There are always beginnings to stories. Simul's starts over ten thousand years ago. It has been said by the majority to recent days, that the land is much older than that. No one knows the whole truth, but speculation leads most to believe the Gods created life. Of course. Who else would have, right? From the greens to the blues to the yellows and purples and reds, the soil of Simul was filled with many beautiful things. Flora, fauna, humanoids... The first 'intelligent' species to walk upon the lands were humans. Plain, magicless, and primitive. Soon after landing on the massive rock, it was given the name of Simul, a name that meant "coexist" to the natives. With mass amounts of land to discover, families separated, homes were built, and communities started to form.
The first of many great cities was Timberholde. Toward the center of the continent, the first family known as the Trimbles, started the creation of the large community. A slow beginning with hardships and good times alike, the raising of Timberholde proved to be fruitful. After nearly one hundred years, the city had grown from a population of twenty one to over five thousand. With word spreading of the beautiful architecture and homes to spare, all walks of life made the decision to seek the scene; A fully functional city that had already made its mark as the trade center of the kingdom.
Meanwhile, north of the massive city, the newly forming city of Eleutheria had just gotten its foothold. Construction was slow and daunting as the city planned on being in the center of an island. Without much in terms of hands, productivity nearly came to a stop in the early years. Once Timberholde had come to fruition, news traveled much easier about the grand city being built.
All over the continent, cities began to rise, most of which can still be seen in current day. The first humans soon after made their stands in Ferax Villum, Sudbury and Skyhaven. The others soon followed.....but there was much more. Buildings, homes and all colors of establishments began to form, almost magically, overnight. Rumors spread, fingers pointed, witchcraft! Nearly two hundred years into the beginnings of Simul, magic introduced itself into the fold. However, it was not welcomed as many of our readers would like to believe. It was new, frightening, and unknown. It would take decades for people to become comfortable and accept this new addition to life.
What started as fear did slowly melt into curiosity and teaching one another how to use such things. Magic schools formed in the biggest of cities at the time. It wasn't enough. People wanted to learn more. With limited knowledge and the wonder on how it came to be in the first place, people began to explore even more of the land. Reaching places in the mountains and desert where only the brave had the courage to reach, some returned with stories of peril or riches while others did not return. Most thought the worst of the lost souls. Yet, more cities began to form, and word traveled of these new and exciting places, families were reunited generations later. Soon, stories circulated, filling in the gaps of so many questions.
One in particular family, dubbed The Legends, was not only new, but looked different than most of the humans roaming around the newly forming Simul. No one could figured out where they were from, only that they had appeared one day without so much as a hello. With stark white hair and perfect peach skin, piercing baby blues and tall forms, most thought them to be aliens. 'People from the stars.' Their magic was strong and nearly invisible. Non-violent in demeanor, they soon constructed their own city near the now named Aldermen Mountains. With constructs similar to the elves, some began to rumor that the people living there were half breeds of elves and humans. That story was soon dashed when they held no other symbolism to the beauty that was the elvish. Soon enough, the name Concordia became a household name. If one had an ailment, Concordia was the place to go for all kinds of healing. They also had a massive school to teach certain types of elemental magics. Their teachings are still prevalent in the schools today.
Even more notable cities rose, one of which being Wish Well. In good terms and within a days travel of Concordia, the two cities became sisters. Trading goods and services, the two giants still kept a professional distance due to the heavy rumors of the perfect Concordians. Never the less, the people of Concordia were happy to have an ally in the trying times. Over the years, even though the stories and curiosity faded, there were still people who refused to go anywhere near the northern lands. This did not stop the duo cities from thriving and becoming forces of trade and travel.
Nearly six hundred years into Simul's history, most cities that still stand had come to be. Though the country was still growing, Simul was nearly complete in the eyes of those who were born and raised on the land. At least, that is what the people thought. Eleutheria had finally placed the last brick upon its surface, and it was finally time for the people of the kingdom to come together for the election of the leader of the land. Unfortunately, this was far easier said than done. With the vast land mass and miles between people, coming to a decision did not happen for quite some time.
It was a hellish first ten years. With so many different humanoids now roaming the lands, none of them had the same views or thoughts. Some wanted a base religion to follow and rule while others wanted things to just continue as they were. The progress that had been made in encompassing all walks of life slowly started to decay. The populous could not come to any sort of agreement. That is, until one brave soul came forward with a plan.
His name was Herald Fortescue. Coming from a family who originally began construction on Eleutheria itself, he had a good foot in the door for the attention he was seeking. His words held hope and organization of the people who all resided inside of Simul. His vision? Simple. Peace and thriving among everyone. Now, most thought these words were too hard to believe. Living in peace? Always? No difference between classes? Crime that was punished reasonably? Land that could be claimed without riches? Education that could be acquired regardless of standing? Oh, how the people wanted what he promised. And thus, he was elected as the King, while his coming generations would rule the land for all of their time.
As the years went on, questions began to arise once more. There was one particular question that stuck in the minds of the many: Why was the population growing so exponentially? Most of the original stories of other masses on the planet had been shared, yet, there were so many different types of souls traversing the land of Simul in particular. Many more than what could have traveled there easily. Why? How? Where did they come from? It would take a couple generations of much studying and questioning before the truth was finally revealed from none other than the mouths of the newcomers.
