History of Naztherak - The Old Times

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Please only roleplay reading this post if you are handed a paper of it in character. Furthermore, all writing on this post should be treated as if it’s written in Ilzakarn. Due to the constraints of our fantasy language, we can not write an entire paper with it.

 

Anyone is free to comment with spoilers or read this OOCly. This is an in-character interpretation of the events leading up to our coven’s history (and what the characters believe as naztherak’s history).

 

All credit to TGRT for the new and amazing goat-themed forum dividers. Thanks to Zarsies and Leyd for allowing me to ask them some questions.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Before the times when infernal powers were so concretely cemented into our world, there were many periods when The Lords collectively rescinded the abilities granted to these lands and the descendants within. While the sole reason for the removal of powers is unknown, it can be inferred that either it was due to some intense abuse (similar to the abuse of the void, common among the voidal magii of today) or that some scheme against The Lords was created by the mortal agents, and subsequently noted and punished by their infernal rulers. While it seems more likely that the latter of the two options is what had happened, in reality, it is estimated that some mix of the two most likely occurred.

 

This period (spanning from the first creation of mortal agents of Moz’Strimoza through the event titled The Summoning) will be referred to herein as The Old Times, as this period predates The Modern Times. Although The Old Times covers all pre-modern history, it may be divided by specific time frames and events. As seen below, the three major dividers of The Old Times are The Ancient Times, The Infernal Takeover (encompassing First Contact and The Inferi War), and the Pre-modern Times (encompassing The Failure and The Summoning).

 

 

 

 

Spanning from the first mortal agent until The Infernal Takeover.

 

The Ancient Times is a metaphorically dark period of history wherein much of the information about The Lords, the mortal agents, and their combined ambitions is lost. It has been determined that through the change of many continents, old fliers, pamphlets, books, and even simple stories of the mortal agents have been lost due to the death of descendants and nations, as well as the limited carrying capacity of those who did survive[1]. While information on this period is mostly lost, we can be sure of a few key events. 

 

 

 

The beginning of The Ancient Times can be traced back to when the first mortal agent was created within descendant lands. This mortal agent, in all likelihood, must have coerced others into deals with The Lords so that infernal powers could spread across nations and continents. This is the first key event.

 

Secondly, as mentioned above, we can be sure that some combination of abuse and scheming against The Lords occurred[2]. This event did not escape the attention of The Lords, who, in response, swiftly revoked the powers initially granted to the mortal agents.

 

Lastly, we can confirm that the descendant world was noted by The Lords as a viable battleground to continue their infernal conquering and fighting. It is heavily theorized that Velkuzat, in his unending greed and hunger, noted the lands to be ripe with weakness due to the inferior metals and alchemy, as well as the heavy influence of the void on many descendants[3]. Naturally, it was not long before other Lords and their generals began to seize parts of the world as their own.

 

 

 

 

[1] It is often acknowledged that while many papers could have survived, they are out of the reach of the current mortal agents. If any are found, it is advised that they are copied and taken.

[2] We can be sure that time has passed between the first agent and the betrayal of The Lords due to the immense amount of mortal agents who lost their powers.

[3] While it is possible that other Lords originally noted our realm as vulnerable, evidence points to Velkuzat first noticing the land in his unending hunger. It was only upon closer inspection by Kholidav that weakness was noted. It is very possible that other Lords even tainted the lands before contact was made, possibly contributing to this weakness.

 

 

A depiction of the comet striking the ground.

 

 

Spanning from First Contact until the Pre-Modern Times.

 

First Contact

First Contact refers to the beginning stages of The Infernal Takeover. During this time, the chosen generals of Moz’Strimoza made contact with Arcas via a colossal comet that struck the land and shook the continent to its core. Caught off guard and unsuspecting, the descendants hastily converged at the impact site, though many were quickly slaughtered by the powerful generals, much like a cat swatting mice with its paw.

 

It was during the First Contact that descendants quickly began to scramble to form alliances against these prevalent threats, though it would take some time before the chosen warriors of the descendants were trained properly. It is this grave overestimation of their own abilities that lead many descendants to die in vain. The most prevalent alliance formed is The Firewatch[4]. This alliance was formed in the year 1777, though it would take some eight years after the founding before the first descendant victory was achieved. 

 

At the same time that many descendants were rallying together to fight the infernal generals, many also contributed their wartime efforts to the opposite effect - assisting them. Whether it be through sacrifice, spying, disinformation, or other actions, it is believed that through the efforts of these turn-coat descendants, the true value of having mortal agents was realized by The Lords once more. The resurgence of infernal arts in mortal hands is attributed to these secretive endeavors by valiant descendants; however, these powers would not manifest for many years.

 

An artist's illustration of the corrupted Al'Faiz.

