The Ravaging of Worlds

{{Fiction
 * hasSetting=Ravaged Worlds
 * storyBody=It was on this very day, two hundred years ago, that the invasion began. My grandfather told my father of this time and now I pass the history onto you. Let me tell you of our heritage, that of humankind. Of a time before the Offworlders and before the dreaded Daemon hordes, when man walked the earth alone and was not afraid of the darkness. It was a time of peace, without fear of slavery, poverty, hunger or disease.

Our technology turned dreams into reality. We had machines that could fly and vehicles without horses able to journey across whole countries in hours. We were able to leave our world with powerful rocket ships that could reach the stars. There was very little that could not be achieved. However, our continuous pursuit of the impossible almost brought about this world’s end.

Some say that we created a portal to travel to the stars, others claim it to have been a gateway to another world much like or own, but I tell you that what man created was a doorway to Hell. Small and insignificant, it grew, far beyond the imagination of its creators. The whole world rejoiced in what it would hold for our future, but it was our future that was lost.

Carried on the winds, the Great Plague swept across the world. It killed and mutated without pattern, leaving none unharmed. From the largest city to the most remote village, people suffered and died. It twisted the animals, as pets and livestock turned against their masters in fits of madness and rage. We know now that all attempts at a cure were fruitless and every day we are reminded of that by our very nature. Yet, the portal still grew, out of control, absorbing everything in its path. We do not know what happened to the portal, but we know that from its foul belly they came.

Many of you have been told stories of the monsters in our world, of the great beasts and vast hordes that roam the land, conquering, enslaving and murdering all in their path. Do not make light of these things, for they are true and horrifying to behold.

When the daemons first came to our world, we sued for peace, but it is a word unknown to them. Their master strived to have all, and this world, like many others would fall. Our magnificent armies, with their steel machines and powerful weapons proved useless, as the daemons swept across the land. We fought the daemon spawn with all the strength we had. In the great oceans, mighty ships battled the black serpents sent against us and in the skies above, flying machines struggled with the greatest of the winged daemons, but eventually we fell, until we had no choice.

The land beneath you is green, but it was not always, for the world was once turned to ash. Some of you have seen the great cities in which our ancestors lived. Their magnificent homes are now destroyed and barren, empty to all but the most depraved of creatures. The streets are covered in decay and filth but they were not always. We created great monuments of beauty and towers of glistening glass that could touch the sky. We had libraries and schools, the like of which we may never see again. We listened to the music and poetry of cultures long gone and admired their art and skill, but now it is almost all lost. The daemons destroyed much in their wake, turning fields to black by flame and death, but it was our own kind that ruined the land. Our great weapons had left charred ruins and destroyed the cities.

The war raged on for countless years, before the arrival of the Offworlders, some of whom are here with us today. Our world was not the first to fall to the lord of darkness for he had many slaves and minions. We know that control of his empire was not entire and many turned against him. I have seen many wondrous creatures in my travels, like our friends and allies, the Dankari, Reptilians and Night Stalkers and many more.

It was with such aid that our ancestors were able to turn the tide of darkness from our world. Many of you have read the stories of great heroes of that time, when the people of Earth fought back with rejuvenated strength. They pushed back at their new masters and fought for their very existence. My grandfather spoke of the greatest of the battles fought on our land. The last of our great armies, with their machines and weapons, fought side by side with their new allies. For more than a hundred days they fought against the daemon horde that came to conquer all. When the machines were gone they fought with sword and axe. When those weapons were broken or blunt they fought with stone, and when there was no more stone they fought with fist. Thousands died and still they fought, pushing ever onward. Eventually, after so many lives had been lost, they finally reclaimed our world, defeating the daemon kind and winning their freedom.

Today, our world is divided. The daemons, though now fewer in number, are still present and have many loyal followers even among our own kind. I have seen heroes standing alone against evil, kingdoms grow and crumble seemingly in the blink of an eye, innocents enslaved to serve the darkness, and people rejoicing in new freedom from tyranny. Our way of life is very different to that of our ancestors, but we have survived and we will always be here.

I know some of you venture out into the known world and beyond, some seeking fortune, some fame and others to destroy evil wherever it is found. My advice to all of you is to take heed of my story, learn from our history, never forgetting those that have laid their lives down in the name of peace and never, ever, be afraid of the dark.

The World as it was Known is Long Gone
The daemons left little in their wake and the humans with their weapons almost destroyed all that remained. Despite this, many cities abandoned or destroyed during the Daemornia have since been reclaimed, though not necessarily by the humans and their allies.

The greatest loss of the war against the daemons was in the field of science and medicine. Often the knowledge remains, but the will and means are gone. Hospitals are typically basic and those in smaller towns are usually rife in disease. Magic and Psionics have taken some roles from conventional medicine, with power and skill beyond the reach of doctors.

Many cities have little, if any electricity and those that do face regular blackouts and power spikes. Custom-built generators provide heating and light for chosen areas, but usually only for those that can pay. Fossil fuels are non- existent and most do with an open wood burning fire and wax candles. Even within such cities there are areas beyond repair and completely inhospitable to all but the most determined and hardy. Wandering bands of Night Stalkers will take to such conditions where their skill of survival is unmatched by many races, as too do the daemons of Erebos, where they can act out their tasks without interference.

