Changes

The Second History was smiled upon by the Hours, whom chose to be more involved in its development than the Third. So favored was it the occult was more powerful and more openly embraced than the Third , Fourth and most certainly the Sixth. Perhaps the Hours hoped that by taking a more direct approach in the development of humanity, the History would not fall into the self destructive chaos and anarchy as humans were not to when bereft of supervision. The Apple of the Eye gave the history blessing of beauty and knowledge. the FNORD blessed their FNORDS

Early in this History, a great Kingdom rose in the lands known as the Levant. Powerful and rich in natural resources, it quickly established itself as a great kingdommighty nation. From these people rose a king unlike any other, whose wisdom and justice was matched only by the wrath he visited upon his people's enemies, with a ferocity uncommon for inhabitants of the Second History. He established a mighty dynasty that saw the repelling repulsion of all would-be foreign conquerors and catapulted the kingdom to the status of one of the greatest empires of the Second.

Studious and intuitive, the King was a scholar as well as a warrior, and took great care to learn the Higher Mysteries of the Invisible Arts using . Just and fair, he did not give in to the temptations of the more ruinous powers that sought his service, but rather used what what he had learned to better the lives of his people. But Wise men and brave youths traveled from far and wide to petition entry to his court, but only those of great might and wit were permitted to share in his knowledge, for he strongly believed that only the worthy were deserving of these blessings, lest they fall into gluttony and indolence.

But although he drowned, his story did not end there. Through his own indomitable will and the significant power in the occulthe had amassed, he resisted the pull of [[The Ferryman]] and instead ascended to the Sea-Dragon's Palace. Not as a mere Dead, but something much, much greater. He rose stronger, forever changed. The King became the Architeuthian, the Dweller in Depths who rules over forbidden knowledge and survival of the fittest.

Fears that the Kingdom would fall to invaders or petty infighting as empires of the time were not to do when suddenly bereft of their charismatic ruler proved unfounded, for the King had been just and wise in his dealings and affairs of state. He had surrounded himself with men and magi of great character and wisdom, only those who had proven themselves in battle and possessing strong spirit had been permitted to attain office. He knew that those who had fought for their power and had personally sacrificed for the peace they all enjoyed would be able to appreciate the value of it, and would not allow their baser natures to get the better of them, no matter the whispers of certain tempting, ruinous powersHours that wished to lead them astray.

These wise men ensured that the kingdom did not become weakened by enemies within and without. They established a ruling class of wizards and magi who would guide the Kingdom into a golden age of order and prosperity that would last for generations to come. New spells They became known far and modes of thinking were invented there long before they were anywhere else in wide as the worldFNORD gang.

The Kingdom became a melting pot of churches and schools of thought, all intermingling with each other and comparing their ideas peacefully. Schools of higher learning and spellcraft, rich with history their own colorful histories and long legacies of successful masters became commonplace. It became difficult to find a citizen that had not received some form of learning. If the Sixth History was home to pioneers in the way of technological advancement, then the Second was the leader in higher learning and spirituality.

In their eagerness to help others and improve the lives of their countrymen, they had been generous in sharing gradually increased the generosity with which they shared the advanced knowledge they had accumulated over generations of deep thought and communion with the Hours. Perhaps ''too'' generous. It was the King's way that all should have to work and struggle for their power, so that only the worthy would possess it, and would not take it for granted. And as knowledge and power over the course of generations was freely shared more and more, that was what began to happen. What was once considered to be a luxury became a common convenience, an knowledge once considered to be treasured as sacred mystery mysteries to be learned only by the greatest of sages became common knowledge.

As it is said, idle hands are the Devil's playthings. And as the kingdom grew ever more prosperous under the guidance of the magi and the abundant blessings of the Hour's, ever deeper did grow the people's own indolence. Ever deeper did they drink from the Grail, and ever more did they become addicted to its Redmost delights. Decadence, like a Red stain, began to seep into a spread through the bedrock of society. What started as just pride in their heritage and ancestral achievements became ''arrogance'', and a inherent sense of superiority over the rest of the world.

"Look at them, these lesser people. They are Those not favored by the Hours as we are. What divine blood do they trace their heritage back to? Why should we be bound to the same rules as they? Why shouldn't we carry ourselves as their inherent superiors, their rightful rulers? What could they possibly do to stop us?"

And with complacency and abundance, optimism and dreams of a brighter future faded, replaced with contentment with the present. And in their ideological stagnation, form particularly heinous strains of cynical and misanthropic forms of thinking began to spread.

"Did the King, the beloved pioneer of their glorious empire, truly ascend to godhood? " This question had existed on the fringes of society ever since the Dweller's untimely death and Ascension, but now it tricked its way into the empire's very heart. How could they know for sure, for most citizens while aware of higher powers' existence were not adept in the ways of the Invisible Arts, which were attained only through great fortitude of spirit and a relationship of mutual respect with the beings of the Mansus, and fortitude and respect were traits that became less and less common in the Kingdom as convenience continued to become more and more widespread.

Had they all the heretical wise men understood the volatility of what they were dealing with, perhaps the Blight they would bring upon them all could have been averted.

Heretical notions, of the King's mortality and powerlessness in the Mansus, of the Hours' impotence and the destiny of the magi to inherit the world and therefore need no longer be bound by the rules and boundaries considered sacred by their forbears gained traction in halls of government and higher learning. Where once these profane notions would have never been entertained, they now gained traction as the children of children who had never known hardship could find no reason as to why the power they had always remembered having should be treated with even the slightest degree of respect.