-------------------------------------------------
Simul; a land of magics and monsters, much different than other lands that the world held. Magic was fluent in many places, yes, but not quite like it had been in Simul. Such powerful beings had been introduced, using their different magics to do many different things that the original citizens had never seen. As time went on, more and more, the magical beings held their supernatural abilities from the general populous while the people who had been there all along pretended they had never seen it. Even though the magic wielders did what they could do hide their true nature....it was a bit too late. As much as the people tried and tried, the tension nearly came to a head.
Luckily for most, this caused them to question rather than quarrel. After many many years and generations had passed, the answers most sought for the conglomeration of people in one land mass were found. Piece by piece, it all fit together. Simul was not only a beautiful, fertile and prosperous land, but it was a 'hub'. What made it such a noun? That was a question that, to this day, has still yet to be answered. Eventually, people settled into the notion that something caused 'lost souls' to end up being a part of the kingdom, for better or worse. So, people did as they always had done, and learned to coexist to the best of their abilities. This is not to say that there was not an underbelly. Because...let's face it; People are only 'human'.
A slow progression of acceptance and coexisting lead to thousands of years of building, new villages and cities and trails carved. With so many new people throughout Simul, many more homes needed to be built, and thus, the current King and his family agreed to let the people have free reign over the land. With a lack of government owned land, Simulians found it much easier to build and pursue individual happiness. This lead to peace among the majority...mostly.
There were many differences between people. From the way they looked, to the magics, or lack thereof that they performed, and even from the homes they built. These things did not seem to affect how people treated one another. As segregation wore thin, it left a hole that was slowly filled with love and acceptance. Citizens did what they thought was best for themselves and their families, and this alone helped the premise of coexisiting blossom. As word began spread to the other lands in the world, Simul started to see an even larger influx of new settlers.
Unfortunately, peace often attracts the less savory. With how many people around the world and beyond had heard of Simul and its amazing soil, there should have been no surprise at yet a different type of influx. It was only a matter of time that the ugliness of existence would rear, and rear it did. In the year 3022, the first large battle began. Fighting tooth and nail to keep their lands safe, Simulians won. However, it was not the last battle they would wage. For hundreds of years during the kingdom's formidable time, wave after wave of those who wanted to take the land for itself battered the shores. Little did the outsiders know, they were helping to shape Simul's peoples' view even more on their morals. As strangers took arms together, it strengthened the people as a whole. Those who wished wrong never had a chance...
Simul eventually began new stories that would travel to the other lands. A reputation. A legend. Those who entered Simul either found a home, or perished trying to take advantage of it. As the times calmed, the people came together once more to rebuild and continue to strive for everything good.
So many hundreds of years of peace just had to be interrupted, didn't it? No kingdom is perfect, especially ones with such slow development akin to Simul. With the "forced" acceptance of coexisting among the people, Simul would soon face yet another disagreement. Luckily for the citizens, it wouldn't be nearly as traumatic as it had been in the not so far past.
What started as a low rumble that no one could pinpoint quickly became an earth shattering quake. Well...kind of. No one had experienced the land shaking in Simul since the first humans had landed, giving them false security in thinking the land was free of extreme weather or the like. Unfortunately for them, the mountains to the north had yet to be explored, let alone named. It was soon discovered that the waves of quake were coming from them. What followed in the days after was nothing less than surprising.
A small explosion of quakes lead to what some referred to as the "Sea of Red". Wave after wave of ginger haired dwarves came barreling down the mountains, weapons in hand, shouting at the tops of their lungs. Now, it was said that there was a single chuckle that rang through, but to this day, no one would admit that the sight of thousands of small bearded men made them break face. Never the less, this fueled the small statured men to come ven further down the mountains, hurling weapons and demanding the 'new comers' to leave the land they had made their home.
Just as things were starting to look like an all out war, the humanoids did what they had been trying to not only preach, but to practice; offer peace. This was an odd gesture for the dwarves, as they had always been in Simul, 'from the beginning of time', as some would claim. Living amongst strangers? Letting the unknown traverse their lands? All of the mysterious future seemed rather...scary. This did not stop the dwarves from giving in and contemplating such a peaceful end to their fear.
It took less than a year for the red headed, bulky race to give their decision; The humans could stay. This did not come without stipulations of course. The dwarves asked for their home to be left alone. They were not prepared to have their city beneath the Aldermans infiltrated by strangers and drifters. They also demanded that the mountains stay undisturbed by new construction. This was good enough for the humans, giving the dwarves their peace and quiet.
And thus, Dun'Lorn became a staple name in the Simulian's homes. Over the centuries, the dwarven city has been known to open its doors more often, even giving a holiday once per year to welcome all. Most Dun'Lorn dwarves tend to stay within its walls for their entire lives, but don't be surprised to meet a rogue wandering the lands of Simul.
For thousands of years, many more cities were forged, families were formed, the land was tilled, times were good. For the first time since Simul was molded into a kingdom, there was undisturbed peace across the land.
Unbeknownst to the masses of Simul, there had been growing an underground of pure evil intent. This demonic presence did not show itself for many many generations. Not until the mid 8000's.
He began as a myth, a bedtime story told to disobedient children, a warning to the night. A mad man hellbent on destroying the kingdom. From one rumor to another, none of the stories really matched up. What was one to expect when this 'mad man' had never been seen? What could they expect when all there were were the stories whispered from one mouth into the waiting ear of another? The only thing these tales had in common; The name Timothy Slade. A name that most slowly began to avoid uttering.
