Enter Roda

in which we discover a bold new world

Oct 31, 2021

Early in my writing life, a new world presented itself to me, in—how else—the form of a story. That first story is unlikely to see the light of day anytime soon, but it set the stage for countless more stories set in the same world.

Roda is that world. Not too unlike our own world from the distant past, seemingly set in a medieval setting with kings and castle, swords and dragons. But this is an old world, and many strange and fantastic things lurk in its depth.

Hand-drawn map of Roda was one of the earliest tools used

Other subtle differences exist. In Roda, some cultures have developed gears, levers, counterweights, and other means of lift and transport. They may have early technology, including steam power, crossbows, and running water. Many, however, still live simply in rural villages, away from the major ports and trade towns, the castles and palaces of the powerful. To them, riding a dragolain, ancestor of the mighty dragons, is as foreign as flight.

What sets this world apart, however, are the spirits. Once it was ruled by the Evacir, most powerful of the spirits beneath Onyé the Origin. They claimed dominion over all the sundry peoples, known as the Calair—three races of human; small cafas that live in the trees or the ground; giant kaethe; and Jenalun, sprites and pixies, fairest of the Calair.

Together they dwelt in the legendary city Eilaicir. But when Celedor, ruler of the Evacir, turned his back on Onyé, a great rift occurred in all the spirits, and war followed. A war that destroyed and reshaped the land, with the peoples driven into hiding, as spirits battled each other.

Photo by Riccardo Bertolo from Pexels: https://www.pexels.com/photo/blue-sea-under-blue-sky-4245826/

Afterwards, with Onyé and his loyal Evacir victorious, Celedor and his Evacir were driven to Gradakh, a desolate land across the channel from Lanar. Lanar was the land where most of the Calair resided, nearest to the ruins of Eilaicir. Some of the lesser Evacir who had rebelled with Celedor later repented and were named Vadayé to the peoples of Roda, cursed to live as Calair and never directly interfere, entrusted to oversee and counsel their affairs.

Others, however, had been destroyed, scattered and consumed. These became the D’fasad, for a spirit is never truly destroyed. Such fragments would later find their way into Calair, granting them strange abilities. Calair of the D’fasad would be named senseen, commonly called the beyond.

Within this world come the stories of Cadovis, a senseen with a particularly useful and unlikely ability: he could consume spirits; Mycha, once prince of the nation of Noroc; Atta, a little mute girl who has traveled the worlds; the Lady Sheffel, a self-made woman who became one of the most powerful people in Roda; Prait, a carefree slacker thrust into a much larger role as war overtakes the land; and many more. They often roam the legendary Wandering Cave, a way to transport between times and locations, manipulating and changing the world as they go.

Photo by Karol Czinege: https://www.pexels.com/photo/brown-and-gray-rock-formation-7891932/

Among these, the story of Cadovis is currently at the forefront, titled The Wandering Cave. I’ll be posting independent segments here and there, so if Roda is of interest to you, please subscribe to receive these tales directly into your inbox!