OCTOBER 1 TO NOVEMBER 30, 2012: THE ILUMINATI & THE LUMINOUS APOCRYPHA
At exactly 11:59 PM, GMT, all communication networks within the World of Light received the same transmission at exactly the same time, in their respective languages: an extensive, hour-long record that walked through several world events, narrated by a mysterious entity that introduced himself as Aleph. It deconstructed the events, systematically proving that they were caused by mirror events in “the World of Darkness” – that is, the dark world of supernatural creatures that has co-existed with the so-called “real world” since the beginning of time.
Aleph’s initial documentary was met with cynicism. However, he – and, on occasion, other members of the “Iluminati”, whom he called “his allies” – continued to make their broadcasts, always timing it at exactly 11:59 PM, and always succeeding in getting their “documentaries” on air, defying any attempt – government or otherwise – at shutting them down. Furthermore, all of the documentaries after the first began to involve chillingly accurate predictions of future world events. They also accurately alluded to upheavals in the World of Darkness, a move that horrified the denizens beyond the Veil – especially the world’s many different conspiracies, and supernatural communities. It was not long before scholars around the world began referring to the collection of documentaries as the “Luminous Apocrypha”, a name that was a throwback both to the Iluminati and to the “forgotten” books of the Bible.
By November 1, the Iluminati had the world’s attention, for better or for worse. With the strange exceptions of Netsach and Zangyaku (Aidan Clayce, then leader of Netsach, had ordered his Hunters to let the Iluminati do as they please; Hikaru Shinta, in deference to Aidan, had his operatives do the same), all other groups beyond the Veil had been working on overtime in the previous month, covering up whatever they could. But it wasn’t working out nearly as well for them as it should have.
The last broadcast of the Iluminati occurred on November 30. It ended with a date – December 21, 2012 – and a personal promise from Aleph: “Through my eyes, the world will know the truth.”
NOVEMBER 30, 2012: THE FIRST SUMMIT AT FALNER ESTATE
While the World of Light was watching Aleph, Voidseeker Aidan Clayce – Leader of Netsach – gathered all of the Keepers of the Vigil and supernatural political groups of the world together at the Adamantine Arrow Headquarters within the Falner Forest. Two things were discussed: a temporary alliance between all of the Keepers, and the strategy behind their final strike against Nyx.
This would be the only time in human history when all of the Keepers of the Vigil willingly came together against a single enemy, united because of a single goal: preserving the Balance between the World of Darkness and the World of Light rather than favoring the existence of one over the other.
DECEMBER 2-3, 2012: OPERATION NYX
The conspiracies of the Fifth World, headed by Netsach and Zangyaku, gathered around the Unnamed Tower, consolidated their forces, and proceeded to engage Nyx head on. Nyx is, was, and always will be the complete manifestation of the despair and wrath of the death of a universe: she is the Apocalypse embodied, and a “natural” force that occurs whenever it is time to close the door on the current universe and clear the way for the birth of a new one. She had, however, manifested far too early due a critical imbalance between the World of Darkness and the World of Light. As such, the leaders of the conspiracies had decreed that they had to fight her off and give the Fifth World a little more time to set things right for itself.
The grueling two-day operation ended successfully, with a casualty count well into the thousands, and even more missing. Soon after the allied forces pulled out, the Unnamed Tower – formerly Nyx’s prison – collapsed, and most of the Broken City (its location within the Borderline) disappeared long with it. Unfortunately, the allied forces were not able to recover many of their lost comrades before the place collapsed. The final death count, by December 4, 2012, numbered at 3,210. This is not counting the related incidents that occurred in the World of Light, as a result of the massive upheaval caused by Nyx’s mere presence.
DECEMBER 5, 2012: THE END OF THE AGE OF THE DRAGON
The Malice Kings of Netsach unanimously voted in the new leader of their conspiracy: Liandrin Delacroix, an Archmage of the Path of Mastigos. They also voted, 8 to 1, in favor of having Aidan Clayce – for the first time since the beginnings of the Fifth World – to “take a vacation and leave the rest of us to save the world instead”.
DECEMBER 7, 2012: THE SECOND SUMMIT AT FALNER ESTATE
After some consultation with the other Malice Kings, Liandrin summoned the leaders of the remnants of what was now affectionately dubbed “the anti-Nyx alliance”. She reminded the conspiracies of the Iluminati Apocrypha, and attempted to reach an agreement: that the Balance must be preserved.
The meeting lasted for over eighteen hours. By the end of it, the only conspiracies who agreed to help were Zangyaku, Aegis Kai Doru, Network Zero, and the Methuselah. Furthermore, many of the political groups within the supernatural communities – with the exception of the Mage Orders, and the Order of the Grateful Dead – were unwilling to lend their assistance.