When the royal family themselves began to be secretive about such a person, and hushed tones echoed through the castle halls, as well as avoidance of saying his name in public...that was when the people knew something was wrong. The stories continued to unfold. Rumors of who this man was, what he looked like, and perhaps where he could be hiding. What he was doing was never a question, especially when some of the "constructs" began to go rogue, exposing themselves on the world at large.
Some of them would come in the night, stealing the breath of their victims before disappearing with them in tow. Some, on the other hand, would seek out their own families, coming for respite and to be saved. To this day, some of these 'abominations' are still hidden from the sun. As their families have kept them in cages, hoping for a cure one day. This phenomena is quite rare, and even more seldom spoken of.
The people continued to try and live their lives to the fullest. Putting the rumors and stories on the back burner, secretly wishing and praying that the problem would leave on its own. Much to their delight, it seemed to have worked. Eventually, the name Timothy was seldom heard, giving the people back the calm their minds so desperately worked hard for.
Chapter 6 - The War of The Brothers and Saving Simul 9401-10,001
In all families, drama exists. The Royal Family was no exception to this common occurence. There had been some....'stepping out' on the King's part. Luckily for him, it was before he could wed the next Queen, leaving only speculation. The King had kept the details to himself, if only long enough for him to produce a proper heir to the throne.
The 'proper' child's name was Jayden, meaning "Heard by God". Little did his parents know at the time of his birth, the Gods would not hear him the moment he had cognitive thought. Not only did the child have problems from the time he could walk, if his first word was any indication to what was to come, they would have been far more weary of him. Jayden was a trickster, constantly getting into things he should not have been in, and escaping the castle walls in order to tease and mess with the other children. He was high and mighty, and he did not care who knew it. Danger was not a word in Jayden's dictionary. At the age of ten, he had already hospitalized one child, and scarred the rest of the small group of his 'friends' for life. It was said that Jayden had beheaded a dog as a taunting measure and shock factor before suddenly attacking one of the other children, savagely, with a stone. Once the child was an inch within his life, Jayden had been pulled off of him by the small cohort of children and the people who had witnessed the atrocious act whispered the tales of the haunting smile that painted his face.
Unfortunately for the royal family, this was not the only incident in a long line of unfortunate events. Unlike most of the Kings and Queens before, Marlin and Olivia Fortesque did not make it to their golden years. A strange illness came over the entirety of the Royal Family, leading to the untimely death of the married couple, leaving their only son to take the throne at the age of seventeen. The official cause of the mysterious deaths in such an isolated and strange way never came to light, however, when Jayden took the throne days after his parents' deaths, he accused the Royal Chef of poisoning the family. No one could rightly question his accusations, and thus, the innocent chef was beheaded in the morning following the crowning of the new King.
With his newfound power in politics, Jayden Fortesque would lead nearly twenty years of horror for the people of Simul. The moment he took the throne, the people could feel it. Little did they know how awful the next two decades would change the face of their beautiful kingdom. What had been a peaceful land would quickly turn into a poor, disease ridden cesspool. Jayden was quick to increase taxes beyond what nobles could pay, leaving the working classes to hope their families to eat every day. Those who did not lost their homes, land, liberty to see clinics and healers, and soon, their lives. Once you owed too much, your life was the only thing you had left to repay the debt with. Decrease in population lead to less and less people able to perform jobs, keep up the harvest, and eventually, it appeared that the downfall of once a lovely place would be upon them. Soon enough, this morbid news would travel far and wide enough....that Jeffry, Jayden's father's first son, who had been living in Arbrestor, would feel the heat of it.
Something had to be done. Knowing his own roots, Jeffry began formulating his plan. He would take the throne back, and he would need help to do it. For the next few years, the eldest son to the late King collected his army of friends. It began with the people of Arbrestor who had watched the boy become a man. Little convincing and the people were prepared for war. Next were the cities of Concordia and Gao Shan. Jeffry knew better than to ask the Dwarves, as they had lived a silent life. So, he let them be and continued his expedition toward the south. Spreading his good word and promises of peace once more and recruiting able bodies left and right, masses upon masses came to the aide of the impending King. The people knew he would be a better leader than the tyrant that sat upon a throne he did not deserve.
The war lasted for a single year; 9405. One would not think that such a one sided view would need so long to win. One would also be very, very wrong. Jayden held many followers. Not only those who found his tyrannical hand to be admirable, but there were also those that were forced to fight his war. After a long, bloody and ultimately successful win, Jeffry took the throne and freed those who still stayed within Eleutheria and those who had been once ripped from their homes. The castle itself needed to be rebuilt, many lives were lost, but in the end, good prevailed.
Simul would never be the same. Though, this is not necessarily a bad thing. The history books teach of strife, but also the overcoming of said troubles. Now it is up to the people who call Simul home to keep it safe.
Like most things, nothing lasts forever. Not even the good.
The soldier was known as Cillus and had a plan: Take Simul for his own people. Isn't that how it normally starts? Impending war due to greedy others? Of course. Never the less, what the skeletal warriors didn't realize was that Simul had it's own dimming darkness.
A hell of a kick off of chaos, a random army of undead overtook Korrig, destroying and enslaving all that they could. Once on the move, they then attempted to talk Astu Aether, a new city that had come to Simul for safe haven, into becoming their ally with promises of glory and more money then they knew what to do with. The leader of the floating city promptly decline with the mention of war.
