ALL mentions of Raven

It was Titans' tantrums that interrupted the FirstWorld's dance, but for Raven, it also meant the end of all Romance.


Spider's Love was unbridled and unbound, but also unspoken. As Raven cast him down, Spider's Heart was broken.
00008377

When the Spiral was woven with Tree's inspiring song, Raven brought Light and Order, yet something was wrong.
00008378

Their creation was flawed without Spider's presence, so she stole the broken Chaos Heart to charge the Spiral's Essence.



<ITALICS>In the beginning, there was the First World. At the center of the first world, stood Bartleby, the World Tree. </ITALICS>
00000114

Ku Tu Yix
00000115

<ITALICS>Bartleby was tended by Grandmother Raven, the wisest of us. Throughout the First World lived the Aztecosaurs. And all was good.  </ITALICS>
00000116

<ITALICS>Then the three Titans came to the First World. </ITALICS>
00000117

<ITALICS>The Aztecosaurs watched in awe and terror as the Titans battled each other for supremacy. </ITALICS>
00000118

<ITALICS>The First World was destroyed by the unending battle of Storm, Fire, and Ice. </ITALICS>
00000119

<ITALICS>Great Bartleby, the World Tree, lifted his branches to sing the Song of Creation. The ancient Aztecosaurs watched and listened. </ITALICS>
00000120

<ITALICS>The Titans closed their eyes, and fell into deep slumber. </ITALICS>
00000121

<ITALICS>And Bartleby sang the Spiral into form out of the fragments of the First World.  </ITALICS>
00000122

<ITALICS>These ancient Aztecosaurs, known as the Lords of Night, promised to steward the Song of Creation. </ITALICS>
00000123



Sky and Land once danced as one, round the tree of magic's shade,
00000441

A thousand years, a thousand more, memories of love and fury fade.
00000442

Raven and Spider played across Sky, and battled throughout the Land.
00000443

Spider fell into the deepest hole, locked away by Raven's hand.
00000444

Spider roared and thrashed against the heavens, and finally fell into a sleep.
00000445

His dreams made twisting Shadow things, sowing chaos to one day reap.
00000446

The Candle flickers across the Night,
00000447

The Spiral bends, and twists, and whirls, bringing the Chosen back to me.
00000448

The Mirror will break... the Horn will call.
00000449

From the Shadows I strike, and the skies... will fall!
00000450

The Shadow Web hums and stretches beyond the stars,
00000451

Touching all the Spiral with Spider's welcoming arms.
00000452



Bartleby used to have two eyes, gifts from his sister, Lady Nightstar, the Grandmother of Ravens.
00000530

We call them the Eyes of Time. If you peered into them, one showed the past and the other the future.
00000531



Shadow magic was forbidden by Grandmother Raven and the great tree, Bartleby, for it touches the true essence of the Spiral.
00000002

It can take things apart and put them back together. It can heal. It can hurt. But it is easy to lose yourself in the process.
00000003

One might say that Morganthe's mind shattered after the Spider Magi showed her how to touch Shadows. Or maybe she was born bad.
00000004



I was here before the First World was broken. Ever since Grandmother Raven locked the Shadows away.
00000021



Grandmother Raven entrusted her to me, and I raised her like my own. I did my best. But she wanted to be a heroic wizard... like you!
00000008



Raven created Empyrea specifically to keep Spider out. As such, travel and communications with Empyrea are exceedingly difficult.
00000019

It even keeps Raven herself out! Unfortunately, the Aethyr doesn't seem to be a deterrent to the semi-divine, like Spider's Children.
00000023




Before the Dragons could destroy the Giants by melting them into the sea, the Great Tree and Great Raven put them into a magical slumber.
00000006




Are you kidding? Storm is the most powerful of the schools. Back in the First Age, the Tritons practically drowned all the Dragons by themselves!
00000008

If Bartleby had not stopped them, well, there wouldn't be any Fire School. But you won't hear Falmea speak of that!
00000009



But in later years, I grew to learn how powerful Ice was. Did you know the Great Raven caused the Giants to slumber and turn into the glaciers?
00000012



At FirstWorld's Dawn did Light and Shadow play, across Land and Sky as One, bound by an unbreakable Seam of Borealis, never to be undone.
00000003

But Titans in savage fury came, Raven and Spider's spawn. The unbreakable Seam was sundered; the FirstWorld was gone.
00000004

Sorrow and Void remained, until pierced by Tree's humble song. Raven wove fragments together again... a Spiral of Worlds was formed.
00000005

