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Marmo (マーモ, māmo), the dark island, is both an island and one of the countries of Lodoss. Marmo is the home of nearly all the villains in the series. Marmo is also home to the black dragon, Narse. At the conclusion of the seventh novel, Marmo becomes a duchy of Flaim, and Spark is appointed duke.

According to series author Ryo Mizuno Marmo is about as large as Ehime Prefecture in Japan,[1] which is 5,676.23 km2 and has a population of about 1.3 million people.

Overview[]

The island[]

Marmo is an island situated to the southeast of the main island of Lodoss and is said to be the resting place of Kardis, the goddess of destruction. It is believed that the goddess’s corpse still sleeps and that is why the island is cursed. Blessings of nature are scarce, and many evil creatures and beasts live there, making it a tough place to survive. Due to these circumstances, criminals from the kingdoms of Alania and Kanon were exiled to the dark island. The residents of Marmo follow the philosophy of Phalaris, the god of darkness: “The strong are those who live and thrive, and the dead are the only losers.” This doctrine is spread by the cult of Phalaris, worshipped by most inhabitiants of Marmo. Besides humans, dark sprites have a strong presence. In particular, the dark elves always occupy important positions among the forces of Marmo.

Marmo army[]

Both Marmo and the kingdom of Kanon are governed by Marmo's social system. Those who live on Marmo island say, “Those that live are the winners, the dead are the only losers.” To survive amongst the beasts on Marmo, the inhabitants do whatever it takes. There is no room to be considerate of others. Brunei and Beld, the two men who unified Marmo, both followed this mindset as rulers of the Dark Island.

Under Beld’s rule, a terrifying empire that killed mercilessly, reminiscent of the demons, was created. Family, status, gender, and race have no bearing on the hierarchy of the empire. Everything is evaluated on ability, and those who have made even a single mistake are punished severely. For this reason, the Knights of Darkness of the Marmo Empire have more women among their ranks than the orders of knights of other countries. In the kingdom of Kanon ruled by the Marmo empire, most of the people occupying the region are humans, but there are also dark elves, as well as goblins and other lower-ranking evil creatures.

History[]

Foundation[]

A tribe of barbarians founded a great temple to Kardis, goddess of destruction, on Marmo around the same time as the collapse of the ancient kingdom of Kastuul. Although the group did not achieve the unification of Marmo, they constructed a fortress above the subterranean temple, where Kardis’ body slept, to prevent invasion, called Persei Fortress. The chieftain of the tribe was Naneel, the Queen of the Dead. After establishing a foothold in Marmo, Naneel carried out the teachings of the destruction of Kardis in the land of Alania. Ignoring any plan of unification, Naneel was only interested in sabotaging the land of Alania by unleashing evil creatures and monsters into the land and corrupting the kingdom’s residence with the religion of Kardis.

According to the myths, Alania was the final resting place of Marfa, the goddess of creation. Therefore, the Marfa sect were the sworn enemies of the cult of Kardis. However, despite Naneel’s best efforts, she was defeated and sealed by Kadomos, the founding king of the kingdom of Alania in the 101st year of the New Royal Calendar. The power of the tribes that worshipped Kardis and their forces were suddenly weakened considerably, and the barbarians were driven into the forest by Kadomos and his expedition force.

The first unification of the dark island was achieved after the collapse of the ancient kingdom. It was accomplished by a man named Brunei, who was originally a nobleman of the kingdom of Kanon. Brunei, who entered the island of Marmo in the 263rd year of the New Royal Calendar, unified the residents of the island, partly through force and partly through schemes; he forged a kingdom on Marmo through fear. It was said that Brunei had a long-cherished wish of making Marmo a rich land like Kanon. And in the 284th year of the New Royal Calendar, the kingdom of Brunei (ブルネイ, Burunei) was founded.

In addition two years later a castle was constructed using the Persei Fortress, which was built by the cult of Kardis, as a foundation. The fort was drastically remodelled and expanded to become fit to be the royal castle. This castle was named Castle Conquera.

However, King Brunei’s great ambition was not to be. In the 295th year of the New Royal Calendar, the captain of the knights, Alastair (アレスタ, Aresuta), led a revolt and seized the throne. Yet his three sons-in-law, who married his daughters, abandoned him and Brunei died, debilitating slowly in a hidden room in Castle Conquera. This inevitably led to a power struggle for the kingdom of Brunei. The fate of the kingdom was sealed in the 306th year of the New Royal Calendar, when it was destroyed by the barbarians and dark elves of the Forest of Darkness, who took advantage of Brunei’s weakened state.

The second unification of Marmo occurred when one of the Six Heroes, the red-haired mercenary Beld, arrived on the dark island. Beld was famous in Lodoss for defeating the Demon King in the Deepest Labyrinth and claiming the demon’s cursed sword, the Demon Sword “Soul Crusher”. Beld returned to his hometown in the Forest of Darkness in the 494th year of the New Royal Calendar, and within three years he united the barbarian tribes and the dark elves under his banner and was calling himself "The Dark Emperor." The full unification of the dark isle was completed after another three years. Thus, in the 500th year of the New Royal Calendar, the Marmo Empire was founded.