While there many places under reconstruction there are a few places that remain untouched by the Daemornia. Tech towns are the last surviving communities from before the daemon incursion and are in a preserved state, with schools, libraries, religious houses and recreational buildings. With an almost entire human population they continue to live by laws passed down from their ancestors. Many are known to have connections to the Imperium and they have their own militia who will defend their home with all the tools at their disposal. Unfortunately, the vast majority of humans do not have the luxury of this lifestyle and have to live in far worse conditions Shantytowns are the den of scum, criminals and the lowlifes that prey on the weak. They typically have a small population of between ten and twenty thousand, of which almost all have something to sell. They tend to form in the burnt out shells of the old cities and towns that fell during the incursion. Living conditions are generally poor with many self-claimed territories and internal borders. Despite their obvious dangers, they are an invaluable source of information and hired hands. Almost anything can be bought here, from illegal drugs, exotic weapons, off-world artefacts and even slaves. They are an unpleasant place to be in and are becoming far too common in this world, but there are places even worse than the Shantytowns - these are simply known as the Fallen

The Daemornia Gates
Passage between conquered worlds is through the Daemornia Gates. These equilateral triangle constructions can measure up to 20 meters in height alone and are bound with untold power as they quietly 'hum' with a pulsating beat. When activated using the part daemonic and part runic inscriptions, its centre will ignite into flame that can be passed through by those that dare risk its ferocity.

Many gates lead to the Underworld, as does the Daemornia Gate on Earth, and some even open onto the surface of the planet. However, Daemornia Gates are unstable and those that require a fixed location must be paired to another on the target world. Those that are not paired to another gate tend to be fragile and prone to exploding, creating a miniature black hole for a single second that destroys everything in a six kilometre radius. Random locations can be opened through a gate, but the chances are the portal will open in space. The lord of darkness has sacrificed many of his daemons in this way to find new conquests. Once a new location is discovered his daemons act quickly to build another gate. Gates without such a link will only remain open for a few hours with little chance of reopening the original gate to the exact same location.

It is through these gates that Erebos maintains control on his worlds, for the daemonic armies can be sent across whole galaxies in just a few seconds. Destroying a paired gate on either side will tear the fabric of space between, preventing any gate from ever re-establishing contact.

The Rebellion
The daemons had conquered many worlds, but their continuous warring and the rapid expansion of Erebos' empire was leading to unrest on his home world. Living conditions on many worlds had deteriorated to such a level that famine and disease were commonplace and with every new race the available food supplies dwindled.

The Night Stalkers suffered the most during this time. They are a hardy race and have exceptional survival skills, but were little more than a slave workforce for the daemons. As the empire expanded their world was stripped of its resources and life expectancy dropped with every generation. Over time the Night Stalkers became less important to the needs of the daemons and with each passing month they received fewer supplies and rations. Then in the bleakest winter the Night Stalkers simply refused to work. Hundreds were executed, then thousands, until one day the clans of Slarv united. War was inevitable.

A few years before the Night Stalkers uprising a religious cult began to spread through the Saurian people. This was a religion thought defeated by the Lord of Darkness and punishable by death. The Saurians had prayed to their true god in secret for many years, but now the first open display of Khan followers began to appear in the Underworld. Despite regular public hangings his daemon enforcers struggled to maintain the open show of disloyalty. The followers of Khan had spread throughout every city and soon after the Saurian nation had turned against the daemons.

Neither the revolt of the Saurians or Night Stalkers were of great concern for the Lord of Darkness. He had eradicated entire races for their attempted revolt, but even he could not foresee the betrayal of his own creations. The Dankari, the only known daemons capable of producing offspring, had grown tired of the poor conditions and cruel tyranny. Few races understand why the Dankari choose this path against their master, some believe they are the only daemons to have compassion and morality, while others believe they sided with another god - only the Dankari know the true reason and none will share this secret. Talks of rebellion had taken place several years before the Night Stalker uprising, but the lack of suitable opportunity or allies has always guaranteed their failure. This was the time they had patiently waited for and in the first few weeks of a new invasion against a species known as Humans, the Rebellion War began

Few worlds were left unscathed by the rebellion as many races joined the Dankari, Saurians and Night Stalkers. The daemon empire was divided and many families were torn apart in a bloody civil war. The combined uprising and the betrayal of his own daemons had caught the Lord of Darkness and his empire unprepared and within a few months the war had engulfed dozens of worlds and hundreds of races. This was a time of the greatest heroes against the daemons; D'Kara - the leader of the Traitor Daemons, Skapti of the Saurians - the Disciple of Khan, Graan - the Banshee Lord of Felnin, to name a few.

Unfortunately, despite the gallant efforts of the rebellion they suffered terrible defeats. The daemons were far greater in number and had many loyalists, yet the war dragged on for fourteen years. Races that had once considered such allies an enemy fought side-by-side on the open fields and in the skirmishes that took place in every city, every street, every alley and in every building.

Towards the end of the war the death toll was catastrophic, with worlds in flames and whole civilizations in ruins. The Saurians had captured a Daemornia gate to evacuate refugees and entire races to new homes outside the empire and was also used to free several worlds from the daemons, including Earth, but in the end the daemons of Erebos prevailed and the rebellion was quashed. }}