The Gate and Beyond

by E J Gilmour

  1147 BL – Krogin seeks out and finds the Sword of Darkness.

  1146 BL – The Fiorians gather at Emeril to discuss the threat of the Skatheans. They send ten powerful knights to Kredon to destroy the Skatheans. A battle is fought at Kredon and the remaining Skatheans are scattered. Krogin is enraged and escapes north to live at Scathea’s hidden abode deep in the forest.

  1142 BL – Krogin teaches his ways to a new group of students. Krogin desires the destruction of the Fiorian Order.

  1140 BL – Krogin and his Skatheans assail Emeril and a great battle is fought. Saidrin slays Krogin with The Sword of Light and the remaining Skatheans flee. The Sword of Darkness is sealed into a hidden vault deep in the mountain beneath Emeril. The Skatheans who survive the battle gather together and flee north to Kaznor.

  1134 BL – Einin combats a Skathean at Orelin and is victorious.

  1128 BL – Saidrin instructs Gomer of Ateria in the ways of the Fiorians.

  1121 BL – Gomer becomes a Fiorian Knight.

  1116 BL – An evil sorcerer, Walok the Shadow, comes to power in Ateria. He was once a Zyranian and was cast out of Zyran because of his desire for power over others.

  1113 BL – Walok enters Aruna and turns the town into an immoral pit of debauchery. All the good flee and those who remain make Walok their lord.

  1111 BL – Gomer travels to Aruna and is shocked at how terrible the situation is. Gomer is captured by Walok and chained up in prison. Gomer soon escapes and travels to Savadan. Gomer falls in love with Princess Aalina of Ateria. He romances Princess Aalina and forgets his concerns about Walok’s growing evil in Aruna.

  1110 BL – Walok uses his sorcery to manipulate the rulers of Ateria. Walok becomes the master of King Dawi, Aalina’s father. Walok’s evil spreads to Savadan. Gomer challenges Walok in the court of King Dawi but is thrown into prison and tortured. A plot is developed by Walok to make everyone believe Gomer is responsible for all the troubles afflicting Ateria. Most people believe that Gomer is the evil instigator of all their misfortunes. Walok seduces Princess Aalina and marries her.

  1108 BL – Gomer, in despair at losing his true love to his mortal enemy, escapes from prison and flees Savadan by ship to the Ilses of Dawn where he is given sanctuary by the Fiorian Einin. Gomer returns to Savadan with Einin in secret. Gomer and Einin secretly form a resistance against the rule of Walok. Walok’s troops storm the stronghold of the resistance movement and Einin is killed saving Gomer’s life. Walok flees north into the Kaven Forest and meets Hergald, a wise hermit.

  1107 BL – Gomer learns from Hergald. Walok’s evil spreads into the Dry Plains.

  1105 BL – Gomer emerges from the wilderness and infiltrates Walok’s palace in Savadan. A great battle is fought and Walok is slain by Gomer. Gomer returns to the deep forest to live as a hermit.

  1101 BL – The Skathean Order gathers power and grows in Alber and Kaznor.

  1093 BL – The Star King has a disagreement with his legions of Blue Caps. The Blue Caps attempt mutiny, but they underestimate the power of the Star King and are forced to retreat from the Great Mountains. The Blue Caps of the Great Mountains make their way into Vastoria and build underground kingdoms in the Deep Desert.

  1085 BL – The Skatheans cause much trouble for the people of Kaznor and Alber.

  1080 BL – King Fredrin of Irvaria makes his kingdom exceptionally wealthy.

  1076 BL – King Fredrin holds a tournament and invites all the greatest knights in all the lands to contest the right to court his daughter, Roseia the Graceful. A young peasant named Wiscard wins the tournament because of his pure heart.

  1071 BL – Bandits block many of the ways in Everdon whilst burning villages and taking great hoards of wealth from their victims.

  1066 BL – An army of bandits march north toward Faircastle. Fredrin raises an army and marches south to battle the bandit army. Fredrin is mortally wounded and dies south of Elcalee. The bandit army is completely destroyed.

  1065 BL – Wiscard becomes ruling Duke of Irvaria with his wife Queen Roseia.

  1055 BL – A great drought covers Vastoria. The Adira River almost completely dries up for two years.

  1049 BL – Saidrin dies of old age. A Fiorian named Ornai becomes the new Gatekeeper of Emeril. Ornai inherits the Sword of Light from Saidrin.

  1041 BL – The Great Mountains become extremely difficult to cross. The east and the west gradually become more cut off from each other.

