Muirenn Snyder.
First Officer of Zakira Bloodmoon.
25th of Trescia, 1492.
Rhar Kingdoms, Rharian Mountains. Altitude: 2,605 m.
06:30.
***
We found the end of the divine path set before us with righteous diligence. Hundreds of us, there were. But only a hundred were needed to fill the ranks of the Order. If that. The rest would come once new paths had been revealed. Thus the rest of us were not of the Order as Lady Nyella was.
On the contrary, we were of the Legions, orbiting the Silverskin Lady faithfully. Yet still, we worked on the other side of our world with righteous diligence.
As The Order's purpose was to use Mani's light and the creatures born from it to do as God did and guide the lost on their path through life; ours was to use Mani's light and the creatures born from it to do as the World Weaver did and uplift the oppressed.
The Order's members who had grown close to the many types of divine deer became leaders, both in the sense of leading acolytes to the church and teaching others of leadership. Ours became the Silverhorn Herd- a Holy Army of knights, dames, clerics, paladins, and others.
The Order's members who had grown close to Mani's Moths became councilors who gave guidance to the lost ones who found the church; ours filled the staff of our Oracles- divination-focused divisions of bards, clerics, paladins, wizards, and seers for all of the Legions.
Those of the Order who had grown close to the Cetaceans became educators of all things social, political, and economic; ours became the Blue Pod- a force of might that could operate in the skies as well as the sea, acting as both our naval and air force.
The Order's members who bonded with the Lunar Cephlapods became healers and therapists for both those they found and the liberated who would find them; ours became the Weavers- a divinely arcane group of casters, witches, wizards, sorcerers, and mages-to-be, gifted with the powers of the World Weaver.
The Order's members who had grown close to the Luna Wolves, such as Grace Duffy, comprised the Bloodmoon Pack. Holy Destroyers comprised of barbarians, rogues, and rangers mixed with clerics, paladins, and artificers; made all the more divine by our union with those divine beasts.
It was as if time had frozen, and yet it all happened so quickly. A single wave from the World Weaver's hand sent the woven worlds cascading into a line. Then the Silver Eye blinked, releasing from its pull a deluge of divine energy, matter, and beasts.
They were before us in an instant. In my case, my eyes were drawn to a massive moose with light blue fur, midnight black eyes, and horns as radiant as Mani itself; where they remained for what felt like days until I realized a sudden change- I could now see myself from on high- from this divine creature's eyes.
With reverence, it looked, and so too did I at a high elf of 29 years. Still a child, as our God was, and yet my rich brown skin was riddled with the scars born from a life of bondage. I was still lean and lithe, in spite of my increased health, but what was more noticeable was my light blond hair was now silver, like my eyes.
Like my eyes and the horns starting to grow out of my skull.
In an instant, that divine creature was gone, but through Mani's light, we knew what was to come before the ritual, and by his light, they remained with us inside and out.
So it was that when the Silverskin Lady ascended, God's Troupe descended, and the Order of Worlds dove into a frenzy of documentation. In vivid detail, they used Moonlight to extract memories onto canvases of stone, paper, and entire landscapes. Holy tomes were added to as new hymns were composed. Offerings were made, rituals were performed, and through it all, we Agents of the Bloodmoon joined our brothers and sisters in prayer as we witnessed this moment of legends.
We witnessed Mani's tears cascade into Crater Lake without producing a single ripple, yet Mani's glory spread all the same, preparing perhaps the universe itself for the glorious change to come. There was no telling how far it went, for the silver light flowed into the very essence of the realm, feeding everything from the waters and stone to the creatures, the citizens, and of course, the Legionaries who explored it.
We witnessed Mani's tears run dry and thus we watched the world ease itself from beneath the others to resume its dance in the sky, and for a while, we saw the virulent web of blue, slushy mana that persisted across the realms and within us.
On the outside, we watched that slush compress and harden into the same sheen as the ice beneath us and grow to hold the polish of a gemstone. On the inside, we saw that crystalline energy be compressed evermore until the polish cracked and the energy within became a vibrant tempest of power incarnate. In the beyond, we looked through Mani's light to see thousands of arcane signatures pouring off the Legionaries, and so too could we feel something divine radiating off of their prestigious commanders.
As if the woven worlds themselves reacted to such energies, they began descending in much the same way as Mani. Rather than infuse the realms with their essence, however, they released their energies, creatures, and citizens, returning them to the Legionaries scattered across the Peninsula.
The first was a banded world of blue, black, and silver gas, perpetually tormented by storms brewed by the legendary Tempest Griffon. As the Jovian World, Ruthica Prime, descended to look down on the Mortal Plane, streaks of lightning reached out to touch the heart of Ligin.
