Verndari's Wings

Tullio Valentino liked to fish. If he told anyone, they'd laugh. Of course he did: he was an Eilander. But that was different. Eilanders fished because that was the tradition. Tullio really enjoyed it. The silence. The calm of the water. The brief moments of thrill as he pulled a young Moora out of the water.

He'd had bad luck today, though. He kept telling himself that the next throw, he would catch something. But now it was getting dark, and he really did have to head home.

His pole caught something. Definitely not a fish. He swore. He knew he'd been too low to the inlet floor. Probably a root or log. He tugged, and surprisingly, there was almost no resistance. Taking a step back and flicking his long pole up, the hook came flying out of the water, carrying something that flashed green with it.

The thing, whatever it was, flew threw the air, landing on the ground with a clink two meters away from Tullio. It reflected orange light from the setting sun into his eyes as he approached. He knelt, and picked up the item.

It was a small pendant, a choker, really. Two miniature wings made of a metal that shone green. Tullio marvelled - the necklace was utterly untarnished, undented, the detail of the metals fine to the point of unbelievability.

He smiled. He could probably sell this in Featherknell for quite a lot. A warm feeling flushed through his body as he fantasized the things he would buy - a goat for his family, a new fishing poll, maybe a new sheepskin vest for Makel.

He put the necklace in a small pouch he used to carry his spare fishing hooks. Somehow he knew that this had made his fish-less day worth it.

Appearance and Function

Necklace Form. Verndari’s Wings are miniature pair of raven's wings made of an iridescent green metal, strung as a pendant on a chain of the same metal. The Wings are made with incredibly fine detail, but very close examination reveals a very slight tarnish on the back of the right wing.

Cloak Form. While the Wings' general appearance is that of a pendant, when their secondary command word is spoken, a dark cloak enshrouds the wearer. The cloak is tied by a chain resembling the pendant. The cloak itself is a deep black, with a fringe and epaulets resembling dark green feathers.

Wing Form. When the Wings' primary command word is spoken, no matter which form they are in, dark green raven's wings sprout from the wearer's shoulder blades, granting the power of flight.

History

Verndari's Wings are one of the Elder Remnants, specifically the artifact belonging to the Dragonborn. While their parent deities, Saitra and Rind, are by no means a prevalent pantheon, the Wings are the most famous of the Remnants.

For generations before the Ashen War, Verndari's Wings were located at Pinion, at the tip of the Skymeet Isles, in a temple of Saitra. Near the start of the War, the artifact disappeared, likely stolen by pirates patrolling the far eastern isles. After this, Verndari's Wings were nowhere to be found for nearly two centuries.

Inexplicably, they were found by Karvosta Van at the sacking of Castle Wren. They remained in his possession until his death at the hands of Yaeza. Instead of keeping them, Yaeza locked them away in the treasury in Valendost, where they remained until her death.

On the night of Yaeza's assassination, the wings were again stolen, this time openly, by Ivyn Votor. It is largely purported that Ivyn was the lover of Eia Kaloth, the daughter and killer of Yaeza. Ivyn fled Valendost with the Wings, pursued by Black Nails. He escaped capture multiple times throughout the next year, but was eventually caught on a barge on the River Fuil at the height of the rain season, when the river was in flood. During the conflict, Ivyn threw the Wings into the river, famously shouting,

The wings of Verndari shall not take me, but they certainly shan't take you! Only Sephira is for me!

as he was cut down by arrows.

After the rains died down, the Black Nails searched long up and down the Fuil for the artifact, but they were never found. As far as anyone is aware, they were swept out to sea and are lost forever.