Nameless Brotherhood

"I, Hammer, swear to do my best and fight against the Void, to stop the Shades of the Horizon, and to never act against my comrades in this, I swear this by the ghost of my father." ~ Hammer, writing down his oath to the Brotherhood.The Nameless Brotherhood (also known as The Unnamed Brotherhood, The Brotherhood of The Nameless and previously referred to as Mirinin's Group and Mikhael Strand's Group) is a major non-government-aligned organisation, formed by the Half-Elven Union arch-wizard Mirinin and currently headed by Anassa Gladys and Anax Opinor, whose main goals are the prevention of Ilyan Iskaar's plans of assimilation of Thressos by the Abyss and understanding the Shadows Of The Horizon. 
== Members ==
=== Original members ===
The Brotherhood's members are multiple, with some dying in its name and other abandoning its ideals. Its members, listed chronologically, consist of:
* Mirinin ✝ - the founder of the original group, opposing Lord Ilyan Iskaar's plans. His connection to Iskaar, being his former court mage and ally, was his main motivation to stop him from committing atrocities upon Thressos. He died fighting his former friend.
* Taiyn ✝ - a young man with a pure heart and a desire to help. He was secretly in love with Edith and died to protect the Brotherhood.
* Clara ✝ - a cleric peeress of Edith. She aided the First Nameless Brotherhood in their search of Edith, but sadly met a cruel end before finding her.
* Edith ✝ - a cleric by trade and a loyal citizen of the Holy Empire of The Four. She was one of the first people to aid Mirinin is his struggles toward the Shadows Of The Horizon. She was brave and loyal, dying by the side of her leader by the hand of their arch enemy.
* Lithiel of Yandae ✝ - happy-go-lucky exiled Wood Elven girl. Her idealistic love for adventure and fortune led her to join forces with Mirinin and prevent the destruction of the world. She felt as though there is a third option for the future of the realm, one not controlled by neither the gods nor the Abyss, but died fighting before finding her answers.
* Sir Mikhael Strand ✝ - an exiled lord of the Union, he joined out of his perceived duty to protect mankind. Blunt, cold, unsociable, prideful, yet not unkind he bravely soldiered on, seeing all sorts of horrors, but the death of his squire Hammer and the betrayal of Senecius of Striecht, as well as the virtual deaths of all his companions pushed him to defect. He was later confronted by the Brotherhood and convinced to rejoin by Gladys. At the shores of the Void, at the Grave of Iskra he met his demise by the hand of Lord Ilyan Iskaar.
* Senecius of Striecht ✝ - a mysterious person with destructive agendas toward the Empire. He was one of the members of the First Brotherhood, but never truly devoted himself to their cause. He died by the hand of his former ally Mikhael.
* Hammer ✝ - a mute son of a blacksmith that Mikhael unofficially adopted as his squire. Vigorous and bold, even if unable to express himself, Hammer died as he lived - bravely.
* Artonis of Yandae ✝ - step brother of Lithiel and a protector of nature. His belief in the righteousness of the Gods pushed him at odds with the members of the First Brotherhood, but he proved to be a respectable ally when he gave his life to protect his sister's allies.
* Twilight ✝ - Artonis' pet Giant Owl
* Brown Tom ✝ - a brave mercenary of the Southern Isles and a leader by heart. He met his end deep into Strifort Gart, protecting the First Brotherhood.
* Stillen - one of the False Gods, The Forgotten Lord. Despite his appearance, he is willing to assist the Brotherhood without forcing them into either side of the conflict.
* Anax Opinor Corydon - Mirinin's former protege. He used to study under him and for that reason the two hold similar believes and skill sets, but the young mage has a few goals of his own. His light-hearted demeanour is rivaled only by his curiosity and lust for gold.
* Anassa Gladys (also known as "Talons of the Tit") - a former assassin for the Crimson Wings, Gladys turned to the Brotherhood in sign of personal redemption and a way to find meaning in her life. She has keen senses, vast amounts of experience and a compassionate heart, killing only when neccessary, and then with sadness. Currently one of the Brotherhood's leaders, alongside Noerin Dekatt.
* Shia of the Rune Nomads ✝ - a pacifistic nomadic monk with a divine mission to stop the Abyss from swallowing the world. Her earthly and altruistic demeanour was crushed by her inner doubts and weaknesses, allowing herself to fall victim to despair.
* Mia the Cat ✝ - Shia's familiar and pet sand cat
* Dustin ✝ - an orcish bounty hunter-turned-holy-warrior who became a part of the Brotherhood during their voyage to Sacris.A conscientious and responsible man, he sought vengeance against the enemies of the world. During his final valiant confrontation with Iskaar he was slain.
* Lady Teena Iskaar - the rebellious daughter of Lord Iskaar. She met the party on multiple occasions until finally joining them to aid their goal of stopping her father's plans. Her unborn child with Senecius was taken by Ilyan Iskaar in order to fulfil his demonic plans.
* Sir Shpanner Igel - a knight from the Union, he was formerly an enemy of the First Brotherhood, but later found common standing with the members of the Second Brotherhood and decided to help their cause.
* Two unnamed guards - former guards of Lord Iskaar, they joined the Second Brotherhood and aided them in their efforts to escape Man's End.
* Lord Maroyan Sharper - a major lord of the Union and protector of Knifepoint's Keep. He was befriended by Lithiel and later saw the righteousness in the Brotherhood's efforts, deciding to aid them as much as he can.
* (Former) Anax Noerin Dekatt - an High Elven magician and a former noble from Elva. He dedicates his live to studying the limits of the known magic and figured a good opportunity for his studies would be to join the Brotherhood. However, during their adventures, he found a more significant meaning to his life, to save the world from destruction.
