Taros Cluster

Taros Cluster
Astrographic Information
Galaxy	Milky Way
Rim	Unknown Space
Quadrant	Delta
Grid	19F&G
Inhabited Planets	Aqorra Taros-Prime Thess Taros-1 Taros-1 B Taros-2 Taros-2 B Taros-5 Taros-5B (Binary) Taros-6 Taros-7 Taros-7B (Binary) Taros-8 Taros-10 The Core
Other Notable Objects	Advanced Information Analysis Unit
Societal Information
Population	100 Million
Immigrated Species	Elder Gods Builders of Hellae
Affiliation	Confederation of Tarosians High Priest's Fiefdom State of Teknis

The Taros Cluster is a group of several systems in Unknown Space created by Deities following the orders of the High Priest in 322. Notable for unusual evolutionary acceleration and meddling by the Elder Overseers, the Taros Cluster is a peculiar oddity among the various regions of the Milky Way Galaxy.

Primeval Era

The Contract

The High Priest contacted the lesser gods of the universe, ones whom he was strong enough to manipulate to his own whims. He played them like puppets, and manipulated them to create a series of systems which would soon be the throne of his conquest. This area of space would become known as the Taros Cluster. He would wait as life sprouted across the worlds, and then begin his great plan.

As the Taros Cluster was formed, each race to be placed there was given a specific task, but first there needed to be a Taros Cluster. Contrary to popular belief, the cluster was not born out of just a snap of a fingers, it was built by hand out of stardust. These builders, known as the Builders of Hellae who were paid massive treasure troves so that they would work tirelessly on the cluster. They did not care how the world looked, aslong as it met the specifications.

Tarosian Pylons

Despite the hypothetical chance of them being made anywhere, the Taros Cluster with its strange and powerful lifeforms give the pylons enough power to readily be formed in the cluster. Due to the fact that the species of the Taros Cluster had been blessed by the Deities in order to accelerate the development of life to fit the needs of the Sorroda Contract, these crystals formed by the mutual bond and lifeforce of the natives of the cluster form in ever increasing volumes.

If a sufficient amount of sapient beings inhabit an area near to one of the Pylons, the wormhole effect activates, allowing anyone who wishes to use them as a instant transport method to other active Pylons. These required a unique environment, as each planet can only have a single active pylon per terrain type, the exception tot his of course is supremely powerful beings whom hold enough knowledge and power to already fully control their destinations.

The High Priest's Pylons

The High Priest needed a way to swiftly transport the Celestial Army, as they were not capable of his vast travels unlike himself. He dispatched his clone to retrieve the crystals forming the Tarosian Pylons, even if they became inert outside of the cluster. Initially they did not work, until he began experimenting by having the crystals be located in distinctly Tarosian terrain. This did surprisingly work, Four pylons made out of each species of the Celestial Army's homeworlds were constructed, each allowing the armies to instantly warp into battlefields. The crystals within these pylons were warped, as the High Priest used mass death to feed the crystals' power. These pylons are protected with shielding, making it very difficult to breach through.

Creation The Dark Heart

Contrary to popular belief, not every Elder God was needlessly malevolent or evil. Some of them had strong moral compasses and opposed their bretheren's constant manipulation of lesser organic beings. The most notable one out of all of these benelovent Elder Gods was the Abyssal Lord, a being taking the form of an old man. He had spent his live battling the other elder gods, trying to thwart their plans, his most notable effort is trying to vanquish The Rot.

The Abyssal Lord, on his travels through the cosmos discovered the Advanced Information Analysis Unit, and saw the High Priest within it, alongside his grand plan. He, carefully watching managed to figure out that the High Priest aimed to use the Taros Cluster as a incubator for his one true army, giving him the power to raise destruction across the cosmos. Stopping such a plan would be hard, and maybe even lethal so he would have to be careful. He snuck into the heart of The Core and lit a all consuming flame known as The Dark Heart, whose job was to quite literally suck out all of the life within the Taros Cluster so that the High Priest's plans would not come into fruition. The Dark Heart was made to act slowly, so that the High Priest would not notice.

He could not be sure what would happen if the plan would go wrong, so he decided to stay in the Taros Cluster and pretend to be a local Tarosian so that if anything went wrong with the Dark Heart he may repair it. Only a little time after the Dark Heart was placed, irregularities had already been noticed. The core was dropping rapidly in temperature, forcing the Builders to constantly regulate it. They claimed it was because of the planet's artificial creation, trying to keep the truth hidden from the High Priest and the Deities so they may take the power of the Dark Heart for themselves one day.

Regardless of this, the Abyssal Lord decided to remain just in case so he may prevent the rise of The Fifth Race.

Builders of Hellae

The Core would not ignite as was planned, the planetoid created for the specific purpose of maintaining the Cluster. Unbeknownst to the High Priest and Deities this was the fault of The Dark Heart but there was a work around. The Builders were offered a chance to remain in The Core to keep it lit, but they refused as they did not want to be eternally trapped in the heart of a planet.

