Anzen-Sei

the earliest mentions of the Anzens from outside their own culture comes from the writings of Rogu Riggibad, the stoutfoot who, in the employ of the KSH in 1142 BWT, journeyed north on an expedition for his company.

Tasked with making his way through the Tolari Mountains, he soon found himself lost and starving, and likely would have died if not for a young girl who came across him.

"Then, as if by the intervention of the divine, a young girl called into the cave in an unfamiliar language. I stumbled from the cave, my bedraggled appearance clearly displaying my situation. It was then that i saw her in the sunlight, a tall, slender woman with pale blue hair that hung down to her knees. Her face was pretty, yet foreign, and when she reached out to touch me, her hands were soft as silk."

Riggibad was led to a small mountain village that had been nestled in between two peaks. The girl, who he managed to identify as "Toyalla", introduced him to her family. The town was enamored with his appearance, never having seen a Stoutfoot before, and they showed him around and let him stay until he was well enough to return. They explicitly refused him passage to the lands beyond the mountains, however, as this was strictly forbidden by their King.

This meeting can appear strange. How did nobody discover them in their previous 4,000 years of existence? Why were outlanders forbidden?

These answers can be answered easily when one consults with the Great Archive of Anzen, one of the only surviving record archives from before the War Of Thorns.

Anzen legend tells of a dark and storm ridden land that bears little life. This land was ruled by darkness for an untellable amount of time, until The Supreme Godess, Anza, cracked the thunderclouds with her mighty whip, and a beam of light shone through. Through this beam of light emerged the first Anzens, or "The God Given", and they settled the hillsides, carrying buckets of Anza's light, pouring it on the darkness, causing it to recede.

This is merely another myth of creation, as with several societies, but other records indicate that as early as 5,500 BWT, cities such as Yanzo, Dagenzaki, and the lost city of Shyotus were well established and formed. This era of history is known as "Anzen-Seph", and the society was governed by a grand oracle, who would primarily assign farmland to the people.

Anzen-Seph soon ran into trouble as they began to deal with problems from creatures known as Holfiks, who patrolled the foothills of the Tolari Mountains. As the Anzens expanded south and east, these Holfiks contested their establishments, and a number of terrible massacres occured at the hands of these creatures.

It isn't known exactly what the Holfiks are, as their descriptions varied drastically in writings, but it is commonly believed that they were furry humanoids with hunched backs, long snouts, and red eyes. They were said to have weilded primitive swords made from the Giliglass Ores in the mountains.

This conflict is quite important, because it initiates the beginning of what would become Anzen's legendary military. Farmers on the edge of the frontier began shaping tools into copper swords, and using them to defend their new lands from these hideous beasts. The conflicts with the Holfiks lasted almost 300 years, and as generations came and went, these swords became more refined alongside the techniques employed to use these swords.

As the Holfiks diminished, the Anzens grew, and it is said they entered the first of their golden ages.

The Anzens were not always isolationists. In approximately 4000 BWT, The Anzens ventured across the Tolari Mountains and settled the plains of Lakkesor. There, they soon began to encounter a people known as The Duff, who reacted poorly to The Anzens settling Lakkesor, and began to raid their villages. According to legend, the Grand Oracle met with the King Of The Duffs to discuss terms, and the Duff King took this opportunity to attack and eviscerate the Grand Oracle, leaving the Oracle alive as he disemboweled him in front of his own people.

The Anzens were horrified, and they soon took up arms against the duff, leading to the first of the Jinzhenron, the legendary swordsmen of the Anzens. This act was organized by the first hero of the Anzens, Jinzhenron, who rallied the greatest fighters of Anzen and organized a military campaign against the Duff people. The campaign lasted a grueling 10 years, and in the Battle Of Kazeloge, Jinzhenron gave the Duff King the same treatment which had been given to the Oracle a decade prior.

Jinzhenron was made the King of the Anzens, and the country was then named Anzen-Wei, reflecting the loss of their Grand Oracles. The swordsmen who battled against the Duff were hailed as heroes, and were granted deeds of land.

Jinzhenron's name went on to be immortalized as the name of the Anzen swordsmen, and they honed their craft to a near obsessive level. Their effectiveness only grew more potent as Xiluti metal began to be implemented into their swords somewhere between 3600 BWT and 3100 BWT.

By 2900 BWT, The Anzens had flourished, and under the High King Neikar, they pushed their boundaries even further, expanding into the deserts to the east, and the plains to the south. Towards the end of Neikar's life, he crowned himself as Emperor of Anzen, and renamed the country to Anzen-Ro.

Anzen-Ro corresponded with the Togeyaki Movement, as the obsession with the art of the blade led to a manifestation in cultural practice. Warfare became all that mattered. Artists, writers, poets, and painters would almost exclusively work on glorifying the Jinzhenron and their exploits, and children would be trained from the age of 5 until their induction into the tutelage of a master.

The Togeyaki period lasted until around 1500 BWT, when the continent was thrown into crisis as a powerful Warlord, known as Kryvar The Wounded, rose up in the lands of Lakkelor, and captured a large swathe of land, enslaving hundreds of thousands of innocents, using black magic to overpower any opposition.

