\The First Age of Darkness
Ultima series version
Wherein goodness gathers, so to must evil. As Lord British sought to unite Sosaria, our ancient fatherland, under the flag of goodness, the evil wizard Mondain defiled his decrees. The evil mage summoned the forces of darkness and drew them into war with the forces of goodness. With the gem of immortality, Mondain’s terrible reign over the land appeared final till a traveler from another world destroyed the gem and Mondain’s spirit contained within it. Thus began the tale of he who would, in time, become the Avatar.
The Revenge of the Enchantress
The freedom earned by the departed traveler was soon to vanish as well. Mondain’s lover and disciple swore to avenge the death of her mentor. Stoked by the fires of black magic and revenge, the Enchantress Minax summoned the forces of evil to old Sosaria and spread them like locusts across the land. She and her minions did not stop till they had bridged time and space to reach the land of the traveler. Goaded into action, the traveler fought back, driving the evil hoards from this place of peace across the divide between his world and Sosaria to the heart of power. Minax’ enchanted castle wherein he doomed her to join her lover in eternity.
Exodus
Evil begets evil in more perverted forms. Exodus, bastard child of the evil mages, wrought the despair in his abandoned heart across Sosaria. Mastering even more evil forms of the black arts, Exodus tore goodness from our people and spat it back in our faces. On the verge of anarchy, the land called to the traveler who arrived and banished the last of this family line to the Pit.
Quest of the Avatar
Thus began the Age of Virtue. Lord British united Sosaria under a new name, Britannia. In the shining glory of the new state, the old troubles of the land were forgotten. Peace prevailed, and in it, the land gave forth in plenty. Lord British withdrew from the people who, under his benevolent reign, had found a burgeoning interest in the vast and uncharted landscapes of the mind. When he emerged from seclusion, Lord British proclaimed the Eight Sacred Virtues as the essence of Britannian life. For them, he sought a Champion. As if bidden by this King, the traveler returned and began to explore Britannia, to know her gifts and her hazards. Through tests of the mind and body, the traveler grew to know himself and his unique power to hold the Virtues. Returning to his King as a pure man, the traveler was proclaimed Avatar of the Virtues, defender of the people, and protector of the land. Britannia had her Champion.
Warriors of Destiny
In defending the land against outside forces of evil, the King did not tend to the evil that flowers within. Wary of the newly discovered underworld, Lord British led an expedition to seal its portals from which had ascended into Britannia many hideous monsters. From the Gem of Immortality, the shattered vessel of the soul of Mondain, sprung the Shadowlords, spectral creatures from another world. These creatures gained influence over Lord Blackthorn, in whose charge the Kind had left Britannia. The Shadowlords soon overwhelmed him. When the King did not return as appointed, Blackthorn named himself regent of the Kingdom. Lord Blackthorn declared an inquisition into the enemies of the state. All were subject to inquiry and all that belonged to the soul was laid bare before the inquisitors. None of the terrorized citizens suspected the evil that lurked behind the throne. On his return to Britannia, the Avatar discovered a land in flames. He summoned eight companions to lead a rescue of his King. Lord British was found in chains in the underworld, and for his betrayal of the Virtues, Lord Blackthorn was cast into the ethereal void.
The False Prophet
Many years of peace were torn asunder when the Avatar, living a quiet life in his own land, was captured by a band of gargoyle warriors and nearly sacrificed. Freed at the last moment by his companions, the Avatar discovered the secret of the gargoyle underworld. After the conclusion of the Avatar’s last quest the underworld had begun to collapse, and into Britannia had flooded the gargoyle people. The cleft between the races broadened and filled with blood. As the world rolled out in war, the Avatar and his companions sought the source of this conflict. At every turn, they met armed gargoyles opposed to their progress. After many battles, the Avatar learned a terrible prophesy of the gargoyle’s seers. Their histories foretold of a False Prophet who must be sacrificed, else he would destroy his people. This Prophet was the Avatar. Armed with such knowledge, he brought peace between the races, returned to his world, and opened the gate to the Age of Enlightment.
The Black Gate
As the people flocked to the circle of wisdom, evil learned to speak the language spoken therein. To the false glow of the Fellowship, citizens were drawn, and the Virtues were again corrupt. The Avatar returned to Britannia to unravel the secrets of this mysterious Guild. At its core: deceit and greed. For, its master was a vile beast of another world, the Guardian, who sought to subjugate the people through minions drowned in his false prophecies. The Avatar arrested this insidiousness in the land and destroyed the Black Gate, the Guardian’s portal to Britannia. To Serpents Isle, a heretofore unknown land, the Avatar and his companions were drawn. For the victory over evil at Serpent Isle, the price was dear, as his companion Dupre gave the ultimate gift to the cause.
Pagan
Hurled from the known of Britannia, the Avatar was imprisoned on a distant world within the sphere of the Guardian. A place that defiled time and space, Pagan could not be brought to the Virtuous ideals of the Avatar. Lacking innate knowledge of the people and terrain, the Avatar fought a lonely battle. His belief in the Virtues was tested when he summoned the powers of darkness to thwart the Elemental Titans. They were defeated, and a portal opened to return the Avatar, scarred yet stronger, to his world of peace.
Ascension
Here, the paints have been freshly lain. Here, the Tapestry of Ages predicts the future. In reading the Tapestry one can only surmise the fate of the Avatar, Champion of Virtue.
In the absence of the Avatar on the world of Pagan, the Guardian has thrown Britannia into the hungry mouth of chaos. The image suggests that the lands are burning under the Guardian’s command. Across the defiled lands, enormous columns have sprung and began leak evil into the soil. The people are confused in their beliefs and behaviors. It is a dark time when the Avatar returns to battle for the final time. When he does defeat the Guardian, he ascends to a plane beyond mortality, never to return to us again.
