Ular was born on the Day of Alignment, a rare celestial event that occurs once every few thousand years, when the dimensions are perfectly aligned. Such births are seen as omens of immense potential, and the sages of the cosmos understand their significance well. Throughout history, only a handful of beings have ever ruled Pantheon, the great lattice of realms and the heart of the cosmos. Ular was one of them. The Alignment marks a time when the birth of a future ruler is most likely, but not guaranteed. Ascendancy to the throne of Pantheon is never given; it must be claimed. While being born under an Alignment is rare, to rise without it is rarer still, a feat of near-mythical proportions.
Ular came of age and reigned long and just. He ruled over the Twelve Discs with balance and clarity and heard the council of his officers. Ular was bonded with Elis, but they produced no offspring. A shadow was cast over them, and Ular tended more to his rulings, while Elis grew cold and decided to do her part of ruling too, often clashing with Ular in certain minor matters.
The realms demanded constant work and attention, and Ular toiled endlessly, overseeing, consulting, and addressing countless issues: breaches in the Amber Wall, alien invaders, dimensional disruptions, rebellious Overlords, and horrors from the unknown, or “The Great Void,” the formless space beyond the lattice of known realms. Worlds that drift from Pantheon either remain in Radrum, the known premises, or slip into the Great Void. Those still in Radrum are technically within Pantheon’s reach, but the Kiseraak nature prevents their reconnection. Even the Emperor cannot restore that bond once broken. Ular spent most of his days in the Hive but often traveled across realms to meet with Overlords and settle disputes. Of all the realms he visited, none astonished him more than Jarva, a world that shone like a thousand jewels.
Jarva was a realm like no other. It’s Overlord, Morph, had a taste for finer things. He was a handsome young man, a lean soldier who rose to power and was promoted to Overlord by Ular. He was talented in swordcraft, a great scout, and most of all, a master shapeshifter. Morph was kind and generous, and kept his realm above the expectations of any other ruler. He trained his military well, adorned them with full plate armor made with silver and set with crystals. He ordered architects to focus on beauty and elegance and made Jarva a place of uniquely beautiful and elegant slim towers and buildings of radical shapes that complimented each other well, and the land was spectacular. When Ular confronted Morph and witnessed the miracle of Jarva, he congratulated Morph and set him apart from the other Overlords. Jarva’s beauty was of importance. The Emperor is not merely a ruler, he is the harmonizer of realms, the keystone of divine order. Beauty and grace are seen as signs of divine favor. Jarva was a symbol, not for other empires, but for the unity of Pantheon. And thus, from that day onwards, Morph was never the same again, he became arrogant, his mind fixed on remaining the King of Jarva, the jewel of Pantheon.
Morph was now included in all the major meetings, along with Justar, Arkallis, Solisis and Nedel, Ular’s Astral Knights. The Knights welcomed Morph into their company, and tolerated his boasts, but Morph wanted to prove himself further to them. Any challenge that rose, any matter that needed attention, Morph volunteered himself to resolve it, and Ular, grew tired of his flattery. But Jarva was the most powerful realm of all, and Morph was its leader, and Pantheon needed a realm to reflect such power and grace, and so Ular, decided to allow Morph his time in the sun. It was then, that the story began to take a dark twist.
Ethos was a soldier of Lumenumbra, but his birth had been prophesied by the sages. His greatness was foretold, but his duality was a cause for concern. As a Craithgora, he was deemed too unstable to rule after Ular; his nature was too difficult to predict. However, Ethos was raised with great ambition by both his parents and his mentor, Tularhas, in the realm of Lumenumbra. When he became Overlord, he swore allegiance to Ular, and his vow was true. However, there were always flickers of doubt in his mind—shadows that whispered to him of kingship and power.
In time, Ethos grew to feel isolated, undermined, and less appreciated than Morph or other rulers of similar power. His dark side persisted, and over the years, there was talk that Ethos had started to lose his sanity. He spoke of the misuse of power, of Ular’s weakness, and his inability to produce an heir. More and more, Ethos accessed his dark, infernal side.
Where most saw madness and malice, others saw truth and vision, and many Luvar saw a leader in Ethos. They flocked in secret to his side and began weaving conspiracies. Arrests were made by the Astral Guard, and there were numerous occasions when the four knights closest to Ular had to resort to violence to maintain order within the Pantheon. It was then that Ular decided to punish Ethos.
Ethos was called to the Hive to answer for his behavior and stand trial. He would be stripped of his ranks, and Lumenumbra had already been promised to another in his stead. However, Ethos never answered the call. Instead, he initiated a series of attacks that he had orchestrated earlier with the help of Tularhas and his followers. A great, violent rebellion erupted, and the conflict escalated beyond mere arrests. A war broke out.
