Imperial Timeline of the Second Age

1196 - 1305 - The Gallian Anarchy, also called the Typhonian Anarchy. Gallia is divided into five warring kingdoms, with no central authority. The Cult of Sol rules in Aldan and proclaims that a savior will arise, reunite the empire, and step into the Crownfire, which has since flared up anew. Brax is temporarily ruled by snow orcs, Loren comes under Praesian rule, the Orestians conquer Gallicia, and Fendrel is split into several ‘Estates.’ 
1305 - 1341 - Orestian Tyranny, also the Hegemony. Orestians, led by Heritor Makaris Innios, march from conquered Gallicia into Aldan. The diminished remnants of the legions are defeated. Makaris strides into decaying Sacris and demands the sun priests show him the Crownfire. He forces his way into Red Dome and thrusts his hand into the holy flames. He is horribly burned, and he forever after hides his scarred hand in a black glove, so Makaris is thus sometimes named the ‘Ash-Hand.’ Despite his apparent rejection by Sol, he calls himself ‘Great Archon of All Gallia’ and proceeds to impose his Hegemony on the fragmented realm. As in Orestes, Makaris’ successors are chosen by a council of generals and elders, though they are all part of the ‘Innian’’ Dynasty. 
1341 - 1367 - Archonate of Yiorgos. He successfully retakes Loren from Praesia and sends dromonds to raid along the Zurul coast. He considered the Garden of Silk, built by Emperor Balais, to be a ‘festering sore of effeminacy.’ He had the garden razed and used the rubble to build a gymnasium. He once gave 100 gold denarii to a Gallician peasant who had, ‘the most callused, ugly and honorable hands ever seen on a soft northerner.’ Very proud of his physique, Yiorgos’ torso became the model for many muscle cuirasses worn by the Orestian wyrm riders.        
1367 - 1389 - Archonate of Alexis. He sends several over-sea expeditions, which bring back incredible tales of Tsaiyun, Devana and the island of Khel-Chan. Court scribes compile the stories into ‘The Wonders Beyond the Seas,’ which go on to inspire numerous fortune seekers. Alexis begins a correspondence with a Copper Dwarf ‘World-Singer’ who sends the Hegemon a box that even the Keepers cannot open. Sailors exploring the ‘reefs beyond the Amathine Isles’ fish out a strange creature that ‘Had the face of a snake, but spoke with the voice of a baby, and was six times the weight of a cow.’ The creature is exhibited inside a crystal vat. Whatever the creature was, it carried some sort of disease, and the Scaled Plague swept through Gallia, killing Alexis and perhaps a fifth of the populace.  
1389 - 1393 - Archonate of Vasilis. Inheriting a realm ravaged by sickness, Vasilis became convinced that his predecessor had been manipulated by the Copper Dwarves, who drove the Archon to ‘draw forth unclean leviathans from the forbidden Sea of Shadows, which is under no dragon or god.’ Vasilis demanded that the Keepers open the box that had been sent to Alexis, certain it contained damning evidence. When the Keepers could not comply, Vasilis summoned his fleets and embarked on the War of the Box, intending to subjugate Khel-Chan and force the dwarves to do as the Keepers could not. Very few survived the expedition, and those who returned gave conflicting reports that often made very little sense. The Copper Dwarves later sent the gift of an ‘iron head that spoke mad wisdom,’ apparently to advise the Archons on better courses of action. The head was smashed apart in the Third Age by a monarch who disliked its voice. 
1393 - 1417 - Archonate of Ilaron. A much more cautious ruler than Vasilis, Ilaron focused on his realm’s stability, fending off an invasion from the Worldspine orcs and building a number of forts along the western coasts to deter Amathine pirates. Ilaron had a particular dislike of the northern understanding of Sol as female, and had several prominent statues of the deity replaced with masculine representations, greatly angering the priests of the Empress Sun. He further irked the Cult of Kyrene when he swapped feminine statues of the Lady of War with Orestian representations of Kyrus, Lord of War. While on a tour of Loren, inspecting the sea forts, Ilaron became delirious and insisted that the sun had split into ‘ten furious eyes.’ In a panic, he spurred his horse into a gallop and, blinded, struck a branch. He was thrown from the saddle and died before aid could be rendered. 
