Prophecy of the Shadows

We are thieves and murderers, yes. We serve ourselves and our order. For money, for power. The thrill of the hunt. The satisfaction of a job well done. We are the shadows and we act as we please. This is what we tell the initiates. This is what the majority believe to be our purpose.
They are wrong. For we serve a greater purpose. One few will ever know.
We, their betters, are destined to be Gods, equal to the Celestials themselves. We shall search for the Champion who will lead us to the Heavens and we shall follow him to Destruction.
-Guild Master of the shadows, Circa 300 CE

Summary

The Prophecy of Shadows is one interpretation of The Prophecy as told by the Seers of Runtuv. It was developed by the Guild of Shadows and remains one of their core beliefs.
The Guild believes the Champions are destined to either save or end the world and have placed particular emphasis on the following line.

Destruction leads to gain in the next life for the few, but Preservation benefits all.

According to their interpretation, if the Champions end the world, they and their allies will be rewarded in the next life, possibly even achieving divinity. Due to this, the Guild has been seeking the Champions for the past several centuries and has been manoeuvring their organisation into positions of power, ready to fulfill the prophecy as they see fit.

Historical Basis

The original prophecy was revealed by an unknown seer at Runtuv in 7 CE. It was only witnessed once as any further attempts to glimse it failed. Fearing what would happen if the prophecy were to reach the wider world, the seers only made one copy and kept it safe in their vault.
In 212 CE the prophecy emerged into the wider world. It is unknown how but the most likely explanation is that the leak came from within. Initially a panic spread amongst the people about the end of theworld, believing it to be imminent. Only when the seers denounced the prophecy as mere hearsay did the panic cease. That didn't stop some groups from coming up with their own interpretations however, with the Guild's being one of the most persistent.

Spread

The Prophecy of Shadows is only known to the higher ranks of the Guild. This is partially due to the desire for secrecy as they do not want the prophecy to become common knowledge again. It is also due to greed however as they believe the fewer who know the Guild's true purpose, the less competition they will have to face when it comes to their supposed ascension.

In Literature

There is a scroll within the main guildhall's vault where both the original prophecy is written as well as the interpretation and reasoning which led to the Shadow variant. It details clues as to how to identify the Assassin's champion as well as what may be needed to achieve the destruction of the world.