Mundus Transfiguratus
Towards a Queer Ecological Mythology
Mundus Transfiguratus depicts an alternative living mythological world where queer transmogrified beings take centre stage and challenge the established perception of human supremacy. This experimental counter narrative interweaves fiction and reality, legends and biographies, to explore conflict, displacement and trauma, but also to celebrate hope and love, and overcoming adversity.
The Major Houses
The House of Cliza
The House of Cliza are human-wild boar descendants of Turiacus. The House governed the land of Lusibriga for centuries until the War of the Winding Rivers. This brutal conflict, waged against the human tribes of the river Cynanas, stretched across twenty-two bitter years and ultimately brought the House to ruin. Its population was slaughtered, its power broken. The few surviving members of the House went into exile over the mountains, carrying with them a vast library of ancient manuscripts, the last echoes of a fallen dynasty. Though much was lost in the war, one artifact survived, the fabled Gloves of a Thousand Silver Hairs. Legend says that these gloves were crafted by an ancestor of Cliza who saved a long-haired silver lynx that had been wounded by human hunters. The lynx became a loyal companion to the House, and after many years, during a silver full moon, it shed its coat and transformed into a two-headed legless lizard. From its miraculous silver hairs, the gloves were spun. Each hair holds a potent enchantment, and when plucked from the glove, that spell is unleashed in an instant.
Cliza
Cliza, head of the House of Cliza, is a masterful warrior and brilliant military strategist, as well as the devoted guardian of their family’s sacred library. Beyond the battlefield, Cliza is also a weaver of rare skill. Once, in a state of trance, possessed by the spirit of Aranea, a human-spider deity, they wove a magical corset that grants its wearer immense strength. Over the years, the corset has been battered in countless battles, and each repair has weakened its strength. Until Cliza can once again summon the spirt of Aranea, the corset remains carefully sealed away, wrapped in a cloth of gold spun by Theia. Cliza was once engaged to Filipa, a descendant of Poseidon. The union was broken when Cliza discovered that Filipa was having an affair with Oretta, Cliza’s longtime rival, which led to the birth of a child, Orella. Cliza, heartbroken and proud, severed all ties. They remain without an heir. Haunted by the slaughter of their ancestors at the hands of human warriors, Cliza is driven by a single purpose: vengeance and the reclamation of their ancestral land. During the fall of their queerdom, Cliza was abducted and raped by an unknown warrior who had taken the form of a wolf. Cliza's escape came only through the intervention of a sorcerer who shape-shifted into an owl, attacking the wolf with their venomous talons that blinded and killed the beast. Cliza survived, scarred, but unbroken. Their mission endures, fuelled by pain and loss.
Clizette and Clizilde are Cliza’s most trusted lead warriors. They are fierce, loyal, and bound to their leader by both bloodshed and desire. The three share a complex, triangular bond, though Clizette and Clizilde quietly conceal the depth of their love for one another to protect Cliza’s heart from jealousy. Born into a long-lived warrior class, they carry the ancestral weight of honour and survival. Veterans of the war against the Cynanas tribes, they stood side by side with Cliza through blood-soaked fields. Together, they also endured the brutal siege of Transterrum, waged against the House of Oretta; a battle that forged an unspoken pact of loyalty among them, sealed in grief and steel.
The House of Oretta
The House of Oretta are human-fish descendants of Triton. Incredibly wealthy and politically dominant, the House rules over all known seas, save for the waters surrounding the Cave of the Oracle, on the edge of the Sea of Kumai. These sacred depths are guarded by seven immortal seahorses, sworn to guard over the Oracle. Through exclusive control of the seabed’s oil reserves, the House of Oretta has amassed great power, levying heavy taxes on all who dwell within the waters. An elite force of male sirens enforces these taxes; their chants carry a fatal enchantment, plunging any who defy payment into a deathlike lethargy. Though born of the sea, members of the House of Oretta possess the rare ability to survive for extended periods on dry land; a gift they have used to wage war across the continents. It was this advantage that led to their triumph over the House of Cliza at the Battle of Transterrum. Yet their victory was short-lived. At the Banquet of Rome, Cliza assassinated Oretta, turning the tide once more. Following Oretta’s death, their heir, Orella, charted a new course. They ceased all oil extraction, investing instead in the development of sustainable energy sourced from tides, algae, and thermal currents. In a sweeping act of reform, Orella decreed that the wealth of the seas, its resources, energies, and life, be shared equally among all species, ushering in a new era of maritime justice.