DECEMBER 21, 2012: THE DEATH NOT OF THE WORLD, BUT OF IGNORANCE
At 11:59 PM, as promised, Aleph appeared on the Fifth World’s communication networks. This was his last recorded documentary, and it started with an unveiling of the Iluminati. Aleph revealed who he and the three other members were (four of the five embodiments of the Watchtowers in the Supernal Realms), and then proceeded to give the World of Light an extensive introduction to the World of Darkness – something he had only briefly touched upon in previous documentaries for his “real world” audience. The last section of the documentary was a collection of the footage gathered by Cody Verges, a member of Network Zero, during Operation Nyx. Aleph ended with the following statement: “These individuals, mortal and supernatural, fought to protect your future. Seek the truth: let the new age begin.”
Right after the transmission, it is said that Liandrin – acting with Riley’s blessing – came to Aidan, and asked him to serve as her second. Their conversation ended in two sentences:
“Forgive me, sir, but I’ll need to cut your vacation short a little earlier than planned.”
“It’s fine. I was never good at vacations anyway.”
DECEMBER 22 TO DECEMBER 31, 2012: THE BREAKING OF THE VEIL
All hell broke loose directly after the last of the Iluminati Apocrypha documentaries. People were asking questions, governments reeled under the onslaught of an explosion of paranoia and violence across the globe. Members of the different supernatural communities scrambled to take cover. Compacts and conspiracies – depending on their inclination – attempted to parade the Aleph’s truth, prevent the Veil from breaking through violent suppression, or protect both sides by focusing on damage control and minimizing casualties.
By December 29, a few governments were in shambles, and the strength of many of the world’s compacts and conspiracies was greatly reduced. Furthermore, a great amount of death and destruction occurred on both sides, far greater than what had occurred during Operation Nyx.
Things turned around on December 30. The Malice Kings, the Searing Wind, and recently reinstated Wiseman Maeniel Gemini – exasperated by the lack of cooperation, and pushed well beyond the point of attempting more amicable solutions – led the best operatives that Netsach, Zangyaku and the Methuselah had to offer began to systematically suppress the dissidents with god-like shows of force. Interestingly enough, this suppression did not cause a single death.
JANUARY 1 TO JANUARY 7, 2013: PAX DEORUM MEETING 001, THE PHILIPPINE SUMMIT
First thing in the morning of the New Year, the leaders of the United Nations held its first meeting with the Methuselah, Netsach, and Zangyaku in Manila, the capital of the Republic of the Philippines. A number of leaders from other conspiracies – namely Aegis Kai Doru – and representatives from supernatural political groups were also present. A greater number, however, boycotted the meeting entirely.
Tensions were incredibly high during the first two days. Many resented the events of December 30 – some historians rightfully believe, in fact, that the only reason why the Summit occurred was because mankind had been virtually cowed into submission by three major conspiracies. Nevertheless, after extensive debates, the congregation managed to come to an agreement: the Veil was broken, the world was a much bigger and much more frightening place than mankind had ever imagined, and the only way to proceed from there on was to cooperate with each other as best as they could. The entire group was given a name – Pax Deorum – and the agenda of this new congregation was simple: working on reforms to help a changed world get to a better place.
no subject
At exactly 11:59 PM, GMT, all communication networks within the World of Light received the same transmission at exactly the same time, in their respective languages: an extensive, hour-long record that walked through several world events, narrated by a mysterious entity that introduced himself as Aleph. It deconstructed the events, systematically proving that they were caused by mirror events in “the World of Darkness” – that is, the dark world of supernatural creatures that has co-existed with the so-called “real world” since the beginning of time.
Aleph’s initial documentary was met with cynicism. However, he – and, on occasion, other members of the “Iluminati”, whom he called “his allies” – continued to make their broadcasts, always timing it at exactly 11:59 PM, and always succeeding in getting their “documentaries” on air, defying any attempt – government or otherwise – at shutting them down. Furthermore, all of the documentaries after the first began to involve chillingly accurate predictions of future world events. They also accurately alluded to upheavals in the World of Darkness, a move that horrified the denizens beyond the Veil – especially the world’s many different conspiracies, and supernatural communities. It was not long before scholars around the world began referring to the collection of documentaries as the “Luminous Apocrypha”, a name that was a throwback both to the Iluminati and to the “forgotten” books of the Bible.
By November 1, the Iluminati had the world’s attention, for better or for worse. With the strange exceptions of Netsach and Zangyaku (Aidan Clayce, then leader of Netsach, had ordered his Hunters to let the Iluminati do as they please; Hikaru Shinta, in deference to Aidan, had his operatives do the same), all other groups beyond the Veil had been working on overtime in the previous month, covering up whatever they could. But it wasn’t working out nearly as well for them as it should have.
The last broadcast of the Iluminati occurred on November 30. It ended with a date – December 21, 2012 – and a personal promise from Aleph: “Through my eyes, the world will know the truth.”
While the World of Light was watching Aleph, Voidseeker Aidan Clayce – Leader of Netsach – gathered all of the Keepers of the Vigil and supernatural political groups of the world together at the Adamantine Arrow Headquarters within the Falner Forest. Two things were discussed: a temporary alliance between all of the Keepers, and the strategy behind their final strike against Nyx.
