The Infernal Archives

Corindaine

"Once we cross this river, we're within its borders. In these woods, there's nothing saving us from the whims of Mother Nature now."

-Hercules Demos

\ History /

First Age

Technically, Corindaine did not exist as its own kingdom during the First Age, but the seeds of its history start here. At the time, the kingdom of Corrin had stood in its place, for centuries before the Demon Scourge occurred. The nobles of the kingdom feared the magic abilities of some people, especially after having just recently banished a group of people who were practicing demonic magic, and they ordered many witch hunts, leading the people practicing magic to reside mostly in the forests on the western side, where they could be more hidden and secret. As the demons poured down the mountains at the start of the scourge, their first and easiest target was the forests of northwest Corrin. Strangely, very few demons attacked Chercote, and some went east through the Amethystine mountains to attack Cirrocyl. Many fortresses were erected in the forests of northwest Corrin to hold them off. As the war waged on, they were gradually losing ground.  The eastern side of Corrin had been developing industrial technology and weapons for a while, and they were about to hit a breakthrough. The turning point in the war happened when the newly established Nexus Corporation of eastern Corrin sent their legion of Cyber Knights to the battlefront. This quickly turned the tides, and The Demon Scourge ended with the Last Crusade, when the Cyber Knights pushed the demons all the way back into the original tunnel in the Amethystine mountains. After the scourge was ended, the mages of Corindaine placed a spell, sealing the entrance of the tunnel the demons came from. The defeat of the demons marked the beginning of the Second Age.

Second Age

In the aftermath of the Demon Scourge, tensions were growing between the two sides of Corrin. The eastern side's fascination with industrialization and technology had been sparked, and there was no going back. The west side was saved, but at a cost, as they uneasily watched the power that was now in the east side's hands. The Myrdaine Sisterhood was a growing faction in western Corrin, who wanted to protect the forests and had no interest in technology. They were formed out of the remnants of those persecuted in the witch hunts, and were also still recovering from being ravaged by the demons. The leader of the Templar of Tech and the Cyber Knights, Benjamin, was the current King of Corrin, and he argued that their newfound technology was the key to winning the battle and had saved them all.

Morgana Lefae was the leader of the Myrdaine Sisterhood, and is usually regarded as the first true queen of Corindaine. Morgana and Benjamin were in fact siblings, but Morgana took her mother's last name, Lefae, and Benjamin took his father's last name, Pendragon. The Sisterhood feared the Templar's power, and also wanted to keep the Heart of the Forest a secret and to themselves. The east side began cutting down trees near the River Evainne, the region now known as the Aldery Fringe, which was the last straw for the Myrdaine Sisterhood, and the two sides of Corrin began fighting in the early Second Age.

The Templar's main strategy was to send their troops through the northern half and take the Deep Woods, as it was a relatively undefended position. In desperation to fend them off, the Corrin Knights of the western side made a pilgrimage deep into the forest to train in magic and became imbued with powerful magic, becoming the Faerie Knights. They fling and scatter their magical "pixie dust" across their foes, creating a delayed explosion of energy. They fought long and hard, but were still no match for the sheer might of the Templar of Tech. The Templar took the Deep Woods easily, but the Sisterhood had sent troops around through the Aldery Fringe to flank them. The Templar was suddenly fighting a war on two fronts, from Broceliande and the Northern Aldery Fringe.  The Templar made a final push south into Broceliande. In the height of the Corrin Civil War, Morgana was pursued by Cyber Knights alone in the center of the forest, as a last stand, she unleashed all her magic, sacrificing herself and defeating the knights. This birthed the Heart of the Forest, permeating the area with magic for ages after, as well as giving life and growing the forest further. This is generally regarded as the most significant event in Corindaine history, and is often retold and depicted in art. This event is what caused the Myrdaine Sisterhood to finally surrender, and they signed a peace treaty with the Templar of Tech, splitting the kingdom into Corrindaine and Vescorrin. Vescorrin took roughly two thirds of the land, and Corrindaine was left with the other third in the west, consisting of the whole forest as well as some land to the east of it. The name Corrindaine was modernized to Corindaine. The kingdom was named after the Myrdaine Sisterhood, but the word "Daine" soon became synonymous with "Forest".