History of the World
The Time of Dragons
The history of the world began long before the Elves, Dwarves and Humanity forged their empires. Epochs ago, the world was populated by strange and gigantic beast and monsters – lightning clad Shaggoths who slept deep beneath the root of the mountains and could only be awoken through the fiercest thunderstorms, burrowing through the planet were the chasm dwelling Marnocks and segmented Leviathans who made their home in the deep oceans. The race of Dragons were ascendant at this time, intelligent and articulate, they were unfading and did not die unless suffering grievous wounds from battle or of the heart. The Dragons made their home by the ruddy glow of the volcanoes. Dragon Spire was wreathed in smoke and fire.
Like all intelligent creatures, Dragons are prone to acts of good or ill depending upon their disposition and the nature of their upbringing. And at this time the race of Dragons looked down upon the world, and found it to be good. Many of these elder creatures had their own domains and ambitions, and frequently warred amongst themselves for fertile land and resources, the right to mate or against an outside threat. Such as the Shaggoths and the other races who would seek to rule the world or topple the Dragons. The Dragons were very clannish creatures and would happily slaughter each other till the end of time but will close ranks to repel an outside threat. The ground shook to the clash of titanic monsters and, for a time, they ruled the land and the skies of the world.
The Cataclysm
For many aeons the world belong to the Dragons, but suddenly out of nowhere the sky began to darkened as a meteorite the size of a mountain came hurtling down. The skies filled with blazing contrails as great chunks of meteors hammered down across the globe. Even regions unharmed were soon devastated as thick cloud of dust settled across the land. The Dragons found the world much changed as the temperature of the land's surface and atmosphere dropped considerably. As day and night the earth had rumbled and the seas had roared. The Dragons slunk away into the dark corners of the world, seeking shelter in the caves of volcanoes and waited to see what would pass. But even there they had not found peace, the Dragons trembled as the deep caverns they had made their home fell around them.
In time the lands settled again, the dust began to clear and the first of the warm blooded race came. The Dragons had spied upon them from the mountain fastness, protective of the new clutches of eggs hatching in the darkness beneath the volcanoes. For all the intrusion, the two-legs had seemed peaceful enough and the Dragons had returned to their lairs and dreamed long dreams of the day when they would be free to roam the skies as they had done before. The oldest and wises entertained the hatchlings with ancient stories of the war with the lightning clad Shaggoths, the great burrowers of the earth the Marnocks and the ocean dwelling Leviathans.
Valyria Rises
When the temperature began to rise up again, melting the icy glaciers that covered the ocean and the land. An island continent that was situated in the Great Eastern Ocean, between four giant land masses, the immense island of Valyria was a verdant paradise. It was a place of incredible magic, where unthinkable powers were harnessed and home to the Dragons borne aloft upon gentle winds. Valyria was divided between the Outer and Inner Kingdoms. Separated by the cloud-piercing Ynnulii Mountains. The inhabitants of Valyria were incredibly long-lived (3,000 years to be exact), though they were seldom immortal. They were slender and swift, with minds and bodies that are capable of great dexterity. In battle a Valyrian's swiftness of mind and deftness of body serves them well individually, it is the combination of the two that granted them such murderous prowess.
They are at once capricious and generous, malicious and caring, carefree and duty-bound, idealistic and pragmatic, servants of both the light and dark. Certain Valyrian, learned to harness and generate chakra and release it outside their bodies through pressure points called chakra points which enhance their speed and strength. Produced within the "chakra coils" that surround and connect to each chakra-producing organ, the energy circulates throughout the body in a network called the "Chakra Pathway System", which is similar to the cardiovascular system.
Chakra is not normally visible to the eye, though it can be seen in situations where a person releases as much of their chakra as possible. Through study, training and experience the chakra can then be controlled and manipulated to create an effect that would not be possible otherwise, such as standing, walking and running on water or on vertical surfaces, exhaling fire or creating barriers.
Through the process of nature transformation, chakra can be converted into five different elements. Most Valyrians have a natural affinity to one element, but they have the capacity to use elements apart from their own affinity. There are five basic elements, but in addition to these, certain genetic traits allow multiple element to be combined into new elements; for example, it is possible to mix Fire and Earth into Lava. While many Valyrian can use more than one chakra elements, very few are able to combine them in this manner.
In those simple and tranquil times, farmlands pushed back the wilderness as the people of Valyria shaped the isle to their liking. In the mountains, hunters found strange beasts: many-headed hydras, bizarre chimeras, screeching griffons, hippogryphs, Pegasus and many other creatures. Many of these were slew, others they captured and broke to their will to use as mounts and in a ring of volcanoes a lone Valyrian discovered Dragons' lairing.
