Raven Queen
There exists a thin line between the living and the dead. When a mortal passes on to their afterlife, a guide is sent to collect them. If the person lived a good life, a messenger of their god is allowed to receive them, but if the person was evil they are hunted by the denizens of the Nine Hells. The Raven Queen is the arbitrator of this law and it is under her guidance that the line of life and death is not broken.
No record of the Raven Queen exists before she ascended to the throne. While her story is written clearly and spread through her acolytes, none are privy to her true name.
When the Raven Queen was but a young girl, her fascination with life and death was insatiable. Studying under the tutelage of some of the most powerful necromancers in the world at the time, she quickly grasped the concepts of reanimation and the power of the soul. It was not long before she was able to reach the rank of Arch Mage in her college and under her guidance, the first step towards true resurrection was made. What she did not know of were the repercussions of her actions and how reckless use of reanimation could cause untold catastrophes.
On the night of the first Blood Moon of her lifetime, the Raven Queen and her mages were in the midst of performing a ritual to resurrect a necromance of old. Using the full collection of their powers, they began the chant. The Raven Queen was no fool and had requested the presence of a few members of the Divine Order, though in its infancy at the time, to protect the mages should the ritual bring about untold dangers. Hour after hour, the mages chanted. After the fifth hour, the corpse began to stir. The more they chanted, the more the corpse began to fill with life energy. Finally, on the top of the sixth hour, the corpse took its first breath. A long gasp from the body filled the room, and silence fell over all that were present. The body sat up, his gaunt body creeking with every movement he took. The mages were filled filled with joy, their ritual was complete and successful, but the Raven Queen knew better.
What the mages and the Divine Order members failed to notice was the evil that emanated from the man. While the body mimicked life, the eyes were filled with malice and cruelty that were indescribable. However, what the Raven Queen had failed to prepare for was what she had created. The mage, before his death, was known as Ahriman and he was the embodiment of evil. While he kept his experiments behind closed doors, his soul could not hide its cruelty. The moment the ritual completed, that very evil returned to its vessel. The mages began to gather around, offering aid to the man and helping him to his feet, but before the Raven Queen could act, Ahriman attacked. Driving his boney arm through the closest mage, he killed him in a second. The blood drained from the body, and the moment it touched Ahriman’s arm, it was absorbed into his body. The more people he killed, the more his body began to return to its former state.
The Divine Order members acted first and charged at Ahriman, but in the blink of an eye, were killed. The Raven Queen was left paralyzed in fear, the very presence of the man keeping her from acting. After Ahriman finished his slaughter, he made his way towards the Raven Queen. Grabbing her by the neck, he peered into her eyes and stated, “The others were weak and foolish, but you are not. You recognized me presence while the others fell. You will belong to me and I will show you the greatest of pleasures.”
With that, Ahriman opened a portal and, dragging the Raven Queen along with him, stepped into the realm known as the Shadowfell. The Shadowfell is a plane of chaos, where the souls of the dead reside to be judged. If not for her circumstances, this would have been a dream come true. All around her were the souls of those who had once lived, unable to pass on. However, Ahriman chose to seal her in his tower, with only books to keep her company. For what felt like an eternity, she lived in that room, only ever allowed to leave if Ahriman needed her for an experiment. All hope of returning to her life were lost and instead she was filled with a new desire. She spent her days in secret, looking for a way to kill Ahriman. However, no such cure existed, as during their time in the Shadowfell, Ahriman had ascended to something beyond that which he was. Through ritual and sacrifice, he had become a lich and jealously guarded his phylactery from harm. In a labyrinth, deep within the fortress, he hid it, guarded by undead warriors who never tired and never aged.
However, one night, all that would change. Melora paid a visit to the Raven Queen and offered her aid. Melora felt her pain and knew of the evil of Ahriman and offered her champions of another time to assist in the defeat of Ahriman and to free her from his grasps. With those words spoken, a portal opened behind her and out stepped warriors who Melora deemed as saviors of the Material Plane and with their help, she was able to confront Ahriman.
A long battle ensued, but due the warriors aid in destroying the phylactery, Ahriman was killed, never to rise again. The Raven Queen was freed, but now she had no plans for the future, For as long as she could remember, she had been trapped by Ahriman. Now, she could return home and continue her life. Melora, however, stated that she could never return to her time and that the world she had once known was no more. Melora, instead, offered her a different choice. The Shadowfell needed guidance and the Raven Queen was the perfect mage for the job. Not only had the Raven Queen lived here for so long, she was already a powerful mage who now understood the balance needed to oversee the dead. The Raven Queen thought for a moment and eventually agreed to take the throne and ascend to godhood. However, she did ask for one thing in return. She asked that history forget who she was before her time in the Shadowfell.
Melora agreed and from that moment forward, the world forgot who the mage of old was. All her research disappeared and her knowledge lost. To her, however, it was not a loss, as the knowledge she had acquired was corrupt and unstable.
From that day forward, the Raven Queen has watched over the souls of the dead and guided them to the afterlife. Her work is revered by many and prayers are often offered to her to safely guide a loved one to where they are meant to go. The Raven Queen does not often interact with the Material Plane often, but when she does, she offers guidance for those who seek it and condemns those who tamper with the balance of life.
While the warriors who freed her have never been mentioned, it is said that should they pass on, the Raven Queen will offer them a place among her people and allow them to serve as her soldiers once more.
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