When Ular first heard of this, he was not dismayed. He addressed his generals and sought their counsel. They all urged him to attack with force and destroy Ethos and Lumenumbra, but Ular resisted. He did not wish to appear a tyrant to the people, a destroyer of worlds. It was then that Morph volunteered to take down Ethos on his own. He offered Jarva’s army, but Ular declined. Such a reckless move would only bring destruction. Jarva was too valuable to risk. In Ular’s mind, all outcomes led to loss. Pantheon was divided by more than just Amber Walls for the first time.
Morph, eager to bask in the glory of suppressing the rebellion single-handedly, pressed Ular further. Finally, Ular relented, despite the warnings of his councilors.
Morph met Ethos on the battlefield, and their massive armies clashed. It was the first and only time Morph witnessed Ethos’s greatness and superiority in power. He was a force never before seen. Morph lost the battle and fled to Jarva, withdrawing the rest of his army to protect them. He even stopped responding to Ular’s summons to the Hive. Jarva was removed from the battle.
One by one, the realms of Pantheon submitted to Ethos. A final attack was launched on the Hive, where Ular was ultimately defeated.
Against all odds, Ethos became the new Emperor. The Luvar who had fought against him were exiled from Pantheon, and others were killed. The new Overlords swore fealty to him. Ular’s Astral Guard was spared due to their valor in battle. Ethos spoke highly of them to the people, saying that no others had fought like the four Knight Gods. Now, they would serve Ethos.
Nedel refused to yield to another ruler. He conspired with the three knights to overthrow Ethos, but they refused. His strategy included the sacking of Jarva. His plan was to drain the life force of the people of Jarva, the very lifeblood of the planet, and use it to fuel his own strength. When the knights refused him, he acted alone.
Nedel destroyed Jarva. He drained the life from its people and brought the world to ruin, scattering it into Radrum. With his newfound power, he attacked Ethos, but in vain. Ethos was too powerful, and his dark side prevailed again.
Ethos decided to banish all four knights to Atram, deeming the other three accomplices of Nedel. They were to wander the endless wastes of the prison realm for eons, until their bodies and souls withered. Most of the old Luvar fled after this, seeking freedom elsewhere. Devoid of the power of their worlds, they sought refuge in other realms, like Vitallia. But instead of the power of the Alas, they were fueled by the faith of mortals, faith that had been cultivated over the years. When the power they raised became significant, they built new homes: small pocket planes of existence in the expanses of the universe, away from Pantheon. There, they decided to exist free from the reign of Ethos. Or so they thought.
While the Four Knight Gods wandered the barren lands of Atram, Morph wandered the Great Void. His power diminished, and he was eventually caught by Ethos’s scouts and forced back to the Hive. There, Ethos decided to make Morph his jester. He humiliated the old Overlord and forced him to perform daily. Morph had never felt such pain in his life. When he found a chance, he tried to kill himself, only to discover a new realm of suffering. Ethos’s advisor, Tularhas, had magically bound Morph to eternal life. It was he who could end his existence at will. Morph was once again defeated, even in death.
However, in Morph’s mind, revenge was reserved for Nedel more than Ethos. It was his hand that ruined Jarva; he was the collector of the souls of its people.
Over the years, Ethos’s rise to power and the constant humiliation of Morph led him down paths Morph had already experienced, arrogance. Ethos underestimated the jester and began ignoring him, treating his existence as that of a harmless critter. Morph realized this and played along. For too long, he lingered in the shadows and played his part. He became an excellent jester, and even in times when Ethos was troubled by the challenges of the realm, Morph was there to make him laugh. Slowly, he gained Ethos’s trust. Not long after, he was offered a chance to become a scout again. Without hesitation, Morph accepted. But instead of following orders, he found the courage to flee Pantheon through an Astral Gate. However, since he had no power over the gates, he was lost in Radrum, where he lingered for eons, trying to find his way to a new world.
Meanwhile, the Four Knights suffered in Atram. They continued to fight the soulless creatures of the desert, and their bodies withered and died. Their physical forms were diminished, with only their energy remaining intact, but over time, that too began to be consumed. They needed to escape Atram or else they would perish. But such a place was never meant for escape.
When the Great War broke out in Vitallia, the people witnessed their creator, the Sentinel, clash with the stray Gods who had fled Pantheon. The Luvar had arrived in the new world, seeking the power of the Meteor. They wanted to drain the world, just as Nedel had drained Jarva, in order to gain power to resist Ethos should his reign extend to Vitallia. But the Sentinel resisted, and as it fought back, the realm suffered.
It was then that a group of Humans decided to call forth a new force. They opened a gate to the dimensions and requested help. It was their interaction that resulted in opening a gate to Atram and pulling the Knight Gods from within. The Knight Gods saw the gate and entered. When the wizards stood before them, Nedel made sure their purposes would never align. He went for the meteoric energy himself. However, the other Gods and the remaining Knight Gods would not allow him to destroy yet another world. The Luvar and the Sentinel worked together against Nedel, and by weaving a prison made of Amber, they managed to bind Nedel to a continent.