The Crown Breakers

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We are so large that we cover every inch of Westerin. Our passion is so great that no amount of loss will ever stop us. You may kill some of us now, but we will come back later. And when we do, we'll shatter every crown you've ever followed.

~ Odogius ~

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Continental Bandits

The Crown Breakers, anarchists by nature, were officially formed in 1,260 under the man Odogius, once a proud military leader in Tenelea. The leadership he brought to the small but smart soldiers who served him was unifying and inspiring in ways that broke culture and tradition.
And most often orders.
The Tenelea back then was a nation okay with this amount of creativity, but when Zara Civilius III came to power and fully uprooted the Tenelean government into a military autocracy, everything changed.
That included Odogius' place in society. His style of military training became seen as unpredictable and unreliable, therefore untrustworthy and worthless to the Tenelean cause. His title was to be stripped from him, but he was prepared to die storming the capital's palace in protest. Miraculously, every one of Odogius' men were ready to do the same.
The famed event is known as the Day of Turncoats, when Odogius and his entire legion staged a whole siege against the imperial palace of Tenelea. The damage Odogius was able to cause from afar was great and costly for the imperialist Teneleans, but eventually, Odogius and his troops were forced to flee, not one person putting a single foot through the gates.
They roamed the land aimlessly, throwing in with bandits time and time again. Of course, those relationships tended not to last long.
Homeless and outcasts from their society, they had plenty of time to reflect on how things had ended up like this. Odogius was present one night when one of these topics caught his particular interest. It was a discussion of how far Tenelea had fallen since its government had changed.
It made Odogius begin to think ill of the other governments on Westerin too, and he started spreading this growing philosophy to the rest of the men and women.
Each one of these governments were flawed in their own ways. They all stemmed from a human evil that could not be extinguished so long as the system remained in place. They were like weeds among a beautiful garden that needed to be thrown to the fire. This belief mutated into a binding truth as Odogius and his soldiers began attacking trade routes, settlements, and outposts all over Westerin.
In these days, the Crown Breakers were born, and their name spread quickly.

The Days of 1,302

In the acts of terrorism that Odogius' bandits spread through Westerin, equal amounts of propaganda surfed from town to town of who these people were. Some tongues spewed these people as criminals and terrorists lost to the ways of the hells, intent to throw the whole land into anarchy.
But, others like the poor were more inspired by the philosophy, equally distraught by the circumstances their government had put them in.
Gradually, people from all over the continent began to seek out the Crown Breakers one by one or in groups. Unhappy with the way the continent operated, they joined under Odogius to assist in taking down Westerin and turning it back into a white canvas.
With these ever-increasing numbers of all races, the Crown Breakers became a critical guerilla threat as one attack that happened near one side of the continent one day would be followed by an attack that occurred on the opposite side the next. These were the days of the year 1,302, when the Crown Breakers were at their highest peak of strength.
It wasn't until the nations formed a temporary coalition, bringing together a valiant group of heroes that struck out and slew Odogius that these days of unbeatable terrorism came to an end.

Crown Breakers Divided

When Odogius was finally killed, the Crown Breakers suddenly found themselves disorganized and lost without the leader they'd followed since the group's conception. Many chose to leave, while some others tried to usurp power for their own gains.
Many usurpers succeeded in the small sense they began leading the groups located in their regions. But, as for the other regions usurped by someone else, the once allies found themselves at odds for which ones would ultimately claim the entire faction as their own. The most respected of these men was a Tokoan man named Ahn-Kel-Sox, or as the Crown Breakers nicknamed him, "Uncle Socks".
Though fighting broke out between these different sects of the faction. Though countless pints of blood was spilt to see who would take Odogius' place, it was this philosopher who, by his blood, sweat, and tears helped the leaders come to a more conclusive solution that honored the legacy of Odogius.
In total, there were five leaders. Like the spokes of a crown, "Uncle Socks" and the four others would keep command over what parts of the continent they had, working independently, but cooperating to uphold the will of Odogius, who was like the crown's base which the spokes stemmed from.
Since then, the Crown Breakers have operated under this five-region system. Never since the days of 1,302 have they been nearly as powerful, but together with their numbers and insane proficiency in guerilla warfare, they have been a thorn in every country's side that just cannot be removed.
And these thorns will not stop until they grow into entire bushes that choke and bury the societies that rule this land.