 

The Inferi War

Although the examination of every battle's circumstances and outcomes in The Inferi War exceeds the scope of this paper, it is important to acknowledge the essential timeline and highlight the major victories that occurred. 

 

 

In 1777, the descendants united to establish the Firewatch Alliance, and by the following year, in 1778, they undertook a strategic march across the Korvassan sands to confront the infernal generals in battle. It is only through the help of some strong explosion that the descendants managed to walk away without completely being slaughtered. 

 

Two years later in 1780, the Firewatch Alliance attempted to defend the city of Al’Faiz against the infernal general of M’ag’nus C’arne. This too was in vain as the city was quickly overrun by infernal siege engines.

 

Following the siege of Al’Fiaz, it was not long until the neighboring city of Vanmark was taken. As a city containing mostly merchants, it is said that little resistance was given to the new infernal rulers. It would only be in the year 1785 that the Firewatch Alliance managed to secure a victory and ‘rescue’ the city, though it was mostly in ruin by then.

 

It was two years later in 1787 that the descendants once more overestimated their abilities and were slaughtered in great fashion at the duel sieges of The Doghouse and the siege against General Pol’Gorous. The Doghouse occupied the once beautiful city of Vitenna, and it is there that Zekul’akudah destroyed any descendant hopes of retaking the former vacation lands. Likewise, although little is known about General Pol’Gorous, it is known that the descendants failed to achieve victory against him in the Last Light Camp - a now former stronghold of the descendants.

 

Finally, in the year 1791, the descendants achieved their first real victory in the Siege of Agrothond, and although they were able to hold off the generals and their forces, many lives would be ultimately lost. It was one year later that descendants ultimately claimed victory over the inferi generals and drove them from the lands of Arcas, but at that point, the continent was already doomed.

 

While many generals, battles, and locations existed beyond those listed above, their significance in the war was comparatively less than the others, either due to their lack of involvement in major sieges or because descendants focussed their writing on other parts of the war[5].

 

 

 

 

 

[4] The name of the Firewatch Alliance ended up being quite ironic, as many of the original members oftentimes watched as their cities and friends were all consumed by fire.

[5] Other distinct factions played large roles, though many of them merely defended their territory rather than expanding it. The Hive, for example, assisted others in battle but rarely attacked cities by themselves. 

 

 

 

Spanning from The Blessing to The Summoning

 

The Failure

Although it was during the time of the Inferi War that The Lords once more realized the benefits of mortal agents, it was not until many years had passed on the next continent that the powers were handed back to descendants. 

 

Picking the perfect descendant to facilitate the spread of infernal powers is no small task, and it is no surprise that Kiiztria chose a descendant who had little qualifications. Now known as Mozizkhar[6], this descendant quickly began to devote more of their time to their bookstore than their teachings. It is for this reason that nearly all of their students struggled and could not progress in their learning. 

 

The damage enacted by Mozizkhar to their mortal agent students is nearly indescribable. Many of these first agents never progressed in their teachings, and it is only because of the brave actions of their student Daz’rukrai (a follower of Kholidav) that our existence was secured. 

 

 

The Summoning

After years of waiting for lessons, Daz’rukrai finally was able to perfect the manipulation of malflame and beasts, though they were left lacking in the other fields. It was finally decided between Daz’rukrai and her following that they would summon a foreign zar’akal from Moz’Strimoza so that all of the lessons could finally be achieved.

 

Through the use of various blood-arts, sacrifices, and gifts, the Zar’akal was finally summoned in a ruined building outside of Providence. This zar’akal would be known infamously as Siegmund, Prince of Carrion[7]. Upon summoning, a deal was brokered so that Daz’rukrai could finalize their teachings and achieve her true potential. In exchange, Siegmund was granted freedom into the mortal world. 

An artist's interpretation of the summoning of the Siegmund.

 

After Daz’rukrai finished her lessons, there was little downtime and she quickly began to teach her students so that they too could become useful to The Lords. It was only after a meeting was called between all the mortal agents that Mozizkhar and her group of students (all of whom were nearly untaught) stomped off in a rage. After this meeting, Mozizkhar and many of her students were never seen again, and it is heavily speculated that The Lords removed the failure’s powers and sentenced them all to death as punishment. The bookstore Mozizkhar had so viciously fought to work in would remain in ruin and abandonment for the rest of the Almaris’s history.

 

This is the final event of The Ancient Times, and it marks the transition into what is known as The Modern Times where a majority of our known history exists. This will be covered in a later paper.

 

- Written by Ren.

 

 

 

 

 

[6] For their cowardice and lack of action, Mozizkhar is often called Mozizkhar the Failure as they nearly caused the removal of mortal agents once more.

[7] It is this very zar’akal that would later go on to torch the entirety of the Haenseti Capital of Almaris.