[LORE] Heimsdel's Story

Cerita ini ditulis juga sebagai penjelasan beberapa lore fundamental seperti sejarah singkat Fandorum dan Goldia, juga Eremidia.

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/*
Leila Inn and Tavern, Eremidiana, Eremidia
Late Spring AE996, Dusk
*/

Greetings, fella. You must be from somewhere far from this Capital Town since I haven't seen your face around here, am I right?
I don't know what brings you here, but whatever it is, you made it to come here in one piece.

Welcome to Eremidiana, fella.
Yes, my friend. This is the current Capital Town of Eremidia. You're here now, fella, so take a seat and relax--you must have been through the hailstorm yesterday. Here, have a drink. This could help you relax.

--

Have you relaxed? Good. I saw your hands trembling for about an hour. It must be a tough trip for you, fella...
At a glance, you must be one of those Scholar, am I right? Well, your outfit and those books you have on that bag told everyone that you're a book-lover and library enthusiast. People like you tend to go to Runica instead of here, as the library there is far bigger and has more collection than this place's.

Wait. To find an Ancient, you said? What do you want from some hundred years old silverheads? Secret of longevity?

No?

Oh, so you're gathering knowledge of the past civilizations and the only thing you can do is to get it from an Ancient instead from old, dusty, dull tomes from your library's bookshelves? You're kinda researcher, don't you agree?

And the townsfolk told you that you can find an Ancient here in this place?

Okay, then, fella. Since you've through lots of odds just to meet an Ancient, you deserve things you might seek for, but please calm your beard, fella... Well, even though you don't have one, but still, calm down and I'll answer your questions when asked to.

First, let me finish my drink. It's a courtesy of mine to have a drink at dusk...

Okay, then, let us go to my place. Unless you're willing to ask me answer all your question here in the pub and we'll get distracted by the customers as the night comes, I wouldn't mind to do that, he he he...

--

/*
Town Watchtower, Eremidiana, Eremidia
Late Spring AE996, Nightfall
*/

Welcome to my place, fella.
This might be a small, ordinary watch tower for you, but for me, this is my house. Period.

Sorry, I didn't introduce myself yet.
My name's Richter Heimsdel, but you can call me H, just like everyone else nowadays. I am an Ancient, you're right, and I suppose this grey hair had told you enough about me. I am a merely Town Guard here--even hundred years old man ought to work, eat and sleep just like everyone else.

I ain't good at remembering things well and my memory fails me often, but I'll do my best to provide you information about the past, which I was live and witnessed a few of the events back then. I wrote something I found or saw before myself in that book besides of you, too. Feel free to open and read some even though some are... well, personal.

Okay. Ask me anything, fella.

<<The history of Fandorum>>
<Part I: Creation of the Realm>
It's far far before I'm exist in this plane. It is said that this realm--the Runemilenia--was created by the Worldsmith, when the Designer of the World wove the first thread of Loom of Time and neither such foul essences made blots on the Loom nor the doomed splinters cracked the plane we're living on right now.

In that time the plane was engulfed by flame and surrounded by sea of fire. It takes a while for it to cool down. When I said a while, it's around thousand of years... or more.

As the plane cooled down, the Worldsmith then forged three essences of life; the Body, Mind, and Soul, which were still a huge, condensed and crystalized Spheres. As he fused the Spheres upon the plane, the wonder happened--the first living creatures flourished upon the crafted plane, which unintentionally helped the Worldsmith shape the plane. His creations, however, came with another thing...

The measurement he made is always equal. When the life created, the death created also. The Light exists, so does the Dark. When the Spheres infused, it created the differences which contradict each other, hence the Good and Evil defined, the Order and the Chaos formed.

A thing worth a note in this phase is the creatures who lived their life in this newly-born realm of Runemilenia. Even the simplest living things were fond of vast Arcane, made them the formidable Magic-users. In some sources, and in a certain story which told by a wandering unknown gypsy, mankind of this era were avid elementalist and capable to bend the energy almost as easy as waving their hand.

...but strangely, it's also stated that in this era, the one who wasn't capable to bend the Magic was chosen to rule the land, which motives and causes were still unclear till now.

