FALLEN LEAVES

FOUNDATION OF THE LANDS

I. The Creation
II. The Fall
III. A New Epoch
IV. The Shattering

I. GENESIS
- COSMOGONY & CREATION MYTH -
THE BEGINNING

In the beginning, there was nothing.The One Great encompassed all existence – it was all, and it was empty,
as it was for many aeons: formless chaos within the lightless abyss.Then, there was the Great Fracture.Birthed from the lightless abyss came its soul in the form of the Greater Will, leaving stars in its wake as it streaked across the void — and thus, the sky and all of its glistening beasts were born. Within their bodies held the fates of all those below. The night sky and all of its stars were born of the Greater Will.Birthed from the lightless abyss came its flesh in the form of the Crucible, sprouting the Lands in her wake as she danced across the void — and thus, the earth in its inhabitable state had come to be. Within her body held the divine blood. The Crucible was the ancestral tree that granted divinity unto her children, and her name was Mother. The Lands and all of its creatures were born of the Crucible.The One Great had fractured into two parts: the Greater Will and the Crucible were born of the One Great; the lightless abyss had birthed the firmament and the lands — intertwining fate and emerging life together.

Among the countless cosmogonies and creation myths of the universe, there lies a prevailing conception: all was born from formless matter. In Greek mythology, it is known as chaos – the primordial void, described as a great abyss filled with nothingness. In Genesis, it is described as a formless and desolate ocean, engulfed in complete darkness. On a smaller scale, in alchemy, it is called the “prima materia” – the primitive, formless base of all matter, that acts as the essential starting material in order to create the alchemical magnum opus.        “All that there is came from the One Great. Then came fractures, and births, and souls. But the Greater Will made a mistake. Torment, despair, affliction... every sin, every curse. Every one, born of the mistake. And so, what was borrowed must be returned. Melt it all away, with the yellow chaos flame. Until all is One again.”
        – Lightseeker HyettaThe One Great acts as the primordial void that preceded the creation of the universe – a lightless abyss that was utterly formless and empty. Then, there was the Great Fracture.From the Great Fracture, the Greater Will and the Mother of Truth were born of the One Great – fragmented pieces of the former whole. As the One Great was once formless chaos, its children would bring order and life to this disordered darkness. The Greater Will had inherited the lightless void, and further fractured into the heavens and the ocean, separating its abyss; the Mother of Truth had inherited the formlessness, weaving it into a divine, twisted element to beget life. As the Greater Will began to stray far away from its creations, the Mother of Truth continued to act as the demiurge of the world.        “Long ago, we began as stardust, born of a great rupture far across the skies. We, too, are children of the Greater Will. Is that not divine? Is that not sublime? ...and yet, none can fathom its implications, its utter brilliance!”
        – Count Ymir, High PriestUpon the Great Fracture that fragmented the One Great into the Greater Will and the Mother of Truth: the Greater Will represents the metaphysical realm, while the Mother of Truth represents the physical realm. As the Greater Will embodied the soul of the cosmos and fate of man, the Mother of Truth became the divine personification of the Lands and the life that would inhabit it. This is how the heavens and ocean were formed, and how the Lands were created.

The Greater Will is the primordial father of fate; it is the divine embodiment of the heavens above and abyss below, who bore children in the form of stars and stardust. It inherited the lightless void that which surrounds all, enveloping the Lands in its presence.The Above and Below created from the Greater Will’s continued fractures were named the Heavens and the Ocean, and both the night sky and the watery abyss would carry the burden of portending fate.The stars that guide us rest within the firmament.

The Greater Will is akin to the concept of anima mundi – the “soul of the world,” in which the universe is described as a living being with a soul and intelligence of its own, and this entity permeates and animates the entire cosmos with its will. According to the Blue-White Wooden Shield and Amber Starlight, the stars of the night sky are known to portend fate. “If the stars command our fates, then amber-hued stars must command the fates of the gods.” The command of the Greater Will permeates the cosmos and the Lands Between in the form of fate. Likened to a bloodstream, its procession of stars would be known as the Primeval Current: the emanation of the Greater Will that would appear to the mortal eye as its most vulnerable moments, such as a dark abyss or the final moments of a great star cluster.The Mother of Truth, also known as the Formless Mother (and, inevitably, the Mother of Crucibles), is the primordial mother goddess of the Lands. In various mythologies and belief systems, mother goddesses are the source of all life, who take on the role of Creator through their divine wombs – these aspects can be seen in the Formless Mother herself. The Mother of Truth is the Great Mother that births all living beings from her Divine Womb and permeates all living beings with her Divine Blood. She is the prima materia, the formless matter (etymologically, mother) – flowing and twisting through each creation, akin to the double helix of our very own DNA. Blood is the very foundation of life – the twisted, divine element – and it is how the Formless Mother is able to weave life into each and every one of her children.The Greater Will and the Formless Mother would reside in the divine domain above the world, and while the Greater Will remained in its heavenly seat, the Formless Mother would project her soul into the world below, and create the rest of the earth.Thus, by the will of the Mother, the Lands were birthed, separated from the void that the Greater Will resides in. It would be surrounded by the lightless abyss above and the cosmic ocean below, similar to the firmament in biblical mythology – the firmament, or celestial barrier, is what separated the primordial sea into upper and lower halves in order for land to appear. “As above, so below” – the oceans of the Lands Between are merely a reflection of the Greater Will’s lightless abyss.And so, the divine domain rested above the primordial waters, and the primordial waters rested around the firmament. In the depths of the earth are the great roots of the Mother.

