Some ten thousand years ago, when the Lands of The Nine's first became untied, there was a great soldier named Merrik. It was said that he was the son of a benevolent and righteous demigod named Niixus, who was well known in the times before then. His virtuous deeds and notoriety flourished among regions, far and wide. He was a just and good hearted man, and soon became a popular warrior King amongst a feudal realm. He was virtuous, and wanted to unite the Nine lands under one just rule. This realm was ripe with those who served the Dark Lords, and magic was as dense as water. Vile beasts and demon hordes, soldiers of the fallen Dark Kings, ravaged the lands, razing anything they came across, leaving none to tell about it. Some of the feuding rulers made alliances with the Dark Lords, pacts with the devil. Heretical sects and temples dotted the landscape, and the lands had fallen into despair.

Merrick sought to change this and this campaign, an all out witch hunt lasted for nearly 25 years. His vast armies, loyal followers to the cause marched vast distances, and crushed everything they encountered. He suffered many losses over the course of this witch hunt. Scores of scores of men died, perishing at the hands of the dark ones. It was said that if you were killed by them they took your soul. It was the darkest of times, the violence drove many to madness. Many thought Merrick to be the Great Savior, the chosen champion of the great All-Seer. An order of high priests known as The Keepers formed and followed his every move. They forged him a great sword, made from trinkets and relics, objects of great power and religious value. Merrick's sword became known as The Blade of Banishment, and was said to have been kissed by the All-Seer's good graces himself.





His opponent, a vile and wretched demigod named Razmu'dai. A great and ancient evil. He was the Bringer of Despair and Darkness, Suffering and Death, and all that is vile and wretched. He commanded a powerful dark magic that could spawn vicious beats, and he could also raise the dead, filling their bodies with the souls of those whom he had taken. Legions of dark soldiers to do his bidding. He wore a dark suit of armor forged by his dark powers. Razmu'dai set his legions upon Merrick's armies, and they clashed like huge waves swept up by a tempest. Almost all were lost when Merrick and Razmu'dai met on the battlefield. Their swords clashed with great energies and huge shockwaves threw scores across the field, obliterating the dead hordes and crushing the rib cages and organs of the living. But in this great and epic battle of Good and Evil fate would shine on the Merrick the Virtuous, and his blade found its mark. The Dark Lord's armor shattered into pieces and his evil spirit had been truly banished, and magic lost its strong grip on the realms of man, and dwindled to almost nothing. The only piece that was not destroyed was a single gauntlet. Merrick's sword also shattered and broke into 7 pieces, the same number of pieces as the Dark lord's armor. The gauntlet was dubbed the Gauntlet of Power. Merrick ordered The Keepers to take these seven shards of his blade and these armor bits to the far corners of the realm. To guard them till the ends of time. The Dark Lord's armor was thought to be so dangerous that each piece was said to have been completely incased in chests filled with mercury. The Gauntlet of Power and a single piece of the sword were said to have been kept together on the site of this great battle somewhere, hidden deep in a grand and monumental tomb. The rest of the pieces were spread throughout the land to secret locations, never to be discovered again. It is rumored that these locations are still guarded in great vaults and hidden tombs of a sect who call themselves The Guardians, who are so devout that they will kill anyone to keep these relics hidden from man.



It was also said that Merrick lived for another five hundred years and the Nines became united under his rule. The era of magic was over and it had given way to the common era of man, and it was a time of great prosperity in the Nines. Merrick was the last of the demigods to walk the earth. He is considered to be the great founding father of the Nines, and is still widely respected as a major patron Saint of The helpless and meek, and the defenseless. The Bringer of Light, Holy figure to the Keepers of the Light. The fall of Razmu'dai is celebrated every 1000 years on what is said to be the exact date of the battle where Good had finally conquered Evil. Merrick is supposedly buried in a great hidden tomb, the location only known to those who are now known as the Keepers. A secretive order, passed down through countless generations. So secretive that these families do not allow any outsiders to join their society. They are sworn to protect the locations of holy tombs and dangerous relics, and the location of Merrick Tomb in particular. They are also rumored to be able to conjure great Guardians from beyond the Veil. Champions and powerful Wardens. The last bastion to fend off the impending threat of darkness. Merrick's Chosen Few..