LightNews — News, ranked by scholars

C Alexandra

@nerdcactus.bsky.social

28. For the first series, the important ones are the Archyne-Sarqan Wars, which grew into a Salbyssan-wide affair. It began with border skirmishes, with the Sarqani making insursions into Archyne lands. They grew into whole scale religious war when Kythe entered. #JanuaryWorldbuilders #writesky

Kira of the Wind (Erika McCorkle) @kiraofthewind.com · Jan 28

#JanuaryWorldbuilders, tell me why a war, either historical or current, started in your world. If this is your first time seeing my prompts: please note that these are for fictional worlds of our own creations! Please no discussions of real wars unless it relates to your fictional story!

MonthlyWorldbuilders prompts daily feed card
#JanuaryWorldbuilders
Hosted by Kira of the Wind
Week 4: Military/Warfare
28. Why did a war--current or historical--start?

The background image shows a blurred magic tree with a waterfall coming down between two halves of its trunk. It’s nighttime and the night sky is magical with lots of blues and pinks and purples

January 28, 2026 at 10:47 PM

C Alexandra

@nerdcactus.bsky.social

25. There tends to be spheres of influence in Getaera. I have them called: The Salbyssan, the Hallegart, the Kansamere, and the Sarqan. The last are also the people who live there, but the Sarqani aren't a single people. The Salbyssan is 'ruled' by Kythe and-- 🧵 #FebruaryWorldbuilders #writesky

Kira of the Wind (Erika McCorkle) @kiraofthewind.com · Feb 25

#FebruaryWorldbuilders! Most of you have made worlds that have more than one country in them. How do those countries' governments interact? Are they diplomatic? Allies? At war? And if you're writing a book, how does that impact the plot or characters?

MonthlyWorldbuilders prompts daily feed card
#FebruaryWorldbuilders
Hosted by Kira of the Wind
Week 4: Government
25. How does the government interact with other countries?

The background image shows a misty forest with a mysterious tower in the background. It has a cold, mysterious vibe.

February 25, 2026 at 11:13 PM

C Alexandra

@nerdcactus.bsky.social

28. The Sack of Archyropol is only about ten years prior to the events of the first novel. Kythe sacked Archyropol in retribution for their supposed betrayal over the Sarqan wars. It is based on the Sack of Constantinople and is the initial spark of my worldbuilding. #NovemberWorldbuilders #writesky

Kira of the Wind (Erika McCorkle) @kiraofthewind.com · Nov 28

Heya, #NovemberWorldbuilders! It's the last day of our HISTORY week. Tell me something about the more recent history of your world. What's something important that happened in the last 20 years or so from when your story takes place? Perhaps something that sets off the inciting incident

#NovemberWorldbuilders prompt card

Hosted by Kira of the Wind
Week 4: HISTORY
28. Something that happened in the last 20 years from when your book/story starts

The image in the background is a blurred picture of a foresty/rocky landscape with lightning and a mountain in the background

November 28, 2025 at 4:20 PM

C Alexandra

@nerdcactus.bsky.social

Let's see if I can keep up this time!

1. I'll be discussing the Kara'lemı (the apostrophe is a glottal stop), or 'land world' of the Sarqani. It is what the Sarqan call their lands, much of which is desert-steppe. It sits at the center of Sun and Moon worlds. #OctoberWorldbuilders #writesky

Kira of the Wind (Erika McCorkle) @kiraofthewind.com · Oct 1

#OctoberWorldbuilders
Week 1: Deserts
Day 1: Tell me the name of a desert in your world that you'll be talking about this week!

