Chapter Text
Long lasted the First Peace
but it was disrupted by a Vile God.
After the Holy War came the Second Peace.
It lasted fifty years, only to be shattered
by the greed of the Crusaders’ children and grandchildren.
Annhelm has not known peace for a long time…
When will the prophesied Third Peace come?
— — —
At the dawn of the universe, there were four eggs. Three that shone brightly and cast light on the void around them, and one as dark as night, black and foreboding. Then, they started hatching.
Out of the first shining egg came the Goddess Naga, stretching her graceful wings and letting out a magnificent, powerful roar of creation. From the shards of her egg, the stars were lit, the sun was forged, and the moon was made. The second egg to hatch was a vibrant purple, and from it came the Earth God Loptyr. From his shattered egg shell he formed the earth, piecing it back together - but imperfections were left over. Mountains, valleys, rifts, all scars left over from when the world was made. Then came the third glowing egg, yellow and golden. However, it didn’t hatch - it exploded, turning into dust, with nothing but fine powder surrounded this last god - Zeus, the God of Thunder. With his power, he turned the powder of his egg into the air we breathe. Then, the three Gods of Creation came together in a Grand Counsel and decided what they would do with this world they had made. From this discussion, they decided to make more gods to govern the blossoming world.
From Naga came Wodr and Bloda, Dinraal and Salamandr, and with Zeus she made Holsety. From Loptyr came Hodr and Dagda, Sifa and Skadi, and with Zeus he made Tohr. Then, Zeus made his own gods to rule; Working with Loptyr, he made Demeter and Hades and Poseidon. And by working with Naga, Pallas and Hestia and Hera were born. Then, Zeus made Lelantos. The world truly began to bloom, as the gods worked together in harmony to nurture for the blooming world. Eons passed, during which life evolved and grew sentience.
While no-one was looking, the last egg hatched. It was vantablack, darker than anything else you could think of. And from it emerged the six-winged beast Grima, God of Destruction and Ruin. From his wing beats he recreated the void swaths at a time, slicing the universe apart and leaving great voids of nothing.
— — —
The sun rises on the dawn of another regular summer morning. The year is… well, it doesn’t matter what year it is. Each year is the same as the last and the next, with each lord measuring the span of time differently. It’s chaotic but no-one cares.
Then, the Dark Swarm emerged from the sky. Black as night in the light and blood-red in darkness, these marauders destroyed everything they could. Claiming to be servants of the Great God Grima, they destroyed and conquered and subjugated, leaving nothing but ruin and death behind. The first of the gods to try and combat this was Loptyr - he dearly loved this world whose foundation he made, and so from the depths the Earth Dragon rose, letting out a great and terrible roar. He vanquished many of the Dark Swarm with his power, the Loptous.
But tragedy knows no limits. Just as Loptyr thought he had won, Grima himself appeared and did his most vile deed yet - with his power, the Grimvald, Grima corrupted Loptyr’s mind, turning him from a divine beast into a raving monster, a slave and puppet to the Fell Dragon. Then, two humans were selected from the quivering masses, and to them were given the bloods of the two Gods. This is when first blood bonds were formed, the first Holy Blood and Holy Weapons given. This is the start of the Age of Suppression.
— — —
Nowhere was safe. The earth was your foe, for its god was a slave of Grima. Grima’s Dark Swarm could descend from the sky to anywhere, leaving the sea or air vehicles unsafe. Destruction reigned, sorrow grew, and resentment built. But as this was occurring, those gods who were untainted began to plot how to battle Grima and Loptyr. Using their priests, they began inciting rebellions, encouraging the spirit of the people to revolt against the Fell Dragon. They continued this for years, unceasingly encouraging even as hope dwindled and chances of recovery became bleak.
At last, the forces of Grima had confined the last vestiges of humanity to the Süderen Peninsula. There, on the crest of Valhalla Hill, when hope seemed lost and death the only way out, the gods descended upon the world and themselves gave power to mortals, tasking them with beating back evil and protecting the world. Twenty weapons were given, twenty Holy Bloods given to the bloodlines of mortals.