The Mother of all Crucibles, also known as the Mother of Truth, is the primordial mother goddess of the Lands; she is the divine personification of the earth, and the ancestral womb of all life. She is the Crucible incarnate, with her formless soul housed in the form of a great, sacred tree. Her flesh sprouts buds from which her children are born, and their bare souls are clothed with the Aspects of the Crucible. Her divine blood courses through the Crucible Tree in the form of reddish-golden amber sap, and flows through the Lands through her roots, nurturing and encouraging life ever-changing.The Crucible Mother is adorned with divine aspects, which she would bestow unto her beloved creations not only to bear a mark of her divine nature, but also as a symbol of her unconditional love.Her divine aspects would be a symbol of power and the dualistic nature of life and death – the union of divinity and humanity.

Akin to the creation of Yggrasil from Norse mythos, the Crucible Tree had emerged from the void of the One Great, and has come to represent how all things are intertwined. The Crucible Tree would be the very first Sacred Tree of the Lands, and it would become the body that houses the soul of the Mother of Truth, forming the columns of the earth. Its roots below would branch out throughout the depths of the Lands, and its branches above would take root within the heavens. The great roots of the Mother function not only to anchor her to the earth, but also to absorb and embrace her children in funerary rites – to return to her womb.As the demiurge, the Mother of Truth began to create, earning her the title of “the Crucible” – for her Divine Blood is the primordial matter where all life originated from, and was once blended together. Just as her divine element is twisted, so too were her currents, and references to the Mother of Truth can be seen in braided spirals to symbolize the divinity of the Crucible. The Divine Blood of the Mother of Truth is reddish-gold in color, as it was weaved from her own blood and the golden amber from the lightless abyss that she once was One with.        “A giant mass of intermingling Crucible attributes. Reduces damage taken from critical hits and head shots and improves the effectiveness of rolling and backstepping, but also increases damage taken at all times. Rumored to have sprouted upon giants and is known as the "mother of Crucibles" in ancient tower lore.”
        – Talisman of All CruciblesTaking into account the alchemical magnum opus, the colors red and gold are prevalent in the process of achieving the Great Work. Red is associated with blood, and gold is associated with perfection – and both colors are associated with the Crucible. In the item descriptions for the Gilded Greatshield – “The red tinge in the gold coat mirrors the primordial matter that became the Erdtree. The color of homeward yearning” – and Devonia’s Hammer – “Weapon forged of primordial gold, marked by its reddish hue and inhabited by ancient holiness” – the primordial matter of the Crucible was remembered to be a reddish-gold hue.The Mother of Truth and the Mother of Crucibles are one and the same.        “Glintstone is the amber of the cosmos, golden amber contains the remnants of ancient life and houses its vitality, while glintstone contains residual life. And thus, the vitality of the stars.”
        – Sorceress SellenGolden amber is the blood of the Crucible, while glintstone is the blood of the cosmos – both only remnants and residue, respectively, due to continued fractures that began with ancient life and will only cease when all life ends.Within the Divine Womb of the Mother of Truth is the Amber Egg – that which she uses to beget life, imbued with the concentrated essence of the Crucible.

The first daughter of the Mother of Truth came with the sensation of a gentle breeze; the breath of life, and she was named Miranda. In a once empty and desolate universe, the Lands were now blessed with the grace of the Flower Crucible – flowers bloomed, trees sprouted, and all life flourished with vigor that Miranda breathed into her mother’s creations. From the birth of Miranda came the foliage that decorated the Lands, and Miranda would be the very first Numen, as she was the numen of the Crucible Mother – a daughter simply enacting the divine will of her Mother.

