Lowerniel Drakan/History

Origins
Details regarding Lord Drakan's origins and time of birth are virtually non-existent. The earliest accounts of his existence date back to the late Second Age, but the vampyric race's enigmatic nature calls into question when and where he was born.

During the First Age, the deity Guthix shaped Gielinor using both his own divine powers and that of the Stone of Jas, the Staff of Armadyl and other Elder Artefacts he had found on the empty planet. For centuries Guthix moulded what is now known as Gielinor, bringing races to it using the Portal of Life. He only allowed peaceful races, which he thought to be humans, dwarves, gnomes, among others, to thrive on the planet, for his own realm, that of the Naragi, had just been destroyed by a cataclysmic God Wars.

Eventually, they began worshipping him as a god, which did not please Guthix due to his hatred against gods. As such, he went into a 6,000-year-slumber, hoping to be forgotten and beginning what would come to be known as the Second Age. With Guthix asleep, many less benevolent races and deities were able to enter Gielinor without being challenged. Examples include Zaros, whose power was only surpassed by Guthix himself, and Saradomin, who had participated in the Naragi God Wars and was as such one of the most despised figures by Guthix. The vampyric race's origins itself remain uncertain.

Drakan is believed to have been amongst the first vampyres in Gielinor, arriving in the early Second Age from their realm of Vampyrium to aid Zaros in his conquest. Lowerniel and his siblings are likely amongst the few remaining examples of natural vampyres, as opposed to converted vampyres. Vanstrom Klause claims that the vampyre race is older than the Mahjarrat, suggesting that Drakan's birth likely pre-dates the Second Age. However, if his birth is placed at the beginning of the Second Age, Drakan is over 8,000 years old. If he came to Gielinor matured, like Mahjarrat such as Azzanadra, it is possible that he is much older.

Various other theories and legends regarding Drakan's origins exist, although these are now believed to be largely inaccurate myths. One such legend states that Drakan and the rest of the Morytanian populace surfaced from a massive underground city beneath the Icyene's Castle in Hallowvale. Another claims that, far beneath Morytania, an endlessly burning inferno spawned Drakan and his hordes. They then supposedly emerged from a tunnel network and invaded the Hallowland. The fact that he descended from Vampyrium, however, debunks all theories.

Allegiance to Zaros
Upon his arrival to Gielinor, Lord Drakan was amongst a number of racial factions to ally themselves with Zaros, or the Empty Lord, an exceptionally powerful deity who owned an already progressively growing empire that would eventually encompass much of what is now Misthalin, Asgarnia, parts of the Hallowland, and the entirety of Forinthry. It may be possible that Zaros brought Drakan and the vampyres to Gielinor from Vampyrium himself, as he had done with other races. In modern times, nearly all information pertaining to Zaros has been concealed by other religious groups; this, coupled with the immense amount of time since his reign, makes information regarding Drakan during this time very rare. By all accounts, Drakan rapidly became one of Zaros's most crucial generals. The majority of Zaros's generals were Mahjarrat, leaving Drakan a minority amongst the military elite. This fact was not overlooked by his fellow military leaders, including humans, demons, and dragon riders.

With Drakan's assistance, Zaros's empire would continue to expand even until its very downfall. The area that is now the Wilderness was the most thoroughly controlled of Zaros's regions. The area's extremely arable soil, thick vegetation, and stable climate made it an ideal place to place the majority of his empire, leading Zaros to lead a brutal military campaign against the various tribes of various races that had migrated to the region during the First Age. Drakan himself is believed to have led many of these campaigns, suggesting that he was, after proving his ability, the leader of the entire vampyric race, beneath only Zaros. An early incarnation of House Drakan would have been established during this time, as Drakan has by all accounts believed in his family's supremacy since the beginning of his time in Gielinor. During this time, countless cities and fortresses were established, some of the largest of which included Dareeyak, Carrallangar, Annakarl and Ghorrock.

The military genius of Drakan and others eventually gave Zaros the talent he needed to push farther south, where he claimed what is now Asgarnia, Misthalin, northern Morytania, and possibly even the northernmost fringes of the Kharidian Desert. Massive city-forts such as Senntisten, Paddewwa, Kharyrll, and Lassar were established in ideal locations, Drakan responsible at least partially for many of them. The civilisations and trade routes of the First and early Second Ages were thrown into upheaval by Drakan's actions. The Myriad civilisation in southern Misthalin is believed to have fallen during this time, and trade along the Eastern Sea between the Hallowed Lands, the Menaphite civilisation, the Eastern Lands, and central-mainland tribes became more difficult and in some cases impossible. By the end of Zaros's reign, nearly half of the Gielinorian mainland was controlled by him through his generals, Drakan amongst them. Other deities and races made no progress in stopping him, mostly out of immense fear for the god of domination.

Assassination plot
Despite Drakan's long service and immense contributions to the Zarosian empire, it has been suggested that he was never completely dedicated to his lord's cause. Descriptions of life under Zaros's rule have been mixed; while legends claim Zaros possessed extremely loyal followers, more personal accounts from generals such as Viggora describe his rule as one of immense suffering and suppression. Drakan, like most of Zaros's generals, sought mainly to further his own power through service to him. If ever Drakan was suspected of treachery, his position of power would easily allow him to blame others.

Near the end of the Second Age, the then-Mahjarrat general Zamorak silently amassed the support of a number of Zaros's most powerful followers; one of few organised attempts to overthrow him. Drakan was amongst a handful of generals to ally himself with Zamorak in the hope that Zaros could be removed from power and his nation divided. Each swore fealty to him, promising to follow him as their master. However, despite the sizeable following Zamorak managed to gather, there existed no apparent way to overthrow Zaros, as his immortality made him impossible to kill.

It was only when Zamorak received the Staff of Armadyl from a foolish thief named Rennard that a possibility emerged. The Saradominist mage Dhalak, despite his devout worship of Saradomin, felt that if Zaros could be removed from power, it might be possible to defeat Zamorak's followers afterwards. Dhalak cast a spell of concealment upon the artefact, after hearing about it from Lennissa, his apprentice who was stationed as a spy amongst the Zarosians, giving him a slight possibility to defeat a god in combat. Because there was always intense suspicion amongst those close to Zaros, the Staff made its way into their hands without drawing attention.