In this era, the plane wasn't stable yet. Even though in this era the first mankind-made Order ever formed, the border between the Order and the Chaos was still biased as much, and ironically the Chaos came from inside the Order itself. The Calamity walked free like a children playing at the backyard. The Light which was supposed to hold the prosperity of mankind fell in the hand of its own successors. The Loom torn apart, the land sundered, the Magic itself severely damaged the plane.
The Worldsmith couldn't handle the causes his creations made, as the damages were beyond repair. In result, he folded this realm, enveloped it into the Void he created to prevent further damage, and reforged a new realm based on this thrown realm.

<Part II: The Reforge>
The Worldsmith remade the Runemilenia from a tiny splinter of the realm that has been sundered by the deeds of his creations. From this splinter, some of the creations of the previous plane--including the mankind who lived there, which sustained their vast Magic knowledges and later known as the Eldritch--were taken along with the trace of past civilizations.

He recreated the Spheres once again and infused them upon the newly-forged plane. Its shape was almost exact the plane we're currently living, but in this era the primordial measurement was altered if compared to the previous one; for instance, the continents of this newly forged plane splitted into three instead of one, the Magic was still vast but limited to those learned its art, the Order and Chaos were better defined, and the balance reordained.

The Loom, unlike the plane, wasn't repaired and the tainted lines of Loom woven couldn't be undone. Lots of civilizations rose and fell, races appeared and vanished, knowledges learned and forgotten, such plots and intrigues played over and over again, creating indefinite loop that ain't much different each other, hence the history repeated over time. Magic played the most important part in this era, but unlike the first plane, it didn't causing much damage when it began to fail. The Worldsmith then decided to maintain this realm, even though he must descend to repair the damage by himself, by any means necessary.

Some said that Heroes were incarnate of the Worldsmith himself, although many doubted this argument.

<Part III: The Goldia>
Aeons later, in the land of vast prairie of the greater Fandorum continent, the kingdom of great civilization arose and went prosperous for other aeons. Lots of knowledge known and forgotten by this civilization, but this one was noted as the most significant civilization ever recorded by history, and the one that known till now by common folks. The name's Goldia, which its kingdom ruled almost entire region of Fandorum and almost all of known intellectual beings.

The Goldia held entire aspect of life, ranging from terrenial, astral to spiritual aspects and belonged much things that people nowadays known in common, including the language structures and for some people, the style and manners. Many believed that Goldia was the one who redefined the civilization after their era which lasted for aeons and accustomed by many others, including Eremidia.

The Worldsmith watched upon this kingdom carefully, and sometimes descended to watch it closer during his time in this realm. He descended several times, had incarnated as peasants and kings alike, while sometimes he did his duty to maintain this realm in his own way. In return, he left mysteries unfold for the people of Goldia, gave them knowledge to create vast, alien and sophisticated crafts including Dungeons' Rift, and the secret behind lots of arts of Magic including Runes, Elemental Incantations and the art of summoning from various source.

The tainted Loom held inevitable fate of any civilization, and Goldia wasn't an exception. For unknown reasons, the people of Goldia presumed to abandon this realm, leaving no trails but their ruins which scattered along the continent. Only a few decided to stay in this realm, which some were known nowadays as the Ancients--like me--and the others were the ancestors of the present mankind.

--

Characters, you said? Well, fella, there are lots of men were involved in the shaping of this realm, especially Fandorum. As I've said, the Loom of Time was tainted and the damages can't be undone, the Order and Chaos have been defined and maintained since the creation of the realm, and mankind were deeply involved in the process. Countless of Heroes and important men and mer alike were told and forgotten, their name echoed in the flow of time and vanished in the stream of ages, and so their sagas and epics.

It's dawn already. It seems all of my stories kept you up, didn't they?
I'll go patroling again. You should find a place to rest--you can stay and rest here, but there is not much things around and it isn't as comfortable as the inn.

You're still interested in my stories and want more? Very well, fella. Meet me tomorrow at the tavern. I'll be there at evening.

/*
Leila's Inn and Tavern, Eremidiana, Eremidia
Late Spring AE996, Dusk
*/

Welcome back fella.
You Scholar people can't just let the knowledges amiss. Good for you, fella, I have something that you might like; the history of Eremidia.

Tedious, you said?
No, no, no... Not all of things you read from books are true. I've witnessed almost all of the happenings since the Eremidia established, and I bet most of things you read before are different from the knowledges I have.

Here, take my beers. We're heading to the Royal Library. There are a few books that I trust there.