1417 - 1442 - Archonate of Achelas. Called the ‘Dog Archon’ by contemptuous Gallians, Achelas was a Zorn, and the first non-human to rule over Gallia since the time of Akhei-Bel. He created much controversy by placing non-humans in prominent positions, and on one occasion had an entire noble household whipped when the family matriarch refused to offer lodgings to a Hesha court emissary who was traveling through the domain. Despite many grumblings, Achelas kept a tight hold on the realm, sending several expeditions into the Worldspines to destroy gnoll tribes. 
1442 - 1466 - Archonate of Kalisto. During his rule, Praesian merchants receiving a shipment of Braxian wool contracted the Scaled Plague, which spread throughout the city of Viata, killing thousands. Ferrex, King of Praesia, demanded compensation from the Hegemony, which was refused. Thus, the War of the Merchants began. Kalisto sends emissaries to the Veldyn in Heide, paying them to attack the Praesian flank. The Hegemony also tries to convince the Ilix to stop trading dwarven metal to Praesian merchants in Merebourg, which is unsuccessful. As a peace-offering, the Ilix present Kalisto with a ‘dwarven globe of lapis and gold, moved by the power of invisible spirits.’ The war ends on Kalisto’s death, with his successor promising to cut the import duties on Praesian rice for 10 years. 
1466 - 1479 - Archonate of Kinios. Called the ‘Snake Lover,’ Kinios was a wyrm rider who ‘married’ his mount in some arcane Orestian ritual that shocked and amused the Gallian elite. Kinios was well-known for sending squadrons of wyrms to spy on the nobility, ensuring that none were gathering troops or neglecting the maintenance of their land. He had a predilection for feeding those accused of treachery to his wyrm-husband. To ‘feed the wyrm’ became a euphemism for a since forgotten, and no doubt obscene, sexual configuration.  
1479 - 1491 - Archonate of Takhis. After a number of vessels bound for the Amathine Isles go missing, Takhis blames the elves of Karkana, who deny the accusations vociferously. Perhaps to distract the Gallian nobility from their growing distaste for the Hegemony, Takhis orders an attack on Karkana. The fleet is apparently drawn into the Seeming. Rasna claim that the battle is still being fought, and occasionally sailors spot old Orestian ships engaged with ‘silver-hulled’ Rasna vessels. The loss of the fleet is a great embarrassment to the Orestians, and Takhis is pressured by his generals into committing suicide. 
1491 - 1511 - Archonate of Jin-Yata-Jeel. The ‘Snake Archon,’ Jin-Yata-Jeel was a Hesha, a choice which shocked many Gallians. Flareups of the Scaled Plague, which the Hesha were seemingly immune to, further convinced the populace that the ‘snake folk’ sought to replace humanity with their own inscrutable kind. Several dragon cults appeared during this time as well, and a number of prominent citizens were slain as sacrifices to the ‘first spirits and dragon-mothers.’ Jin-Yata-Jeel ordered a number of discrete assassinations, and also had the entire city of Fedizo razed as it ‘did not accord with the Consensus.’ The Snake Archon was infamous for his rather haphazard edicts, such as the edict banning the sale of Nyran bananas in Sacris for three years because ‘they have not been dreamed yet.’ He very rarely explained his rulings, and spent much time conferring with ‘winged Hesha’ who he regarded as his spiritual superiors. Still, Jin-Yata-Jeel was devoted to the Hegemony, and he was renowned for his parsimony, sleeping in a bare chamber that contained only a pool of ‘faintly luminous, warm and brackish water.’ He willingly resigned his post, claiming that he had done all he needed to ‘ensure the Whole-of-Being continued to remember us as we were when it was young.’ 
1511 - 1526 - Archonate of Elesis. A short-lived ruler, he died while on an expedition in the Worldspine Mountains to track down and kill Uttuneg, a snow orc chieftain who raided Gallia on many occasions, at one point carrying off the sworn virgins of Arva’s sanctum so that their ‘beauty might gladden the heart of the Snow Queen and bring an early spring.’ 