Sudbury was not so lucky. The city of magic soon fell victim to the next random attack. By this point, The King was becoming desperate, doing what he could to gather as many allies as possible. Calling upon the Dwarves of Dun'Lorn and the man who held a castle in the northern lands, Silver Drafaylum, Alfred Fortescue asked for the impossible; Help to take out the invading forces. This lead to a treaty between the snow elves and Guardians, the Dwarves, and the King's Army. The long empty lands of Concordia was soon settle into once again and he meeting alone helped the Dwarves realize that not everyone outside of their mountain was evil...
Oddly enough, the noise above attracted the attention of one man that the land had tried, for hundreds of years, to forget about.
Timothy Slade.
He came silently to the city of Korrig, wiping out what was left, including the innocent enslaved. His Master of Beasts soon did the same in Sudbury. The people rose though, taking on the small trolls and rogue 'soldiers' and taking back what little was left of the city.
Timothy and his minions disappeared shortly after, but not before word of mouth could tell the tales of his epic and oddly helpful return. They spoke of the demon woman at Timothy's side. And they spoke, even more than the former, of the old man himself.
Though the people were scared, the Royal Family has offered aide and rebuilding efforts to both cities, as well as fortification efforts for Ferax Villum. If there is to be another attack, Simul will be ready.
The land shook with a vengeance. People all over the kingdom could feel it below their feet. What started out as a passing rumor that the tremors were caused by the dwarves quickly turned into something else. Something...worrisome.
The small quakes turned into something much larger, affecting nearly every home and trail Simul had to offer. The fates deemed it unnecessary to destroy anything...minus the ground cracking open in a couple of locations. Curious wanderers and treasure hunters alike began their search for the cause. As soon as their feet lead them to the southern coast region, the quakes stopped. Strange...Yet, not as strange as what was to be discovered.
Two different portals; One near the ocean and one near Dry Gulch. Both different in so many ways, but both coming from the same natural disaster. Where did they come from? Where did they lead? A few brave souls entered these portals, only to be transported to 'new' cities with 'new people'. Turns out, thousands of years prior, a large earth shudder much like the one that just happened had trapped these civilizations where they had been, leaving them in the dark for generations. Now, with the hope of having newfound brothers and sisters, both cities have opened their homes to the rest of Simul.
A long time ago, in a galaxy, far, far, far, holy shit that is far, far, far, when the fuck are we getting there, far way, there was a world not unlike our modern day Earth. On this Earth, was a country named North America. In that country, there was a state named Michigan. And in that state, there was a city named Detroit. Detroit used to be a city much like any of the other larger cities American had to offer. Over time, it became...not so pleasant. And with even more time given, Detroit was voted to be the country's first prison city. Walls were erected and guards were placed throughout in order to watch over the prisoners that were forced to spend their lives rotting away. Types of offenders who were placed in such a city were violent, morbid, and horrid. Since the America that was inside of this far away realm decided (For some fucking reason), that violent offenders should no longer be put to death, they chose a city that was already sort of fucked to be the new prison. Yay. Within the city walls, there were a little over 30 thousand prisoners who lived their lives the best they could. Murder was an every day occurrence, and theft was a way of survival. Some of the prisoners were blessed with magical abilities, and those few would use their abilities to either survive...or kill. Some didn't see a difference in the options. Every now and again, generous philanthropists would donate the less fortunate city items for entertainment and medical supplies for a more comfortable life, but these items often were used for less than noble purposes. Overall, Detroit was a cesspool. One that Timothy Slade no longer wanted staining the country he had set his eyes on for more recruitment...
The weather was nice. Yes, let's talk about the weather. It was sunny. There was only a slight breeze that cooled one off had they no tolerance of heat. The spring had come and warmed the Earth. Such a beautiful day for a beautifully morbid mass murder. Today was the day, and Detroit was about to wiped from existence. Not before the land who also needed a lesson learned had the opportunity to learn said lesson. A land by the name of Simul (That means you fuckers).
No one knows how the people of America reacted to watching their prison city literally detach from the country and float off into the air before disappearing, but it had to be just as horrifying as the reaction that the people of Simul had to seeing the city comparable in size to Timberholde floating barely a mile above the central city itself....And that's when the fight started.Edited:The drop of a nearly modern day Detroit on top of Timberholde rocked the entire continent. From Arbrestor to the southern forest, people from all over Simul would recall the thunderous explosion with great detail.
From the moment it happened, people came. Either to witness or to help. Unfortunately, with such a massive assault...it looked rather grim. This did not stop the heroes of Simul from doing what they could do to save as many people as they could. This...This was no easy task. For days, those who could, did do what they could to search rubble, flip doors and cars and trees and walls, and put themselves in danger to save whoever was still alive from such an unnatural disaster. Despite all of their best efforts...out of the over sixty thousand people targeted by the man himself...less than two thousand were saved that week.
Simul, in its constant glory and coexisting nature, has come together since and helped to rebuild Timberholde. Though there are not many who live there, they hope that travel from neighboring countries and kingdoms will help to repopulate the once massive city of Timberholde. Those who have survived have come to know what happened as the "Timberholde Incident" and stories of the harrowing people who saved those who survived...alongside the stories of the man who did this to Simul have echoed through the ears of Simul's citizens ever since.
