Zinnos

Zinnos' Stag Form

**Zinnos** is the God of Time. He serves as the Curator for the Library of Zinnos, as well as an advisor to the various Emperors of the Timeless Empire. Most mortals of Enselonde consider Zinnos to be dead after his disappearance during the Divine War. Yet, the Father of Time continues to observe and wait, hidden in the far north of Wintersong's Wasteland.

## Biography

### The God of Time

Despite Zinnos being responsible for the flow of time, he is not the oldest God. Like most other Divines, he was created by the One before time existed. Yet, as the other Divines created Enselonde and the universe around it, Zinnos didn't do much. Many of the other Divines trusted his advice, but they were often too busy with their own creations to ask him for it. As a result, Zinnos waited, observing the past and the future.

The things Zinnos saw in the future shocked him, and as such, he prepared for the First, Second, and Third Human Rebellion that would turn the Divines on each other. The Third Human Rebellion would escalate into the Divine War, the only conflict in history to rival the destruction of the Great War. Yet, Zinnos was not focusing on the devastation in the present; he was preparing himself for the Great War.

### Desperate Measures

In 5 BW, shortly before the Divine War would reach its conclusion, the island of Vylhost suddenly disappeared, taking the Freehold of Vylhost with it. Overnight, a powerful Hylidan state has disappeared, never to be seen again. It is a topic much discussed by the mortal races of Enselonde, but Vylhost did not disappear; it simply moved. Zinnos had taken the Hylidans, who were largely immune to the cold, and sent them to the heart of Wintersong's Wasteland, an area inhospitable and uncharted. This would be the beginning of the Timeless Empire, as Vylhostian society rapidly transformed under his eye.

One year later, in 4 BW, he stopped Lyxis the Blind from landing the killing blow on Anbu the Godslayer during the Siege of Old Sallant, also teleporting him to the Timeless Empire. However, the Godslayer's Blade was lost, being captured by Lyxis. This was a setback for Zinnos, who hoped to use the weapon as a last resort defense against Syarus if he ever found the Timeless Empire. Fortunately, that has not happened yet.

Zinnos withdrew from public life shortly after Anbu and has not reappeared since. While he remains alive and well, hidden in the Timeless Empire, most mortals consider him to have died during the war due to mysterious circumstances. It was a chaotic time, and as a result, the disappearance of Zinnos was glossed over, with many assuming he died yet unable to explain how. However, some mortals still believe he lives.

### The Library

With a sufficient army, and a mighty hero of old to defend him, Zinnos began the construction of his masterwork: the Library. What started as a relatively small building slowly developed over the years. New floors, wings, towers, and services were added piece by piece to the Library over the course of centuries. As a result, he had created a mint-condition collection of everything. Documents lost to history, moments in time never written down, all of it perfectly preserved.

The reason for all this effort? To preserve the history of Enselonde. Zinnos knew the Great War would come, and he knew that Syarus would kill many of the other Divines in a mad quest for power. After his victory, Syarus would try to rewrite history to his own image, his perfect world. The Library stands as a rebellion against that vision, hidden away from Syarus yet constantly defying him.

### Present Day

Not much has changed for Zinnos after the Great War. While both the Wyrsian Wintersong Colony and Wintersong's Republic have come close to the borders of the Timeless Empire, the Frozen Horde has done a superb job of keeping outsiders away. Yet, as incursions and interest in the frozen continent continue to grow, Zinnos might have to prepare for a war against Syarus.

Despite having Anbu on his side, any open conflict between him and Syarus would be akin to suicide. If the Empire was ever found, perhaps it would be better to move it once again.

## Personality

Zinnos is a patient Divine, very quiet and always waiting. This makes him a terrible conversation partner, as his replies are usually slow and short. However, he is one of the most intelligent beings to ever exist inside of Enselonde, rivalling Giraldir himself. Of course, this might seem like bragging coming from an official entry of the Library, but he can always be found here. Go talk to him, and you will realize the truth.

## Champion

*Main Article: Champions*

Zinnos is unique in the way that he is the only Divine whose Champion is also a Divine. In the case of Zinnos, this is Anbu the Godslayer, the Usurper God of Fertility after his killing of Zaoru during the Third Human Rebellion. Anbu mostly serves as a protector of the Library, yet he sometimes accompanies the Frozen Horde on their less risky missions where he will not be recognized by any Human explorers.

