First of the Undead

...and above all else, to undo the failings of the Fallen One and scrub clean our souls of the sins he bestowed upon us. May the Void be merciful.

— Daily prayer of the Voidwalkers

During the Third Age of Creation, the most prominent followers of the grand god Maranam were The Voidwalkers. Members of the Voidwalkers were found in any community, often performing funerary rites and acting as caretakers for burial sites. Foremost among the Voidwalkers was a human named Taruvata, who through diligence and devotion had risen to the position of high priest.
Taruvata was also well known as a spellcaster of peerless skill, advancing knowledge of magic in the name of Maranam. As high priest, he began to experiment and develop new magics in an attempt to better understand the nature of life and death, and in turn, better understand Maranam. His work led to the creation of many incredible spells still widely used to this day, from the detection of poison to the curing of disease. However, his penultimate work is his best known - the reversal of death itself.

The Magics of Life and Death

Though it had its limitations, Taruvata's discovery of resurrection magic forever changed Lume. For those who could learn the intricate spells, death became little more than an inconvenience. Yet these magics were lacking in one way - if one was to die not of wounds or disease, but of old age, the resurrection would fail. This odd quirk in his magic vexed Taruvata, and in his later years he devoted all his efforts to understanding why.
As he neared the end of his natural life, Taruvata made a breakthrough. For millennia, it was believed that all life took one of six forms: the Grand Gods, Gods, Demigods, Behemoths, Immortals, or Mortals. However, Taruvata discovered a seventh form; beings that persisted beyond the bounds of life and death - Undead. Taruvata dubbed the magics that created them "necromancy" and sought to master it, as he believed it would bring him ever closer to Maranam. But time was not on Taruvata's side - he was dying.

The Grand Experiment

Faced with his own mortality, Taruvata's experiments grew ever more desperate. He began to use newly deceased bodies in his rituals, and when that did not give the results he hoped, he began to experiment on himself. Records from other Voidwalkers spoke of how Taruvata's form became ever more gaunt and withered, as if death had already claimed parts of his body.
Despite the obvious strain it placed on him, Taruvata's experiments finally bore fruit. Through a powerful ritual, the details of which are thankfully lost to time, he infused his mortal form with overwhelming necromantic energy. The creature that emerged from the ritual was not the same as the one that began it. Taruvata had transformed into Lume's first - and hopefully last - archlich.

Call of the Void

Using his newfound power, Taruvata tore open a rift and stepped directly into the realm of Maranam. He walked among the dead, alike yet different from the souls surrounding him, until he stood before the Eternal Terminus, the dour palace of Maranam. The doors parted for him as he approached and made his way to the throne room, whereupon he threw himself at the feet of his mighty lord. Taruvata spoke at length of his devotion, of how honored he was to serve, and of how proud he was to have created in Maranam's name. He finished his sermon with a question to the grand god:
"Are you proud of what I've done in your name?"
But it was met with silence. Finally, Taruvata raised his head to gaze upon Maranam and was met with a look not of pride, but of disgust. Then Maranam spoke thus:

You are not my servant. My servant was a man who shared kindness and knowledge with those around him, one who eased the pain of death and cherished the joys of living. The thing now before me is a desperate, pathetic shell that hoards obscene magics in a failed attempt at mimicry. You are not my servant, and you shall never again stand before me.

Before Taruvata could respond Maranam banished him from his domain, forcing him to a plane far away.

Birth of a Fallen God

Though he could not be allowed to remain in Maranam's realm, Taruvata could not be sent back to Lume. Through his newfound magic he had achieved a level of power no mortal had ever before reached, and within him was born the spark of divinity. By the Divine Accord no god could reside in the Prime - and Taruvata had ascended to godhood.
Having been spurned by Maranam and having lost everything he had ever known, Taruvata's descent into madness was swift. He convinced himself that his rejection was not due to the nature of his magic, but rather due to its incomplete nature. In his mind, Maranam had been offended that Taruvata would present such unfinished work. So Taruvata continued his work, creating ever more unnatural and unholy abominations, never satisfied, all the while seeking a perfection he would never find.

The Legacy of Taruvata

Necromancy and the undead did not disappear with Taruvata's banishment. Though many efforts were made to destroy the knowledge and ban all practitioners, the forbidden magics persisted through hidden groups and secret efforts. The Voidwalkers were heavily affected by Taruvata's downfall - as word of his hubris spread, and as his accursed experiments began to be unleashed on the world, many of their members left the organization. Those who remained took on a new mission: destroy all undead and, ultimately, destroy Taruvata himself.

----- Author's note: Despite their history and their periodic confrontations with the followers of Reina, the Voidwalkers have distinguished themselves as honorable servants of the Exalted Imperium of Oriand. It is my humble opinion that less sympathetic readers judge them not by their past, but by their actions in pursuit of their noble cause.

- Amrynn Leoris, Imperial historian