History of the world of Lineage/Goddess of Destruction

Contents

Shilen's Captivity

Shilen, the child of Einhasad and Gran Kain, was seduced by her father, the god of chaos. On learning that her daughter was pregnant by her own father, the goddess of creation stripped her of all power and banished her in disgrace. Hiding from the mother who had cursed her, Shilen, consumed by rage and despair, gave birth to evil spirits, the offspring of Gran Kain. Some time later she waged war on the gods who had banished her. Shilen suffered a crushing defeat. Having sent her own children into the last battle and lost them, she created her own world, a world of suffering and death, and from then on all the dead went there. The instincts awakened in Shilen by her union with Gran Kain pushed her toward destroying all that exists, and neither defeat in the war nor the death of her children could stop her urges. To prevent the destruction of the world, Einhasad placed seals on Shilen, reaching out through Emperor Shunaiman to the angel Anakim and gaining her support. These bonds came under the control of Shunaiman's blood, and the goddess of destruction could not break free.

After the emperor's death, people craving the power of the gods began breaking Shilen's seals, and she got a chance to leave her place of imprisonment.

Shilen's Return

Because of human greed, 4 of the 7 seals were broken, and Shilen, bound in darkness, opened her eyes again. She began looking for a way to break the remaining bonds holding back her power. To remove the seals she needed to divert Einhasad's attention, and for that she needed Darkness to restore her strength.

And Shilen conceived the Great Sacrifice. First she ordered her servants to ritually kill the adepts of the necropolises and catacombs, then she created the Black Moon, which became her eyes in the darkness that followed.

Shilen began seeking new offerings for slaughter in Elmoreden. The long-held breath of the goddess burst into the world along with her blood when she marked her victims. The dark elves were the first to sense Shilen's awakening: all the signs of her coming written in the Book of Revelations had come true. They began to pray for the rebirth and coming of their patron.

Meanwhile, Amadeo Cadmus, King of Aden, summoned eminent scholars and ordered them to learn everything about Shilen. The results of the research were very discouraging. Filled with fear, Amadeo turned to the prophet Einhovant. He told the king that in the war with the gods the giants had nearly won; this meant that whoever obtained the power of the giants could prevent the destruction of the world begun by the awakened goddess of death.

Prophet Einhovant

Having lived for several hundred years, Einhovant was a prophet the gods spoke to. He gave Amadeo advice that confused and bewildered the king.

Einhovant claimed that people who had the power of the gods would become the strongest beings once they obtained the power of the giants.

Giants

The race of giants appeared at the beginning of time. No one knows for certain where they came from, but some sources say they came at the same time as the gods.

Although their might wasn't of divine origin, it was very great. And when the giants challenged the higher beings, the advantage was on their side.

The gods, weakened by internal strife, were forced to retreat before attacks full of irresistible fury. Only when Shilen was sealed and all forces were turned against the giants did luck turn to the host led by Einhasad and Gran Kain. In the course of the struggle the shapes of continents changed, and new seas appeared, in whose depths the peaks of the highest mountains vanished. In the end the giants were defeated. The last of them, Hermuncus, stole part of Einhasad's power and hid it in a neighboring dimension. For this, the captive king of the giants was deprived of his arms and legs, and his spirit was sealed on the Heavenly Island.

The Power of the Great Giant

The power of the giants was of a different nature from that of the gods. The spirit of the heroes of the age of giants, preserved in a scroll of the other world, could awaken this might in someone able to use it. Shilen found the spirit of Hermunkus on the Sky Island and awakened him. Her offers to return him to life found no response, as he decided to use the power held in the scroll.

Solar Eclipse

Almost immediately after the sky turned blood-red, a solar eclipse began. The black moon completely covered the sun, and darkness reigned. It was Shilen, who had been biding her time, entering Elmoreden.

Even for a goddess it wasn't easy. Shilen's blood rained down on the lands of Elmoreden, contaminating rivers and lakes, destroying buildings and driving the monsters that tasted it into a frenzy. It also weakened the world's protective barrier and led to a mass appearance of creatures of darkness.

