The Fall of Hikut

It did not take long for Tep to realize that the sparks of those who died of old age were nearly useless — they faded quickly and could not sustain him. He needed fresh, young sparks, vibrant with life.

Tep’s hunger for immortality clouded his mind. By then, he had already become so powerful in the art of necromancy, that was referred to as the Lord of Death. Perhaps, in hindsight, he could be called the first Great Mage of Sarnout.

Using his arcane knowledge, Tep devised a "faster" way to fill his Vaults. And so, Hikut was struck by a terrible plague — one that threatened to annihilate the entire civilization.

Thousands of Zem people died in agony, their life sparks torn from them, rushing toward

Tep’s Pyramids.

The very goal of the Zem civilization became the cause of its downfall. Hikut's once-thriving cities choked on death as Tep’s Vaults filled with stolen sparks.

But the Zem Mechanics, investigating the origins of the plague, uncovered the truth. It led them directly to Tep — who made little effort to conceal his triumph.

In one final, desperate act, the last survivors of the Zem people, doomed and dying, stormed Tep’s Pyramid. They fought him with everything they had.

Tep, a being who could die and resurrect endlessly, ultimately emerged victorious. But at an unimaginable cost.

His own defenses against the plague — the disease he himself had unleashed — were shattered.

And Tep was infected.