HERALDS CAMPAIGN
Scions
A view of the Crossroads, with three Scions known as the Soul Runners visible. The Crossroads became the unfortunate resting place of those that fled Kerebrihn during the opening days of the Violate War, as refugees were shredded en masse by these fast-moving two-dimensional towers.
Scions are the bizarre, horrifying and destructive 'children' of the Trinium, created at the beginning of the Declension. Scions are believed to be 'shedded' parts of the Trinium cast off involuntarily by the Agarthern Empire's manipulation of their realm, making them Celestial beings.
The Scion's naively ravaged the entirety of Noth and nearly brought civilization to collapse, as Scions collided with cities and towns, killing the living in incomprehensible ways; A perceivable soundwave that screamed buildings to pieces; A sphere of silver that killed anyone within ten metres of it; A large white 'sheet' that sheered boats in two.
In Enaeth, under TAMES directorship, a new branch of Theological Study was born called Esoteric Theory. These Esoterics were given the impossible task of making sense of the senseless, and giving the militaristic government a plan of action to deal with the threat.
The Esoterics spread across Enaeth, and collected as much data about the Scions as possible. The Scions could not be negotiated with; to this day, no communication between man and Scion has ever occurred, despite some Scion's displaying a facsimile of thought and language. Increased religious fevor and activity did not seem to dissuade, or increase their aggression. Most Scions seems to pursue or hunt living beings, some Esoteric Theorists believing they have an affinity for conscious thought, as most will leave animals and other creatures alone. Scion's were rarely seen together outside of unique circumstances and had bizarre rules regarding migration and territory, as if they were animalistic.
In their triage of the Scion threat, Scions were divided in four classes of identification, still used today by Amansir units:
Anodyne - Known Scions that pose little overt danger or risk to civilization, and are sometimes entirely passive.
Orphic - Scions of small to medium size, that are tangible, and can be contained or destroyed by a single band of Counter-Esoterics Soldiers.
Recondite - Scions of large to huge size, that require significant international intervention, or the use of advanced esoteric tools, to destroy.
Enigmatic - Scions such as these have no known weakness; areas they exist are cordoned off and abandoned.
TAMES began deploying units of Counter-Esoteric soldiers on the recommendation of the Esoterics; Small units of Augurs, sappers and clerics with a range of explosives, tools and thesehts. These units had varying successes, and many cities and territories were proclaimed 'void' as Scions would become the soul occupants of these places in the wake of operational failure.
Today, Scions are seen as a accounted risk in the frontier. While the most significant threats were destroyed centuries ago, ones that persist have adopted a mythological status, as a warning to the foolhardy and a reminder of the unknowable power and extent of the Trinium's pressure on life.
Encountered outside Barrowstead, the Ambient Shape was an evershifting whispering fractal, partially translucent, that hovered slowly above the ground. When enraged, it screamed an imperceptible beam at targets, turning them into wet paint and mist. The Fractal itself tore at the flesh of those that touched its semi-tangible form.
This Scion was ripped apart by Orin and Elimarah, who walked into the mass and had it unwillingly tear itself apart trying to kill the Herald.
Long considered the First Scion, the Fog was created during the events of 'The Fall' When the 10th Litany crashed to the earth at the end of the First Gift Cycle. It periodically rolls across Noth, the only warning sign of its approach is the dispersal of the clouds above, as it blankets the continents in a thick band of yellow/orange fog. Strange, slow moving lightning arcs from the ground to the sky. Paradoxically, the fog seems to obscure things the closer you are within, allowing for navigation off of landmarks. Sound also travels further, but even those right next to you sound as though coming from a great distance.
First seen by Second Sunrise on the road outside Palisades, and later flying above the skies of Rhyne, this triangular metallic shape was presumed to be some Atheist device, screaming across the skies. A chance encounter with Ahshala and Fenror revealed this sleek fast-moving object was actually a Scion. Its long metallic 'head' hides its actual body; a semi bipedal form, that deploys four thin limbs to lope across the ground. It does not appear to have a mouth or eyes, and is presumed to have some form of sensory echolocation. Unlike other Scions, this monster hunts wildlife, killing for some unknown purpose.
Between Arath and Enaeth is a place where furrows are cut deep across a dead, flat earth; The Crossroads. Considered suicidally impassable by most, it is the home to Scions known as the Soul Runners. These Enormous flat black towers sail across the landscape at incredible speeds, and strangely can only be seen from the side; the only indication one approaches is from the dust-cloud they leave in their wake. Their number and purpose is unknown, but it has been recorded they are drawn to the living in someway. Despite this, they have been observed never leaving the boundaries of the Crossroads, speaking to some reason for being there.
Floating along the coast of Western Enaeth lie a Scion that haunts sailors dreams; The White Leviathan. A large sheet of white that folds on itself, sometimes into semi-familiar aquatic forms, that attacks vessels from below... and above. The Leviathan has long raided the shipping lanes from Torrens to the Bedlo Township; every voyage a risk of capsizing or death. Ruins of vessels, some hundreds of years old, litter the coasts of the trading lanes, sliced in half by the impossible sharpness of this creature. Stories tell of captains who would sail fleets out to face this creature, and disappear forever below the waves. It is hoped with the completion of the Tor'yne Road Project that all coastal trade north of Torrens will cease, so great the danger its poses.