1526 - 1548 - The Sortition Wars, also the Choosing Wars. Word is sent back through mirror relays that Elesis had died in an ambush. Generals rush to Sacris to present themselves as Archon of the Hegemony, with armies being raised to support each claimant. While the generals argue amongst each other, fighting breaks out among the soldiers encamped around the capital, apparently after members of General Trisko’s command accused General Kontos of tampering with the urns that contained the lots for choosing a new Archon, hence the name of the conflict. Soon the Hegemony is embroiled in a major succession dispute that the Gallian nobles and priesthood encourage, hoping the Orestians will destroy each other.
1548 - 1573 - Archonate of Kontos. Strenuously denying claims of fraud, Kontos loots a number of Gallian temples and uses the purloined relics to hire thousands of gnolls and orcs. He crushes his opponents, who name him Archon. Gallians outraged by Kontos’ impiety are subjected to vicious reprisals by Kontos’ gnoll minions, who he forms into the Peace Company to ‘guarantee the continued serenity of the land.’   
1573 - 1599 - War of the Dawn. After the death of Kontos in 1573, his Peace Company runs riot, looting and pillaging. During this time, Orfeo Val D’Arne of Gallicia receives a vision of Irud taking off a cloak of sunlight and wrapping it around Orfeo. The Gallician is convinced that Sol has mantled him as the next emperor and he rallies his countrymen, urging them to finally throw out the rapacious Orestians. The gnolls, after being plied with gold, are convinced to support General Yiannis as Archon, but he must soon contend with Orfeo, who marches on Sacris. The Archon flees, and fighting flares up throughout Gallia. Yiannis escapes across the Worldspines and flees to Heide. He tries to convince the Ilix, Veldyn and dwarves to support him in exchange for all manner of concessions. He waits three years for the Silversmith Clan to debate his proposition, only to contract thread lung in the damp, frigid clime and die. Without Yiannis, the Hegemony disintegrates. Orfeo drives out the remaining gnolls, and, at the bidding of the sun priests, steps into the Crownfire to be anointed as emperor. The Second Gallian Empire begins.  
1599 - 1627 - Reign of Orfeo. Taking the regnal name Sagar, Orfeo-Sagar was the first true emperor in many centuries, and his ascension was greeted with great excitement by many in Gallia, who were eager to see the end of the Hegemony. The new monarch spent much of his remaining life restoring temples, casting down Orestian monuments and driving bands of gnolls and orcs into the Worldspines. He did not reverse the Orestian policies regarding non-humans, which earned some opprobrium from traditionalists. Near the end of his life, Orfeo insisted on stepping directly into the Crownfire, which consumed him utterly. The flames were said to have burned a radiant, blinding white, and many became convinced that Sagar had been taken directly to Sol’s realm. Next to Irud, Orfeo-Sagar soon becomes the most venerated ancestor in the Emperor Cult.  
1627 - 1654 - Reign of Gyons. Claiming that he had received direct communications from his ascended father, Gyons insisted that Sol was the only true deity, with all other gods being but manifestations of Sol, whose true name was Eos-Adrana. Naturally, this revelation is met with anger and skepticism by the other cults, and even the priests of Sol are wary of endorsing the emperor’s claims. Nevertheless, Gyons calls representatives of all the imperial cults to the Chamber of Bells, where he urges them to accept Sol as the Supreme Light and Epitheos. Most of the delegates demurred, insisting that they would need to send hierodules into the Abyss to confer with their patron deities. Gyons wrote many of his revelations down in the Book of Lights, which he insisted that cantors recite in every temple. To Gyons, Eos-Adrana was a dual deity, with male Eos being the dawn, and female Adrana the dusk. Together, the divinities made up a hermaphroditic whole. Sol Deus Omnibus was not easily accepted. A mob attacked the cantors in a temple of Kyrene when they began to proclaim the ‘blasphemies.’ Several temple-barons rallied their supporters and prepared to dethrone Gyons, a movement that grew after the Ivory Tree whispered that if Gyons continued on his path, he would bring ruin to Gallia. The prophecies were recorded on the Bone Oracles, which later became rallying points for those opposed to Gyons. The emperor’s forces met the Cultic Purists on the banks of the River Anahi outside Sacris. Gyons triumphed, and he attributed his victory to the favor of Eos-Adrana. He had a ‘golden ziggurat’ constructed on the site of the battle, and thereafter proclaimed the supremacy of Sol Deus Omnibus. 
