Before the Grave Fire

Before the grave fire, Ekothis was not peaceful. It was a remote realm divided between the Kingdom of Motonia, the Zebathen Empire, independent wilderness tribes, and the dangerous No Man's Land around Mt. Bleed.

The grave fire did not destroy a stable world. It struck a realm already shaped by conquest, slavery, political rivalry, buried dark magic, and several people reaching too far for power.

Motonia was the older kingdom in Ekothis. Its sailors arrived from across the Eastern Sea and established their first base on the island city of Cliften. Cliften became their capital, a fortress city separated from the mainland and built for war.

Zebathen rose on the mainland two centuries later. It began as an alliance of local kingdoms and tribes against Motonia's expansion. Under Highlord Zebathen, that alliance became a political power with technology, alchemy, artificers, and the ability to resist Motonian soldiers.

For centuries, Motonia and Zebathen fought across Ekothis. Neither kingdom won permanently. Borders moved, colonies changed hands, and eventually they settled into an uneasy truce. The land remained divided, with pockets of wilderness still outside either kingdom's control.

Zebathen's rise depended partly on the Maker Tribe, descendants of the mythical builders of the gods. The Makers could shape stone with impossible skill. Zebathen enslaved them and forced them to build great works, including the Colosseum of Eden.

The Colosseum did not stage normal gladiator fights. Its chief challenge was the Seven Rings of Death. Warriors faced fire, lightning, falling earth, wind, ice, water, and finally darkness. Those who survived all seven rings were crowned with statues in the Colosseum.

Vorgak the Valiant was the first champion. Isenbardus the Brave was the second. Skull, a warrior from Motonia, became the third centuries later and was crowned chief of Motonia's army.

The Makers eventually rebelled under Azroth. General Isenbardus led Zebathen's infantry into the forest to capture them. Azroth stabbed Isenbardus near a tree, and the soldiers left the general's body behind when darkness fell. Azroth was captured and imprisoned in a structure he had built with his own hands, left to die without food, water, or light.

The Makers won freedom soon after, but the land was no longer fertile and almost none of the tribe survived. The Fiery Desert became an abandoned piece of Ekothis.

Motonia expanded from Cliften into mainland Ekothis and founded Alnore near an uninhabited chasm. When gold was discovered there, the chasm became one of the wealthiest regions in the kingdom.

Clan Dragos built its fortune from those mines. Lord Dragos later helped fund a lighthouse at the foothills of Mt. Bleed. Officially, the lighthouse was meant to watch for invasions. In truth, it was also a way to access the ancient library and ossuary buried beneath it.

That underground complex contained books on dark magic and skulls from a long-lost civilization that had once lived under the foothills of the volcano.

Princess Zenevia was born in Year 1178. She became beloved in Motonia: outgoing, charitable, and connected to the history of her people through the Royal Reliquary.

Princess Ziena was born in Year 1182. She was quieter, more withdrawn, and drawn to books and birds. In Year 1188, she told her father she wanted to fly. He built her a grand aviary and appointed Ila, an expert bird keeper, to care for it.

Ziena grew jealous of Zenevia, knowing her older sister would become queen while she would remain a princess. In Year 1194, at age twelve, Ziena ran away. A search was launched, but she was not found.

In Year 1195, Ziena sailed to Alnore and met Lord Dragos. He knew who she was and promised to give her what she wanted. Under him, she began studying dark arts and magic. He told her about the lighthouse near Mt. Bleed.

Skull retired from Motonia's army in Year 1198. He moved to a cottage near the Garden of Flowers by the Great Lake, grew his own food, and built a connection with Margaret, the owner of the garden. He once helped save her garden from bandits.

The Grand Carnival was established in Year 1200 as a permanent celebration of one thousand years of the Zebathen Empire. The Clown's Circus was its main attraction. That same year, Queen Vaella was crowned Empress of Zebathen.

Crow began working at the Carnival in Year 1202. His gloomy presence stood apart from the bright celebration, but wealthy visitors came to him because he told the truth of the future. Marlin, star of the Clown's Circus, became jealous of Crow's success.

Mt. Bleed erupted again in Year 1203. The lighthouse residents fled and never returned.

In Year 1205, Ziena decided she could not become truly powerful while serving someone else. She plotted to kill Lord Dragos and created a fire in the chasm. Dragos survived with his face and half his body burned, then began wearing a mask. Late that year, Ziena fled to the abandoned lighthouse. She found the underground library and spent two years reading every book she could find, shaping a plan that would prove her importance to Motonia and to Zenevia.

In Year 1207, Cycilosis hit Everbrook, Zebathen's capital. The disease left people immobile. Morana, a distant alchemist, cured it with a potion made from ingredients obtained in the chasm. She became rich and famous.

One year later, the cured began developing new symptoms. People fell sick and died. Queen Vaella was the final blow. Morana was captured and imprisoned, accused of poisoning the cure. The truth was that Ziena had poisoned one of the chasm ingredients without Morana knowing.

In Year 1208, an earthquake destroyed Cliften. Father Francis and Princess Zenevia died. The earthquake was caused by one of Ziena's experiments. She had been trying to gain the ability to fly like a raven. She developed plumage and a beak, but kept human hands and could not fly. She did not know her experiment had destroyed Cliften.

In Year 1209, Motonia moved its capital to Alnore and crowned a new king from outside the royal family.

Then, in Year 1210, the grave fire happened. It was believed to be caused by Mt. Bleed. The lighthouse was surrounded by lava, trapping Ziena inside. The Eye of the Raven became functional. Flames erupted from the earth, and all of Ekothis was devoured.

Or so it was thought.