History of the World of Lineage/Rise of Darkness
Rise of Darkness
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Children of Shilen
After the Fall of the Giants, Elf, Orc and Human waged endless wars for dominion over the continent. Many thousands fell on the battlefield. Humans had to live through destruction on an unprecedented scale, which drove them to seek hope of a new life beyond death. Just as the souls of fearless Orc warriors burned in the fire of Pa'agrio, Humans needed a deity who promised mercy after death. And some of them began to pray to Shilen.
These fanatics of death called themselves the Children of Shilen, and over time their influence spread far and wide. The fierce wars between the races ended in catastrophe, but the Human race rose from the ashes. And the Children of Shilen were already an important part of their society.
History of the Empire 1731, from "The Hidden History of Elmoreden", written by the Historian Matthew of the Ivory Tower.
Shunaiman's Awakening
During the coronation of Emperor Shunaiman, the great emperor of Elmoreden, a miracle happened. A maiden with three pairs of wings, surrounded by a halo of holy fire, descended from the heavens. In a pure, clear voice she declared that she was Anakim (Raid Boss), the messenger of Einhasad, come to earth to bring the blessing of the gods to Shunaiman, ruler of all Humans. Shunaiman declared the worship of Einhasad the one true religion, reducing all others to the rank of cults. He also proclaimed a holy war against all who worshipped darkness.
Some forces refused to bow before the might of the Emperor and kept resisting to the end. Known as the Children of Shilen, they turned out to be far more numerous and fanatical than the Emperor had expected. To overcome this rebellion, Shunaiman, working miracles with the might of Einhasad, created an army of the faithful together with Anakim. These steel warriors were filled with living grace and clad in giant plate armor. They were called the Nephilim, which means "the army of the mighty earthly angels".
Shilen's army was defeated again and again by the superior forces of the Nephilim. Many of her followers retreated under the cover of Shilen's embrace, scattering across the land and hiding in temples concealed deep underground...
Seal of Gnosis
When the outside threats finally disappeared, Emperor Shunaiman set about strengthening his empire from within. Over the next ten years the new empire grew mighty and, through large-scale development and territorial expansion, gained control of the whole continent. Castles were built, lords were appointed, and the Empire's economic power grew steadily. Around the same time, some people began to spread the faith in Shilen among the population again. The Emperor ordered the lords to punish the guilty, but they were unable to drive the fanatics out of the kingdom. Many died, but the Emperor did not give up. Following Anakim's divine revelations, the Emperor mobilized the Nephilim and uncovered six underground temples of Shilen's worshippers.
Shunaiman named these underground temples the Catacombs, since they were to become the place of eternal rest for the cultists who had rejected the worship of Einhasad. Shunaiman's troops attacked Shilen's bands, which had already once been defeated by the Nephilim. Still, final victory proved a very hard task. New enemies appeared - the so-called Lilim. The Lilim were created with Shilen's dark magic, and they did not fear the Nephilim. These warriors were not afraid of death and never fled the battlefield.
After a long, all-consuming battle, the emperor finally conquered the six Catacombs. But his entire army was destroyed. Countless bodies of Lilim and Nephilim covered the floors of the underground temples. Confident that no other force would ever challenge his rule, Shunaiman placed the Seal of Gnosis on all the Catacombs. The first of the seven seals got this name because it was a miracle obtained through gnosis - Anakim's revelation. Buried in deep dungeons, the troops of Shilen's immortal followers began to fade from people's memory...
History of the Empire 1731, from "The Hidden History of Elmoreden", written by the Historian Matthew of the Ivory Tower.
Seal of Avarice
It is said that while placing the Seal of Gnosis, Emperor Shunaiman and his followers gained the ability to foretell the future. Perhaps it came from the power of Einhasad, or Shilen, or straight from the gods themselves.
Soon after the Seal of Gnosis was placed, the followers of Einhasad had a vision of a black serpent slithering across the land. It was a sign that a hidden threat would soon reveal itself. Shilen's followers, whose cult had grown wildly under Lilith's leadership, built up their strength again and restored the Lilim army in eight underground cities - the Necropolises. There they held their ceremonies, trying to summon Shilen from the abyss.