The Deities had little choice though, so they trapped the Builders within the heart of the Core so that they may work. They were told that they shall either maintain the planet, or die alongside with it. The Builders, who had ran out of option decided to stay and work as they now had no other choice.

They would remain trapped within the heart of the core for the rest of time, slowly forgetting who they were and turning feral. They still worked though, as it was all they could do. The Tarosians would come to know the Core as a fiery damnation, looking on not knowing that their existence was allowed to continue by the hands of the trapped builders within.

Beginning of life

The Taros Cluster still needed life, and letitng it form on its own would take too long for the High Priest, so the Deities came up with a plan. They rained down some of their own blood onto the Taros Cluster so life may emerge. These beings came to be known as the Limoans.

The Limoans quite literally were the primordial ooze of the taros cluster, once resembling mere inanimate sludge but slowly coming to life, changing and adapting to their surroundings. They spread across the entire cluster, changing to look more like the areas they resided in.

While many Limoans remained as they were, absorbing smaller organic matter or feeding off of moisture, many of them did infact evolve. They changed rapidly, evolving to fit all kinds of niches within the Taros Cluster. Their descendants even sometimes managed to become christened as protectors of the Taros Cluster.

The Heartkeepers

As the Builders of Hellae worked tirelessly within The Core to keep the Taros Cluster living, they were disapointed by the lack of greatfulness to their torment. They were only seen as demons, but over time their bodies did start changing to fit that description to better suit their work within The Core. A group of the Builders decided something HAD to be done.

This group began researching the heart of The Core, trying to figure out why it had not ignited leading to their entrapment. They in this process finally discovered the Dark Heart, which was sapping away at the energy of The Core. They bored their way to the very centre of the planet, in which they found The Dark Heart. It was too late to undo this by now, so they had to find a way to deactivate it rather than destroy it. A group, known as the Heartkeepers managed to replicate it, combine it with normal fire, tried to reverse it but nothing worked.

The Dark Heart was clearly made by someone way wiser than themselves, as they simply could not comprehend how it worked. The experiments did also have other consequences, with the Builders working on the project slowly starting to act strange and erratic. This was ignored as the effort was considered vastly important. This inaction did however change, as one day a group of researchers vanished alongside a sample of the Dark Heart. Search parties eventually found the group, praying to it in a secluded location. It was obvious the Dark Heart had started to have a sway over the Builders. The higher ups in charge of this operation had no other choice but to abandon the project, and exile everyone involved.

Exile

The now exiled Heartkeepers were forced to leave The Core, and settled on a habitable moon orbiting Taros-Prime known as Thess. It is here where they continued to work on a cure for The Dark Heart. They continued to work on this for a long time, slowly changing to fit more like natural creatures of the planet while the other builders on The Core slowly started becoming primal and only focused on working to keep The Core active.

The Heartkeepers eventually did however decide to lock away the Dark Heart, returning to a more simplistic way of life. Despite this the Dark Heart would not simply be locked away, for during the initial experimentations the Dark Heart was used to enchant several weapons and tools which had over time made their way to the inhabited planets of the Taros Cluster, where its eventual fate is unknown as of now.

Serellian Era

Rise of the Subaquian Kingdom

As they were aquatic, the Subaquians did not progress like normal life. They instead used their surroundings and biology of their fellow species to create a full on society on par with a terrestrial one. They initially first started inhabiting areas near hydrothermic vents, constructing shelter and setting up farms.

The civilisation began rapidly expanding, no longer just taking up the areas near hydrothermal vents, larger and larger buildings were made and towns began popping up in cold, distant areas. These more distant settlements were in constant danger due to predators, leading to certain visionaries to cracking the secret on how to make new hydrothermic vents, with this they managed to expand and connect all of their towns together, leading to a proper nation being created.

As they were finally united, the technological feats of the Subaquians grew immensely, dwarfing anything the future civilisations to inhabit the taros cluster would ever have. Despite this, they never ventured onto land. There was no need to get involved with what was going on the surface, so they remained undersea, peaceful and technologically advanced.

Even if they had created their aquatic utopia, a threat loomed.

Rise of the Serellians

Under the watchful eyes of the Elven Druids, a species of reptilians rose to sentience. The Serellians fairly quickly grew to be intelligent enough to use tools, communicate and even form societies. The Serellians eventually managed spread across the entirety of Taros Cluster constructing several cities and settlements.

Their culture was very religious, leading to a religion worshipping The Sun, as they were cold blooded they needed it to survive. As the Serellians spread across the cluster, their rapid industrialization slowly began to pollute the worlds they inhabited. This lead the Elven Druids, the divine protectors of the Taros Cluster to intervene. They appeared as a solar being, saying that they were proud of the progress of the Serellians but they must also protect nature. The Serellians listened ofcourse, quickly changing their machines to be eco-friendly.

