Table of Contents

The Hidden Order of Sa'aris

Aftermath of the Death of Heaven

“Following the collapse of Aether, and the subsequent invasion of Nyx, the Order was thrown into a state of crisis. The current leader of the Order, the Nephil Amy Portis, was afflicted by the corrupting influence of that third realm, and this was combined with the uprising of one of the Beloved, Daniel Abramo. Abramo, or Sabbatini as he is also known, is the direct descendent of one of the Order's founding members. His family had held a grudge against Amy since that time for her involvement (culpability as Daniel saw it) in the death of the third founder, Genevieve Martin: mutual friend, and according to some sources occaisional lover, of Portis and Sabbatini. He led a number of Entrusted in a siege on the Mansion, which culminated in a confrontation in the very base of its catacombs, in the tomb of Genevieve. What happened here is not attested to, but after this both Amy and Daniel left: never to truly return to the Order.

“Then, after the wards around Nyx were established, along with the new realm of Metatron, the work needed to rebuild the weakened foundations of the Order could be started. Already, links were being formed with the social movement - and soon to be city - of Demons, Pandemonium. Holly Prague, on stepping into the space vacated by Amy Portis, deepened these links - bringing the Order into closer support while also slowly disolving the firece heirarchies which had marred the Order's first century. Over time the number of Beloved positions dwindled until the point where association between the different parts of the Order was essentially free. That is not to say that all information was divulged to all members - there were definitely still secrets - but much of the paranoia had gone by this point.”

— Extract from A History of Sa'aris, by Elektra Anscombe

Wood House Mansion and Pandemonium

The Sa'aris Mansion was returned to its original name of Wood House, named in memorial of the architects and likely witches, and associates of Demons: John Wood, the Elder and Younger. What had been a home of brittle winter, now blossomed in the new spring of an Order reborn. Nowhere is this more contrast more stark than in it's first outing under its newly restored name: as the venue for the wedding of Vyania Evergreen to Holly Prague.

Slowly the doors that were once kept shut were flung open to bring in light and life. Demons, Angels, and Nephilim walked those halls as openly and freely as humans and it became a second home to many. And just as demons walked freely in the order, so did humans walk freely in Pandemonium - the demonic city at the heart of the changing face of Metatron. A far cry from it's ordered reflection in Terminus, the city is bustling and heaving in the demonic freedom that the Order helped cutlivate after the Death of Heaven. For this reason, being a member of the Order means that they are always considered welcome there.

Following her encroaching corruption, and later self-imposed exile, very few people saw the erstwhile founder and leader of the Hidden Order. It is said amongst those who knew her at the time that she stepped fully into Metatron, to join her demon compatriots in Pandemonium. But there is still a suspicion among the more fanciful of the Order that when it is in great need a woman in a dark cloak and a woman with a shock of red hair will be there to act as guardians and guides.

Daniel and Other Histories

“The schism within the Hidden Order of Sa'aris, incipient from not long after its creation, bubbled over around the time of the Death of Heaven. Daniel Abramo was sent away from the Order by the then-leader Amy Portis, but did not rest in his struggles. Those who were entrusted to him continued to follow his lead over the years as they became a dogged shadow, devoted to keep the Order in line and stop it becoming what they feared it was once becoming: a vessel for the overwhelming power of one person. Over the tenure of the Holly Prague, and her direct successor the enmity between the two groups was slowly healed, until Daniel's son brought the prodigal members back into the fold.

“As a public, and symbolic, show of trust and reconciliation the newly reformed Order began a project of excavating and cataloguing the catacombs of Wood House, where most of the Order's secrets lay buried. In this endeavour they were joined by demon Malthus, who lived in those tunnels for a number of years after the fall of Aether. At the time of publication, we have not yet heard the results of the Order's investigations.”

— An excerpt from An Incomplete History of Secret Organizations

The End of Bohemia

“I remember the day when Holly stepped down well. It was early winter, and snow had just about beugn to touch down around Wood House. The sun was just cresting the horizon when we were visited by a Demon. Now , this wasn't an unusual thing in an of itself, but she caused quite a stir. I was fairly new to the Order, so I didn't recognise the significance at the time - that she was Catherine Sanderson. I even scoffed at the fact that people were saying her name with a sort of hushed reverence, can you imagine that?

“Anyway, she walked into Wood House like she owned the place and said that she was going to “pay Holly a visit”. It wasn't a request, less so a demand; it was simply a statement of fact. She walked straight up to the boss's office, and went inside without a further word. About an hour passed before the pair of them came out. I can only fathom on what they were discussing, probably what Holly was going to do now, I imagine.

“When they came out I remember thinking just how stony-faced Holly looked, but now that I think back on it I'm not sure how I didn't see the hope and relief painted on her face. She was leaving; the Order had grown so much under her tenure, I'm not surprised she was happy to leave that logistical nightmare behind. So yeah, she came out and said that she was leaving, and that she would be around if we needed her. She turned to her protege, my teacher, and told him that looking after us was his responsibility, and then she just… left.”

— Extract from the memoirs of Sam Verner