erzulie
cheers for spring; for life; for a growing soul
LAZARUS CITY.
lore, species info, & more.
Lazarus City has been regarded as a safe haven for most, if not all, of supernatural kind for nearly a century now. Starting off as a small town with little to its name, the charm placed on the city by Elizabeth A. Brockley offered a dramatic change of lifestyle unheard of by most beings. The charm ensures that any human being that leaves Lazarus City has their memory of the place wiped; no human can reveal its existence without some type of very powerful magical influence. It's secret is shared by word of mouth between the species. The city itself has a glamour placed around it as well, its "appearance" akin to a large, near transparent dome. The city is nestled in the heart of America's pacific northwest region, surrounded by miles and miles of deciduous forests, and only a 40 minute drive from the nearest beach.
Nowadays, Lazarus City could be compared to Las Vegas, Nevada, in terms of both size and development. It has its fair share of skyscrapers, plenty of casinos, bars, hotels, and distractions to choose from. Supernatural kinds and humans live alongside one another within the city in relative peace. There is no one instance to pinpoint when the city turned from a safe, quiet place to live, to a city imbued with crime and violence as a nearly daily occurrence. Perhaps the capitalistic greed of America was inescapable, sinking its claws into what was once a lovely secret hidden deep in the mountains.
What was once a small, insignificant town transformed into a sprawling city. As supernatural creatures revealed themselves to the humans of their towns, they were forced out of their homes. In turn Lazarus City was born and a new age of acceptance was born.
Brockley Gardens:Home to the members of high society within Lazarus City. Brockley Gardens is a symbol of luxury within the city. From opulent estates, to classy boutiques and spas, Brockley Gardens is a community that caters to the rich and famous. It offers top of the line boutiques for its residents, as well as its own movie theater, stunning rose gardens, and private park.
Blackwell Estate: Home to the Sisters of Night. The estate is large and houses all of the coven members and their families. The architecture screams Victorian Gothic. A number of security and protective wards are set into place around the place. And if that wasn’t enough, a large iron gate keeps the outsiders out. It is said that the woods surrounding the estate are filled with creatures under the command of the coven, waiting to tear intruders apart.Silver Crest Blvd:It’s here that you’ll find the majority of your bars, night clubs, strip clubs, and the like. Commons comes alive during the night and draws a large crowd during this time. Humans and creatures alike can be found roaming the streets, hoping from bar to bar until the early morning light comes and the establishments close. It’s during this time that criminals typically thrive. During the day there are places like arcades, bowling alleys, cafes, and stores to enjoy.
Floor “113”: The uppermost floor of the high-rise hotel, Goliath’s Lodge, is “home” to Luthor Madison. Whilst family lives in a more than comfortable suburban home in Portland, Luther is more than comfortable with paying the hefty buck when staying in Lazarus City. The entire floor is at his disposal, with a view that overlooks the Boulevard, an illuminated pool, magnificent decor, and an elevator for the door. Access to Floor 113 is only given via a phone call approval from Madison, or facial scan. When the rest of the Madison family is in town, they have a wide selection of bedrooms from the 7 available.The Red Door — Shrouded in mystery and intrigue the red door is owned by Delilah Black. Those who step inside are swept up in the debauchery of it all. It is uncertain whether the red door is one place or many places, for it only appears at night and in different locations. A phrase needs to be spoken to get inside and the place is guarded by rather vicious beings.
Willow Commons:Willow Commons is Lazarus City’s financial district and serves as a place for many business headquarters, banks and the like. It’s home to towering skyscrapers with skyline views and places to eat for busy workers on their lunch breaks. There are also cultural aspects to enjoy, such as museums. Willow Commons is also home to apartments, hotels, a mall, and restaurants.