The Emperor, who had lost most of his army while taking the Catacombs, could not get his subjects to rise up for war against the new threat. Then a dwarf appeared before him. As a representative of the Mammon's Merchants guild, he offered the emperor the means to raise new troops. Suspecting something was wrong, the emperor asked about his motives. The dwarf explained that his guild had supported the Children of Shilen, but now the stars foretold a change in the fate of the times. So they had decided to join the forces of Einhasad, whose victory had been foretold. And although the mysterious group of dwarves didn't look trustworthy, the emperor could find no falsehood in the envoy's words. The armor and weapons they offered were of such high quality that it was hard to refuse. Rumor spread that the Emperor and the Mammon's Merchants had made a contract whose details remained unknown.
Few records of the Mammon's Merchants remain, but those that survive make it clear that they worshipped Mammon-Wealth and predicted success in trade from the movements of the stars. It is also known that they were banished from the dwarven kingdom. Surprisingly, there are rumors that the guild is active to this day.
Emperor Shunaiman began working with this guild. He was able to raise a new Nephilim army and launch an attack on the Necropolises. But for the very chance to lead such a holy war he had only Anakim, the representative of Einhasad, to thank. The armies of light and death fought a brutal battle in the darkness of the dungeons. Blood flowed in every direction, turning rivers, seas and even the skies red. The people trembled in fear, but the emperor proclaimed that a new era would soon begin. He quietly waited for the right time.
At last Lilith (Raid Boss), the daughter of Shilen, shrouded in dark power, came out onto the battlefield. But Anakim blocked her way. The maiden of pure white light descended from the heavens on three pairs of wings. Yet neither Anakim nor Lilith won this battle. Emperor Shunaiman cast a spell that sealed the forces of light and darkness in the darkness of the Necropolises, burying the troops of Shilen, the Nephilim and Anakim.
The second seal was named the Seal of Avarice. Perhaps the reason was the notorious secret contract between the emperor and the Mammon's Merchants.
History of the Empire 1731, from "The Hidden History of Elmoreden", written by the Historian Matthew of the Ivory Tower.
Seal of Strife
Lilith and Shilen's troops were imprisoned underground and sealed with the Seal of Avarice, but the Children of Shilen remained on the surface too. Those who did not accept Shunaiman's revelations, the dark mages who worshipped the god of death, and the elven tribes who worshipped Eva and Shilen all disputed Einhasad's absolute power. Some of them insisted that they had received Lilith's revelation. And since they had amassed considerable wealth, it's clear they found people to support them. Emperor Shunaiman controlled the vast lands of the empire because he had gained the power of Holiness by partaking of the Holy Dogma. The Emperor extended his influence beyond the empire's borders, showing almost absolute internal power never seen before. He also taught others to partake of the Holy Dogma - a decision he regretted for the rest of his life.
All this time the emperor did not age - this was one of the effects of the Seals. But - perhaps as the gods' punishment for Shunaiman's pride - the children of Shilen managed to seize the Bridge of the Western Sea and invade the empire. At first it seemed that Shilen's army couldn't attack castles, but soon Town of Gludio and Town of Dion fell. Somehow the followers of the god of death had learned the mysterious powers of the Holy Dogma and managed to use them in sieges. In the end, after the fall of Giran Castle, Emperor Shunaiman made a fateful decision. He placed a magic seal that bound together all the castles in the Empire. As a result, although he lost most of his control, the enemy troops could not govern the captured castles. Then his army counterattacked and took back the castles, successfully driving Shilen's forces out of the empire. Thus the third seal appeared - the Seal of Strife, which bound together all the castles and territories on the continent...
History of the Empire 1731, from "The Hidden History of Elmoreden", written by the Historian Matthew of the Ivory Tower.
Lilith, Daughter of Shilen
Many theories have been put forward about Lilith's birth. The most widespread hypothesis is that she was an oracle who served Shilen during the Age of the Giants. However, when she showed herself in the era of Elmoreden, she looked like an elf with ash-colored skin.
In Shunaiman's time the Children of Shilen revered her as the ninth daughter of the goddess of death. Still, she was the central figure of the cult and bore the burden of religious and military power. The Revelation of Kaisha says this about Lilith: ...on the heavenly battlefield the might of the enraged gods cast down the children of Shilen one by one. Defeated, Shilen entered the realm of death, the threshold of the abyss where she had hidden before. She ordered Lilith, the daughter she loved most of all, to stay on earth and prepare for her return. And Shilen cursed Lilith with immortality...
