Velaris City of starlight

From Sarah J Mass' series "A COURT OF THORNS AND ROSES"

Velaris, also known as the Court of Dreams and the City of Starlight, is a hidden city on the western side of the Night Court of Prythian. Its inhabitants agree that Rhysand be their High Lord despite the fact that he is not fully High Fae being half Illyrian, whom their counterparts the inhabitants of the Court of Nightmares consider Lesser Faeries, it is for this reason that the inhabitants of said Court do not approve of him. The city remained hidden from Amarantha, thanks to Rhysand's fifty year sacrifice Under the Mountain. The walls of Velaris had not been breached in over five thousand years.

Velaris had been built like a crust atop the rolling, steep hills are flanked by a broad, winding river, sparkling like deepest sapphire - the Sidra River - and snaking toward the vast expanse of water beyond, the sea. The Sidra River is loitered by ships with sails of varying shapes, making it navigable. The city's buildings are crafted out of white marble, warm sandstone, and the same red stone of the flat-topped mountains that can be found on the northern edge of the city. Many quarters of Velaris are full of townhouses with green copper roofs and white chimneys. In Velaris many shops can be found with delicate tables and chairs scattered outside their cheery fronts. Many of these buildings are heated by warming spells. Velaris has four market squares called Palaces, two on the southern side of the Sidra River and two on the northern side. What Velaris is most known for is the artists' quarter, called the Rainbow of Velaris, where dwell the performing artists, the musicians, the dancers, the actors. It is a brightly painted pocket of the city, built atop one of the hills that flowed right to the river's edge. In the Rainbow of Velaris can be found a hundred galleries, supply stores, potters' compounds, sculpture gardens, and anything in between. In this quarter is located a building with a golden top, the most famous of the five main theaters in the city. In Velaris there are also other smaller theaters and an amphitheater on the sea cliff.

night sky over mountains full moon shining night sky over ocean

The Court Of Dreams

“The Court of Dreams. The people who knew that there was a price, and one worth paying, for that dream. The bastard- born warriors, the Illyrian half breed, the monster trapped in a beautiful body, the dreamer born into a court of nightmares...And the huntress with an artist's soul.” ― Sarah J. Maas, A Court of Mist and Fury

Rhysand

Rhysand is the most powerful High Lord in history and the current ruler of the Night Court. "I love my people, and my family. Do not think I wouldn’t become a monster to keep them protected. –Rhysand, A Court of Mist and Fury"

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Feyre

Feyre is the High Lady of the Night Court. "I was not a pet, not a doll, not an animal. I was a survivor, and I was strong. I would not be weak, or helpless again I would not, could not be broken. Tamed. –Feyre, A Court of Mist and Fury"

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Cassian

Cassian is an Illyrian member of the Night Court and part of Rhysand's Inner Circle."I can think of no better way to end my existence than to defend those who need it most. –Cassian A Court of Mist And Fury"

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Azriel

Azriel is an Illyrian. " Rhys, Cass, and I will occasionally remind each other that what we think to be our greatest weakness can sometimes be our biggest strength. And that the most unlikely person can alter the course of history. –Azriel in A Court of Wings and Ruin"

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Mor

Morrigan, shortened to Mor by her friends, is a member of Rhysand's Inner Circle and the Third-in-Command of the Night Court. " I was a dreamer born into the Court of Nightmares. So I got out. –Morrigan, A Court of Mist and Fury "

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Amren

Amren is a High Fae. She is the Second-in-command to the High Lord of the Night Court. " So I bound myself into this body. I shoved my burning grace deep into me. I gave up everything I was. The cell door just... unlocked. And so I walked out. ― Amren, A Court of Wings and Ruin "

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Rainbow of Velaris

"This is what Velaris is known for: the artists' quarter. You'll find a hundred galleries, supply stores, potters' compounds, sculpture gardens, and anything in between. They call it the Rainbow of Velaris."

–Rhysand, A Court of Mist and Fury

The Rainbow of Velaris is a neighborhood in the city of Velaris in the Night Court. It is the central hub for different kinds of art. It contains the most famous theater in the city. Description The Rainbow of Velaris is Velaris's artists' quarter, home to the performing artists: the musicians, the dancers, the actors. It is a brightly painted pocket of the city, built atop one of the hills that flowed right to the Sidra River's edge. In the Rainbow of Velaris can be found a hundred galleries, supply stores, potters' compounds, sculpture gardens, and anything in between. In this quarter is located a building with a golden top, the most famous of the five main theaters in the city. In Velaris there are also other smaller theaters and an amphitheater on the sea cliffs.

hands covered in paint empty theatre seats artists tools artists studio
hands covered in paint empty theatre seats artists tools artists studio

Hewn City The Court of Nightmares

The Hewn City, also known as the Court of Nightmares, is one of the two main cities of the Night Court of Prythian. It's located under the mountains of the Night Court and is the domain of High Lord Rhysand.

woman screaming

Unlike Under the Mountain, which was a series of halls and rooms and levels, the Hewn City is a true city within the mountain. There are avenues, separate buildings with spires, homes, and bridges. It is an entire metropolis carved from the dark stone of the mountain itself. Every surface is carved with lovely, hideous artwork: figures dance and fornicate, beg and revel, pillars are carved to look like curling vines of night-blooming flowers. Water runs throughout the city in little streams and rivers tapped from the heart of the mountain itself. The mountain-city is lit with silvery bobbing faelights. The Hewn City is ruled from a castle inside the mountain, which is the official seat of the High Lord of the Night Court. The gates to the castle are carved into great, scaled black beasts coiled together in a nest of claws and fangs, sleeping and fighting or devouring each other. Between them flow vines of jasmine and moonflowers. The throne room within is of polished ebony on every surface, the floor highly polished enough Feyre could see her face in it when she kneeled and lowered her head. More of the beasts from the gates are carved around the countless columns supporting the onyx ceiling, which is so high the gloom hides its finer details. Atop a dais is a throne that has been fashioned out of a few of the beasts, a head snaking around either side of the back as if they watch over the High Lord's shoulders. The castle's council chambers was nearly as large as its throne room. It was carved from the same dark rock, pillars fashioned after those entangled beasts, having a high domed ceiling. It had a mammoth table of black glass that split the room in two, shaped a bit like a lightning bolt. The table's corners were left long and jagged so they were as sharp as a razor, capable of injury if one was not careful.

birds flying in dark background
sillohuette standing at end of alley
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