The Corruption of Balance

'''With the body of Mortanius serving as a host, the dark entity of Avernus felled the entire Circle of Nine with a single decisive blow. Pulling the strings of this new body, Hask'Ak'Gik wandered upon the Balance Guardian Ariel at a holy shrine and plunged a blade into her back, cutting her life away in a moment. In that moment, the Pillar of Balance turned to gray and splintered throughout, the untimely and vicious demise of its Guardian leaving the Circle broken. '''

'''It was not long after this that Nupraptor, Ariel's fellow Guardian and lover, found her corpse. Immediately driven to the depths of grief, madness and suspicion gripped the Guardian of the Mind. In an uncontrolled outburst, he unleashed his grief in the form of a powerful psychic wave that resonated throughout the entire Circle, tainting the other Guardians with his own insanity.'''

'''With each Guardian's madness came the corruption of the Pillar to which they were bound. Every last one was left fractured and the Circle of Nine was shattered apart entirely. Nupraptor, unable to manage his pain, had unleashed it in a blind fury upon his fellow Guardians and tainted the entire Circle. The revenge of the Hylden had begun.'''