In those times, long ago, Princess Nymeria studied the Dragons long, finding them to be creatures of cunning and intellect; and she loved to engage Draugnir, the mightiest of the Dragonlord, in a battle of wits. Using the special chakra that she alone possess. She was able to communicate with him and his kind in a unique process called the melding, this is done by consciously attuning her own nervous system to send and receive electrical impulses directly through the skin. Effectively, becoming one unified nervous system to ease the sharing of thoughts, emotions, memories and feelings. Over time she formed a strong bond with Draugnir, the two becoming friends, more than allies at need. Borne upon Draugnir who was terrible to behold, the destruction that they wrought together was unmatched, and few dared court the wrath of the Dragonqueen.
During her reign, the Adamantine Tower was constructed; a citadel of martial arts and scholarship, where the wisdom of the corners of the world would be gathered, and later grimoires of the most potent runes would be enshrined. For a thousand years, the Valyrians raised this vast sky reaching structure, harnessing secrets of artificer and runes in equal measure with every slab that was laid. Engineers and artisans laboured for nearly a millennium on intricate metal carvings. The tower was woven round with runes of illusion and warding to protect this treasured knowledge.
Queen Nymeria founded the order of Loremasters who would be both the guardians and pupils of the knowledge assembled within. Every discipline, from warfare and chakra control to alchemy and astromancy, was to be studied. And later on, Rune crafting would be added. Many famed scholars, sorcerers and warriors gathered at the adamantine tower, and such an exchange of knowledge occurred as had not been seen before, and has not been seen since. Though Nymerias' own passion was the pursuit of knowledge, she recognised that scholarship alone would not see Valyria preserved - she knew that a time may come when the Valyrians would need heroes of the blade, hunters of the forest and explorers of the sea.
She therefore encouraged the princes and princesses of her court and that of other lands to prove their personal valour in vanquishing the savage beasts that roam the mountains. Thus was her reign also a renaissance of personal glory not seen since, so vigorously did Valyrians of all ranks embrace her charge. Slowly but surely, Valyria was scoured with fire and sword, the roaming monsters slain or else driven back to the mountains to lick grievous wounds.
When she finally passed from this mortal coil, her legacy remained. For her successor, she left a strong ally with the Dragons, a secure line of fortresses to the north, a citadel of learning; sorcery as well as the most powerful navy in the world.
Ships were built and fleets despatched to explore the lands beyond the seas, despite the destruction of many ships and heedless of any danger the Valyrian fleets continued to advance. So began the great days of exploration, as wealth flowed back into Valyria as cities grew and prospered. Creating architectural wonders, towers like stalagmites, slender and graceful, rose up from steep hills or flat plains; city walls flowed down in undulating curves, black stones glistening with veins of red, purple and blue.
As the Valyrians practice harnessing magic, (completely different from chakra manipulation) at that time, when the Valyrians were ascendant, magic was difficult to control, as it was controlled by thinking, and not speaking the words. What was worse was that anyone could use it and a stray thought while conducting magic could be devastating. One of the magic users nearly destroyed the Adamantine Tower with magic. Because of this problem many saw magic for what it was: a fickle power at best and wholly destructive. Seeing the danger of magic. The Valyrians – with the help of the Dragons, wisely decided that magic shall be sealed and bonded to their language, the Ancient Language, to ensure that such an event would never happen again.
One Valyrian smith learned to capture and seal magic with his hammer craft and thought, binding its wayward energy into hard leather, good solid rock and strong metal or precious stones, taming its power for his own use. Since that time, those known as Rune smiths have learned the art of striking magic runes. It takes a considerable amount of concentration and chakra to strike and bind a rune to a material. However once the process is done, it takes very little chakra to activate it. While other runic items, the ones deem harmless need no longer rely on chakra to activate it.
All runes are specific symbol, designed to be written in paper or carved in leather, stone and metal, but magic runes, as struck by a Rune smith, are far more potent. Each symbol is not a simple letter but a symbol of a concept. Using chakra manipulation to bind Runes to write into paper with a special ink mixed with the persons own blood or banded into leather, rock glass and metal, they hold magic to an item the way a nail affixes two pieces of timber together, creating items of incredible power. The Valyrians began crafting runic items to ease or aid in everyday labours and making unrivalled arms and armour.
