The Aeterna Empire

Interlude - Empire of Ref

The story of the Ref Empire was one of glory and sudden disaster. A miniature continent the size of Ire to the north. The south eastern corner of it touched northern Kes in a forest and so there was some dispute of land and most notably the Tower of the Sun that resided there on the border. Ref was ruthless, cunning, and took the tower in a decicive victory, naming themselves the Empire of the Sun. The Kes erected a large wall to keep them back. Ref did not mind the presence of Cynn-Blood in their forests, so long as they paid tribute. It was a fine thing in their minds as the latter found taxation better than death and persecution suffered elsewhere and the former loved shiny medals. The gold reminded them of the sun they worshipped, and so they hoarded as much as they could. While one could dislike Ire-Blood for desiring gold through unfair business, the Ref did not bother with subtly and raided all neighbors through the open sea. They employed piracy without restraint until it was rumored their fleet had reached over two thousand vessels. With the money they gained they were able to build a mighty nation until all the surface of their land was ladened over with marble and civitilization and they needed to import food for lack of farmland. The presence of road and housing had become so complete across their territory they also earned the nickname 'the civilized wasteland' because there wasn't found a single green thing except in Cynn-Blood territory. The Cynn-Blood became increasingly displeased as their tribute only increased in time to an unbearable degree and the other nations had become fed up with the raids and talks of a united war was in the works.

That was until the great enemy came. It was always known the Night-Blood hated the sun and civitilizations that worshipped it, but none could have known to what degree. Nor did anyone know the true home of the Night-Blood was not just in the infinite soil, but in the black abyss, the very black abyss that Ref used in its piracy and the waters that surrounded it on all sides.

The seers that watched that fateful day marveled, as even under the full sight of the sun the Night-Blood sprang up out of the oceans as large hands, grabbing ships by the dozens, crushing them in pieces, and pulling the remains beneath the waves. Then the seers watched from all lands as the continent of Ref became completely black on all edges, like the framing of a picture, and slowly the blackness receeded inwards. The Night-Blood crawled in on all sides and then swept over the continent in a massive flood, consuming, for the the first and only time in their recorded history, everything. Not merely people that represented order, but the nature and forests of Cynn-Blood territory. Those with far sight could see the people of Ref flee towards their center, where a temple to the sun with a large altar, and make sacrifices and prayers and begged the sun to save them. But there was only clawing, inevitable, slow doom as the entire land was swept over and not one building, not one tree, not one person was left. Then when the entire continent was black as ink, did the sun cast out its enemy. The sun brought its hand down on the continent, and did not stop, but pressed down with its blazing eye harder and harder until all of Dyson shook, the land bridge connecting Kes and Ref broke, and Ref was pushed beneath the waves. 

One small fragment of Ref remained. The sun's attack on the Night-Blood caused a large volcanic eruption on its southern end, and out of the volcano grew a small island. The volcano emptied itself entirely. 

No one dared go and claim it. No one wanted it. What few scouts went and surveyed it found it was inhospitable and without resources, but more than that, it was considered unholy and a reminder of the threat the Night-Blood can be, and how far the Ref had fallen in the Sun's favor if it gave them up to be consumed.