Miranda and her offspring – the Numen race – would be blessed with divine flesh that melds harmoniously, like grafting a scion to a rootstock. The flesh of [Numen] shamans is known to meld harmoniously with others, and this divine aspect is also seen in Miranda flowers and Saint Trina, in which their flesh melds harmoniously with their surrounding environment – Miranda flowers with their variations, and Saint Trina with putrescence. Being the foremother to the Numen [shamans], Miranda became known as the Grandmother.        “This statuette depicts a flower that preys on humans, posed in prayer. Uses FP to call down a deluge of light. Miranda, maiden of the Flower Crucible is said to have been the very first of this breed.”
        – Miranda’s PrayerFound in the Ancient Ruins of Rauh, one can find the Aspects of the Crucible: Bloom incantation, which is a rework of the Miranda’s Prayer cut item. “Aspect of the Crucible discovered in the ancient ruins. Creates a miranda flower on one's chest before calling down a rain of light. Charging increases potency. In an age long past, before this land was enshrouded in shadow, the vitality of the Crucible flourished.” The aspect of Miranda remains within the origins of the Crucible, held dear by her mother.        “Those who dwell within poison know rot all too well. The death that begets life, that comes to all equally. That is to say: it is the cycle of rebirth put into practice.”
        – Poison MistMiranda would go on to become the mother of the Rot God, in an act of virgin birth symbolizing the cycle of rebirth and decay, and mushrooms would come to represent holy vestments that root one to the earth. Miranda’s other offspring, blossoms and blooms and land squirts alike, would carry on her affinities for poison and harmonious flesh-melding – these children would carry the innocuous idea of honoring one’s strength by consumption of flesh, and in turn, that very strength living on through them.

The first son of the Mother of Truth would be the foil to his sister. While Miranda embodied nature, he would personify destruction. His name was erased from the annals of history, but the horns he had inherited from the Mother of Truth would forever mark him as her son, and the cleansing flames he possessed earned him the title of “the Fell God of Fire.” In contrast to the birth of Miranda, the birth of the Fell God came with the sensation of an agonizing burning, permanently scorching his Mother. Though the birth was painful, the Mother loved her son, still.

According to Wiccan beliefs, the Horned God is also known as the Lord of Death and Resurrection, and is sometimes depicted as a Sun God. He would represent duality and balance, especially between the nature of the divine and the nature of animals and man. As the son of the Crucible, blessed with horns, the Fell God would take on the role of bringing the end to an age before the cycle starts anew. In slash-and-burn agriculture, the trees and foliage are cut down and burned, in order to clear and prepare the land for cultivation. By burning the land, nutrients are returned to the soil, and new crops are grown in the now-fertile ashen remains. In alchemy, this can be likened to calcination – where the prima materia is burned to ashes. This would be the purpose of the Fell God of Fire: purification by immolation.While the Mother of Truth and Miranda enacted their purposes of begetting life and cultivating the Lands for new life to thrive, the Fell God of Fire could only watch from afar, in fear that his flame would burn his beloved mother and sister.Miranda and the Fell God would be known as the First Empyreans, chosen by the Crucible Mother herself. Just as golden amber was gifted to the Greater Will and the Mother of Truth from the fracture of the One Great in order to sustain life, verdigris was gifted to Miranda and the Fell God from the Mother of Truth in order to protect one another, imprinted with the formless, spiral markings of the Mother. However, Miranda and the Fell God of Fire would grow up to follow separate fates.

From the divine womb of the Crucible came the conception of the Flower Crucible: her firstborn daughter named Miranda, who brought vigor to the spirits within the flora around her – introducing the beauty of the natural cycle of decay and rebirth. She was the breath of life and the flowers that would grow from it, inheriting the divine flesh of her mother's that melds harmoniously. A gentle daughter, who would blossom and burgeon into a loving Grandmother.From the divine womb of the Crucible came the conception of the Fell God of Flame: her firstborn son, known only as the Fell God of Flame, who wreaked destruction to all surrounding him – introducing the purification that follows a cleansing by fire. He was the harbinger of eschaton and the reminder that to ash all shall return, inheriting the tangled horns of his mother's that proved he was beloved by the Crucible. A boisterous and volatile son, who would burn and smolder into a resentful deity.

Following the birth of her two firstborn children, the Mother of Truth would go on to create the rest of the world and its inhabitants in her image. The divine Aspects of the Crucible are as follows: horns; fangs; fiery breath; scales; tails; feathers; wings; thorns; blooms; red hair/fur, the hue reminiscent of primordial matter; and flesh that melds harmoniously. These aspects carry the current of primordial life within them, and were seen as blessings that the Mother bestowed upon her beloved children. New buds would sprout and burgeon upon the Crucible Tree, and they would carry the divine aspects of the Crucible within them.After Miranda and the Fell God came the Giants and the Dragons, and after the Giants and the Dragons came mankind and other creatures. As the Mother created life on the Lands, the Greater Will birthed and harbored beasts within its stars.Then came fractures, and births, and the rise of ancient civilizations.Far within the Greater Will burned a star so great that its luminescence graced the Lands in its light. This celestial body was called the Sun, and the Seat of the Sun would be occupied by the Fell God. When the Sun would touch the Lands it was called “Day,” for all would be illuminated – and when it was time for the Sun to rest, it was called “Night,” for all would return to darkness. Though all would be graced with light during the Day, the Night was revered far more, as the stars were known to portend fate.When Night would fall, the Moons would replace the harsh sunlight, enveloping the Lands in a softer glow. These celestial bodies were given the purpose of guiding the countless stars, and while they were given this role by the Greater Will, some mortals saw past their purpose, and understood that the true power lay within the stars.        “The mother of all Two Fingers and Fingercreepers was in turn a magnificently gleaming daughter of the Greater Will, and the first shooting star to fall upon the Lands Between.”
        – Remembrance of the Mother of FingersLamenting that its counterpart kept its distance from her creations of the Lands, the Crucible wished for the Greater Will to engage more in their shared macrocosm. And so, to experience the portion of the universe that was created by its counterpart, the Greater Will sent down its firstborn daughter – a beautiful beast named Metyr.As the eldest daughter of the Greater Will, Metyr acted as its ordained preacher – and her children, too, would grow to become envoys of the Greater Will, unraveling their formless ciphers of light in order to grant guidance.Life flourished in the Ages of the Crucible, until the seeds of hubris began to burgeon, among both god and man.

