History of the Underworld

Where it all Started
Much of what came before has been lost. The distant past, the stories of our creation, have all but been obliterated by time. There are few now who remember what happened and fewer still, if any, that may have actually been there. All that we do know is that, the gods exist, they created this world and us...and in the minds of some, they abandoned us. We know now, however, that we let one of them back into our world, and they destroyed it. They took their time, waited and watched, playing a cunning game. They used us against ourselves and when the time was right, they struck and laid waste to the world. We, were the architects of our own destruction and we are responsible for where we are now.

Introduction
"I was forbidden to interfere. And try as I might, all that I did or thought to do was undone before I could do it. I was forced to watch, and I am still forced to watch as the world is remade in fire and ice." - Unknown
The world is changed forever. Most do not remember what came before. Most who now live have only ever known the Underworld. They were born here, underground, hidden and safe from the surface. The land lay scorched and burned, hidden under snow and ice, under a sky where no stars shine, no sun blazes and no moon lights the endless night. Those that call this world home hide away underground, in towns and cities carved from stone and earth. Under mountains and miles of dirt, we try to live and survive. Everything that existed before the war has all but been forgotten, save by a few who hide themselves, their knowledge now a danger to themselves and those that would seek that knowledge. One of those people is me.
Many heroes have now been forgotten, lost in the mists of time that shroud all that came before the war. Even the places that once were are lost to time. But, one name manages to seep through that mist, lighting the hearts of many. It is the name of a town. The town of heroes. A town called...Scarendale. This was a place where the legends of old were born. It was the place that all those who wished to do so, could make a name for themselves, if they had the skill and the talent. When adventure called a person, Scarendale is where they went. If someone sought help, Scarendale is where they went. This town was the centre of almost all myth and legend in the time before the war. The time before the Dragon Fire.
All events of any importance seemed to centre around this place. It appeared to be a focal point, a nexus for the powerful and the skilled. A place where heroes were born...and so too villains. I visited this town once or twice on my travels. It had an energy like no other. A place of hope and despair. A place of strength and at the same time...great weakness. It was an intoxicating place. Vibrant, exciting and dangerous. It was everything that a young and aspiring adventurer could hope for. But ultimately, because of the heroes that lived there and called it home, it was both the safest and yet, most dangerous place that one could be. And, as with all great towns, the tavern was the focal point for those great heroes...and the not so great. The name of that tavern in Scarendale was the Merry Pig.
Great legends were born here. From Olaf Stormbringer, one of the leaders of the Dwarven Clans, to Rasputin, one of the most vile followers of Bane. For every great hero that was born, dozens more failed. And while those who failed may not have been able to rise up to the status of legend, they were still a cut above the average person. Thus, the town of Scarendale was full of the powerful and those that were above average. But, it was not to last. Very little in this world is meant to last. And while this town was at its peak of power and influence, a dark threat was already making its plans against the world. And those plans had long been in motion and of course, Scarendale and its heroes were a part of those plans. And while many failed to make their mark in the world, or in Scarendale, two people who no one thought would amount to anything, would bring about the end of days...and the town of Scarendale sealed the worlds fate.

The Church of Agaddon
Agaddon. The Dragon god of Chaos. He was a relatively new god to the world. He embodied the free of spirit, those not wishing to be tied to convention and other such constraints. Caution was cast to the wind by its followers in the pursuit of their goals. And their goals were great, many and varied. But as a relatively new religion, one of their main goals was to strengthen their position and prestige in the world. For the longest time, the church searched for a great artefact. This artefact was simply known as The Dragon Staff. Its history was shrouded in mystery. Little was known of it as its history stretched back to the first dragon wars of the world, some 5000 years before hand. However, the church did know that the staff was incredibly powerful and that possession of such an item would bring great prestige to the church.
The leader of the spiritual branch of the church was a man named Joseph. He spent his entire life in the church researching and searching for the staff. His life was utterly devoted to Agaddon and serving him, bringing glory to his gods name and religion. Joseph was unfailing in his devotion to his god. He was Agaddons most devout follower and never waivered in his faith. After a great many years of study, research and adventuring, Joseph and his followers finally found one half of the Dragon Staff. They managed to repair it and at long last, the Church of Agaddon started to earn the respect of those in Scarendale and indeed the world.