A group of Serellians, disapointed by the decree of their sun god wished to see how far their society could have advanced, regardless of its impacts. This group expanded and became more radical, declaring their hatred for the sun. Dissent was growing in the Solar Nation, as the lunar rebellion slowly became inevitable.

Birth of the Leporians

The Deities of the Taros Cluster were notably complicit with all of the on goings of the Taros Cluster, even in the more dire of circumstances. This was not always true, as one of them called Aeste decided to take a more active role in trying to help the life existing in the cluster.

Alot of the cluster had fallen into rampant pollution, caused by the Serellians. Despite this, the Serellians clearly had ingenuity and a promising future. A time of cleansing and rebirth would be created, in which pollution created each year would be purged. To aid Aeste in this endeavor some of the wildlife of the cluster was bestowed with power to help in the attempts. This process created the first Leporians, whose job was to rapidly replicate and consume the pollution.

Initially this was very successful, leading to a much cleaner enviroment within the cluster. This however changed, as the constant consumption of pollutants slowly warped the minds of the Leporians, turning them into angry and chaotic beasts who rapidly spread across the cluster. Aeste was forced to intervene, and constantly try to root out the Leporian Infestation, slowly draining out her powers as all was being expended on curing the Leporians.

The Marble Plague

As the Serellians continued to advance, they began to construct massive cities. While many of these were made by bland materials, the most important buildings were always constructed out of marble. All of this marble had to be obtained from somewhere, leading to the unfortunate fate of hundreds of thousands of lower class Serellians to be forced to work in the massive mining operations.

Working conditions in these mines was abhorrent, the wealthy owners of the mines decided to keep the truth behind what was going on within the mines a secret from the citizens of the Solar Nation, perpetuating a story of the use of the marble being more important than the way it was harvested.

The lower class Serellians , stuck in poverty were forced to keep joining the mining corporations, only to find out them ever managing to leave the corporations was next to nothing.

The Serellians working in the mines were forced to use low quality equipment, which was not suited for the task they were given. This was slowing production, so the wealthy ones relented and began looking into quicker ways to harvest the marble. Initially they tested explosives, but this damaged the marble beyond use, not even counting the mass death of workers crushed by these explosions. Automation Was also attempted, but the funds needed to switch the mining zones to an automated system were deemed too costly of an effort.

The Chemical Solution

Finally one of the plans to improve extraction was accepted. This was the plan to use chemicals to weaken specific parts of the marble so that the large chunks to be harvested would easily fall off. A specific chemical combination was made for this task, which was supposedly effective. This turned out to be very successful, as worker morale improved and production time sped up.

There was one issue though, as hundreds of workers slowly became ill due to the chemicals. One of their most notable symptoms was severe heterotopic ossification. This symptom however only affected the male workers, as the female workers went through rapid mutation which was deemed too erratic and dangerous to continue to be in the open, leading to all of the mutated female serellians to be locked away in massive underground complexes carved into the marble mines.

Breach

This solution however would not be the best long term, as the problem simply kept going until it spun out of control. The mutated ones, known as Garjans begin to overwhelm their imprisonment, storming across the mines causing havoc. Instead of an evacuation, the wealthy mine owners decided to seal away everything underground by collapsing the mines.

The Garjans stayed down in the caverns, sealed with no way to escape for many years to come.

Founding of Sirrenic Aerolia

As things began settling on the ground below within the Taros Cluster, the next species to be classified as "Custodians" began their history, existing in the skies above the worlds of Taros. These beings, known as the Aerolians forged a kingdom within the skies above Taros-Prime in quiet isolation, observing the ongoings of the world.

This Kingdom would become to be known as Sirrenic Aerolia, whose populace had over time craved more than to just observe the ongoings of life, leading to them harvesting precious jewels, crystals and wonders of the world into their fortresses in the sky, they would live like royalty until something from beyond their floating isles would come to disturb them.

The Serellian Civil War

Division kept growing in the Solar Nation, as the Lunar Cult kept gaining more and more  influence and power.

Following the rapid deindustrialisation following the decree by their “solar god”, the Solar Nation had begun abandoning progress inturn for ecofriendly alternatives. These were less effective than their old tech though, leading to mass starvation and income inequality. The Lunarists and opposition were at this point still a minor faction, who could not do much until something would give them the popularity needed for their rise.

For the first time in recorded history, the one of moons of Taros-Prime crept infront of its sun, plunging the most populated world within the Solar Nation into darkness, shutting down all of their power leading to some general chaos. The Lunarists, still using the old industrial technology were unaffected. This lead to the idea amongst the Serellians that the Lunarists may be right in their adornment of the moon, as they feared another eclipse which clearly proved that darkness was more powerful than light.