Such is the origin of the Lands:All originated from the One Great, the void that fractured into the Greater Will and the Formless Mother.The Greater Will fractured into the Heavens and the Ocean and established the firmament,
and its lightless abyss ruled over the fates of gods and mortals.The Formless Mother became the Crucible incarnate, and her presence ruled over the Lands
and the life residing within, with her Divine Blood and Aspects.Miranda brought foliage and vegetation to the once-barren Lands, breathing life into the flowers
and invigorating the sprites that would inhabit the environment.The Fell God brought cleansing fire and destruction, and his flames would come to represent
not only the end of an age, but also its refinement into a new beginning.Day and Night were introduced, and ancient civilizations began to emerge after cycles of fractures and births.After the births of Miranda and the Fell God came the Giants, who were the first among the mortals
to have sprouted the Crucible’s Aspects.Then came the Dragons, who sprouted from the rocks that formed on the earth, guarding it like a living wall.
Born from the earth’s crust and melded with stone to form their scales, they took to the skies – wishing to remain
closest to the firmament that housed the fates of all, in hoping to protect the heavens just as rocks protected the earth.
Blessed by the Crucible’s aspects, the Dragons made their homes in the mountains and in a city crowned by the Sun.The lineage of Miranda’s Flower Crucible would be known as the Numen race:
inherently divine people who are long-lived but seldom born, with flesh that melds harmoniously.The God of Rot would emerge from Miranda, and inherit its mother’s duty of
perpetuating the cycle of rebirth and decay.The Fell God would be known in history only as an evil deity of fire, whose influence over
the divine act of smithing would be embraced by the culture of the Giants.Finally, when the world was seen as good, the Greater Will sent down its gleaming daughter.

II. THE ORIGINAL SIN
- RESENTMENT & GUILT -
THE FALL

Abandoned within the depths of the primordial waters, the Abyssal Serpent was devoid of light from the moment of its conception. It was alone, and it was hungry – but most of all, it was resentful.It would not know the grace of light nor warmth of fire – not until it has fully grown into a wicked serpent.

The Serpent remains to be one of the most fundamental mythological symbols, representing fertility and rebirth, chaos and destruction, wisdom and temptation, the cyclical nature of eternity, and the dualistic nature of life. In the act of shedding their skin, the serpent has come to be a symbol of immortality, transformation, and renewal. Throughout numerous mythologies, the Serpent is found coiling around a sacred tree, intertwining itself with wisdom and creation. It is found in the Garden of Eden, slithering around the tree of the knowledge of good and evil; it is found feeding on the roots of the World Tree; it is found in the primordial waters, attacking the concept of order; it is found gnawing on its own tail. The Abyssal Serpent plays the role of several ancient serpents, inciting the act of the Original Sin.        “A malevolent snake writhed within Messmer, and so his very mother plucked out his eye and put in its place a seal of grace. Yet, having done so, her fear compelled her to secret away her child within the realm of shadow. Hidden away—keeping company with the original sin, and a hatred that would not be confined.”
        – Remembrance of the ImpalerBiblically, the Original Sin is the consequence of the Fall of Man: the act of disobedience that introduced sin to the world. In losing innocence, this act results in the damnation of the natural world and corruption of the entire nature of humankind – due to the Fall, humans are born with inherent sinfulness, and will experience suffering and separation from God as punishment.As ancient civilizations continued to advance and evolve, gods and men alike began to fall victim to pride. The Horned Fell God of Flame was not exempt from this hubris.        “A half-ashen and smoldering flower that blooms on the mountaintops of the Giants. Material used for crafting items. Fertilized by the sparks from the forge at the peak where burns the flame of ruin.”
        – Fire BlossomAs the Fell God watched the world around him grow without his presence being needed, within him festered a bitterness that could not be ignored. It was his flame that would bring warmth and light to the coldest and darkest reaches of the Lands, yet his very existence was feared, for he possessed the ability to raze the entire Lands with his flames. His dear mother and sister knew all too well that from the destruction that his fire would bring, the earth would be fertilized for new life to grow – still, they were too afraid to embrace him.        “In ancient times, smithing was a divine act, and blacksmiths interpreted the script they perceived in the wrinkles of molten steel to imbue weapons with souls.”
        – Smithing TalismanTo prove that his flames were not only for destruction, the Fell God had introduced smithing to the world, with the aid of the ancient dragons to provide their gravel stone scales for the forging process. As time passed, smithing would be praised as a divine act, as there was beauty in intertwining a soul into a weapon forged – and the Fell God was pleased. In an act to become involved in the Lands, the Fell God had shared his embers with the Giants, and his secrets of smithing would be passed among the golems and trolls and other descendents of the Giants. This satisfaction, however, was temporary, and would still not be enough to grant the Fell God succor.        “The copper coloration is not to be confused for rust, but is a conduit for its wielder to move it by their will alone.”
        – Regalia of EochaidLittle Miranda sprouts are vulnerable to fire; Flame, Cleanse Me burns away toxins, ridding the caster of poison and scarlet rot. Verdigris was given as a gift from the Mother to her firstborn daughter and son, in order to protect each other. In chemistry, verdigris forms a protective patina on copper [as well as bronze, brass, and other metal alloys] via oxidation, and is considered mildly poisonous. As copper is known to be a channel between a person and their will, the oxidized form would be an ever-stronger will, with another layer of protection deposited upon its surface. Despite all of the attempts to soothe the Fell God, the Crucible Mother and Miranda continued to fall short, for the burns on his mother caused by his birth were a permanent reminder of his nature. Though the two were both born of the Crucible, Miranda was seen as graceful, while the Fell God was seen as malign.Overwhelmed with bitterness, the Fell God had fled from his throne in the city in the sky, and hidden himself in the lightless acres of the Abyssal Woods, deep within the Lands. Though there was no natural sunlight here, flora and fauna appeared to thrive, even in the deepest recesses of the world. The Fell God’s appearance in this darkness would bring a luminosity radiating off of his own body, as his very being was not unlike the very Sun in the sky – and this would attract the curiosity of the creatures inhabiting the woods.It was not long until the kindling within the Fell God eventually turned dark, and the wicked serpent would appear to him.

