The story in Blade of Darkness is really quite epic and is undergirded by an actual religion, which has been practiced more and less at various points throughout human history. Unfortunately, the presentation of much of the story in the game is so obscure that very few persons seem to understand it. For those who do, however, the meaning of some of the cut-scenes and quasi-religious texts is much deeper and far more satisfying—as is the ultimate game-ending series of cut-scenes. In order to make the story more easily understood, I have decided to provide my own tale giving the back-story for the world of BOD.
The following tale, then, is entirely of my own creation, based upon my knowledge of Persian Zoroastrian belief taken with the clues given in the game. I have borrowed actual text from BOD, however, and have attempted to work it into a coherent whole that will help the reader get more out of the game. Because of this, there are a few places at which I may have gone awry in my formulation for several reasons. That is to say, my story may deviate from that intended by the game authors, and so I offer the following caveats.
First, the core doctrines of Zoroastrianism have hardly remained constant over time, have been interpreted in several ways and have been opposed from within by several heretical sects. As such, I have chosen what seems to me the most likely view of the gods and their relations given BOD in constructing my tale. Second, as The Chaos Child, The Necromancer, Ianna, Dal Gurak and various other key characters are entirely the invention of Rebel Act Studios, I have had to piece together their intended roles in the overall pantheon from the little evidence available in the text of the game. Despite these caveats, I offer for your education and entertainment...
In the beginning there was Ahura Mazda and only Ahura Mazda, the supreme god over all. In his loneliness, Ahura Mazda created the very primordial chaos itself, from which he took a portion and divided it, separating the light from the darkness. And Ahura Mazda gave to the light and to the darkness new life and their own thoughts, and in so doing he created for himself two twin spirits, Spenta Mainyu and Angra Mainyu. Ahura Mazda rejoiced at the creation of his sons for he was no longer alone.
Spenta Mainyu, having been formed from the light, was a holy spirit who became helper to Ahura Mazda and a champion of goodness. Angra Mainyu, having been formed from the darkness, was a profane spirit who rejected Ahura Mazda and in choosing evil consciously, he created death itself. Angra Mainyu became the god of darkness, the destroyer of all that is good. And thus, dualism was brought to the universe in the shape of an eternal struggle between the forces of good and evil.
Ahura Mazda in his goodness then set to work with Spenta Mainyu at creating the heavens and the earth. Yet while he was busy, Angra Mainyu secretly manipulated another portion of the primordial chaos to create his own offspring. Accidentally, before this new being could be brought under control, it came to life on its own and became independent of its creator. The Chaos Child was a new creation and one set between the gods, opposed to both.
While Angra Mainyu struggled to control The Chaos Child, Ahura Mazda brought the remainder of the gods into existence, including Xshathra, god of metals, and a beautiful daughter, Ianna, goddess of light. When he was finished, Ahura Mazda took inventory of his family, and when he saw the sins of his sons, he became heavy of heart. Therefore, Ahura Mazda withdrew himself to the farthest depths of the universe, from which it is said he will return only at the very end of time itself.
The gods then made for themselves a place to live and be in fellowship. Angra Mainyu visited his siblings and lived with them there. Ianna put her own creative powers to work, fashioning in this world a beautiful garden, filled with life. Where the heavens and earth had once been empty, the earth at least was now to be filled with the creatures made by Ianna's hand. As might be expected, however, Angra Mainyu and the rest of the evil gods brought only discord and threatened all that Ianna had accomplished. Further, The Chaos Child had his own plans to bring incoherence to all the land.
Ianna knew that bold steps were needed to protect her fragile creations and those of her father. And so she hid her temple from the eyes of both god and man, and using her most powerful magic, she cast all of the gods out of their dwelling place. And in perhaps her most desperate act, Ianna wed herself for all eternity to The Chaos Child, sealing forever the unavoidable swing of the pendulum on the Earth between good and evil, between order and chaos. Since the expulsion, Spenta Mainyu has watched over day from the Sun while Ianna dwells now upon the Moon to watch over the night. And the succession of day and night reign over the Earth even now.
