Dark Lords

The Dark Lords are an unspeakably ancient evil force. There are believed to be four of them, to correspond to the four elements(earth, fire, wind, water) and in oposition to the four Monster Gods. However, just as the exact number of Monster Gods is not known with certainty, neither is the number of Dark Lords. They are, however, mortal, and can be killed(as happened at numerous points during Antiquity, the Mage Wars, and even very occasionally during the Ages of the Alliance. Because of their incredible power and great destructive capacity, most of the Dark Lords were merely imprisoned, sealed or bound in various ways.

Age and Origin

Many stories of the dark lords come from an era called the "mythical age" in which the Monster Gods were said to have fought along side the mortal races of the verse, helping to defeat or bind all of the Dark Lords. The Dark Lords, meanwhile, fought beside the daemons of the Underworld, the Armies of Darkness, and the fabled Darkest Tower. While it is widely acknowledged that tales of the Darkest Tower pre-date the Mage Wars, most historians place little substance in the stories.

However, those who have fought actual Dark Lords, disagree. Hunter Jusenkyou posits the the Mythical Age came very early in Antiquity, and constitutes the oldest known "Age" or era of history. He states that the era was around 1,500 to 2,000 years. Surprisingly, within the very small demographic of respected figures who support the legends of the age of Myth, there is room for dissension. Jason Bur'I posits that the Mythical Age came before Antiquity, and itself lasted for ten thousand years(when asked whether or not this era represented "the Missing Ten Thousand Years", Jason abruptly changed the subject).

Regardless, the Dark Lords are widely known to have existed during Antiquity and to have caused great devastation. Up until the Sixth Age, most historians placed the events of the Mythical Age during Antiquity, it was not until the late Sixth Age and the Age of the Dragon that archavists were able to properly separate the different accounts.