Ephalon - Triumvirate
Chapter 1 - Desperation
The Wily Cenebrians
Caldrigo, the city of rings
I have never visited Caldrigo myself, but I have met people who hail from there, from which I heard varying accounts of the city's 'beauty'. Its architectural design sounds like a genuine impressive sight, though I wonder about the level of embellishment that was applied. For every admirer, there was also one who called it a pit of despair, citing the countless slums that are ever present within its many ring walls.
I remember having instructed Corphelax never to go there. From what I've heard the inhabitants are quite xenophobic, especially the nobles. They believe in blood purity and are even against hybrids that look almost the same as them. This race of night dwellers is as varied as the hybrids they shun. Many of them possess horns on their forehead, pale skin and often a short, prehensile tail. Honestly, I'd probably have trouble distinguishing them from any of the hybrids that roamed Erafar.
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But don't let Lord Falloir hear me saying that, the man supposedly leads a group of Cenebrians who intend to cleanse Ephalon of those who are impure. I'd like to see him try on my watch.
The Grandmasters
The leader of the Cenebrian populace in Erafar is known as the Grandmaster, and this title is bestowed onto whoever is able to best the former one in a battle to the death. The Cenebrian males are usually physically stronger among their species, and for this reason, the title of Grandmaster has almost exclusively been in the hands of a man, a sad but true fact. Among the dragons, the females have often reigned as leaders holding much sway over the males of our species.
Since my inauguration as the Dragon Queen-Empress, I have received visits from two different Grandmasters. The most recent one was from Lord Halcis. I quite liked this man's company; he had a lot of interesting tales to tell, mostly because he had travelled all the way from the continent of Numen-Nier, which lies to the far south beyond even the ocean. His stories made me want to explore the world, but alas I have a duty to perform and must remain in Erafar.
Lyferene Wreath
There is a particular mountain range that surrounds the entire Ligan region, perhaps for the best, but it is also the reason why the area is drowned in perpetual darkness. This mountain is called the Lyferene Wreath, and it is what grants the Cenebrians the opportunity to walk outside during the day. Exposure to direct sunlight for even a short amount of time will utterly burn a Cenebrian's body to ashes. It is for that reason that you rarely see one of them travel far beyond the confines of the Ligan region. I remember the mention of it taking less than thirty minutes to disintegrate a Cenebrian, and I hate to think how they know such a fact.
I can imagine this isolation is what has caused them to become so xenophobic, not to mention that the never-ending darkness would drive any other living creature to madness. I can only surmise that the combination of these factors likely have contributed to the secretive nature of their language, Shay-Ling, though from what I have come to understand it is only still used by the criminal underworld and the 'snooty' nobles.
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​ Unless you have direct business with someone in the Ligan region, I would advise you to avoid visiting this place.
The shining darkness
One fateful night, I had a vision of a terrifying darkness that would slowly spread throughout Erafar before eventually covering the entirety of Ephalon. To counteract this, I established an organisation which came to be known as the Triumvirate; a group made up of three ambassadors, each from one of the progenitor races. It wasn't long after I enacted this that Lord Halcis the newest Grandmaster visited me, and this was no coincidence as he had been tracking an entity known as Lucenbris ever since he left Numen-Nier. Lucenbris was more commonly referred to in Cenebrian folklore as the shining darkness, and even in some rare cases, they called it 'The Seventh One'. Absolutely preposterous, to think that there was a Seventh God that came into existence after 'The Merging'.
I believe that this being is what spurred my vision into reality. The Triumvirate that I had established was tasked with destroying this creature. However, for reasons of secrecy, I must now refrain from further expulsion on this particular topic.