Unbended:Mines of Sathaga
The largest wealth of Sedhannia is also a deadly curse for the western part of the continent. In the southern edges of the Tharian Heights lies Sathaga, which in the old language means “dawning rock.”
Already, in the oldest legends the enormous rocks are depicted as a prison used by a destructing power. The creation myth names Sathaga as well. Aureth himself supposedly used the power under the rock, the Crystals of Inception, to form the surface of Aetherra. The early leader of Sedhannia, mighty Freelords whose people once came from the south and took possession of the lands and its inhabitants, heard of those stories. At last, they began to dig. However much they tried, though, the rock of Sathaga withstood any attempt to extract its secret. The blood of thousands of slave workers who lost their lives for the endeavor soaked the ground.
During this time of oppression, a resistance formed that turned against the Freelords and their gruesome methods. The rebels were led by a man called Ayhgon who declared he himself had found a way into the rock and would now be allied with the powers hidden there. This legendary Ayhgon whould finally become the founder of the Order of the Crystal Mages. Under the guidance of Ayhgon and – so the chronicles tell – in alliance with powers that brought death and destruction to the oppressors, the Freelords and their armies could finally be destroyed. Since that time, the Order rules in Sedhannia with an iron fist and Ayhgon showed his followers how to open the rocks and to use its powerful secrets.
The power of the Order lies in the crystals that can only be found here, in the mines of Sathaga. It is said that every Crystal of Inception that comes from the mines had to be paid for with the lives of one hundred slaves. The deadly work in the mines is done by thralls of the Order. None who has to enter is will leave it alive. And should he still manage, he would have ceased to be human. Too strong is the influence of what was once confined in the rock; that is why the Mines of Sathaga are considered a place of great horrors and evil. It is better to stay clear of this place and its rulers.