Throughout the ages, Ianna and her mad husband have stood opposed, each working to bring about the end of time, though in different ways, for different reasons and with different goals in mind. Neither can act directly. Because of the separation of the planes upon which they dwell from the material world, they may work only through terrestrial agents. When The Chaos Child first spread his darkness across the land through his own chosen champion, Ianna chose the hero of old, Eresh Kigal, and saw to it that he was equipped with her own special sword. The Sword of Ianna granted Kigal power necessary to defeat the forces of darkness, though it cost him his own life in the process.
After his death, his devoted friends carried him to Ianna's hidden temple and entombed him there close to the stone altar into which the sword had been last thrust. As the shrine was closed, four beautiful gemstones magically appeared on the ground: a white opal, an aquamarine, a black obsidian stone and an amber gem in an oval shape. Each friend made a promise to keep the secrets of the gems, and decided to leave signs so they could retrieve the sword when necessary and use it to vanquish evil once again.
The subsequent road of the heroes of the sword led them to the fertile valleys of Yerevan, where they sought shelter in the tall towers of its fortress. When the day of leave-taking came, Amlach, the archer of the sun, strode off to his land in Orlok and settled among its steep gorges, taking with him his share of the treasure and the blue gem. Gorlond, the knight, returned to his fiefdom in Sarikan and became Duke of his Frozen Castle, where the white gem has been watched over ever since.
Long before, when the gods wished to reward Naarim the Pious for his years of service to his people, they had flung from their dwelling place a sacred monolith that pierced the ground in Al Farum, causing a spring to gush forth from the dry sand with the purest and most abundant waters in the region. In thanksgiving for this bounty from the heavens, the Temple of Al Farum was erected. Sawan, the tireless traveler and guide to Eresh Kigal, took the amber gem to this place and hid it there. Later in life, Sawan returned to the Oasis of Nejeb, the place of his birth, where his mortal remains may be found. Honor is surely due his memory, for he led the heroes of the sword, accompanied the golden gem to the Temple of Al Farum, and even aided Nergal, the smith, in regaining the forge of Xshathra, where, during a short time, they forged anew the mighty armor of the knights.
In the dark times when the gods still dwelt among men, the followers of Xshathra, god of metals and ally of Angra Mainyu had raised a fortified temple in the heart of the dormant volcano. Centuries thereafter the temple was fitted out as a fortress, where the great smiths of old forged the finest of weapons. Nergal, the maker, chose the safety of the volcano to preserve the black gem, the sacred obsidian. But as the years passed, the fortress fell into disuse and the gem was forgotten.
Frair the Dwarf also played a critical role, for he concealed the stories of the gods with cunning traps, until the day when all that is secret will be revealed. When Ianna’s sword was returned to her altar, six tablets were brought into being, each one marked with a rune of power. The story of the creation of history itself was written upon them so that it should never be forgotten. To open the tomb of the holy sword, the four great magical gems will again be needed, but to obtain the full power of the sword, all of the six rune tablets must also be reunited at the altar.
Since the victory of Eresh Kigal, darkness has again begun to spread across the land. Troubles have come to the barbarian peoples, and they believe it to be the work of the very shadow of evil that has lain in wait since the dawn of time. The Order of Knights has similarly been disturbed by rumors of strange events at the frontiers of the realm—talk of traitors among the King's men in service to darkness. At the same time, the dwarven cities have been plagued by bands of orcs menacing the surrounding areas with ever-increasing boldness. And finally the amazon peoples have found all manners of malign creatures in the ancient and deserted city of Marakamdal.
This much is clear: the forces of darkness are searching for something, something of great importance. Something must obviously be done and soon. Ianna's chosen one must seek the four gems and the six runes if he or she is to obtain the Sword of Ianna and use it to root out The Chaos Child's chosen servant. And perhaps, if that can even be done, then the very gate of Velaskyálf itself will stand open to The Chaos Child's own sanctuary. To defeat him on his own plane would be to send him back to his wife for a time, during which the material world might rebuild.