1654 - 1697 - Reign of Marius. A fanatical devotee of the Supreme Light, he fully instituted the period known as the Heliocratic Monolatry, whereby all cults in Gallia became officially subordinate to the cult of Sol. Marius even destroyed ancient shrines to local dryads and undines, such as the Lady of Flowers and the Maiden of the Snowrun. The so-called Doctrine Wars occupied much of Marius’ time, as many temple estates and spirit societies revolted against the Monolatry, and all manner of curses were called forth to harry the Orfean Dynasty. Marius persevered in his beliefs, totally destroying the mighty Iron Pinnacle, the great shrine to Kyrene where many of Marius’ opponents had gathered. 
1697 - 1723 - Reign of Sejani. Highly devout, Sejani wore robes of golden pearls and refused to show his face in public, believing it would blind lesser mortals. He received audiences from behind a screen of ‘mosaicked amber’, and delegated many tasks to the priests of Sol, who had since largely embraced the identification of the Empress Sun with Eos-Adrana, the Supreme Light. Sejani was so concealed from public scrutiny that his death was only discovered six days after his passing. He had hidden himself in the very depths of his palace, which through his life he expanded into a labyrinth of chambers for all manner of civic rituals and imperial rites. The Lotus Palace, as the great edifice was called, was more temple than residence, filled with chanting sun priests and acolytes burning incense and paper sacrifices before the brass images of the imperial ancestors. Even Sejani’s concubines, male and female, were largely kept so as to perform rituals at the emperor’s behest, and at the end of his life he had hundreds of spouse-priests to attend to his holy person, which was rarely seen by even his favored bed mates.   
1723 - 1749 - Reign of Merov. He attempted to bring worship of Eos-Adrana into the Worldspines, subjugating a number of orcish clans, along with various gnoll tribes. He was slain at Shatterbone Pass by Chief Kirgash, who hurled a spear at the emperor’s unprotected face. Merov had refused to wear a helmet so that ‘his men might know him.’ His body was stolen by orcs and the Cloud Legion was dispatched to retrieve it. The legion disappeared, and Merov became something of a martyr, with his purported bones widely circulating as charms. 
1749 - 1768 - Reign of Galina. She hosted many theological debates in the Chamber of Bells, and her careful diplomacy brought an end to the last fighting of the Doctrine Wars, which had continued at the edges of the Gallian Empire for nearly a century. After careful discussion with the various prelates of the imperial cults, it was determined that while Eos-Adrana was the supreme god, all gods were in fact reflections of each other, and so all gods were equally great, even if Eos-Adrana was the ‘illuminating light that reveals the magnificence of eternity.’ This was considered acceptable by most of the delegates. Those who refused to accept the Reformed Cult became the Dissenters, who continued to defy the Heliocrats. 
1768 - 1771 - Reign of Kaldes IV. After receiving a vision of Sol’s light covering the whole world, he determined to march on Orestes and convert its people to the correct worship of Eos-Adrana. He conquered several cities, and even captured the Heritor of the North, a great blow to Orestian pride. When leading a victory parade in the city of Ebruz, a Hesha ‘wearing a false face,’ spat a ‘needle’ at Kaldes IV, who stood in a silver chariot drawn by six, naked Zorn. The emperor was wearing only robes of purple and silver, and his face was painted gold. The ‘needle’ struck him in the neck and he died of ‘bubbling’ several hours later despite the best efforts of Arva’s healers. 
1771 - 1803 - Reign of Vesperis. Much more cautious than his predecessor, Vesperis encouraged trade, sending many gifts to the Locians and the Ilix, along with sponsoring a number of expeditions into the south, and to the far western isles of the Shadow Sea. A garrulous man, he hosted raucous parties for the delegations he received from across the world. He died when, while very drunk, he challenged a Silversmith emissary to a dancing contest. Vesperis leapt onto the table and began gyrating, only to fall and strike his head on the marble floor.   