This would be the only time in human history when all of the Keepers of the Vigil willingly came together against a single enemy, united because of a single goal: preserving the Balance between the World of Darkness and the World of Light rather than favoring the existence of one over the other.
The conspiracies of the Fifth World, headed by Netsach and Zangyaku, gathered around the Unnamed Tower, consolidated their forces, and proceeded to engage Nyx head on. Nyx is, was, and always will be the complete manifestation of the despair and wrath of the death of a universe: she is the Apocalypse embodied, and a “natural” force that occurs whenever it is time to close the door on the current universe and clear the way for the birth of a new one. She had, however, manifested far too early due a critical imbalance between the World of Darkness and the World of Light. As such, the leaders of the conspiracies had decreed that they had to fight her off and give the Fifth World a little more time to set things right for itself.
The grueling two-day operation ended successfully, with a casualty count well into the thousands, and even more missing. Soon after the allied forces pulled out, the Unnamed Tower – formerly Nyx’s prison – collapsed, and most of the Broken City (its location within the Borderline) disappeared long with it. Unfortunately, the allied forces were not able to recover many of their lost comrades before the place collapsed. The final death count, by December 4, 2012, numbered at 3,210. This is not counting the related incidents that occurred in the World of Light, as a result of the massive upheaval caused by Nyx’s mere presence.
The Malice Kings of Netsach unanimously voted in the new leader of their conspiracy: Liandrin Delacroix, an Archmage of the Path of Mastigos. They also voted, 8 to 1, in favor of having Aidan Clayce – for the first time since the beginnings of the Fifth World – to “take a vacation and leave the rest of us to save the world instead”.
After some consultation with the other Malice Kings, Liandrin summoned the leaders of the remnants of what was now affectionately dubbed “the anti-Nyx alliance”. She reminded the conspiracies of the Iluminati Apocrypha, and attempted to reach an agreement: that the Balance must be preserved.
The meeting lasted for over eighteen hours. By the end of it, the only conspiracies who agreed to help were Zangyaku, Aegis Kai Doru, Network Zero, and the Methuselah. Furthermore, many of the political groups within the supernatural communities – with the exception of the Mage Orders, and the Order of the Grateful Dead – were unwilling to lend their assistance.
At 11:59 PM, as promised, Aleph appeared on the Fifth World’s communication networks. This was his last recorded documentary, and it started with an unveiling of the Iluminati. Aleph revealed who he and the three other members were (four of the five embodiments of the Watchtowers in the Supernal Realms), and then proceeded to give the World of Light an extensive introduction to the World of Darkness – something he had only briefly touched upon in previous documentaries for his “real world” audience. The last section of the documentary was a collection of the footage gathered by Cody Verges, a member of Network Zero, during Operation Nyx. Aleph ended with the following statement: “These individuals, mortal and supernatural, fought to protect your future. Seek the truth: let the new age begin.”
Right after the transmission, it is said that Liandrin – acting with Riley’s blessing – came to Aidan, and asked him to serve as her second. Their conversation ended in two sentences:
“Forgive me, sir, but I’ll need to cut your vacation short a little earlier than planned.”
“It’s fine. I was never good at vacations anyway.”
All hell broke loose directly after the last of the Iluminati Apocrypha documentaries. People were asking questions, governments reeled under the onslaught of an explosion of paranoia and violence across the globe. Members of the different supernatural communities scrambled to take cover. Compacts and conspiracies – depending on their inclination – attempted to parade the Aleph’s truth, prevent the Veil from breaking through violent suppression, or protect both sides by focusing on damage control and minimizing casualties.
By December 29, a few governments were in shambles, and the strength of many of the world’s compacts and conspiracies was greatly reduced. Furthermore, a great amount of death and destruction occurred on both sides, far greater than what had occurred during Operation Nyx.
Things turned around on December 30. The Malice Kings, the Searing Wind, and recently reinstated Wiseman Maeniel Gemini – exasperated by the lack of cooperation, and pushed well beyond the point of attempting more amicable solutions – led the best operatives that Netsach, Zangyaku and the Methuselah had to offer began to systematically suppress the dissidents with god-like shows of force. Interestingly enough, this suppression did not cause a single death.
First thing in the morning of the New Year, the leaders of the United Nations held its first meeting with the Methuselah, Netsach, and Zangyaku in Manila, the capital of the Republic of the Philippines. A number of leaders from other conspiracies – namely Aegis Kai Doru – and representatives from supernatural political groups were also present. A greater number, however, boycotted the meeting entirely.
Tensions were incredibly high during the first two days. Many resented the events of December 30 – some historians rightfully believe, in fact, that the only reason why the Summit occurred was because mankind had been virtually cowed into submission by three major conspiracies. Nevertheless, after extensive debates, the congregation managed to come to an agreement: the Veil was broken, the world was a much bigger and much more frightening place than mankind had ever imagined, and the only way to proceed from there on was to cooperate with each other as best as they could. The entire group was given a name – Pax Deorum – and the agenda of this new congregation was simple: working on reforms to help a changed world get to a better place.