quarreling powers, and
assisted in founding the Jade Mountain Monastery. He was given the name
Hisui, the Jade Spirit. It is said Hisui watches over the shrine near Jade
Mountain to this very day, and the village there bears his name.