1803 - 1814 - Reign of Karlia V. Most known for declaring a holy war on the Worldspine orcs in an effort to recover the bones of St. Merov, as the martyred emperor was now known. Karlia V was said to have fallen in love with a frost orc, Hortesh, who was captured in battle. The orc whispered many ‘lies and blasphemies’ to the empress and convinced her to abandon her duties and ‘free’ herself. Karlia V vanished, and though the Crownfire never turned black, she was declared officially dead, her name stricken from many records.  
1814 - 1829 - Reign of Nestorius. A remarkable poet, Nestorius’ ‘Odes to the Glorious One,’ were believed to contain many esoteric secrets presented as mere hymns in honor of Eos-Adrana. He received a gift of a ‘flying chariot’ from the Emir of Mirkaz, who claimed to have unearthed the marvelous device from a Zakhemite ruin in the Siyuf Mountains, and to have fought off ‘ten thousand Basai fanatics’ in the process. Nestorius happily accepted the gift, which was dragged to the palace by ‘eight elephants with golden tusks and jewels streaming from their ears.’ The ‘chariot’ in fact resembled a ‘bird of folded mirrors’ and ‘sang’ when touched. Nestorius entered the metal bird with several Keepers, all of whom vanished in a ‘whirl of light and wind.’ The ‘Ship of Nestorius’ was thereafter spotted many times in the sky, resembling an ‘arrow of white fire’ that darted about at great speed.   
1829 - Reign of Anasis V. The shortest reigning monarch in Gallian history, Anasis V was only emperor for a single day. He had stepped through the Crownfire, donned his raiments and jewels and entered the Amethyst Hall. As he ascended the dais to the Silver Throne, a sunpriest, masked in gold, broke ranks and attacked Anasis V with a dagger, stabbing him multiple times in the face and neck. The emperor died moments later. The sunpriest was in fact a Dissenter, and the infiltration of the dissident sect was cause for great alarm, prompting many purges and counter-assassinations. 
1829 - 1847 - Reign of Pindo. A highly paranoid man, he was greatly disturbed by the assassination of Anasis V, and endeavored to escape his fate by any means. He routinely consulted the Ivory Tree, and had several priests of Arva follow him around at all times, carrying ‘several dozen’ antidotes to the known poisons. He would not leave his room without an escort of Deathless guards, and he had steel plates sewn into his garments. Yet he remained unsatisfied with his precautions, contracting a clan from the Iron League to construct a labyrinth under his palace into which he could escape and confound his pursuers. The dwarves labored for years on the project, and Pindo spent vast amounts on the enterprise, greatly angering the Senate. When the labyrinth reached immense proportions, Pindo went to inspect it, but insisted he go alone so that nobody would learn the layout. He was believed to have become lost and stumbled into an adjoining passage that led deeper into Erebus. Despite an extensive search, he was never found, though his ghost was said to wander wailing through the lower reaches of the Lotus Palace. 
1847 - 1871 (?) - Reign of Hekara. Deeply troubled by the growing discord in the Empire, Hekara sought some means to end the dispute between the Dissenters and the Monolatrists. Calling on the Keepers, Hekara plumbed the archives and uncovered the ‘Tower Spell' that the Azlan had attempted to use to remake reality. She brought together a number of powerful sorcerers to attempt a ‘Rectification of Names,’ as Queen Akhei-Bel had done nearly two millennia before (or so the orthodox chronologies would state). According to fragmented testimony, Hekara attempted to ‘fold’ all gods into one, therefore ensuring that only Eos-Adrana could exist, and thus retroactively prevent any opposition to the Monolatry. The effects of the Rectification are difficult to enumerate, as the resultant ‘Schism’ briefly tore apart the Skein and ‘killed time.’ For a brief moment, Creation was suspended as the gods scrambled to counteract Hekara’s designs. It is not in fact known how long Hekara ruled, as she was simply removed from existence. Even her name is not clear. Some historians record her as Nenue, others as Portia, others still give her the name Laodice. There are even texts which state Hekara was in fact Emperor Anasis V, creating many problems with the chronology. It is possible that centuries or even millennia elapsed during the subsequent Timedeath. Whatever the exact nature of events, if such events can even be known, the Skein, though repaired, was greatly weakened, no doubt contributing to latter cataclysms. 