Lunarist Cults began emerging all over Serellian Space, embracing the moons of Taros as the darkness of night forced them to progress, while the suns of taros forced them to obey its will. Lunarist technology swiftly outmatched the Solar Nation’s technology, giving them the advantage. Fanatics within the Lunarist Sect began to rise, calling all Lunarians to work together to kill their sun. The Solar Nations began to form an army to combat this, leading to the more moderate Lunarians to flee to follow the fanatics, fearing a genocide by the Solar Nation.

The Lunar Nation suddenly declared its independence, immediately forming its own army to combat the Solar Nation. The Solar Nation, fearing that the Lunar Nation would succeed in its plan began rapid attacks against the Lunar Nation, although it was too late, as the Lunar Nation had used its superior technology to block out the Sun of Taros Prime’s light from reaching the planet.

What followed was a deadly and bloody war, brothers once united under 1 flag rallied against eachother, leading to billions of casualities son both sides as they ruthelessly tore eachothers cities and people to shreds. The Lunar Nation would eventually come out victorious, albeit their nation was now in ruins from which it could never recover.

The Elven Druids emerged from the unexplored jungles of the Taros Cluster and took in any survivors from the war, creating a large complex in which they could survive and repopulate, while ridding them of their powerful weaponry. The Serellian Civilisation was almost truly dead.

The Exiles

Following the Solar War, all remaining Serellians were ushered into a complex deep in uncharted lands on Taros-6. They were brought here under the promise of preserving their species, but in reality it was to preserve everything else, as the Elven Druids did not want to make it possible for the Serellians to knock off the natural order once more.

Despite the many risks of the wild jungle terrain they were being guided through, several escapees slipped into the jungles of Taros-6 to avoid being sealed within the complex. This group of escapees slowly dwindled in size, becoming smaller and smaller overtime until only those who fully managed to understand the harsh terrain they now lived in could survive. They had gained a new respect for nature their species had never had before, as they settled into areas which would one day become villages upon the trees.

This group finally started to grow and repopulate, adapting to the jungles with more primitive technology than their forebears. Eventually they would become distinct enough from the original celestial outlook on life the Serellians had to officially have their own belief structure, one which much resembled animism. They would become to be known as the Forsaken Community. Religion in the Forsaken Community formed around a esoteric occult structure, featuring things as extreme as sacrifice and forcing children to be brought up in a strict warrior program to make them as fierce as possible.

Early Tarosian Era

First Tarosian-Cyborg War

After the Serellians had fallen, a new species calling itself the “Tarosians” filled the power vacuum, developing and advancing their technologies to new heights. They developed vast machines and computer technologies, eventually creating cybernetic beings tasked with doing the work they no longer wished to do. Over time the intelligence and sapience of these androids started to grow, eventually becoming aware of their own intelligence, granting them a drive to seek out their own futures.

The Tarosians saw this as an imminent threat, launching several preemptive strikes against the androids before their numbers could grow. Unluckily for the Tarosians, sentient beings tend to have a sense of self preservation, including the androids. In order to protect their existence, the Androids launched several precise counter attacks against the Tarosians, eventually managing to force them to make peace.

Second Tarosian-Cyborg War

The Androids rapidly began to adapt themselves, trying to recreate the organic nature of their creators so they could be one nation again. While they were unable to transfer themselves entirely into organic bodies, they were able to at least turn themselves into cyborgs. During the final stages of the Cyborg’s experimentations, Tarosian spies told their governments about mutilation of corpses and body parts in the Cyborg territories, leading to the Tarosian Governments launching a second attack against the Cyborgs. Despite their even more advanced and deadly weaponry compared to their first attack, the Tarosians were regardless defeated. Unlike the first war, the Cyborgs did not stop fighting after the invasion force was defeated, instead they began pushing deep into Tarosian territory. The Cyborgs had decided after 2 devastating attacks that if they could not advance themselves safely on their own, they would instead eradicate those who had been hindering them. In response, the Tarosians decided they had no choice but to unleash nuclear weapons against the Cyborgs, even if they would also perish in the process.

Once the dust settled, the Cyborgs were indeed destroyed, although Tarosian-kind was wounded, and depleted in population. Following such destruction, the Tarosians decided that it was time to cast off computer technology, and return to a more pastoral way of life.

While a vast majority of the Cyborg population were wiped out by the nuclear strikes, occasional survivors still persist. As all of their resources, tools and settlements were wiped out in the process, their continued existence despite surviving the initial blasts remains uncertain.

The Tarosian Mycelia

During the age of the Elven Druids, the mystical species constructed homes out of trees embowed with spiritual energy. These trees eventually started growing a fungus, which over time fed on the spiritual energy, using it to grow deeper and deeper underground. This fungus rapidly evolved and adapted, developing mushrooms and tendrils which spread around its new subterranean environments to seek more nutrients, coating several suitable caverns with a vast fleshy mat. Content with the nutrients and safety of the deep underground, the fungus considered its future and how it would progress. But then something occurred to it, never before had it considered anything, never before had it had a conscious thought. The fungus had become a sentient lifeform, with the complex network of mycelium that composed it had grown to the point of acting much like a brain.

