Atlantis (CofD)

Atlantis was the legendary magocracy in ancinet times, where the Realms Supernal and the Fallen World were one.

The Rise of Atlantis
Before the great city, humanity suffered torment at the hands of hostile spirits, fell monsters, and dark horrors from hells undreamed of. Mortals were forced to perform hideous rites to drive away lesser spirits and to keep greater ones placated. Fearful and superstitious, the human race was trapped in a constant fight for survival, unable to develop their civilisations or defend themselves against the spirit hosts.

Then mortals from all over the world began to dream. They dreamt of an island in a turbulent sea, far from any known coast. This island was dominated by a great spire, riddled with caves, rising up towards the pole star as though it were the axis of the universe. And within this spire lived the dragons. No spirits dared venture to the island of the great worms, but as the dreams progressed, each and every dragon rose and left the island, never to return. But the dreams didn't stop, and the dreamers felt a sense of compulsion, that the island was waiting for them.

These dreamers left, some alone, others in groups, yet more leading bands of dreamers and non-dreamers alike. They went to the coasts and set out to sea, following the directions given to them in visions and dreams, knowing that they would be safe at their new home, and no spirit would dare disturb them. They came from every land under the sun, speaking hundreds of languages, each with unique customs, and all settled on the island without any struggle.

Upon arriving at the island, they were shown new visions. In their dreams, they saw the techniques to give them power, and the ability to drive back the darkness swamping humanity. The travellers entered the caves of the spire, and went into deep meditation. There, they were tested by their other selves, their daimons. Some failed, and left the spire disheartened. Others succeeded, and returned triumphant, bearing the fire of the Realms Supernal.

And thus was Magic born.

The travellers who had passed the tests set by their daimon soon came to lead their brethren. These magi soon ordered the island's growing civilisation into a great city-state, which they called Atlantis. In the new tongue of the city, this meant "the ocean spire". And some of the magi returned to the world, bringing the fires of magic with them, searching for yet more secrets to unlock.

The magi of Atlantis became famous amongst the people of the known world, and some who witnessed their power embarked on journeys of their own, trying to find the island. Few made it. No maps pointed the way to the ocean spire, and no one knew which stars to follow. Only the dreamers could find their way. Those who arrived undertook the same test as the original colonists. Some passed. Some survived. Many died.

Occasionally, a human from another land would receive the gifts of magic, but these were rare, isolated cases. Many of these foreign sorcerors would destroy themselves with their own power or be killed by the superstitious common folk. But the Ars Mysteriorum thrived on Atlantis, and only here were they set in writing for acolytes to study, that they might not be a danger to themselves with their powers.

The Beginning of the End
Eventually, the pride of the magi grew to the point where they began to think themselves gods. It took many generations, but finally the Awakened of Atlantis turned on one another in the First Wizard's War, one side seeking to gain physical entry to the Supernal Realms and become gods, the other wishing to preserve the natural order of things. Those who sought godhood won and drove the others from Atlantis.

They then combined their powers and built the Celestial Ladder to the Supernal Realms at the heart of Atlantis. Climbing this ladder to other planes of existence, they assaulted the rulers of these realms and claimed their powers for their own. With the Supernal Realms touching the Fallen World, the masters of those realms became true gods. Their every desire became manifest. But the universe began to buckle under the weight. Chaos reigned in the world of mortals, and the very fabric of reality began to tear itself apart.

Racing against time and with the fate of the world in their hands, the exiled mages regrouped and assaulted Atlantis, seizing it and climbing the ladder themselves. They began to storm the palaces of the celestial magi. In the battle that followed, both sides suffered terrible losses. Mages on both sides were flung from the Supernal Realms back into the world, and the conflict began again in the material realm.

At the height of the battle, the Celestial Ladder was sundered, and it collapsed, separating the mages on Earth from their comrades in the Supernal Realms. The absence of the Ladder was filled by a great void as the gaping gulf of the Abyss opened. But no longer was it a gentle barrier, allowing the passage of minds between realms without complaint. The new Abyss was stronger, meant to keep the aberration of the Celestial Ladder from ever being built again. It was almost impenetrable to souls now, keeping the Awakened from touching the Supernal Realms.

The foundations of Atlantis were destroyed in the conflict, and the island city fell apart, sinking into the waves of the thrashing sea, its burning wreckage being swallowed by the dark waters. The mages fled, scattered themselves across the world, returning to their old homes, and trying to regain the power they once had. But this task was nigh on impossible. Once again, humanity was preyed on by dark beasts, and for the survivors of Atlantis, preserving their lives came before relearning the Mysteries.

Legacy
The mages tried to rebuild Atlantis amongst the Sleepers. They founded civilisations like Vedic India, Kemetic Egypt, and the Mayan Empire. They built monuments, like the Pyramids, rumoured to contain pieces of hidden lore unknowable to their descendants, who do not hold all the clues necessary to unlock their puzzles. But it was the nature of Sleepers to be petty and greedy. The civilisations collapsed under their own decadence. The monuments were first abandoned, then looted and vandalised. And the mages realised that they would never regain the glory of those ancient days. Atlantis was lost to them forever.

Today, the remnants of Atlantis are remembered by the Diamond Orders and the Seers of the Throne, both continiung the battle of their masters, the Oracles and the Exarchs, in the Fallen World.

The arts of magic were first codified within Atlantis and their tongue also happens to be that spoken by the Oracles and the Exarchs. It is common knowledge among mages that these twin resonances in the Tapestry allow those proficient in the Atlantean language and script to increase the power or duration of their spells by speaking it aloud or inscribing it upon a target. Many of the Arcana Lores draws from the ancient teachings of the old mages.