The Underworld Rebellion
When Ugrach's son slew the god of Death, Thoth, the Divine called a moot trial to decide Slith's fate. Ugrach raced to his son's aid, striking a bargain with the gods by which his son would be punished but not executed, to be locked afterwards in the Underworld, while Ugrach himself abdicated as Lord of the Undead and took over Thoth's role in the guidance of souls within the Halls of Death.
The sudden absence of Ugrach, who had ruled the Underworld for untold centuries, coupled with the ascension of Slith, who was unable to properly govern on his own, created a vacuum of power in the kingdom of undeath. The Ur'Vampires, lieutenants of equal power and rank under the former king, vied now for superiority over each other, forming factions with the intention of becoming closest to the incapacitated new king and thus more easily carry their own agendas. Before long, however, others, strangers to the Underworld, would join the fray as well.
In the end, the list of competing factions would look something like this:
- Magister Dominar --- Who sought to expand the influence of the Underworld to the Material Plane.
- The Ur'Vampires Tizane and Zigana---- who sought to enhance the physical and mental prowess of creatures both undead and not, and who wished to take their experiments further in order to progress and change their kingdom as well as the overworld with the help of the Soulbleed and the Nexus.
- The Ur'Vampires Asztrik and Prioska ----- who sought as well to enhance the physical prowess of the creatures they exposed to the Nexus, bolstering the power of their undead.
- The Death Knight Lord Kemnast and Ur'Vampire Gerzson ---- who sought to keep other factions from controlling the Soulbleed Nexus, and to keep it from misuse.
- The Vampire Lord Zsarachnor ---- who wished to become advisor to Slith on the basis of having served as his advisor during the Wars of Humanity, despite the fact that he had once been exiled by Ugrach, and was considered unwelcome by every other member of the undead nobility.
- The Vampiress Belladona ---- who wished to become Queen of the Underworld, though she had no real claim to title, apparently being driven mostly by the wish to thwart her old nemesis Zsarachnor
Eventually, each faction would approach the city-states on the surface, promising rewards in exchange for pledged assistance and eventual triumph.
Ashtan joined forces with the Cabal of the Ur'Vampires Tizane and Zigana. Targossas joined forces with the Vampire Lord Zsarachnor who promised to guide them to the Holy Phoenix. Hashan joined forces with the Ur'Vampires Asztrik and Prioska who promised to lend their knowledge on the undead. Eleusis joined forces with Deathknight Lord Kemnast and Ur'Vampire Gerzson who promised to protect the Nexus from the the other factions and to keep the Underworld in check from affecting the Material Plane.
The city of Mhaldor and the city of Cyrene chose not to pledge themselves with any faction, but the individual citizens of both were free to fight for who they would, and there eventually were Cyrenians and Mhaldorians in nearly every faction.
Finding no great support in the Material Plane, the Magister Dominar withdrew from the war before the portals leading to the Underworld could ever be completed, plotting to achieve his goal in some other fashion.
Overseen by the recently returned Lord Aegis, each faction was also more directly under the purview of one of his capable Demigods, Hanindir, the Aureate Savant, Ulerin, the Artificer, Rhivona, the Toxotes of Woe, Flaris, the Servant Tactician, and Pindara, Advocate of Desolation.
Eventually, after managing to gather the resources needed to create a portal to the Underworld, fortify their bases there and fight with tooth and nail for the territories held by rivalling powers, the faction of the Ur'Vampires Asztrik and Prioska emerged victorious, though what will come of this is anyone's guess still at this point.