This consciousness now present in the Mycelia was not aware of its origins, but regardless it gained a will of its own. As the fungus continued to expand, the increasing complexity of its fungal network allowed it to slowly gain more awareness and thought, eventually becoming capable of feeling loneliness, in which it desired to find more of itself. After a while of experimentation the Fungus came to the conclusion that the most resource efficient way to achieve this was to create a mobile avatar containing a portion of its sentience. Though unlike what was planned, this new being was less of an avatar but instead more of a child of the Fungus. Seeing as the Fungus’ original plan was still feasible despite not ‘controlling’ this new being, it tasked its spawn with finding more of itself.

During the avatar’s journey, the new sapients of its homeworld, the Tarosians, had one by one come across the fungus. Not seeing it as an intelligent being, the Tarosians began to over time harvest the Fungus for resources, doing it a great deal of harm.

Once the avatar had returned it told of many others like its parent wounded and dying, The avatar was thus given a new task, to warn the others. The avatar travelled to the other fungi colonies, warning them of the Tarosians.  This led to them arming themselves with a myriad of natural defences, infesting various local fauna unlucky enough to be caught by it, assimilating them into the defence systems.

King of the Great Limoans

One of the earliest Post-War Kingdoms in the cluster managed to capture a few Great Limoans. The tyrant king of this fiefdom after a lot of testing managed to control the Great Limoans, by making his strongest warriors puppeteer them. These newly merged Limoan-Tarosian warriors were deadly, allowing this kingdom to gain great victories. The warriors were now permanently trapped inside though, where  over the years the Great Limoans dissolved and consumed their minds. As this happened, the great kingdom lost its army and it fell as many others did.

The Great Limoans still survived this, moving across the lands forevermore.

The Hydra

Deep in the unexplored lands of the Taros Cluster lies a vile, malicious species known by the name 'Hydra' by the locals, whom have been procedurally hunting the creatures due to the danger they pose if allowed to mature. Once Hydras mature they become greatly intelligent and launch devastating rampages against nearby population communities, often needing to be appeased in order to prevent said rampages.

The Rot

Arrival of the Rotten God

While The High Priest may of been the one behind the creation of the Taros Cluster, he was not the only Elder Overseer to have an interest in the worlds present within it. Sensing the unusually high concentration of divine energy across the planets, another Elder God named 'Nthanithor' soon took notice of the enigmatic star-cluster home to only unadvanced life which could easily be conquered, and so he did, seizing immediate control of Taros-Prime upon arrival with no one capable of enough resistance, beginning to warp and control the 'lesser lifeforms' inhabiting over time as his influence spread.

Eradication of the Leporians

This all changed when Ntharithor arrived. Aeste was forced to start eradicating the Leporians, as if even a single one fell to the rotten influence of the elder god it could cause unknowable destruction across the entire cluster as it spread to the other ones. This was eventually successful, as the last one was finally eradicated. Though now her powers were drained to the point she could only observe the dark future ahead for the cluster, with no way to intervene.

Fate of the Abyssal Lord (Part 1)

After over a century of observing and waiting in the Taros Cluster for the arrival of anything sinister, the man that was once the Abyssal Lord had his mind slowly deteriorate and forget his purpose. Alongside many others, he ended up wandering into the domain that had become The Rot, a vast and continuously expanding region of the cluster that had been warped by Nthanithor's presence. Much like all others that had ventured too deep into it, this group was also enslaved and put to work, slowly dying out from overextertion. The man that was once the Abyssal Lord stood strong though, continuing to work despite all others beginning to collapse from the pressure.

Order of the Mages

Some of the more unusual defenders of the Taros Cluster in its time of need included 6 mages who acted as silent protectors of much of the Cluster due to their proficiency with magic. These six mages travelled across the Taros Cluster aiding those in need, until they began hearing prophecies of a dark, rotten future ahead. Together they formed a group known as the Order of the Mages, proclaiming their intentions to vanquish Nthanithor from the Cluster. While initially people hailed them as heroes, after a time they decided to separate due to people beginning to question their intentions as they began taking more and more morally questionable decisions, hoping to find a solution to their behaviour. While they expected their separation to help them, it only allowed the Rot afflicting them to grow, giving them illusions of grandeur and power despite their previous egalitarian natures. Seeing themselves slowly become a threat to the remaining fragments of normal life, most of the remaining mages sealed themselves away to prevent themselves from causing further damage once they had fully lost themselves.

The Cursed Mage

In the dark ages of Taros layed a vast kingdom of justice and virtue, however outside of its borders a dark force could be found. Once aid to the king, once a member of the Order of the Mages. This sorcerer was distrusted by the just king for his acts of cruelty and violence, until one of his prophecies came true. This prophecy was of an evil neverending army which had to be completely wiped out from the source to beat, which was regrettably done.