1871 (?) - 1897 -  Reign of Nereus. Called ‘the Swimmer,’ he apparently was the son of an undine and spent his first ten years underwater. His skin had a distinct blue tinge and he was said to despise heat and dryness, and to sleep in a pond. He was tormented by visions of the world’s doom, and was likely much affected by the Timedeath, which caused great discomfort and confusion to all those with even slight mystical inclination. He gathered thousands of followers who believed that Eos-Adrana would soon turn their face upon the world and purify it with scorching radiance. The emperor led a great armada into the west, ‘beyond the wicked isle of Khel-Chan,’ in search of the ‘deathless paradise’ where the faithful would be spared the coming apocalypse and thereafter retake the world. Nereus was never seen again, though his ‘ghostly fleet’ is still sighted past the Amathine Isles, and any taken aboard the spectral vessels is said to be lost forever.    
1897 - 1924 - Reign of Corin. Called the ‘Dwarf Friend,’ Corin was much disturbed by Nereus’ prophecies and the many subtle and unsettling changes wrought by the Timedeath. He sought about for knowledge and assistance, gaining the trust of the Stoneshields after many years of petitioning. From the dwarves he learned much of the Voru, the celestial giants who refined Vala, crafting mortal life from the Walking Bones and forcing the dragons into slumber. The dwarves claimed the last giants had gone into Erebus in despair after Tir Urdun fell, and the immortal beings still brooded deep below. Corin expended great resources searching for the giants, and at last uncovered one such ancient named Ada-Irim. Through magic he enslaved Ada-Irim and sent him against the enemies of Gallia. The giant, ‘spoke’ most of the Worldspine gnolls out of existence, ravaged Orestes and Praesia, and even ‘walked’ over the sea to demand fealty from the despots of the free isles. Corin was greatly despised, not least by the dwarves, who regarded his enslavement of a Voru as a terrible blasphemy and betrayal. The dwarves, Silversmiths, Stoneshields and Iron League together, gathered and marched on Gallia to liberate Ada-Irim. The giant was turned on his own creations in a horrific battle that created the Plains of Glass and the acidic Scar Lake just to the west of the River Pax. The dwarves were forced into a retreat, and Corin then sent the giant to destroy Karkana. The Rasna, considering the giant a ‘fallen star,’ called on the Hand of Asur and trapped Ada-Irim in a ‘mirror maze.’ The giant is said to occasionally appear in both ‘past and future’ as he strives to escape the Seeming, but Corin had lost his greatest weapon. He fled into the tunnels beneath the Lotus Palace, but was pursued by members of the Deathless Legion who killed him on the orders of the sun priests. 
1924 - 1941 - Reign of Astarkhis. A priest of Sol, Astarkhis sought to ‘restore’ the truth of the Monolatry and repair the extensive damage caused by Ada-Irim’s rampage. Brief, violent appearances by the giant, ‘stumbling through the corridors of time,’ caused much consternation. On one occasion, Ada-Irim’s foot broke through the Red Dome where the Crownfire burned, and a sect calling itself the ‘Society of the Giant’s Foot’ began to claim that dwarven beliefs were superior and that a dwarf must be chosen to lead the empire. The Giant’s Foot was quickly suppressed, though not before dozens of fanatics went in search of the ‘Giant’s Footprint,’ the chosen dwarf who would renew the empire by raising the city of Talamon and instituting a new Tir Urdun to unite the world in peace and harmony.    
1941 - 1947 - Reign of Khrisippos. Raised in Locia, Khrisippos was renowned for his skill in riding, and was said to have been very vain, oiling his long, blond hair with jasmine perfume from Khanaan, plucking out all his body hair with silver tweezers, and bathing twice daily in Nyran coconut milk mixed with gold dust. He had hundreds of statues of himself commissioned, all in the heroic, Locian style, and mostly nude. He competed in the Oscalan Games, and won a crown of copper willow leaves for his spectacular performance in the cavalry trials. He courted the young tyrant of Xendes, and tried to have him made prelate of Sol, apparently to take power back from the temples and return it to the fraying Orfean Dynasty. This led to a bitter feud with the temple, and Khrisippos was later killed when he was ambushed at his hunting lodge by a number of noblemen who were furious that Khrisippos had seduced their sons without any sort of recompense or favor, as was usual in Gallian circles. Though Khrisippos killed several of his attackers, he was ultimately stabbed to death, and the cult of Sol protected his attackers from reprisals, deepening the divisions between the priests and the imperial court. 