The Church of Tiamat
Tiamat is the Dragon Queen. A goddess of Chaos and Destruction. Though not insane, she delighted in destruction and seeing her children thrive. All she was interested in was laying waste to the world and letting her children rule over what was left. The only issue with this plan was that, she was imprisoned. Locked away from the world by magics so powerful and ancient, she had vanished from history all together. She wasn't just locked away from the world however. She was also locked away from her own domain in the 9 Hells, The Dragon Graveyard. The Dragon Graveyard is where all Chromatic Dragons go to when they die. It is a place of giant, dormant skeletal dragons and the spirits of those that had died, but, only if they worshipped her.
Another issue that Tiamat had to contend with was that, her church was fractured, divided and leaderless. It was weak, shattered into several factions, all of which were vying for power against one another. As a Prime Material God, her greatest power came when she was able to be on the Prime Material plane. But, even now, locked away, she was still able to exert a great deal of influence on the world. She was a god after all. Despite this, she needed someone that would be able to unite her church. Lead it and lead her armies. Someone who could deliver the world to her. And, through her thousands of years of imprisonment, thousands of years of patiently watching, she found exactly the right person to do the job. The only issue was that, he was a Knight of Agaddon. A good person. A Great Orc named Garthank Bloodfist.

Garthank Bloodfist
The Great Orc was not looked upon as anyone or anything special. No one felt that he would amount to anything great, but that he would make an adequate knight for the church of Agaddon. He had pledged his devotion to the church all the same however. He wanted to be good and do good deeds. He wanted to prove that just because he was a Great Orc, it didnt mean he was destined to do evil. What he got in return was mockery, abuse and scorn, even from those of his own church. Everyone that he met, even some from his own church, derided, belittled and abused the orc for no other reason than he was an orc. It made no difference what he did, nor how hard he tried, no one would look past his nature, his race, that which was outside of his control. Yet, Garthank continued to do good. He continued to act with honour and help those who were too weak to help themselves. All this, despite the rising disgust within him at how he was being treated. All this while however, Tiamat quietly, calmly and seductively cooed into his ear, hoping to win him over. She promised him just a few things. Power, of course. But she also promised him the respect that he deserved. And, she promised him the one thing that she had NEVER promised to anyone else. She promised the Great Orc, what SHE considered the greatest thing that she could offer. Tiamat promised Garthank...her.
For months and years, the Orc persevered. He thought that it would get better, that people would start to treat him differently if he showed them that despite their mistreatment of him, he was still willing to do good and help where he could. But, as time passed, he came to the realisation that it wasn't going to get better. That people were going to continue to treat him as a monster, a freak. No matter how hard the Orc tried, no matter what he did, he would always be 'just an orc'. Even to the supposed heroes, the best the world had to offer, he was beneath them. Somone that would never amount to anything in the world. Years of this abuse passed. Garthank wanted to be so much more. All the while, Tiamat soothed him, calmed him, caressed and comforted him. She had grown to admire his strength, his will and his resistance to her. But, one fateful day, it all came to a head and the worlds death warrant was signed.
On that day, the day that Garthank finally turned, he was out on patrol with a group of adventurers. They were particularly abusive to the orc. They spent hours that day, picking apart the Knight of Agaddon. Hours abusing him, taunting him. Stacked on top of the years of abuse previously, it brought him right to the edge of breaking. Tiamat felt it. She could feel how close he was. She felt sorry for him. Sorry that his will was now so close to shattering. But, was it? Or was his will close to being re-galvanised? She admired him, still clinging on, just barely. With one last coo. One last soft word of reassurance into his ear, a promise of respect, love and power and finally, after years of holding out, the Great Orc broke. He stopped, the party that had accompanied him turning and taunting him once more. The Great Orc simply uttered into the wind, "I am yours my goddess."
The party with him looked at each other, before turning back to the Orc, ready to laugh in his face and taunt him further. But what they saw drained the colour from their faces and sent them running. In response to Garthank, Tiamat whispered one last thing into his ear. A soft coo, a hint of desire edging her words as she said, "You are my love, and I will make sure you never regret this decision." The party that had accompanied Garthank saw, for a moment, the Great Orc engulfed in fire, the shape of a 5 headed dragon appearing in the flames for a moment. This forced them all to take a step back and draw their weapons, but, when Tiamats own sword appeared in the Great Orcs hand, along with armour of her own replacing Garthanks, the party scattered, realizing that they had made a very, VERY serious mistake. The last anyone saw of Garthank for a very long time, was the Great Orc, watching the fleeing party, a pale woman at his side, arm linked with his own.
It is believed, but cannot be confirmed, that Garthank went on to unite the Church of Tiamat at this point. He was not seen for years. But from there he secretly grew the churches power. All the while, Tiamat fed the Great Orc a steady diet of her power, her spirit, her essence, linking the two of them together in a way that had not been seen before. Slowly, whispers of a dark church began to creep into the world, spoken of in quiet, fearful whispers. Eventually, news of this dark power reached the now powerful Church of Agaddon in Scarendale. But, once again, arrogance prevailed and for the most part, this news, these rumours were ignored.