Zamorak, now in possession of Armadyl's god-weapon, formulated a plan to attack Zaros in his fortress alongside Drakan, Thammaron, Hazeel, Zemouregal, Morvannon, Apropos and Viggora. The generals entered Zaros's fortress (the location of which has never been revealed) on the pretence of discussing war plans against the Saradominists and other religious factions that continued to engage in skirmishes along the nation's borders. Upon entering Zaros's throne room, Drakan and the rest engaged Zaros's bodyguards in combat. Zaros retaliated, but the group narrowly escaped his blows, giving Zamorak time to circle the god and impale him with the staff. Zaros, albeit weakened, duelled Zamorak and had the upper hand in he fight.

Drakan managed to hold his ground for the remainder of the battle, which ended when Zamorak was impaled upon the same staff and Zaros's powers were transferred to him. Zaros was banished from Gielinor, but only after he laid a curse upon those responsible for his defeat. Drakan was amongst the generals to suffer this, but the immense amount of magic running through his blood either made him immune or continues to delay its effects until this day. The group paid witness as the majority of Gielinor's active deities appeared in the room and banished Zamorak from Gielinor for moving against one of their race, although they were his enemies. The generals were successful in ending Zaros's empire, but Zamorak's plans were yet to end.

In hiding
With Zaros having left his body to avoid death and fleeing a distant plane of existence, his empire immediately began to crumble. Although some of his cities such as Senntisten would continue to survive for centuries after his defeat, Zamorak had essentially been successful. However, with him banished, his closest followers were forced into hiding as Zarosian loyalists and various other groups sought their death. His hiding was made somewhat easier by the fact that most of Zaros's followers shifted their allegiance shortly after his disappearance in order to survive.

The need to hide was short-lived, however. Zamorak returned to Gielinor only several years after his banishment, having fully absorbed and mastered the powers he had stolen from his former master and amplified by the Stone of Jas. Drakan immediately came to his side, as did many of his original allies and Zaros's former followers, now ready to resume their takeover of Gielinor. This, amongst some other factors, would mark the beginning of the four-thousand-year-long God Wars.

The Fall of Hallowvale
Lord Drakan entered the Third Age as a mostly independent military lord. He conceivably assisted Zamorak in his early battles against not only those Zarosians still loyal to their god, but also against the countless other religious and racial factions that now sought to claim land without invoking a response from the Empty Lord. However, like most of Zamorak's conspirators, Drakan had been promised land in exchange for his services. Like Thammaron, who opted to later invade the metropolis Uzer of the Kharidian Lands, Drakan was promised an area already developed by an opposing civilisation: the Hallowland, the lush kingdom east of the River Salve.

The Hallowland contained amongst very few true civilisations to survive into the early Third Age. The region's temperate climate, arable soil, and ideal location along the coast of the Eastern Sea made it one of the most prosperous civilisations in Gielinorian history. The Saradominist Icyene, who had been brought to Gielinor from their own realm by Saradomin in the early Second Age, had lived in harmony with the area's human population since their arrival, establishing a mostly agricultural utopia from Hallowvale northwards toward the Zarosian outpost of Kharyrll. Drakan saw the region as an ideal place to establish his empire, although for what reasons remains a mystery. Drakan displays no interest in trade, agriculture, or any of the area's other inherent advantages, leaving his exact intentions unsolved.

Drakan entered the Hallowland through Silvarea, with an army of vampyres and other magically-infused races behind him. Although some members of these races remained behind to serve Zamorak, Drakan took with him a massive number of devoted followers. Details regarding the Fall of Hallowvale remain scarce. Kharyrll, the easternmost settlement of Zaros's former empire, was likely the first settlement to fall, although it has also been suggested in sources of debatable canonicity that Kharyrll may already have fallen to werewolves and re-named Cave Canem. If this is true, then Drakan's conquering of Cave Canem earned him a significant following of werewolves. Queen Efaritay and her husband Ascertes Hallow, the rulers of Hallowvale at the time, fought back with immense military power and their Icyene warriors were more than a match for Drakan's forces. The Icyene's intricately-crafted weaponry far surpassed that of Drakan's soldiers, and their gift of flight made them powerful adversaries in virtually any situation. Regardless, while the northern, agricultural portions of the Hallowland fell with relative ease, the more established cities and fortresses to the south had been established more than 800 years before and were well-equipped to handle prolonged siege. The two forces found themselves in a bloody stalemate, and so Drakan secretly oversaw the kidnapping of Ascertes, whom he threatened with a painful death should Efaritay continue the war. Efaritay was forced to surrender herself to Drakan and was imprisoned by Drakan regardless of the terms of the exchange. Both she and Ascertes were presumably killed following their capture, leaving the people of the Hallowland leaderless in the final days of the war. Drakan was not finished, however. The remaining Icyene were killed, banished or converted to vampyres through means unknown, but none remain today. Except for one.

Drakan was well aware of the existence of Efaritay's son, Safalaan, effectively the last Icyene of Hallowed name left. Drakan sought his elimination and tasked one of his closest vampyres, a cruel and powerful noble named Vanstrom Klause, to track down the young Safalaan and kill him, granting him additional power to do so. Safalaan somehow managed to evade Vanstrom, and has survived the Third, Fourth and Fifth Ages, although with increasing difficulty.

Drakan pushed his way into Hallowvale with relative ease, where he toppled what remained of the nation's leaders and military. The mass-slaughter that took place throughout the Hallowlands following the capture of Ascertes and Efaritay left the race decimated. While some had gone beyond the River Salve to assist the Saradominists in the God Wars, the majority of the race was present in Hallowland at the time and suffered heavy casualties.

Establishing Morytania
Upon capturing Hallowvale, Drakan immediately appointed himself dictator of the region, quickly establishing a solid totalitarian government consisting of members of House Drakan. Drakan oversaw the first of many historical censorships, renaming the Hallowland Morytania, and splitting Hallowvale into Meiyerditch and Darkmeyer, dubbing the south-eastern portions of the nation the Sanguinesti Region. Hallowvale's castle, formerly the home of Ascertes and Efaritay, was renamed Castle Drakan and made the home of much of the vampyric nobility and was appropriately adorned. Much of the region's land was divided into smaller territories granted to nobility such as Malak and Dessous, although most of this land is no longer used. Some structures, such as the subterranean ruins in south-western Morytania, may have been commissioned by Drakan during this time. Drakan, through unknown magical means, brought a permanent veil of storm clouds over much of the region, permanently blocking out the sun and bringing in rains so heavy that the once forested land of Humblethorn gradually became a largely impassable swamp. In some areas, such as west of what is now Port Phasmatys, flood waters rose to such heights that passage was virtually impossible. The centre of Morytania, now known as Mort Myre Swamp, became uninhabitable, haunted by starved ghasts seeking nourishment. The flora and fauna native to the Hallowland were forced to undergo drastic evolutionary mutations to survive; some, such as Hirudinea Acidia and Achatina Acidia Giganteus, have since grown to sizes ranging from several to hundreds of times their previous size that may be related to pollutants in the area's water. Some species, such as the rare Nail Beasts native to Mort Myre Swamp, possess no discernible origin. The thick fog that now covers Morytania is thick enough to filter the light in eastern Misthalin during sunrise. How exactly Drakan accomplished such a thorough re-shaping of the region's climate remains a mystery, but it is possible that he did it with outside help, possibly from Zamorak himself.