The most common and everyday use for magic is a type of rune that seals objects, teleporting items over vast distances in a blink of an eye, long distance communications, along with a wide variety of other things within another object. Sealing Runes can also be used to restrict movement or unseal objects either from within something or someone. Alongside rune- crafting, inventions also flourished such as cog driven devices, water wheel technology and steam engines of various types. Mining was revolutionised by steam-powered drilling and it took fewer miners to excavate a new mine.
The exploratory fleet that sailed north, eventually landed on a massive expanse of land that would be later known as Alagaësia. The Valyrians discovered the Dwarves in their earliest stages, the Dal'yrg, as they call themselves in their own language were hut-dwellers who fashioned primitive tools from flint and eked out a living in the bleak and inhospitable wilderness. Then, as now, the Dwarves were a hardy folk and they endured despite the hardships.
The Valyrians heartened by the discovery that they were not alone and of a potential ally that might be found in the primitive race, for although barbaric, the Dwarves looked toward the Valyrians for wisdom and guidance. Before the Valyrians left, they passed along as much technical knowledge deemed safe for Dwarves to know, such as the art of making true steel, steam powered engines; basic and complex mathematics, construction advice for building structures that did not sag and lasted longer than just a few centuries.
West of Valyria, in the Sunset Sea, lies the mysterious island of Alëlae stretching from two hundred leagues from tip to tip. Beneath its towering mountains are vast forests, steaming jungles, beaches of green and black sand, mighty rivers teeming with monstrous crocodiles and fertile vales. The people native to the island are a beautiful and gentle race they were as tall as teenagers; reaching slightly below the shoulder, possessing beautiful shades of skin, with rounded faces, long pointer ears and soft eyes. Yet despite their small stature and gentle disposition; they were stronger that they appeared and faster, able to catch an arrow with their bare hands or catching a tiny fly between two fingers without killing it.
The Elves as they would later be called after they migrate to Alagaësia were not immortal in fact their average life span was just over three hundred years to five hundred years also strange were the fact that they do not ever eat beasts of the field; they eat fruit, bread and vegetables not flesh and make music not war. Their song and music was said to be as beautiful as they were. They lived in a manner the Valyrians might call crude, yet they were still less barbarous than the Dwarves.
They did not mine for precious minerals but could work metal rivalling that of Valyria's finest smith, to make tools and weapons for hunting. They learned to make bows of ironwood and to construct flying snares of grass, and both of the sexes hunted with these. The primitive Elves did not believed in gods but worshipped the land instead, giving thanks to the stream for providing water to their crops and the trees of the forest for their bows and arrows. A thousand years after the Fall of Valyria, the ancestors of the Elves – for some unknown reason – would eventually travel to Alagaësia and upon settling, would forge an empire that would rival Valyrias knowledge and strength.
To the south, the Valyrians discovered the Vraad of Haggadoth. They were surprise to find that the Vraad had a thousand year life-span, close to their own. However the Vraad were misguided and sanctimonious, trapped by a fallacious belief that might makes right. The Valyrians perceive the Vraad as inflexible, staid and many among the Valyrians perceive that it was only a matter of time before the Vraad turned – after all Valyrian craftsmanship was so prized it was bound to trigger jealousy in others.
And of course once the Vraad saw the Dragons. The Vraad leaders argued long and hard with the Valyrians to share and use the Dragons for weapons of war and conquest in a joint venture, the Valyrians reprimanded the Vraad representatives and told them that Dragons are not unthinking creatures and denied them such a motion. The folk of Valyria know it is folly to claim rulership and guardianship of the entire world, and that it is only arrogance that drives the Vraad to make the attempt. Despite their flaws, the Valyrians eagerly traded with them. A long age of peace and prosperity was begun. Yet for all the riches that flowed into the Vraad homeland, that even servants lived comfortably. Various Vraad leaders were not content upon trade and prosperity; they never truly turned their gaze upon conquest and seizing the Dragons for their own use.
Many cities grew from small fishing villages to accommodate the increase in trade from the colonies and other realms. The ruler at this time Prince Aethis was a noted poet and singer. He gathered all the great artists of Valyria to his court. Dramatists, painters, sculptors, writers of histories and masques all found a place in his palace of carved jade. This was the high water mark of Valyrian culture, when most of their greatest works of art were created. This was the period that saw the creation plays of Azzele, and Torion Firesong's animated court portraits. Prodigious amounts of wealth were spent on grandiose projects such as the crystal Dials.
Dials are strange, mysterious devices, made from psychically interactive crystal, which can be readily formed into solid shapes under chakra pressure, and etched with runes for that device particular function. The completed device is a component that works in a conventional manner, which have the ability to store energy and matter. Dials come in many sizes, such as the tone dial which fits in the palm of one hand or on one ear.
