Not long after the deaths of Gabriel and Abdiel, the Seraphim Mikal, Uriel, and Maya led a group of their brethren to confront Mephistopheles. To this day, no one knows who attacked whom first, but almost immediately the two sides found themselves in pitched battle, and the Great Schism was begun in earnest.
Lesser angels and demons began genesing as many of their kind as they could safely create without jeopardizing their own existence, seeking to bolster their ranks as the war flared to ever-greater levels of violence and destruction. All moral questions and quandaries among the angels about the propriety and presumption of genesing another immortal quickly vanished.
IV. The Sundering
Scholars hold that the wildly different visions of Pleroma were a major factor in the Sundering of Pleroma during the Great Schism. An elven scholar once stated “A leaf cannot be all green and all brown at the same time,” and this seems as eloquent a way as any of stating that a thing is what it is, and it cannot be two contradictory things at once. As angels coalesced around one shared vision of Pleroma and the demons another, it’s thought that the very fabric of existence began to tear.
What few records exist from the times of the Great Schism (most of which still predates recorded history) indicate that the Sundering was an action conceived of by the Seraph Maya, who was quickly becoming one of the most powerful angels in Pleroma. Using the differing visions of reality and augmented by power drawn from the Throne of God itself, the Seraphim combined their abilities and split the infinite realm of existence in half. The resulting division opened a hole into the nether,[45] and the lands under demonic control were hurled into a separate, parallel plane of existence.
The desolate lands experienced by the demons were already known as Hell. The demon prince Kaelus once told his angelic companions, Mikal and Raphael, that Mephistopheles had chosen the name based on the immortal word hel, which roughly translates to “the lower realm” or “underworld”. Kaelus claims the demon king was fostering the view among his early followers that they were perceived as less than the angels, deliberately stoking resentment and drawing them further under his power.
After the Sundering, the cloudlike landscape of the angels became known as Heaven, from the immortal word heven for “sky”. The name was first put forward by Maya, who claimed the name came to her as divine inspiration. Since no one came forward to gainsay or dispute her claim, and as none of them had felt any other such inclinations from God in opposition to this, her word as adopted and became universally recognized.
An unanticipated side-effect of the Sundering (to any but the minds of the divine, that is) was the Creation of the mortal realm. A new plane of existence, a place of pure corporeality, came into being, its existence centered around one particular celestial body that was somehow linked to both Heaven and Hell. Though few angels or demons paid any attention to this new realm for what is now believed to be millions of years (perhaps more), the central world of Lokka would eventually develop a new phenomenon that would draw the eyes of angels and demons alike: life.
Author’s Note
About the only thing I love more than writing is being a husband and father. Thanks to my brothers, I started playing Dungeons & Dragons sometime around the second grade and read my first real fantasy book a year later. I blame them for my fervent love of a genre that’s come so far just in my lifetime, and I can’t help but feel like it’s a little arrogant of me to offer my own work into the world for your enjoyment. I love these books, and my hope is that if you’re sticking with me, you think they’re pretty damn cool, too.
Learn more about the Pandemonium War saga at www.PandemoniumWar.com, including chapter-by-chapter annotations for each book in the series.
Satan’s Gambit
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[1] - An account from paladin Draiya Corlotta of the Orange Facet, recorded one week (as time passes on the immortal plane) after admittance to Heaven. (1012 AM)
[2] - For a full account of these events, see Volume 2 of The Barrier War, The Devil’s Deuce.
[3] - In the immortal tongue, the word kythe means “to make known to,” as in sharing one’s thoughts. Many denarae can read the minds of other denarae and of humans, and a smaller segment of the population can project their thoughts into another’s mind as well.
[4] - Capital city and home of the Prismatic Order. The name is derived from the dwarven word for “anvil”.
[5] - All non-humans are grouped under the term “demi-human.” Dwarves and gnomes are also called halflings by the taller races of the world.
[6] - A jintaal consists of one paladin from each of the six primary Facets of the Prismatic Order. For more information, see Appendix C in Volume 2 of The Barrier War, The Devil’s Deuce.
[7] - Asolving and dekinting refer to revealing and concealing evidence of immortal heritage. Documentation from the ancient Merging War indicates immortal angels dekinting their wings and appearing as humans, then asolving to resume their glorious, Heavenly appearance.
