EMPYREAN

An ancient, thousand-year-old legend persists in the bowels of the citadel of Anatheras. A sect of ancient mystics once built a wondrous underground city. Some believe that the fabled White Citadel is one and the same with this city - the mystic city of Acheron. Built underground, Acheron was built in three levels: the first level was a cemetary, filled with tombs, graves and catacombs, but also a place of worship. Underneath it, was built the second level which was the living quarters of the mystics. In the final level, there was an underground lake with an island in the middle. Within the island was the fabled hidden chamber which was protected aggressively. Only the most enlightened members of the mystic society could enter this chamber, and what they did there, or what they had remains unknown. Some speculate that the chamber was a place of miracles - that since the mystics of Acheron apparently dealt with mysteries of death, spirituality and the afterlife, their artifacts ...

Spreading to the south of Haedras, the entire domain of Balkorra has had many names and used to belong to many nations. Right now, all of Balkorra is utterly subdued to the most fearsome warlord of the Hexad: Torrugon Ironbound, the embodiment of the Hexad's cruelty and tyrannous will. The Citadel of Balkorra is the largest and most heavily fortified among the six citadels. Within it dwell easily many more than fifty million people, a lot of them huddled in the deep bowels of the citadel which are said to be interconnected with a network of thousands of subterranean tunnels that lead elsewhere inside, or even beyond the domain. Filled with tales of great legends, the Hyperian Mountains tower to the north and east of the citadel, whilst the Kul'rathan wilds make home for at least five different abhuman tribes, and a big variety of warped Beasts. The Akheris springs are rumored to be the home of a huge Death Cult who have found the means to extract their victims from ...

The Aethons are the burning spirits of Yrion, born in the dawn of the Age of Rebirth. They are embodiments of ideals, avatars of nobility, or simply wild and fiery spirits, driven by pure bright passion. Their exact origins are unknown. According to some celestial scholars, the Aethons are reborn celestials. Others say they are ascended souls of mortals that have come from one or more Prime Worlds. Some postulate they , like the Ashar, are direct emanations of Akaon, who simply chose them to come to existence during this age for reasons of his own. Since their birth, the Aethons have risen fast to eminence amongst other celestials, because they are an especially powerful and evolved species. Few of the Ashar and the Vaenu remain, and fewer yet choose to actively involve themselves in the exploits of Yrion, it is said many have departed into the beyond for reasons that simply remain unknown. On top of that, the Aldoren are no more. The last council were a shadow of their ...

A chronological summary of the major cosmic ages of the Universe of the Unfolding Dream and the most important events of each age. Click the Image above, or the following link to visit the post in the Unfolding Dream blog. Cosmic Ages of the Unfolding Dream .

We have moved all the (mostly mythological) material of the Unfolding Dream, which regards the rich background of the Aethons to its own Blog . This was done so that this blog will focus purely on material specific to Empyrean, including the lore of the world of Arandor. While Empyrean is a tale of two worlds, in some regards, because the incarnated Aethons may carry with them memories of past events, which may prove to be meaningful in the grand scheme of things, it is still, ultimately, not a persistent thing.

In the midst of the six domains of the Hexad spans the realm of Haedras, with the colossal citadel of Anatheras rising as its crowning jewel. The city’s steel-blue walls of ancient, ferrous concrete, circle around gigantic structures that house more than twenty million souls, all of them floating upon the ancient lake that gave the city its name. Towering in the midst of the giant habitats, lies the titanic palace-temple of Nalatoth, god of the Hexad, ruler of the seas, master of strategy and god of Blades. The city also hosts a magnificent port, whence the gleaming vessels of the realm spread across the turbulent North Sea and beyond, to trade and barter goods with all the other realms, and lift levies and taxes from all the lands that remain in awe of Anatheras' mighty naval forces. It is also home to the titanic Stadium of Swords, where millions of souls gather to witness spectacles of slaughter and carnage – a necessary daily sacrifice that will appease the great G...