I have been debating which one I want to yap about! I think I'll talk about the Morenzal desert this time. It's on the Quarantined Plane, which I rarely get to talk about

October Worldbuilders prompt list

WEEK 1: DESERTS
1: Name of a desert in your world
2: What’s your desert society like?
3: Desert town architecture
4: Desert animals/plants
5: Myth/legend/religion about
desert
6: How do they survive?
7: Clothes/dance/music from
desert society

October 1, 2025 at 9:31 PM

C Alexandra

@nerdcactus.bsky.social

10 --and Archyropol often prefer ritual, so words are far more common. It has the function of focusing multiple people on the same path, combining their will for a stronger effect. But Sarqan Singers literally sing their peoples' cultural history via memory magic, so words can be very powerful. /fin

February 11, 2026 at 4:34 AM

C Alexandra

@nerdcactus.bsky.social

26. I'll answer with the Sarqani since light and dark are so important to them. There aren't many caves in Sarqan lands, but there is an oasis with a spectacularly deep pool that reflects the full moon, making it hugely sacred to the dark twin. #SeptemberWorldbuilders #writingcommunity #writesky

Prompts for September Worldbuilders writing game. Day 26 is Dark places (caves/forests/depths).

September 27, 2025 at 3:14 AM

C Alexandra

@nerdcactus.bsky.social

--overstated. As such, it is the one civilizations hearken to all over Getaera. It enjoys stronger diplomatic ties with the surrounding areas (Sarqan and Hallegart) than Kythe and enjoys a prestige Kythe doesn't match. That being said, their military and economic power aren't what that once were--🧵

February 25, 2026 at 11:13 PM

C Alexandra

@nerdcactus.bsky.social

--not be reliant on Archyropol for diplomatic relations with the Sarqan nations. But they are able to play some of the tribes off one another and use that to their advantage. While Archyropol has a long-standing cultural connection with Lumivuora (there are holy pilgrimage sites in Lumivuora that--🧵

February 25, 2026 at 11:13 PM

C Alexandra

@nerdcactus.bsky.social

--when compared to Kythe and its trade dominance. Kythe's relationship with the rest of Getaera is one of trade or war, basically. They trade directly with the Kansamere over water, which Archyropol can't, and if they weren't so determined to control the raw goods of the southern Sarqan, they'd--🧵

February 25, 2026 at 11:13 PM

C Alexandra

@nerdcactus.bsky.social

Ended up with a map to the lost city of Ithae after it was unearthed after the sack of Archyropol. Aulus fought in the Sarqan wars, particularly on the southern front, and struggles with PTSD and shucking the dehumanization tactics used against the Sarqani and their allies. He is a decent-- 🧵

February 18, 2026 at 6:45 AM

C Alexandra

@nerdcactus.bsky.social

8. Turned Creole built up over the years of trade and intermingling within the shipyards and markets. It is based on Archyne but with heavy influence from the Sarqan tongues, especially those from the Southlands. It was originally wholly a pidgin but over time developed into a more formal dialect. 🧵

September 9, 2026 at 7:24 AM

C Alexandra

@nerdcactus.bsky.social

7. I have very little actually written for this world as I'm still plotting out book one, but I have a few character studies. Not a ton of magic, but here's Rei's dagger and how it can work. #Febchantment #writingcommunity #writesky

"You should eat, mouti." Asah knelt beside Rei, trying to press a bowl of porridge into her hands. "Please." The Sarqan youth had grown increasingly frenetic the longer Rei sat motionless. "You need food."

Rei didn't so much as blink but continued staring at the wall, unhearing and unseeing, legs crossed before her and a dagger Aulus didn't recognize in her left hand. He didn't much like looking at it, either. There was something... wrong with it. Something that wasn't quite solid. Seeing it left him with a pit in his stomach. How many souls had met their end at the edge of that blade? What was it for?

Zorai tasked Easun with continuing their research and came to settle by Asah. A few moments of touching Rei's hand and she shook her head. "She's not here right now, child. If I don't miss my guess, she's demanding answers from her god."

February 8, 2026 at 4:24 AM

Prayer For Uyghurs

@prayer4uyghurs.bsky.social

Fajr, 04:37 at Urumqi.
We are praying for the victims of the mass incarceration campaign in Xinjiang.
Name: Qamzabek Sarqan.
Ethnicity: #Kazakh.
Profile: https://shahit.biz/#919
——
Pray together: scantopray.art
#FreeQamzabekSarqan
#Xinjiang

May 29, 2026 at 8:37 PM