We fought like heroes, cleaving through the heretics in a bloody dance of death. We were unstoppable, but they were many, and before we could finish them off, the last rays of light disappeared into the ocean and the world changed.
The Cities of Wisdom
The Cities of Wisdom stretch along the Gulf of Dusk. From the Adrantic Coast in the north to the Aetolian Cape in the South do they spring, hemmed in from the east by the Palatine Jungles. For generations, the Cities stood as bastions of civilization; the soaring towers of stone touched the very heavens, their great arcaded halls filled with all the knowledge and treasures that gave the Cities their name. Indeed, travelers came from every corner of Elysia to seek guidance from the Mazdas, custodians of the great temples that were dedicated to the Gods. Wealth poured into the Cities, turning the lowliest of hovels from sticks to clean adobe, while knowledge was accumulated in ever grander temples and shrines that became the envy of the continent. With so much prosperity and wisdom at hand, the arts flourished. Vast murals and mosaics covered the buildings in swaths of colour that would rival sunsets. Grand and intricate statues and gardens were erected everywhere, providing the happy populace with heroes and places to admire them in. Music filled the air, from great orchestras accompanying theatrical performances to simple buskers strumming a lute or lyre on the corner. A Golden Age, worthy of Gods themselves.
And then the Shadow fell.
THE SHADOW
The Shadow began with a solar eclipse. The moon, reaching the point of totality, shrouded the world in darkness. It did not end. For an entire month, the sun remained blocked by the moon, its position locked to forever hide the planet from its star. The land began to wither, and a hot wind began blowing from the north. With it came an choking fog that settled upon the entirety of the planet, and soaked deep into the lungs of every creature, making it painful to breath.
Without warning, the air became ice cold, and dark shapes, barely there, could be discerned through the fog. The Shadow had fallen upon the world, and It would harvest the souls of gods and men for a thousand years.
PRELATES
Holy warriors who are trained from childhood, prelates have two selves. Their secondary self, that which they were born with, is personal. Known only to their brother prelates, their natural faces remain hidden outside their temples.
Their main self is tied to the deity they wear. Their masks, bronze effigies of the old gods, are their true faces, and that which they present to society. Clad in bronze and draped in plum, prelates are the elite enforcers of the Cities of Wisdom, charged with clearing out heretics wherever they may lie.