## Divine Offspring

*Main Article: Divine Offspring*

Zinnos has created a handful of Divine Offspring, however, none of them survive to this day. All of them were created before the outbreak of the Divine War, and whereas Zinnos remained out of the conflict, his Offspring most certainly did not. In their foolish bids for power and glory, they joined both sides of the war and got themselves obliterated by their much more powerful counterparts or by Divines themselves. The most important of these were:

* Qatyx - Daughter of Zinnos. She stole the Timeblade and joined the Freeholds during the Divine War. She was assassinated by Ihyll's Blades, the Timeblade falling into the hands of the Nytalyrian Empire.
* Yrius - Son of Zinnos. He was recruited by Ivos to join the Kingdom of Humanity during the Divine War. He would ultimately end up in a duel with Dhedur, Divine Offspring of Anir, which he would end up losing alongside his life.
* Zaldir - Son of Zinnos. He initially remained neutral during the Divine War but would ultimately join the Kingdom of Humanity, not for their cause, but for personal glory. He tried to attack Adyana, who had remained neutral but was obliterated by the much more powerful Goddess.
* Zinnica - Eldest child and daughter of Zinnos. She became a student under Giraldir. When he joined the Divine War on the side of the Freeholds, Zinnica became his bodyguard. She ultimately died protecting him from an attack by Ihyll herself.

## Artifacts

*Main Article: Artifacts*

Zinnos has made a good amount of artifacts over the years. His artifacts mostly center around the manipulation or understanding of time.

* Diamond of Eternity - The Diamond of Eternity is a small, ordinary-looking diamond. However, once someone looks through the Diamond, they can see events that transpired in the past in their current location. The Diamond was instrumental in solving the Torstadt Crisis after revealing the treachery of House von Altenelver. The Diamond has since remained in the possession of House von Kalzberg but was ultimately captured by the Republic of Fühlgart after the Fühlgartian Civil War. It has remained in Freistadt since, under the joint ownership of the Fühlgartian Senate.
* Pocket Watch of Zinnos - The Pocket Watch of Zinnos is a small pocket watch that can supposedly freeze time for everyone but its owner. Experiments have revealed, however, that the Pocket Watch has no effect on Enselonde, and that its user is instead sent to an entirely different Realm that is a frozen carbon copy of Enselonde. It is currently owned by the Empire of Sallant.
* Timeblade - A sword that sends the target to a random place and random date in time, either to the past or future. It was wielded by Qatyx but ultimately fell into the possession of Lyxis the Blind. It was destroyed by Lyxis' death, alongside the Nytalyrian capital.
* Tome of Creation - The Tome of Creation, unlike its name suggests, is not used to create anything. Instead, it allows the wielder to glimpse at the very creation of Enselonde. Some of the mortals who have opened the Tome reported seeing the One, which has made the Tome highly coveted. It was originally owned by the Divine Order of Enselonde but was stolen by the Kingdom of the One in the early 11th-century AW, where it was kept in Rosendorf. Ultimately, during the Battle of Rosendorf, the tome was taken by Adelhard the Faithful before he fled to Daletia. While Adelhard was later killed, the Tome was ultimately lost, and it is believed it was buried somewhere in northern Daletia. However, despite extensive searches by multiple nations, it was never found again and is presumably still out there.

## Relationships

* Giraldir - Giraldir was an important Divine, but above all else, he was the only Divine I truly considered to be my friend. We have had our differences, occasionally, yet he always remained a confidant and close friend. I hadn't seen him physically in centuries, and yet, I felt his death and mourned him as a brother.
* Anbu the Godslayer - Perhaps Anbu's position is somewhat degrading. He went from Humanity's greatest hero, to a Divine, to a Champion hiding away in a frozen continent. And yet, he has been nothing but professional, approaching his new responsibilities with an admirable level of stoicism. Perhaps we Divines can learn something from mortals after all.
* Cynda Wintersong - Cynda Wintersong, the namesake of my current residence. A Divine Offspring ascended to Divinity by killing her own father. It should outrage me, and yet, I admired something about the girl. Yet, she was but another light extinguished by Syarus. I will miss her, and fondly remember the few conversations we had over the years.
* Onir - The God of Chaos, his worship forbidden in almost every country in Enselonde. It shouldn't come as a surprise then that he suddenly stumbled into the Timeless Empire for a friendly visit. It was, after all, a chaotic situation. While he is a strange God in his own right, it was nice to be able to talk to a Divine from the outside world for a change. However, his presence could be a threat to the Empire as a whole, as it could make it easier to find for other, less well-intentioned Divines.

* Syarus - Syarus is not the first God to go mad to power. He follows in the footsteps of Lateos and Dhydos before him. And yet, he's the biggest danger that Enselonde has ever seen. What drives a God to declare war against the One, to kill his fellow Divines, to try to destroy the world as we know it? Syarus must be stopped at any cost.
* Lyxis the Blind - The Empress of Nytalyria, pretending to be a Goddess. She dragged Divinity and everything it means through the mud for over a thousand years with her degenerate practices. Not to mention that she set out to try to find the Timeless Empire in the past. The Hyllidans will remember her fondly, no doubt, but her death improved Enselonde as a whole.
* Ihyll - Ihyll is Syarus' most powerful foe. However, the enemy of my enemy is most certainly not my friend. Ihyll is responsible for the death of many of my Offspring. The Goddess of Death is a fool, riddled with naive beliefs and broken dreams. I hope to never have to encounter her again,

## Stories

*Main Article: Stories*

* Story: Onir - Cold Reception