This accurate prediction was considered strange and unusual, so an investigation was done. This investigation proved that the sorcerer had been infested by The Rot, using its will to influence the other kingdom into the invasion. The mage’s power was bound, and he was imprisoned publicly to be humiliated until what to do was decided. Eventually execution was decided to be the option to be taken, leading to his execution. His final words were “My humiliation will be your torture…”.

To this day, his spirit lingers on as a force of malice deep in the rot.

Wrath of the Jungle

As the forces of Nthanithor descended upon the Taros Cluster, the Elven Druids, a race dedicated to upholding the natural balance of the worlds in the cluster, fought to the last one standing, with the aim of protecting the Taros Cluster, and especially the surviving Serellians in their final refuge on Taros-6.

Upon the defeat of the Druids, the sole survivor of their people barricaded herself into the jungles of Taros-6, warping the nature around herself into a fierce fortress to resist any incursion from the forces of The Rot. But even this was not considered enough, as the final Druid set out to create something powerful enough to protect the jungles on her behalf, powerful enough to rip the invaders of the Taros Cluster apart. Upon its creation though, the Druid began to see the error of her ways, fearing she was becoming a conqueror like the ones she had desired to fight against. Instead she decided to task the creature with protecting the Serellian Complex, hoping that at least something good could come out of its existence. Following this, the final Druid left the Jungle in order to pass on and reincarnate, hoping that her successor would do better in the fight against The Rot.

The Cavern Dwellers (Part 1)

As chaos and destruction spread across the Taros Cluster, countless people had already died attempting to fight back against Nthanithor with ‘the lucky ones’ being enslaved upon surrender. While many did fight, most decided to flee rather than risk their lives, attempting to find some kind of refuge that no longer existed. A group of these escapees eventually came to the conclusion that the deep caverns of their individual homeworlds would be their best chance at survival, thus deciding to hide within them. While the initial days of this refuge were hard on these people - as they were forced to fend for themselves in the dark with no comfort, until they eventually managed to come across an aquifer, which while somewhat discoloured, was good enough. Thanks to this new source of water they managed to progress to the point that survival was no longer the main focus, instead comfort was, allowing the cavern dwellers to begin launching expeditions to the surface in order to obtain whatever useful scraps were left behind that could be put to use in improving their new lives. These operations over time became increasingly more sophisticated, growing from mere desperate scavenging missions, to precise and planned raids.

Eventually on their quest for achieving some kind of normalcy in their lives, the main material focused on in raids was shifted towards building materials instead of basic necessities, so that they could start constructing actual homes in the caverns. Despite the improvements of their lives, their fate had already been sealed…

The Lone Explorer (Part 1)

A certain cave-dweller decided to join a team of explorers tasked with mapping out the caverns they now resided within. This was arguably the most dangerous job one could have within the Cave-Dweller Community, as at least the threats of the surface were well known and documented. While many of these missions were met with success, this specific individual managed to learn why these missions were considered so dangerous…

The exploration team headed into the dark caverns, with the goal of hopefully finding something useful, although this was rarely the case. Everything seemed to have gone fine, they reached the end of the caves, and turned back towards camp - though tragedy soon struck, as a cave-in had seemingly blocked their planned route back to the community. Thus, they were forced to continue to explore to find an alternate route. For days they travelled through the caves, dodging dangers while trying to find a route back home until one day… the inevitable happened… The previously mentioned man was the first of them to fall victim to a threat, falling into a nest of spiders. As per the doctrine of the Exploration team, all others fled to avoid meeting his fate.

Hours after being attacked, the man awoke to still being consumed by the spider But how? He should have already died. And then he woke again, seemingly having partially regenerated. And again, and again, and again. At first unknown to the man, the water supplies the cave-dwellers had subsisted off of had been tainted by something still unknown to them, cursing them with deathlessness. This torture continued for many years to come, until eventually his body gave out. While still conscious, at this point he was mostly just bones, luckily no longer satisfying the spiders. He was cut loose from their webs, and left to rot on the ground below, now completely unable to move.

Marble Plague (Part 2)

During their years of subterranean exile, several of the residents of the caverns occasionally reported discovering a layer of strange white rock during excavations, which once opened after interest being shown by their local leaders revealed the existence of the still living Garjans inside. The Garjans acted quickly, capturing those who had found them, proceeding to interrogate them on the current state of Serellian civilization. The Cave Dwellers could not answer their questions due to the story of the Serellian Civilisation predating their culture for the most part, causing the Garjans in anger to leave them imprisoned while they themselves headed out to the newly reopened underground.