Fully grown, the Abyssal Serpent slithered before the Fell God, and acknowledged his suffering.First, it appeared as a pitiful and hungry thing, wishing to experience warmth for the first time.
The Fell God obliged, and shared the warmth of his flame with the Serpent.Then, it asked, “Dost thou covetest the throne?” to which the Fell God had fallen silent;
for it was not the throne he desired, but to be loved – to be held by his Mother.When the Serpent realized that it would not get an answer, it asked instead,
“Dost thou wish to be loved, and not feared? Why dost thou live in suffering?”The Fell God listened now, beguiled by the Serpent’s words. Within him was the very flame that could
purify the entire world and prepare one anew – one where he would live in grace, and not in its shadow.Finally, it showed its true form, and coiled itself around its new home – in the embrace of the Fell God’s flame.“Come now, my child,” said the Serpent, “Let us burn the world away, and enter a new age, together.”And the Fell God was held at last.

It lived as Jormungandr, growing in the primordial abyss; it came to the Fell God as Satan in the Garden, whispering temptations in his ear; it remained as the Ouroboros, perpetuating the cycle of rebirth and destruction in its hosts. The wicked Abyssal Serpent would eat away at the kindling of the Fell God, finding purchase in their shared resentment.Even though the Fell God had occupied the Seat of the Sun and brought the divine act of smithing to the mortal world, which would be memorialized in the culture of the Giants and their descendants, he believed entirely that he lived in obscurity, and that his deeds were overshadowed by the life-sustaining and nurturing aspects of his mother and sister. The Crucible Mother continued to act as the demiurge of the world, weaving her divine blood into the Lands and nourishing it; and Miranda continued to effortlessly disperse her seeds and coat the Lands in blooming foliage and vegetation. Only his sister had realized his absence, when she noticed that the Sun was not watching earnestly over her flowers.Falling to temptation, the Fell God trusted in the Serpent that complete renewal was the only solution to bring about his new age. He would erase the unfairness that he did not ask to be born into, and it would end where it all started: his mother. Throughout his entire life, the Fell God thought of himself as nothing more than a scar on his mother’s womb, and he would make sure that this would absolve him of his birth. A cleansing fire to end the age of the Crucible; a ruinous flame to purify the Lands and put all festering resentment to rest.The Fell God would bring his flame of ruin to the Crucible, and burn away the flesh of the Mother of Truth until she was nothing but ashes.

When the Mother of Truth had given birth to her firstborn children, she weeped with joy, and her tears fell unto her darling infants in the form of blessed dew. Even when her womb was scorched, amber sap left her eyes and christened her children.Be that as it may, fear soon entered the heart of the Mother upon the realization that her son held the flame of ruin within him, and he would ultimately coat her in crimson fire.Prophecies arose from the Mother’s worry; they would be surreptitious, in order to keep the Fell God from understanding the true potential of his flame. These efforts were in vain, for he wielded his fire passionately and wholly, only to wonder why his supposed gift was met with disdain.

