The fantasy realm of the Cascalian Kingdom is filled with the familiar tales of heroes and villains locked in battle over enchanted relics of powers beyond one's wildest dreams. The forces of evil seek to claim them for their seemingly limitless destructive potential; the virtuous heroes seek them out to aid in their protection of their homelands. The relics themselves are often shrouded in mystery, their origins lost to time, and their purpose defined by those who wield them. They choose their champions, and yet it's their champions become legendary--after all, a knight lacking a magic sword may still do great things, while a magic sword lacking a knight is a mere decoration.
Synopsis
Few enchanted objects get a say in their own destinies, or get a say at anything at all. But for a rare few, such as the Viridian Sphere, they get the opportunity to chronicle their own journey across Cascalia, control their own destiny, and forge their own legend. Told from Viridian's perspective, the first story in the Relicverse details the travels of a magical green necklace and their search for a purpose, and others like themself.
The Concept
Inspired by ideas such as Fi in The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, the original idea for The Viridian Sphere story and other related Relicverse concepts began to form in 2016, in a story about Brisingamen, the necklace worn by the Norse goddess Freyja. Juno had been a fan of fantasy stories since reading the Shannara series from a young age, but at the same time had a lot of interest in the sci-fi stories being told about robots and A.I. gaining awareness and going on their own journeys of discovery and growth. The idea of telling a similar sort of story using magic relics instead of machines seemed like an interesting challenge, where something like the One Ring suddenly could narrate its own perspective about its observations of Middle-Earth.
While Juno originally drafted The Viridian Sphere as a novel, after playing around with some Javascript effects, they felt it would be more fun to put the pages online, with more of a webcomic style of weekly updating. While pages occasionally have illustrations and effects to accompany them, they're meant to be sort of like shadow puppets and still provide plenty of room for imagination.
The Goal
While The Viridian Sphere is the flagship story, smaller stories, journals, magical textbooks, and other writings are planned to pop up along the way, to continue to grow the Relicverse over time. We hope to create a fantasy world that feels welcoming and friendly to those who deserve a little magic of their own.
We're still putting the finishing touches on the first few chapters and building up a buffer for the story pages before the site's official launch in early 2024. Once it's launched, a new page is planned to be released weekly, with illustrations and effects every few pages to add to the experience. Check back later for the launch of the Relicverse!