Dials store energy and matter itself, usually by that particular type of energy or matter being absorbed by tiny chakra crystals on one side of the Dial. The chakra crystals are specifically made to store the contents that the dials capture; whether they be images, sound/vibrations or light and heat. The content can then be released by pressing the specific runes on the Dial. As long as they are not used or damaged, Dials seem to be capable of storing their contents indefinitely. If the crystal of the Dial is broken they can become unusable. The basic dials that survive the Fall of Valyria.
The Lamp Dial is capable of storing and releasing light, commonly used for domestic purposes and as the names suggest, they release the light over time instead of all at once. It can be recharge by simply leaving it outside during the day. In the current era only those in the Vraads Gem Sectors have access to Lamp Dials, while those in the Slums or Ghettos must use candles or oil lamps. And if a Slum dweller should fine one, keep it for his own use but get caught having it by the street militia, they will immediately confiscate it for military purposes.
The Vision Dial is used to send out live images on an especially made crystal screen via electromagnetic waves. It is useful for broadcasting news quickly to a widespread population and for entertainment purposes.
The Tone Dial or sometimes known as a Sound Dial, is able to record and replay sounds spoken into it, akin to an audio recorder. The most prominent use of a Tone Dial is storing a singers or poets performance into it. With this method, fans can listen to their favourite performer again and again in the comfort of their own home and later on they became small enough that they can be inserted into one's ear. This was also used as a way to communicate long distances.
Thus, though none could yet know it, the seeds of tragedy and betrayal were being sown. As time passed, the High Chancellor Maledor sensed a growing weakness in the hearts of the Valyrians, a softening of their souls as generations passed. This was a failing the High Chancellor sought to exploit – but not through outright war, for the Vraad armies needed time to husband their strength. After a millennium of rule, Prince Aethis died peacefully in his sleep.
Prince Nymerus ascended the Phoenix Throne, but his reign would not be peaceful, as the Vraad were finally ready to loose there army upon Valyria. The first acts of the war were brutal raids attacking Valyrian trade ships and far flung isolated colonies. When word reached the Valyrian heartland, Prince Nymerus, a prudent and wise lord, halted the lords of Valyria from war making and calm the populace. Instead, he sent envoys to far Haggadoth to lay their claims before the Vraad and to High Chancellor Maledor. In this way, Nymerus hoped to resolve the dispute peacefully by demanding compensation and explanation.
The Vraad received the Valyrian envoys with open scorn, mocking what they called a baseless accusations. Of course nothing could be further from the truth. For a thousand years, the Vraad turned all their resources into making arms, armour and war machines as their own armies needed time to train and husband their strength. Such was the ruling class's contempt for the Valyrians'; the Valyrian ambassador had his head shaved and arms broken and was compelled to return home shorn of pride and bearing the message that the only way Prince Nymerus might gain a single gold coin was if he came to Haggadoth personally and begged before the High Chancellor.
By High Chancellor Maledor's command, the Vraad recommence their raids upon Valyrian colonies; looting and pillaging, wreaking whatever woe they could. Advantage was also sought in subtler ways: Vraad ships shadowed Valyria's merchant vessels as they plied their trade, learning the location of the Valyrias' secret and hidden ports. Yet even as the Valyrian princes gathered to meet, as to what their response would be against the Vraad. Unbeknown to the Valyrians, Haggadoth's armies had begun landing on their shores, their ranks bolstered by savage monsters.
This was a conflict heavily stacked in the invaders' favour. With each lords' blood boiling, Prince Nymerus recalled all the far-spread expeditionary fleets to turn round for Valyria's defence, the citizens of the Outer Kingdoms evacuated to the Inner Kingdoms, the lords of each kingdom mustering for war. With the expeditionary fleet so far away, Prince Nymerus was forced to institute a system of militia levies to reinforce his armies.
When news of this development reached to the Vraad generals, they scorned these new troops, dismissing them as cowards and peasants ill-suited to the warrior's mantle. And so it proved at first – though Griffon Gate held the blue and white tide of Haggadoth at bay, its defenders owed success to their steadfast determination and the fortress' cunning design more than to their own skill at arms.
The bloody months of the siege ground on into years, and still neither side could find any advantage. Though initially frustrated that his attack had stalled, the High Chancellor soon grew sanguine – even amused – by the situation. His armies could not break through to the heartlands of Valyria, but his merciless warriors were slowly grinding the inexperienced Valyrian militias to offal for little loss in return. Before long, the High Chancellor and his generals felt sure, the walls of Dragon Gate would empty, and Valyria would be at the Vraad's mercy.