Oretta
Oretta, sovereign of the House of Oretta, reigns from a sprawling palace beneath the sea, but moves through the realms of land and water with equal ease and grace. On the grounds of their Roman estate lies a legendary fountain known to alter the bather’s sex; a gift Oretta uses with strategic precision. Whenever political dealings with strictly sex-binary beings demand it, Oretta immerses themself in its transformative waters. Many rivals have fallen under their spell as a result. Cliza resisted, but Filipa, who was engaged to Cliza at the time, succumbed to Oretta’s charms. Oretta is a masterful musician and their instrument of choice is a magical trumpet. When played, its sound shatters silence and sense alike, rendering all within earshot permanently deaf. It is a weapon as much as it is an expression of power. At the Battle of Transterrum, Oretta crushed the forces of Cliza and claimed victory. To mark the triumph, they hosted an opulent banquet in Rome under the ominous glow of a blood full moon. The celebration was attended by the high sovereigns of other Houses. But triumph turned to tragedy. Cliza, long thought dead, stormed the gathering with their warriors, slaughtering Oretta and many of the assembled dignitaries in a ruthless act of vengeance. Yet death did not hold Oretta for long. Through means known only to the deepest magics of the sea, they were brought back.
Orettela and Orettona, twin warriors of legendary skill and unshakable loyalty, serve as the foremost protectors of Oretta and the House of Oretta’s most sacred weapon; the Trident of Graphene. Forged in the superheated vents of the deep, the Trident is a relic of immense power, capable of cleaving tectonic plates and disrupting the very tides. Only the twins may wield it, and even then, under strict enchantment; should either ever attempt to turn the Trident against Oretta, their own fins would coil around their throats and strangle them in a slow, inescapable death. Orettela and Orettona are as much guardians as they are symbols of the House’s militarised devotion. They are feared across oceans and continents alike. When the massacre at the Roman banquet left Oretta decapitated and presumed lost forever, it was the twins who endured the carnage. With bloodied fins and broken hearts, they retrieved Oretta’s severed head from the wreckage and preserved it. Unwilling to accept the extinction of their sovereign, they sought out an experimental scientist; a hybrid of octopus and woman known for their experiments in resurrection and neural grafting. Through the fusion of science, spell craft, and the last breath trapped in Oretta’s larynx, they succeeded. Oretta’s eyes opened once more.
Orella
Orella, the child of Oretta and Filipa, is the living embodiment of two powerful bloodlines. Upon the deaths of their parents, Orella inherits the vast and fertile estates of both Houses, commanding influence over both land and sea. But power alone does not define them. Warrior and poet, strategist and seer, Orella walks the delicate line between legacy and destiny. Their most uncanny gift lies in the ancient art of cleromancy, and their chief counsel in these rituals is an otherworldly six-eyed newt, a creature said to have emerged from the springs beneath the Cave of the Oracle. The newt’s smooth, translucent skin glimmers with the shifting patterns of time itself, and through its touch, Orella gleans fleeting visions of possible futures. On occasions, Orella partakes in the sacred rite of contact: licking the creature’s skin to absorb its secretions, which grant both powerful regeneration and the ability to peer beyond the veil of time. It was through this act that Orella foresaw their mother’s downfall and issued a warning: a blood moon, a banquet, a blade. But Oretta, ever proud and dismissive of augury, ignored the prophecy. At the Banquet of Rome, Cliza struck, and Oretta’s head fell. After Oretta’s death, Orella did not seek vengeance, but transformation, initiating major benevolent changes to the ruling of the seas.