  1037 BL – Creatures of darkness slither out of the swamps of Scaldonia and cause trouble for the people of Orelin. The surrounding lands are heavily afflicted.

  1033 BL – Packs of muckrons appear in the wild regions of Dravania.

  1029 BL – The Star King grows old and tires of other creatures. He becomes very reckless and dangerous.

  1020 BL – The Skatheans come to power in Kaznor and forge an allegiance with the Kaznor Emperor.

  1015 BL – The Skatheans extend their influence into Scaldonia but have little success in Alber.

  1011 BL – The Skatheans move south.

  1004 BL – A Fiorian named, Lilian the Gentlle, battles four Skatheans and is slain in Ortaria.

  1001 BL – The Sword of Darkness is stolen from Emeril by the Skatheans.

  1000 BL – Ornai sends two Fiorians to recover the evil sword. Dresia the Strong and Quinral the Swift seek the evil sword.

  998 BL – The two Fiorians discover the Sword of Darkness in the possession of a Skathean. They are led into a trap and Dresia is slain. Quinral flees to Emeril, and the Sword of Darkness is taken north beyond the reach of the Fiorians.

  996 BL – King Almod of Scaldonia becomes known for his great kindness and compassion.

  989 BL – The Clans of Alber gather under a warlord named, Yarinai the Mighty. They invade Kaznor through the mountain pass in the north.

  987 BL – After two years of conquest, Yarinai takes the throne of Zarkanor. He expels the Skatheans and outlaws them throughout his empire of Alber and Kaznor. Many Skatheans flee into the Southern Lands.

  985 BL – Evil grows in Ortaria, Vastoria and Scaldonia. Skatheans heavily afflict the people of the southern kingdoms. The Fiorians are sent out from Emeril to contest the Skathean menace.

  977 BL – The Skatheans assassinate King Almod of Scaldonia and place a puppet on the throne. King Almod’s family flee to Ortaria.

  975 BL – Scaldonia becomes a cursed land.

  973 BL – An army is gathered by the Skatheans in Scaldonia. The Scaldonians reluctantly are forced to fight for their Skathean rulers.

  972 BL – The Skatheans lead their army south and take control of the Iron Gate Pass. They then invade Ortaria and destroy all resistance. Brackin the Vicious, a Skathean, becomes Emperor of Ortaria and Scaldonia. The royal families of Ortaria and Scaldonia flee to Ateria.

  970 BL – Brackin enslaves the Zyranian Order. He also slays the Skathean with the Sword of Darkness and takes it for himself.

  969 BL – Brackin invades Silvor by sea.

  968 BL – Brackin invades the Isles of Dawn and makes the magnificent palace of Orani his home and the centre of his growing empire. He names his empire the Skathean Empire.

  967 BL – Brackin invades Ateria but is repulsed. The royal family of Silvor is murdered by Brackin.

  966 BL – Brackin invades Ateria again and is victorious. He institutes a strict class structure in the conquered Eastern Lands. Brackin formally declares himself Emperor of Veredor. The royal families of Scaldonia and Ateria are captured and imprisoned. The royal family of Ortaria flees into the west.

  965 BL – The lands of the east suffer greatly under the new rule.

  964 BL – The Fiorians warn Irvaria and Vastoria of the grave threat of the Skathean Empire.

  962 BL – Brackin invades Vastoria but his invading army is destroyed by the fierce Vastorian northern clans. Emperor Brackin fears the might of the Vastorians.

  960 BL – The Star King prevents travellers from crossing the Great Mountains.
He becomes a problem for the Fiorian Order.

  955 BL – Irvaria and Vastoria form an alliance and invade Ateria. They are forced to retreat by Brackin’s southern armies.

  952 BL – The armies of Irvaria and Vastoria attempt to take the Iron Gate Pass to Ortaria. They are forced back in a furious battle.

  950 BL – The Star King battles a group of Fiorians. The Fiorians chain him to a mountainside and convince him to stop harming other creatures. He repents of his recklessness and retreats into a hidden cave high in the Great Mountains and is not seen for centuries.

  948 BL – A young woman named Emer begins a secret underground gang involved in organized disruption of the Skathean Empire in and around the port city of Talis.

  947 BL – Emer’s gang becomes a powerful force in Talis. Emperor Brackin orders the gang to be uncovered and destroyed, but they prove difficult to find among the masses.

  945 BL – Emer is captured by Brackin’s bounty hunters. She is brought to the city of Oranai in chains and thrown into the deepest dungeon.

