Mothercrystals are mountains of sparkling crystal with a core in their depths where the aether concentrates. As aether is blue in hue, the crystals tend to be take on this color, though the Drake's Breath in the volcanic region appears fiery orange, the Drake's Spine in Waloed appears violet, and the Drake's Fang buried into the earth often appears yellow. Pieces of crystals mined from these motherlodes are known as shards and are rationed and distributed across the populace for everyday tasks to maintain the society's lifestyle, from lighting up street lamps to running forges to providing water to municipal wells. Mothercrystals are the source of all crystal in Valisthea. The most valuable material in the realm due to its property of channeling ambient aether from the air to make one's imagination manifest as magic. Magic is an invaluable means of enabling a civilization to flourish on the Twins.
Mothercrystals, sometimes simply known as "Mothers", being the origin of all crystal in the realm makes them invaluable resources. Societies have concentrated around them since time immemorial and nations wage ceaseless wars to seize and keep control of them, leading to instability and persecution. A religion that worships the crystal monoliths as deities remains in prominence in the west, while on the other end of the spectrum, a small group of people posits that the crystals are a detriment to the realm and need to be destroyed to stop the ever-spreading calamity of the Blight.
Valisthea relies on magic for everything, from forging weaponry to deploying attacks in battle, and so the Mothercrystals are considered sacred, and they are also behind the Eikons' bond with their Dominant. Magically born with the ability to host these summons, Dominants are graced by the Mothercrystals power and are deemed worthy to possess the might of the Eikons in battle.
The crystals predate the creation of humanity. The Ultima collective created them in places suitable for rich aether flow, as determined from the top of Reverie to sap and store the land of aether and send it to Origin via conduits to be one day used to recreate the world. Ultima's brethren transformed themselves into the crystals and the hearts within them, leaving only one member behind. To hide their true purpose, the last Ultima then named each Mothercrystal after the parts of an ancient dragon.
The Mothercrystals have dragon-related names, being named after various body parts of a drake. There were originally eight Mothercrystals (representing the eight elements) five remain on the Twins in present.
Drake's Head
The Sanbrequois crystal is located on the coastline and is a tall spire that cuts the sky. The imperial seat of power is built on the Mothercrystal's doorstep and the capital Oriflamme is build around the crystal, a tightly governed city where many nobles reside.
Drake's Breath
Drake's Breath is a towering monolith off the west coast of Storm. It glows red and is situated on volcanic ground. It used to be controlled by the Duchy of Rosaria, but has since been taken over by the Iron Kingdom after the fall of the duchy, whose religious leadership worship it as a deity and perform human sacrifices upon its core.
Drake's Fang
Drake's Fang is located underground, encased inside a crater. Hugo Kupka built his castle and abode inside the crater, right outside Drake's Fang's core. It is primarily controlled by the Dhalmekian Republic.
Drake's Tail
It is the Mothercrystal of Crystalline Dominion, which towers over the capital: Twinside. It is the largest of the five remaining Mothercrystals on the Twins.
Drake's Spine
Drake's Spine is located in the northern part of Ash, near the capital of the Kingdom of Waloed, Stonhyrr. The skies above it are permanently thundering. Drake's Spine is a highly contested Mothercrystal, and wars over its control only intensified in the wake of Drake's Horn's fall.
Drake's Eye
Drake's Eye was a Mothercrystal in the Northern Territories that no longer exists; the entire north has been taken over by Blight and the land is now considered uninhabitable. Between the years of the realm 170–250, small countries around Drake's Eye were in disarray, and Shiva's Dominant was born in this region.
Drake's Horn
Drake's Horn was a Mothercrystal in the southern part of Ash, in the lands overtaken by Blight. It no longer exists. It used to be a source of strife over resources between the Motes of Water tribe and the local beastmen. Drake's Horn fell in the Year of the Realm 350.
Dzemekys
The eighth Mothercrystal, known as Dzemekys rather than following the "Drake's X" naming scheme of the other crystals, was located in what is now known as the Falls of Dzemekys, the site of "the Sins of Dzemekys". It used to have a portal located at its foot that connected to Origin through which the tribes that settled the lands around the crystal communed with their god. It was the first Mothercrystal of the eight to fall.
Mothercrystals tower over the landscapes where they are situated. Five Mothercrystals are known to exist in the Twins; a sixth used to exist in the Northern Territories, but has since collapsed, expediting the entire region's ruin. Two more were lost many years ago: one in Southern Ash, and one in the crater of Dzemekys Falls in eastern Dhalmekia, the first Mothercrystal to fall 1,500 years ago. Mothercrystals are the source of all crystal needed to run society. The lands surrounding them are rich with aether, the life energy of the land and all living beings and the origin of all magic; the motherlodes' surrounds are excellent farmland and all magicks used around them—from Bearers, Dominants, and shards alike—are more potent. Nations have sprung up around each Mothercrystal and war one another for possession of their "blessings".
The Crystalline Orthodox is a religion that worships the "Mothers" as deities and considers magic-use an abomination and heresy and waste of valuable aether, leading to severe persecution of people able to naturally use magicks. The orthodoxy used to be widespread across the Twins, but in the modern era, it mainly persists in the western archipelago in the Iron Kingdom. Though the other nations do not worship the crystals as literal deities, they are viewed as the most valuable resource imaginable and tend to be used as the seats of power for the nation that currently controls it.
Though the aether-rich environment near the Mothercrystals is considered a blessing, it has a downside: aetherfloods are volatile outbursts of aether known to occur near Mothercrystals. These floods corrupt living beings, filling their flesh with aether, crystallizing their outer bodies and making them act erratically, eventually eroding all humanity and turning the subjects into rampaging beasts known as Akashic.
The heart of a Mothercrystal is where the aether concentrates; it is a crystal formation that glows in iridescent colors. Those in control of the Mothercrystal tend to maintain the inner sanctuaries around these cores to revere and protect them, as should the core be destroyed, the entire Mothercrystal would collapse and vanish into aether.The inner sanctums predate even the Fallen and their original purpose is lost to history.Though usually dormant, if the heart is threatened, it can fight back.