The largest Borealis Shard bound Land to Sky again; the Sky Anchor was then hidden away on the Horizon of Polarian.
00000006



There may yet be a way. At the Spiral's Dawn, it's said Grandmother Raven safeguarded the Secrets of Time with a being known as the Chronocle.
00000006




You are right. Grandmother Raven gave us our mission, to keep Athanor balanced and protect the Chain. Not from the Ice Dwarves, but from Shadow.
00000019



This "thing" is the Wizard. And I am growing slightly perturbed. Why do you insist on calling my father a traitor? What exactly happened here?
00000022

A lot of it is rumors, but they say Keras turned from Raven's gaze and was lost in an attempted attack on the Academy itself.
00000023

Now, Praetor, it is time you kept your word. What happened to my father? Why did your officer call him a traitor?
00000035

Because he WAS a traitor to the cause Raven gave our ancestors eons ago: prepare for the inevitable war with the Shadow.
00000036



Recall, fair citizens, stories of our ancestors. Grandmother Raven herself crafted our world and each of its peoples to bind the Chaos Heart.
00000006

Together we are the body Empyrea. The industrious Dwarves our hands, the wise Alphoi our brain, the Kalamar the blood in our veins...
00000007

...And we are Empyrea's muscle, defenders of Order, the army of Raven. We are the light that pierces the dark and light cannot be destroyed!
00000008



Spider: It's so... beautiful. More powerful than I remembered. Just being near it, I'm stronger, more complete. Be still, my beating Heart.

Raven: Spider, stop!

Spider: Hello, Raven. I've dreamed about this moment for millennia; when I finally reclaim what is mine. To simply be whole again.

Raven: I will strike you down before you even feel it beat in your chest.

Bartleby: Raven, Spider! Please hear me! This conflict needn't be terminal. I have seen a resolution that preserves the Spiral, and all the life it bears!

Raven: The Spiral was a mistake. I thought creating it would help erase the pain of Spider destroying the First World. But it wasn't enough.

Spider: How was the destruction of the First World my fault? And have I not suffered more than any from its demise?

Raven: Deservedly so! It was your chaotic influence that allowed the Titans - our Children - to dismantle everything we'd built.

Spider: No, I simply allowed the Children to be exactly what they were: autonomous, self-serving Titans.

Raven: Allowed? More like, encouraged.  I tried to teach the Titans to be a unified force for good, but you pitted them against each other.

Raven: You and your dark chaos corrupted them into opposing forces of evil, soley for your petty amusement.

Spider: Evil would've been commanding the Titans to submit to my will. I never did that. Not like the way you ordered our Storm Titan to destroy my Heart.

Raven: That was completely different! I summoned the Storm Titan because... It was the only way to... You would've... Oh, what have I done?

Spider: We've both been selfish. But being near my Heart again is making me feel... well, it's making me feel.

Spider: I remember now what's truly important to me, Raven: you- What is THAT?!? Gaauuuugh!

Raven: SPIDER!

Aethyr Titan: RUUUUUUUUUAAAAAWWWRR!

Raven: SPIDER! Storm... is that you? Look what they've done to you! What have you become?

Aethyr Titan: I am what you both made me: the Perfect Storm! Re-formed by the hatred and animosity  that you and Father left behind, I am the AETHYR TITAN!



Good timing, Wizard, this slug was about to tell me how the Admiral intends to free the Chaos Heart... from its indestructible Paradox Chains.
00000007

Indestructible save the touch of the Raven-Child... or her Luminiferous Essence. But we had neither, so Spider gave the Admiral a new plan.
00000008

Spider can't break the Chains, but they're moored to places our Cannon CAN destroy. Blow up the Temples of Light, the Heart falls free.
00000009



Bah! You call her Vicereine, she who reigns in proxy for Grandmother Raven. We call her by her proper title: warmonger.
00000017

All we do is build weapons, train soldiers, and for what? No war is coming. Raven has been silent for centuries. Your lives are lies.
00000018

But the Dark Cloud will bring truth to Neumia. We will bring peace. Even if it means we have to kill you all!



