#elulore

[eluviannaa]

Originally, Elu's blade was a cursed tome. But obviously a murderous weapon seemed more appropriate.

𝑌𝑜𝑢 𝑘𝑛𝑜𝑤, 𝑖𝑓 𝑤𝑒 𝑗𝑢𝑠𝑡 𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑏𝑏𝑒𝑑 𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑦𝑜𝑛𝑒, 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑤𝑜𝑢𝑙𝑑 𝑏𝑒 𝑎 𝑙𝑜𝑡 𝑠𝑖𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑒𝑟.

[eluvianna-ooc]

Thanks @vulperaloa for narrating this, it has given me so much joy to hear Jam explain Umbral's lore 💜

[eluviannaa]

Obviously Dalaran is a big deal to me 💜 from Umbral's first pages

[eluviannaa]

Call of the Void

[eluviannaa]

Test for hand-setting gems for the Cursed Pendants (Elu's pendant design).

The Thalassian runes even glow in the dark eeee.

[eluviannaa]

Ever wondered what Netherlight looks like from the outside? Me too!

With last week's Umbral pages, I had to come up with a design. And how it would look in Dalaran (mage mirror image vibes.)

[eluviannaa]

In this week's written Umbral scene, our Ethereal, Zarath'anar, doesn’t have many lines, but I made sure the ones he does have are dialed up to 11. He’s from the Consortium, an Ethereal faction focused on trade and shady deals.

Most of my research is pretty focused but I absolutely loved digging into Ethereal lore. Usually, I dig further than I need to, obviously for context but also, you never know what threads will be useful later on.

For this, while the Consortium wasn’t front-and-center during Legion (the story's timeline), it still felt lore-consistent that he might be in Dalaran as a vendor at my imagined market—especially more so than other Ethereal factions in this context.

Writing Ethereal dialogue is a time—it adds another layer of formality, which feels a little different from the bits of high fantasy and poetry I usually do.

By nature, Ethereals are cryptic, mysterious, detached from mortal concerns, and more focused on broader cosmic forces. Some of my favorite lines from Void Ethereals like Locus-Walker, Saprish, and Ashaal really get at that :

"Our bargain does not require me to wait until you are ready." — Locus-Walker

While these scenes serve more as a script/draft for the comic, visuals being sparse, I'm excited to draw all of it! The scene was a bit long overall but we have a little time before I get to the panels in Act 2. I'd love to do a revision of this but as is, it was nice to finish it.

Excerpt from Act 2, Scene 5: Echoes

At the Ethereal’s stall, Eluvianna found a collection of odd trinkets and crystal fragments. The Ethereal, barely more than a shimmering silhouette, stood quietly behind the array. As a simple stone caught her eye, its surface swirled with colors that seemed to shift.

As she leaned closer to it, the ethereal inclined his head. “In all things, the Sin’dorei have an impeccable sense of timing,” he murmured, his voice carrying on the wind. Eluvianna glanced up from the wares, momentarily meeting his gaze—or where his eyes should have been.

“Am I… late?” Eluvianna asked, compelled to respond despite the uncertainty.

“Quite the contrary—you are early. And as such, perfectly on time.” He nodded with sincerity. “It seems the past is not doomed to repeat itself entirely.”

From the folds of his fabric, he produced a small, tightly wrapped package, offering it to her with a spectral hand. “As agreed.”

“I don’t recall meeting before. Perhaps you’ve mistaken me for someone else?” Eluvianna protested.

“Promises hold weight across all realities,” he replied, his voice like the air between worlds.

Despite her confusion, something in his words compelled her to accept the package. As she reached for it, he held it a moment longer, his grip firm but not unkind. “Alas, even I cannot glimpse the final patterns of the currents we navigate.”

Eluvianna furrowed her brow. “Currents?”

“Perhaps our paths will cross again when the echoes of this moment return,” his form shimmering faintly.

Somehow the words were familiar. Perhaps the echoes he spoke of were tied to her dreams. They had become more vivid, and last night they felt like a future destined. Though she had shrugged it off as merely a wish, she knew her studies had opened her mind to more. Just not quite any such path of an oracle.

[eluviannaa]

Before we had the new Xally model, I sent them on a date 🥹