1947 - 1968 - Reign of Farro. A mere child of six when he took the Silver Throne, Farro was said to be ‘simple,’ and he did not speak until he was four. The priests of Sol were said to have contrived to circumvent the Crownfire, dispensing with the usual witnesses to the ‘flame mantling.’ According to the traditionalists, this would mean Farro was not a true emperor, but rather a regent. Whatever his real title, the poor boy was but a puppet to the sun priests, who spoke for him and wrote out all his edicts, which Farro signed with an uncaring hand. The priests grew increasingly bold, and issued many orders to confiscate noble property and punish those who dared criticize the Monolatry. When Countess Gilda D’Orfeo began speaking out against the ‘captive boy-king’ and the ‘false lights’ of Eos-Adrana, the countess was summoned to the Chamber of Bells to explain herself. En-route, her caravan was ambushed by ‘masked brigands’ and the countess, her husband and her young daughter were slain. This was too much for the Orfeans, who bribed the commander of the Deathless Legion to storm the Lotus Palace. The priests took Farro into exile, though the emperor had little support. While hiding in a millhouse, a priest ordered a soldier to bash Farro’s head open with a stone, apparently after the young man would not stop demanding to ‘swim in the sea.’ 
1968 - 1974 - Reign of Karlia VI. Sister to the martyred Gilda, Karlia VI, born Ismeralda, was seen as a unifying choice by both the contrite priesthood and the fractious nobility. Karlia VI had an immense taste for sweets and was so fat that she needed a pair of Kulroq servants to carry her about on a sagging, bedizened sedan chair. She also had a known appetite for handsome men, and was said to appoint her lovers to court positions, which was hardly popular. Karlia VI dispatched spies to the bathhouses to locate males with the largest ‘virtuses.’ She would then offer the well-endowed men posts in the imperial harem. Those who refused were said to be killed. When a young officer was signaled out for the ‘honor’ of satisfying the empress, he was so disgusted that he smothered Karlia VI in her sleep after but a single night as her concubine. 
1974 - 1993 - Reign of Junix. Called ‘the Stern,’ he was much dismayed with the state of the court under Karlia VI. He emptied her harem and dismissed all those the empress had appointed, instead granting the positions to military men. He embarked on a great effort to pacify the realm and restore the Monolatry by patronizing the decayed temples of Eos-Adrana. He was roused to anger when the Dissenters allied with a southern branch of the Orfean Dynasty to depose Junix and enthrone an emperor who would end the dominance of the Heliocratic cult. Junix clashed with the so-called ‘Concessionists,’ who were ultimately defeated at Piedra Azul. The wrathful emperor had the spines torn out of over a thousand Concessionists and crucified many more. He thereafter began to brutally suppress opposition to his rule, and many feared he would ban the worship of any god but Eos-Adrana. When his spies told him that Praesians were encouraging the Dissenters he planned to invade the kingdom and ‘replace every idol with a holy fire.’ Just months before the legions were slated to march, Junix was killed while at prayer by one of his generals, who had long despised the emperor’s actions at Piedra Azul.  
1993 - 2024 - Reign of Phocas. Hurriedly elected by the Senate, Phocas was barely a month into his reign when the Praesians invaded, taking advantage of the chaos that followed Junix’s murder. Phocas could not prevent the invaders from occupying both Loren and Fendrel, and the Praesians came very close to seizing the capital. Phocas had to flee to Brax and rally the horse lords, who joined the emperor in a long struggle to liberate Gallia. The war left the land devastated, and the Praesians burned much of Fendrel’s farmland as they retreated. The resulting famine killed thousands, and Phocas had to empty the treasuries to buy food from Locia and the Iron League. 
2024 - 2029 - Reign of Mercian. Inheriting a crisis, Mercian debased the currency to salvage the empire’s diminished finances. This led to massive inflation which, compounded with the high price of food, sparked many riots, some of which flared into small-scale wars, including the vicious War of the Wheat, when Fendrish barons refused to lower the prices of their produce and attacked the legions brought in to enforce the imperial edict. To calm his nerves, Mercian smoked splendor leaf and inhaled huma, which only made him more erratic. He was said to have thrown himself from the Brass Tower after getting word of yet another food riot. 