In the north-west of the continent, just next to Forinthry's border, the tainted swamp gradually began taking over the huge fortress that stood there. It was once a great castle owned by General Viggora, but after it was built, its foundations already began to sink into the already swampy ground, which led Zaros' others generals to dub the fortress Viggora's Folly. After the demise of Viggora at Zaros' curse, the fortress was abandoned. Drakan's manipulation of the lands accelerated the castle's dilapidation, adding to the eerie reputation of the area. Some time after, a Zamorakian mage of unknown origin discovered the castle and began to form armies for Zamorak in it during the God Wars. Groups of bloodveld, gargoyles, diverse kinds of undead and even abyssal demons, amongst others, were spawned in the name of chaos. Drakan did not seem to see any harm in this, or did not notice it and the castle remained as it was. The native humans and Icyene that survived Drakan's invasion were quickly suppressed. In order to maintain control, Drakan established the Vyrewatch, a secret police force whose mind-reading abilities mean they are immune to conventional weaponry. The Vyrewatch appears to be made largely of vampyres converted from other races; their anatomy is extremely similar to the Icyene and it may be that many of them were forced to undergo transformation. The Icyene were either converted or destroyed with such rapidity that their population simply ceased to exist in Morytania, although some would survive beyond the River Salve until the end of the God Wars and others still lived in the Eastern Lands. Hallowvale, having been largely razed to the ground in Drakan's invasion, was rebuilt as a maze-like blood-farming ghetto with no evident way out. All previously existing entrances were sealed, leaving the city virtually inescapable. The werewolves, who had allied themselves with Drakan during the invasion, were subjugated by their master to living beyond the Sanguinesti Region's borders, living in a sometimes feral state in settlements throughout Morytania. As time progressed, vampyres, werewolves, and other minions of Drakan established additional settlements beyond Sanguinesti. However, today few still remain.

In the battle against the vampyres, the Icyene used weapons made of the branches of the Blisterwood Tree, a large and magical tree in the north of Hallowvale. Its morphing nature allowed the weapons to constantly change shape and thus bypass the vampyres' mind-reading abilities, which normally prevent them from being hurt since they can predict every attack, enabling the Icyene to fight back. When they were defeated, Drakan ordered the destruction of the tree many times, seeing its potential harm to vampyres. This failed each time, however. Eventually, Drakan could not do else but have a large and high-security arboretum built around it. He installed a system that drained the tree's life force by interrupting its resources. Thus, the last threat to the vampyres was eradicated.

Hallowvale's rapid fall and transformation all occurred without attracting widespread attention in the rest of the world. Beyond the River Salve, the main body of the God Wars had quickly escalated to such a point that virtually every race in Gielinor had become involved. Zamorak, although still an ally of Drakan, had effectively ceased being his master and turned his attention to dealing with deities such as Saradomin, Bandos, Armadyl, and countless others. Drakan's legacy and involvement with Zaros gradually was forgotten by the majority of the Gielinorian populace until virtually no record of his prior actions existed. This, coupled with Morytania's isolated location, caused Drakan to evolve into something of a legend, around which many, mostly false stories circulated. Although his interaction with entities beyond Morytania was limited for centuries to come, doubt of Drakan's existence never is known to have surfaced.

Bloodfarming
As Drakan solidified his control over Morytania, the living conditions of humans under his rule continued to deteriorate. Survival outside of Sanguinesti itself became virtually impossible; the hostile elements of the swamplands and aggressive followers of Drakan gradually eliminated any seeking to escape his control. Hallowvale's re-construction allowed Drakan to manage the city's inhabitants with unprecedented ease. The Vyrewatch patrolling the city were capable of flight, and as such needed no pathways, entrances, or ground-level transport to mobilise. Those thousands of humans on the ground, however, found themselves in a high-rise ghetto where structures were deliberately built to make movement nearly impossible. The ghetto itself was likely built by those humans forced to inhabit it, as slave labour became Drakan's first use for them.

Prior to conquering Hallowvale, the vampyric race was forced to survive by hunting and consuming the blood of their prey. Drakan, now presiding over the majority of Morytania's human population, saw an opportunity to eliminate the need for hunting, which had become increasingly difficult as a result of Morytania's thinning animal population. Drakan invented bloodfarming, a method by which his race could obtain nourishment continuously and easily. This systematic method of taxation continues to exist today. Meiyerditch was divided into six sectors, each roughly square and making up a sixth of a grid-like pattern that covered the whole of the city. Each sector was divided from the other through barricades and strategic construction, although more physically able residents have managed to cross sector borders with relative ease. The populace of each section of the city was forced to give blood tithes as a form of tax. To control the amount of deaths in victims, Drakan created a system in which the sectors are tithed in rotational order, allowing residents to replenish themselves enough for the next payment. The means by which these tithes are extracted have varied over time from simply making incisions on the victim's body and collecting the blood in containers to more experimental methods that the vampyres have studied but never perfected. The Vyrewatch were and are primarily responsible for farming the ghetto's citizens, and are permitted to take tithes from residents for personal sustenance at any time. The bloodfarming became overseen by tithe masters such as Von Blott.

The effects of bloodfarming on the residents of Meiyerditch immediately proved disastrous. Although extremely small youth seem to be exempt from tithing, even young children are forced to pay blood to the Vyrewatch. The majority of the city's residents developed Anemia, leaving the majority of the populace perpetually fatigued, weak, and ill. Diseases developed amongst adults were often inherited by their children, allowing for the spread and mutation of many sicknesses. Drakan, considering humanity no more advanced than cattle, paid little attention to living conditions within Meiyerditch, allowing the city's water supply to become contaminated with toxins similar to those in Mort Myre. Food, clothing, and suitable shelter have become increasingly rare, and thousands have died within the ghetto's wall from violence, the effects of blood tithing, and the elements.