Before I vent years of repressed frustration, I need to know why. Why betray your friends, your people, the cause of Grandmother Raven herself?
00000025

Because she lied to us, threw us in a prison and called it a mission! She robbed us of the Spiral by burying us in the Aethyr.
00000026

Do you even know what that is? It's not a shield, not a light to be worshipped. It's rage - the metaphysical remnant of Raven's war with Spider.
00000027

She buried us in the ashes of a dead quarrel. So, when the Cabal offered the chance to rebuild the world lost in that war, how could I refuse?
00000028

Alas, they too put their faith in a Divinity. They believe Spider will restore the First World. I'm not so trusting. Hence my new Spiral Ark.
00000029

Maybe Spider keeps to his word and restores the First World. But if he doesn't, I'll be safe in this ship. Either way, I win, you lose.
00000030



Ugggh... What... what happened?
00000003

Spider! I'm so happy you're alive! I didn't know it until I thought I'd lost you. I'm so sorry for this. Please don't hate me.
00000004

You ripped my Heart out, locked me in a hole, then used my Heart to create a world in which I was the personification of evil.
00000005

I am beyond angry with you, Raven. But, I could never hate you. I love you too much. With every fiber of my chaotic Heart.
00000006

I'm sorry I hurt you, Spider. And I'm so, so very sorry for what I've done to our Titans.
00000007

Do not forget the things you did correctly, Sister. Despite your misteps, the other life you created never strayed from your original plan.
00000008

None of this would've existed had you not acted exactly as you did. There is still time for your dream for the Spiral to be realized.
00000009

Thank you, Brother. And thank you, Mellori, for not abandoning me the way I abandoned you. I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me.
00000010

Yeah, sure. I'm just happy it all worked out, you know. I've learned a lot. Ugh, I'm not good with this mushy stuff. Just skip me.
00000011

I knew there was something special about you, Mellori. That's why I entrusted my most capable son to watch over you.
00000012

It's no declaration of infinite and undying love, but I'll take it.
00000013

Your brothers were born of my nightmares, but you were my one and only dream, Bat. I knew you'd deliver me here, to this moment, thank you.
00000014



Greetings, my child.
00000012

Uh oh.
00000013

Wizard, you have gone through much to save my daughter. I had questioned your motives in the past, but I see now that you fight for the Spiral.
00000014

I sense Bartleby has made you his Scion. He should have stayed out of this - he's not as good at this game as Spider or I.
00000015

Game? The lives of everyone in the Spiral are on the line and you call this a game? That's cold. You and Spider have both lost your minds.
00000017

Spider had the same offer. You get the same answer: no. You needed Spider's Heart to make the Spiral - what are you going to use if you smash it?
00000019

My child, you need perspective. There was a time before the Spiral and there will be a time after. Something new. You can help me weave it.
00000020

You did - you loved Spider! You ripped Spider's Heart out, but threw yours away! You still love him, I know it. I remember it. Stop this.
00000022

Enough! I knew my heart would try to stop me - it's why I emptied it of you. Stay on your fool's errand! I will do what must be done.
00000024



It's still not too late, Mellori. You know what your mother wants to do and you know what must be done. Get me my Heart, or I'll destroy you!
00000045

Don't believe him! In his weakened state he cannot hope to defeat the three of us. And the Aethyr is still keeping him from fully manifesting.
00000048

You see, Spider. You can't win! Even your own son won't help you!
00000050

And what is your grand plan? You can't reach the Heart either!
00000051

And you can't break the Chain. Even your own daughter won't break it for you.
00000052

Don't you get it, you idiots? It's a stalemate - the only way this can end is if you both stand down and make amends.
00000053

Listen to Mellori - she is wiser than either of you. Remember who you were, and end this conflict here and now.
00000054

Wow, the gang's all here! Any other cosmic forces want to speak up?
00000055

Hello again, Old Tree, it's been too long! I'm glad Raven didn't kill you. But she's so consumed by hate, she won't stop until we're all dead.
00000057

You dare judge me, deceiver?  You've infected the Wizard with your Shadow Magic, and my child with your madness. The time has come to end this.
00000059

Goodbye, all of you. Enjoy what time you have left. Soon the Chaos Heart will shatter, and all of this will be swept away. Then I begin again.
00000060

Hrum... what's she up to now?
00000062



I left home years ago to find Raven's Edicts - the guiding principles handed down to the four races of Empyrea at the dawn of time.
00000002

The Tablets the Edicts were inscribed upon were lost long ago; scattered all over Empyrea. When I crashed here, I thought my quest was over.
00000003

But I found one in the Monkey Spider Cave! If I hadn't been so distracted by its majesty I'd have noticed the Mother Monkey Spider lurking behind me.
00000004

I escaped with my life, but not the Tablet. If you're up to it, shoo that mad Mother Monkey Spider away and retrieve the lost Edicts of Raven!
00000005