Upon receiving word of the Vraad assaults that were systematically levelling their outpost, colonies and the subsequent invasion of Valyria, the Sea Lords of each fleet abandon their task, combining their fleets into one giant armada to relieve Valyria's defenders who were nothing more than civilian levies. Never before, or since, has such a sight been seen – the full might of Valyria, at the very height of their power, marching to war. Their oncoming was relentless. Their response to the invaders was merciless slaughter.
The Valyrian armada arrived just in time to break the siege of Dragon Gate. Thus began in earnest a war that would last for well over eight centuries. Blinded by greed and overconfidence from their sweeping early victories, the Vraads soon found their forces overwhelmed. In truth, they had judged the strength of their foe by the least of the Valyrian provinces, but now, the assembled might of Valyria was arrayed in full against them. In battles of ever escalating size and fury, the two forces met again and again, fighting back and forth across Valyria. Great air ships and ingenious weapons of war that belch forth hazardous gas were pitted against Dragon-riders, runic weapons and armour, and Valyria was awash with fire and blood.
The war that the Valyrians fought was a desperate one, with no ultimate victory in sight. To date, Valyria had endured every attack, but has each time paid for its survival with slaughtered warriors and ravaged kingdoms – yet it will not be able to do so forever. As ever more troops were ready to depart from the Vraad homeland, High Chancellor Maledor instituted a system of rotating units that ensured that his forces assaulting the fortresses across the Ynnulii Mountains were always fresh and near to full strength. Yet the war went on, with victories and defeats on both sides. The Vraad armies broke impotently over the strongholds of their foe, yet for their part, the Valyrian armies could not break their opponent either, so the war dragged on.
The Fall of Valyria
For centuries, the war dragged on without respite or sign of victory, and the Valyrians began to lose heart. Moments of peace were few, and even these were tainted by the knowledge that the Vraad would soon return. The Vraad intent on plunder and seizing the Dragons for their own use. Even the implacable Nymerus realised that there could be no victory – only a slow and inevitable defeat. Many long nights Prince Nymerus would brood in his tower. Yet no matter how deep Nymerus despair grew, it never overcame his sense of duty. Ultimately, he called together a convocation of the Rune smiths then living, and assemble them. Knowing full well that the Vraads invasion would never stop, that the Dragons were the Vraads ultimate prize they wish to claim. He devised a plan to secure Valyrias oldest allies future. The hatchlings and many of the Dragon eggs would be transported to Alagaësia to live out their lives, while the eldest Dragons would stay in Valyria and continue the fight.
Nymerus devised a plan to create a great vortex that would sink Valyria into the ocean dragging their enemy with them in a watery grave. It was a desperate and dire plan, with little of success even with the Dragons help, but Nymerus, and many like him, thought a mass suicide would be preferable to the slow death their people were enduring. Many opposed Nymerus plan, calling it a counsel of despair. But such were Nymerus charisma and powers of reason, that if oblivion is indeed to be their fate, they should face it with arrow nocked and sword held high, in the defence of their island home they loved to the last, with such argument he changed their mind completely. With the Rune smith's long preparations complete and many of the female Dragons, hatchlings and eggs safely evacuated, the two forces finally met at the centre of Valyria.
Dragons so numerous that their wings darkened the sky, descended upon the Vraad host. Valyrians and Vraad were slain in their thousands, and the death agonies of Dragons filled the earth with foam. The Vraad completely oblivious to the doom that awaited them, assailed the Valyrian host, determined to break their enemy. Prince Nymerus in an act of stubborn defiance, along with the Valyrian army stood purposefully before the arrow storm of the Vraad, intent on proving they could withstand the worst their foe could unleash. After hours, in desperation and rage, the Vraad army had no choice but to charge into close combat, where the real slaughter began. Nymerus himself struck down two of Maledor's sons and one airship with the help of his mount.
As Valyria's greatest Rune smiths began their great work, the host of Valyria hurled itself at the Vraad army with a fury borne of desperation. Under wailing skies wracked with fire and lightning, Valyria's host held the line. That day, each Valyrian fought like gods reborn, and their princes and princesses battled with a might to which mere words could never do justice.
As the ritual reached its peak, Vraad beast masters urging many headed hydras, chimeras and generals atop manticores attempted to breach the Rune smith's ward – only Nymerus and his blue Dragon Indraugnir were close enough to stop them. They did not hesitate, but charged into the fray. Now at last, the prince and his Dragon met their match.
