Unbended:High Fortress of the Bhay-Yan
In Kay-An-Khar the southeastern dominion of Aetherra, the Order of the Bhay-Yan, better known in most parts of the world as the Blademasters, pose the highest caste of nobility. The source of the power of the Blademasters lies hidden beneath the High Fortress of the Bhay-Yan, without a doubt the best fortified fortress that ever a traveler had seen. The High Fortress belongs to the oldest buildings in the south and she is testament to the high degree of civilization of the people of this region had at very early times already. Uncounted times the High Fortress of the Bhay-Yan has been beleaguered and many efforts have been made to break its walls or climb them, but all those attempts failed. Even the allegedly invincible elite troupes of the Red Army of Synn bled in hundreds to death in front of the gates of the High Fortress. If the chronicles are to be believed, not a single Bhay-Yan lost his life in this legendary battle.
Where does the power of the Fortress come from? The answer can be found deep in its bowels, because deep under this place, a special ore can be found thanks to which the Bhay-Yan, the Initiates of the Steel, have weapons and armor of superior quality. Over the centuries, they have become truly masters in working this material that has become known as Yihar-Ayan (Hell’s Iron). It is unknown how the Bhay-Yan manufacture this metal and what methods they use to then work it. That is one of the biggest secrets of this secretive society. We do know, however, that Hell’s Iron is not only used for weaponry by the Bhay-Yan. And that the reason no one could destroy the walls of this Fortress lies in the endlessly long bands of Hell’s Iron that has been used to reinforce those walls.
The fires of the furnaces under the High Fortress of the Bhay-Yan never go out; day and night the adepts of the Blademasters tend to them so that the flow of steel can never dry up. According to a legend from Kay-An-Khar, the day when the Yihar-Ayan stops flowing, the rule of the Blademasters shall end. That strangers are not well received in the High Fortress should be self-explanatory. Too great the fear of spies and saboteurs. But there are stories of a secret path,older than the High Fortress itself. To this day, it hasn’t been found, though, and the secret of Hell’s Iron will remain one for all that don’t belong to the Order of the Blademasters.