[8] - The essence of an immortal’s existence. It is roughly equivalent to a mortal’s soul, but an immortal’s āyus is also the determinant of their strength and individual sense of self. The exact nature of the āyus in a half-immortal is still being studied.
[9] - The “Stone Book of Life” – the dwarven holy book, originally written during the Dark Ages prior to the Epiphany and the Age of Lords. Many translations have been written since, some considered contradictory to others.
[10] - For details, see Volume 1 of The Barrier War, Hunting The Three.
[11] - A term used to indicate demons who have drawn power from the death and blood of mortals. The blood is not necessarily consumed by the demon, in some cases mere contact seems to be enough. Some demons even seem to feed solely on the terror and emotions of their prey, ignoring the physical body altogether. Little is known about the phenomenon, as it would be impossible to study in a controlled environment without disturbing and inhumane actions.
[12] - One of the Choirs of angels. The list includes Seraphim, Dominions, Powers, Cherubim, Erelim, Parasim, and Sarim. Seraphim are generally the most powerful angels in Heaven, but there are very few in number.
[13] - A mysterious religious radical, true identity unknown at this time. In the immortal tongue, the name translates: “the wind of truth”.
[14] - An alternate spelling of “Satan,” this is technically the correct spelling of his name in the immortal tongue. The name “Shaitan” was corrupted and altered over time and now appears as “Satan” in mortal languages.
[15] - A sort of contest of will (or āyus) between two immortals. It is theorized that this effect can also occur between an angel and a demon, but experimentation has proven impossible given the inherent separation and animosity between the two species of immortals. This sole instance is the first known incident between an angel and a demon since before the Great Schism, but because of the unique nature of the Gray paladin Birch, no definitive conclusions can be drawn at this time.
[16] - The immortal word “Amen” is traditionally used to close prayers in the mortal world as a statement of affirmation. The word literally translates to “truth, certainly” in the human tongue, but as with the entire immortal language, the literal words only begin to express the complete meaning of a word or phrase.
[17] - A famous human tactician who lived in Merishank during the Eighth Century AM. Tiulk Hanzri was born physically crippled and never held a weapon in his life, but he was responsible for much of the strategy used during his lifetime and for centuries afterward.
[18] - The structures in Heaven are crafted almost exclusively from angelstone, a substance unique to the holy immortal plane. It most closely resembles white marble, but cannot be damaged except by a cursed artifact or demonic touch. To an angel powerful enough, the stone is as malleable as soft clay. The Ash’Ailant Stones that maintained the Barrier were made of angelstone and colored to match the Facets of the Prism.
[19] - Sections of the holy ci
ty, analogous to the “sectors” or “quadrants” into which mortals often divide their cities. Research into the complete history of the empyreans is still incomplete, but there are indications that each was once overseen by a powerful angel.
[20] - A demon-worshipping cult founded during the Age of Lords, primarily based in the lands west of present-day Nocka. The Prismatic Order was originally founded as a means of combatting them and stemming the influence of their teachings.
[21] - A hierarchical ranking of angels in Heaven by type and power. Angels are not separated by breed or species, as demons are. Instead, based on the strength of their āyus and their function in Heaven, they exist in one of the Choir rankings. It is possible for an angels to move from one Choir to another, but it’s extremely rare.
[22] - Translated from the original elven for use in Yellow Facet training. The exact date of its writing is unknown, as the author died before its publication. The finished manuscript was found amongst his belongings and translated at the request of the Yellow Facet.
[23] - The word for “holy warrior” or “paladin” in the immortal tongue.
[24] - The immortal term for their method of reproduction. An existing angel or demon divides its āyus asexually and, in the case of demons, creates another of its kind. (With angels, the newly formed angel’s Choir would be determined by the relative strength it possessed upon creation. For more information, see Appendix E) The new immortal is genesed fully-formed and does not undergo any form of infancy, but depending on the amount of strength the original immortal imparts from its āyus, the newly formed being may be quite weak and incapable of forming a definite, individual personality until it grows in strength.
[25] - This no doubt refers to General Ethan Bryce, who commanded the Horam Imperial Army in the Third Century AL during the First Heretics War in the east. Twenty years after the general’s death, the empire began to dissolve from within and was subsequently overrun and destroyed forever at the onset of the Second Heretics War.