Though the ensuing battle saw all the ruinous beasts defeated, victory left both Nymerus and Indraugnir mortally wounded. Weary beyond words, Prince Nymerus sank to his knees. Sensing victory, the Vraads howled with one terrible voice, but then the Rune smiths completed their ritual and the Vraads cheers were stilled. With a burst of energy that shook the mountains, the Great Vortex sprang into life. A whirling, screaming tempest of energy engulfed Valyria and broke the island continent apart. So great were the upheavals that all of the Vraad sea-ships were dragged in along with the sea, destroying all the ships instantly.
Those soldiers further inland perished immediately alongside their hated enemy and shattering forever those fortress cities whose walls once stood proudly. Those on the Vraads mighty air ships were not safe either as a hurricane of eldritch energy raged across the skies, as the pilots struggled to keep their individual air-ships aloft and steady; many crashed and many others were torn apart. Valyria laid in ruins, its once proud people scattered and defeated. The Vraad air ships that survive the maelstrom limped home, with a victory that left a bitter taste in their mouth.
The Time of Woes
Maledor who watched the entire battle through his personal vision dial, along with the rest of the populations watched the battle on the Jumbo Dials scattered throughout Haggadoth. When Prince Nymerus fell to his knees they all cheered along with their soldiers fighting the war. But there jubilation was short-lived as they saw what happened to Valyria and what would transpire next. This hard-won situation should have ensured Vraad dominion over the world for ages to come; and on this auspicious of days, Maledor would declare the Golden Age of Vraad supremacy right there and then, however, the fates proved unkind.
Before they had even begun to recover, their empire was beset by natural disasters which were caused by the aftermath of the Rune smiths Vortex that unleashed unparalleled destruction. The coastal cities of Haggadoth were flooded by the sea and its cities disappeared almost completely, leaving only a fraction of their once great harbour cities above the ocean, with the beautiful coastal cities tumbled to ruin, or else swept beneath the seas. The Vraad were cut-off from the rest of the world.
The unquestionable end of the Golden Age came amidst a devastating series of earthquakes that shook the world. These, in turn, were soon followed by volcanic eruptions of monumental proportions. Every single city and settlement of the Vraad suffered calamity, as walls and buildings collapsed, mine workings were shattered and lower levels were flooded by subterranean rivers. The mountains themselves shuddered, in some cases breaking apart to send avalanches in sweeping waves that crushed everything in the valleys below. Sea water – mixed with sewage water flooded the streets and the whole of the Vraad realm was thrown into disarray.
Many of Maledors staunch supporters were angered, as he alone has many of – taken from their earlier conquest – Valyria's plundered knowledge and was keeping it for himself. Maledor's supporter demanded that he share it equally, but he rejected their proposal. His supporters responded by declaring war, however as he alone had an adequately sized army he was able to crush his supporters wide spread rebellion in less than a year. Maledor never got the chance to study many of Valyrias runic artefacts as signs and news came to him of civil unrest popping up all over the areas. He spent the rest of his days fighting one rebellion after another, until finally he died from his wounds. Leaving a power vacuum.
The common folk were angered and up in arms, particularly the a'neesh/females, as the last army that escaped Valyria's fall returned with no Dragons or Valyria's wealth and knowledge of rune crafting as the long conflict had bled their empire white; and nothing to show for the promise of rich reward that had been promise to them. Rioting and protest led by angry a'neesh, grieving wives and distraught mothers; were rampant all across the country, women in great number were dragging soldiers and the city militia off of the street and setting them on fire or torturing them, many died; soldiers and a'neesh alike died from the fierce fighting but many more died from starvation and disease. Although the military eventually won, the Vraad found their vigour expended.
As devastating as the earthquakes were, and the civil war, other menaces were lurking in wait, sinister forces that had been multiplying in secret while the Vraad's attention were elsewhere. Maledors collection of Valyrias most valuable runic grimoires and artefacts laid forgotten, or were abandoned and remain hidden in his secure vault, which would be found thousands of years later, including his most valuable prize a three hundred year old wild Dragon that he kept chained-up with an enchanted metal chain; as the city was stormed and sacked, but its treasure hoard was never found – the Beastmen themselves were eventually forced to leave as Maledor's captured Dragon grew in size over the years and temperament – as Maledor was forced to make his escape and forsake his city. Which were overrun by monsters with warped hearts that simmered with an intense bitterness and hatred for the Vraad; who long ago drove them from their land, a primal rage that can only be sated by grievous acts of defilement and savagery. And this was only the beginning.