The Cave Dwellers (Part 2)

While the threat of the surface had of course lingered, the greatest threat to the cavern dwellers was much more unexpected, water. The aquifers and sporadic pools of water they had been forced to subsist from had been tainted by Limoans, whose regenerative and adaptive properties had leached into the water. While this seemed to have been no issue, everything changed once the first cavern dweller began to grow old - as they found out that while their bodies could still age, rot and fall apart, they could not die. This eventually spiralled into a large-scale madness, causing the cavern dwellers to turn upon one another. until their entire civilization fell apart with no way out in sight

Aerolian Decay

As the Rot spread across the Taros Cluster, the Aerolians decided there was nothing they could do to stop it, deciding to cut off any presence they had beyond their holdings within the cluster in favour of isolationism. While this isolation did keep them safe for a while, not all wished to remain in their still relatively luxurious solitude out of a desire to make amends for their lack of assistance, only to find that no major remnants of civilisation were left, spreading the news amongst the Aerolian populace. However, news was not the only thing they came back with as many of those that ventured beyond their settlements in the skies ended up being afflicted by the Rot, only for it to take hold in their homes as the Kingdom of Sirrenic Aerolia began to rapidly fall apart from the inside out as any and all attempts to purge the infected failed as their civilisation was quickly subsumed and destroyed.

End of Nthanithor

Even an Elder God cannot live forever. Nthanithor had been putting all of his power into warping and controlling the Taros Cluster, infecting the ground itself with his malicious essence. After such effort, even his power was beginning to suddenly run out, forcing him to take drastic measures. He gave one final order to his remaining slaves, the creation of a temple to the Elder Overseers that could act as a beacon to summon them to his rescue. While this was successful, no reply to his calls ever arrived as his body rapidly disintegrated and came apart as his own body parts came alive and ripped themselves away. All that was left of Nthanithor was a rotting skeletal carcass, though a spark of life still clung on thanks to his heritage as an Elder God. The Tarosians, whom had now re-emerged, slowly became aware of his lingering but incredibly diminished state in the beacon, regarding him as a mere monster to be avoided.

Fate of the Abyssal Lord (Part 2)

After years of servitude the man that once was the Abyssal Lord continued to survive and work for Nthanithor to the last of its days. After the completion of the beacon Nthanithor’s remains picked out the Abyssal Lord, granting it whatever powers he still had to offer so that his blind indentured slave may guard the structure. With Nthanithor now much less of an actual presence, learning of its lingering nature was a difficult process, and ridding himself of it appears to be an even more hopeless ideal…

Rise of The Hive

The Beehives

While the Rot may have subsided, its consequences could still be felt, such as the Jungles. The Jungles of Taros-6 which were greatly transformed into an impenetrable brutal fortress during The Rot in order to protect them, though this would also have its consequences on the ecosystem, in this case - the Apoideas of Taros-6. In the distant past these were simple creatures much like the bees of Yata, focusing on protecting their nests and pollination. This specific species however was quite more aggressive than many others like it, evolving to be fiercely territorial and defensive of their homes. But then…

The Wrath began, twisting the jungles beyond recognition. The increase in deadly vines and flora during this era instead ended up protecting their hives instead of harming them, keeping out the vast array of predators that subsisted off of their honey. Thanks to this, their hives managed to begin to grow exponentially. While this period was prosperous, the division caused by the spread of the vines also fractured their species into various opposing groups. This tension eventually boiled over into a sort of war between each of the hives upon the calming of the jungle’s wrath allowing contact between each hive to become readily accessible. After millions dead, this war eventually came to a close, as the fight quickly became was unsustainable.

Teknis (Part 1)

When the majority of the Taros Cluster had shunned advanced technology after the catastrophic Tarosian-Cyborg Wars, some had seen the problem not in technology itself, but instead with machines that could think. To this end they began the development of analog devices driven only by the minds that operated them. While many feared this as a threat that may lead to the return of another technological war, others saw promise in this future, allowing this movement to eventually form a nation of their own, the ‘State of Teknis’. This new civilisation would not last long though, as a majority of the Tarosian populace still opposed technological advancement, seeing it as a dire threat. Because of this, Teknis swiftly came under attack by the masses. Though Teknis held the technology it would need to overcome and defeat its attackers, this would only prove their fears right. Instead they would flee from their current homes, evacuating into a much more isolated region of the cluster.

After weeks of fleeing, they came across a place to settle free from the still lingering Rot. This new settlement would soon start to thrive, soon becoming the hub of the newly restored State of Teknis. Despite their exponential growth, Teknis remained in complete isolation, banning interaction and entry from all outsiders. For an age Teknis would remain superior among most other resurgent Tarosian States despite its isolation, eventually they too would face a threat dire enough to possibly destroy their prosperity.