2029 - 2045 - Reign of Clarus. Though determined to stabilize the empire, Clarus did not expect to contend with the forces unleashed by Ragda on distant Devana. The Skein tore, and unstable energies rippled out from the breach at Pad-Nerog, disquieting the dragons and shaking many spirits out of their slumber. Matter shifted and mutated, and confused spirits ran amok. Many wonders were recorded. The Hill of Black Fingers rose up and walked, apparently at the will of its presiding troll. The hill crashed through the city of Siddin in Loren, killing many. The River Anahi briefly flowed into the sky, and the forest of Givol in Brax sank into the ground, only to reappear inside Lake Nai and ‘scream for many days.’ Clarus was sorely put to placate the agitated landscape, and he himself was nearly carried off by the ‘gray hands of the wind’ while meeting with lords in Brax. Clarus spent several years in Brax, battling the Rolling Mountain and the Tribe of Boulders that followed the great troll. Clarus vanished when the city of Vela was ‘eaten’ by unbound spirits.
2045 - 2063 - Reign of Amicula. Facing the revolt of the very world, Amicula meets with the Keepers and makes sacrifices to many gods. He is convinced that the Skein needs to be renewed with new anima, lest the unbound spirits devour everything. He has a city in each of the five kingdoms razed and most of its inhabitants slaughtered. This action causes the sun to ‘turn black’ for three days, and when the sun reappears, the sky is a deep red. In Loren, a priestess of Arva named Ismer declares that this is a sign that the gods have grown wroth with the Heliocratic Monolatry. The emperor, Ismer claimed, had clearly gone mad and must be removed. She leads several rogue legions to Sacris. Amicula works a spell that causes the Brass Tower to walk and ‘send forth fire.’ Much of the capital is ruined. A small group of soldiers, with the help of the Keepers, break into the tower and kill Amicula. Ismer hurries to the Crownfire and leaps in. She emerges unburned and so is proclaimed empress by all the assembled. She takes one of her generals, Lucin, as a husband, and so the Orfean Dynasty ends and the Ismerian begins. 
2063 - 2081 - Reign of Ismer. The aftershocks of Ragda’s consumption by the Beast fade, but Gallia is left in ruins. Ismer works hard to restore the realm, officially ending the Monolatry and declaring the name of Eos-Adrana anathema. The Heliocratic temples are looted or torn down, and the chastised priests of Sol can only bow to the imperial will. Still, many unbound spirits remain, and the legions are hard-pressed to enforce order. Famine and plague stalk the broken cities, and many rivals to Ismer appear upon the empress’ death. 
2081 - 2095 - Reign of Lucina. Daughter of Ismer, the young empress must face down multiple other claimants for the Silver Throne. She strives to keep her mother’s legacy, and rallies her supporters against Count Terenze D’Orfeo of Gallicia, her main opponent. Lucia is found dead in her tent the night before the climactic battle at the Val D’Varga. Lucia’s generals quickly begin squabbling and violence breaks out in the camp, which Terenze takes advantage of. A number of Ismerian loyalists flee back to Sacris to hold it against the count. After a siege lasting nearly a year, Terenze concedes and returns to Galicia, where he is later killed by mercenary captains angry at not being paid for the time spent encamped at Sacris. Terenze had told the captains that he ‘did not pay a man to sit.’ The alleged retort, ‘You should pay a man with a sword anything he wants’ became an oft-quoted quip.   
2095 - 2106 - Reign of Dacian. Most of his reign was spent battling his rivals and desperately trying to win allies in his struggle to keep the Silver Throne. He personally paid a visit to the Sultan of Bayad, hoping to secure money and troops. While in Khanaan, Dacian was killed, possibly by Basai dervishes still outraged that the Gallian emperors had ‘defiled’ the Zakhemite ruins centuries ago. When word of Dacian’s death arrived via mirror relay, each kingdom put forth a successor. The Ismerian Dynasty was unable to cow its rivals, and so Gallia split into five warring realms, marking the end of the Second Age and the beginning of the Third.
Category:History