The Age of Blood
In the wake of the disasters that shook entire cities and rent the mountains, the Vraad were left vulnerable to the predations of old and new foes. The many invasions that followed began a disjointed series of battles that the Vraad call the Beast wars, for the Beastmen, grotesque hybrids of beast and primitive man, mixed cunning and spite with a savage bestial fury surge through broken city walls with single minded intention of taking back their rightful land. By dragging the Vraad kicking and screaming into an age of blood and violence can the Beastmen claim their rightful inheritance; they were the most numerous of the enemies arrayed against the Vraad, although in truth, there were also Trolls, Craugs and Ogres, including the lightning-clad Shaggoths.
The attacks began before the last of the aftershocks had finished. Enemies infiltrated through unguarded tunnels, overwhelmed outposts with surprise attacks and swept out of darksome valley forests in numbers untold. Previously, the walls of the Vraad had proven impervious, regardless of an invaders numbers, but that was no longer the case. Defensive walls had been toppled and the streets hopelessly compromised by innumerable pits and gaping chasms.
Routes into the cities were now compromised, as the former bastions that were built in cooperation with the Valyrians during the peaceful days of their alliance now lay unguarded. Rune covered gates that could withstand the titanic blows of a Dragon now hung off their hinges or lay split in twain. Upon scenting weakness, armies hungry for plunder, blood and revenge appeared like wolves at the door.
The Beastmen emerged unchecked underneath the streets sewer, appearing suddenly in the very centre of the Vraad cities. By the time the Vraad were alerted to the attack, it was already too late. Pushing bloodthirsty packs of Squigs before them, the Beastmen rampaged through the city's living quarters. As they had already bypassed the dozens of interlocking levels of defence that surrounded the outermost layers of the cities, there was little in the way of organized resistance to stop the tide.
Here and there, knots of warriors stood back to back and attempted to hold off the attack, but one by one, even well defended outpost, towns and cities were taken. In these troubled times, even if a beleaguered city managed to get a messenger past their attackers, it mattered not, for no help was forthcoming – war had come to all parts of Haggadoth. A new era descended upon the Vraad, threatening their very existence. Contact between each city-state was lost and far-flung mining outposts and rural areas were truly on their own. The Vraad city-state was reduced to isolated islands, each surrounded by a sea of foes. This harsh new reality changed the nature of the Vraad and their country forever.
Across western Haggadoth, the attacks were so numerous that the meticulous record-keeping of the Vraad could not keep up. Columns of smoke rose high above snow-covered peaks, each marking the destruction of a small settlement, outposts, fortresses and cities. Further tragedies befell the Vraad on the road, for all byways were full of peril – hunting packs of caragour-riding Beastmen, mobs of hungry Trolls and all manner of beasts were drawn to the scent of blood.
At this time, Thunder Mountain, a volcano which had been dormant, stirred violently once again. The eruptions drove a migration of towering Craugs towards the remaining intact Vraad cities. To combat these creatures, a young officer who became the new Elector after Maledor's death and ambitious enough to win the support of unhappy troops declared the Ogre wars. It was the beginning of a series of desperate counter-attacks that would last almost three hundred years.
Although everywhere was still besieged, the Vraad fought on. Sometimes, through their fury and tightly pack shield walls, the Vraad won back lost cities or opened up safe routes of passage between cities. At other times, they teetered perilously close to destruction. This was a bloody and brutal equilibrium, where the Vraads could not be wiped out, yet nor could they break free and rebuild their empire of old. Eventually, the rising pressures became too much, for a great number of the Beastmen in and around the windswept wastes known as the Badlands joined the fray. After over a thousand years of defiance, the Vraads lost the entire Western side. The once-glorious Vraad Empire now lay shattered and despoiled. Where in the past its power dominated two massive continent, its armies now struggle to defend the eastern continent. It was on this day that the Vraad finally found the toll of their betrayal to Valyria. Leaving a void that could not be filled.
The Dwarves and Elves Ascend
Whilst the Vraad floundered, with the constant raids of Beastmen and as there government quelled one uprising after another. The Dwarves in Alagaësia prospered, by using the technical knowledge that the Valyrians deemed safe for them to know and even improve upon it. The Dwarves built a mighty kingdom, creating castles, roads to ease travelling merchant and massive fortresses to guard their borders. But overtime the Dwarves migrated towards the Beor Mountains, as the weather grew hotter and the land dried up. Turning their original settlement into a desert. To the current era Dwarven ruins can still be found on the Hadarac Desert and for those daring enough can still find gold, if you know where to look for them.
