Ikars
Ikars (sometimes called king-killers, sky-cutters or wing'ed ones) are humans gifted with the wings of a bird so they might take flight alongside them and live in matriarchal tribes in the mountains of Cori’knoc - their societies can be brutal, almost Viking-like. Their origins are fae, faintly celestial, tinted silver. To them, all Gods are gold-born slave-keepers.
One who is familiar with grossly misogynistic cultures will recognise many similarities to ikar clans, though in inverse. Strength is considered a feminine trait, with war-craft considered to be something all young girls are raised into. Men should be married off and remain pure, often multiple being married to one woman at a time. Arcana is considered to be masculine, and as such it's shameful for women to harness. Often, surnames reflect the feather of their wing, though is matrilineally passed down, and may reflect the feather of a female ancestor's wing instead of one's own.
Ikars tend to live where it is cold, meaning Ayr'razor, but mostly the highlands of West Cori'knoc. Their villages are entirely self-sufficient and are built around their capability for flight, meaning it's nigh impossible for traders and such to make their way there. The only traders who ever did happen to be gold and silver traders, only the hardiest and sturdiest of the lot who would climb the rock faces of the mountains and hike the steep trails into their domain. The reason for all the trouble? The mountains of the highlands are lush with fallen meteors, a tremendous amount of an extremely rare material used by rune-writers. It is for this same reason that many vhuket in the south of the Axtel Strait trade with them, trading similar precious metals since ancient times.
Ikar Deities and Divine War-Craft
The matriarch of each clan is called a Valkyrie. It’s said when a Valkyrie dies, they join the sum of one great spirit who rests in the mountains; one with it and indistinguishable from its entirety. This Wing'ed Spirit is said to be able to transmute matter, turning stone into meteorite, which in of itself is an incredibly robust and mysterious material. Traditional armour, weaponry and jewellery of the ikar people are made from this material, but come modern day, only high-standing ikars in a clan will be granted weaponry or armour made with meteorite. While rare, rarer than gold and silver, common clan members do also sometimes have meteorite jewellery as heirlooms, from one generation to the next.
While clans often war against each other, they do happen to have a common goal. A prophecy detailed thousands of years ago dictates that there is a great force - a spirit to oppose the one that comprises their fallen valkyries - that gathers its strength in order to conquer Draconem and its people; The Sleeping Rancour. The ikars in turn prepare constantly for this battle, warring against each other in order to hone their abilities. If and when the Sleeping Rancour becomes the Waking Conquest, the clans will join as one and the Wing'ed Spirit will delineate back into all the souls that comprised it - a thousand, thousand Valkyrie souls given ethereal bodies to stand with their descendants and bring down the Waking Conquest.