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Hluff, Home of the SirinsHluff is the only town where Sirins live. It is situated on the snowy northern half of eastern Huirnon. Between 150 and 200 Sirins live there at any one point in time, making them one of the smallest races in Riiga. The particular location used to be where the Truebloods lived. The Truebloods were a rich, strong, and proud race. Of course, humans were naturally jealous and feared them. When the humans saw what riches the Truebloods held, their jealousy sweltered. The soldiers that were situated at Fabia acted on their own accord, and raided the Trueblood village in the year 893AL. This was known as The Genocide. Simply put, the Truebloods were caught by surprise and were mostly killed. During this battle, some of the Truebloods - including their leader - fled westward and prayed to Leuvana for aid. Through her compassion, they were granted access across the treacherous waters there. Because no humans travel these waters, it is said that to the present day they hide somewhere out there in the unforgiving cold of the north. The Truebloods that stayed drove back the humans after an interesting turn of events. No longer in the presence of their Hireos leader, the remaining Truebloods grew more and more inferior with each birth they gave, and became an entirely different race. This race is now known as Sirins. Without the sacred magic of Enkhaedis and unable to perform worship rituals, the Sirins became quite an ordinary race which lived much shorter lives and they have not moved from the town since. From Outstanding to OrdinarySirins consider Truebloods cowards because they fled and did not stay to fight, but the strength that flows through the veins of a Trueblood is undeniably more powerful than that which flows through Sirin veins. Once the humans had been driven back and The Genocide had ended, the Sirins tore down all that the Truebloods had built, buried it deep beneath the snow (so much so that they created a hill by covering the great temple with soil) and erected houses which are far closer in appearance to human dwellings. From outdoors, Hluff could easily be mistaken for a human village. Sirin houses are log constructions. They use doors, windows, staircases, beds, floorboards, rafters, attics, cellars, and most other furniture as humans do. Granted, seats usually accomodate the tail of a Sirin, and wooden floors are often scratched from claws on toes. They often hang furs in doorways and even create mantlepieces from hunts. Most Sirin homes have one fireplace towards the middle of the house. On one side, it serves as an oven, and on the other, it keeps the largest room of the house warm. This is usually the room where Sirins relax and eat at the end of the day and into the night. They use bedrooms, kitchens, and living rooms, and usually have a storeroom. They sometimes use bookshelves for a small collection of books (mostly stolen from humans). Many people believe that Sirins copied so many human ideas to distinguish themselves from Truebloods, but Sirins still despise many things humans do: Houses are not numbered, streets are not named or marked, and valuable or special items are not put on shelves and such to act as show, like both the Truebloods and humans often do in their own homes. This said, the average Sirin home is comfortable enough for a human family to live in. Outside, the town appears to be arranged randomly. The seventy-something homes are bordered by a wooden fence that also marks where the hill drops down. The safest way up is a winding slope which leads from the ground level to the town gate on top of the hill. On the opposite side of the town, giant rocks which were once a mountain protect the town from fierce north winds, and a pine forest stretches far to the west. From the gate, one can walk almost in a straight line to the elder's home, where the centre of the town is. Often considered the town square, this large circular area holds a stone water fountain which does not shoot water. This is also the market area, where most Sirins obtain the food and items they need for the day. From here, curved nameless streets spread off in any direction. Even though Sirins can see well in the dark, they use street lanterns throughout most of the town. |
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