The Anzens soon took action, levying their military and any other Jinzhenron they could muster, and the proud Anzen swordsmen warred against Kryvar for 22 years as the dark lord pushed deeper into their territory.

Finally, after 22 years of brutal war, three Jinzhenron, Tygozai, Yorphen, and Yamdrana confronted Kryvar at the Junjik Keep, at the foot of the Tolari Mountains. The three battled against the Dark Lord, the legends stating that the earth shook for 3 days as the fighting dragged on, and finally, after Yorphen had been slain, and Tygozai had been wounded, Yamdrana beheaded Kryvar, and put an end to the crisis.

Yamdrana and Tygozai were gifted massive tracts of land and riches for their heroism, and Yamdrana was permitted to marry the Emperor's daughter, which would lead to the Yamdrana Dynasty that still persists today.

Being the only advanced society on Akanaros at the time, many simply did not remember what the Anzens had done. Many historians call Anzen-Ro the "Unsung Heroes of the Second Age."

Anzen-Ro had won this war, but their society was crippled. They began to be unable to govern their lands that lay outside the Tolari Mountains, and withdrew back within their homeland, essentially ending the empire.

Their withdrawal helped, but not enough. Anzen soon began to stress at its seams due to a crippled economy, and civil unrest relating to the withdrawal.

30 years after the withdrawl, 7 Anzen Warlord rose up within the homeland, and vowed to return Anzen to its former glory.

This began a period of civil war that would last in several different fashions for almost 200 years. It would not be the last time Anzen fell into civil war, but the first period of civil war was perhaps the bloodiest.

details are difficult to find on this period, known as "The Dark Crossing", but it is known that there were severe casualties as the masters of the sword pitted against each other. Several legendary duels were fought, and in the end, King Yamdrana Gho, Yamdrana's descendant,  managed to destroy all 7 warlord strongholds and reunify Anzen.

After this period, The Anzens went into a mandated isolation, focusing to rebuilt what had been lost. The civil war had shaken Anzen to its roots, and though the Togeyaki Methods persisted, the obsession with blood and glory began to fade.

The Anzens remained solitary for a tremendously long time, and in 234 BWT, another civil war was on the horizon.

Though Anzen had recovered, many still believed their warrior lifestyle had been watered down by poltics and idling. A former Jinzhenron, Rodu Kalifron, had entered into the political landscape, and he strongly favored a return to the Togeyaki mentality of old. In fall of 234 BWT, Rodu held a protest on the steps of the Grand Palace of Yamdrana, and after a riot ensued, several protesters were cut down, including Rodu.

Rodu's supporters in the military were incensed, and under the banner of Rodu, several houses declared war on Anzen.

This war raged on for 14 years, and culminated with the Great Battle Of Karka Ridge, where the forces of Natu Ren clashed with the forces of Galagan Vimos, with Natu's forces winning the battle for Yamdrana. The aftermath of this battle resulted in The Legendary Duel of Natu vs Galagan, one of the most popular stories in Anzen culture.

After the war, the isolation continued until 194 BWT, when King Yamdrana Ori ordered his men over the mountains for the first time in nearly 2000 years, and they engaged in a bloody war with the Kolarians to the south, who had sprang to power in their absence.

The war ended inconclusively, and the Anzens were humiliated at their defeat. The Anzens were weakened and vulnerable yet again, and this time, someone was ready.

In 189 BWT, The Draeves from the eastern deserts swept in and butchered the Anzens. Caught off guard, the Anzens could do little but try to hold them off, but the Draeves were too many in number even for the legendary warriors. In just 6 months, The Draeves had battled all the way to the foot of the Yamdrana Palace, and with a mighty legion, they marched on the royal keep.

This was a dark day for the Anzens, with many Anzen soldiers deserting their posts as they watched the Draeves' legions bear down upon their King's Palace.

In the end, there were but 7 warriors standing between the Draev legions and King Yamndrana Ori.

Korphias Yonzu

Natu Ren

Yoria Venzhe

Hikio Zezh

Santuri Hei

Wenshen Wo

Goryag Hallos

The 7 warriors fought valienty to protect their King, but were no match against an entire legion of Draeves, and as the Draeves overpowered the 7 warriors, King Yamdrana Ori ordered Natu Ren to behead him, and escape with his only son, to which Natu obeyed.

The Anzens were subjugated by Draetoss, and remained under their rule until 24 BWT. Several uprisings had been attempted, but the Draeves had always repelled them. But with the onset of The War Of Thorns, The Draeves were weakened, and Anzen rose once again under the leadership of the persisting Yamdrana Dynasty.

The Anzens helped briefly with a war dispute in Kolaria, but for the most part, they focused solely on rebuilding. In 20 BWT, King Yamdrana Drin abolished the monarchy, and Aznen formed a grand senate with 500 seats. The country was formally renamed Anzen-Sei, and the democracy of Anzen was born.

The Yamdrana dynasty still sat in the middle of the senate, their head of house serving as chancellor, and things began to finally improve for the Anzens.

Until 7 BWT, when the dragons attacked.

As with most countries in the world, the Dragons decimated Anzen-Sei, and they were occupied once more for 7 long years, until the Dragons were defeated by Sir Owen The Flame, and the Dragons went into hiding.

Once the Dragons fled, Anzen-Sei rose once more, finally rebuilding their society.