Death Never Scared Me

Arioch

Elder soon became a bustling village with grand temples thanks to the First Priests. Mundrich was declared king due to his strength in leading Halverholm in peace and in war. Wilkin was placed as Royal Advisor to Mundrich to aid him in making decisions that would benefit all of Halverholm. Justus worked to make sure Halverholm always had plentiful crops and that life flourished throughout the country. Together, the three brothers worked in harmony to create a beautiful, peaceful land, just like the gods had told them to.

Arioch, however, began to fill with jealousy. According to his vision, no brother was to be more powerful than the others. Arioch believed that Mundrich had gained too much power. Arioch thought he should be king instead of his older brother. Fueled with rage and jealousy, Arioch broke into the throne room and attempted to take his brother's life. However, Mundrich was a stronger fighter and wounded Arioch, leaving him with three scars on his face. Unlike Arioch, Mundrich did not have the heart to kill his own brother. Instead, Arioch was exiled, never to return to Elder again.

The three remaining brothers continued to rule Halverholm in peace, while Arioch spent years in the cold mountains to the north of Elder. There, he began to communicate with Damien, God of Death, who took pity on the exiled Arioch. He told the god that he needed a companion to help him through the loneliness his exile brought him. Some say the God of Death developed feelings of love towards Arioch, but no one knows for sure. Damien began sharing dangerous spells with Arioch and soon, he set a plan in place to take the throne.

Using a ritual given to him by Damien, Arioch summoned an army of corpses to fight for him. The ritual filled him with a new feeling of power and he commanded the army to storm Elder, destroying everything that got between Arioch and the throne. Wilkin and Justus attempted to stop Arioch from entering the throne room, but they were quickly taken down by Arioch's blade. This time, Mundrich was no match with Arioch's new-found power. Arioch, showing no mercy, drove his sword into his eldest brother's heart, killing him. Covered in his brothers' blood, Arioch placed the king's crown on his own head and declared himself the new, all-powerful leader of Halverholm.

Arioch was a cruel and vile leader. He kept his army of corpses as a warning to anyone that dared to oppose him. The city was filled with death and destruction as crops began failing and plague rolled into Elder during Arioch's short reign.

Arioch's reign of terror only lasted one year. Mundrich's eldest son and heir to the throne, Alexander was given strength from Waldrom to avenge his father and take back the throne. They say the battle lasted for three weeks and cityfolk could hear the shouts of anguish from the valley. In the end, Alexander defeated Arioch and reclaimed the throne. Arioch's undead army died with him and the corpses were able to be at peace once again. Arioch was sent to the darkest parts of Varlden and left to spend eternity alone.

As for Damien, many people found it hard to trust them again. They claimed that Arioch tricked them, but no mortal would be clever enough to trick a god. The ritual books for all gods were changed and summoning rituals were altered in order to keep anyone from gaining that much power again. It's said the other gods forbade Damien from ever entering the mortal realm on their own will.