Chapter 1 -- The Beginning Years 0-1000
There are always beginnings to stories. Simul's starts over ten thousand years ago. It has been said by the majority to recent days, that the land is much older than that. No one knows the whole truth, but speculation leads most to believe the Gods created life. Of course. Who else would have, right? From the greens to the blues to the yellows and purples and reds, the soil of Simul was filled with many beautiful things. Flora, fauna, humanoids... The first 'intelligent' species to walk upon the lands were humans. Plain, magicless, and primitive. Soon after landing on the massive rock, it was given the name of Simul, a name that meant "coexist" to the natives. With mass amounts of land to discover, families separated, homes were built, and communities started to form.
The first of many great cities was Timberholde. Toward the center of the continent, the first family known as the Trimbles, started the creation of the large community. A slow beginning with hardships and good times alike, the raising of Timberholde proved to be fruitful. After nearly one hundred years, the city had grown from a population of twenty one to over five thousand. With word spreading of the beautiful architecture and homes to spare, all walks of life made the decision to seek the scene; A fully functional city that had already made its mark as the trade center of the kingdom.
Meanwhile, north of the massive city, the newly forming city of Eleutheria had just gotten its foothold. Construction was slow and daunting as the city planned on being in the center of an island. Without much in terms of hands, productivity nearly came to a stop in the early years. Once Timberholde had come to fruition, news traveled much easier about the grand city being built.
All over the continent, cities began to rise, most of which can still be seen in current day. The first humans soon after made their stands in Ferax Villum, Sudbury and Skyhaven. The others soon followed.....but there was much more. Buildings, homes and all colors of establishments began to form, almost magically, overnight. Rumors spread, fingers pointed, witchcraft! Nearly two hundred years into the beginnings of Simul, magic introduced itself into the fold. However, it was not welcomed as many of our readers would like to believe. It was new, frightening, and unknown. It would take decades for people to become comfortable and accept this new addition to life.
What started as fear did slowly melt into curiosity and teaching one another how to use such things. Magic schools formed in the biggest of cities at the time. It wasn't enough. People wanted to learn more. With limited knowledge and the wonder on how it came to be in the first place, people began to explore even more of the land. Reaching places in the mountains and desert where only the brave had the courage to reach, some returned with stories of peril or riches while others did not return. Most thought the worst of the lost souls. Yet, more cities began to form, and word traveled of these new and exciting places, families were reunited generations later. Soon, stories circulated, filling in the gaps of so many questions.
One in particular family, dubbed The Legends, was not only new, but looked different than most of the humans roaming around the newly forming Simul. No one could figured out where they were from, only that they had appeared one day without so much as a hello. With stark white hair and perfect peach skin, piercing baby blues and tall forms, most thought them to be aliens. 'People from the stars.' Their magic was strong and nearly invisible. Non-violent in demeanor, they soon constructed their own city near the now named Aldermen Mountains. With constructs similar to the elves, some began to rumor that the people living there were half breeds of elves and humans. That story was soon dashed when they held no other symbolism to the beauty that was the elvish. Soon enough, the name Concordia became a household name. If one had an ailment, Concordia was the place to go for all kinds of healing. They also had a massive school to teach certain types of elemental magics. Their teachings are still prevalent in the schools today.
Even more notable cities rose, one of which being Wish Well. In good terms and within a days travel of Concordia, the two cities became sisters. Trading goods and services, the two giants still kept a professional distance due to the heavy rumors of the perfect Concordians. Never the less, the people of Concordia were happy to have an ally in the trying times. Over the years, even though the stories and curiosity faded, there were still people who refused to go anywhere near the northern lands. This did not stop the duo cities from thriving and becoming forces of trade and travel.
Nearly six hundred years into Simul's history, most cities that still stand had come to be. Though the country was still growing, Simul was nearly complete in the eyes of those who were born and raised on the land. At least, that is what the people thought. Eleutheria had finally placed the last brick upon its surface, and it was finally time for the people of the kingdom to come together for the election of the leader of the land. Unfortunately, this was far easier said than done. With the vast land mass and miles between people, coming to a decision did not happen for quite some time.
It was a hellish first ten years. With so many different humanoids now roaming the lands, none of them had the same views or thoughts. Some wanted a base religion to follow and rule while others wanted things to just continue as they were. The progress that had been made in encompassing all walks of life slowly started to decay. The populous could not come to any sort of agreement. That is, until one brave soul came forward with a plan.
His name was Herald Fortescue. Coming from a family who originally began construction on Eleutheria itself, he had a good foot in the door for the attention he was seeking. His words held hope and organization of the people who all resided inside of Simul. His vision? Simple. Peace and thriving among everyone. Now, most thought these words were too hard to believe. Living in peace? Always? No difference between classes? Crime that was punished reasonably? Land that could be claimed without riches? Education that could be acquired regardless of standing? Oh, how the people wanted what he promised. And thus, he was elected as the King, while his coming generations would rule the land for all of their time.
Chapter 2 - Why Here? 1001-1200
As the years went on, questions began to arise once more. There was one particular question that stuck in the minds of the many: Why was the population growing so exponentially? Most of the original stories of other masses on the planet had been shared, yet, there were so many different types of souls traversing the land of Simul in particular. Many more than what could have traveled there easily. Why? How? Where did they come from? It would take a couple generations of much studying and questioning before the truth was finally revealed from none other than the mouths of the newcomers.
-------------------------------------------------
Simul; a land of magics and monsters, much different than other lands that the world held. Magic was fluent in many places, yes, but not quite like it had been in Simul. Such powerful beings had been introduced, using their different magics to do many different things that the original citizens had never seen. As time went on, more and more, the magical beings held their supernatural abilities from the general populous while the people who had been there all along pretended they had never seen it. Even though the magic wielders did what they could do hide their true nature....it was a bit too late. As much as the people tried and tried, the tension nearly came to a head.
