War of the Moon
The Conflict
Prelude
For thousands of years following the The War of Black Ash and The Omnia's Revolt, Neia Lun De Draco and her Lunar Dragonflight were dormant, having fled to the frozen norths of the world and secluded locations deep in draconic territory. The flight, under Neia's guidance, did not participate openly in conflicts, instead using information as a key tool to sway heavy propaganda in their favor. Much of this misinformation was in the eradication of much of the flight's history, particularly events that detailed Neia's cruelty and subjugation of the omnia and the hand she played in the extinction of Humans. Neia bidded her time for thousands of years, waiting for the right moment to seize the opportunity to take back what she thought of as hers- Her domain as the rightful ruler of all magic, all knowledge, and as one of it not the complete most powerful being in the world. In this time, so many forgot of her and the destruction she had rained upon the world, and her primary goal became to put fear of the moon back into mortals, and for the first time, instill that same fear into the gods. Having successfully ruined the reputation of Omnia into the villains of fairy tales and myth, Neia hatched a plan to do the same to the gods as well, leaving them as but a footnote of history, if remembered at all. Her power was consolidated into training many of her dragons for battle- the use of illegal magics has never been something below her. Illusions, shadow magic, blood magic, mind control, all were trained and refined into something even more deadly, and the quiet seizure of land close tho the Land of Gods began, with the former owners bought out with her vast wealth, or killed and disposed of, to allow her to grow ever closer to the gods.
Deployment
The War of the Moon officially began with a bold claim from Neia herself- "All denizens of the moon are, and have always been, mine. I am not but the image of the moon but the moon herself, and my wrath comes for all who will not bow to my tides." Her declaration of war was not only on all under the moon's light, but all gods who refused to offer piety to her for being allowed for so long to simply exist.
Ferventi, God of Wolves in particular scoffed at her claims to power, and Neia retaliated against the god of wolves by attacking his pack directly, killing his followers, scorching his shrines, and slaughtering his wolves. This goaded Ferventi to retaliate and declare war in turn. Ferventi also gained the support of many other minor gods, many of which also have associations with the moon or the northern reaches of the world such as Ludovic the god of polecats, Novi, The Goddess of Orcas, Olrath, and allies like Soliairs Taeyang, Yung Pagoni, God of Peacocks, and Mą’ii, The Coyote God.
The Major Gods also joined the conflict, fearing that the Lunar Dragonflight was seeking to place themselves at the top of the pantheon would throw the world into unbalance, and threatened the very flow of life and death itself. Past conflicts with them, especially the Rise of the Dragons, led to the extinction of human kind, and eventually an ice age that threatened all life itself.
The Omnia had not forgotten or forgiven the crimes of the dragons during their rise and the War of Black Ash, many immediately joined the cause under the banner of mortals, led by Eleteros and Pivon. For revenge and the defense of their way of life their primary goals, many took up arms in preparation, and sought the aid of organizations meant to protect their people.
Battlefield
As the War of the Moon is a global event, battles have taken place in many locations. Air, land, sea, and urban.
The Land of Gods has been host to many direct battles so far, with lunar dragons striking out at the temples of gods directly, and the gods retaliating by setting traps for the dragons in turn. Gods in particular have been using ambush tactics, hiding their armies amongst the natural terrain and forests.
The Shanin Islands and Republic of Shanai have become refuges for those seeking to escape the war and shelter among the most powerful of the gods, due to the island chain's reputation as being a safe haven that even the major gods themselves would never attack head on. Despite this, there have been minor attacks by lunar and solar dragons alike at sea surrounding the islands, but no large scale attack has been made.
Conditions
As much of the war is taking place in the Land of Gods, conditions are extremely harsh on all sides, subject to brutal weather, food shortages, disease, and a lack of supplies.
The Engagement
The ongoing battles so far have been vicious and bloody and although far from over, there are already thousands of casualties. This number is only expected to grow as the conflict grows.
Mortals and Omnia alike seem to have set aside their differences and work in tandem with the Blood and Lightning dragonflights, using mainly defensive tactics to not lose ground against the Lunar and Solar flights. At present, most mortals and omnia don heavy armor, shields, and long ranged weaponry in tight formations from the ground to catch the attention of their enemies in favorable battlegrounds such as evacuated urban areas where flight is difficult, near forests and ravines, or near the oceans with the assistance of the gods. Mortals have also been instrumental in combatting the Lunar Flight's propaganda, educating the masses on events and giving live updates as to where, when, and how areas are involved in the conflict.
On the side of the gods, Ferventi's pack has been seen working in tandem with many pantheons to harass the lunar flight and spearhead many counter attacks, providing wolf riders, archers, and great knowledge on taking down large prey in the most efficient fashion. Gods such as Ludovic and Soliairs assist mainly as heavy artillery with their respective cults, trending to firing off massive shots of sea ice and ship mounted artillery at dragons in flight to ground them, where they are then attacked by ground forces.
Outcome
Several shrines and temples to the gods, in particular Ferventi, have been destroyed and rendered useless. Many areas bordering lunar dragonflight territory have also been destroyed with the entire populations of cities and towns killed or captured en mass.
Due to the death of Vega and near death of Ferventi, many gods have seen greatly diminished power.
Aftermath
Many islands in the Pacific Ocean, the Shanin Islands in particular, saw devastating volcanic eruptions following Fire God Vega's death. Many of these nations had devastating wildfires and mass infrastructure damage as a result, crippling the communities for months to years. Shanai in particular saw the most damage, with all of the fire god's temple being consumed by lava flows, and the main city of Shanai being heavily damaged.
Historical Significance
Legacy
Although there was already an extreme hatred and mistrust directed to the Lunar flight from the Omnia already, such is becoming more common among mortals.
The bond between Vampires and the Blood Dragonflight has deepened significantly since the start of the conflict.
Technological Advancement
The Omnia in particular have been instrumental in bringing back many lost techniques for fighting against dragons, such as shields making use of dragons' natural aversion to eye shaped symbols or patterns.
Technology in blood cloning, already extremely advanced in vampiric society, is being further developed as a result of the war, particularly in mass mobile production for battlefields.
Included Conflicts
Conflict Type
War
Battlefield Type
Land
Start Date
20020
Ending Date
Ongoing conflict
Location
Belligerents
Strength
Lunar Dragonflight
Solar Dragonflight
Many dragons of other flights have also been pressured and forced to participate or become enemies of Neia's own forces.
Casualties
Unknown, estimated several hundred
Objectives
Eradication, subjugation, and extermination of those in opposition to Neia and claiming power over her 'rightful' domains, such as the moon, the tides, and those who intrude on her rightful territory.
Mortals and Omnia
Led by
Strength
Casualties
Uknown, estimated in the thousands
Pivon
Objectives
Revenge for the lunar flight's past crimes against humanity and the omnia, defense of their homes and livelihood
Major Gods
Led by
Strength
All six of The Major Gods
Casualties
Objectives
Keep balance between the gods and dragons, and prevent the overthrowing of the gods
The Minor Gods
Led by
Strength
Casualties
Many of Ferventi's priests, hundreds of Divine Beings, and many now destroyed shrines and temples to various gods
Objectives
Defending their claims to the Land of Gods and aspects of the gods' divinity, such as worship through the moon and lunar aspects
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