Editing Magical Realm Cyoa/Sempiternitas (section)

====The Great Folly====
The greatest event in the history (or perhaps mythology) of Sempiternitas was what most call "the Great Folly" (some others call it "the War of Liberation", and tell a much more heroic version of the tale). A great many Cycles ago, it is said, the bride of one of the greatest Ancients died (how exactly this happened has been lost to history, or at the least is a matter of contention among scholars of this event). It was at the height of perhaps the greatest Ascendancy in history, and apparently, at this time, the Ancients had a number of privileges regarding the afterlife, some measure of control over the path of souls who enter the great city. The Ancient in question, of course, made his will for his bride to be reincarnated be known. Yet, many days passed without his bride being discovered, despite many excursions into the wilderness to locate her. As the weeks dragged on with no sight of her, it became more and more obvious that her soul had not left the afterlife to return to the island's plane. The Ancient, offended and furious at this rebuke, gathered support from many of the other Ancients and other powerful mages in the Realm who had grievances with Fate. He led his great force through a portal to the plane of the afterlife to retrieve his bride at the least, but moreso to destroy Fate once and for all.

The details at this point understandably start to blur. The summary of it is that the great Ancient and his allies were defeated, or trapped, or otherwise not heard from again. Not only this, but the Realm was thrown immediately into the Descent, as the structures of society collapsed following the loss of so many of the greatest leaders of the island's societies. It was in this conflict that the rule of Fate over the Realm was most solidly engraved into the collective memory of the inhabitants. Never again has such an open act of rebellion be attempted, though there are still some who attempt to break the Cycle - so far, all have failed, but none so spectacularly as those who participated in the Great Folly.