Beasts of the Apocalypse

The Beasts of the Apocalypse are four supremely powerful monsters said to guard the world from the chaos of the outer darkness. They feature in the ancient legends of Anrel and Miyarris, most particularly in the saga, the Tirennion.

According to myth, in the early days of the Godmen, they feared that the great war that darkened the heavens would spill down to earth, threatening them and their children. So they created four vastly powerful guardians, to defend them from the fires above, and to deter dangerous forces on earth.

Today the Beasts feature in children's stories in the Natorn Isles, with parents threatening that if they are not good, the Beasts will gobble them up. The Black Wyrm in particular is used in the allegorical account of the Battle of Four Kingdoms, a pivotal battle in the history of Besoa.

The Wyrm is a creature of black star-iron, with a supremely tough segmented body shaped like a whip or a snake, a mass of black coils and sharp teeth. Despite its vast bulk it can move quickly on many legs or whirl through the air. It is deadly to enemies, wielding thousands of sharp poisoned fangs that are death to any to touch it. It was created by Godman, Mecal.

According to the legends of Besoa, the Wyrm has a black stone in its tail, the source of it's strength, which if possessed could grant unlimited power. The sorcerors of Derailad attempted to summon the Wyrm and use its power to their own ends, but the capricious beast proved impossible to control and in revenge laid waste to the kingdom. The four ancient nations of Besoa were forced to combine in the Battle of Four Kingdoms, to battle and subdue the monster. It was finally cornered on the Field of Maiúnla Dielmés by four armies, and imprisoned in the earth by the four Royal Sorcerors of the isle, who all perished in the attempt. It still sleeps there, guarded by the spirits of the four sorcerors and the warriors who accompanied them, ready to be awoken at any sign of threat to the world.

The Greenplugin-autotooltip__small plugin-autotooltip_bigGreen

The Green Kingdom of flora and fauna includes humans, mammals, birds, whales, greenfish, and most green plants and crops cultivated by humankind. Man has been given many names, but is universally the embodiment of all green life, red blood, and death. According to one legend he was one of the ancient Godmenplugin-autotooltip__small plugin-autotooltip_bigGodmen

The Godmen were the mythical inhabitants of a landmass contiguous with the modern Natorn Archipelago, said to be the ancestors of all the Thalsic peoples of the northern Civilised World. In the Emerald Epoch they created the first great civilisation, referred to as the Realm of the Godmen. The Godmen are said to be mytho-historic, memories of an ancestor race shrouded by millennia of HartheraAnrelAnrelherherAnrelAnrel whose cruelty, jealousy and violent temperament threatened their peaceful society. According to legend, the Black Wyrm was the only beast to be able to subdue him, although he lost an eye during the encounter. He was imprisoned within the earth, only to be released when his violent skills were required.

The Kraken is a colossal creature of the deep oceans, lashing the world with storms and mountainous seas. According to Natorn legends, the Kraken is responsible for the storm tidesplugin-autotooltip__small plugin-autotooltip_bigStorm tides

Storm tides are particularly high tides, often accompanied by storm surges and dangerous flooding, which occur on Helevos every 1.3 solar years when Helevos comes into conjunction with the giant planet Kwato'or. Storm tides are at their peak within a two week period, and at their most severe when accompanied by natural storms., an eternal reminder of its power, and he is associated with the god Natrawul.

Its immense bulk of writhing tentacles can never witnessed whole, and it is sometimes mistaken for a rocky island when close to the surface. The creature has a vast and ancient intelligence far beyond the mind of humans, and though terrifying, has been known to aid voyagers who encounter it in strange seas, though such small creatures as men are usually beneath its notice.

The fastest and most vicious of the Four Beasts, the Wolf was the last to be made, created by the Godman Fenris as the last defence should the forces of destruction threaten to seize the world. It is a monster of flesh, metal, and bone, which sleeps in a deep cavern beneath the northern wastes, ready to be unleashed when the time comes. Once unleashed the wolf is unstoppable, its vast jawed head with terrifying eyes destroys all not protected by magicplugin-autotooltip__small plugin-autotooltip_bigMagic

In common terms, magic is the art of producing a desired outcome through occult means. Various arts are described as magical, from common street illusionists, village herbalists, and rituals for the intercession of deities. However, true magic is the art and science of elemental mastery, harnessing elemental creatures and instructing them to perform simple or complex tasks. or gods.

Another legend says that every so often, the Wolf must feed and renew its fleshly parts, so roams loose in the world tearing apart and devouring the unwary.