Under Lilith's rule the Children of Shilen built the Necropolises and Catacombs, forming an army of elite warriors called the Lilim. Their strength grew quickly, threatening the Humans. Conflicts between Shilen's followers and the lords of the empire who tried to control them grew more and more frequent, finally turning into full-scale war. One of Shilen's followers later left this record of the events:
...Bring death to those who are against us. Sacrifice our lives for the goddess. When the blood of our enemies dyes the rivers, seas and sky crimson, the great Shilen will return to the world along the river of death. And may the Lilim brotherhood bring the final victory...
The Necropolis was where the Children of Shilen lived, both a temple and a fortress. Shilen's followers believed that since the Necropolis belonged neither to this world nor to the other, they could not truly die if killed in it. During the war most of them became undead or rose again as Lilim. Lilith and Anakim were imprisoned in the Necropolis of Disciples. Lilith opened her eyes again, like a forgotten relic hidden underground during the Age of Chaos...
History of the Empire 1731, from "The Hidden History of Elmoreden", written by the Historian Matthew of the Ivory Tower.
Anakim, Messenger of the Gods
In its time there was lively debate over the nature of angels. Human priests insisted that angels were the children of Einhasad, the goddess of light. Magisters, for their part, considered them higher spirits of light. The Revelation of Kaisha offers the following view, which reconciles both of the above:
...Einhasad, who stands above all beings, shed light on the heavens and the earth. The rays of light that shone in all directions gained a will of their own and, forming bodies like their creator's, became angels. Their light was extremely bright and did not belong to this world, but since they had bodies, they could not remain in the light. Wandering helplessly, they were taken in by Einhasad as servants. Einhasad also had nine children, whom she made the leaders of the angels...
Below is the first mention of Anakim by Lilith's scribe:
...The last of the nine was Anakim, who shone in the form of a woman with three pairs of wings. It is said that Einhasad made her ninth daughter her voice, to bear witness to her will to earthly creatures. Anakim was an agent of light, surrounded by the flame of spirits, sending the power of revelation down to earth.
Anakim shared her blood with Emperor Shunaiman, making it possible to create the Nephilim. She kissed his brow, giving him the right to speak with the authority granted by light.
So Anakim served the emperor of the Humans, granting the knowledge to create the Nephilim army. Anakim's existence let Shunaiman confirm his power as a holy right. And for him this was as mighty a weapon as the magic of light.
Yet did Anakim accept her imprisonment in the Necropolis of Disciples together with Lilith? Did she pray for the salvation of her rejected children? Or did she curse Shunaiman for her imprisonment in darkness?..
History of the Empire 1731, from "The Hidden History of Elmoreden", written by the Historian Matthew of the Ivory Tower.
Lilim and Nephilim
Looking at many testimonies, one can conclude that the Lilim were altered Humans, created in the Age of Giants with Shilen's dark magic. In essence, they were similar to the undead. The Lilim were not dead, but since they didn't need to eat or breathe, and their bodies didn't age and weren't subject to disease, they could hardly be called "alive". The following passage from the Revelation of Kaisha describes the Lilim as owners of immortal bodies:
...The Lilim, soldiers who gave their lives for Shilen, cannot die, for their names have been struck from the list of the dead. If a Lilim perishes, he returns to Shilen in the other world...
A great many of Shilen's followers wanted to be reborn as Lilim, but not everyone was given the chance. Those who were not chosen became a lower tribe and were called the "Lith". The Lilim became the main fighting force in the war against the Empire. The Lith repaired and maintained the Necropolises and Catacombs.
The Nephilim were soldiers created by the power of Einhasad. The following lines were found in the Empire's chronicles of that time:
...Emperor Shunaiman gave the heroes of the day a holy blessing with the magic of light obtained with the help of Anakim, the messenger of Einhasad. He created an army of angels whose noble look was crowned with platinum armor and wings of blades. They were swordsmen who carried the will of the gods into the world, priests who partook of the spiritual greatness of Einhasad...