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Trunkhead. Cow Ears. Uncle Socks. They can call me whatever they want. As long as they remember the name Odogius and what we followed him for, I don't care.

~ Ahn-Kel-Sox ~

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Type

Illicit, Terrorist group

Leader

Odogius, the Turncoat

Parent Organization

Tenelea

Turncoats

Two arrows pierced the wooden frame of a house right next to Jin. The near miss kicked his already active adrenaline into over drive as he took off down alley after alley.
Despite the dark night sky of Kor, it did not help enough in escaping the crown breakers that were after him now.
They've caught on to me! I've got to hurry. He cursed in his thoughts. No matter what, he needed to get away from these pursuers.
The strange, psychic dagger he carried in both his hands was the sole reason for that.
"Jin," Jasper, the region leader had said, "we've got an important assignment for you. This dagger," Jasper had shown him, "is much more than it seems. To put it simply, it has the capability to eliminate even the metallic man, Lord Arccus. Thankfully, we've an inside man who can kill him personally."
Jin remembered his head swimming in those moments. "All you've got to do is make sure this dagger gets into their hands. They will have a tattoo of a broken crown on the back of their left hand. Afterward, you can let them take care of the rest."
Jin wasn't told anything else after that, but he didn't need to hear anything else, because he already knew what he needed to do. He'd known what he needed to do even weeks before that when these same crown breakers he fought with had torched his family's farm and killed them.
"That wasn't what I signed up for." Jin gasped as he ducked around another corner. Finding a few rocks, he hurled them down another alley as they clanged against the metal rims of barrels. Seconds later, the two pursuers dashed past him in the direction of the noise.
He held his lungs until he couldn't hear them anymore, then breathed a sigh. Finally, he'd lost them.
As he started walking again, his thoughts wandered to the past before he'd even joined these anarchists.
He and his family's yields had suffered at the hands of Tenelea, giving less back than was promised. Many times, it had made his family go hungry. A tragedy he couldn't stomach any longer.
He remembered a female officer he knew approaching him one day. Her name was Sanya.
"Jin," she'd said, "we've got reports of the Crown Breakers gearing up for some kind of raid. Our garrisons are being pulled to the inner city as protection." Unfortunately, the inner city did not include his farm. "But, we know your legacy as a soldier. If you'd just take up your sword in my ranks, I'll bend rules and make sure my unit is out here personally."
But, he'd declined, wanting nothing to do with the Tenelea that stole from him, and thinking those bandits would find no purpose in attacking his small home.
Days later, he'd joined the Crown Breakers to aid in the raid. Days later, he regretted not taking Sanya's help when he saw his home burned.
And now, he was on the run to try and sabotage the bandits as best he could. At least with Tenelea, his family was alive, so he'd search out anyone he could find that could take this dagger and disrupt the rebels.
Turning one corner, he was relieved to find Sanya who looked his way. He ran to her, holding out the dagger to her in almost insanity.
"Sanya! You must take this and seal it away quick!" She gave him a questionable look, but he continued. "I know the Crown Breakers plan to use this dagger to kill Lord Arccus, so you must take it so they cannot do so!"
To his surprise, she sighed in disappointed as she took the dagger. "Oh, Jin." She regretted saying; the tone made Jin feel uneasy.
Slowly, she raised her left hand to him before removing her glove. There, on the back of it was a tattoo of a shattered crown.
"You should have kept your mouth shut." Sanya said, and then she ran Jin through with the dagger, piercing not his body, but his soul.

Today is a momentous day, people! My personal officer, Sanya, will bestow to me a gift!

~ Lord Arccus