You retrieved the Tablet! Isn't it beautiful? Just think, these runes, these hallowed words, were inscribed by Grandmother Raven herself!
00000006

If only I could read this ancient language. Alas, that task was never meant for me anyhow. But there should be someone who can...
00000007

The Alphoi were handpicked by Raven to be the stewards of Her Edicts. So in theory, there should be an Alphoi who can decipher this Tablet.
00000008



The decrease in atmospheric animositrons confirms the Aethyr is the physical residue of the ancient clash between Raven and Spider.
00000020

The Paradox Chains appear to attract the Aethyr, and even bolster its volatile, violent nature.
00000021

That negative energy is what keeps Raven and Spider away from Empyrea. Ergo, breaking the Paradox Chains is bad in that respect.
00000022



Child of Light, child of destiny. You stand now at a crossroads long foretold. Ask your question but beware; knowledge can be dangerous.
00000001

Alright... Who am I? I mean, who am I really? Baba Yaga's not my real mom, I figured that out already. So where do I come from?
00000002

You are the Child of Light: she who wrought the Spiral made you, of her own essence. You are the child of Raven.
00000003

Raven? Whoa. Okay, so... who's my father?
00000004

You were born only of Raven - you are a piece of her set free, the shadow of her greatest fear.
00000005

You are the Key to ending her conflict with Spider, and saving all existence.
00000006

That's a lot to lay on a person! Key to ending the conflict, huh? That must mean I'm the only one who can kill Spider. Got it. Gotta go!
00000007

Okay, here goes. Auroracle, I didn't ask the right question. Tell me more about the conflict. I was wrong about killing Spider, so what's the Key?
00000008

Your mother must remember that which has been forgotten. That which was sundered must be made whole.
00000009

You can hear me? Great! What does Raven need to remember? How can I help her if I don't know what she's forgotten?
00000010

Welcome, Wizard.
00000011

Oh no, it's YOU! Bartleby sent you, didn't he? Well I'm not going back, you hear me? I've got to go deeper - you go back to the real world!
00000012

Darn it, Bartleby, stop it! Quit pulling me back here! How are you even able to do this? Didn't Spider's poison make you weak?
00000013

Do not blame Spider. The cold wind that sickened me came from... the wingbeats of Raven.
00000014

WHAT?! Mom did this to you? Why?
00000015

She knew that only I have the power to stop her should she try to destroy Spider. Even now my health is restored, but I am too weak...
00000016



We should just kill her now!
00000001

Come on and try it, sand-brain!
00000002

Still defiant! Impressive. No, my son. I have a better use for her.
00000003

You mean to get your Heart back.
00000004

Well deduced, cleverest of my sons. Indeed, she is born of Raven; her essence can unmake the Paradox Chains her mother wove. She is the Key.
00000005

Without my Heart I am weak, broken. There is no way I could hope to survive a confrontation with Raven. But once my Heart is free...
00000006

Won't freeing your Heart destroy the Spiral?
00000007

Have you grown sentimental? Do not trouble yourself with such questions. I have a new mission for you.
00000008

Our friend the Admiral will smuggle you and Mellori to a place called Zanadu, in Empyrea. There you will learn how to break the Paradox Chains.
00000009

Now go, all of you! I must clear my mind... and prepare for what is to come.
00000010

Wait, this isn't what happened - you're supposed to talk more about-
00000011

Greetings, Mellori. And you too, Wizard. You seem... different. Have you... grown? You are fools to come here - were you not warned of the dangers?
00000012

I don't care. So tell me, why am I the Key? I thought it was because I could destroy you - am I meant to destroy the Chains instead?
00000013

Will freeing your Heart end the conflict? How can I do it without destroying the Spiral?
00000014

So many questions. We'll find the answers together. All I ask in return is that you break the Paradox Chains and help me get my Heart back.
00000015

But the Spiral will die.
00000016

It will indeed. But with my Heart returned to me I will regain my full strength. I can weave a new Spiral. You and the Wizard can help me.
00000017

You can choose survivors of this world to live on in the next. I will give you dominion over it. Raven won't be so generous.
00000018

What do you think? Do you accept my offer?
00000019

Never.
00000020

I thought not. Wizard - bring Mellori to me, and I'll do the same for you. No?
00000021

I warn you: Mellori's power is the easiest way for me to break the Chains. But I have others. Trust me, you don't want me to use them.
00000022

Mellori, if you remain here much longer you'll die. Help me, or I'll trap you here and destroy you.
00000023

