the abyss

"In the beginning was the void. The void was the world and life itself. The void begot sound, and the sound divided. Thus, the world divided into the ancient promised land and the memory of the void."
-the thirty-third pilgrimage monument, the monument of beginning "Fonons. Essential components of all matter on planet Auldrant.

Ages ago, a new type of fonon was discovered — the Seventh Fonon. Its discovery threw humanity into chaos, for if one could use the Seventh Fonon, one could learn the future. Wars over the Seventh Fonon raged across the lands, ending only when the miasma — a poison from within the planet — covered the entire world. This is when Yulia appeared.

A fonist skilled in prophecy, Yulia saw thousands of years into the future and foresaw a way to seal away the miasma. With the guidance of her prophecies, humanity sealed the miasma deep within the planet.

Over two thousand years passed.

The world is ruled by Yulia's prophecy, known as the Score. People believe in the coming “unprecedented prosperity” promised in the Score, never straying from the path set forth in the Score which will lead them to that prosperity. They look to the Score as revealed by the Order of Lorelei, the religion Yulia founded, and hold that the greatest virtue is to follow the Score faithfully.

Yulia's Score tells of a young man who is necessary in order to bring 'unprecedented prosperity.' His name is Luke fon Fabre. An heir to the throne of the Kingdom of Kimlasca-Lanvaldear, he was kidnapped as a child by the kingdom's enemy, the Malkuth Empire. Since his return he has been confined to his family's manor for his own safety. He has no idea of the evil that now draws close."

conflict

So what does that all mean? Well! Namco's RPG Tales of the Abyss puts you in the role of Luke, a spoiled and sheltered young man who is spirited away by a

mysterious assassin by the name of Tear Grants. Luke and Tear get caught up in the impending war between Kimlasca and Malkuth, meeting up with Colonel Jade Curtiss, Fon Master Ion, Fon Master Guard Anise Tatlin, and Princess Natalia Luzu Kimlasca Lanvaldear along the way. Luke also meets a mysterious young man named Asch, who shares the same face. It turns out that Luke is a replica, an exact copy of something created by the process of "fomicry." Luke was created by Tear's brother and his mentor, Van Grants, the Commandant of the Six God Generals of the Order of Lorelei.

There's a good deal of angst, secrets revealed, and a whole lot of overcoming the past involved as Luke and his companions travel the world. Eventually the main conflict boils down to stopping Van, who is set on destroying the world and replacing it with replicas. Angered over the destruction of his home of Hod at the hands of the Score, Van grew to hate the institution and planned to escape the Score's control. Luke's group becomes the main opposition of Van and the Generals at his disposal, who instead believe that the Score is not absolute and mankind is not on it's way to destruction as the Score predicts. It's pointed out that despite his attempts to destroy it, Van may be the person most bound to the Score after all.

order of lorelei

... so what's that Order of Lorelei thing, exactly? The main religion of Auldrant, the Order of Lorelei performs Score readings and is headed by a Fon Master chosen by the Score, a young boy named Ion during the game timeline. The Order makes its headquarters in the city of Daath, where it has at its disposal a powerful military force, the Oracle Knight, commanded mainly by Van Grants. During the game, the second in command of the Order, Grand Maestro Mohs, takes a different approach to running the Order than the Fon Master. The result is two different factions, a more liberal faction led by Ion that believes that the Score is not absolute, and an a opposing conservative faction led by Mohs that believes the Score must be upheld without question. Anise Tatlin, a young girl living in Daath, is a member of the Order, specifically as Ionian Sergeant Anise Tatlin Oracle Knights Fon Master Guard. She is the most trusted Guard of the Fon Master, accompanying him as he seeks to bring about an era of peace. And so it begins...