Wodr the Dragon God of Justice blessed the elf Baldo the Holy Knight with a sword, the Mageslayer, Tyrfing.
Bloda the Dragon Goddess of Loyalty blessed the human Odo the Blademaster with the Star Saber, Balmung.
Hodr the Dragon God of Darkness blessed the dwarf Hezul the Dread Knight with the Demon Blade, Mystletainn.
Dagda the new Dragon God of the Earth blessed the human Noba the Hero Knight with the Cavalry Pike, Gae Bolg.
Dinraal the Dragon God of Power blessed the dwarf Dain the Dragon Master with the Dragon Lance, Gungnir.
Sifa the Dragon Goddess of Protection blessed the dwarf Neir the Axeheaver with an axe, the Cleaving Shield, Helswath.
Skadi the Dragon Goddess of Hunting blessed the elf Ulir the Marksman with the quiver Vailskad and its companion bow, the Golden Hunter known also as Yewfelle.
Maera the Ascended God of Life and Healing blessed the human Blagi the High Priest with the Resurrecting Stave, Valkyr.
Salamandr the Dragon God of Flame blessed the human Fala the Flame Warrior with a fire tome, the Sun’s Rays, Valflame.
Tohr the Dragon Goddess of Thunder blessed the dwarf Tordo the Storm Knight with a thunder tome, the Lightning Hammer, Mjolnir.
Holsety the Dragon God of Wind blessed the elf Ced the Gale Bard with a wind tome, the Green Hurricane, Forseti.
Demeter the Goddess of Plants blessed the elf Prospine the Forest Knight with the Stolen Scythe, Chronia.
Hades the God of the Undead blessed the elf Zagran the Occult Mage with the Dark Bident, Erebosia.
Pallas the God of War blessed the dwarf Perses the War Master with the Doomfist Gauntlets, Warfarrah.
Lelantos the God of the Wilderness blessed the elf Selena the Raptor Rogue with two daggers, the Silver Hunters, Aeria and Ourania.
Hestia the Goddess of the Hearth blessed the human Khallum the Spirit Mage with a fire tome, the Warming Hearth, Vesthome.
Poseidon the God of the Seas blessed the human Okena the Ocean Warrior with an ocean tome, the Great Trident, Maurus.
Hera the Goddess of Light blessed the dwarf Hemitha the Grand Priestess with a light tome, the Divine Wrath, Junglare.
Zeus the Great God of Lightning bestowed Hellenios the Master Bolt, a powerful javelin capable of shaking the ground like thunder, to the human Jason the Sky Knight.
And Naga the Great Dragon Goddess of Creation bestowed the Scourge of Evil, Jugdrangeld the Holy Tome of Naga, to the human Heim the High King, who was blessed with the title of Lord Crusader.
These twenty heroes, dubbed as saints and Crusaders, lead great and grand armies and fought long and hard against Grima, his Dark Swarm, and his Corrupted God-Slave Loptyr. Their chosen champions, Thabian the Hierophant and Galle the Dark Prince, clashed especially with the Twenty Crusaders, each proving to be undeniably difficult to slay even with the power of the gods. Ultimately, the Holy War of Annhelm lasted ten years, ending when the Champions of Darkness were slain in the heart of Annhelm, right in the middle of the Gerrond Mountains.
— — —
After the Holy War, each of the Crusaders established their own lands, erecting new castles or co-opting old ones to safeguard their Holy Bloodlines and Weapons. Fifty years of peace there were: The great and seemingly-mythical Second Peace. With how war-happy modern descendents of the Crusaders seem to be, it seems surreal, fake, even impossible, but records everywhere have proof of this incredible span of time.