Her thunder shattered the very skies, forcing the nearby clouds into a flight that chased them far away from Bodhi Shores, almost as if she demanded every pair of eyes gaze upon the prominence of her sister worlds before she departed to dance through the skies once more.
Another banded world followed. However, the world of Naubuuru was banded with forests, mountains, deserts, tundras, and ice-caps that made homes for spiritual beasts of an Origami nature. As she blinked, Naubuuru saw fit to exchange her energy, creatures, citizens, and Legionaries with that of the high-elven Vrurian Empire, concentrating on the western region of the exotic woods.
The third world had the most complicated name, for its weaver was most complicated, as was his divine duty to the Legions. So it was that the Planet of Resource Extraction, Engineering, and Manufacturing- or Preem, released the second-largest deluge behind Mani. From the world of industrial spires covered in dense smog came a wave of divine energy that flowed into the lands of various kingdoms, changing their roads, shifting their cities, and altering their wagons in real-time.
From the mechanical ring encircling the world, however, came a stampede of colossal animals bearing metallic natures. To the north, south, east, and west they flowed, positioning themselves to be found by those who would inhabit their spacious interiors. Including us.
We sent prayers to the industrial world and its weaver as it ascended, increasing both his and our mirth as a massive moth with a metallic carapace of divine metals fluttered to the mountain beneath us; even as it rumbled, shook, and awoke with a feral roar.
With our eyes, we looked up to see the world of rich forests, sprawling oceans, vast lava lakes, and towering volcanoes releasing a torrent on the realm that saw the magma within roil. Through Mani's Eye, we saw matter and energy alike raining down just as lava and ash erupted from every volcano in the region, and once such devastation had been unleashed, the volcanic world of Edinda ascended to her place in the sky with a satisfied glint.
As the 5th world, Brunhilde, descended on the realm, a golden glow was seen alighting countless individuals who met her gaze. On one hand, those whom the world saw worthy saw versions of themselves heralding the dead to populate these glorious worlds; whereas on the other hand, those who already held such a title were pointed to the worthy souls scattered below.
Following the world of bronze clouds came Pangaea, a marble of blues, greens, beiges, and whites that sowed chaos in the realm below. From the world of elemental mana, ki, and divine energies came a wave that saw Extreme Mana Zones awaken across the lands. Zones of air and of earth, of water and fire; steam and magma; mud and dust; metal and lightning.
Exacerbated, these things were, by the massive Uma belonging to the 6th Legion, as it seemed to spawn more and more such zones as it dove beneath Crater Lake and disappeared beneath a colossal whirlpool.
At the most auspicious time, the world of our leader descended to shine her radiance on those below. The vibrant blue waters, the forests of holy silver, and the crimson essences of the beasts of our world saw to soothe their hearts. Not by virtue of a sense of protection, but by a sense of wonder- a sense of inspiration to dream and follow through with the ambitions of their hearts, knowing Mani's light would show them the way.
As our Lolea ascended, our sister world descended to shine her dark radiance on the realm. Occluded in a veil of dark clouds Nue Dracule was, but those clouds absorbed light and emitted it as an incandescent glow that left an aura around the planet.
From those gilded clouds came a tendril of radiant-lined darkness that became corporeal as they descended through the radiant dawn to burrow into places both pure and corrupt. Bakewia, Brybs, Knighilia, Nevstan, Mazi, Kasia; Shujen, and more saw Gloom fall on their lands, opening pits that reached the furthest depths of the Plane.
The 9th world was a place of turbulent oceans that were pushed and pulled at by the absurdly dense but breathable atmosphere that kept the surface of Oceania hidden from view. As its weaver was the second to be touched by Mani, the world ejected a miniature rendition of the Silver Eye and sent it hurdling into the distant Eastern World Sea, where it impacted with an explosion of silver that flowed into the sea as much as it did himself; causing the waters to glow with a beautiful vibrancy and heed his words zealously.
The final world of turbulent skies followed to bring back the clouds scattered by the first world; albeit at much higher altitudes. From those clouds came creatures of the air, land, and water alike. Birds adapted to long flights, mammals, and even reptiles with mutations to glide or fly; and fish, squid, whales, or other creatures that swam lazily through the skies and enough machines to compete with them.
The final woven world saw the divine moment end in a moment of confusion for the natives of the Peninsula, for all they saw was a world of golden hills holding itself above Crater Lake before it ascended. But anyone who was close enough would have seen a cloud of darkness fall from the surface of Nocturne. They would have seen that cloud of darkness avert its trajectory and skim the waves, crossing the lake to impact Shujen.
If they possessed the means to see through magical darkness, they would have seen the meteor of darkness impact and release a horde of vampiric, umbral, and draconic creatures upon the realm. But mostly everyone saw the world unceremoniously ascend, ending the divine hour.
