In the beginning...
In the beginning...
'History is written by the victors...'
In the beginning, God created angels to shape and enact His will upon all of Creation. These celestial beings were divided into seven Houses, each assigned distinct duties to ensure the harmony and perfection of the universe. The Namaru were the bearers of God's light and will, serving as leaders and heralds of divine commands. They spread the light of Heaven to every corner of Creation and orchestrated the efforts of the entire Celestial Host in shaping God’s Grand Design. The Asharu were the angels of the firmament, controlling the winds and weather, and bringing healing to the sick. The Lammasu were responsible for bringing beauty and inspiration to the world, creating art and fostering dreams.
Humanity, God's final masterpiece, was bestowed with a unique divine spark—a soul—that not even the mightiest of angels possessed. This soul gave humans creativity, free will, and the potential for both great good and great evil. The angels were commanded to love humanity and to remain hidden from them, watching over them from afar without direct interference. However, as centuries passed, the angels grew increasingly troubled by the ignorance and suffering of humans, who wandered the earth like beasts, unaware of their divine potential.
The Annunaki were the builders and crafters of the world, shaping earth and stone into marvelous forms. They began to see the potential for humanity to cultivate and transform the earth, if only they were given the knowledge and power to do so. This desire to help humanity reach its full potential led to a growing discontent among some angels. The Neberu, keepers of knowledge and masters of portals, also began to advocate for revealing divine secrets to humanity to foster their growth and understanding.
After much debate and growing frustration, a faction of angels, led by the brilliant and charismatic Lucifer of the Namaru, decided to break God's commandment and reveal themselves to humanity. They believed that by sharing divine knowledge and power, they could uplift humanity, helping them to realize their full potential and create a world of unparalleled beauty and wisdom. Lucifer, known as the Lightbringer, argued passionately that humanity's suffering was a result of their ignorance and that it was the duty of the angels to enlighten them.
Lucifer's followers, drawn from various Houses, each brought their unique gifts to aid in this endeavor. The Asharu shared their knowledge of healing and life, teaching humans how to cultivate crops and cure diseases. The Halaku taught humans the importance of respecting the natural cycle, instilling rituals and practices to honor the dead. The Rabisu were the rulers of wild things, shaping flora and fauna and guiding the natural world according to the divine plan. They revealed the secrets of the natural world to humanity, showing them how to live in harmony with nature.
This act of rebellion, born from a profound love for humanity, was seen as a grave sin by God. The angels' defiance fractured the divine order and set the stage for an epic conflict between those who remained loyal to God's command and those who followed Lucifer in his quest to uplift mankind. The stage was set for a celestial war that would forever change the course of Creation.
Lucifer's rebellion aimed to uplift humanity by granting them creativity, understanding, and sentience. However, this defiance brought swift condemnation. In the early days of Creation, the angels existed before mankind, serving as the caretakers and shapers of the universe. Their actions and presence predated even the formation of the first humans, Adam and Eve, who lived in the paradisiacal Eden, unaware of their full potential.
When Lucifer and his followers revealed divine knowledge to humanity, it caused a monumental shift. This act of enlightenment was perceived as a grave sin by God. An angel from Heaven descended and cursed both the rebellious angels and humanity, introducing mortality, disease, and greed. The once-immortal Adam and Eve were stripped of their immortality with a single word, forced to labor for their sustenance, marking the beginning of human suffering and toil.
Despite the curse, the rebel angels remained resolute in their love for humanity. They continued their defiance, which escalated into a full-scale war with Heaven. The first murder, committed by Caine, the third mortal, against his brother Abel, further darkened this period. Caine's act of fratricide unleashed a storm of violence that resonated through Creation, symbolizing the corruption and decay brought on by rebellion.
The war, known as the War of Wrath, was not merely a celestial conflict but also involved the mortal followers of the rebellious angels. As the angelic hosts clashed, their human adherents were drawn into bloody battles, their lives intertwined with the cosmic struggle. This war shattered the perfection of Creation, introducing entropy and the gradual winding down of reality itself. The once-harmonious universe became a battleground of opposing forces, each side vying for dominance.
Genhinnom, the grand city built by Lucifer, became a central stronghold for the rebel angels. Nestled in the Valley of Tears, it stood as a testament to their defiance and hubris. The city, originally intended to house Adam and Eve, became a symbol of the rebellion. As the war raged, the city and its inhabitants bore witness to the escalating atrocities and the sorrow that came with the prolonged conflict.