Luckily for most, this caused them to question rather than quarrel. After many many years and generations had passed, the answers most sought for the conglomeration of people in one land mass were found. Piece by piece, it all fit together. Simul was not only a beautiful, fertile and prosperous land, but it was a 'hub'. What made it such a noun? That was a question that, to this day, has still yet to be answered. Eventually, people settled into the notion that something caused 'lost souls' to end up being a part of the kingdom, for better or worse. So, people did as they always had done, and learned to coexist to the best of their abilities. This is not to say that there was not an underbelly. Because...let's face it; People are only 'human'.
Chapter 3 - The Age of Settlements 1201-5300
A slow progression of acceptance and coexisting lead to thousands of years of building, new villages and cities and trails carved. With so many new people throughout Simul, many more homes needed to be built, and thus, the current King and his family agreed to let the people have free reign over the land. With a lack of government owned land, Simulians found it much easier to build and pursue individual happiness. This lead to peace among the majority...mostly.
There were many differences between people. From the way they looked, to the magics, or lack thereof that they performed, and even from the homes they built. These things did not seem to affect how people treated one another. As segregation wore thin, it left a hole that was slowly filled with love and acceptance. Citizens did what they thought was best for themselves and their families, and this alone helped the premise of coexisiting blossom. As word began spread to the other lands in the world, Simul started to see an even larger influx of new settlers.
Unfortunately, peace often attracts the less savory. With how many people around the world and beyond had heard of Simul and its amazing soil, there should have been no surprise at yet a different type of influx. It was only a matter of time that the ugliness of existence would rear, and rear it did. In the year 3022, the first large battle began. Fighting tooth and nail to keep their lands safe, Simulians won. However, it was not the last battle they would wage. For hundreds of years during the kingdom's formidable time, wave after wave of those who wanted to take the land for itself battered the shores. Little did the outsiders know, they were helping to shape Simul's peoples' view even more on their morals. As strangers took arms together, it strengthened the people as a whole. Those who wished wrong never had a chance...
Simul eventually began new stories that would travel to the other lands. A reputation. A legend. Those who entered Simul either found a home, or perished trying to take advantage of it. As the times calmed, the people came together once more to rebuild and continue to strive for everything good.
Chapter 4 - Mutual Agreements 5301-5322
So many hundreds of years of peace just had to be interrupted, didn't it? No kingdom is perfect, especially ones with such slow development akin to Simul. With the "forced" acceptance of coexisting among the people, Simul would soon face yet another disagreement. Luckily for the citizens, it wouldn't be nearly as traumatic as it had been in the not so far past.
What started as a low rumble that no one could pinpoint quickly became an earth shattering quake. Well...kind of. No one had experienced the land shaking in Simul since the first humans had landed, giving them false security in thinking the land was free of extreme weather or the like. Unfortunately for them, the mountains to the north had yet to be explored, let alone named. It was soon discovered that the waves of quake were coming from them. What followed in the days after was nothing less than surprising.
A small explosion of quakes lead to what some referred to as the "Sea of Red". Wave after wave of ginger haired dwarves came barreling down the mountains, weapons in hand, shouting at the tops of their lungs. Now, it was said that there was a single chuckle that rang through, but to this day, no one would admit that the sight of thousands of small bearded men made them break face. Never the less, this fueled the small statured men to come ven further down the mountains, hurling weapons and demanding the 'new comers' to leave the land they had made their home.
Just as things were starting to look like an all out war, the humanoids did what they had been trying to not only preach, but to practice; offer peace. This was an odd gesture for the dwarves, as they had always been in Simul, 'from the beginning of time', as some would claim. Living amongst strangers? Letting the unknown traverse their lands? All of the mysterious future seemed rather...scary. This did not stop the dwarves from giving in and contemplating such a peaceful end to their fear.
It took less than a year for the red headed, bulky race to give their decision; The humans could stay. This did not come without stipulations of course. The dwarves asked for their home to be left alone. They were not prepared to have their city beneath the Aldermans infiltrated by strangers and drifters. They also demanded that the mountains stay undisturbed by new construction. This was good enough for the humans, giving the dwarves their peace and quiet.
And thus, Dun'Lorn became a staple name in the Simulian's homes. Over the centuries, the dwarven city has been known to open its doors more often, even giving a holiday once per year to welcome all. Most Dun'Lorn dwarves tend to stay within its walls for their entire lives, but don't be surprised to meet a rogue wandering the lands of Simul.
Chapter 5 - Peace Sells 5323-9400
For thousands of years, many more cities were forged, families were formed, the land was tilled, times were good. For the first time since Simul was molded into a kingdom, there was undisturbed peace across the land.
Unbeknownst to the masses of Simul, there had been growing an underground of pure evil intent. This demonic presence did not show itself for many many generations. Not until the mid 8000's.
He began as a myth, a bedtime story told to disobedient children, a warning to the night. A mad man hellbent on destroying the kingdom. From one rumor to another, none of the stories really matched up. What was one to expect when this 'mad man' had never been seen? What could they expect when all there were were the stories whispered from one mouth into the waiting ear of another? The only thing these tales had in common; The name Timothy Slade. A name that most slowly began to avoid uttering.
