ABOUT
After the harrowing events of his childhood, Osprey once vowed he would never return to his icy homeworld, Eldis. Instead, he'd kept his head down, transferring to the central regions of the Empire to serve as a knight to one of the Empire's lesser lords, a frail youth that he finds himself falling for against his better judgment.
His lord, Lilian, seems determined to spite Osprey along with his own fate. Despite his ill health, Lilian is as much a schemer as the rest of his family. Through a bit of underhanded persuasion, he manages to secure a position governing one of the Empire's seemingly useless provinces— Osprey's home world.
The frigid wasteland is not all it seems; beneath the surface runs a network of geothermal channels. In these rich, warm waters live the Rækju. Worshipped as godlike entities by the humans who have settled there for generations, these centuries-old creatures possess powers beyond human understanding. To the desperate and ailing Lilian, they hold promise— for healing and power, whatever the cost. To Osprey, they bring only painful reminders of the devastation they're capable of.
in development / 2024-current
By Flowerspots
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CAST
Lilian Sylvanis
Despite his physical frailty, he is a willful boy, desperate to overcome his limits and willing to employ whatever manipulation he can to achieve his ends. Whether or not he means what he says is debatable, but he is capable of affection, infuriating as his ways of showing it might be.
Age: 18-19 || Animal: cat (with shrimp tail) || Height: 5'7"-> taller when shrimpy || Orientation: gay || Occupation: a lord || MBTI: INFJ ||
Sign: ☀️♐︎/🌙 ♒︎
Colors: plum, mauve, sunset red
Likes
novelty, snow, the strange and unfamiliar; multidimensional pleasures; Osprey, despite everything
Dislikes
hot weather; chronic pain; his own weakness and limitations; most of his blood relatives
Osprey Kierkannen
Possessive, resentful, entitled, and overly-protective, he is by no means the sort of person suited for the submission of knighthood. Still, he has chosen his path, and none can sway him from it, even if a part of him still knows he was meant for greater things. He hopes to kill that part of him eventually; Perhaps with enough debasement, he can.
Age: 25-26 || Animal: Osprey / dog || Height: 5'10" || Orientation: gay (top cursed to bottom) || MBTI: ??? ||
Sign: ☀️♋︎ /🌙 ♍︎
Colors: grey, bronze, white
Likes
Lilian (unfortunately)
Dislikes
The Raekju; his home planet; cold; Anyone who looks at Lilian the wrong way
Betony Sylvanis
Lilian's older cousin and longtime rival, and a continual disappointment to his father, Orris. Betony pursued an education in biochemistry, where he spent much of his time at university sleeping around and indulging in substances (most of which he created himself). Though he tries to act otherwise, he's extremely insecure and hates being underestimated. Deep down, what he wants is to be loved and admired, but he has a tendency to look for it in all the wrong places...
Age: 26-27 || Animal: cat (maine coon) || Height: 5'11" || Orientation: gay || Occupation: lord AND biochemist || MBTI: ESFP ||
Sign: ☀️♌︎ /🌙 ?
Colors: blue, silver, black
Likes
science; leather (it's vegan, and so is he); sex and drugs ^_^
Dislikes
his father; being ignored; being alone; taking off his gloves
SECONDARY CAST
Mylos Krueger
25 || knight || 6'0" || ♎︎
Betony's knight. A kind boy with a warm smile who seems to make everything a little brighter with his presence. Once a friend to Osprey during their Academy years training as knights, he has contented himself with his life as Betony's knight. Even if life as a knight is a short one, he's lived well, and he loves Betony for all that he is. He'd like to think he's made both Osprey and Betony better people by his influence. It's not a savior complex or anything, he's just that type of guy...