The House of Karlota
The House of Karlota, human-crow descendants of Odin, dwells within the vast, ancient expanse of the Blackcynian Forest. Their palaces, intricately woven high among the treetops, are crafted from an indestructible fibre extracted from the world’s oldest living mycelium. This mycelium, bound to the House in a sacred symbiosis, grants them a rare gift: its fibres vanish in times of danger, rendering the palaces invisible. In return, the House of Karlota safeguards the mycelium from harm. Thanks to this alliance, the House has never fallen in battle. Their hidden fortresses have kept them undefeated for millennia, save for a single intrusion. Cliza, with the help of a traitor from within, once breached the invisible palaces by covering themselves in an ointment made from the mycelium’s extract. This disguise masked them from the mycelium’s defences, allowing them to pass as no threat. Long before these towering palaces stood, the first of the Karlota line endured a brutal winter alone in the forest. It was a fox with an enormous, sweeping tail who saved them, offering warmth through the coldest nights. In gratitude, the House of Karlota welcomed the fox into their home once it was built.
Karlota
Karlota is the head of the House of Karlota. They are an herbalist healer and secretly own the last known drop of the Mead of Poetry. Karlota has an unbreakable pact with a red peacock, a creature of unusual power. Whenever Karlota is in danger, the peacock appears, fans out its tail, and opens a corridor through space. Karlota uses it to escape, disappearing before harm can reach them. Karlota also secretly possesses the Helm of Echoes, a legendary artifact that grants its wearer the power to read minds. This hidden advantage gives Karlota a decisive edge in high-stakes meetings and negotiations with the other Houses. Karlota was briefly married to Sakura, a human-cat descendant of Kasha, but the marriage was annulled when Sakura found out that Karlota had kept a long-standing relationship with her lover Karsila, a human-owl descendant of Veles. Karlota survives the Rome massacre and returns to their queerdom, but Cliza eventually finds and kills them. However, Karlina, Karlota’s offspring, drinks the last drop of the Mead and learns how to resurrect their progenitor.
Karlina
Karlina, born of Karlota and an unknown progenitor, is a master of disguise and a skilled shape-shifter. Together with her lover Orella, united by passion and a shared vision of a more just world, they vow to bring about the downfall of Cliza and dismantle the old orders of power and vengeance. Under the tutelage of a Sylph, Karlina learned to ride the winds with astonishing speed; so fast they can pass unseen. In battle, this gift makes them nearly untouchable; in diplomacy, it makes them unpredictable. Karlina carries with them a titanium necklace set with enchanted jewels, each one pulsing with a different hue of manipulation. This ancient relic, whose origins are lost to time, grants its bearer the power to dominate the will of whoever wears it. Karlina, ever the tactician, never forces it upon their enemies. Instead, they leave it planted like a seed; abandoned on the battlefield, hidden in diplomatic offerings, embedded within the spoils of war, ensuring that it is found and worn. Once the necklace clasps around a neck, Karlina’s influence takes hold. The victim becomes an instrument of Karlina’s will, carrying out orders with eerie devotion. When the task is complete, and their usefulness exhausted, Karlina compels them to end their own life. The necklace then dissolves into vapor, only to reappear, untouched and gleaming, back in Karlina’s possession.