Year 473[]

The Dark Island was not spared from the demon outbreak that plagued the mainland of Lodoss. The barbarians and dark sprites merely coexisted in Marmo, as there was no commander to unite them. They were too preoccupied with their tribal conflicts, fighting for supremacy. However, while the demons were centred on battling the dark elves, they were also having a hard time against the hordes of goblins, wood ogres and other evil creatures of the Forest of Darkness. The demons on the dark island, in anticipation of such a situation, didn't attack the inhabitants of Marmo as much as the demons on the main island of Lodoss did. Even if one could dominate Marmo, like Flaim, it would be a harder obstacle to conquer.

Year 510[]

In the 510th year of the New Royal Calendar, ten years after the unification, Emperor Beld launched an invasion on the kingdom of Kanon, as part of his plan towards the conquest of Lodoss. As a result, a conflict that was later called the War of Heroes commenced. However, Beld was defeated and killed in a decisive battle on the outskirts of Roid. After the War of Heroe,s the Marmo Empire, having lost its emperor, chose four influential figures to govern the council. These figures were the Black Knight Ashram, the Dark Wizard Wagnard, Supreme Priest Shordel, and the dark elf chieftain Luzeev.

Years 512-515[]

There was little progress for the empire for the five years succeeding the death of the emperor, and the war remained stagnant. Ashram set out to gain ultimate rulership of Lodoss by acquiring the Scepter of Domination, one of the Governor’s Treasures. However, the quest for the magical treasure ended in failure, and Ashram disappeared. Meanwhile, in Kanon, the commoners of Marmo were flooding the land to make new lives for themselves. Temples of Phalaris were erected, and the dark elves cleared Kanon’s forests of common elves and taken up residence there. The Free Army of Kanon was forming underground to rebel against the oppression of the Marmo empire, and the empire was making ties with the current regent of Alania.

Year 525[]

The Marmo empire still occupied the kingdom of Kanon twenty five years after their initial invasion. Living conditions had only just started to improve under the governance of Ashram. However, this was against the will of the Marmo council (マーモ評議会, Māmo hyōgi-kai), who demanded for Ashram to return to Marmo and be stripped of his position due to his failure at Adan. Ashram defied the council's will and continued to govern Kanon. However, that same year, Kanon was finally released from its oppression by the combined forces of Valis, Flaim, and the Free Army of Kanon led by Reona. Not only that, but the united armies sailed to Marmo, where they joined up with the Dragon Knights of Moss. Together these united armies purged the evil forces of the dark island of Marmo. The result was that Marmo became a duchy of the kingdom of Flaim, and the capital was renamed Windis.

Locations[]

Persei (Dark Town)[]

The largest settlement on the island of Marmo. Persei (ペルセイ, Perusei) was once the capital of the kingdom of Brunei and is now the same for the Marmo Empire. In addition to the traditional name of Persei, the city is also known as “Dark Town” (ダークタウン, Dākutaun) and “City of Gloom” (翳りの街, Kageri no machi). In the basement, there is a cave where the corpse of Kardis sleeps. A temple dedicated to the Goddess of Destruction was also erected by the barbarian tribes. The island of Marmo was united for the first time as the kingdom of Brunei. Brunei constructed one of the largest royal castles on Lodoss, Castle Conquera.  It was designed as a stronghold with various hidden rooms, with some having yet to be rediscovered.

Persei would become an important location again when Beld became Emperor and renovated the imperial city. The former great citadel was renamed Dark Town due to the dark creatures that inhabited its streets. The city had fallen into ruin; however, after Beld’s renovation, Dark Town became a city worthy of the name of the imperial capital. The royal castle Conquera is located in the city centre, with six radial streets branching out from it. Many tribes of creatures make their home here. The north section is dedicated to the non-human species, such as goblins and kobolds, who enslave humans. The west and east districts of the city are where soldiers of the imperial army reside. Most of the residents are humans, but there are also a small number of dark sprites such as dark elves that live here. The southern part of the city is a suburban area that houses ordinary people.

Castle Conquera[]

Conquera (コンクァラー, konku~arā) is located in the centre of Dark Town, the robust castle is far from graceful, as it has an emphasis on practicality. The surrounding city of Dark Town also protects the castle. Because the city is built like a bastion, it won’t fall easily, even if a large army attacks. In the basement of the castle, there is a large cave where the black-winged evil dragon, Narse resides.

Salvador[]

Salvador (サルバド, sarubado), the only port city on Marmo, is relatively new compared to Persei. The city is also referred to as “Shadow City” (シャドーシティ, Shadōshiti) due to the thick fog from the port that blankets the city streets. Salvador is surrounded by solid walls and is located on the northern cliff. There is a huge lock in the harbour. Ships cannot even enter this harbour without approval from the empire. Stone-made ship defences have been driven in, and large ships have specific waterways in the area of the sea around the port which must be navigated to reach the floodgate. Salvador is located on the opposite bank of Rood, the port city of the kingdom of Kanon.

Forest of Darkness[]

The Forest of Darkness (闇の森, yami no mori) is a dense forest located in the centre of Marmo. It is home to many twisted trees and various demon beasts. The barbarian tribes and the dark elves also make their settlements deep within the forest.

River of Mourning[]

The River of Mourning (なげきの川), also known as the Sesto river (セスト川, Sesuto kawa), which runs through the outskirts of Persei (Dark Town), is also called by name “River of Mourning.” The river mixes with a swamp upstream, contaminating the water. By the time the Sesto river reaches the outskirts of Persei, it becomes muddy and emits a strange odour. Practically all the fish that live in these waters are inedible.

People[]

Individuals who are from or have sworn allegiance to Marmo include:

Gallery[]

References[]

  1. The Sneaker Special 1994 winter edition.
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