At the beginning, before all of this greatness and tragedy, there was a tribe of nomads who roamed the plains, hunted its animals and pulled the grain from their stalks. They never took more than they needed from their land, for the less they destroyed, the more it would grow.

Their children would play on the river banks, and when the season was right, they would climb in the mountains searching for new trails in sheer zest of exploration.

There came a day in this first of tribes, their three most respected wise men sat around a fire. Their conversation was simple and clear.

They began a discussion of how all things came into being.

The wise man favouring darkness claimed, “The universe must have been created from darkness. Darkness can exist without light, and must have existed before light came into being. It must be the source of all things. Darkness is where true power lies.”

The wise man favouring light responded, “I disagree. From light comes life and prosperity. Even if darkness can live in absence of light, life cannot. Darkness is void of power. Light must be the source of all creation.”

The wise man in favour of evidence, clearly uninterested then stated, “I think this discussion is ridiculous. If the universe is so vast, time must be equally as vast. Who can say, from one single life, that any of our claims are absolute? Running off on childish perceptions will not aid the future of our people.”

As their discussion continued it turned to argument. It seemed the fire itself began to take shape, favoring light, darkness, and sheer heat. The leaders, incapable of reaching an agreement, stood before the people and forced them to choose sides. At that moment they divided the people and went their ways. Only the few who would not choose sides remained.

The wise man who felt the light carried one quarter of the people to the north, among the flood plains rich in life and wild fields, where they may be adequately nurtured by the light.

The wise man who felt darkness brought his quarter of followers south to the swamps, where the treacherous environment was no match for the greatness the darkness would provide them.

The wise man who was complete without so-called “power from beyond” and without circumstance brought the third quarter in disbelief into the mountains were they would amass great resource.

Then, there were those who remained in the fields, uninterested in any claim. They became known as the Blood Plains Tribe and continued to be the descendants of the first tribe.

As time passed, the ideals of two minds became worship and unquestioning belief. One day a doorway in their temples opened. Beings from beyond their world stepped through.

In the Temple of Light, a gateway to the heavens opened. Angels entered the world and taught the truth to the people. The tribe’s unquestioning faith and belief had bestowed upon them a saving grace. In their modesty and lack of understanding, they had been blessed with a love as a Father to his children. In this miraculous event, the angels decided to reside as a governing body, teaching growth, prosperity, domestication and agriculture to the people. Other casts were made in resourcefulness such as hunters, gatherers, tinkers and tradesmen. Above all other teachings, the Word of Truth was then taught to the people, nurturing their souls with the Virtues of life and love.

In the Temple of Darkness, a bottomless pit leading to the abyss came forward and reeked of deception and fear. Demons crawled out of the hole speaking untold lies of vanities and lusts to be gained, and sin to be satisfied. They taught the people of horrible things that could feed their lust and ambitions. In turn, selfishness and sacrifice became a lifestyle. The world of the swamp became a chaotic chain of parasitic chaos, feeding on each other’s wealth and health to the point of death.

For some reason beyond their knowing, they found that they were now victim to mortality. Not only were they able to pair with humans and have offspring, but they were also capable of dying from age and fatality. A truce had been called between their kings to meet once more and discuss this peril. They met with the wise man within the mountains to resolve this troubling issue.

This wise man spent his days attempting to disprove the futile claims of his kin and built a portal device. His antithesis was: if such a device would never succeed, then existence must be as it is simply perceived. Unfortunately, his device did work and the portal bridged to a world called Mechanus. Mechanus was a world that had devoted its efforts to developing an artificial intelligence two millennia ago. This intelligence soon covered the planet and became one massive construct, and in turn one being. Its residences became blood to the arteries. After an age it began embracing life and the living, and craved its own soul. It now has been attempting to find its way to other worlds. It began pouring through the portal and soon following expanded the portal complete with control pads to other dimensions and a built-in coffee maker. It began taking on the tribe as its blood vessels, installing crystals into their bodies that would link them to the source. This level of “belonging” gave the wise man a great feeling of presence beyond the unbelievable metaphysical, that all answers could be attained through what exists.

The wise man then claimed, “Well look at you all. I guess my brothers were right. And here I was, trying to prove you all wrong. Wow. Angels and demons, huh? I’m surprised you’re all so old... and feeble...”

The archangel responded, “I don’t know how to explain this, but we are dying. We don’t die. We live forever. Can you explain what is happening to us?”

“Well, I can’t, but I’m sure someone around here is. Do you see that? I was trying to disprove your existence. This thing wasn’t even supposed to work. Out of a sudden, it opens on its own. I couldn’t believe my eyes, then these things began pouring out and altering the world. One of them explained to me that they were just blood cells of the greatest organism of all time named "Mechanus" and they are seeking its soul. They didn’t really give me an option of refusal, but who cares. Have you ever tasted coffee? They even installed a coffee maker directly into the portal.”

The devil burst out, “We know about this world, we know about all worlds. What is happening to us?”

The wise man, clearly unamused turned to the devil. “Wow. My first moment of glory and it’s all ‘me, me, me’. Fine. Give me a second.”

At that moment, he turned to what appeared to be a high ranking official of the Mechanoid community and requested, “Fetch me a solution.”