Orris Sylvanis
late 50s || lord || 6'1" || ♊︎︎
Lilian's uncle, and Betony's father. Truly a piece of work in every way. Loves to lounge on the veranda, tan, drink heavily, and generally be a terrible father/ guardian. Cycles through knights at a suspicious pace because he loves a nice young piece of armcandy. Manipulative, backstabbing drama queen, even and especially with members of his own family. gaslight gatekeep girlboss!
AUs & Side Stories
✷ The Prince of Nothing & The Lord of Nowhere ✷
{10k words, complete} ✷ {An Omegaverse arranged marriage AU}
Originally written for OMEGATOWN (a free dystopian omegaverse-themed zine)
Across the great Empire beyond Osprey’s small, ice-bound world, alphas, along with the practice of breeding, have long since been lost to the ages. His own world remains a distant holdout of a bygone era, himself a living relic. Though he is a prince, and his intended a former lord of the Empire, both are seemingly helpless against the shadowed forces that shape Osprey’s forgotten world as much as the pull of their own physical connection.
✷ ✷ ✷
REFERENCES AND LORE
A ref sheet for Lilian (& Osprey) in the time before Lilian's transformation. Click to full view!
The Oaths every knight who serves a lord of the Empire must take...
GALLERY
✷ The Early Days ✷
Osprey serves Lilian as his knight, all the while secretly pining for his lord, well aware of the many reasons keeping him from acting upon his desires. Lilian seems to have picked up on Osprey's feelings for him, and has found that toying with Osprey is an amusing outlet for his frustration with his own frailty. Lilian becomes involved in various machinations with members of his noble family, secretly securing for himself a position governing Eldis, Osprey's home planet. Often left exhausted by the charade of hiding his illness from his family, Lilian's health worsens, while Osprey is left to care for him and administer his various medications.
✷ The Duel✷
When Lilian's cousin, Betony, discovers he has snatched away the governorship position he'd assumed would pass to him, he becomes enraged, and the two get in a very public fight. The situation leads to a duel, and the two nobles' knights fight to the death in their honor. It goes... badly.*This scene is probably a little different now, and was drawn well before I'd figured out Mylos, so his death is basically off-screen.
✷ The Abduction of Lilian✷
Some time after his instatement as governor of Osprey's home planet, there is an attack on the governor's house. Despite Osprey's attempts to defend him, Lilian is abducted in secret, and Osprey is whisked off-planet in disgrace, informed that Lilian is assumed dead.Lilian, meanwhile, is kept imprisoned in the temple of the Rækju, where he is given the choice to drink the Rækju's milk and become its mate (a position of honor, he is assured) or death. The process is painful, but Lilian is familiar with pain. As his body changes, he finds his lifelong ailments healed... for the price of carrying the Rækju's offspring.
✷ Betony & Osprey ✷
Betony pulls some strings to reassign Osprey as his knight and take over governorship of Eldis. Their antagonistic relationship leads to sadomasochistic venting in the bedroom, as both of them blame themselves and each other for Mylos' death and Lilian's disappearance. At the same time, they find unexpected common ground in each other. In Betony, Osprey finds someone willing to give him the attention (and punishment) he craves. And maybe there's something a little pathetic in Betony that he likes, too. Desperate to prove himself, Betony turns his attention to a secret project, which he employs Osprey in assisting him with. Still, Osprey is unconvinced that Lilian is dead. Though Betony keeps him on a tight leash, Osprey bides his time while waiting for his chance to slip away and search for him.(Also, at a certain point, Betony cuts his hair)
✷ Lilian & Osprey Reunited ✷
After finally seizing his chance to search for Lilian, Osprey discovers that Lilian is not only alive, but has been taken as the Rækju's mate (to him, a fate worse than death.) After trying and failing to take him off-planet, Osprey has no choice but to accept that the boy he loves has become inextricably tied to the creature he hates and fears most. Still, there is a silver lining: Lilian is no longer his lord, and Osprey is no longer bound to serve him nor obey laws regarding their sexual relationship.
Lots of other things happen... but that's a secret :)
Others' Art
By Nauma