The House of Brightwyna
The House of Brightwyna are human-deer descendants of Cernunnos. Their lineage pulsed with ancient forest magic, and their antlers, which grew in elaborate spirals and patterns unique to each individual, were considered living symbols of wisdom and heritage. The House was founded deep within the cradle of an ancient mega caldera, a place of breathtaking desolation where the air shimmered with toxic vapours. Most who dared enter perished within hours. But the House of Brightwyna, over centuries, evolved a rare immunity, their lungs adapting to the sulphur-laced mists and their bodies imbued with resilience unknown to outsiders. Though isolated, the House of Brightwyna was far from idle. They were the greatest artisans of golden torcs the world had ever known. Forged in volcanic heat, each torc was a masterpiece. The finest pieces were said to resonate with the wearer's bloodline, awakening dormant abilities or ancestral memories. These torcs became coveted by kings, warriors, and mystics across the realms. Among them, one ancient torc stood apart, it was said to grant its bearer the power to understand and speak with any living creature. But envy festers where beauty flourishes. The neighbouring human tribes, driven by greed and suspicion, feared The House of Brightwyna’s growing influence. During the brutal War of Torcs, these tribes unleashed a genetically-modified virus designed to survive in the caldera’s hostile environment. The House could not withstand this engineered plague and it fell swiftly. The caldera became a tomb and the ancient torc was lost in the chaos; its fate unknown.
Brightwyna
Brightwyna is the sole known survivor of the House of Brightwyna, a living relic of a lineage thought long extinguished. Their antlers mark them as heir to the sacred bloodline of Cernunnos, yet Brightwyna no longer lays claim to titles or thrones. Instead, they walk a solemn path as a psychopomp, a guide between worlds. It is their sacred duty to escort newly deceased souls to the afterlife, cradling their final breath with reverence and tenderness. Brightwyna’s home lies nestled in a grove shrouded in perpetual twilight. There, they tend a fragrant garden of everlasting honeyed daffodils, each bloom enchanted to release a beguiling fragrance. Those who inhale their sweet scent soon find themselves helplessly ensnared by Brightwyna’s spell. Within their stone sanctuary lies an extensive collection of votive statues; gifts left by the departed and those who still dream of the dead. Brightwyna is also a gifted diviner, known for their rare and haunting practice of dendromancy. In this ritual, Brightwyna enters a trance state, often beneath the open canopy of a sacred tree, drawing forth visions from the land itself. Using bark, leaves, petals, lichen, and sap, they scatter organic matter onto raw canvas. The materials fall guided by the deep will of nature, forming patterns that answer the questions Brightwyna dares to ask. These paintings, ephemeral yet charged with insight, offer glimpses of futures both near and far, joyous and grim. Brightwyna has lived for centuries, untouched by time’s ordinary decay, yet their heart has known love only once. That love came in the form of the trobairitz Comtessa Beatriz de Dia, whose soul Brightwyna was tasked with escorting to the underworld. The moment their eyes met across the liminal veil, something ancient and aching stirred in Brightwyna’s heart. Unable to bear the thought of her vanishing into silence, they pleaded with her to sing song after song in rich Occitan verse. And so, Beatriz sang. Her voice wove through the dark like a thread, suspending her passage to the underworld with each note. For a time, Brightwyna believed they had tricked fate itself. But even songs must end. And when Beatriz finally passed beyond the threshold, Brightwyna wept. They have not fallen in love since.
Brightwyna’s votive figurine collection
Over the course of many centuries, Brightwyna has built and eclectic collection of votive statues; each imbued with stories, prayers, and forgotten intentions. Some are gifts from the souls they’ve shepherded into the next world, others were found buried in sunken gardens or beneath the roots of trees. Some appeared without explanation, left on their threshold in the dead of night. The collection lines the inner sanctum of Brightwyna’s home like a silent constellation of the lost, the loved, and the longing. There are four statues among the collection that are far more than devotional relics. These four are thought to have been destroyed long ago, their legends faded to myth, their power buried beneath centuries of war and suspicion. They were created by an unknown ancient sorcerer, with the aid of Arawn. Each statue was gifted to one of the four ruling Houses: Cliza, Oretta, Karlota, and Brightwyna, and they allow their owner to shape-shift into any living being they can imagine. The three statues belonging to the other Houses came into Brightwyna’s possession when an antique dealer sold Brightwyna a solid marble cube engraved with the stamp of Compostica, the goddess of composting and transmutation. Upon arrival at Brightwyna’s house, the cube spontaneously fractured and fell away like a crumbling husk, revealing the three statues nestled within.