It isn’t known what the first war was after this; a series of border conflicts arose everywhere. It was as if the whole tapestry of peace was a piece of glass that shattered all at once. The descendents of Hezul ravaged and pillaged the villages and castles south of the Gerrond Mountains, leaving the Kingdoms of Isaach, Jungby, Grannvale, and Stromhelm vulnerable to the untouched Kingdom of Agustria, which then wasn’t yet associated with any Holy Bloodlines. The small kingdoms of the prosperous Anieatol region were beset by wyvern-riding raiders from Danheim. The Kingdoms of Panalenos and Silesia began a series of bloody wars in the winter snows of Cyronac.
Many states have disappeared since then, absorbed into the stronger and more militant states. The mountainous Kingdom of Issach, the prosperous and famously-affluent Halidom of Ylisse, the Kingdoms of Dalmatia and Achaia, and the Republic of Süderen, all gobbled up by one nation or another. Within a hundred year span, these governments all disappeared as expansionism became the new predominant mindset of the royals.
— — —
Year 209 AHW - 137 years ago - In an effort to encourage peace and diplomacy, the Bragil Church had the Antheos Academy constructed. While at first it was very small, by the end of the century it grew to the greatest academy one could be taught at. Of course, this meant only the exceptional could join - but there were plenty of sorcery schools, military academies, and other such locations for people to become exceptional enough for the Antheos Academy.
The Antheos Academy did not discourage war, unfortunately. In the year 298, the Kingdom of Panalenos launched an invasion of the Phoeban Federation, swiftly taking its capital and thereby the rest of the state. Soon after, on the opposite side of Cryonac Island, it launched an invasion of its rival the Kingdom of Silesia. However, Panalenos was only able to conquer the Dack territory. Regardless, it was a success, and after these successful conquerings, the Kingdom of Panalenos became the Jovon Empire.
In the dawn of the year 316, a great war had just been settled - on the dunes of the Falar Desert, countless soldiers had fought in the name of their homeland, or glory, or gold - whatever their motivation was. And yet, the Kingdom of Velthomer won, led by the experienced and charismatic King Jude Velthomer, who previously led the conquering the Republic of Gerrond a few years ago. Just as before, he easily subjugates the ruling Plutos family, taking their land and giving them a small sliver back to rule, a mere Margraviate on the border of Danheim. At this point, the Kingdom renamed itself into the Falar Empire, with Jude the first Flame Emperor.
While the Falar Empire was occupied assimilating the formerly-free citizens of Pluton and Gerrond into the fold, the Royal Family of Jungby began a pilgrimage to Antheos in the year 330, as a celebration of 325 years of a free reign. During this trip, bandits attacked the family’s transport. Despite everything, everyone was unharmed except for King Ring’s heir, the eight-year old Crown Princess Brigid Jungby - she could not, and still cannot, be found, and many consider her to be dead, despite the efforts of King Ring and Brigid’s twin sister Edain.
In the year 340, Emperor Jude’s son, Victor, lead the Falar Empire into battle against the Kingdom of Cerenia. Despite the death of King Lambert Blaiddyd, who was popular for his handsome features and his citizen-focused decision-making, the Kingdom of Cerenia resisted the Falar Imperial Army long enough for Victor to call for negotiations. Cerenia lost a fair bit of land, but it remained free and independent regardless.
In the year 342, a revolutionary device was crafted - known as the Outrealm Portal, it could connect the world of Annhelm to other dimensions. Placed in the Bragilon Fortress where it could only be used by those with permission from a council of the five most influential world leaders, the portal was, at first, stable. Then, it started activating on its own, and spitting out people of all sorts - animals who had wandered into a Outrealm Portal somehow, mortals who barely survived the destruction of their realms, people who claimed to be the children of the gods, biomechanical creatures who could manipulate the elements just as any regular mortal could. If you could conceive a creature, it appeared through the great doorway, and even some creatures that couldn’t be imagined. Many valiant and pious priests were lost in combat against an indescribable mass that appeared, and it was only Junglare’s might that was beat the vile eldritch abomination back into the portal.