[ Colossus III ]

Although the Strata lasted for a long period of time, from its inception it was hated by all but the Elurivids. Even the second strata who compared to the other strata maintained the the highest position could not live being ruled over by the Elurivids and continually plotted their downfall. In the end it would turn out that a insurrection led by the second strata joined with elements of many of the other strata and all of the last strata would overthrow the Elurivids.

Immediately after the Elurivid yoke was thrown the Colossals began to battle each other for dominion at first adhering to the strata that they had become somewhat accustomed to but even those links disintegrating eventually. And chaos returned to the Continuum. As before many alliances were made and many factions vied for power. There were many prominent groups but among them only relatively few looked to be able to truly challenge for dominion.

It was at this time when the factions were being condensed, in one of the various wars taking place between two of the rising factions that Aeyrom defeated his most relevant competition, “DruTyenim” and took his wife as a prize of victory. And thus Aeyrom cleared a major hurdle to absolute power and shamed what would become his greatest enemy.

The name of the woman whom Aeyrom took as his prize from DruTyenim was “Vethria” and she did not go to him happily as she had always favored DruTyenim. Aeyrom for his part had no time to win her over as his future, although seeming favored with the defeat of DruTyenim, was far from secured. He had many more factions still to subjugate. Vethria sulked in her misfortune and planned a return to DruTyenim but as time went on Aeyroms’ power grew and it became evident to her that she was stuck. She realized she could either go to Aeyrom as his wife or reject him and suffer his wrath, and so she choose to be Aeyroms’ wife and to whisper in his ear council that might affect a new day for her while pleasing to Aeyrom at the same time.

> Colossus IV

[ Colossus II ]

It did not take long for the alliance that had removed Cintieef to breakdown. The individual Colossals felt the others were conspiring and amassing power for their own purposes and so feared where that might leave them if they didn’t develop their own authority either by alliance with others or by outright displays of power. And so the alliance broke into many parts, some large and some small. All of these various alliances battled each other and took the opportunity to harm Colossals who had not been a part of the Alliance bringing chaos back to the Continuum.

There was however one of these splinter groups that had maintained a fair number of Colossals and in so doing held much sway. In the battles that were fought after the breakdown of the Alliance they had not only faired well but also increased their strength and brought over new Colossals to their side. This group centered around the Colossal named “Elurivid” and it was he who developed the basic idea that would eventually bring his faction to rule over the Continuum and once again bring order to the Continuum.

Elurivid had seen first hand that alliances could establish power but it had yet to be proven if an alliance could hold power. Elurivid came upon the idea that there should be a system whereby a chosen group of Colossals could subjugate another group and that group subjugate the group below it thus creating various strata. With this idea his ruling strata would never face the full power of all the Colossals as each group would be consumed with subjugating the group below it. And so the Elurivids nobility began to battle the various factions and after defeating them placed them in a appropriate strata that would serve another. By this way the Colossals became slaves to one another and much animosity was created among them, those who had always been equal even if they were enemies now servants.

Although all the Colossals were intent on rebellion from the inception of this system they were kept busy in labor for the class above them and there were rebellions but only between the various strata, no major rebellion occuring.

The strata were many but first was the Elurivids, a ruling nobility, below them the second strata below them the third and so on. Each strata was subjugated by the strata above and the lowest strata had no lower class to provide them labor and so their position was lowest. This lowest strata was made up of enemies who had done wrong to Elurivid or to the Elurivids in general, they were those who were the most hated by the Elurivids.

At one point, when tension were high between the Elurivids and the second strata the Elurivivds made a contract with the second Strata that stated the following:

1. The second strata would supply labor from the third strata, which they had sway over, to the Elurivids.

2. By fulfilling this requirement the second strata would not be required to serve the first strata in matters of labor.

By way of this contract animosity between the first and second strata was relaxed and all potential rebellions germinating from the second strata were removed. The Elurivids could now enjoy their rule in peace even if that peace was built upon a fury that would not be diminished.

> Colossus III