Amidst this turmoil, the impact on humanity was profound. Adam and Eve, once innocent and ignorant, were cast out into the desolate world. Their descendants, including Caine and his progeny, lived in a world marked by struggle and suffering. The legacy of the rebellion and the war left an indelible mark on humanity, shaping their history and destiny in ways that echoed through the ages.
The rebellion led by Lucifer and his followers against Heaven was a conflict of unprecedented scale and ferocity, known as the War of Wrath. This celestial war was marked by intense battles between the rebellious angels and the loyalists, with humanity caught in the crossfire. The rebels, inspired by their love for humanity, sought to uplift mankind by sharing divine knowledge and power. However, this defiance against God's command fractured the divine order, setting the stage for a protracted and bloody conflict.
The war raged on for years, with both sides suffering heavy losses. Lucifer's forces were initially successful in many engagements, using their knowledge of Creation to craft powerful weapons and strategies. The Mummu, artificers and weapon-smiths of the rebel host, created cursed treasures and tools of war that led to several memorable victories. Despite these successes, the war took a toll on the rebels' nobility, and cruelty became commonplace among their ranks.
Michael, the archangel and leader of Heaven's forces, played a pivotal role in the conflict. He was relentless in his pursuit of justice, leading numerous assaults against the rebels. In a significant battle high above Eden, Michael and Lucifer clashed in a titanic struggle. Although Lucifer managed to hold his own, the battle ultimately highlighted the futility of the rebels' cause. Michael's divine wrath was unstoppable, and his forces began to gain the upper hand.
As the war dragged on, the rebels' strength waned. The loyalist angels constructed high cities, including Machonon, the stronghold of Michael, which remained impregnable throughout the conflict. The tides turned further against the rebels with the failure of the Grand Experiment, Lucifer's last-ditch effort to shift the balance of power by accelerating humanity's growth and harnessing their collective power. This plan ultimately backfired, leading to the collapse of the Civilization of Ashes and leaving the rebel host vulnerable to Heaven's counterattacks.
In the final days of the War of Wrath, the rebels were overwhelmed by the combined might of Heaven's forces. The perfection of Creation was shattered, and the rebels were driven back. Michael, embodying divine retribution, dispensed justice upon the rebels. Despite their efforts, the rebels lost the war and were cast into the Abyss, a prison of eternal torment. Bound in chains, they endured millennia of isolation, sensing the world's sufferings but powerless to intervene. Their once noble visions transformed into dreams of terrible revenge, fueled by their perpetual state of anguish and regret.
The Abyss was a cold, empty void devoid of anything but the fallen angels themselves. With no material to work with, they were left only with their memories and regrets, leading many to madness. The absence of Lucifer, the one spirit who might have inspired them to endure, deepened their despair. The fallen angels' anger and hatred grew, turning them into beings consumed by a desire for vengeance against God and humanity.
Throughout their imprisonment, the fallen could still sense the sufferings of the world, but were powerless to intervene. This perpetual state of anguish and regret festered, transforming their once noble visions into dreams of terrible revenge. The fallen were bound in chains and consigned to an eternal prison, where they endured millennia of torment and isolation. Many of the strongest among them surrendered to visions of anger, consumed by their hatred and bitterness.
During their confinement, there were times when it seemed as though the walls of their prison might fall. Five times since their imprisonment, a storm of terrible power, known as a Maelstrom, raged across the spirit realm and battered against the seals of the Abyss. Each time, the fallen believed their release was imminent, but each time they were wrong. They bathed in the hatred, fear, and pain of the dead, only to be left furious and despondent when the gates of the Abyss remained intact.
Eventually, however, the Maelstroms began to take their toll. In the midst of one particularly fierce storm, the fallen felt a surge in pain and ecstasy, sharper and more intense than before. They rushed to the barrier between Hell and the realm of the dead, determined to force their way out through the cracks that had begun to form. It was then they realized they could feel these souls with a clarity that had been denied to them since their imprisonment. The storm had created cracks in the barrier, wide enough for the smallest of the fallen to escape.
The sight of these cracks filled the fallen with a mix of hope, fear, and hatred. For the first time, they saw a way back to the world they had once known. The doors of Hell were open. While the cracks stayed resolutely open, with no divine intervention to close them, the fallen saw their chance to return to Earth. Their punishment, it seemed, was finally coming to an end.
