"To know the names of the Sisters is to invite their gaze. Read with caution, for knowledge is rarely free."
—Brother Aldren, Last Librarian of Ashen Abbey
Before kingdoms were built and before roads crossed the forests of Eyr, the land belonged to ancient spirits. The great oaks spoke to one another through their roots, the mountains housed dragons older than memory, and magic flowed freely through every river and stone.
Among those born during this forgotten age were four sisters.
Gifted beyond imagination, they mastered arts that ordinary mortals could scarcely comprehend. Together they wandered Eyr, protecting it from monsters, uncovering forgotten ruins, and studying powers left behind by civilizations that had long vanished.
People celebrated them as heroes.
But power has a way of changing even the purest heart.
Each sister began to see the world differently.
Eventually, their paths separated forever.
The eldest sister desired order above all else.
She watched kingdoms fall because of greed.
She watched villages burn because rulers were weak.
She watched countless lives wasted by war.
She reached a terrifying conclusion.
Freedom was humanity's greatest flaw.
She believed the world required one ruler.
One law.
One will.
One eternal queen.
Her search for absolute control led her into forgotten catacombs beneath Eyr, where she uncovered the oldest necromantic rituals ever created. There she sacrificed pieces of her own humanity in exchange for mastery over death.
Upon returning, she conquered the city that would become Blackhat.
Today she rules through fear, faith, and undeath.
Thousands worship her as a living goddess.
Thousands more pray never to meet her.
Yet her ambition has grown.
Hidden somewhere within Eyr lies the legendary Demon Amulet.
She believes it can summon one of the First Demons and bind it beneath her command.
Should she succeed...
No kingdom will survive.
Where her eldest sister embraced death, Thistle embraced life.
She disappeared into forests untouched by civilization and learned from beings older than history itself.
Treants became her teachers.
Ancient beasts became her companions.
The spirits of the land welcomed her as one of their own.
She returned changed.
The forest itself answered her voice.
Roots split stone.
Flowers bloomed beneath her footsteps.
Entire forests awakened to defend her.
She founded no kingdom.
She desired no throne.
Instead she became the eternal guardian of Eyr's wilderness.
Hunters who kill only for pleasure vanish without trace.
Those who poison rivers seldom return.
Yet lost children often awaken safely outside their villages after wandering into her woods.
Whether Thistle is savior or executioner depends entirely upon how one treats nature.
Nyx believed that ignorance was the greatest enemy of civilization.
Knowledge should never be hidden.
Magic should never be forbidden.
No question should remain unanswered.
Her obsession led her far beyond ordinary wizardry.
She bargained with fiends.
She questioned ghosts.
She opened portals into impossible realms.
She willingly studied curses capable of destroying entire cities.
To Nyx, morality was merely another obstacle preventing discovery.
Countless magical breakthroughs came from her research.
So too did countless disasters.
Her tower, the Astral Spire, wanders across Eyr without warning.
Some who enter leave wiser than any scholar.
Others never leave at all.
The youngest sister chose neither war nor scholarship.
She studied people.
She learned every emotion.
Every desire.
Every fear.
Every dream.
While kings trained armies, Vesper won kingdoms with conversation.
While sorcerers forged magical weapons, she forged loyalty.
She mastered enchantments so subtle that most victims never realized they had been influenced.
Many insist she possesses divine beauty.
Others claim her true gift is understanding exactly what every heart longs to hear.
She neither serves nor openly opposes her sisters.
Instead she patiently watches.
Smiling.
Waiting.
Planning.
No one—not even her own family—knows what future she truly desires.
Although born together, the sisters no longer trust one another.
The Witch Mother sees herself as Eyr's rightful ruler.
Thistle believes civilization has forgotten its place.
Nyx values knowledge above loyalty.
Vesper understands that power belongs to whoever best understands people.
Their meetings are exceedingly rare.
When they do gather, even dragons avoid the skies above.
Some believe they still love one another beneath centuries of rivalry.
Others believe that if one sister finally falls, the remaining three will wage a war that will destroy Eyr.
Older than mankind...
Older than dragons...
Older even than the Four Sisters...
The Demon Amulet was created to imprison one of the First Demons—a primordial being born before the world took its present form.
The Amulet is said to be able to break the barriers between worlds, allowing its bearer to command powers no mortal was ever meant to wield.
Many have searched for it.
None have returned.
Some scholars claim the Amulet is hidden within forgotten ruins.
Others insist it lies beneath Blackhat itself.
A few whisper that the relic does not wish to be found, choosing its master rather than waiting to be discovered.
Only one thing is certain.
The Witch Mother seeks it.
And if she succeeds, the age of mortals may finally come to an end.
If this book has found its way into your hands, know this:
Do not assume monsters are always your enemies.
Do not assume beauty means kindness.
Do not assume nature grants mercy.
Do not assume knowledge brings wisdom.
And above all...
Do not believe the stories that claim the Four Sisters cannot die.
Every legend has an ending.
The only question is whether you will survive long enough to witness theirs.
Thus ends the Book of the Four Sisters.