A Mage called Singyn
Singyn was another that no one thought would amount to much. This was partly by design however. The clever Elven Fire Elementalist went to great pains to be unnoticed. Yes, he went adventuring, yes he had friends, but he made sure that he never stood out in the crowd or attracted any interest that he did not want. He spent his time listening to the denizens of Scarendale and learning all that he could. When the whispers of some power growing in far away lands finally reached his ears. He had a pretty good idea who it might be. Singyn knew Garthank, knew that he was continually being pushed to the edge, abused and in some cases, physically attacked. But to confirm his suspicions, he went off to try and learn more about this power. And what he learned spurred him into action. He never told anyone what he had learned however, and took this action in secret, trying to secure something that would, in the end, save him.
The writing was on the wall as far as Singyn was concerned. The worlds end was approaching and he knew who was bringing it. So, he set out to find something, anything that would allow him to survive what was coming. And eventually he settled on a single item that would do just that. The items location had been lost to time however, and the mage knew that a great deal of effort and research would be required to locate it. He used those that he could to get more and more information on his target. Over the next few years, he got closer and closer to his goal, all the while keeping his real motives secret from everyone else. He wasnt sure if this item would ultimately save him, but it was his best shot. And with what was coming, he would cling to any hope, not matter how small, to save his life.

The Start of the War
It did not start with a bang, as most wars did. Since the reforming of the Dragon Staff, the second half now having been found, the Church of Agaddon had spread far and wide, with churches in almost every village, town and city. They had prospered greatly and its leadership were all too happy with the progress that they had made, all in the name of their god Agaddon. The church was well respected now and their god even communicated with them through various divinations, guiding them. But, as I have mentioned, nothing was meant to last. The first hint that something was wrong, was the vanishing of several of their churches in the far reaches of civilized territory. Outlying villages on the very fringes of society.
It was believed, at first, that these towns had been subject to bandits, or even roving bands of monsters. The church would not abandon them however. They chose to send a Knight and a small contingent of soldiers to these towns to investigate. The Knight that they sent was the very one that replaced Garthank, all those years ago. He had risen up the ranks, given far more opportunity than Garthank ever had. He was now the Knight Commander and was extremely confident that he would be able to deal with whatever had befallen the villages that seemingly had vanished from the face of the world.
Upon arriving at one of these towns, the small force of Agaddon's followers found that everyone was dead. Not just dead, but adorning various pikes and other implements of torture. The bodies were on display for the whole world to see. To spread fear and discontent amongst everyone. Not one person was spared from the massacre. Man, woman and child. The sight shocked the Knight Commander. He had not see for the longest time such cruelty. Such evil and barbarity. The church in the town and been burned to the ground. The priest that tended the church and been quartered and scattered about the town.
While Agaddon's forces investigated the town, the Knight Commander came across a figure, a large figure. Donning unfamiliar armour, the massive figure towered over the Commander, easily standing at 7' in height. Sprouting from the figures back were a large set of leathery wings, a set of horns adorning its head, scales around its eyes. It took a moment, but, on sighting the sword that the figure was wielding, the Commander knew who it was. It was Garthank. He was changed however. Larger, wielding a weapon of great power. Tiamats weapon, though they did not know it at that time as Tiamat had not been seen or heard from for thousands of years. Garthank said nothing, and the fight was quick. The entire force, including the Knight Commander were dead in a matter of less than an hour. The Great Orc had been well looked after by Tiamat. She was as good as her word, and now, Garthank was far more than just her avatar or her General. He meant more to her than that.
All that returned to the church was a single box, delivered by an unknown person. The box contained a head, the head, of the Knight Commander. The church was, to say the least, stunned. Carved into the forehead was a large fist. Not many present knew the significance of this, but a few felt that they recognised the symbol. Those that did understand, were nervous. The old saying you reap what you sow sprang to mind, though briefly, arrogance once again taking hold of the leaders of the church. He was just an orc after all, how much of a threat could he really be? They would be able to beat him and whatever forces backed him, as surely, they were just a rag tag group of brigands and bandits.