  941 BL – Emer escapes and secretly boards a merchant vessel bound for Vastoria. Emer arrives in Vastoria safely and works on a farm on the banks of the Adira River.

  939 BL – Emer joins a band of desert wanderers and learns the harsh ways of the Dune Desert.

  937 BL – Emer becomes a famous desert warrior. She battles bandits, villains, and raiders from the east whilst wandering all over Vastoria.

  934 BL – A Fiorian Knight named Eoghan the Tall is sent east to help contest the power of Brackin.

  932 BL – The Tabarian Knights battle groups of muckrons on the border of Dravania.

  931 BL – Eoghan travels through Vastoria and meets with Emer. Emer and Eoghan seek a way to defeat the evil emperor Brackin and the Skathean Empire in the east.

  930 BL – Eoghan and Emer are told by a mystic in the desert that they must find Shidon if they are to defeat Brackin. Eoghan and Emer travel north to Kaznor and cross into Alber. Emer and Eoghan are ambushed by Skatheans in Alber. Eoghan is severely wounded and cannot continue the quest to Shidon. Eoghan stays in the south of Alber as Emer travels north through the Icy Lands to Shidon. Emer eventually finds the ancient fortress and takes sanctuary there for seven years. She finds the Sword of Midlight hidden in the ancient fortress. Emer finds the hidden abode of the Astarian Callidus. It is revealed to Emer by Callidus that she is the only remaining Ecorian in Veredor. Callidus was not aware that Emer had found the Sword of Midlight.

  923 BL – Emer leaves Shidon and returns south and finds Eoghan who lived with the Alber people for seven years. Emer and Eoghan return to the Eastern Lands and work against the Skathean Empire.

  921 BL – The Tabarian Knights suffer greatly at the hands of muckrons that emerge out of the forests near the border of Coran and Dravania.

  915 BL – Emperor Brackin greatly taxes the lands of his empire. The people of the east are impoverished.

  909 BL – Bands of muckrons ravage Dravania and Iarthar. Many towns and villages are destroyed by the monsters.

  906 BL – An army of brave men gather together in southern Iarthar. The army marches north to destroy the muckron hordes. Many men die fighting the monsters. The muckrons are forced back into the wilderness.

  905 BL – Emperor Brackin begins to believe that the Skathean Order is conspiring to overthrow him.

  903 BL – An outcast of the Zyranian Order, Eliali the Flame, appears in Scaldonia. Eliali becomes extremely powerful and seeks to use her power to overthrow Brackin.

  896 BL – Eliali travels to Oranai and infiltrates the palace disguised as a servant. She learns of Brackin’s fear of the Skathean Order. She forges a letter with a Skathean seal in order to create a rift between Brackin and the Skatheans. After Brackin receives the letter he outlaws the Skathean Order.

  894 BL – A group of Skatheans infiltrate Oranai and assassinate Brackin. A new emperor, Rocklat the Terrible, takes the throne of the Skathean Empire. Eliali flees Oranai and is never seen again.

  892 BL – Emperor Rocklat proves to be even more oppressive than Brackin. He begins building massive armies and swears an oath to destroy the Ecorian Arbiter descendants who still rule in the west.

  888 BL – Rocklat’s armies invade Vastoria and occupy the southern part of the country. A massive Vastorian army is gathered together at Darancra to contest the invasion. Rocklat’s army is completely destroyed.

  883 BL – The Tower of Iron is built in the land of Glenia by King Murtagh.

  876 BL – A group of cutthroat bandits take control of the Kingdom of Roven in the Far West. Several Fiorian Knights travel west to restore the Roven royal family to power.

  870 BL – Muckrons appear in Dravania. They terrorise small villages and towns.

  866 BL – Princess Ilia of Dravania is kidnapped by muckrons. Many Dravanian and Iartharian knights begin the quest to rescue her. A young man named Davin goes into the wilderness to rescue her.

  865 BL – Davin rescues Ilia from muckrons in the wild regions of Dravania. They fall in love and are married later that year.

  859 BL – A serious drought afflicts Glenia and southern Iarthar.

  858 BL – A fire sweeps across the Sea of Grass and many small villages are burned to the ground. The people of southern Iarthar blame the fire on muckrons.

  850 BL – Around this time the secret way to Emeril in the Great Mountains is hidden from all but the Fiorian Knights.

  842 BL – The ancient way through the Great Mountains becomes impassable. This cuts off communication between the east and west.

  837 BL – The Irilian Order open a formal academy for training wizards at the Iril Fortress in Dravania. They only take on three students a year.