Eventually, the Mother of Truth feared her son more than she loved him.The Mother of Truth had tried her best to conceal her worries of the prophecy, but as time passed, she could only grow more and more distant from her once beloved son. Gifts of verdigris would not still his volatile flame, and the Seat of the Sun was still not far enough to be a safe distance away. While the Mother feared her son, the Fell God could only wonder why he couldn’t be loved.Her son would be her undoing, and the prophecy coming to fruition would be her own fault.

In attempting to prevent her fears from being realized, the Mother of Truth had ultimately created a self-fulfilling prophecy. When it dawned on her that her endeavors to be close to her son while also protecting herself had failed time and time again, she gave in to her fears and slowly vanished from her son’s life, believing that staying far from his flame would be beneficial to them both. This, however, only fueled his resentment for her. Her wish to avoid potential death at her son’s hands manifested as cowardice and selfishness; she no longer created verdigris gifts nor sunwarmth blessings for her son, and turned her focus solely on her duty as the demiurge. Had the Mother of Truth embraced her son, just once, would his boisterous flame have been quieted, but neither would ever know.The flame of ruin of the Fell God had consumed the Crucible Tree whole, not unlike a serpent gaping its jaw before its prey. With the Abyssal Serpent coiled around the ruinous kindling, the Fell God has razed the Lands in his cleansing fire, and the ashes of his mother would fertilize the soil for the new epoch.It is here that the Fell God committed the Original Sin of burning the Crucible Tree that housed the formless soul of his mother, the Mother of Truth, earning him the title of “the Fell God of Flame.” This act would introduce sin, suffering, and all forms of Destined Death to the world.        “The burning of the Erdtree is the first cardinal sin. That is not the domain of mere men.”
        – Fire’s Deadly SinThe first burning of the first sacred tree would be marked in history as the Original Sin. The first sacred tree was the tree of life that housed the soul of the demiurge of this world, where its branches connected the earth to the heavens and its roots were the path to rebirth for all those who were buried. Burning the Crucible had severed the connection from the people of the land to the divinity and denied the dead their path to resurrection. Attempting to recreate the Original Sin would be known as committing a cardinal sin.

With the Crucible Tree reduced to ashen remains, the soul of the Mother of Truth had been forced out
of her physical vessel tethering her to the Lands, and she was formless once again.First, the Formless Mother looked upon her son who had condemned her, and cursed him to forever
roam the Lands, never to be slain – for his punishment would be living with the weight of his sin,
and all those who looked upon him would see only a malevolent deity; and if his vessel were to perish,
then his very soul and essence would live through his followers, until none remained.Then, the Formless Mother looked upon the Abyssal Serpent that deceived her son, and cursed it to forever
coil around and eat away at the flame of ruin and its embers, and its kin to never to be satiated.And the Formless Mother looked upon her daughter who had been a witness to all, yet had said nothing,
and cursed Miranda to forever gaze upon the blood star as a reminder of what she had allowed to come
to pass by turning a blind eye. For that, Miranda’s eyes would be gouged out with impenetrable thorns,
and in blindness she would find solace in a fragment of her mother; her petals would be replaced with
briars, and the maiden of the Flower Crucible would become a symbol of the guilty.Finally, the Formless Mother set her mark upon the Lands – for she, too, felt resentful, and she, too, felt guilty.
The Mother of Truth craved wounds, and these wounds would be the only way that the mother may ever
make contact with her children ever again.

The Fell God had realized that he was deceived by the Abyssal Serpent when the root flare of the Crucible would not burn as easily as the rest of it did. In one final act of desperation, the Fell God had finally embraced what remained of the Crucible, though he knew that his mother was already gone without a vessel to return to. The Fell God remained within his flames, and though he was scarred and wounded from the fire, he would not die – his mother would not allow him that peace for the trespass he had committed. What he has done would be remembered throughout the aeons through the heretical prophecy of a sacred tree set alight, and he would be there to carry the burden of being the most hated deity in the Lands. To the Serpent, the Formless Mother cursed it to forever gnaw at the kindling of ruin, and cursed its kin to never have its hunger satiated. The descendants of the Crucible and the descendants of the Serpent would forever have enmity between them.Miranda, having bore witness to this act of great sin against their own mother, was stricken with overwhelming guilt. Dwelling in her mind was the knowledge that her mother’s love for her brother was wavering, and that her brother sought to become something greater as a result – but she had done nothing to alleviate the suffering of those she called dear. Briars had begun to form on her flesh; a curse being placed upon her for the sole act of witnessing – and unable to cope with the sight of her mother being set aflame by her brother, she had gouged out her own eyes with impenetrable thorns.The briars of sin and punishment would wound its caster, as a reminder of guilt;
the flame of the Fell God would leave burns upon the caster, as a reminder to fear the flame.Impenetrable thorns and the flame of ruin would be destined to meet once again in the distant future.

