The Black Plague, of 1348 A.D. was not what it appeared to be. Mankind unleashed darkness upon the land and therefore themselves. Those in power far from the front-line, refuse to acknowledge the darkness of this plague as nothing more than a disease that could be contained and resolved, to maintain order and control of their kingdom, and the people within it.

 

During this time of despair, unrest, and fear,... the common peasants would find solace in pursuit of the dark arts, for being feared by your subjugator releases one from being their subject.

 

A cabal formed spreading rumors of how powerful they were, when in fact they knew nothing but parlor trickery. However, this inspired many, and from that arose the pursuit of real magic. Many believed the pinnacle of which to be the art of evocation. Summoning entities for one's self, to guide, protect, and otherwise control.

 

Few who practiced saw results, but some did. Three Magi combined their efforts, in an attempt to gain dominion over the most powerful entity of the spirit world. Over time they were coerced by a voice that whispered through the ether, speaking of great power simply by opening a gateway to the world of the entity and walking through it. By embracing the unique energy of this realm that exists beyond the veil would have them return as the most powerful sorcerers in their land.

 

Enticed, the Magi were guided by the voice through the incantation, indeed opening a gateway. From the gate, a sudden barrage of growling turned to screaming poured out with a dark fog crawling across the floor. Their desire for power and foolishness became immediately clear. Tearing through the flesh-like fabric of the gate, coalesced the beast with which they were speaking.

 

As if born anew into this physical form, and experiencing hunger for the first time, the beast devoured the Magi leaving only scraps of flesh and bone behind. And it is with this mortal shell, that the beast would travel consuming all in its wake and opening more gates along its path. Tearing through the veil that once protected mankind from the chaos of this dark realm,... now came forth a throng of evil.

 

The darkness that trickles from these gates brings with it a pestilence that kills all vegetation, causes animals to become rabid attacking without provocation, and men who stood against it would be driven insane, should they survive.

 

Those that escaped its slow grasp of death, spoke of a dark fog that lay low to the ground that could be seen on the horizon prior to the plague consuming their village. This leads to the understanding that there is safety in higher elevations however, few places are safe from these demonic beings embedded with violence that spills from the now torn veil.

 

Absorbing into all things, the essence of this plague does in fact contain the power that the Magi sought, which can be extracted neutralized and used to infuse items with great power, to fight the darkness itself.