The Forbidden Fruit: Owned by the Sisters of Night. Upon walking into the shop one is immediately greeted by different plant life, some mundane in nature and others...not so much. It’s a popular establishment known beautiful arrangements and providing unique plants and seeds for Horticulture enthusiasts. These something more to the shop though, hidden by special charms and spells lay a dark secret. The Forbidden Fruit acts as one of the bases where Delilah products are created and sold.
Golden Oaks:There are two neighborhoods that make up Golden Oaks. Hillwood can be described as a suburb, home to upper to lower middle class families. Hillwood has its own school system and daycares for children, as well as a lovely playground and public pool. The other neighborhood is Free Field, home to the lower middle class to near-poor or poor. It’s not as nice as Hillwood though like the latter, it has its own school system, public park, and grocery store. Those could use a lot of work.
VAMPIRES:An ancient, undead race. Hypothesized to be the oldest supernatural race next to demons, the “Father” vampire was made by a curse laid down upon Old Gods in ancient times - and driven by his megalomaniacal insanity, his desire to raise an army led to the siring of hundreds of fledglings - and of those fledglings broken away, they created fledglings of their own. While not necessarily the most populous of races within Lazarus City, they definitely hold the most influence and boast some of the oldest and most consistent residents. There are two main vampire clans in LC - the Ambrose Family and the Translucent Organization, forming a sort-of mafia that pretty much oversees most operations within the town. Not all vampires choose to be affiliated and instead skulk in the shadows as independents.
TYPICAL LIFESPAN:N/A, they are technically immortal.
UNIVERSAL POWERS:Immortality. There are only a few ways to kill a vampire: starvation, decapitation/quartering and exposure to sunlight. Starvation is considered the most torturous way to kill a vampire as vampires can typically go a good couple months or so without feeding before passing away. Decapitation is the quickest and most painless while exposure to sunlight is brief but extremely painful.
Beauty. Some of the most legendary beauty of all time was the product of vampirism, and their allure is apparent. Why pursue your food when it can so easily come to you? Of course, the drawback to this is that a vampire must constantly be feeding to maintain their youthful and attractive visage. The older a vampire gets the more feedings are needed to stifle their true ugly, monstrous appearance.
Intelligence. Be it in the form of logic or emotional intelligence, vampires have complex and ever-turning minds that make them amazing strategists and artists - but this kind of intelligence can also make one cunningly under-handed and manipulative.
UNIVERSAL WEAKNESSES:Sunlight. Some vampires are able to get their hands on a special moonstone charm from any adept magic-user that allows them to daywalk - but this kind of charm is usually highly expensive. Exposure to sunlight is a swift death, taking a vampire only about five minutes or so to fully burn up in direct contact with sunlight. This can easily be sidestepped by the poorer vampire population by simply carrying an umbrella or some other sort of apparatus around to completely shadow them in the daytime hours.
Limited feeding options. Vampirism originated as a curse, and as such vampires do not have the liberty of choosing to abstain from feeding on human/witch/fae, etc. blood. Animal blood of any kind makes them violently sick and does not do anything to sate thirst. There are three known rules when it comes to feeding: 1. The blood must be fresh and having come from a “living” being. 2. The blood cannot be another vampire’s blood. 3. The blood must be untainted by any disease.
Frankincense & myrrh. This is a resin or incense that is burned within the homes or establishments of wary humans/other species that wish to ward off vampire company/customers. The scent of these purifying substances combined smells so absolutely putrid and overwhelming to a vampire that it can also make them violently sick, but most importantly make them feel so lightheaded and confused that they may pass out depending on how long they were exposed to the scent.