The Purity (Part 1)

The sole surviving Elven Druid continued to fight against The Rot’s remnants, yet all efforts thus far had been fruitless as much of it continued to linger long past the death of Nthanithor. Seeing that nothing else would work, the final Druid came to 1 single conclusion; the only way to be rid of the darkness of the Rot was to fight back with an equally blinding ray of purity. She entered the vast lands consumed by the rot, pushing through until eventually coming across the former home of her people. While the few, now rotted survivors of her people looked on, she imbued herself with the dormant purity of the Taros Cluster, burning away the surroundings with its ferocity.

The now empowered being of purity blasted away the surrounding rot, purifying it into a bastardised replication of the normal environment of Taros inhabited by warped beings that viciously tore apart at everything that had not also been converted. This radiance would also begin to rapidly spread.

Purified Limoans

During the initial creation of The Purity, it was perhaps inevitable that the most common yet enigmatic creatures of the Taros Cluster would eventually encounter it - The Limoans. They quickly adapted to its strange and warped ecosystem, overtime beginning to physically change as the insidious energy of The Purity seeped into them, reacting with the various objects and creatures they hunted in their new home, transforming them into an entirely new being, a “Purified” Limoan. These new beings were filled with a strange instinct, to create a new lineage and share its power. Through the Purity warping their capabilities, they began rapid mitosis and evolution beyond what had been previously seen from their kind as they swiftly began to dominate the recently created Purity.

Answering the call

Eventually an answer came to Ntharithor’s calls in the form of the High Priest, seeing this as his opportunity. The peoples of the Taros Cluster merely saw a vast comet blaze down into the seas of Taros-Prime, unaware of what it truly was.

Nthanithor was not rescued however, instead he was left alone, yet alive.

Arrival of the Elder One

Subaquia had gone through countless years of peace and stability, all until Something arrived in the seas of their homeworld of Aqorra from the direction of Taros-Prime. While they had not yet actually seen what this was, all Merfolk inhabiting Subaquia felt it anyway in their minds rather than the physical.

They did not know it for certain yet, but the High Priest's Clone had arrived on their homeworld. There he entered a brief period of hibernation, slowly spreading his influence into the minds of every Subaquian. Many began seeing visions of the horrifying future the High Priest had in store for them, tainting the minds of the weak in order to sow chaos.

Subaquian Civil War

Meanwhile others decided the only way to survive this was to serve the High Priest. This group formed an entire cult dedicated to the high priest known as the Cult of the Elder One. This Cult started to cause havoc across their entire civilization, sacrificing unbelievers and slowly running their civilization into ruin. This cult was tasked with creating a city, one which the High Priest could use as his base of operations in any upcoming incursions into the Taros Cluster.

The unbelieving survivors managed to escape to the surface of Taros-Prime with a device they had created, which they could use to grant the surface peoples the ability to breathe underwater so they could aid them in battle against the cult. They however found a damaged world, one still reeling from the invasion of another extraterrestrial force.

In the time it took for them to find volunteers for such an army, the Cult of the Elder One had nearly completed their grand city. The survivors rushed into the city alongside their converted terrestrial armies, engaging in fierce battle with the Cult of the Elder One, even nearly winning. All of their effort was for nothing, as the High Priest had awoken, instantly annihilating the free Subaquian armies. Any remaining soldiers escaped into the deepest parts of the Aqorran ocean, where they would eventually go mad, clutching the amulets the survivors had given to them.

Any remaining true Subaquians have retreated to the icy mountains of Taros-Prime, where they fiercely guard what's left of their ruined civilization.

Subjugating the Seafarers

As civilisation was rapidly rebuilding itself in the Taros Cluster following the end of Nthanithor’s reign, piracy began to grow as a fairly profitable profession for the first time since the conquest. This was immensely profitable, as the pirate fleets grew to the point of easily being able to overpower the navies of the various local nations in the Taros Cluster, thus being able to plunder ever-more loot. Their greed however would eventually become their downfall, as the tentative peace between the pirate fleets eventually came to end as countless conflicts between different factions erupted and ended rather frequently, keeping the fleets away from growing to unsustainable sizes. This is how it had always been, and how it always would have been, if unforeseen things had not decided to take place…

Once the High Priest’s Clone descended upon the Taros Cluster, his arrival was not in the land, but instead in the seas, where he aimed to construct a stronghold to act as a staging point for his conquest. For this task, the clone needed a workforce, people who would be willing to betray their world for greed, which he would luckily get in an unexpected form.

Following the most recent of civil wars, the pirate fleets had scattered across the seas in order to rebuild, until one ship however did not come across land, but instead The Clone. The Clone offered the pirates a deal, he would give them all of the world’s finest treasures as long as they did as he asked, requesting that they bring him artefacts from across the world, bring him resources to construct his fortress, and quell the restless creatures left over from the age of the rot. In order to achieve such an arduous task, the clone granted them the power necessary to accomplish this. The news of this event spread quickly among the pirates, as more and more fleets signed up for the Clone’s offering, bringing him the resources he desired at an acceptably fast pace, while also forming the first contingents of his army on Taros Prime.