The Minor Houses
The House of Karsila
The House of Karsila are human-owl descendants of Veles. Centuries ago, they were driven from their ancestral forest lands by the rival House of Karlota. Forced into exile, they took refuge in an ancient mine beneath the Sova Mountains and gradually rebuilt their realm as interconnected cities carved out of rock spanning the entire mountain range. Guardians of an ancient Mountain Willow, a mystical tree that secretes pure Tungsten, the House of Karsila forge deadly arrows from its silvery sap. These weapons are unmatched in precision and lethality. It is the warriors of Karsila who uncover the hidden prison of the Oracle and lead a daring surprise assault on the House of Oretta, securing the Oracle's freedom.
The House of Sakura
The House of Sakura, human-cat descendants of Kasha, dwell within the natural cave systems of the Hitoneko Forest. Their realm is laced with underground rivers that pulse with electrical currents that only they can absorb. This unique energy infuses them with superstrength and also powers their flying war machines that strike with bolts of lightning. Locked in a long-standing rivalry with the House of Karsila, the Sakura have launched countless campaigns to seize the secret location of the mountain willow in order to collect its Tungsten to strengthen their weapons. In battle the House of Sakura’s warriors throw enchanted star-shaped blades that turn their enemies into sand.
The House of Filipa
The House of Filipa are human-horse descendants of Epona who inhabit the lush wetlands of the Ekwos River Delta. During battle, the warriors of the House of Filipa rhythmically stomp their powerful hooves to send tremors through the earth and disorient their enemies before lashing out with their spiked steel whips. The House of Filipa are the holders of the indestructible diamond cornucopia, which provides them with infinite sustenance. This sacred artifact allows them to wage long, relentless campaigns and celebrate with unending feasts, embodying a spirit as festive as it is fierce.
The Diviners
The Oracle
The Oracle is said to have been born out of a flameless fire. They live in the Cave of the Oracle, at the edge of the sea of Kumai, guarded by seven immortal seahorses. The Oracle is currently bound to serve the House of Oretta by a horned serpent wrapped around their neck. The serpent, which is under a powerful spell cast by the House of Oretta’s Padricha, feeds off the Oracle’s vital energy, keeping them in a weakened state. Only the death of the Padricha will break the spell. Eventually the human-owl warriors of the House of Karsila discover the location where the Oracle is being held captive and free them in a surprise attack on the House of Oretta. The Oracle then assigns a Padricha to the House of Cliza and a Madrufa to the House of Brightwyna.
Padrichas and Madrufas
Padrichas and Madrufas are nameless high-ranking sorcerers with mystical abilities and the gift of prophecy. They are neither bound by time nor bloodline, and each Padricha or Madrufa is assigned to a House by the Oracle. They move through all realms; material, elemental, and ancestral. They are seers of celestial law, interpreters of omens, and stewards of nature’s deeper rhythm, and they offer visions, protection, and counsel in moments of critical transition. The House of Cliza lost their Padricha during the War of the Winding Rivers and the House of Brightwyna’s Madrufa vanished during the last days of the War of Torcs. Neither House has been assigned a replacement, since the Oracle, once a neutral force that answered only to the realm of spirits and stars, has been taken into servitude by the House of Oretta
The Major Conflicts
The War of the Winding Rivers
In the War of the Winding Rivers, the House of Cliza fought against the human tribes of the river Cynanas. The war, which lasted twenty-two years, decimated both the human tribes and the House of Cliza.
The Battle of Transterrum
At the Battle of Transterrum the House of Oretta defeated the House of Cliza. It was a brief battle where Oretta ambushed Cliza and occupied an expanse of arable land belonging to the House of Cliza.
The War of Echoes
After centuries fighting each other, the Houses discovered that the discord between them had started by a covenant of human rulers who felt threatened by the Houses and attacked the House of Cliza disguised as members of the Houses of Oretta and Karlota. The House of Cliza retaliated against the other two Houses and started the War of Echoes that engulfed their whole Universe for centuries.