Tree of Life

The goddess's deadly blood also affected the Tree of Life, which began to die as it cleansed the land and water of the poison. To save it, the elf elder Asterios took up the study of the giants' records of the creation of the world. During his research he discovered an ancient manuscript mentioning Magmeld. In this dimension, sealed by a door with special incantations, Einhasad, the goddess of light, had gathered the most beautiful things of Elmoreden. Among other things, she placed in Magmeld a heavenly ray capable of cleansing any darkness.

The Elven lord realized that this ray could prevent the death of the sacred Tree, but the manuscript said not a word about how to get to Magmeld. The answer came in a dream. Asterios saw a road leading to another dimension. Now all he had to do was find the mysterious door blocking the way. The chance was tiny, but the elf had no choice: if the Tree of Life died, all of Elmoreden would pass into oblivion.

The alliance of Aden and Southern Gracia

Of course, the elves weren't the only ones to notice the Blood Rain. Amadeo Cadmus, King of Aden, contacted Astain, ruler of Elmore, and Keucereus, ruler of southern Gracia. He proposed forming an alliance to stand together against the looming danger.

Astain opposed bringing troops onto his land, and the treaty was not signed. Then Amadeo decided to act alone. He assembled secret combat groups and sent them to every country to find the Power the prophet Einhovant had spoken of.

Meanwhile, the Lords of the Seed of Gracia received Shilen's order to complete the Great Sacrifice and set to work. They began ritually killing every living thing inside and outside the seed. Keucereus, who wasn't against a triple alliance and had refused only because Astain didn't support the idea, immediately sent a messenger to Aden. Amadeo gladly accepted the offer of the ruler of southern Gracia. The alliance was concluded.

The treaty was based on these points:

Astain never joined the alliance.

Giants

The Blood Rain that fell on Elmoreden poisoned many creatures, and their deaths returned part of her power to Shilen, but that wasn't enough to break the seals binding the goddess of death. So she began looking for other ways to bring even more suffering and death into this world.

Shilen remembered the king of the giants, who had dreamed of making his race equal to the gods and gave in to her persuasion to steal Einhasad's power. In the battle that broke out then, the giants were destroyed. The king of the giants realized that Shilen had simply used him. And so, in the last moments of his life, he hid the power stolen from Einhasad somewhere in the depths of space. To find it, Shilen summons the spirit of the king of the giants and makes him an offer:

"Tell me where you hid Einhasad's power, and I will resurrect you."

But, taught by bitter experience, he understands that he can't trust the treacherous goddess. Besides, where's the joy in helping the one who caused your whole people to vanish? No promises or assurances from Shilen could sway the king of the giants. His spirit tears the web of spells and slips away from the goddess. He doesn't notice that one very, very simple spell marks his path, and a sly smile plays on Shilen's face.

The king of the giants wants to find Einhasad's power himself. Then he won't need the goddess of death's help to be resurrected. All Shilen has to do is follow the spirit and steal the power for her own release.

Shilen did make the right move after all.

The Plague Mist

A strange fog covered the whole continent. And after a while, a plague of unknown origin began to rage across the land. The disease spread very quickly, carrying away hundreds and thousands of lives. Whole villages and towns were laid waste.

Teams of scholars and mercenaries were sent from Aden and Elmore to investigate and eliminate the cause of the illness. They all failed and, like many others, fell victim to the epidemic. The fog grew thicker and thicker, and the theory that it was Shilen's doing gained more and more supporters.

At the same time, the elf elder Asterios, who had set out to find the dimensional door to Magmeld to save the Tree of Life, gets a hint from Nerupa* and heads to Anghel Waterfall. There he encounters a strange fog very much like the one that brought the plague. Asterios disperses the fog, and before him appears a dimensional rift that leads to Magmeld.

Nerupa is one of the arachnids, the eldest of 3 children in the family. A valiant warrior who made a pact with the Tree of Life. In exchange for immortality he pledged to become the Tree's protector. He is in charge of the thread of Fate "Past".

Magmeld

Magmeld is the dimension where Einhasad gathered the most beautiful things in the world.