Thanks to the Valyrians sacrifice the Dragons also prospered. Valyrias gambit worked, as the Dragons number grew. The matriarch Dragons often told stories to the hatchlings about their allies and the numerous Dragons who stayed back to fight and die with their riders, to be passed down and ensure that their faithful and loyal allies sacrifice are never forgotten. After a thousand years of Valyrias destruction, the Elves eventually crossed the sea in their silver ships, either seeking new lands to settle, or as some Monk stated, "To avoid the consequences of a terrible mistake."
When they first arrived in Alagaësia, the Elves saw the dragons as mere animals. This was a grave mistake, for when a thoughtless Elven youth hunted and killed a young Dragon as he would a mere deer, it began a terrible war, called Du Fyrn Skulblaka, between the two races. The war lasted many years: even though the Elves repeatedly attempted to alleviate the misunderstanding, they had no way of communicating with the Dragons, until an Elf named Aeger found an abandoned Dragon egg and raised the Dragon that hatched from it as his own.
When the Dragon, named Bid'Daum, (normally Dragons can fly six months after they're born, however they are still the size of a small dog) after eight years of age when Bid'Daum was strong enough to support his weight, Aegar acted as an intermediary between the two races and came to be known as a Shur'tugal, or Dragon Rider. As a result of the pair's peacemaking work, which resulted in a permanent pact between Elf and Dragon, it was decided to establish the order of the Dragon Riders to maintain peace in Alagaësia.
Elves were originally mortal, but gained their immortality and the new generation of Elves gain the chakra pathway system from the bond with the Dragons, over the course of time, the Elves became more Valyrian in appearance as well, growing taller as did the human Riders when they were introduce into the pact. It is not clear, however, how the effects of a bond with the Dragons influenced all the Elves, rather than just those of them that bonded with a Dragon to become a Rider. This bond was different than what the Valyrians had with the Dragons. The new found link between the races was mutually beneficial: it granted the Dragons the gift of speech either vocally or telepathically and Elves the gift of immortality, though not all Dragons bonded with a rider, as some chose to become wild, this was done deliberately to honour the Dragonqueen Nymeria and her people.
The bonded Dragons found it difficult to communicate with their wild cousins, as their language lacked directions nor formed words: instead, the wild Dragons showed pictures or feelings with the mind. For seven millennia the Elves with the Dragons and the Dwarves prospered. Later, Anurin, head of the Riders, decided to include humans into the pact with the Dragons, even though Dellanir, the Elf queen, did not approve of it. She evicted the Riders from Du Weldenvarden, later allowing a select few to enter. Each human Rider, over the course of time, became more Valyrian in appearance, as well as gaining long life or immortality.
Across the vast sea, the Vraad Republic is now a nation perpetually at war with the Beastmen and the newly formed Colonies. To ensure their safety and to keep the Beastmen contain in the western side of the continent; the Vraad had erected a massive wall at the Neck which is considered a strategic choke point that connects the east and west of Haggadoth. The iron wall is an impressive and imposing sight which stands at over five hundred metres and stretches for several miles. If one were so incline a person can simply walk from end to the other. The Vraad also built watchtowers to hold the hordes of wild Beastmen. Each of these watchtowers is the size of a city, provisioned to withstand years of siege and garrisoned with a great host of Vraad's foremost warriors.
To ensure the best and fittest serve the military and the government. The Republic instituted the Trials to encourage hard work and athleticism, to produce more military-quality people – and they did. But they were also used to weed out the weak – and the defiant. And gradually, they were also used to control overpopulation. Over time, they shifted to being offered in all schools, to children and they didn't favour the wealthy. For the current Elector that wasn't enough as he wanted only the best to survive.
Anyone else was, frankly considered a waste of space and resources. The public is angry, but the Senate is afraid to change things that might lead to them losing control. The Trials, is the Senates way to reinforce the Republic's power. And the sinister lengths to which the Vraad government will go to keep its secrets. For the poor, slavery not only comes through irons and chains. But through their very struggle to survive. Time for a change. A different revolution is rising. A blaze in the ashes of a fallen empire.
Disclaimer I don't own the Inheritance Cycle or any of the other published work on this story. This is simply fan-made. Not looking to make a profit. Most scene were copied and modified to my liking from other fan fiction writers or publish writers, such as Noodle hammer, Seer- King, The Warhammer Codexes: High Elves, Dark Elves, Wood Elves and Dwarves. And other great writers who I don't come close to matching their ingenuity. I'm just a really huge fan, which was around the time my PS3 broke which turn out to be a blessing a disguise really because it got me to read and the first I read was The Inheritance Cycle. Followed by Rangers Apprentice, Night Angel Trilogy, Felix and Gotek novels and many more.
