Remnants

Humanity was destroyed with the world’s end. That’s exactly what Remnants want the world to think. Remnants are the surviving Humans of the world, forced to constantly wear environment suits in order to survive on their own planet. Few Remnants would call themselves Human and even fewer would say it aloud.

Physical Description

Before all else, Remnants are Humans. They look like Humans of the World before and are virtually indistinguishable from those they descend from. What sets them apart is the fact that Remnants cannot breathe the air of the World After. The atmosphere is toxic to Remnants and thus they are forced to wear some form of environmental protection at all times. The most popular form of protection are modern diving suits, though hazmat suits from the World Before, space suits, or even military exoskeletons are known to be used.

History

Very few Humans managed to escape from the grasp of the Preeminent. Those who did fled deep into the most secluded places of the world. The ones who would become Remnants found themselves in an abandoned mine near the city of Rainfall. It was here that they lived for many generations, surviving off of an underground spring in the mine’s depths and farming mushrooms on its banks.

Yet after many years of seclusion, Humanity began to crawl out of its sanctuary. The first thing they discovered was the change to the planet’s atmosphere. The world was no longer hospitable to them and they required environmental suits to even explore this new world.

A small group of explorers took the emergency hazmat suits from the mine’s supplies and used them to explore what of the world was left, slowly accumulating protective suits for every Human in the mines.

With the environment no longer deadly to them, Humanity expanded outside the mine, establishing their first new town at the mouth of the mine. As Humanity slowly expanded away from their sanctuary, they found the new races of the world and discovered their distrust of all things Human. To integrate into this new world, Humanity gave up their old name and assumed the name of Remnants, becoming a new force in the world they once destroyed.

Culture

Remnants are paranoid by nature. Having spent much of their past hiding underground and now living in an environment that can kill them just by breathing, they take to everything carefully. Remnants consider everything a potential threat and are slow to trust. Remnants settlements are often heavily militarized and designed to keep outsiders at a distance.

Those who do gain the trust of Remnants find them to be very cautious. Even those they consider close to them Remnants are still wary of. They are constantly on the lookout for betrayal.

Remnants are obsessed with the legacy of Humanity. They are keenly aware that they are the last of the Human race and are always searching for ways to keep that legacy safe. Expeditions to rediscover parts of Humanity’s past are common and those who can bring important relics, knowledge, or magics to Remnant cities are welcomed with open arms.

Politics

Above all else, the duty of a Remnant leader is to protect their people. Thus, the leader of a group of Remnants is known as the Lord Protector. The Lord Protector rules with absolute power and has a massive bureaucracy beneath them to help administer their lands.

Every Remnant settlement has a representative of the Lord Protector in it in order to ensure their will is carried out there. This representative serves as an advisor to local mayors, though the representative can override any decision made there in the name of the Lord Protector.

As there are currently two regions under the command of the Remnants, there are currently two Lord Protectors. The Lord Protector of Cicada Mine is Joseph Street, an elderly Enchanter who has left much of the governing of his lands to local mayors. In Fort Scott, the leader is Lady Protector Lilly Valois. She is a strict ruler who takes her mission to keep her subjects safe extremely seriously.

Lands

Remnants hold two major regions. First, they control the land surrounding the mine which once served as their sanctuary. Here, they’ve spread to many villages and towns scattered around the surrounding hills. At the center of this region is the mine itself and the town which sits at its entrance: Cicada Mine. This walled city is set up to be the last bastion of Humanity, a place they can retreat to and hold in case disaster ever strikes again. The city is heavily defended and few are allowed in its gates.

The other region controlled by Remnants is the North Island and the ruins of the military base there, Fort Scott. Being an island, the Remnants have kept a tight grip on the region. Boats approaching the island are carefully monitored and most are turned away by the naval blockade surrounding the island.

Relationships

Other races fear and hate Humans. Everyone knows that it was Humanity that drew the Preeminent to the world in the first place and led to the end of the World Before. Thus, other races are quick to distrust anything Human and resentment of Humanity is rampant.

Remnants make a concerted effort to distance themselves from Humans. Many do not see Remnants and Humans as the same species and find it easy to accept that they aren’t so long as Remnants keep their heritage covered up.

Remnants are suspicious of outside groups, preferring to keep to their own kind. Many Remnants settlements are tightly controlled with checkpoints to go in and out. Other races tend to avoid these settlements and instead trade with groups that are easier to deal with, a situation Remnants are very pleased with.

Religion

Much of Humanity’s religion before the world’s end was lost and as such Remnants struggle to find something to attach to. The most popular religion among Remnants is the Holy Spring, a group which celebrates all life as sacred and encourages the worship of nature spirits as divine entities. These spirits live in natural places and thus shrines in secluded locations are seen as holy sites.

A large minority of Remnants are known as Antiquarians for their worship of ancient Humans. They see the Humans of the World Before as enlightened and treat anything from that time period as perfect and worth preserving, no matter how small.