When the royal family themselves began to be secretive about such a person, and hushed tones echoed through the castle halls, as well as avoidance of saying his name in public...that was when the people knew something was wrong. The stories continued to unfold. Rumors of who this man was, what he looked like, and perhaps where he could be hiding. What he was doing was never a question, especially when some of the "constructs" began to go rogue, exposing themselves on the world at large.
Some of them would come in the night, stealing the breath of their victims before disappearing with them in tow. Some, on the other hand, would seek out their own families, coming for respite and to be saved. To this day, some of these 'abominations' are still hidden from the sun. As their families have kept them in cages, hoping for a cure one day. This phenomena is quite rare, and even more seldom spoken of.
The people continued to try and live their lives to the fullest. Putting the rumors and stories on the back burner, secretly wishing and praying that the problem would leave on its own. Much to their delight, it seemed to have worked. Eventually, the name Timothy was seldom heard, giving the people back the calm their minds so desperately worked hard for.
Chapter 6 - The War of The Brothers and Saving Simul 9401-10,001
In all families, drama exists. The Royal Family was no exception to this common occurence. There had been some....'stepping out' on the King's part. Luckily for him, it was before he could wed the next Queen, leaving only speculation. The King had kept the details to himself, if only long enough for him to produce a proper heir to the throne.
The 'proper' child's name was Jayden, meaning "Heard by God". Little did his parents know at the time of his birth, the Gods would not hear him the moment he had cognitive thought. Not only did the child have problems from the time he could walk, if his first word was any indication to what was to come, they would have been far more weary of him. Jayden was a trickster, constantly getting into things he should not have been in, and escaping the castle walls in order to tease and mess with the other children. He was high and mighty, and he did not care who knew it. Danger was not a word in Jayden's dictionary. At the age of ten, he had already hospitalized one child, and scarred the rest of the small group of his 'friends' for life. It was said that Jayden had beheaded a dog as a taunting measure and shock factor before suddenly attacking one of the other children, savagely, with a stone. Once the child was an inch within his life, Jayden had been pulled off of him by the small cohort of children and the people who had witnessed the atrocious act whispered the tales of the haunting smile that painted his face.
Unfortunately for the royal family, this was not the only incident in a long line of unfortunate events. Unlike most of the Kings and Queens before, Marlin and Olivia Fortesque did not make it to their golden years. A strange illness came over the entirety of the Royal Family, leading to the untimely death of the married couple, leaving their only son to take the throne at the age of seventeen. The official cause of the mysterious deaths in such an isolated and strange way never came to light, however, when Jayden took the throne days after his parents' deaths, he accused the Royal Chef of poisoning the family. No one could rightly question his accusations, and thus, the innocent chef was beheaded in the morning following the crowning of the new King.
With his newfound power in politics, Jayden Fortesque would lead nearly twenty years of horror for the people of Simul. The moment he took the throne, the people could feel it. Little did they know how awful the next two decades would change the face of their beautiful kingdom. What had been a peaceful land would quickly turn into a poor, disease ridden cesspool. Jayden was quick to increase taxes beyond what nobles could pay, leaving the working classes to hope their families to eat every day. Those who did not lost their homes, land, liberty to see clinics and healers, and soon, their lives. Once you owed too much, your life was the only thing you had left to repay the debt with. Decrease in population lead to less and less people able to perform jobs, keep up the harvest, and eventually, it appeared that the downfall of once a lovely place would be upon them. Soon enough, this morbid news would travel far and wide enough....that Jeffry, Jayden's father's first son, who had been living in Arbrestor, would feel the heat of it.
Something had to be done. Knowing his own roots, Jeffry began formulating his plan. He would take the throne back, and he would need help to do it. For the next few years, the eldest son to the late King collected his army of friends. It began with the people of Arbrestor who had watched the boy become a man. Little convincing and the people were prepared for war. Next were the cities of Concordia and Gao Shan. Jeffry knew better than to ask the Dwarves, as they had lived a silent life. So, he let them be and continued his expedition toward the south. Spreading his good word and promises of peace once more and recruiting able bodies left and right, masses upon masses came to the aide of the impending King. The people knew he would be a better leader than the tyrant that sat upon a throne he did not deserve.
The war lasted for a single year; 9405. One would not think that such a one sided view would need so long to win. One would also be very, very wrong. Jayden held many followers. Not only those who found his tyrannical hand to be admirable, but there were also those that were forced to fight his war. After a long, bloody and ultimately successful win, Jeffry took the throne and freed those who still stayed within Eleutheria and those who had been once ripped from their homes. The castle itself needed to be rebuilt, many lives were lost, but in the end, good prevailed.
Simul would never be the same. Though, this is not necessarily a bad thing. The history books teach of strife, but also the overcoming of said troubles. Now it is up to the people who call Simul home to keep it safe.
Chapter 7 - The Undead Reign and End 10.012
Like most things, nothing lasts forever. Not even the good.
The soldier was known as Cillus and had a plan: Take Simul for his own people. Isn't that how it normally starts? Impending war due to greedy others? Of course. Never the less, what the skeletal warriors didn't realize was that Simul had it's own dimming darkness.
A hell of a kick off of chaos, a random army of undead overtook Korrig, destroying and enslaving all that they could. Once on the move, they then attempted to talk Astu Aether, a new city that had come to Simul for safe haven, into becoming their ally with promises of glory and more money then they knew what to do with. The leader of the floating city promptly decline with the mention of war.