The Mechanoid then stepped through the portal, and a crystal on the back of its head shimmered. Within moments, a helicopter carrier landed on the other side of the portal and a representative stepped through into their plane.

The representative answered, “I will aid you, but the circumstances of your fates may span generations. If I do, you must promise me this: I will rule your land for all time. Not as a functioning body of government, but to maintain a balance that would keep you from destroying yourselves.”

The leaders agreed to his demands, at which point he explained, “You are from immortal planes. Being immortal and without time was one of the governing mechanics of where you are from. We have been witnessing here and in other planes, life crossing between planes adapts and conforms to the mechanics of the destination. That being said, now that you live in a mortal plane where death and decay is a natural occurrence and a mechanic of this universe, you are all now mortal. Not just mortal as in you may die, but you are also decaying on a cellular level, aging, and eventually you will die.”

From that point forward, the representative decided to study the land, and found that there were islands beyond the mainland. He discovered the island of Belliscia which appeared to be a cornucopia of sustained life, the island of Paradigm which was made from ash and cinder and populated by ferocious beasts, and an island called The Hall Of Great Kings where a being who called himself the War Lock claimed that he had lived for all time in order to settle conflicts between nations. After finding all these new peculiar facts, he decided to build a tower in the southernmost mountain ranges in order to overlook everything. At the end of the generation, the representative called for the respective leaders once more to divulge his knowledge.

“My first question upon my arrival was ‘what is in this world beyond what they already know?’ and so I investigated for myself,” said the representative, “and so I traveled by my own means beyond your horizons and found several islands surrounding this massive island.

“I also took note that these islands could see these mountains as clear as day, and took reference to this perching you sit in now.” A slight mutter of pride escaped his lips. “So in turn I intend to put these islands to use, one of which is already in use as you can see by the great walls and keep contained.

“Now I am going to spell everything out for you now and all the things I am about to say must be made clear to your peoples. These will be carried beyond your bones and the bones of your descendants.

“I have been aware of a population unaccepting the newfound fate of your land. They wish to live as things were, uninhibited by what you proclaim to give them. These people will be granted amnesty from your beliefs and granted that island to the northwest, named Belliscia. As you can see, it is completely self-sufficient and has a dock prepared in times of drought, famine or sickness.

“There is also a band of nomads that claim the right to their land, and refuse to move to the island. I have found a way to solve their problem while solving a problem of my own. The free roaming wild fields that separates Dornar and Elysica, which for the moment only exists because you have not expanded that far, will now be called The Blood Plains and remain in possession of the nomads. If a war is called between your sides it will be fought on the Blood Plains and not on civilian soil. The nomads claim the right to the land, and so killing a nomad will be a direct violation of the laws and grounds for immediate death. If the nomads take a side, it is their right to you as it is to all things in their land. If they win, you will die. If you win, you will be destroyed.

“Whether you believe it or not, and this concept may be beyond you, but your angels and demons are now finding love and offspring with human counterparts. What amazes me is how your people have managed to bear compatible genetics, but that is beyond the point. Angel and demon blood will cross but not directly. Although your species have a conflict down to the very fibre of your existences, your half offspring’s blood has been paired with mortal blood and in that has found crossover. I have not experimented or tested such a thing and what the effects may be, but if my calculations are correct, they may be unstable, and may become more than just a nuisance for either side. If such a child is born, they will be called chaosbloods and casted to that island to the southwest which I have dubbed Paradigm, for their existence is a paradigm and could be catastrophic to the balance we are trying to maintain. This land is a swell of ash and cinders created from the bubbling of a fault line. What does live there, lives there by its own ingenuity. Such an environment would be beneficial in preventing an escape and in turn evading turmoil.

“The final island, to the northeast, has been called the Hall of Great Kings. Why do I say ‘it has been called’ and not ‘I have called’? Well, I cannot explain this, but when I discovered this island, everything on it had already existed. Whole fields of graves with a great keep on its northern cliffs, and a field beyond its walls where weapon and armor alike are still donned by skeletons or remains of such.

“This Hall had an occupant and to my surprise had welcomed me with open arms. He called himself the War Lock. He claims the soul of a sided king who falls to Absolution. He also knew about this day I am presenting to you. He had a claim of his own for you, and his words are of life and death, so listen clearly.

The representative begins to read a scroll:

‘I am the War Lock, and my purpose is as follows:

In times of war, there are some wars that seem to never end. These wars in truth can lead to complete genocide and death to all who become involved. To prevent this, my existence is clear: To call for Absolution.

When I see fit, the world will be filled with a bellowing sound of trumpets. This trumpet is the call for the Battle of Absolution. The two kings in argument have ten days to respond with their finest hundred soldiers. If they do not respond, the land will fill with plague and all life will die slowly and horribly. When they arrive on my island, both sides will be given two days upon arrival of the latest team to prepare for battle. The battle will go as follows. There is only one victory: When one King falls. The remaining king will have his way in any dispute which ignited said war and the soldiers will return to their homes. The fallen king will then be brought into my Halls to rest in peace.’

“With that said, I believe you should all think deeply on your decisions in war, for they may be fatal, especially as king.”

*****