The Arcanium Timelines is the name given by Kallisti Bronze to a set of similar alternative timelines where it appears some kind of magical catastrophe in what would have been the Renaissance era in Europe opened up a rift to a Demon Dimension which allowed an invasion of Demonic forces to conquer large swathes of their respective Earths. As a result, political and technological innovation has been stunted so that it has barely progressed from mediaeval levels. There was never an Enlightenment so science was dismissed in favour of magic and the Catholic church appears to have mutated into an organisation known as The Arcanium.

The Arcanium

This is an organisation derived from the remnants of the Catholic Church of Rome after the initial magical catastrophe enabled the demonic invasion. Over the centuries, it has developed a very authoritarian and dogmatic attitude that does not encourage curiosity or personal development, but rather obedience and faith. It suppresses any dissent and is ruthless in its pursuit of orthodoxy.

Its power structure enables repressive and abusive conditions within its ranks, perpetuated by those who climb those ranks in recompense for their own suffering.

The Martial Order of Norton Folgate

This is a martial monastic order based near the town of Oxford, Albion in each of the timelines we know of so far, which is a major force for defending the surviving human population in that part of the world from the Demonic forces.

The four staff-wielding Kallistis were al brought up in the monastic order, after being orphaned under generally similar circumstances when the village they had been living in near Oxford was attacked and overrun by Demons.

For three of the Kallistis (Friar, Templar and Spirit), the conditions in the monastery were harsh and in some cases abusive. Spirit's talent for stealth was spotted early and she was recruited into the elite unit of Scouts, but Friar and Templar were both trained as expendable foot-soldiers in the forces of the Arcanium. The corrupt leadership of the Monastery used their youth and attractiveness to garner favour with important individuals and this abuse has left emotional scars in both women. Kallisti the Friar in particular, was exposed to a dreadful level of abuse during her teenage years.

The Schism

In the case of Kallisti the Monk, however, a discovery by members of the Order that showed the leadership of The Arcanium had come to an conspiratorial agreement with the Demonic invasion forces many decades earlier. This agreement was an alliance that allowed the Arcanium to remain in power provided there was a 'tithe' delivered to the Demons and that an appearance of a continual war that was actually a stale-mate would persist to keep the leadership of The Arcanium in power. One of the important tools of this status quo was the discovery that contrary to doctrine, the soul-bound quarterstaff of the martial monks was not magically endowed to kill a Demon, but simply to banish them from the Earth for a period. The martial orders had originally been founded with this principle as their main weapon, but they had been betrayed centuries earlier the the leadership of The Arcanium.

This discovery created a schism and an insurrection against the church authorities, led by a revolutionary council from the Order that fixed the fault with the quarterstaff, enabling the martial monks and friars to fight back much more effectively and push back the invasion forces and begin to gain the upper hand. The revolution in the leadership of the Order created a more benevolent and nurturing environment that Kallisti the Monk was introduced to at an early age.