Sudbury was not so lucky. The city of magic soon fell victim to the next random attack. By this point, The King was becoming desperate, doing what he could to gather as many allies as possible. Calling upon the Dwarves of Dun'Lorn and the man who held a castle in the northern lands, Silver Drafaylum, Alfred Fortescue asked for the impossible; Help to take out the invading forces. This lead to a treaty between the snow elves and Guardians, the Dwarves, and the King's Army. The long empty lands of Concordia was soon settle into once again and he meeting alone helped the Dwarves realize that not everyone outside of their mountain was evil...
Oddly enough, the noise above attracted the attention of one man that the land had tried, for hundreds of years, to forget about.
Timothy Slade.
He came silently to the city of Korrig, wiping out what was left, including the innocent enslaved. His Master of Beasts soon did the same in Sudbury. The people rose though, taking on the small trolls and rogue 'soldiers' and taking back what little was left of the city.
Timothy and his minions disappeared shortly after, but not before word of mouth could tell the tales of his epic and oddly helpful return. They spoke of the demon woman at Timothy's side. And they spoke, even more than the former, of the old man himself.
Though the people were scared, the Royal Family has offered aide and rebuilding efforts to both cities, as well as fortification efforts for Ferax Villum. If there is to be another attack, Simul will be ready.
Chapter 8 - The Uncovering of History 10,012
The land shook with a vengeance. People all over the kingdom could feel it below their feet. What started out as a passing rumor that the tremors were caused by the dwarves quickly turned into something else. Something...worrisome.
The small quakes turned into something much larger, affecting nearly every home and trail Simul had to offer. The fates deemed it unnecessary to destroy anything...minus the ground cracking open in a couple of locations. Curious wanderers and treasure hunters alike began their search for the cause. As soon as their feet lead them to the southern coast region, the quakes stopped. Strange...Yet, not as strange as what was to be discovered.
Two different portals; One near the ocean and one near Dry Gulch. Both different in so many ways, but both coming from the same natural disaster. Where did they come from? Where did they lead? A few brave souls entered these portals, only to be transported to 'new' cities with 'new people'. Turns out, thousands of years prior, a large earth shudder much like the one that just happened had trapped these civilizations where they had been, leaving them in the dark for generations. Now, with the hope of having newfound brothers and sisters, both cities have opened their homes to the rest of Simul.
Chapter 9 - Timothy Reminds...10,014
A long time ago, in a galaxy, far, far, far, holy shit that is far, far, far, when the fuck are we getting there, far way, there was a world not unlike our modern day Earth. On this Earth, was a country named North America. In that country, there was a state named Michigan. And in that state, there was a city named Detroit. Detroit used to be a city much like any of the other larger cities American had to offer. Over time, it became...not so pleasant. And with even more time given, Detroit was voted to be the country's first prison city. Walls were erected and guards were placed throughout in order to watch over the prisoners that were forced to spend their lives rotting away. Types of offenders who were placed in such a city were violent, morbid, and horrid. Since the America that was inside of this far away realm decided (For some fucking reason), that violent offenders should no longer be put to death, they chose a city that was already sort of fucked to be the new prison. Yay. Within the city walls, there were a little over 30 thousand prisoners who lived their lives the best they could. Murder was an every day occurrence, and theft was a way of survival. Some of the prisoners were blessed with magical abilities, and those few would use their abilities to either survive...or kill. Some didn't see a difference in the options. Every now and again, generous philanthropists would donate the less fortunate city items for entertainment and medical supplies for a more comfortable life, but these items often were used for less than noble purposes. Overall, Detroit was a cesspool. One that Timothy Slade no longer wanted staining the country he had set his eyes on for more recruitment...
The weather was nice. Yes, let's talk about the weather. It was sunny. There was only a slight breeze that cooled one off had they no tolerance of heat. The spring had come and warmed the Earth. Such a beautiful day for a beautifully morbid mass murder. Today was the day, and Detroit was about to wiped from existence. Not before the land who also needed a lesson learned had the opportunity to learn said lesson. A land by the name of Simul (That means you fuckers).
No one knows how the people of America reacted to watching their prison city literally detach from the country and float off into the air before disappearing, but it had to be just as horrifying as the reaction that the people of Simul had to seeing the city comparable in size to Timberholde floating barely a mile above the central city itself....And that's when the fight started. Edited: The drop of a nearly modern day Detroit on top of Timberholde rocked the entire continent. From Arbrestor to the southern forest, people from all over Simul would recall the thunderous explosion with great detail.
From the moment it happened, people came. Either to witness or to help. Unfortunately, with such a massive assault...it looked rather grim. This did not stop the heroes of Simul from doing what they could do to save as many people as they could. This...This was no easy task. For days, those who could, did do what they could to search rubble, flip doors and cars and trees and walls, and put themselves in danger to save whoever was still alive from such an unnatural disaster. Despite all of their best efforts...out of the over sixty thousand people targeted by the man himself...less than two thousand were saved that week.
Simul, in its constant glory and coexisting nature, has come together since and helped to rebuild Timberholde. Though there are not many who live there, they hope that travel from neighboring countries and kingdoms will help to repopulate the once massive city of Timberholde. Those who have survived have come to know what happened as the "Timberholde Incident" and stories of the harrowing people who saved those who survived...alongside the stories of the man who did this to Simul have echoed through the ears of Simul's citizens ever since.
The Divide - To Come