Expansion
As the Third Age progressed, Drakan became increasingly hostile to those outside of Morytania. Seeking to stretch his territory further west, Drakan saw the establishment of several settlements in what is now north-eastern Misthalin. The violence that engulfed the region, however, meant that no settlement survived long, and that truly controlling the area was virtually impossible. Stories of this time are few, although the werewolves that now inhabit Canifis maintain that they survived beyond the Salve for an extended period of time. What remained of the former Zarosian capital, Senntisten, was constantly shifting hands between many forces, the most prominent of which were the Saradominsts and Zamorakians. Whether Drakan ever became involved with Zamorak's efforts to control the city remains unknown. Ultimately, though, Drakan's efforts to expand west were not successful during the God Wars. He would re-assert his claim on the region later, during the Fourth Age.

Drakan is known to have become actively involved in the Kharidian Desert Campaign conducted by demons. The northern Kharidian Lands, formerly a cultural utopia, had managed to evade most of the God Wars' violence for most of the Third Age, although the Zarosian bandits that had been forced into the region during the early Third Age did pose a threat. During the late God Wars, however, Zamorakian, Saradominst, and Menaphite forces sought to control the continent's strategic position. Drakan took advantage of this, sending his forces down the River Salve and through the Eastern Sea, apparently hoping to extend Morytania into the Kharid.

The violence that afflicted the region as a result was amongst the most intense of the God Wars. The peaceful tribes that had once dotted the area were slaughtered carelessly, forcing refugees such as Nardarine to flee to the far south and establish cities such as Nardah and Menaphos. Drakan's joint ventures with Zamorak and independent campaign in the area were apparently somewhat successful. Drakan's presence saw the fall of Uzer at the hands of Drakan's former fellow-conspirator Thammaron and the destruction of Ullek by Balfrug Kreeyath, whose success would earn him work under K'ril Tsutsaroth. The campaign would gradually lead to the lands becoming infertile, gradually turning into a sand desert, with only the River Elid bringing a source of farmland for the remaining settlements. However, the extent to which Drakan was involved in the area's major conflicts remains a mystery, and ultimately the expansion into the Kharid had crumbled by the early Fourth Age.

Near the end of the God Wars, a garrison of Saradominist loyalists established an outpost on Dragontooth Island off the coast of eastern Morytania, roughly in the vicinity of modern day Braindeath Island. The military outpost was a threat to Morytania's borders and was the closest permanent non-Morytanian settlement outside the region. It was only at the end of the God Wars or soon after that the entire garrison was completely wiped out, presumably under Drakan's orders.

Drakan seems to have remained somewhat involved beyond the Salve even until the end of the God Wars, judging by the races present during the battle for the Godsword near the Temple of Lost Ancients, but even those campaigns did not see any true expansion. The effects of the conflict upon the Menaphite nation, though, were such that the civilisation never fully recovered. The subtle schism between Scabaras and the rest of the Pantheon had begun to widen, and Amascut's destructive tendencies would only grow.

The Morytania Campaign
In the late Third Age, roughly coinciding with the Kharidian Desert Campaign, Drakan witnessed a large invasion on the Morytanian homefront. The Morytania Campaign was the first organised attempt by Saradominist forces outside Morytania to remove Lord Drakan from power, although many more would follow in later ages. Exact details regarding the campaign are few, but a rough overview is given in both The Fall of Six now kept in Varrock Palace Library and the Legend of the Brothers owned by a strange old man near the modern day Barrows site. Although the campaign was led by Saradominist forces from various small townships in the region that is now Misthalin, the invasion was in fact orchestrated by an independent and then-unidentified entity. The entity was, in fact, Sliske, a Zarosian Mahjarrat whose actions are similar to those described in the Fall of Six. According to the story, the entity found six warrior-farmers in a small town, all of whom desired to gain further glory in the God Wars. The stranger gave each a set of powerful armour and weapons and special powers and urged them to invade and liberate Morytania, from which Drakan was now invading outside regions. The brothers, known as Dharok, Karil, Verac, Ahrim, Torag, and Guthan, gathered a powerful army and led a military campaign into Morytania across the River Salve, presumably through Silvarea. Drakan responded by sending wave upon wave of his forces at the invaders for over a year, resulting in many casualties in both armies. However, the armour the commanders wore, coupled with their natural ability, was strong enough to make the brothers nearly invincible. Upon nearing the walls of the Sanguinesti Region, after the army had halted for one final stop, Sliske confronted the brothers, telling them that they were doomed to die and serve him in death. The campaign pushed on only briefly after this confrontation, the Brothers met by the largest of Drakan's counter-attacks. They were not as strong any more, however, and failed to inflict sufficient damage or avoid attacks. Eventually they were slain, their followers constructing an elaborate tomb near Meiyerditch. Drakan saw that those survivors were mocked and abused for the six days they built the burial site before allowing them to leave Morytania and spread word of his strength.

The stranger returned to the burial site later, casting a curse upon the corpses of the Brothers, binding their souls to his will. The Fall of Six maintains that the stranger intends to use them upon the return of his god to first destroy Drakan and then lead armies and overthrow Zamorak. Sliske proceeded to use the "Barrows Brothers" towards his own goals as his undead wights.

When the God Wars ended, Guthix established a set of Edicts which stated that, should a second God War begin, Gielinor itself would be destroyed to prevent such violence. Drakan was forced to withdraw the whole of his forces back to Morytania to prevent retaliation by Guthix, although after the god's departure he began to turn towards Misthalin once more.

The Misthalin - Morytania War
For the first 1,000 years of the Fourth Age, Drakan's rule of Morytania was relatively straightforward. The region's people continued to fall deeper and deeper under his control, and Drakan's efforts to expand his territory came to a relative standstill. Bloodfarming continued to grow in efficiency and all opposition was defeated easily. It was not until approximately the year 1100 that Drakan again set his sights on Misthalin, from which he had been forced to retreat at the end of the God Wars.

