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A prologue to destruction.

A prologue to destruction

Ryner, a world filled with mystery, magic and intrigue. Where strange creatures wander the land and humanity has flourished among the vast super continents of Fel-Bara and Xerxes. From the icy heights of the Shattered Peninsula, to the green pastures of Fleece; Ryner is a massive planet, rich with lore and unique forms of life in all shapes and sizes…however Ryner has a dark history behind it’s beautiful veneer.

In the year 984 of the Celestial calendar, the world was gripped by war when a group of humans with special abilities called Meisters, fought against the demonic entities that had descended from an evil and ancient race known as “The Fallen”. These demons inhabited Ryner, hiding away in darkness and feeding off living creatures and draining their magical properties. Meanwhile, the Meisters merely fought to take back their home from the scourge of a race that had almost brought complete destruction to their planet just over two years ago.
During this war, many lost their lives, attempting to hunt down a powerful Mage who had been corrupted by the Fallen, and transformed into a twisted creature, known as Abaddon. It was throughout a confrontation with this demonic presence that a man by the name of Clough stood at the forefront of the Mesiter armies – unleashing a new and powerful weapon that had been harnessed from the blood of Lucifer, and given sentient life. This weapon was known as “The Wrath” and resided within Clough’s body, allowing him complete control over it’s seemingly unlimited powers. When summoned, the Wrath’s goo-like substance would exit through the pours in the skin and could change its molecular structure and composition at will. Weather it be a sword, spear, shield or armour, the Wrath would obey its masters command through thought alone – as if an extension of the hosts own body.

One fateful, overcast night, Clough and Abaddon faced off against one-another, tearing through rock, metal and levelling entire mountains as they fought with every fibre of their being. Abaddon was sustaining severe damage, as the Wrath’s endless sharp and deadly manifested weapons continued to tear through his flesh. With each new wound opening on his body, Abaddon’s demonic powers would enable a regenerative property, allowing him to heal at a constant rate.
No matter the speed of attack, or the amount of destructive weaponry being formed, the Wraths power and abilities still relied heavily on the host’s own strength and fortitude. Aside from possessing this deadly force, Clough was a ‘Melee’ Meister, a specific class of superhuman whose powers were entirely focused around using their own bodies as weapons through super strength, endurance, speed and agility. As the battle entered into its seventh hour, Clough was beginning to fatigue. Despite his bodies heightened and enhanced properties, he was still only a mortal human with limitations. Not only that, but he was fighting against a demon who was once one of the eight most powerful mages of the world – the mage that had originally created the Wrath itself. Exhausted and running out of stamina, Clough could hear the constant callings and whispers of voices inside his head. They enticed and promised him the ecstasy of an absolute power…the power needed to save the planet and to defeat this foul creature.
“I guess I have no other choice, it’s only a matter of time before I run out of strength and this thing kills me”, Clough thought to himself; giving in to the voices and offering his body to the dark sensation from within.
An unbridled sense of power immediately spread throughout his entire body and his consciousness faded into a state of rem sleep.

Clough’s muscles loosened, his arms falling lifelessly to his sides and his head lowering chin to chest. With the air pressure changing dramatically in the area, Abaddon halted his attack out of caution. He looked on in disbelief as Clough’s energy levels not only spiked beyond that of human limitations, but also changed entirely. It was almost as if he had been suddenly possessed by the Wrath itself.

Black tendrils began to violently erupt from Clough, embedding themselves into the ground, taking root in the soil and lifting his body into the sky. Abaddon let loose a barrage of immense energy blasts, however they were quickly defected by more tendrils. They then wrapped Clough up into a cocoon, as if to protect his body and continued its attack. The black Wrath substance continued to grow, forming more around the cocoon like chrysalis, transforming it into a massive tree-trunk. An array of branches spread outward, crawling across the sky, and roots began digging themselves farther into the ground, tearing through not only the immediate area, but affecting locations all around the world. Startled and overwhelmed by the terrifying power before him, Abaddon initiated a hasty retreat, as both humans and animals alike began to flee for their lives… the diameter of destruction growing larger by the second. Amongst the chaos that had ensued, a woman confidently stepped forward into the fray. Although still young in appearance, she possessed straight, white hair that fell past her waist and was almost lost among her fair complexion. As if to contrast her colourless look, her eyes were a bright green and powerful magic of pink and purple swirled around her figure.  She was an image perfectly balanced between beauty and strength, dodging the roots, tendrils and spikes that shot toward her as she continued her advance towards the tree’s base with acrobat like reflexes.
“I don’t know what’s happened to you Clough, but I’m sorry…I cannot allow this to continue.” She said as tears began falling from her emerald eyes.

She held her left arm upwards, casting a magical barrier around herself. Massive black spikes shot out from the Wrath, however they were destroyed on contact with the powerful field. The woman closed her eyes and held out a strange amulet with her right arm.
“May this calamity be sealed away, and it’s destruction cease ever-more” she exclaimed with the amulet glowing blindingly bright. The Wrath’s growth suddenly haltered and froze in place for a moment, before glowing a bright yellow and began evaporating into the sky in the form of tiny particles.

No living creature was able to cast its gaze directly at the tree, however for a brief moment, night had become of day. When the light faded, all that remained was a single red ruby-like stone, descending slowly from the sky. As massive volumes of water rushed in and pooled up from crater in the ground below, the stone fell beneath the murky surface and disappeared.

The women lowered her hands, dispersing and the protective barrier. Her eyes widened in amazement as she suddenly found herself standing on red water in the centre of a massive lake. She kneeled down, examining for herself what she struggled to comprehend, and found that no matter how hard she tried, she could not push her hands through the surface. The gem had fallen to the bottom of this body of water and was clearly protecting itself by some strange and unexpected force. Still unsure of the effect of this unnatural phenomenon, the women realized that the Celestial seal had indeed still worked. “It’s over”, she muttered, standing and looking up at the sky with a sad smile on her face. “You can finally rest now, don’t worry… we’ll take care of Yui”.

The calamity that befell the planet that day would later be referred to as the “Sable Fall”.
Little did humanity know that a threat far greater would soon show itself, and that both the Wrath and Abaddon would play yet another role in Ryners future one thousand years later.