You'll have to catch me first!
00000024

Gone... alas. Don't worry, Wizard, I'll deal with her soon enough. But first I will deal with you. It's time we were properly introduced.
00000025

I ask again - aid me, Wizard, and you will rule over the next world. You refuse? How disappointing.
00000026

Like Mellori, you too will die if you don't leave this place. Good luck escaping. The dream is over, Wizard. Welcome... to your nightmare!
00000027



I don't understand, Grandmother - what am I to do with this baby? I'm not hungry right now...
00000043

Raise her as your own. Keep her secret, even from your friends in the Arcanum. Nobody must know about her.
00000044

Polaris is so far from the rest of the Spiral, she will be safe here. And perhaps... I can forget her.
00000045

Forget her? I don't understand - where did you get this child?
00000046

I drew her out of myself, out of my very heart. She is the part of myself I cannot trust.
00000047

She is the temptation to undo all the horrible things I had to do for the sake of the World I lost, and the Spiral I wove to replace it.
00000048

Horrible things... Then she must be... oh, Grandmother! Can you live without this?
00000049

I must. Someday I may need to take the ultimate step, to fight the final battle with... him.
00000050

I could never do it if she were still in my heart.
00000051

That is horrible. Still, it shall be as you say. I will do your bidding, Grandmother.
00000052



I thought Raven hated Spider. I thought <italics>I</italics> hated Spider. I get it now. Raven and Spider are opposites, and opposites clash... but they also attract.
00000013

In the beginning Raven loved Spider. Even after the First World broke, even after she locked Spider's Heart in chains... she still loved him.
00000014

She was afraid her love would keep her from stopping Spider if he ever escaped. Or that it might tempt her to set him free. So she made me.
00000015

I am Raven's love for Spider, pulled out of her heart and made into a person.
00000016

But she went too far - all she has now is hate, and she'll kill the Spiral just to get to Spider!
00000017

I can stop it: I've got to get her to remember, to know that love again. But I don't know how. Still, I can feel... something.
00000018

I have some of Raven's memories buried in my mind. I think I can find them and understand them, but it's going to take a lot of work.
00000019

First thing's first - I need to wake up.


Bartleby, the World Tree, and Grandmother Raven sought to calm the Spiral before it was destroyed. Through song, chant, and spell they lulled the Titans into a slumber that has lasted all this time.
00000007



<ITALICS>...and it was said that Mithraya, the Avatar of the Sun, came to Celestia and commanded a mighty hall be built. <ITALICS>
00000015

<ITALICS>Bartleby and Grandmother Raven each set a gleaming sphere in the sea of darkness... <ITALICS>
00000016

<ITALICS>Bartleby’s was golden, and burned bright and lit the sky. Raven’s was silver and cold, but could not pierce the dark. <ITALICS>



The model of the Spiral is right here. See? Every world is connected along the Spiral, even yours!
00000091

When we learned Wizard City might be in danger, we began looking for a student with great potential.
00000092

That's how we found you, $PLAYER_FIRSTNAME$!
00000093

Ah, yes. The Spiral was born out of an ancient conflict. The three elder races could not stop fighting.
00000094

The Giants, rulers of the Sky, stole water from the Sea to build their great castles of ice.
00000095

The Tritons, rulers of the Sea, battered the Dragons' lands with endless storms.
00000096

The Dragons, rulers of the Earth, summoned Fire to melt the castles of the Giants.
00000097

The War broke the First World into fragments that spun out into the Cosmos. Those fragments became the Worlds of the Spiral.
00000098

I am one of the oldest living creatures here. In the first world, there was only my sister, the Great Raven, and me. We were made just after the creator made the land and the sea and hung the stars in the sky.
00000099

I sang the Dragons, Tritons, and Giants into existence, but my children began fighting each other, splintering the First World.
00000100

In desperation, my sister and I began to fashion a Spiral. With her magic and my roots, we sent the Spiral out into the Cosmos to hold the shattering fragments together, forming the New World.
00000101

Headmaster Ambrose discovered me here and founded Wizard City to help me guard the Spiral. I could tell you more, but right now my mind is getting a bit foggy. I must rest...
00000102



Ah, a Thaumaturge, seeking the lost secrets of the Ice Arts from those who created them. We Giants once ruled the skies and commanded the Ice.
00000087

When the world was very young, The Grandfather Tree and the Grandmother Raven created us, as well as the greedy Dragons and the craven Tritons.
00000088