Drakan's forced retreat into Morytania had allowed Misthalin to grow without his interference. For a brief time in the early Fourth Age, small parts of the nation were held by elven settlers from Tirannwn under the protection of King Baxtorian and the Cadarn Clan, although most settled in Kandarin. Saranthium, which had replaced Senntisten during the late Third Age, flourished for several centuries but ultimately fell during the early Fourth. It was not until Avarrocka (now known as Varrock) was established in 700 that a more enduring nation was formed. Drakan, upon deciding to invade, realised that Avarrocka had to be toppled in order to expand. The city had already fended off Drakan's former ally, Zemouregal, led a small crusade against Enakhra in the western Kharid, and averted war with the Thorobshuun and Garagorshuun goblin tribes of Asgarnia. Drakan's invasion was by far the largest struggle the city had yet to face. Drakan's forces crossed the River Salve through Silvarea in roughly 1100 and were immediately discovered by settlers north-east of Avarrocka. The Avarrockian military immediately responded en masse, beginning a complicated tactical battle revolving around Silvarea. For nearly 100 years, the two sides engaged each other in the mountain pass, each gaining and losing ground at an extremely slow pace. Thousands were killed on both sides, although those slain by Drakan's army are said to have died some type of particularly slow, lingering death.

As the war progressed, the Avarrockian army proved insufficient in fending off the campaign. Thousands of adults and children, many lacking any military experience, were called upon from small agricultural communities throughout Misthalin to serve. Regardless, Drakan ultimately was winning the battle through not only tactics but sheer force, his racially diverse military virtually bottomless in number. Much of House Drakan itself was present on the front lines of the war, prompting Drakan to betray his brother, Count Draynor, and leave him trapped in Misthalin. Whether or not Drakan himself was present at the site of the campaign remains unknown.

It was not until roughly 1200 that Misthalin was finally able to launch an effective defensive against Drakan. Seven Priestly Warriors: Ivandis Seergaze, Iriandul Caistlyn, Sarl Dunegun, Derygull Templeton, Erysail the Pious, Friar Twiblick, and Essiandar Gar emerged from various small Misthalanian settlements and led Misthalin's military. Drakan's forces were pushed back to the Salve in less than a year, prompting the priests to cast a joint spell of Saradomin's power upon the Salve. The spell created a powerful holy barrier within the river, prompting death in Drakan's followers should they touch it. Six of the seven priests were killed in the final sweep of Drakan's forces, leaving only Seergaze to lead an unsuccessful final campaign alongside soldiers such as Keorgius Feryis into Morytania. The Paterdomus Saradominist temple was built over the Salve's point of origin as a means of monitoring the border. The blessing of the Salve would mark the beginning of a new period of heavy isolation for Morytania and Drakan, who grew increasingly bitter in the aftermath of the event.

Mining Operations
At an unknown point after the Misthalin - Morytania War, Drakan commissioned the excavation of an underground mine in south-western Morytania, near the mouth of the River Salve and impassable cliffs of the eastern Kharidian Desert. It was dubbed the Mort Ridge Mine. After assessing that the mine was rich enough to justify extraction, Drakan sent massive numbers of enslaved humans from ghettos and camps such as Meiyerditch to work the mine. Underground ruins adjacent to the mine were theorised by Tarn Razorlor as having potentially been built by Drakan years before, although this remains unconfirmed.

The Morytanian mining network would become one of the largest in the world at the time, rivalling those of isolated subterranean cities such as Keldagrim and Dorgesh-Kaan. Huge amounts of ore, ranging from iron and coal to mithril and adamantite were extracted and brought to the Sanguinesti Region for processing. Whether or not the metalworking plant now present beneath Meiyerditch was in existence at the time is unknown. The majority of those labouring in the mines were humans or criminals, meaning that conditions in the mine were so bad that thousands were worked to death and suffered from mining-related diseases. A select few vampyre overseers were sent to manage the miners.

Years into the operation, Drakan abruptly ordered the closing of the mine and the violent slaughter of its entire workforce. Miners and overseers alike were brutally killed through strategic collapsing of the mine's outer entrances and direct violence. Drakan imprisoned close follower Treus Dayth in the mine to protect it, binding his soul to the area and leaving him eternally trapped. Furthermore, the violent death of the miners left their aggressive spirits bound to the mine, making it one of the most haunted sites in the world. The reason for the mine's sudden destruction was never released to the Morytanian public; secretly a huge deposit of foreign crystals had been discovered in the lowest depths of the mine, where workers had been tunnelling deeper in search of new veins. These salve crystals had been created by blessed water from the Salve seeping into the mines and leaving deposits that could potentially be used to kill Drakan's followers. The mine would remain abandoned for more than a century, when the necromancer and mutant Tarn Razorlor and his following searched the mine and established a dungeon in Tarn's hunt for the crystals and other riches.

Misthalanian Settlers
In 1777 of the Fourth Age, Morytania saw a massive immigration of human settlers from modern-day Misthalin and Asgarnia. The last contact with Morytania had been more than 500 years ago, during the Misthalin - Morytania War, and as a result Morytania's fearsome reputation was dismissed by many as exaggerated. The settlers travelled through Paterdomus and rapidly established numerous settlements, the largest of which were Port Phasmatys, Mort'ton, and the Lordship of the North Coast.

Drakan's gradual withdrawal from the northern reaches of Morytania and focus on affairs in the Sanguinesti Region meant that settlers found a seemingly uninhabited region with no obvious threats. Beyond the Salve, human settlements were constantly struggling with races such as goblins, hobgoblins, and giants, making life extremely uncertain for those in Avarrocka and other small villages. Northern Morytania rapidly developed, making it larger and safer than most of Misthalin and Asgarnia at the time. Port Phasmatys rapidly became a trading hub and cultural melting pot, trading with the Eastern Wushanko Archipelago and tropical islands to the south-east and rivalling the ports of Menaphos and Port Lina in size. Mort'ton also became a successful, but more land-locked, trading post. The Lordship of the North Coast was perhaps the largest of the settlements, building itself around the recently abandoned castle of Charos. Charos, a close human advisor of Drakan, had, in the early Fourth Age, used his mind-bending powers on Drakan's victims to extract information, making him valued to the vampyre overlord. Out of selfishness, he at some point attempted to use his mind-bending powers, concentrated in his ring, to control his master. This was his largest mistake, since only the weak-willed could be manipulated, and Drakan was everything but weak-willed. This betrayal angered Drakan, leading to Charos' death or imprisonment and leaving his castle abandoned. The Lordship extended far south into the Haunted Woods.