On arriving there, Asterios meets the cat chief Slaki and learns that the Heavenly Ray guarding this place has been blocked by the risen black moon. The elven elder decides to wait for Einhasad's light to appear, since only it can save the Tree of Life. So as not to waste time, Asterios gathers the ancient manuscripts that mention the Ray and studies them.

From the manuscripts, the elf elder learns of another seed of Shilen that fell into Magmeld many centuries ago. Called the Calamity, it could not sprout because of Einhasad's light. Asterios fears that the rising of the black moon may cause something irreparable. He rushes off in search of it.

But the time was lost, and the seed of Calamity had already sprouted in Magmeld; Agahel, the Lord of Calamity summoned by Shilen, broke free of the bonds of light that held him. He used a spatial rift and sent the torments of the depths of hell upon Elmoreden — a gloating plague. Under its weight the world slowly began to sink into the embrace of death.

Earth Wyrm Trasken

Shilen awakens the earth wyrm Trasken, who had been put to sleep by the dwarves. She intends to use him as a tunnel for sacrifices that will link Elmoreden with the spirit world. After his long sleep Trasken is enraged, and when tens of thousands of creatures that have tasted Shilen's blood come to him, he sacrifices them all. The suffering and blood of the slain pass through the earth wyrm's body into the spirit world.

The terrible sacrifice first became known thanks to the disappearance of the Kracis, dark elves who were banished for selling their souls for revenge.

Elder Sipiel noticed that the village founded by the Kracis had suddenly emptied. Fearing their revenge, he decided to find out where they had vanished. The search leads the dark elf elder to the Mithril Mines, where he witnesses the Kracis and other followers of Shilen being sacrificed by Trasken.

This sight shocks Sipiel, who, like all his kin, firmly believed in Shilen. Returning to the village, he immediately gathers a council and tells it about everything he saw in the Mithril Mines. The dark elves learned of the goddess's betrayal and were filled with bitterness and grief. After long debates they decided to renounce her. That is how Shilen lost her faithful followers.

The Watcher

Someone was watching everything from unreachable heights. To him Elmoreden was like a little ball dangling on a string.

But sometimes the mask of feigned indifference on his face gave way to a smile. Even if only for a moment, people brought him joy. People, his failed creation. These creatures, simply thrown onto the continent, had evolved and were now about to stand against Shilen together with Einhasad's other creations. Somewhere deep in his soul he even felt pride.

The prophet, who had long been at his side, asked: "Whose side will you be on?" "My child's, of course," came the answer.

"Then why do you watch these creatures with such pleasure?" Einhovant didn't understand. The observer burst out laughing and, when he had finished, said softly: "They are my children too."

A New Beginning

Shilen's rebirth may be the end, but it may also be a beginning. The prophet left the chambers of the observer, whose intentions he never fully understood, and set off for Aden.

Truly hard times are about to come, and Einhovant must warn the inhabitants of Elmoreden about it.

Shilen's Seals

Shilen's seals, created by Einhasad and enchanted with the blood of Emperor Shunaiman, held her in darkness; however, there was a great prophecy that the imprisoned goddess of destruction would one day return. Embryo, who dreamed of Shilen's resurrection, studied the prophecy thoroughly and began to act to bring the moment of her release closer. He created a blood altar of staggering size, needed to gather enough energy for the goddess's reincarnation.

Priestess Mellis and the great sorceress Isadora

Etis van Etina, having appointed Embryo to arrange the blood altar, took it upon himself to break the seals one by one and, using the power within them, create apostles. He managed to incite four greedy warriors who craved divine power, and they broke four castles open, and Etis van Etina created four apostles. It isn't hard to guess what he did to those who, swayed by his promises, dared to break the seals.

The apostles were incredibly devoted to their creator and, following his order, mercilessly destroyed everyone who, out of ignorance or dreaming of obtaining divine power, approached the broken locks. Two of Etis's four creations were twin sisters whose abilities complemented each other. Melissa, who received the power of the seal of greed, he gave the ability to sense life in others and regulate its currents, and Isadora, who held the might of the seal of punishment, magical talents exceeding the combined power of all the wizards of the Ivory Tower.

Fortuna

When the rebels led by Spasia marched on Magmeld, the gods, deceived by Octavius, blocked the campaign of the "traitors".

