The Empyreon Age

by Guran

The Age of Madness

Numbering in the thousands, the elves regained control over Orkfia. The world was finally free from the chains that bound it to its dark past. The future seemed bright at this new dawn. Leaders rose from the elves to give Orkfia the prosperity it deserved. Hope bloomed from the forest city of Aelias and spread out, surfing on rays of sunlight towards the human strongholds that stood as guardians on barren plains.

Together with the new dawn, new questions rose. Being immortal, the almighty elves grew curious after the death that was feared by man. Approaching doom for one, a mystery for the other. A desire to know what existed beyond the veil of night. So began the experiments, led by lord Astorsun. A foul time came upon them with crimes to terrible to name. The chains of life were shattered and spread throughout all the corners of the wind. Death had lost the strugle during the “experiment”. Soul and body had been divided, a crime against nature, a cheating of death, the birth of the cursed races.

Since his first succes Astorsun had changed. From a curious young leader he became a wicked, paranoid maniac. Every breath he drew felt colder. With every step he took he looked over his shoulder. As though some shadow chased him every day. Soon he and his followers learned that it was not a seed of madness: they had become mortals.

Fear. That was what roared in the head of Astorsun. He had conquered death by humans but created his own. In his grieving despair he sunk to his knees, thinking. Then he rallied his followers and left to live in the darkness. No one heard from him for over a century. The high elves had accepted that all the mortal elves would be gone by now. Even the wise mage Azedor had banished Astorsun out of his memories, the elf who had once been his best student. They had banned the experiments, but could not hide the results for the world.

A deepgrown hatred against the elves was seeded within the hearts of the cursed, beings beyond life or death marched against the elves. Resulting in a war with no end, a war where no-one could be killed. Immortals can't kill what is already dead. And whats already dead can't kill something that's immortal.

As if the elves did not have enough trouble on their minds, somewhere in a dark forest the aged Astorsun gazed at the night sky, filled with anger and envy. A lust for bloodshed claimed control over his heart. He wanted judgement, judgement in his own twisted ways.

The “high” elves had to pay for their eternal life while he waited for a slowly aproaching death. But he couldn't do it alone. His forces, more poweful than before, were still too small to take on the main elven army. So he approached the human lords in those hard times. Manipulating the truth about the cursed races, he claimed that they were created by the high elves. And that the experiments were still going on. The march that followed gave birth to the seed of madness. The great elven war took place, bringing cruel things to the world of Orkfia. It is said that the orks were created during this war, by means that were meant as retaliation, but turned out to be nothing but cruelty. The curtains of madness had fallen.

Written for Orkfia Classic.

Last updated: February 2012