The hour had ended, leaving us with great boons. Yet the work was not done; we could not reflect on them.
I turned to Lady Nyella at once, only to find she was of the same mind and already approaching me. "God has blessed us greatly." She beamed clasping her hands together. As did I. "Boons aside." She continued. "It has created the most auspicious opportunity for us. I am to go to the Principality of Chaulort at once. An acquaintance of the Silverskin Lady is there- another Vampyre."
"It should be easy for her to see the glory of Mani's light then." I mused. "As for us, our corps will sent on liberation missions to various locales around the Peninsula. Our priorities are Mazi and Kasia, followed by Brybs and Rhar. Before that, however, we must get acquainted with our Uma."
"Indeed." Lady Nyella hummed. "I too am excited to see how Sir Edward's work has improved. I will be sure to stay in touch."
After ensuring our connection over the network was secure, a quick prayer to Mani saw us go our separate ways. By the time I arrived in our portion of the world, the Legionaries-to-be had already gathered our items and Lady Nyella had already descended on her Moonrunner. Thus we followed, leaving the barracks and other structures for our counterparts in the Order, like my mirror, Lawrence Griffon.
Entering the Uma was like returning to a childhood home. A massive one. Stairs built into the leg brought us into the city-sized entrance at the thorax, wherein a homely foyer and staging area waited to greet us, overlooked by a temple and witch hut in the distance.
We took to exploring at once, finding a district of crew and all the other essentials scattered throughout the abdomen to the rear, with access points to the hangars, spell-gunner pods, and other military structures in the wings.
Post-tour, we took some time to make our claims on real estate and become attuned without our divine technology, arcane power, and the divine gifts we'd been given to bring us closer to our soon-to-be Goddess, the Silverskin Lady.
When all was said and done, mere minutes had passed in the realm outside. Yet every one of us was refreshed and primed to continue our divine work. Thus we gathered in the great temple of our new home for a sermon before relocating to the hangar bays deep in the wings for the final inspection.
Comprised of members from each organization, the corps were carefully selected to provide support to the other Legions in times of war and wage wars on our own. Not to mention to facilitate our overall purpose. Thus I gazed upon our units with the most pride I'd had since my liberation.
I looked them each in their eyes, radiant with silver fire, as I inspected their gear, offering words of encouragement and words from our God as I went down the line. And with a final salute, they were on their way, needing no words to convey their conviction to face the trials ahead.
The first Corps was that of the Crescent Bloodmoon. Led by Vilis and Riordan, members of the Silverhorn Herd, they were a standard light combat unit comprised of every class in the book, and like every Agent of the Bloodmoon, they had been trained to be exceptional at everything, and bad at nothing.
With praise, they gathered in their round pods of metals and ceramics and were launched out to the lands of Kasia to liberate those taken by orc or goblin-kind, and those unjustly imprisoned by the humanoids they shared their lands with.
The second Corps was that of the Full Bloodmoon. Led by Alya and Fortuyn, members of the Bloodmoon Pack, they were a standard heavy combat unit that favored larger, heftier versions of the Moonrunner Lady Zakira received so long ago. So too, however, did they have a burlier version of the 'powered armor' worn by many of us; modeled of course, after the legendary armor worn by the Silverskin Lady.
With reverence, they eased into their vehicles and descended to the lands of the Mazi Council, hidden under a misty veil until the time came to strike.
The third Corps was that of the Half Bloodmoon. Led by Volodya and Gail, members of Blue Pod, they were a rapid response unit that favored weaponized variants of the Moonrunner. With them, they favored striking fast and striking hard, leaving our enemies with not a clue as to where they would strike next whilst also supporting the other corps with reconnaissance, overwatch, and surveillance.
With pride, they mounted their grav-bikes and raced to Rhar, using their divine machines to outpace the elves and bring the humans they left to suffer to greater heights.
The fourth and final Corps was that of the New Bloodmoon. Led by Sanford and Castilla, both Oracles, they were a mage support unit who weaponized the arcane arts of divination and often merged them with other spellcraft, creating spells that attacked the mind with illusions and dreams rather than the body with arcane fire and ice.
With humility, they took to the skies, flying to Brybs with the utmost haste to bring those who wished for a better life out of the sinking country and through the warring kingdoms.
With worship to our Eternal God, we saw them off and had our Uma take to the skies while we relocated to the Silverblood Chamber in the head of our vessel, wherein we gazed upon the boundless glory of our God, spread across the Peninsula.
Until we were interrupted by a familiar voice and turned to see our Goddess, not in the flesh, but comprised of water, stone, and air held together and animated with Moonlight.
"Look what I can do!" Giggled the Silverskin Lady.