  829 BL – Unak the Insane, a powerful Northern Sorcerer, appears in northern Dravania. He takes over several villages on the banks of the Oread River.

  824 BL – King Trale of Dravania, the son of King Davin and Queen Ilia, sends a small army to destroy Unak. The Dravanian army is destroyed by Unak and his followers.

  823 BL – Unak takes over all the towns along the Oread and Iril Rivers and Dravania City. Unak captures King Trale and slays him. Unak lays siege to the Iril Fortress but is held back by the Irilian Order.

  821 BL – King Trale’s cousin, Duke Tierney the Unrelenting, raises an army in the south. He marches north against Unak’s followers. Unak leads his army to meet Duke Tierney’s force, and the two armies clash south of the Iril River. Tierney’s army is forced to retreat.

  819 BL – For two years Duke Tierney prepares a new army. Tierney marches north again and faces Unak on the banks of the Iril River. Tierney takes victory with the help of the Irilian Order. Unak escapes and flees north to Kaznor. He never returns south again.

  815 BL – The Skathean Emperor Rocklat is poisoned by an unknown adversary. Kanrad, a powerful Skathean, becomes emperor of the Skathean Empire.

  811 BL – Kanrad raises a massive army in Ateria. He builds many warships. He prepares to invade Vastoria.

  809 BL – Kanrad leads his massive army across the Dry Plains and destroys the army protecting the port city of Kavacas. He takes over the city and prepares to march north to Darancra.

  807 BL – Kanrad sails with his army up the Adira River and attack Darancra. A massive battle is fought. The city is taken by Kanrad and Vastoria becomes a province of the Skathean Empire.

  805 BL – King Ernald of Irvaria raises an army and prepares for a possible invasion. He forms mounted brigades in the sunset hills to protect the borders of his kingdom.

  803 BL – The tribes of the Empyrian Hills seek help from King Ernald of Irvaria. King Ernald refuses to help the Empyrian tribes as he thinks that matching the huge armies of Kanrad would be an impossible task.

  801 BL – Kanrad sails his warships up the Adira River and prepares to invade Irvaria. Kanrad’s ships reach the Sunset Hills. A great battle is fought just east of the Sunset Hills. The Irvarians fight bravely, but they are no match for the much larg
er army from the Skathean Empire. The tribes of the Empyrian Hills come to the aid of the Irvarians. The battle is won by the Irvarians and Empyrian tribes. Kanrad is forced to retreat south. From this time onward the people of Empyrian Hills become the traditional allies of Irvaria.

  798 BL – Kanrad lead his army across Vastoria and attacks the Grey Pass in the Old Guardian Mountains. The Everdonians hold him back at Hawkwatch with the help of the Fiorian Order. Queen Catriona of Everdon prepares an army to match the threat from the Skathean Empire. She builds many warships in the port city of Lucaria.

  796 BL – Kanrad sends a second army north and invades Irvaria. He lays siege to Elcalee. The Irvarians hold the city. Queen Catriona of Everdon takes the opportunity to send her warships to Kavacas. The Everdonians capture the port city of Kavacas. The Irvarians force Kanrad’s army back to Darancra.

  795 BL – The Irvarians, with the help of the Empyrian tribes, invade Vastoria. The Everdonians move north along the Adira River. The Irvarian, Everdonian, and Empyrian armies lay siege to Darancra. Kanrad is caught up in the battle and slain by the Fiorian Knights. Vastoria is handed back to the Vastorians. The Vastorian royal family, who were living in exile in Everdon, retake the throne in Darancra.

  794 BL – The Skatheans battle each other for control of the Skathean Empire. A Skathean named Slagen takes the Sword of Darkness and the throne of the Skathean Empire.

  790 BL – The Irvarians, Everdonians, and Vastorians prepare a great army in order to invade the Skathean Empire.

  788 BL – The Irvarians, Everdonians, and Vastorians assail the Iron Gate Pass. They destroy the Skathean army guarding the pass and force them back into Scaldonia. Simultaneously a second united army invades Ateria. The united army continues into Ortaria, but they are forced back to the Iron Gate Pass. The united army in the south takes back all of Ateria.

  785 BL – Slagen has a dark vision that the Prince of Shadows will return and lead the Skatheans to victory over the people of Veredor. Slagen takes a large army south and pushes the united army out of Ateria. He takes no prisoners and crushes the united army in Ateria. Slagen invades Vastoria. The united armies in Vastoria battle furiously to hold back the Skathean Empire forces. The Skatheans are pushed back to the border of Ateria. A stalemate is reached.