The Nephilim were a peculiar fusion of a spirit of light and a human body. Like the Lilim, they were divided into foot soldiers, knights and priests. They also had their own lower tribe, called the Gigants.
The Gigants were too weak to become Nephilim. Nor could they become knights. They were soldiers who received Einhasad's blessing while wounded or while slaves. The Gigants served the Nephilim during the holy war to cleanse the empire of cultists.
The Nephilim and Gigants lost their essence in the process of creation, getting only the desire to kill and destroy in return. Shunaiman had absolute power over them. They were an army of soldiers who served their leader faithfully in his efforts to destroy the rebel troops and keep order in the empire.
From "An Analysis of the Revelation of Kaisha and the Poem of Lilith", written by the Dark Elf Tetrarch Tifiel
Necropolises and Catacombs
The architectural style of the Necropolis reflects well the ancient style widely used in the early days of the Elmoreden empire. The rooms and passages are of standard size but are connected rather haphazardly, which suggests they were built over many eras. The buildings and decorations are very well preserved.
Although the Necropolis was built by Shilen's followers for religious purposes, no sculptures or frescoes depicting Shilen have ever been found in it. The culture of the Age of Giants avoided depicting objects of religious worship directly. Instead, many stone statues depicting the temple's defenders are spread across its grounds. We believe they serve not so much a decorative as a protective function - a kind of spell in stone.
Some of the records on clay tablets found here, in the Saint's Necropolis, show well what this building meant to Shilen's followers:
...This place is the holiest of cathedrals, meant to house Shilen on her return to the real world from the lands of death, after she crosses the river of life. It is the palace of immortality, where the queen of the dead will rise.
The cultists believed that even if they died here by the swords of their enemies, they would gain the glory of eternal life, living in this place under Shilen's rule. For Shilen's followers the Necropolis was a holy place between the lands of the living and the land of the dead. They also believed that Shilen's divine providence would be with them in the Necropolis even after their deaths, so that life after death would be no different from their past life.
The Catacombs are the prototypes of the Necropolises, founded hundreds of years before those were built. Funnily enough, it's much easier to reconstruct the history of the Catacombs - they suffered less damage. Traces of the battles between the imperial army and Shilen's followers remain here to this day. Emperor Shunaiman named these places the Catacombs, hinting that they would become graveyards for the cultists. As if he knew from the very beginning what the outcome of his bloody war would be...
From the travel diary of Dubian Etbar of the Warriors of Dawn, during the excavation of the Saint's Necropolis and the Catacomb of the Forbidden Path.
Seal Stones
Having control of all seven seals, Emperor Shunaiman was in effect a god on earth. However, he knew that this incredible power, if controlled by just one person, could destroy the world. Until the very end of his reign he looked for a way to pass control of the seals to his successors. But in the end, only the emperor's blood relatives were able to gain control of the seals.
According to the Warriors of Dawn, this knowledge was a secret of the imperial family. For almost a millennium the descendants of Emperor Shunaiman of Elmoreden carried the knowledge of the seven seals, carefully teaching their children how to use them.
Be that as it may, the legacy of the imperial dynasty was scattered during the reign of Baium. Baium used Tower of Insolence to absorb the power of the Lilim and Nephilim sealed underground. But his plan, as foolish as it was grand, failed because of Saint Solina's intervention. The Tower of Insolence collapsed, and the magic reversed its direction: instead of the power of the Lilim and Nephilim bodies passing to Baium, his power passed into the bodies of the Lilim and Nephilim.
The fall of Emperor Baium made the Elmoreden dynasty lose control of the seven seals. But it soon became known that this power had not vanished but had passed into the so-called Seal Stones in the bodies of the Nephilim and Lilim.
To this day, with a certain number of Seal Stones gathered together, one can gain control of the seven seals. Having learned this from ancient documents dug up in the Tower of Insolence, those who uncovered the secret formed the Revolutionaries of Dusk and the army of the Lords of Dawn. They sent troops into the Necropolises and Catacombs, holding many festivals to decide who could collect more Seal Stones. Thus the fierce contest between the two sides for control of the seals began for the first time.
History of the Empire 1731, from "The Hidden History of Elmoreden", written by the Historian Matthew of the Ivory Tower.
