Penned by Historian Shenin Hazzik, Sage of Chronicler
In the Empire of Evernight, 16 great and terrible spires once stood. Each of these were tied to a powerful black sorcerer, and these sorcerers came to be known as the Arcanum. Each member had a particular strength in their use of these dark magics, but all of them held a deck of Tarot Cards that could produce terrible powers. These Black Decks, as they were called, were what separated the Arcanum apart from all other Liches, Black Sorcerers or other great arcane evils.
These Black Decks were crafted from the original “Master Deck”, which itself is neither intrinsically good nor evil. This Master Deck was required in order to make them. Each deck was copied from it, and with their command of black sorcery, turned into the Black Decks we know of today. So long as at least half of a deck remains, the cards within could be replaced.
Over the centuries due to war and conflict or other means, 6 of the 16 towers were destroyed along the Arcanum Sorcerers who controlled them. One of the first were destroyed by its own ruler for unknown reasons, but in the turmoil, he had stolen the Master Deck and has not been seen since.
Without the Master Deck, no new decks could be created, and so from then on, the only way to become an Arcanum was to kill a current member and take their deck. Now only 10 spires stand, and they guard their seats with great care. Some have gone rogue, turning against Evernight such as The Commodore, who stole Evernight’s Black Fleet, while others such as Carlotta Tellinghast have tried to claim the throne of the Empire when she once had control of the Pentirr Knights.