--

/*
Eremidiana Royal Library, Eremidia
Late Spring AE996, Nightfall
*/

Here, take this book. It was written by a friend of mine, Grand Scholar Alviss.
He was a total bookworm and his writings are closer to truth if compared to the others, and for this matter, I only trust his works.

<<Eremidia>>
<First Years of the Kingdom>
Eremidia Kingdom (past: Aeremidie) is the kingdom under rule of the High King and takes place in the heart of Fandorum, the great territory of Rune Millenia. Established after the ruination of Goldian civilization, Eremidia gained its territory by expanding their diplomacy with the existing states and conquering the ungoverned, abandoned lands. Eremidia lies in the middle of the Ungoverned Eastern Realm, Westerland, Northreach and Southern Desert.

The first stone of Eremidia was placed by the wandering dragoon, the Green Knight that nowadays known as the founding father of Eremidia, Sir Dnas I at a small village that now also known as the Classburg, the Old Capital. The knight found that he could make the village to be more prosperous since his arrival from the distant Goldian town, and spread the faith of Tri-Arch he carried on from whence he came from.
In that time, the weakened Goldia's influence and imminent chaos created large exodus in many places. Many Goldian sites abandoned and the people vanished into nothingness for unknown reasons. Sir Dnas I, without any doubt, settled himself in the Classburg as some Ancients--one of the people inhabited Goldian sites--who acknowledged the knight's whereabouts, arrived at the village. There are noted about 150 Ancients in the early history of Eremidia, including Sir Brad Hawkins, Vsio the Neither, Randomasta, Lana Lashire, Tammora Kent and Notorius.
Me? I wasn't there. I went into a pilgrim to the west, so I wasn't included into those important persons.


<The War of Faleon>
The Flamevar Kingdom, the kingdom of trolls, attacked eastern Eremidia and sacked Faleon. King Dnas III then dispatched an army to recapture the Faleon and drive away the trolls from Eremidia. After days of war and countless death tolls, the trolls then retreat to their territory and then a legion of army led by groups of Royal Guards recaptured the town.
After an indepth investigation, the attack of trolls could be tracked and it came from the black mage, Annonimus, who spreaded the Fallen Magic that later known as Dark Magic. Annonimus was slain by a group of Royal Guardians, and his Grimoire was burnt away to banish the evil within the book.


<The Rise of Alliance>
Eremidia was never safe even since from the first day it established. The first days of the kingdom were filled with threats from neighboring kingdoms, and as people came and gone, so did the threats which awaited for the Kingdom's weakest moments.
Among all the threats, City-states such as Vixepia and Prodigium perhaps were the friendliest one and were never counted as threats to the Kingdom.
Vixepia was founded by one of the Eremidian named Yaden, the writer of Michiru's biograph, meanwhile the Prodigium was basically Vsio's hall and filled by the Mages who learned the magics from the Ancient Wizard. Mostly, the city-states were founded as answers of their insatisfaction to the Eremidia, and unlike any other states or kingdoms that raised swords against Eremidia, the city-states made a decent bilateral relationship with the kingdom.
The city-states were based on liberal laws, allowing people to do anything they want but some regulations and restrictions from seemingly less ordinated government were applied.
Vixepia is still visitable from Eremidia, and it takes about 3-4 weeks in caravan travel. However, before the Grace Crisis, Vixepia was apparently abandoned and only a few citizens were appeared in the corners of the city. The Prodigium now is more like an abandoned, haunted hall.


<The Grand Gathering>
The King Dnas IV, who inherited the heirloom of the House and the Kingdom, invited the whole people of Eremidia to attend the Grand Gathering. The event held in the courtyard of Eremidiana Castle, and attended by numerous invited persons who built and maintain the kingdom, when the Eremidia wasn't as big as known by people nowadays.
The King made lavish festivals and grand banquets to his people, as he noted the gathering as "To notify blessing of the graceful Nirvanne to people of Eremidia, and shall the reign of Eremidia be still until the realm dissolves to reunite with the Maker."
The Grand Gathering was noted in the peak of the Spring, Winterspring 1st, AE203. The day Grand Gathering held also noted as the first day Eremidia established, and the first day in Anno Eremidia calendar.


<Order of Nirvanne Bequethed>
King Dnas V reintroduced the faith of Tri-Arch to the people of Eremidia. Tri-Arch faith, which basically a form of devotion to the Saint Maiden, Holy Nirvanne, was also introduced by the First King but unlike in King Dnas V's era, the faith was spreaded to entire Eremidia. Since then, the Tri-Arch is an official faith of the Kingdom.
In his days of reign, too, the Holylandia granted its official theocratic status from the Kingdom.


