Welcome, brave diver!
The history you are about to explore is as the mortals of Edeni know it, a story shaped by what—and who—has survived the passage of time. Some truths may have been lost to the Void or forgotten over the ages—such is the nature of history.
Your character isn’t just a passive observer in this world; they have been shaped by it, and they will go on to shape it.
You are encouraged to form strong (and, perhaps, wrong) opinions on the history of this world, fill in gaps with your character's perspective, and even question what is written on this page—if that’s something your character would do.
一. Once Upon a Time
In the beginning, Edeni basked in an era of peace, cradled in the divine care of two powerful beings: the Goddess of the Sun, and the Goddess of the Night.
The Sun stood as a paragon of light and steadfast resolve, while the Night wove safety and solace into the embrace of her darkness. United, they stood firm and protected the world’s inhabitants from all manners of otherworldly threats and corruption.
二. The Betrayal of Humanity
As Edeni flourished, however, a divergence in vision emerged between the two Goddesses.
The Sun Goddess, with her nature of constancy and strength, was content with the way things were. She dreamt that Edeni would remain under their eternal guardianship, perpetually bathed in their combined light and shadow.
Yet, a shade of doubt began to cloud the Night Goddess’ heart.
With her infinite foresight and wisdom, she began to grow weary of the mortals’ ceaseless dependence; her patience waning under the weight of their endless needs and fears. Where the Night Goddess once saw potential and promise, she now saw only fragility and failure. In her eyes, the mortals had become a blight upon the beauty of the canvas that she and her beloved had so meticulously painted.
In a shadowed moment, she delivered a harsh lesson in independence to the world, razing the most prosperous of mortal kingdoms to the ground.
三. Wrath of the Sun
When the harrowing truth of this betrayal was revealed to the Sun Goddess, her fury was cataclysmic. She, who dreamed of nothing more than peace and sanctuary, now saw her vision for an unchanging Edeni destroyed by the very person she loved.
The clash between the Goddesses was monumental, shaking the very foundations of Edeni.
For days, their battle raged; then weeks, then months, their powers clashing with such intensity that the world itself seemed to unravel. Mountains crumbled, seas boiled, and the land itself was scarred by their conflict. The mortal races, caught in the crossfire, could do nothing but watch in terror as their world was torn apart.
In the end, the Sun Goddess emerged victorious, her radiant light piercing the darkness and banishing the Night Goddess. But the victory came at a great cost, leaving her weakened and with her divine energy all but depleted in the struggle to save Edeni.
四. Silence of the Gods
Horrified by the Night Goddess' deceit, the people of Edeni turned their prayers to the Sun Goddess, their savior. But none were answered, for in the aftermath of the cataclysmic battle, the Sun Goddess had retreated into a deep slumber, her energy wholly expended in this act of immense fury.
With that, the world of Edeni was plunged into an age known as the Silence of the Gods—alone, for the first time, without their divine protectors.
In the quietude that followed the Goddesses’ disappearances, humanity—left without guidance—descended into chaos.
First, they chased the dark elves into the underground, blaming them for the actions of their goddess and for the darkness that had befallen their world. Then, with no one else to blame, they turned on each other.
Territorial wars erupted among the long-lived races, and the dwarves, defeated, were forced to retreat below the surface, their lands seized by the victors. Amidst this chaos, monstrous races like oni, orcs, and goblins emerged, adding to the growing strife and fear.
Eventually, after years of war, the storm of chaos began to subside. The sun elves, armed with ancient wisdom and formidable magic, emerged victorious in countless skirmishes and battles, securing their place as the pinnacle of power in Edeni.
In their triumph, the sun elves carved up the lands, bestowing fertile territories to themselves and allies, leaving the remaining races to squabble over the meager remnants. What emerged was an uneasy status quo—a fragile equilibrium forged from the fires of conflict and the ashes of a shattered world.
五. The New Dawn
Then, one fateful day, a proclamation shook the temples of the elven kingdoms—the Sun Goddess had begun to stir from her long slumber!
Though her once boundless energy was now but a flicker, she had begun speaking to the leaders of the clergy, which many lauded as a promising sign of her recovery.
As word of her revival spread, a surge of hope swept across the lands, reigniting fervent prayers and rituals in her name. Some across Edeni, long deprived of divine guidance, found their spirits rekindled. Still, there were those who recognized the reality: until the Sun Goddess fully regained her strength, mortals would still need to rely on themselves.
In some communities, whispers of doubt circulated, suggesting she might even never return—though such talk was often swiftly silenced by any nearby sun elven authority.
六. Age of Sunhallow
Shortly after, sailors near the Northern Isles discovered a gaping chasm in the heart of the ocean, a yawning abyss teeming with unnatural phenomena, alien creatures, and strange, otherworldly machinery.
Those who dared to venture near and lived to tell the tale spoke of an eerie wonder: despite the pervasive darkness, the chasm's depths were filled with lush flora, thriving as if bathed in perpetual sunlight.
As the world tried to make sense of this anomaly, a creeping darkness began to spread across the land, bringing horrific attacks from eldritch entities. In their horror, the people of Edeni realized an ancient truth: as night follows day—if the Sun Goddess was beginning to awaken, then so would soon return her dark counterpart.
Sunhallow’s dark maw yawned wide. As the world grappled with eldritch incursions, a feverish obsession with the chasm's mysteries seized the people of Edeni, who were convinced that the two were intertwined. Adventurers plunged into its perilous depths and began to surface with strange, powerful magical relics, long lost to time.
This discovery ignited an explosive trade in these ancient artifacts, turning the treacherous descent into the chasm into a lucrative, deadly endeavor known as "diving.”
The lure of ancient artifacts and answers from a bygone era drove hundreds into the chasm’s perilous embrace. Despite the crucible of monstrosities and dangers that claimed the lives of many early explorers, they persisted, each driven by the hope of being the one to unearth Sunhallow's deepest secrets: whether for wealth, fame, or knowledge.
七. Where Fortunes Rest
At the edge of this abyss, the city of Fortune’s Rest sprang up as a nexus of ambition, growing into a teeming hub of lawlessness.
The city’s very foundation was built upon the artifact trade, where fortunes were made and lives were lost in the blink of an eye. Fortune’s Rest has become a haven for criminals and gangs, its narrow, winding streets a maze of danger and grime where the value of a life came to be measured solely by one’s contributions to the artifact hunt.
And hovering above it all is Solstice, a floating envoy sent by the sun elven kingdoms to impose law on the city. A pristine palace that almost comically contrasts the squalor and strife of the city, Solstice casting a shadow both literal and metaphorical over the cramped streets below.
Today, Sunhallow is a beacon for the daring, the desperate, and the dreamers. It calls ceaselessly to those willing to risk everything for a chance at glory, riches, or a piece of history—from the one place the sunlight cannot touch.