Drakan's focus on Sanguinesti meant that the human settlers, despite introducing a level of commerce not seen in the region since Hallowvale's peak, were not noticed for more than 200 years. Drakan's fearsome reputation diminished as the humans of Morytania benefited from a peaceful lifestyle and word spread beyond the Salve that conditions in Morytania were at times better than those outside the region, despite the harsh conditions and disgusting environment.

Reclaiming Morytania
In the year 23 of the Fifth Age, Drakan became aware of the human development that was rapidly spreading across Morytania. Temporarily turning his attention from Sanguinesti, Drakan sent groups of vampyres into these settlements, each instructed to take blood tithes from them. Settlers were caught completely off-guard to find that the vampyric race existed in such numbers, eventually leaving them no choice but to comply with the tithes. Smaller settlements that refused these were presumably destroyed completely and their residents killed or imprisoned in Sanguinesti. Drakan discovered the settlement of Canifis, built on the ruins of Kharyrll. Out of anger or perhaps cruelty, Drakan cursed the villagers of Canifis, turning them into savage werewolves when attacked.

Gradually, every settlement in Morytania was forced to accommodate the tax. The Lordship of the North Coast, situated so close to Paterdomus, slowly but surely dissipated as inhabitants were killed, taken, or fled beyond the Salve, where the Fremennik Moon Clan's discovery of runestones had allowed the central human kingdoms to grow extremely prosperous. Lord Rologray, master of the Lordship, firmly resisted Drakan's demands of tithing and fortified his castle in defence. Meanwhile, Port Phasmatys's trade with the Eastern Lands and islands such as Harmony, Mos Le'Harmless, and others was compromised severely by the tithing. The port's residents were forced to enlist the assistance of Necrovarus, an Eastern mage who used a large deposit of ectoplasm to create a barrier locking Drakan out but also trapping the souls of those inside. Necrovarus' true intentions emerged when it turned out nobody that died in Phasmatys was able to pass on, lingering on as a ghost, which stagnated trade and quickly earned the town the nickname of 'ghost port'. Mort'ton complied with the tithe, but when a mysterious disease overtook the village, by chance or design, the blood of its people was made poisonous to the vampyres. Efforts by pharmacists such as Herbi Flax and Liornish Stemplehair to cure the affliction came too late, and tithing of the settlement was mostly abandoned. Soon, the entire residence was turned into senseless afflicted zombies and the vampyres decided to leave them alone, mostly for their own safety.

Also in 23, a tribe of werewolf nomads created the Canifis settlement near the eastern border of the North Coast with Drakan's permission and promise to provide tithes. The town's close proximity to Paterdomus would have made capturing humans for the tithes relatively simple. Although the process of reclaiming Morytania was gradual, by the end of the Fifth Age nearly all of Morytania was controlled by Drakan. Furthermore, the swamp-like conditions that had dominated much of the region since Drakan's establishment crept further north, reshaping the north coast. Only Burgh de Rott, a poor town created and inhabited by those few refugees that had managed to escape the Sanguinesti Region and crossed what once was the prosperous Hallowglade, and the undead citizens of Port Phasmatys escaped his direct control, albeit the conditions in both have since been extremely poor.

Sanguinesti oppression
In roughly the 150s or 160s, Drakan imposed further laws and demands on the people of Meiyerditch, whose population had grown as result of tithing outside the city. Drakan oversaw the complete shutdown of the ghetto's human-run market, destroying what few businesses existed in the area. The Sanguinesti black market would manage to escape this however, as residents such as Trader Sven and Old Man Ral avoided notice. Private businesses such as Trakerel's Fish Shop or the Skull in a Chest Inn were forced to close. Exactly what sparked this action by Drakan remains unknown, although it may have been related to the actions of the Myreque.

Drakan, shortly before or after this, also saw the opening of the daeyalt mines beneath the city. Using slave labour from those throughout the region, Drakan saw the digging of a deep mining network and the construction of a huge underground processing plant for the ore, echoing his behaviour in the western mines centuries before. What the daeyalt ore is being used for remains a closely guarded secret, although the Imcando Dwarf Thurgo believes the ore to possess magical properties. This makes sense, seeing that the Stone of Jas was involved in the ore's creation. The most infamous of Drakan's developments during this time was the Meiyerditch blood lab. The lab had been designed by Drakan and his scientists in an effort to find new ways of extracting blood tithes, which the House hoped to be obtained more rapidly through these ways. Claiming the lab was being used to develop methods of improving living conditions in the ghetto, Drakan ordered the capture or recruitment of many resident humans to work in the lab. Those humans physically and mentally fit for more technical labour assisted the vampyres in the study of Haemalchemy, a little-known branch of science they did not fully understand. Those unfit for lab work were taken to a secret cavern adjacent to the lab, where human experimentation was overseen by haemalchemists. The remains of work performed in the caves has recently been discovered, and includes a variety of cages, restraining devices, and precision surgical tools. Several disfigured human corpses are still present. Medical supplies, such as anaesthetic, medication, and bandages, are not present and so presumably were not used to ease the suffering of test subjects.

Several years ago, the blood labs were abruptly shut down and the majority of its workers hunted down and presumably slain on Drakan's orders. Mauritys Guile is the only man known to have escaped this fate. The exact reasons for the sudden shutdown of the laboratory for years remained unknown, until Vanescula Drakan explained to an adventurer working with the Myreque that lab workers discovered through their extensive research of Haemalchemy that Vampyres can survive without the consumption of blood. That discovery itself could bring down the entire Vampyre society, for it would mean the ghetto could be disbanded. Concurrently, a set of strange ruins was found deep in the cavern, which the vampyres realised must be the blood altar, which has a seemingly infinite supply of blood. The laboratories were henceforth destroyed and the research was obliterated. However, word of the lab's existence escaped through workers such as Mauritys, father of House servant Sarius Guile.

