Long, long ago when the two continents were one, Eltnen was a paradise, its every corner verdant: bountiful fruit trees, crystal-clear springs and ever-abundant crops. All gone, corrupted when the Balaur brought war to Eltnen.
During the Millennium War, Humans and Daevas fought the Balaur for defying Aion's will. Aion, in return, made the Aetheric Field to protect and nourish all of Atreia.
Eltnen is on the outskirts of the Aetheric Field, relatively far from Aion. It was a regular target for Balaur seeking gaps in the Field.
Endless fighting dulls the senses. Eight hundred years of war exhausted the Empyrean Lords as well as the Balaur, so it is not surprising that occasional lulls arose in fighting.
We were off our guard during such a lull that fateful day, patrolling the Field along the Durmoi Passage. I sensed motion and looked up. I could not believe my eyes. Balaur blackened the sky, leaving no trace of blue.
During the cessation of fighting, the Balaur Lords had secretly amassed an army the likes of which we'd never seen--never dreamed! From where, no one knows.
Even veterans trembled before this Balaur storm-wall, yet the glorious Empyrean Lords never hesitated. Lord Nezekan's Eltnen armies redeployed in hours to defend the eastern Aetheric Field.
No number of Balaur could intimidate Empyrean Lords and Daevas, favored by Aion. Alas, such was never their intention. The attack on Theobomos, with all its immeasurable power, was a feint.
While the Empyrean Lords and Protectors of the Tower bent their strength against that wall of scale and flame, the Balaur Lords arrived in the west. Focusing all their personal might, they pierced the Aetheric Field near Eltnen: a small, ragged gap, but enough.
The way open, a great host of Balaur and Dragon Lords converged, slavering over the wealth within the Aetheric Field. Aion's will alone forbade them. The rift snapped shut after only a handful of Balaur had passed, and the Field was once again impenetrable.
Across Eltnen, a shout of triumph arose. But, most of our forces busy in the east, only a few Daevas remained in Eltnen to face the invaders. Yet they flew at the Balaur like arrows from the bow.
The number of Daevas and Balaur were nearly equal, but Sataloca, the Balaur General, possessed a poisonous ferocity.
Sataloca scourged not only the Daevas in Eltnen, but all creatures, even the very land itself with venomous, spiteful sorceries. Their terrible presence lay waste to the once-beautiful land between him and the tower of Aion. Sataloca blasted each village he passed to ruins. Poisonous energy poured forth at his very footsteps.
And Eltnen, my beautiful, affluent city, was devastated.
Brave warriors of Eltnen brought down the horde, but not Sataloca, adjutant of a Balaur Lord and an ascended Drakan. Though they might have drowned him in Daeva blood, Sataloca's steps did not falter. His course remained fixed.
Sataloca's savagery seared both flesh and spirit. Yet the Daevas would not give up. Even before death's agonies subsided, they leapt from the arms of Soul Healers into the face of the foe. The Eastern battle kept all reinforcements from Eltnen for days, so death upon death upon death slowly destroyed their souls and minds.
No mortal or Daevic force could stand before Sataloca, so the Lords looked to a power even older than themselves--the eldritch bones of ancient dragons in a rough ravine to the north of Eltnen.
But how to entice Sataloca there?
Nurea, a Templar and Legion General, formed a legion of volunteers. Though still recovering from Theobomos, she bristled at Sataloca's offenses against her homeland. Nurea and her Daevas taunted and goaded Sataloca into the ravine and the Empyrean Lords' trap.
Sataloca's fresh blood bound him to the ancient bones with ties of Aether. Once Sataloca was caught, scores of warriors set upon him with a savagery matching his own. The blood bonds held him fast. But though his body was hacked to pieces, Sataloca's life-force lingered.
Sataloca's heart contains some fell power, raising Drakes from his bones to attack us. The most potent magic, the most devastating sword-strokes and it would only glow with a foul potency. Afraid reckless attempts might cause the heart to spill forth all its poison, the Empyrean Lords instead sealed the heart away forever.
Kimeia, an Archon of Ariel, accepted the responsibility to seal and guard Sataloca's heart. She remains there now and forever, protecting Eltnen from the organ's smoldering fury. She pays a terrible price. Kimeia herself is as much a prisoner as the Balaur she guards.
Eltnen also paid a heavy price. Every village, each inch of soil Sataloca crossed is scorched and contaminated. The baleful nature of Sataloca's soul still infuses the area. Only the Klaws can thrive there.
Eltnen's agonies might have been all of Atreia's, if the Aetheric Field had remained open a little longer. And what would remain of our world without Nurea and Kimeia, whose indomitable strength all Daevas strive for?
Remember forever the sacrifices made in Eltnen.
Never lower your guard against the Balaur. The heart of Sataloca beats still.