The process of becoming a vampire is long and grueling and is more than just simply being bitten by one. If that were the case, surely all humans would be vampires by now, no? In order to contract vampirism, a vampire must feed from their intended fledgling, and that fledgling must in turn consume the blood of a vampire. Many times the blood is provided by the sire themselves, but sometimes it is not. Whatever vampire the fledgling drinks from will cause them to form a sire-bond with whoever’s blood was consumed - where no matter how one feels about the other, the fledgling finds it hard to break free from them. What follows is at least a week of incredible pain, followed by “death”. It starts with the violent rejection of any human food or drink, followed by constant cold sweats, headaches and insomnia. All the while starving. Some even experience hallucinations due to the lack of sleep. Eventually, the human will fall to the ground dead once the effects of all this finally catch up to them; and when they awaken, they are now a fledgling - all good and well, in fact feeling even better than they did before - but with a nagging thirst for their very first feed as a vampire.
NOTABLE VAMPIRIC RESIDENTS:
› Cleo and Bellamy Ambrose, ancient vampires, famous for being the brother-sister duo that are the heads of the Ambrose family. The ringleaders of a large majority of LC's organized crime.
› Roman Accardi, oldest biological son of the original, Father vampire Ambrogio Accardi. Famous for being the son of the Father and for being the lead singer, songwriter and guitarist for the dark gothic rock band Sanguinem Sanctorum or simply “Sanctorum” for ease.
DEMONS:Ageless beings, their origins are based in religious magics and superstition. Since it is impossible to truly tell even now which religions are “true”, or if they simply all are - there are many different subsets of demons. Some claim to hail from Christian ideology (such as the typical “demon”), while some claim to originate from Shinto ideology (such as the “Oni”). Each demon comes with their own subset of powers, but there are a few common shared traits. For instance, demons in their true form are genderless and appearances vary by folklore - but when walking among humans it is generally expected of them to choose some sort of typical human form, and in turn some prefer certain traits and pronouns. Due to the mystical and somewhat unknown quality of demons, they can bear “biological” children with any race and can either be the “mother” or “father” of the child depending on their whims. The resulting child will likely be a hybrid of the mother or father race and somewhat less powerful than a true demon.
TYPICAL LIFESPAN:N/A.
UNIVERSAL POWERS:Teleportation or summoning. A perk to being unlimited in true form is that demons and occasionally demon hybrids can be summoned with the use of a special sigil, phrase or combination thereof. The drawback to this kind of corporeal freedom is that once a demon is summoned to a particular place, they must be banished or allowed to leave as they cannot do so on their own. It’s for this reason that most keep their own personal summoning ritual secret and only share with those they can truly trust.
Possession. True demons may possess the form of any human they see fit, but much like with their summoning sigil, they can only leave their current form once they’ve been exorcised. After they have been exorcised it may be quite some time before they have enough power to possess another human unless they are a particularly ancient or powerful being - and so they often choose to use this ability sparingly.
Temptation. No matter what origin a demon has, they all seem to have the natural ability to be particularly convincing and can often convince even the most stubborn old men to do as they see fit. Those that are particularly experienced in a demon’s tricks can easily sniff out this kind of prodding.
UNIVERSAL WEAKNESSES:Religious artefacts/places/sacred symbols. Religious origin has no bearing on this weakness. Any place designed as a place of holy worship, purity or meditation is enough to scare off any demon. This includes buildings or icons and even many “cleansing” herbs.
Banishing rituals. True demons can be temporarily sent back to their own realms when particular banishing rituals are performed. During this time they are weakened and unable to return to the regular human realm for any period of time, usually determined by the complexity or number of participants in the ritual. They will not be able to reach back out in any manner until they recover.
Trapping sigil. Once summoned, a demon may be able to be permanently contained in a particular area with the help of a powerful trapping sigil or protective ward. These are almost impossible to penetrate with infernal magics and can only be dispelled by an outside party.
There is no process for turning another species into a demon. They simply are, and always have been. Their influence within the city is about as widespread as the vampires’ and there seems to be no limit to the kind of jobs they do. Many species vie for a demon “employee” of sorts due to their versatility.
NOTABLE DEMONIC RESIDENTS:
› Nox, a high-ranking demon from Hell. Known as a bringer of chaos with the power to temp even the most devoted to sin. They’re often summoned to kill for others. They hold sway of many demon residents in both realms.