The Myreque and the Sanguinesti Liberation War
In the late Fifth Age, a rebel group known as the Myreque emerged in the Sanguinesti Region. Although they are not the first to challenge Drakan from within, they have since proven to be the most successful. Under the leadership of the lieutenants Safalaan Hallow (who is unaware of his being an Icyene) and Veliaf Hurtz and the mysterious leader Calsidiu, the Myreque established a complex but initially feeble resistance effort throughout Morytania. Under Calsidiu's orders, his lieutenants secretly gathered different kinds of people to join the resistance, some from Misthalin, others from the Sanguinesti Region. The group then split into two: a Mort Myre division, hidden under 'The Hollows', and a Sanguinesti division, hidden in a base beneath Meiyerditch. Occasionally, the poorly armed Myreque fighters would exit their base to help refugees, scavenge food or fight weak vampyres, but they always did so in grave danger and had to retreat quickly. While Drakan initially sent vampyres after them, he soon realised that they were little to no threat and stopped paying attention to it. Instead, he became obsessed with a stone of unknown origin, eventually not leaving his castle anymore. This meant that Vanescula and Ranis would become de facto rulers of Meiyerditch, occasionally flying about.

In 169, a group of Zamorakian activists stormed the Paterdomus temple. The Occupation of Paterdomus was quick a battle - the Saradominist priests were not able to defend themselves and the Zamorakian monks killed all but two (Drezel, the head priest, was locked in a cage next to a powerful vampyre in a coffin and Hiylik Myna was on the other side of the Salve at the moment) before ravaging the temple. Unable to bypass Cerberus the temple guard dog, they decided to lurk in the temple until an opportunity arose. When Varrock sent an adventurer to check on the safety of Drezel, from whom the king had not heard in a while, the Zamorakians tricked them into killing Cerberus. After realising their mistake, they freed Drezel and reinforced the holy barrier that protected the temple from Morytanian invasions and a new guard dog, Lycurgus, was placed. Paterdomus remained in Zamorakian hands, however.

That same year development in Morytania itself commenced, for that year the Myreque would book several successes. Initially, however, the Myreque suffered a blow when Drakan found out that Safalaan, the Icyene that had been on his death list for millennia, was an active commander of the Myreque. Drakan informed Vanstrom Klause and urged him to find and destroy Safalaan. Vanstrom had several encounters with the Mort Myre division, but they always managed to escape him narrowly. In 169, however, Vanstrom disguised himself as a human and went to the Hair of the Dog tavern in Canifis, waiting for an opportunity. The opportunity soon arrived in the form of that same adventurer, whom he convinced to be a friend of the Myreque's before asking them to deliver weapons to the group, claiming that they were unable to defend themselves, Vanstrom not knowing the location of the base himself. As the adventurer returned with the weapons and travelled through Mort Myre before finding the Myreque, Vanstrom followed them in the shadows and revealed himself when they arrived at the base under the swamp. He entered the cavern and killed two members of the Myreque, Sani Piliu and Harold Evans, before leaving his skeleton hellhound to finish off the others and leaving when Vanstrom realised that Safalaan was not there. The adventurer saw their mistake, killed the hellhound and asked Veliaf to join the Myreque. Their base had been exposed, leaving the Myreque no choice but to relocate. With the help of the adventurer Vanstrom had manipulated, the order decided to seek safety in Burgh de Rott after the adventurer had cleaned up the town, where Sanguinesti-escapee Elisabeta had established a hideout for refugees. Burgh de Rott was in fact located on the spot where The Burgh had stood before the Fall of Hallowvale, but had since deteriorated immensely, providing extremely poor living conditions for those that had managed to escape the Sanguinesti. The town had not been discovered by the vampyres yet, despite Drakan having ordered several searches, because it was hidden from sight by the dense woods nearby, who were once the prosperous woodland of Hallowglade. This was soon to end, however, when the adventurer restored a broken furnace during their attempts to aid the village. The resulting smoke drew the attention of Vanstrom, who was having an argument with Gadderanks - a vampyre-aligned human tithe collector. Gadderanks complained about not being able to find enough tithes when Vanstrom smelt the smoke, and so Vanstrom sent him forth to tithe the village population. After fending off Gadderanks, who revealed the ingredients of a potion harmful to vampyres on death, the Mort Myre Myreque settled in Meiyerditch. When informed of Gadderanks' death, his wife Maria, whom he was trying to keep alive by supporting the vampyres, was imprisoned in Darkmeyer, likely on orders of Drakan.

That same year, the adventurer entered the Draynor Manor, a spooky mansion near Draynor Village, and slew Drakan's brother Count Victor, who was extremely weak due to having crossed the Salve so many years ago. Drakan is unlikely to have cared, being the one who banished his brother. Back in Morytania, the vampyre lord Dessous was murdered by the adventurer to receive the blood diamond from another noble, Malak, who desired Dessous' land. It does not seem that Drakan took any measures against Malak.

Strengthening of the Myreque
The adventurer, using clues found in a secret library under Paterdomus, found the tomb of Ivandis Seergaze, the only of the Priestly Warriors who had been buried inside Morytania, and made a replica of his battle rod, which has the power to hold weakened vampyres suspended in air. They also brew a Guthix balance potion based on Gadderanks' instructions, which is used to kill vampyres, convert them to humans or enrage them. With this weapon, The Myreque were able to fight and defeat the lower-ranked vampyres, although the vyrewatch were still impervious to it due to their mind-reading abilities, which enable them to predict and thus dodge any weapon's attack. Veliaf became worried, however, about his allies in Meiyerditch. The adventurer sailed around "The Great Vyrewall", infiltrated Meiyerditch, and, with the help of Myreque associate Old Man Ral, evaded the vyrewatch and found the base of the Sanguinesti Order of the Myreque. They were met by second-in-command Vertida Sefalatis and proceeded to locate Safalaan who was sketching Castle Drakan on a reconnaissance mission. The adventurer took over the mission and spotted a conversation between Vanescula, Ranis and Vanstrom while at it. As they were about the return to the base, Vanstrom attacked and nearly killed them, but he was narrowly stopped by the human servant of Vanescula, whom the latter had sent, Sarius Guile. Sarius directed them to a certain house where her father, Mauritys, had hidden letters about the secret laboratory. After reporting to Safalaan, the laboratory, which Drakan had so attempted to erase from everyone's memories, was discovered, and the adventurer took a book on haemalchemy there.

