After reading some other stories that have been posted on this lovely forum, I've decided to create my own fan fiction. So, hooray for that. However, I should note that while some authors have initiated a kind of collaborative effort in order to come up their plots and characters, my intention is to write this on my own. Of course, this does not mean I am not open to feedback or ideas, so feel free to comment on this thread or message me in game (note that my username in game is Stunderthorm, so, please message me there) if you think there's anything I can improve on or if there was anything you particularly liked. Additionally, I intend to update this on a weekly basis, as denoted by the title of the thread, so check back here every Sunday if you want to see a new update!

Be warned, these chapters may get quite wordy.

Just a note on applications
I will not be opening up any sort of applications for characters. Sorry. However, should I ever succumb to the dreaded "writer's block", I may informally ask around for ideas for characters, plot devices or settings. Keep in mind, though, I will NOT be holding such discussions on this thread, as such conversations would inevitably become filled with spoilers. Instead, I will be messaging people in game. Thanks.

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Prologue; Memoirs

Before we begin this tale of redemption, it’s imperative that we discuss our history. However, I will not be speaking about the lives of our people with the same connotation as most historians do. We’ve always focused on the much nobler aspects of our culture, but I will stress that it is equally important that we touch upon our mistakes as well; for learning from our mistakes prevents us from repeating them over and over. With this particular discussion, I will primarily be looking at our destructive influence on a planet once known as Cradle, for this is the most fatal mistake we have ever made as a race, and we will have the threat of extinction knocking at our doors once more should we ever repeat it again.

It has been a millennia since the Knights of the Spiral Order first crash-landed on this unusual planet. While this event had initially been disastrous for the Knights, as it incapacitated the mighty Skylark and rendered it incapable of travel, the Knights soon made Cradle their home. It was a means by which they could finally flee from their inevitable fate that had been brought upon by the Morai Wars: they had been on the brink of extinction. However, they were soon met a new set of challenges.

Shortly before the Skylark had crash-landed on Cradle, it had detected strange energy signatures coming from within the innards of the planet itself. The amount of energy radiating from the planet was enormous, and the strength of such energy became much stronger as the Knights descended below the planet’s crust upon arrival. While such a feat sounds impossible for most, it was certainly feasible with a planet as unique as Cradle, as much of the planet’s mantle and earth had be excavated and replaced with a vast mechanical system known only as the Clockworks.

The Clockworks were quite special. Not only were they comprised of a vast system of gears, elevators, platforms and pulleys arranged in a similar manner to a watch or a clock – hence the name – the Clockworks themselves also housed numerous different worlds, each with their own weather systems, flora, fauna and inhabitants. In fact, these worlds appeared to be fragments of life taken from other planets, almost like living snapshots. Some worlds housed forests and a variety of animalistic creatures. Others housed infernal cities solely inhabited by demons. Some, in fact, were even entire kingdoms that had been ravaged by the unrelenting rage of a fiery god, locking these worlds in the vice grip of eternal fires and immortality. Interestingly enough, these worlds were completely isolated within the Clockworks, meaning many of the interactions between the inhabitants of these worlds and the Knights had be limited to the squads conducting research missions within these areas. However, there was one exception to this case.

The Gremlins.

These creatures were not isolated to these particular worlds. Not at all. In fact, many of these Gremlins had the ability to traverse these worlds with relative ease, even at times appearing on the planet’s surface. Additionally, while the Gremlins appeared to be rather chaotic when manufacturing their various constructs, they were skillful repairmen when it came to maintaining the Clockworks themselves. Unfortunately, they were quite hostile, as they were often given orders to attack the Knights by their power-hungry and aggressive leader, King Tinkinzar. Some, of course, disagreed with his ways, and formed their own colony in the Clockworks called Emberlight, and would serve as allies to the Spiral Order. As a result, the Knights were on constant watch for the Gremlins, and were ordered to kill any Gremlin that refused to cooperate with them. While these measures were drastic, and considered even murderous for some, they were necessary, as the Gremlins under Tinkinzar certainly did not have any qualms with eradicating the Knights and the Spiral Order itself.

In the earliest experiences with the Cradle and the Clockworks, the Spiral Order attempted to learn more about the planet and its inhabitants. One subject of such study was the Gremlins. While the earliest exploration and research missions conducted by the Knights suggested that the Gremlins were brought to Cradle by unknown means, similar to the rest of the worlds and their inhabitants, further research into their existence proved otherwise for both cases.