› Delilah Blackwell, the cambion daughter of Nox and the satanic witch Ramona Blackwell. Delilah is one of Lazarus City’s top dealers and her merchandise is widely sought after. Leader of the Sisters of Night.
WITCHES, WARLOCKS, AND WITCH/WARLOCK HYBRIDS:Generally humans with a certain magical gift, witches are the apothecaries, healers and dealers of Lazarus City. They generally specialize in spells and potions, with a select few opting for protective wards. Witches are commissioned frequently by humans to whip up remedies for ailments that produce far faster results than regular pharmaceuticals do. Some specialize in their own particular area of magic while others are simply fine being a jack-of-all-trades with herbs. Some opt to practise more infernal magic for darker ends. Many operate within covens. Female-aligned witches are usually known as witches while male-aligned witches are usually known as warlocks. Nonbinary or agender witches just go with whatever they’re most comfortable with.
TYPICAL LIFESPAN:80 years for true witches, up to 500 for those that are very magically adept.
UNIVERSAL POWERS:Cursing and charming. Witches are the go-to magic purveyors in Lazarus City. In fact, depending on what kind of witch you go to - they may be able to lay out a curse or a charm for a particular person, place or thing... for the right price. In fact, the person who initially laid the charm over the city hundred of years ago was Elizabeth A. Brockley, a very powerful, very old demon-witch hybrid masquerading as a railway baroness. It’s because of her power that the veil between memory still holds strong with very little magical maintenance needed. The drawback to this power is that charms are generally easier to dispel with certain rituals than curses.
Apothecary. The unfortunate truth of it is that the power of certain herbs and spices are inherent to the herbs and spices themselves, this means that any species (including humans) can mix up magical remedies or potions with the right know-how. However, witches have a particular knack for crafting such things - and can even imbue their own magical essence into their craft to heighten the power of it tenfold; making witch-made concoctions miles more powerful than any other species’, and more pricey to boot.
Clairvoyance and/or magical intuition. All witches possess a limited level of clairvoyance or magical intuition starting from birth. The difference between the two is that clairvoyance is a rarer gift; the ability to see brief flashes of the future or sense the presence of spirits. Some witches gifted with clairvoyance even hone their craft into necromancy, utilizing the souls and bodies of the truly dead for their own end. This is a very powerful and very feared subset of magic, and so many witches who choose to specialize in necromancy do so in private. Magical intuition is exactly what it sounds like; the ability to walk into a room and sense whether or not it is cursed, or if other witches/magical beings are in their presence. Their sense of intuition usually gets better as they age and become more experienced. All witches possess magical intuition, but not all witches possess the power of clairvoyance.
UNIVERSAL WEAKNESSES:Mortality/durability. True witches and select witch hybrids, such as half-witch humans, are mortal for all intents and purposes. While they are renowned for their magical power, their mortal coil is simply too weak and susceptible to physical damage as well as aging. Even the most long-lived of witches eventually pass away due to old age. While it would be hard to kill a vampire, werewolf or demon by shooting them in the chest a couple of times - it could kill a witch just as it would kill a regular human. Their physical forms are fragile. Their power is almost limitless. A demon-witch may be able to take a bit more of a beating than others.
Magical exhaustion. While a witches’ tolerance for more intensive magical acts increases as they practice, honing their magic into a particularly powerful spell or charm/curse physically and mentally drains them. Overexertion can and has led to sudden death. It is important for a witch to rest and recover after they’ve experienced a particularly hazardous situation.
Magical abilities tied to emotion. In order for any magical act to go as planned for a witch, they need to be completely free of any strong emotion (fear, grief, anger, etc.) to be able to cast correctly. Directly channeling magic is a tricky business and demands the utmost concentration and focus. Attempting to cast a spell out of rage, for instance, could lead to that spell blowing up in a witches’ face and severely injuring them.
