Rise of the Modern Undying Empire
When Emperor Atanasio Lovato I achieved his dream of eternal life it brought much unrest to the empire. Other noble families who had dreamed of marrying into the Lovato family to have their children sit on the throne saw that possibility fading. The Emperor had never married and was known to have little interest in women. Many bristled under the thought of one emperor ruling forever. Thus, many noble families came together and spread horrid rumors about the Undying emperor. Claiming he was an undead lich. A monster that would bring the empire to ruin. Necromancy was little understood and feared by many of the uneducated in those days.
Most on the Isle de Luz did not fall for the these traitorous lies, but those on the main continent were less informed. Many of the lesser races had grown resentful of the empire's guidance and saw these rumors as the seed of their rebellion. Of course the empire was used to dealing with rebellions and the lessers alone would not be enough to defeat the empire's forces.
As time went one Emperor Atanasio Lovato I began to give blessings to those loyal to him. He imparted great power and resilience. This allowed his trusted knights and generals to survive from the worst violence that could be set done against them and survive. He sent these trusted allies to secure the continent from the rumblings of rebellion. Sadly, their boons were viewed as curses by the lessers. They decried these heroes of the empire as undead scum. Even as they walked through the light of day with their strength undiminished.
Eventually, some of the nobles overseeing the continent sought to seek an alliance with one of the ancient dragons residing at the peak of Espina de dragón. There, the fool, Enga of house amar met with Kataigída. The eldest of the lightning dragons. The fool knelt and swore to serve the dragon for his brief lifetime if it would aid in the rebellion. Kataigída would not so easily offer aid and demanded much in payment. The ancient dragon demanded that Enga and all of his descendants serve Kataigída and her kin for the rest of time. Enga, the fool that he was, agreed. Kataigída laughed as his agreement sealed the ritual the dragon had spent the entire conversation weaving without Enga noticing. Magic surrounded the fool and he was transformed into one of the lessers and given a new name. With the new name Heron Rapi, Kataigída commanded the now dragonborn to go out and collect the forces. The whole army must be assembled to swear loyalty as well.
Kataigída allowed a false rumor to spread that all the dragons would be willing to help the rebellion for a small price. After this, other foolish gnomes sought dragons to aid them. They all suffered similar fates. This did prove to be effective in crushing the empire's loyal forces. The dragons, led by Kataigída, took hold of the continent with their new loyal forces and then sought to invade Isle de Luz. Thankfully the emperor was ready. Having had centuries to store magical power and learn new spells The emperor had crafted powerful spells to repel the dragons. The spells are said to be active to this day. They drain the life right out of dragons. The younger of Kataigída's children were sent to scout and she watched in horror as they withered and died before they could escape the spell. Years past with the lessers attempting to invade on their own, but they could not hold out against the empire's might.
Eventually, Kataigída and her forces grew tired of the fight and the dragons began to return to their natural state. The beasts could only stay allied for so long. They sought each other's territory and new wars broke out all over the continent with the lessers fighting for their local dragon. The continent fell into darkness. Isle de Luz remained as the only spark of light to be seen.
The emperor wept for what was lost, but focused on the future. He had many subjects to defend. Spending decades to perfect, the emperor did something thought impossible. He split his soul in four. Ego, Corazón, Alma, and Ira. Then, with his great powers the Emperor created a new dimensional plane that his soul fragments could traverse freely with one always remaining within the emperor. Alma is known to reside in the body of the emperor most. The emperor was not yet done. To keep Isle de Luz, and those living here, safe he created the Juicio de Eterno.
The Juicio de Eterno was the crowning achievement. The emperor would have one of his soul fragments meet with each citizen during a ritual lead by the local Oscuro. All would first undergo this ritual on their 15th birthday for the first time. Those who sought higher positions in the empire would undergo the Juicio each time they sought advancement. Through this method only the most loyal would be allowed to advance and those who could not be trusted lost standing. This split our society into different castes.
The lessers who resided on the Isle de Luz were placed into the slave caste with the possibility of advancing to the citizen caste if Ego found them worthy. Most Gnomes were placed in citizens caste. Those gnomes who demonstrated devotion to the Emperor joined the Elevated caste. The elevated are given basic knowledge of magic and are granted the ability to wield it by the emperor. Once one becomes elevated they are granted the power to see the world around them as it truly is. Those trusted with leading settlements and being involved in the defining the laws of the empire joined the Priest Caste. The priests are granted even more knowledge of magic and more power to wield it. Priests that showed potential of someday rising to the rank of Oscuro are granted the rank of Acolyte. The highest caste, second only to the Emperor himself, is the Oscuro. The Oscuro are assigned settlements throughout the empire and rule over them. With access to powerful magic and arcane knowledge they maintain the order of the empire. The Oscuro are granted a piece of the emperors divinity. This divinity connects them more deeply to the emperor and his power. The Oscuro do not age and there is no record of any dying since the caste system was established.
Many citizens strive to join the ranks of the elevated and priests, but none truly understand what is needed. Any citizen can receive training that is said to increase the chances of being chosen as one of the elevated, but how Ego decides who is worthy remains mercurial. Those who are singled out by Ego can rise high in the empire.
Type
Record, Historical
- Slave: The lowest caste. To be pitied and guided to greater achievement.
- Citizen: The average gnome living in the empire.
- Elevated: Gnomes given a piece of the emperor's power along with knowledge to wield magic
- Priest: Gnomes who are trusted enough to lead the elevated and propose policy changes to improve the empire.
- Acolyte: Priests in training to become Oscuro themselves. They tend to work closely with Oscuro and learn from them. They oversee groups of priests.
- Oscuro: The most trusted in the Empire. One leads each settlement in the empire. They have complete authority over their settlements and answer only to the Emperor.