In a combined research effort conducted by the Spiral Order’s finest historians, archaeologists and linguists that focused on the study of the Gremlin language, the Knights had uncovered various documents outlining life on Cradle, as it was thousands of years ago. These documents, comprised of transcripts written by a handful of Gremlin Techpriests – now usually referred to as Schemers – discussed life as it was on the surface on the planet, inferring that the Clockworks had yet to been thought of, let alone created, at that point in time. Additionally, the Techpriests made no mention of any of the other species the Knights had encountered on missions in the Clockworks. There were no Wolvers, Devilites, Slimes, or anything of that sort. There were only Gremlins, and they lived on surface of the planet, as opposed to their contemporary counterparts that lived deep within the Clockworks.

However, the transcripts eventually began to speak of something far more sinister and destructive. A darkness from within the planet began to consume and destroy all nearby matter, swallowing up enormous portions of Cradle while also drawing the chunks of nearby planets towards itself. It was like an infectious disease that had no other intentions but to corrupt and destroy. At this point in time, the Techpriests began discussing a means by which they could physically isolate the infection, deep within the core of the planet. As a result, they began to construct a vast system of elevators within the excavated space that had been consumed by the disease. These elevators then lead to the center of Cradle, and inevitably became the most primitive imaginings of the Clockworks. Working day and night, the Techpriests utilized these elevators as a means of transporting vast amounts steel and machinery in order to begin construction of a massive device with the sole purpose of confining the disease, preventing the planet from being consumed by further infection. In spite of the large scale of the device, the vast amount of resources it demanded, and the slim chances for success, the device was finally complete, and the Techpriests confined the darkness. This device then, as time went on, would eventually be called the Core, and the chunks of the other planets that had been drawn in would be housed within the Clockworks, with both serving as the foundation for the Clockworks as it was when the Knights first landed on Cradle.

In spite of this supposed success, the influence of the darkness had not been entirely confined within the device. In fact, the remaining darkness replicated the worlds found within the Clockworks, and corrupted them. These worlds, then, were soon identified as Shadow Lairs, and the darkness that had consumed them was known as the Swarm. Only the most elite Knights were allowed to conduct exploration missions in these areas, making information concerning these Lairs incredibly limited. As a consequence of such limited information, the Knights of the Spiral Order knew very little of the Swarm, and had failed to link it to the darkness that had been confined within the Core. In fact, the majority of the researchers and technicians effort after the initial crash on Cradle was spent upon attempting to open the Core, even after the discovery of the Techpriests' transcripts, as the Spiral Order was under the impression that the Core housed a vast amount of energy that could be harnessed to power the Skylark once more.

When they finally opened the Core, they were met with something far different.

It was the darkness. It was the Swarm that consumed the majority of the planet ages earlier, and it had returned starved for matter of all kinds. It began to infect the Clockworks, consume the majority of the Knights, and destroy the Gremlin colonies, eventually eradicating the species. Life on Cradle was now damned. Interestingly, the process of this consumption was gradual, which lead to the explanation as to why the Techpriests were able to construct a device to house the Swarm successfully. However, the Knights had limited knowledge when it came to the operations of Gremlin technology, partially due to the constant battles between the two races. This meant that the Core was never to be sealed again. Such efforts to seal the Core would have been fruitless, anyway, as after some time, the Swarm began to encroach upon the surface of the planet, dividing the Knights and the Spiral Order into several different colonies.

The Knights were now fragmented, and all sense of unity had been lost. The Spiral Order was no more by this point, and most had lost all hope. I was one of those individuals. I felt we were to expect nothing but extinction. After all, there was nothing but starvation, death and constant warfare between the Knight colonies in order to secure resources, as the Clockworks were no longer available to us. So, how could I possibly hope to survive?

My little sister, whom I still believe was foolish to this day, was adamant on rectifying the situation. Little did I know that as a result of her actions and her genuine belief that there was still some hope left, she would become the savior of us all. Thusly, my intention here, as her brother, Bera Nikomedes, is to recount her life and her endeavors, lest we forget her name or the things she was responsible for.

Her name was Jericho. Jericho Nikomedes, and she lead the squad that allowed us to escape from the Swarm, and have a new chance at life.