        “In the time when there was no Erdtree, death was burned in ghostflame. Deathbirds were the keepers of that fire.”
        – Explosive Ghostflame

Remaining unscathed, the roots of the Crucible were coated in amber resin and immersed in a myriad of corpses, as the great roots act as a grand burial site to be re-absorbed into the Crucible for eventual rebirth. However, the Fell God had essentially severed the sacred pathway, causing the spirits to stir as they remained.From where the flame of ruin continued to smolder upon the remnants of the Crucible, just above its roots, a two-headed phoenix had risen from the ashes, with wings of crimson and cerulean, stained with black from the burnt soot of the Crucible Tree’s remains. The Outer God of Death had awoken from her slumber, disturbed by the call of sin, and the Twinbird would be her envoy to rectify the disruption caused by the Fell God. Melded together from the embers of ruin and the frigid bones of the sea of corpses, ghostflame was created, and the Twinbird and her children would wield it to provide rites to the dead by burning. Despite their efforts, the cinders would be imbued with vengeful spirits. For a time, this ancient funerary ceremonial act was the only form of performing rites for the dead in an age without a sacred tree.

When the Crucible Tree burned, the inhabitants of the Lands had felt the repercussions of the Original Sin.All newborn beings were stripped of original sanctifying grace, for the Fell God had not only lost grace for himself, but for all living beings. The absence of this original grace-given state from birth would predispose all living beings to corruption and an inclination to act on their inherited, inherent sinfulness.Acts of grave sin can be seen among the ancient civilizations as they began to explore their fallen nature.

In the ancient civilization of the Eternal Cities, the Nox had given into their fallen nature, and began to question the authenticity of the guidance that the Mother of Fingers would provide. Their faith had laid in the night sky and the black moon to guide them, but with their eyes now opened, they believed that their autonomy was enough to govern fate alone. If they were able to overthrow the influence that the Greater Will had over fate, and bring about their own age with the stars under their command, the Nox would be able to make this wish a reality – and they started with the gleaming daughter of the Greater Will.

In the ancient civilization of the Tower, the towerfolk had given into their fallen nature, and began to grieve for the loss of the Crucible that had given them their blessed aspects. Their faith had laid in the Crucible and its currents, and with their eyes now opened, they had succumbed to their desperation, resorting to depraved acts in order to retrieve the essence of divinity that once governed them. If they were able to retrieve a piece of the Crucible, the towerfolk would be able to commune with the divine once again – and so, the towerfolk embarked on a journey to the remnants of the Crucible Tree, where they had found an area of its trunk that survived the burning. In an act of inadvertent blasphemy, the towerfolk carved out what they could salvage, and they returned to the Tower with these massive, desecrated remains, where they placed it atop their spiral tower.

        “The furnace's flame burns away both body and soul. When impurity is thus expunged, one calls it cleansing.”
        – Hefty Furnace PotThere are only a number of special flames that are able to burn sacred trees, and they come from the same progenitor: the flame of ruin. In ancient times when the Lands were one, the Fell God used his cleansing fire to burn the Crucible Tree; in the Lands Between, its kindling was used to burn the Erdtree; and in the Realm of Shadow, the same kindling was used to burn the sealing tree. If the Tarnished chooses to spare the life of the kindling maiden who bore a vision of cleansing fire by inheriting a cleansing flame of their own, the path they walk leads them to the Frenzied Flame.        “Spirits are eternal, and yet frenzied flame melts them away regardless. No wonder the hornsent forbid the flame's use.”
        – Surging Frenzied FlameAs the flame of ruin continued to smolder upon the remnants of the Crucible, it eventually seeped into the stillborn seeds that laid dormant within the Crucible’s womb, never to burgeon. Melded together from the embers of ruin and the sorrows of the demiurge made manifest, a yellow flame began to spark, and the Frenzied Flame was born. After Metyr was wounded, and her connection to the Greater Will severed, she felt abandoned and broken. From her sorrow was birthed a malformed child: the Three Fingers, who had found its way to the seeds of frenzy, and became its envoy. The Original Sin was introduced to the world as a result of fractures and creation, and the Frenzied Flame desired to erase it all.The Greater Will and the Mother of Truth looked down at the Lands in anguish, as their creation had fallen to chaos.