[26] - This phenomenon has yet to be properly researched, although theories abound. In general, substances in Heaven (and presumably in Hell) seem to obey different laws of reality than are observed in the mortal realm. Physical states of matter are less defined, which accounts for the solid ground seemingly made of clouds and the ability of immortals to travel faster than would seem physically possible. Indeed, the determining factor most often seems to be that of perception rather than an immutable law.
[27] - Translation: “For God! For Uriel!”
[28] - The River of Fury is an endless stream of liquid flames so intense that even most demons cannot bear prolonged exposure to its infernal presence. Its waters, when specially cursed, create the substance known as “Hellfire”.
[29] - Weapons, armor, and any other items created instantly by an angel or demon are crafted from the āyus of the immortal and are literally an extension of their being. Thus, more powerful immortals will create more powerful weapons and defenses, but against a foe who is still stronger, it can act as a liability; any damage incurred to the items is felt by the immortal directly as an attack on its āyus. Whenever possible, most immortals will prefer weapons and armor crafted by (immortal) smiths such as Dem. Uriel’s Sword of Light is among the most powerful weapons ever forged by the tripartite smith of Heaven.
[30] - Approximate translation: “To the childris we come, the dealers of death!”
[31] - The most powerful balrog in immortal history: though he was a demon lord, his strength rivaled that of Daella prior to the Great Schism. He disappeared during the Merging War and is presumed to be destroyed, though no immortal has claimed credit for his demise.
[32] - The deepest pit of Hell where the demon king resides.
[33] - Balrogs typically carry whips woven from strips cut from the flesh of the damned, or else from another demon. Demonic flesh is, of course, more powerful, and some balrogs even use their own flesh.
[34] - Prior to the Barrier War, gnomes on the main continent used only unpowered hang-gliders and hot-air balloons. It was only with the return of the Dale gnomes that propeller-powered aircraft and motorized gliders were revealed to the rest of the world. (See Volume 2 of The Pandemonium War, The Devil’s Deuce.)
[35] - Ancient gnomes did indeed have their own language, but it was abandoned for the more flexible human tongue before the Epiphany. The few scholars to make a serious study of the language have noted there was rarely more than one definition for any word, nor more than one word with the same or similar meaning. These limitations and the close trading associations with humans throughout history are thought to be the primary reasons the language died out.
[36] - Demonic possession is quite rare, and records indicate it is forbidden in beasts for the demon’s own safety. The immortal becomes bound by the physical limitations of the host animal, including its lack of sentience and intelligence, and supposedly any number of demons became trapped this way. Dragons are reputed to be much more intelligent, however, which presumably made them better hosts. Angelic records of this type of demonic activity are scant, and there are no known records of angels performing any similar possession on man or beast.
[37] - A metal found only in the immortal planes that, once forged, cannot be melted down or broken. Since the Great Schism, the substance has been almost impossible to find and work, and angelic scholars have posited it was a feature of Pleroma itself. Legendary weapons and armor were supposedly crafted from the metal and gifted to a few favored mortals, but all such artifacts have long since vanished in history.
[38] - The void between planes of existence.
[39] - The palace of Hell is one of the only things ever constructed from the substance known as demonstone. Mephistopheles forbade any to work with the stone without his express permission, and gifts of demonstone were doled out to favored underlings. The most famous piece of demonstone, aside from Mephistopheles’s palace itself, is the anvil at the Hellforge.
[40] - Translated from the original elven. Elven scholars insist the human translation does not do justice to the original. They refuse to even discuss translations in dwarven.
[41] - Excerpt from a memo from Orange Paladin Janek jo’Baerth (deceased) to the Seraph Mikal, High Seat of the Celestial Council, recorded in 1037 AM.
[42] - For more information, see Appendix D, sections III and IV.
[43] - The text presents the argument that had God intended more immortals, He would have created more, and thus taking such creation out of God’s hands was an impious and prideful act. The unknown author further claims that the “blame” for this act was cast on Yariel to cover up such an act by the paragon of Heaven, Gabriel.
[44] - For more information on the shared physical preferences of the angelic Choirs, see Appendix D, section III.
[45] - The void between planes of existence.
Satan's Gambit (The Barrier War Book 3) Page 67