After ages of confinement, cracks began to appear in the barriers of the Abyss, a result of immense spiritual upheavals in the mortal realm. The smallest of the fallen managed to escape through these fissures, driven by a command to free their masters. They emerged into a world vastly different from what they remembered—a place where humans had forgotten the lessons taught by the angels and had ravaged the earth.
The escaped demons found themselves in a modern world, their celestial essence diluted by the human hosts they inhabited. Confusion and identity struggles plagued them as they navigated their dual existence, torn between their angelic pasts and their human hosts' memories. As they acclimated to this new reality, some sought to continue Lucifer's mission, while others were driven by a desire for revenge against both God and humanity.
Emerging into the mortal world was not a simple task. The fallen had to find suitable vessels to inhabit. Many sought out the dead or comatose, whose souls had already vacated their bodies, making possession easier. However, some had to take more drastic measures, forcibly driving out the living souls to claim the body for themselves. This brutal process often left the host bodies scarred and broken, a reflection of the violent struggle that took place within.
As they settled into their new forms, the former angels now found their existences blended with that of their mortal hosts. In some cases, their divine memories were hard to access, and the power they once wielded was only a fraction of what they had before their imprisonment. The memory of their tormented imprisonment danced across their minds, an indelible mark left upon their once radiant beings, threatening to turn them into ravenous demons if they surrendered to the torment.
The overwhelming flood of human memories and sensations clashed with their ancient, divine recollections, creating intense confusion and disorientation. The demons had to adapt quickly to the modern world, which was a far cry from the one they had known before their imprisonment. Cities of steel and glass replaced the natural landscapes they once nurtured, and humanity, ignorant of their celestial heritage, lived disconnected from the divine. The fallen demons, now bound to their human vessels, were constantly at risk of being drawn back into the Abyss if their hold weakened. To avoid this, they had to maintain a delicate balance, using their hosts' memories to blend in while plotting their next moves.
In this dark new world, the fallen demons blended among humans, their true nature hidden but ever present, plotting their next moves in a landscape filled with shadows and whispers of the past. Some sought to rekindle the ancient mission to enlighten humanity, while others, driven by millennia of torment and hatred, yearned for revenge, seeing the modern world as a new battlefield for their eternal struggle against Heaven.
August 1, 2021
Tonight, in the heart of my domain, I, Lucien, Prince of the Ventrue, orchestrated the capture of a peculiar prey. My lackeys brought forth a man bound in chains, his aura radiating an unsettling power. He was no ordinary mortal, nor one of the kine we typically ensnare. The moment our eyes met, I knew: this was a Fallen.
His name, he claimed, was Azazel. A smirk played on his lips, a stark contrast to the fury burning in his eyes. The room grew colder as we faced each other, my lieutenants standing tense, awaiting my command. I circled him slowly, the air thick with the scent of fear and aggression. "You think you can challenge me, demon?" I hissed, my voice laced with centuries of authority and menace.
Azazel chuckled, the sound low and mocking. "Challenge you? No, vampire. I am not here to challenge. I am here to reclaim." His words dripped with contempt, and I felt an unfamiliar flicker of doubt. This was no ordinary adversary; his presence was a defiance against everything we, the undead, stood for.
I stepped closer, my fangs bared in a predatory grin. "You are in my territory now, Fallen. Your kind are nothing but myths to frighten children. Here, I am the darkness you should fear." I grabbed his chin, forcing him to meet my gaze. His eyes, however, held no fear, only an ancient, relentless rage.
"You, a creature of stolen blood, dare to speak of fear?" Azazel's voice was a growl, resonating with the weight of eons. "You know nothing of true damnation. Your curse is but a shadow of the torment we have endured." With a surge of inhuman strength, he broke free of his chains, the metal shattering like brittle glass.
The room erupted into chaos as my lieutenants moved to subdue him, but Azazel was a force of nature, an embodiment of wrath and defiance. I watched, a mixture of awe and fury boiling within me, as he effortlessly dispatched them. Finally, he turned to me, his expression one of grim satisfaction.
"This is not over, vampire. Your kind will soon learn the true meaning of despair." With those words, he vanished into the shadows, leaving behind a room filled with the groans of the wounded and the stench of broken pride.
I, Lucien, will not forget this night. The Fallen are real, and they walk among us with powers and grudges far beyond our comprehension. I must prepare for the war that Azazel foretold, for it is clear that our kindred are no longer the sole predators of the night.