Chapter Three Part 1

From Atlantic Roleplay Wiki

Title: Chapter Three, Part 1

Author: Sirideain

Third Chapter: Rise of the Britannian Kingdom

As has been said, each facet's history diverged at the time when Exodus emerged. What of our facets, Trammel and Felucca? Exodus was seemingly unknown to Britannians until it was encountered in Ilshenar.

This is not because Exodus did not exist, but because it had been forgotten. The time when Exodus entered our shards was during the Esidin Empire. Their magic was a match for Exodus, and though their battle was great, its record passed away with the rest of the Esidins' memory, save among the adherents of the Liturgy of Truth. That which we do know of the Esidin remained in the tomes possessed by those later adherents who built the Lycaeum and Empath Abbey, and Exodus was still known to their monks to the present day. Sadly, their new vow of silence prevents them to speak of it any longer. (Cont.)

History proceeded largely unaffected by Exodus and recapitulated the events leading to Mondain's defeat. As with all facets, at that moment great changes were wrought on the surface of Sosaria. The Land of Danger and Despair, where Mondain had his stronghold disappeared utterly, and the Continent of the Dark Unknown sank beneath the waves until all that remained was the small archipelago called Elikki. Akalabeth and the Land of the Feudal Lords collided and formed the present continent of Britannia, and the Isle of Fire rose from the deep.

At the end, the map stood much as we see it now, save that the islands of Elikki are no more.

The cities that survived the shattering were Britain, Yew, Moon, Montor, and Paws. Britain was heavily damaged in the cataclysm, and many years were spent reconstructing.

Yew was relatively unscathed, but its residents remained reclusive. Paws meanwhile found swamplands steadily encroaching on it. Of the cities that survived, Moon encountered the most extreme changes in geography, becoming an island far from the Britannian continent where it had been. Survivors of the destroyed city of Fawn eked a meager existence as shepherds on the island called Magincia, while remnants of the feudal kingdom of Randorin banded together into the makeshift city of Vesper. The island of Ocllo moved far from its former position in the Land of the Feudal Lords, but the island itself remained mostly unchanged.

Its inhabitants continued farming the island in self-imposed isolation. They forgot their history as descendants of the kingdom of Barataria and came to believe that their ancestors had been placed on the island by a great hand that rose from the lake in its center.

Montor, though it survived, found itself on a small and isolated island with no significant resources. Its people abandoned the island for the mainland, where they built the village of Linelle on the southern coast.

When they landed, they saw a sight to chill the blood: in the distance, a flight of dragons. The dragons flew south from the dungeon Despise sowing destruction on their path to their new home. A third of the Montorians were afraid and sailed again until they came to a chain of islands where they settled. They called it West Montor but soon fragmented into clans that fought over the limited resources of the island. Because of the Montorians’ fear, the dragons’ new home was called Destard. Some survivors of Montor refused to travel any further and stayed in Linelle, but most Montorians journeyed farther north and joined survivors of the destroyed city of Grey in building a new city south of Paws.

The new city in the South quickly found itself set upon by orcs teeming from the surrounding forests. Likewise, Britain and Paws came under increasing attack, but the city in the South at that time faced the greatest danger. The captain of that city's militia was called Trin, and he set about the ensuring the defense of the city with moats and wooden palisades. With the city capable of defense, he began a decisive offense, personally slaying the orcish leader and staving off further attacks for a generation. In recognition of his deeds, the city was finally given a proper name: Trinsic.

In Britain, soldiers in the command of Lord British’s brother, Lord Robere, soundly defeated the attacking orcs. In recognition, Lord Robere was granted lands and a fortress to the north of Britain. With this plot of land to rule, a desire awakened in Lord Robere to rule yet more land.

So resolved, Lord Robere began civil war with the aim of controlling Britain itself. On the plain outside Lord Robere's stronghold, this war was decided in a bloody battle, and Lord Robere was defeated. That place was afterwards called the Crimson Plain, and it became a desert, as nothing would grow after so much innocent blood had been spilled. In the aftermath of these events, new thoughts came to Lord British's mind. He conceived of a set of ideals that could unite people and prevent such wasteful strife in the future. These were the Virtues. Lord British then dispatched Dupre as an emissary to Trinsic and Shamino as an emissary to Yew to promote virtue and goodwill between the cities.

The defense of Britain's northern approach was afterward given to a stalwart warrior, Uulther Malphane.

Malphane built a fortification in the Northeast, from which his forces subdued the tribes of trolls in the woods and mountains. They drove the trolls to the far north and west, into the depths of an ancient prison, called Wrong because of the tortures inflicted on criminals before the Brotherhood of the Rose brought compassion to justice. In later times of peace, Malphane’s fort became a village, simply called Cove.

Because of the safety Malphane's soldiers brought to the region, the monk Brialla was able to make her famous journey to chart the future site of Minoc, and beyond.

Meanwhile in Vesper, the people took advantage of the plentiful timber and began the construction of ships.

The first Vesperian sailors were hunters of walruses and whales, the latter of which they even hunted to extinction. The importance of walruses to early Vesper for food, fuel, and hides is still celebrated in the annual Walrus Festival. They traded natural resources to Moon for magical devices and with the shepherds of Magincia for their wool fabrics.

Before long, piracy was born from Vesper's trade, and the pirates made their home at Buccanneer's Den. The Magincians, on the other hand, increasingly diverted their efforts from sheep herding towards mining new caverns of precious stones and jewels, with much greater worth than mere wool. Soon, their abundant wealth gave the Magincians significant power over Vesperian trading interests and ready access to the latest magical innovations from Moon. Vesper also encountered Ocllo, but the latter discouraged further contact and declined to trade.

(Cont. in Part 2)