<The Hunting Age>
In the days of King Dnas VI's reign, the huge threats--enraged wilds, sporadic goblins' assault, giants' rampant, unrested dead, necromancers, and more--appeared from the surrounding of Eremidia and its remote territories. The current army power can only counter half of the threats, leaving the other half vulnerable. His previous days as a wandering squire drawn another option to reinforce the defenses while the existing armies marched to the source of the threats, resulting in the authorization of Hunters' Guild.
Hunters' Guild worked like mercenary camps; the Headquarter gave jobs to the guild members and provide everything they need, and since the Guild is independent, they receive payment from the clients instead of the Kingdom.
Despite of the great records of death and injuries, the Guilds gave significant power to the defenses especially for the remote towns where the threats appeared often.
The Hunting Age started at AE604 and ended at AE696, when a certain party of Hunters defeated the awakened Lich Magus.


<Southern War>
For unknown reasons, Eremidia and other three neighboring kingdoms engaged a war. The war was focused at the Southern Great Desert, near Algeus, proven by many fort ruins scattered beneath the sands.
Despite of the casualties from the long war, there was no one emerged victorious since for unknown reasons, too, the war ended, the separated regions reunited but the relationships between the kingdoms weren't going well till now.
The Eremidia itself, for safety reasons, moved the capital town from Classburg to the norther, whence now called as Eremidiana, the current capital town today.


<The Threat of the Maker>
From the record of a priest from the Eastern Realm and strengthened with manuscripts from Solsticia of Westerland, Realm of Runemilenia was threatened by the Worldsmith himself as the illegal practice of magic forebode the destruction of the realm. With the absence of the King Dnas IX, the Guardians decided to seek down the forbidden art of magics' practitioners and shut down the portals which created by the first king to avoid the inevitable doom.
Their effort wasn't go in vain, since one of the Goldian portal shut down and the practitioners of forbidden magics are captured, perished or lost, the threat then went void. Still, the King Dnas IX was still in absence when the threat was no more.


<Grace Crisis>
The practitioners of forbidden art of magic weren't entirely perished. Their successors continued their dark rituals and they plotted a grand plot; to throw the king off the throne, using the powerful, ancient entity sealed deep in the very earth of the Grace Island. In the same time, King Dnas XII gave his heirloom and the Kingdom to his heir, Dynas, and entitled him as the King Dnas XIII.
The previous quest of his predecessor forced the newly crowned King Dnas to aware, as the latent threats from them--who called themselves Dark Scripters--were inevitable and may lead the kingdom of Eremidia into ruination after more than 900 years settled and been prosperous.
One night at the month of Herald's Dawn, when no moon shines in the night's sky, the King was assassinated by the Dark Scripters in the dungeon of the castle. Went unanticipated, the King was caught in Polymorph spell and turned into frog, fortunately he could escape from the assassins in shrouded robe and locked himself into safety, in a janitor's room.
Only a few knew what happened upon the King. After the Archmages made the latest Gathering, they invoked the sight that by killing the one who cursed the King, the curse that lingers upon the King would be broken.
So, as recommended by a Town Guard--which is me--the King dispatched an expedition team to Grace Island, and later he followed them up as there was no news since the first team deployed.

--

The Worldsmith may descended in an uncertain time, and did his jobs as usual. However, there were no notable Heroes which considered as the incarnation of him, so I'm afraid I can't tell you about the correlations between Eremidia and the Worldsmith.

I came back to Eremidia in the Hunting Age and stay in this place since then. I witnessed many happenings in this kingdom and I met with formidable friends here. There were troubles and fun, nevertheless the Kingdom stands still till now.

Well, you asked when I became useful for the Kingdom? I can't recall all of them, but in recent happenings, I played some of key roles in the later story, especially the Grace Crisis. The calamity once again prevented thanks to the brave King and the Scouts, however, even myself who helped them to put an end of the Eldritch threat don't know where they are since then...

Yeah, fella, I missed that scout girl...

Anyway, that's all I can say to you for now, so I hope you've written the important things for your journal. Feel free to find and ask me again about the lores, but don't trust something from a single source. Try the library of Runica and Holylandia--they should keep more things about the history of our kingdom.