Much like demons, witches cannot be made, only born. Witches can be born to a witch parent or to two humans. Nobody knows exactly who or why somebody is born with this innate magical ability. Maybe it’s simply a gift from Mother Nature.
NOTABLE MAGICAL RESIDENTS:
› Cecilia Montgomery: A half-mortal clairvoyant witch with a strong affinity for magic, and is known as "Switzerland" between all of the clashing factions. She offers her services (blackmail, potion making, divination) to all, regardless of who they are or who they work for, for a hefty price.
› The Sisters of Night: A coven made up of satanic witches children and partners. The coven is Lazarus City’s main source of drugs, with their top supplier being Delilah Blackwell. While powerful they aren’t the leaders of the magical community, though they do hold sway within it.
WEREWOLVES:The most prominent of the shifter species, werewolves are renowned and feared for their strength and ferocity. Usually hired as muscle by the vampire crime families, independent werewolves are often security guards, bouncers or pit fighters. They are also apt to manual labor jobs. Werewolves are well known for their ferocity in wolf form, and so many humans and lesser (physically) powerful species tend to stay away from known members. Of course, werewolves tend to stay within packs of their own. They’ve taken lately to strong-arming the human police force to look the other way when caught in illicit acts.
TYPICAL LIFESPAN:60-70 years.
UNIVERSAL POWERS:Extraordinary strength. Even when in human form, werewolves are well-known for possessing great physical strength beyond that of any other species. They can typically bench press any weight without even so much as breaking a sweat and have even been known to lift a car directly off its wheels in extreme circumstances.
Enhanced durability. Werewolves can take quite a physical beating in and out of wolf form. While they will eventually go down if you riddle them with enough bullets, to physically attempt to kill a werewolf in such a way is harder and more risky than necessary.
Moon empowerment. The legends are true: werewolves are at their most powerful when the moon is in full. Much like vampires, werewolves directly draw their power and essence from the night - and as such they may find themselves faster, stronger and more ferocious than any other time of the month. The drawback to this is that it is all too easy for a werewolf to lose control and go into a blind frenzy if they haven’t trained down their primal instincts enough to withstand the moon’s gift.
UNIVERSAL WEAKNESSES:Silver bullets. Crafted and only available from select witches at a heavy mark-up, silver bullets aren’t necessarily a one-hit kill to werewolves; but they are effective in taking them down faster. If you were to shoot a werewolf directly in the heart, for instance, it may kill them instantly. Shooting the werewolf in the knee, however, would be enough to cripple it for a good while and send them howling in pain but wouldn’t kill it.
Transformation limitation. Werewolves and vampires are the only two species that can only go out and do their own thing at night - but whereas vampires can only go out at night or under something to shadow them from the sun’s effects, werewolves can go out during the day - however they can only physically transform at night.
Susceptible to frenzy. When in wolf form, werewolves are naturally very primal. While they can train themselves to have some semblance of forethought and control with their actions, generally they’re prone to snapping and going wild at any time - literally handing themselves over to the animal mind of the wolf which can make them reckless and leads to some regrettable scenes when they transform back.
Werewolves are born and have been made, but nobody is exactly sure how. It’s said that any human who survives a vicious attack by one has a chance of inheriting the curse. The shifting process from human to wolf is just as painful as the initial turning process for vampires, except maybe even worse as the wolf transformation is extremely painful every time it’s undergone. Bones literally shatter and snap back into place to take the form of a monstrous, bipedal wolf like creature. Teeth break and fall out of the mandible to accommodate the massive row of canines that swiftly fall into place. It’s a gruesome, horrifying process that no werewolf chooses to undergo lightly. Werewolfism generally manifests around puberty and a sense of control must be trained up as soon as possible to avoid any unfortunate incidents.
NOTABLE WOLVEN RESIDENTS:
TBA.
THE CITY
LOCATIONS
VAMPIRES
DEMONS
WITCHES
WEREWOLVES
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