Age of Horror
People spread, establishing foundations intended to last generations.
The elves of Eshana settled in Dendenwine, while the dwarves of Forn split between the continents of Pathriam and Mortéglace. The elvenari of Nalorea sought refuge in the forests of Leng and the Malkari in the eastern desert of Pathriam. Ulric Lothor and his wife, Ygrette Melion, established the kingdom of Ania as a seat of power for their family. Everywhere, names were given to places, and the dragons ruled over all of Erimata, with mortals banished from their lands.
Such drastic change attracted old rivals, and danger stirred. Two exiled Upiryrials, Ignatius and Ishkul, joined forces and plunged the world into a bitterly cold and unrelenting brutal new reality. Outside forces assailed Dromaria's inhabitants, attempting to claim the new world for themselves. A cascade of catastrophic horrors followed, with dragons and mortals desperately uniting to defeat the malicious forces. Entire biomes changed, and priceless creations from the old worlds were lost forever.
The Age began when the moon Ankyaro unexpectedly blocked out the sun and did not move. This extended eclipse resulted in Dromaria experiencing an unexpected ice age, launching it into 220 years of conflict.
Ignatius the Cold rose to power over the frozen wastes, home to monsters and dragons escaping the Covenant. His mastery of ice and snow in a world shrouded by darkness provided a perfect battlefield. As circumstances evolved, other horrors began to emerge. Monsters of immeasurable evil touched every civilization, shearing the Essence Forge from the Undain dwarves, devouring the elven land of Dendenwine, and spreading plague across the Eastlands.
Ishkul, with Ignatius's support, seized Pathriam, invading from underground. Assuming control over the new lands, the two launched a campaign of death and destruction. People everywhere fled, seeking refuge in Kalatearman or any available bastion of hope. Ulric Lothor, in his new kingdom, emerged as a paragon of mortal strength, protecting all under his care and negotiating the Dragon's Peace, allowing refugees to enter Erimata under draconic protection.
In turn, Lothor gathered his Crusaders of Illumination, soldiers dedicated to eradicating the rising evils. Together, alongside Seveth Van Dem, the two became beacons of light in an age of darkness. Wherever they rode, the Crusaders vanquished fear and inspired trust.
As the years passed and the toll of war grew, some in positions of power became desperate. Seveth Van Dem reached into the night for power in a hopeless attempt to fulfill his many promises. The man known as the Forefather, a once honorable soul tasked with protecting the Ancestors' legacy, fell, becoming a twisted terror himself.
The rule of Ignatius and Ishkul spread everywhere, with snow and abominations guarding their strongholds. The mortals could not hold out forever. Thurknot, a goblin of the Otherwyld, approached Lothor with a strategy to combat the centuries of unholy atrocity. The Plans of Savagery, a series of deadly and calculated risks, were intended to take out vital elements of the nightmarish age.
Using the power of the Sovereign Sage and the natural energy of the world's Leylines, Ley Prisons were created to lock away beings that could not be killed. The Ancestors strategized, divided, and set out to eliminate their enemies. With Thurknot spearheading the operation, they imprisoned the Konoclast, the most dangerous aspects of Gandar the Legion, Mother Malign, Amarantha Cull, stopped the ceaseless hunger of the Lecker, and ended Ishkul's wrath. These victories, however, came at a heavy cost, with death counts from the Plans of Savagery exceeding those of the last two hundred years.
Ultimately, the Ancestors and dragons united to ride on Ignatius' seat of strength. There, they scorched the frozen land, ending his terrible dominion. The period had a devastating effect, not just on the people and the heroes, but the Ancestors as well. The Age of Horror claimed the lives of many Ancestors and their children, including Lothor, Asir, Sorona, Peruvus, and Thurknot. tTheir heroic acts have immortalized them as saints and deities forever.
As the age ended, the elves crowned a new Emperor: Emperor Aenaryuu Kaless, a man of divine heritage and an Ancestor himself.
3,780 - 4,000 DA