Most of the rebels died in that battle; Einhasad imprisoned their leader in the Shining Cage and doomed her to eternal torment, while the survivors who weren't captured returned to Fortuna. But they too were soon wiped out by the servants of the Temple of Orbis, whose head Octavis had been appointed. Fortuna was destroyed, but some of the buildings survived and became a refuge for Ron, who went into hiding after learning of the betrayal and tried to restore the rebels' good name and free Spezion. Ron's few supporters woke the spirits of the place to guard them.

The exodus of the races to Talking Island

Dark Elves

The Dark Elves, Shilen's faithful followers, longed for the goddess's release. It so happened that Elder Sipiel, who had set out in search of the inhabitants of the emptied village of the exiled Krasis, witnessed terrible events.

The goddess, trying to break the seals binding her, awakened the earth wyrm Trasken, who had been put to sleep by the dwarves. After his long sleep he is enraged, and when tens of thousands of creatures that have tasted Shilen's blood come to him, he sacrifices them all. The suffering and blood of the slain pass through the earth wyrm's body into the spirit world.

What he saw shocks Sipiel, who, like all his kin, firmly believed in Shilen. Returning to the village, he immediately gathers a council and tells it about everything he witnessed on the journey. The dark elves learned of the goddess's betrayal and were filled with bitterness and grief. After long debates they decided to renounce her. That is how Shilen lost her faithful followers. Her influence on them, however, did not end: long years of worshipping the goddess left a mark of darkness on these beings and their ancestral village.

Elder Mitrael proposed that everyone leave their ancestral home and go to Talking Island, which is protected by the power of light. The tribe's council supported him. The dark elf village was abandoned and then became a haven for bloodthirsty demons.

Dwarves

The earth wyrm Trasken, who had long slept in the natural depths of the Mithril Mines, awakens on Shilen's order. The goddess wants him to perform the "Great Sacrifice". Thousands of creatures exposed to the bloody rain were gathered in the Mithril Mines and ritually killed by Trasken.

Having carried out the goddess's order, the earth wyrm, inflamed by the outrages he had committed, goes in search of creatures to whom he could bring pain and suffering. The dwarves' ancestral village is threatened with total destruction by Trasken, and at an emergency council the race of merchants decides to leave their home and go to Talking Island, which is under the protection of the forces of light.

Elves

The goddess's deadly blood also affected the Tree of Life, which began to die as it cleansed the land and water of the poison. To save it, the elf elder Asterios took up the study of the giants' records of the creation of the world. Coming across a mention of Magmeld, he sets out to find the mysterious dimension.

Meanwhile, the elf village was covered by the plague fog, which the dying Tree of Life couldn't cope with. The council of elders decided to go to Talking Island, which is under the protection of the forces of light, and not to return to the dying sacred Tree until Asterios came back.

Orcs

Few besides the orcs themselves have been to their home. This closed and harsh people don't get along well with strangers. Even in towns they settle apart, and in taverns they take secluded benches in dark corners and prefer to listen rather than chat. Let alone their ancestral village.

Their isolation played a cruel joke on the orcs. Long ago most of them moved to the mainland. And when the plague sent by Shilen in her attempt to free herself struck, the orc nest was practically empty: without help from outside, it fell prey to the deadly illness and the bloodthirsty creatures of darkness. The tribe's ruler Kakan, who miraculously escaped the disease and the monsters' claws, led the remnants of the tribe to Talking Island, which is under the protection of the forces of light.

Kamael

After Ye Sagira fell on Talking Island, Hermunkus awakened. The firstborn Kamael sensed their creator and wanted to rush off at once to find him and swear allegiance to him as of old. But they met an obstacle: many young Kamael believed they owed nothing to the giant who had created their ancestors. A rift appeared in the ranks of the one-winged soldiers.

Elder Kekropus, seeing that the disagreements were more likely to grow into internecine slaughter than be settled, suggested that everyone make a choice. And so the Kamael finally split into two camps: the followers of Hermunkus and the supporters of freedom and self-rule. The first, led by Kekropus, headed to Talking Island. The second stayed in their ancestral village and, when the bloody rain began, followed close behind by the deadly plague, vanished without a trace.