        “It is said that long ago, the Greater Will sent a golden star bearing a beast into the Lands Between, which would later become the Elden Ring.”
        – Elden StarsThe vessel of the demiurge was burned, and the gleaming daughter was broken. Original Sin had stripped the world of its original state of grace, and it was all the fault of the fractures – for if there were no births, no life stemming from other life, to begin with, there would be no consequence of sin, and the Greater Will blamed itself for allowing the creation of the world to result in this depravity. The Greater Will saw the torment and despair, and wished to turn away and never look down again. But the Mother, burned and bodiless, still begged for a second chance to be granted. As a final act to preserve what was left of the world that the Greater Will and the Mother created together, the Greater Will sent down another one of its children – a beast of gold – to bring order to the world in all of its future ages. In alchemy, gold is hailed as the final state of a material – it was seen as the perfected form of all matter on any level, including mind, body, and soul; while lead was seen as the base state of a material – its most primal, initial, imperfect form. This beast of gold and order was sent down to perfect the leaden, impure state of the Lands.        “It was the vassal beast of the Greater Will and living incarnation of the concept of Order.”
        – Elden RemembranceAs the Greater Will saw the world to be ruined and mired in torment and despair, the Mother saw beauty in life enduring and births continuing – she believed that her punishment would guide her children into learning from their wrongs, and redeem the world from sin. However, the cycle of suffering remained in perpetuity, and hope began to waver. All that the Formless Mother could offer to her children and to her creations now were remnants of her divine blood that would never rot nor dry, and if anyone were to be in need of her, all that was required of them was a bloodletting of their own. As for the Greater Will, it remained far away, for the damage was far too great, and the burden of guiding the inhabitants of the Lands into embracing order would be placed upon the Elden Beast.

The Elden Beast established the Elden Ring among the Lands, which would represent the law of the world; its first incarnation would be in honor of the Crucible Tree, and the runes that made up the ring took form with flowing roots and a spiral embedded in the center. The responsibility of selecting candidates to rule over the Lands would be entrusted to the children of Metyr – the Two Fingers. Though the severing of humanity from divinity was harsh on the Lands and its people, the Elden Beast and its gift of Order would rebuild what was lost.

After the end of the age of the Crucible came an era of Dragons – but no age would last forever.Finally, after a time, there would be a new epoch.

Such is the end of the Crucible:The Mother of Truth was plagued with visions of her son burning her into ashes.
To prevent this from happening, she created gifts and blessings for her son, but they would not quell his fire.
In an act of desperation, the Mother had silently forsaken the Fell God.The Fell God, who believed that he deserved more than just to live in the shadow of his mother and sister,
was taken over by hubris and resentment. Abandoning his place in the city crowned by the Sun, the
Fell God hid away in the Abyssal Woods to collect himself.The Abyssal Serpent fed off of the Fell God’s hurt and anger, and provided him the embrace he was devoid of.
In turn, the Fell God fell victim to the Serpent’s temptation.The Serpent declared that the Fell God deserved to be loved and not feared, and that this could only be achieved
by ending the current age and starting anew with his cleansing flame of ruin.The Fell God traveled to set his eyes upon his mother one last time;
he wielded his ruinous flame and set the Crucible Mother aflame, burning her into ashes.
His cleansing fire would raze the Lands, and the ashes of the Crucible Tree would fertilize the earth.
This act would be known as the Original Sin.The Formless Mother cursed the Fell God to never be slain, living a life where all those who
set their eyes upon him would recoil in fear, and see him as an evil and grotesque entity;
she cursed the Abyssal Serpent to forever feed upon the kindling of the flame of ruin, never to
experience the light of grace, and for its kin to be ever-hungry; and she cursed Miranda to forever
be marked in guilt with briars of sin and punishment. Thus began the cycle of suffering.Upon witnessing the death of her mother’s flesh, Miranda gouged her eyes out with the impenetrable thorns
that began to grow on her from her mother’s curse, and she would only be able to commune with her mother
through the blood star: a star within the firmament of which its glintstone was imbued with the divine blood
of the Mother of Truth when her essence was forcefully expelled from the Crucible Tree.From the ashen embers of the remnants of the Crucible, a phoenix had risen, and
she would be known as the mother of the Deathbirds, for the act of Original Sin had
introduced all forms of Death to the world.The people of the ancient civilizations had watched the Crucible burn and despaired.
The people of the Eternal Cities had taken their blade to the Greater Will’s gleaming daughter,
and the people of the tower had taken their blade to the remnants of the Crucible,
for the act of Original Sin had introduced corruption and suffering to the world.The Seat of the Sun had faded with the fall of the Fell God, and its once warm
rays had turned frigid as an eclipse befell the Sun.The Fell God fled to the Mountaintops with the Giants who still worshipped him,
where the dragons of ice were chased from their peaks.Miranda, maiden of the Flower Crucible, had succumbed to the briars, and would be
reborn into the Lands among her Numenfolk, as she is their ancestral Grandmother.
Out of her inherent guilt, she raised the shamans in the village to always cover their eyes.The sorrow of the Crucible Mother had birthed the yellow Chaos Flame,
and the sorrow of the Mother of Fingers would birth its envoys.
The yellow flame of chaos is the antithesis to the demiurge, and it has only one wish:
to incinerate all that divides and distinguishes — to return to the One Great, where
there would no longer be any more births nor lives to foster sin.Finally, when the world descended into chaos, the Greater Will sent down a shooting star
bearing the living incarnation of the concept of Order.This would be its final act upon the Lands – the Original Sin had brought torment, despair,
affliction, sin, curse, suffering, and death; and it was all a result of the mistake of fracture.