The Dragon War
And so the Dragon War began. It was quiet at first, Garthank and his forces striking from the shadows quickly and fading away just as fast. He probed and prodded the defences of the church and of the nation, indeed the world. He went about finding weak points, all the while the Church of Agaddon continued to underestimate the orc. After a year of what effectively was a guerrilla war, Garthank finally launched an all out attack in the northern most part of the kingdom. He lay siege to one of the 12 great cities and within weeks, it fell. Then another, then another. The war had begun proper and the Church of Agaddon marched to meet the threat.
Confidence among the leaders of Agaddons church was high. They felt that this would be an easy victory with the forces that they have arrayed. Again, they were underestimating and mocking the Great Orc, because Orcs aren't smart, they aren't cunning, they aren't particularly strong and certainly cannot lead an organised army. Right? Well, over the next few years, the Church of Agaddon and its allies started to take a beating. Battle after battle lost and city after city fell. Eventually, through much bloodshed and lives lost, they managed to fight the armies of Garthank to a stand still. They were, at last, able to breathe a sigh of relief. But they knew that this was just a lull. They had learned their lesson and Garthank was now looked on as the most serious threat the kingdoms had ever faced. Someone was backing him, but, the forces of Agaddon and the kingdoms had no clue who was backing him nor where his power had come from. He was keeping his patron well hidden.

Enter a Deathknight called Gunn
The people of Scarendale were many and varied. Those that would normally be considered evil, could be found in its walls, working for the greater good and adventuring like all others, including those undead that were intelligent. Ones nature didn't always reflect ones intent. This was true of a local legend called Gunn. Gunn was a Deathknight that if the stories were to be believed, had turned against his creator. While NOT what one would call a good person, he wasn't, or never outwardly showed any propensity for evil. What did make him stand out however, was that he used a pair of Mana-Lock Pistols. Basically, imagine a flintlock pistol, that blasts out a raw magical bolt that can punch through armour. A very potent weapon.
Before the Dragon War, Gunn kept to himself, doing his own things, going on his own tasks and missions and rarely interacted with the others in Scarendale. But it seems that even he saw the danger in the situation that now presented itself with Garthank. He approached the leaders of the Church of Agaddon with information. Information that shocked the Church and the kingdoms to their core. Garthank, was now Tiamats right hand man, maybe even more. Tiamats name had not been heard for thousands of years, people knew of her, but they never once suspected for a moment that she would return. Some even questioned if she was real at all. The church was in an utter panic at this point, wondering just what Garthank now had planned. All thoughts that he was a mere Orc were now thrown to the side as they took him far more seriously than before.
Gunn offered up further information however, giving the church and the kingdoms a little history lesson. History that had been lost in time. Thousands of years ago, the FIRST Dragon War was fought, between the Chromatics, lead by Tiamat and the Metallic's, lead by Bahamut. The war was long, harsh and bloody and according to Gunn, it reshaped the world to what it is today. Gunn stated that at the end of the war, Tiamat and Bahamut both vanished, Bahamut likely having sacrificed himself to imprison his sister. Gunn went on to explain that he had been investigating 4 strange artefacts dating back to the First Dragon War. The Corner Stones. These stones were made of the same material as the legendary Dragonstaff. He believed that, Garthank was hunting for these artefacts, in order to use them as anchors to pull Tiamat back to the Prime Material Plane.
There were those that distrusted Gunn however, Joseph among them to say the least. He was a Deathknight after all. So a communion with Agaddon was conducted with the churches diviners. Agaddon confirmed what was said, though the process of talking with Agaddon was strained, painful, as though pushing through some barrier to talk directly to their god. Though this was probably due to current circumstances, an evil god like Tiamat being so close to being released. But, they got the answers they needed and a clue to get them started in the right direction.

Destroying the Corner Stones
8 Years had passed since Garthank first joined the Church of Agaddon to now and time was starting to run out. The Church set out on what would be its most important Crusade, to find the Corner Stones and destroy them with the Dragonstaff, the only thing believed to be up to the task. Gunn acted as a guide throughout, leading them as best that he could and for the next 2 years, the Church of Agaddon and Tiamat saw the most bitter fighting that had ever been seen up to that point. Garthank threw his forces at the Church as they hunted for the stones, but, Garthank himself always seemed to be one step behind this time, almost as if he didn't know about the corner stones or didn't care. 
The war resumed in full at this time too, Garthanks main forces starting to push into the kingdoms once more, heading for Scarendale, the place the Garthank knew would put up the most resistance. A large number of the heroes of the town either stayed behind, or went to the front lines to try and slow the advance for as long as possible, trying to buy time for the Crusdae to do its job and prevent a total catastrophe. It was long and drawn out, but, one by one the stones were destroyed. And then, the final stones location was found...but this time it seemed that Garthank had found its location too. The church rushed headlong to the location, only to be met with a strong force of Garthanks troops. The fight was brutal, bloody and most of the party that had set out to do the job, didnt survive to see the job done. But, with the last of his strength, surrounded by his party fighting off an insurmountable horde, Joseph lashed out, shattering the final corner stone to pieces.

The Beginning of the End