* Ytril - a weird and exotic creature from the far southern lands. His obsession with geography and individuality is what drove him to follow the Second Brotherhood and help them accomplish their objectives. 
*Shade of Annihilation ✝ - a strange necromancer and an old colleague of Mirinin. After nearly going insane after his near-death was revived via way of artefact, he later used said artefact to kill a Void Shard, sacrificing his life for the greater good.
* Silentstep - former member of the Black Fingers turned ally to the Brotherhood. He was perceived as unnecessary until he saved their lives from the Amorphous Pursuers.
* Lord Daron Lillypond - a lesser lord, bounty contractor and old friend of Dustin, he aided the Brotherhood with information and sanctuary when they needed it.
* Grevant The Scholar - a wise magician and supporter of the Union, who, in search of the truth, joined forces with the Brotherhood.
*Sir Valen - A household guard and knight of House Aleren who was convinced by the Brotherhood to join them in stopping Lord Iskaar during the Battle of Bryaglee He later earned lands and became a knight.
=== Recruits after the Void crisis ===
After the dust of the Void crisis settled down, the Brotherhood continued to expand and had many new recruits, the notable of which are:
* Relis Vreiveld (whose true identity is Elias) - a former investigative journalist (or so he says) that is taking the position of Anax Opinor's personal assistant.
* Sir Johnnyn Kart - a landless freerider, and mercenarcy captain, recruited by Gladys after the dissolution of his mercenary company - The Keen Lances.
* Scintillifer Blackbranch ✝ - a Union-born wizard and creator of the onomantic method. Went to Auresia in order to study the foreign land and any Void activity there with the "Goldbreaker", only to discover the ship's original mission was a ruse. After being betrayed by the "Goldbreaker" 's captain ,travelled with Lukkas Gale and Lina Iskaar. Perished to an assassin's bullet in the Sea of Bones.
*Mikhael the Dog - Scintillifer's pet dog, later inherited by Lukkas.
==History==
=== Mirinin's Group ===
This is the unofficial name given to the group of people Mirinin initially gathered around himself to oppose the Shadows Over the Horizon and Lord Iskaar. It consisted of Taiyn, Clara and Edith as well as Mirinin himself. It was said that there were other members as well but their actual existence and identity was left unknown.
Their formation came to a seeming end when their main base of operations was raided and destroyed, along with the death of Taiyn and Clara.
=== The first Nameless Brotherhood ===
This group was formed by Mirinin as well and evolved out of his original group. It was unofficially formed in Plainne, the Union, and originally consisted of Lithiel, Mikhael Strand and Senecius. Later on, they were joined by Hammer and Edith, as well Opinor. Artonis of Yandae and Brown Tom were accepted among their ranks after their demise.
The group had questionable morality and goals, but was ultimately trying to prevent the crisis dawning Thressos. They were responsible for the discovery of multiple False Gods artifacts and destruction of many Abyssal entities. They also, however, participated in the destruction and raids of cities, as well as multiple robberies and scams.
The group was forcedly disbanded in the Battle for the Fishing Hamlet, where Edith and Lithiel died by the hands of Lord Iskaar, Mirinin getting stabbed to death by Senecius, who was also killed shortly after, and Mikhael joining forces with Iskaar and the Shadows Over the Horizon. 
=== The second Nameless Brotherhood ===
==== During The Void Crisis ====
This group was formed while the first Brotherhood was still active (circa 2005). It was once again formed by Mirinin, consisting of the newly recruited Gladys and Shia, as well as Opinor, who remained aligned with both groups, and Dustin (after the Battle for the Fishing Hamlet). After Shia's departure, the group joined Noerin Dekatt and Ythril. Unofficial members such as Teena Iskaar, Shadow of the Annihilation, Silentstep, Lord Deron Lilypond and Grevant also aided the second Brotherhood in their efforts and are considered trustworthy allies.
The second Brotherhood was a lot more morally upstanding than their predecessors. They generally had firm believes and searched for the aid of both the Four Gods and the False Gods on different occasions, contrasted with the stand-alone attitude of the first Brotherhood. They preferred to avoid unnecessary bloodshed and violence and generally tried to keep a low profile. It was during their existence that the Nameless Brotherhood was named and conceptualized, given presentable uniforms and a sigil, as designed by Noerin.
They participated in the Battle for Sacris, the Battle for Emilbell, the attack on Tadjnik, the Siege of Brinewash and the Battle for Bryaglee. They are also responsible for the saving of Lord Gornik and the defeat of Lord Ilyan Iskaar, preventing his plans.
==== During The Golden Invasion ====
The Brotherhood had managed to grow and expand for the 20 years they had before the war with Auresia. During that time they focused their efforts on studying the Void, the False Gods and the Four, understanding these phenomena and the ways to prevent future calamities such as the Void crisis.
Gladys and Noerin became the de facto heads of the organizations - each focusing on their personal field of work, supported by both old and new members. Gladys took it upon herself to travel the expanse of Thressos in search of information and artifacts that are related to the False gods and the Four, as well as coordinate the different research stations of both Noerin and Opinor, while Noerin reinforced himself in Harvest Keep to study the Void and ways to travel back to the Grave of Iskra, seeing the potential power and otherworldly knowledge to be found within it. 
During the year 2025, the Brotherhood was seemingly split in half, with Noerin deciding to take off, presumably to Auresia, after an attempted murder of Lady Teena Iskaar for the artifact she possesses. He was seemingly aided by a third party, managing to escape Gladys' attempt to apprehend him. Gladys found herself in Auresia, looking for him and the growing conspiracy for the war between Auresia and the Union - possible facade for a greater event related to the False gods, the Four and the Void.