Overveiw of Mephais History
Aelroth Behesthma was once a great Warrior King in the land of Besrhas Mephae, his Sire Mauldum, and his Knights, were driven out of the western east land, beyond the Great Desert into the Barren Seas of Sand. At the brink of death, Mauldum begged the great spirit of Acheron, Lord of Morda, or Hell, to give him the strength to survive the wastelands, offering the devil his soul in a pact, and so the Lord of Morda consumed him in the bitter cold terrible inferno of the eternal flame and made him a demon of flame, as the sun which beat down on the desert sands, and of shadows, as chilled the air and encompassed all in darkness at night, to be reborn a Dumaedor Demon, Master of Shadows, Blood and Flame. The devil also claimed the souls of his two most honorable and faithful Knights, and remade them out of the earth and darkness, Baust and Mauldir, the brothers of Mauldum, and out of them Maelmorda made Bhassah Maul Demons, Demon Kindred to the Desert, Masters of the earth, fire and darkness.
Mauldum sired his first acolyte ten years later, a man who lead a rowdy bunch of thieves, slavers, plunderers and robbers in the desert, known as the Desert Marauders, who had a fortified encampment on the Dum Oasis, the leader's name Aelroth Behesthma, who was a slave trader, legendary desert warrior and leader of those others like him he had gathered. All of them had been banished from the West to the harsh and unforgiving, desert climate. Because Aelroth was a natural leader, men, vampires, desert elves, and immortal men alike, all flocked under his banner. Over time, resentment for the Westfold men grew to hatred, and a passions to return to the majestic and fruitful lands of the West stirred and were then enflamed by their leader Behesthma, into a burning desire to take back the lands they had been driven off of, for their wicked deeds, or more often than not, the deeds of their clansmen. After wandering in the desert for ten years with his knights, five out of the twenty having survived starvation and dehydration, Mauldum and his five loyal men were met one night by Behesmtha and his escort in the desert, delivering slaves to the Neffari tribesman to the northeast shores. Behesthma offered Mauldum and his knights a place at their campfire, and fed them fresh meat, and shared their water with the demon and his men at arms, and later, the young Lord of Dum Oasis Fortress, offered Mauldum and his men quarters in his fortress. Mauldum showed his gratidude by offering Behesthma the immortality of his blood, and Behesmtha accepted after much talk between them, he reborn through a painful death and blood resurrection as a Dumaedor Demon acolyte, first born out of Mauldum's blood, a second generation demon of shadow and flame. A hundred years later, the beginnings of an army was gathered, and more Dumaedor and Bhassah Maul were spawned with choice subjects. Five years after Behesmtha was sired, he made a Neffari tribesman named Kaom Ckage out of his blood, his own first Acolyte and blood demon child. Ckage had served him more loyaly than any other, had shown true courage in battle, and out of love and respect for him, did he make him of his own blood.
In time, all the Vampire clans, Neffari mortal tribes, and Ariad Elven of the Eastfold who did not serve the Eastfold King Hestromeph, united with The Desert Marauders, under the banner of the Black Claw of the Dumorians and the Bhassah Maul, and a thousand years later the King of the Eastfold, Hestromeph, a powerful Undead Mage, asked for their allegiance under his banner of the Black Spike, and the Black Claw agreed. Two mighty kingdoms now united under the same cause, to sack the Kingdoms of the Westfold and claim soveriegnty over those lands, that their own people could reside in the West as they desired. Patience alone would take back the West, and so as the years marched by into thousands, minions were created out of darkness, blood, and domination, their magic weilders learned to master their paths, Warriors perfected their skills and trained those under them, until at last they were strong enough to go to War with the Westfold. Long before this time Behesmtha had left the desert, leaving Mauldir in charge of Dum Oasis, and with a strong retinue of warriors, his acolyte Ckage included, his Sire's castle was reclaimed in Besrhas Mephae, and Behesmtha himself was offered a Castle and Territory just north-east of Hestromeph's Kingdom, the demon given title as Eir Domus, High Regent of the Eastfold, and from Castle Morguth Sidvanis, Behesthma conducted his duties, securing also an elegant Inn south of his Castle to offer the services of his slaves within, particularly to those lonely warriors who served under the united banner of the Claw and the Spike so dutifully.
When the time came, the Army of the Black Spike was 20,000 strong against the Westfold's army of 8,000, and yet do to a small group of young outlanders, of Clan Noctmaire in An Morendor, who had united with an elven party and joined forces with the West when war threatened, was Hestromeph's and the Desert Marauder's alliance defeated after a twenty year battle, the last stand having been waged on the fields of Hessrah Tareth. Defeated but not discouraged, the Eastfold warriors returned to their kingdoms, determined to rebuild their armies and attempt to take the Westfold again when the time was right.
The winds often changes in one's favor, and so it did, when one morning, unexpectadly, one of those outlanders from An Morendor, traveled alone to Behesthma's Inn, seeking answers to a mind plagued with the guilt of war. He wanted to help all of Mephais, this young demon had claimed...and he wanted to be sure that he was on the side of justice...of equity. So inconsequential this painted and pierced youth from a different time seemed, and yet he and his few comrades had inspired the armies of the West so fiercely with their honor, their spirit, their charisma, that the moral they had inspired had won the war for the West's outnumbered armies. A windfall perhaps, if the Eastfold could sway this youth into joining their side, even if he was unaware of it. This young demon, whose name was Kent Cavannagh, finally arranged talks between the East and the West, and with his counsel, a treaty was forged. Trade opened between the East and West, and forces from the East joined the armies of the west, and a limited number of people from the east would be allowed to reside in the West, and vice versa. The East had gained the foothold in the West they had labored for, for so many ages, under pretense of armistice and a treaty. It was Aurelius, the sire of Sir Cavannagh, who did not trust this allience, and who traveled to Mephais to investigate the situation, and after finding Eastfold armies secretly camped in the Westfold's lands, Lord Ambrosious tracked down Behesthma to find him at his Inn. He confronted the demon about his treachery, but Behesthma would confess nothing. Aurelius slew Behesthma, but his soul escaped destruction, and so the King of Northern An Morendor took the knowledge he had gained to the Kings and Lords of the Westfold. The Eastmen were killed or driven out of the west back into the east.
Ten years lapsed in peace only for Hesstromeph to capture Aurelius' pregnant wife, who gave birth to Aurelius son Remus in the dungeon beneath his immense black tower in the western front of the eastfold. Taking this act as a declaration of war, Aurelius traveled with his knights to Sqaith Aendor in Mephais and marched eastward, as his legions in An Morendor gathered and came after him. Remus it came escaped quite by chance owed to a temporal disorder in his blood, and wound up in An Morendor where his brother Beran found him. Queen Melisseant of Noct'maire was liberated by Aurelius when he breeched and overran the Black Spike's tower, which he found all but abandoned, a bare skeleton crew of guards remaining by the time he and his men stormed the towering fortress which pierced the clouds. Meanwhile the westfold is on guard for any enemies invading the west from the east. Yet it has been quiet in the west with no sign of any of the Black Claw and Spike's allied legions infringing on their territory. It has become evident to Aurelius that they have pushed further eastward out into the harsh and vast desert of Mhas Andoreth.
The results of this war has yet to be concluded as Aurelius continues his assault on Hesstromeph's legions with the goal of finding and destroying Hesstromeph himself.