Concurrently, the adventurer had attempted to recruit the assistance of King Roald Remanis III of Misthalin by sending an army to liberate Morytania. While initially showing sympathy for the plan, Roald's advisor Aeonisig Raispher warned that the Edicts of Guthix did not allow such a conflict to be and after a long conversation Roald sadly agreed to only establish a Mercenary protocol that brought humans through the recently-captured Paterdomus to aid the Myreque in Morytania. Furthermore, the threat of both Morytanian and Wilderness-based invasion prompted the construction of a Beacon Network spanning from Silvarea to the Frozen Waste Plateau, indirectly involving the Troll Country, Burthorpe, the barbarians of Misthalin, and the Asgarnian goblin tribes in the conflict. Meanwhile, werewolves have reportedly attacked travellers in Silvarea to pay their blood tithe quota, evidently having found a way through or around the Salve. When they returned to Morytania a few weeks later, a mercenary warrior of the recently established protocol enlisted the adventurer to escort them to Burgh de Rott. They also advised them to investigate Paterdomus, for strange occurrences had been spotted. The adventurer did so and, on the top floor of the temple, discovered a group containing both Zamorakians and Saradominists making plans to remove the Edicts of Guthix. The group then spotted the eavesdropper and sent two bodyguards - Fistandantilus and Zaromark Sliver - to kill them before teleporting away, but these were defeated. The mercenary was then escorted to Burgh de Rott, where they revealed themselves to be Ivan Strom, a member of the Myreque who had been sent to Paterdomus by Veliaf after Vanstrom's initial attack and who wished to re conciliate.

While investigating the abandoned laboratory and its dungeons with Safalaan, Andiess Juip and Kael Forshaw, the adventurer stumbled upon strange ruins, which turned out to be the Runecrafting altar of blood, one of the reasons why the vampyres had abandoned the area. Two vyrewatch caught eye of this and flew in through a hole in the roof before killing Andiess and making Kael retreat. They fought the adventurer and Safalaan and, impervious to attacks, seemed undefeatable. However, Safalaan, as he grew weaker, suddenly began to emit a pulsing light then caused an explosion of energy, scaring the vyres off and exhausting himself. He recovered at the base and, unable to comprehend what had happened, wished to forge a weapon that could harm the vyrewatch. The two vyrewatch that had assaulted the group reported to either Drakan or Vanstrom. Either way, the latter realised Safalaan was coming to age and his powers were almost at their peak and about to reveal themselves, which meant he had to speed up the hunt. When Vanescula got ear of this, she immediately took interest and ordered the Meiyerditch vyres to leave the adventurer alone from then on.

The adventurer helped to find the vampyre race's weakness with the help of Safalaan's scholar and scientist Flaygian Screwte. They managed to bypass the Vyrewatch's mind-reading ability by creating a chain and attacking it to a blessed, gem-encrusted silver sickle and the other end to the rod of Ivandis, thus creating the Ivandis flail, which is so unpredictable the mind-reading abilities of the vyrewatch are nullified, effectively enabling the Myreque to damage them.

Drakan, realising the Myreque were becoming a serious threat, took drastic measures. First, he gave Vanstrom further power and tasked him with destroying not only Safalaan, but the entire Myreque. He also made communication between the two factions nearly impossible and had all messages coming in or out of Meiyerditch be intercepted, cornering the organisation. In addition, a group of vyrewatch, independant from Drakan, went rogue and began killing and tithing sprees in Meiyerditch and Burgh de Rott. One of their victims was the ill refugee Marius, the remains of whom were little.

Treason within the Drakans
After this, Drakan retreated into his castle once more. There, his obsession with the rock, details of which remain unknown, grew. Little is known about this rock at all - it might be the magical daeyalt ore or perhaps the Stone of Jas from which the daeyalt was created, or even the recently uncovered blood altar. Either way, Drakan almost completely left the reign of Morytania in the hands of his siblings, greatly annoying Vanescula. Drakan's sister formed her own plot to betray her brother. She decided to assist the Myreque in defeating the other Drakans and liberating Meiyerditch and abandon the blood tithing. Or at least, she claimed so in a letter addressed to Safalaan, in whom she had taken a great interest. On a certain night, Vanescula snuck into Burgh de Rott and opened a tunnel to a small, underground crypt, which contained many symbols of House Drakan, a coffin with a mysterious medallion and a decaying tome mentioning Queen Efaritay. The tome contained wording similar to that on a plaque in the basement of the local inn, where the Myreque were located. She left a message there addressed to Safalaan and signed it with 'V'.

Veliaf assumed the V to stand for Vanstrom, however, and urged the adventurer to alert the Sanguinesti division and bring them provisions while at it. They decided that it was too dangerous to send Safalaan alone and sent the adventurer, Kael and Vertida instead. After an encounter with rogue vyres, they met a girl called Nessie who claimed to have been sent by Vanstrom. She quickly revealed her true identity as Vanescula, however, and told the adventurer about her brother's obsession with the strange rock and that she wished to usurp him. She gave a proposal to deliver to Safalaan and also told them about the legendary Blisterwood Tree and suggested to infiltrate Darkmeyer disguised as a vampyre, with her help, build up a reputation, enter the arboretum and fletch blisterwood weapons.

Safalaan read Vanescula's offer and agreed to the plan. The adventurer entered Darkmeyer, obtained a disguise and eventually got access to the highest tier of the city, where they pledged fealty to the Drakans. As they were about to enter the arboretum, however, Ranis stopped them, suspecting something, but eventually let them through. The adventurer bypassed Drakan's security system and healed the tree before making some weapons from the logs. At that point, Ranis stormed into the arboretum, having found out about the infiltrator's true identity, and demanded that they come out. Vanescula also entered at that point and, as Ranis was about to explain the situation, she murdered him in cold blood. She decided to blame it on the Myreque then informed the adventurer that Vanstrom had discovered the location of the Myreque base. The adventurer immediately returned there to inform Safalaan, but he turned out to be absent.

An emergency meeting was conducted and the adventurer was sent to kill Vanstrom using the new blisterwood weapons. After an immensely tough battle, Vanstrom gave in and, using his last ounce of strength, exploded while summoning a dozen bloodveld guardians to finish them off. Vanescula and Sarius Guile then arrived and the vampyre killed the bloodveld. Sarius then revealed that her father Mauritys had been a member of the Myreque, so Sarius was able to escort the adventurer, who had passed out back. Meanwhile, Vanescula destroyed Vanstrom's notes. Vanescula then flew to the south of Meiyerditch, at the end of the Vyrewall, where Safalaan was being assaulted by vyrewatch. She sent them away and told Safalaan that "they would start when he would get back". Safalaan then boarded the boat and left to an unknown location.

According to Sentinel Plaguemanst, Lowerniel has been informed of these events and is furious, supposedly placing a price on the head of the "rogue Myreque agent", in the form of a vat of blood, who killed Vanstrom and his brother Ranis.