The two halves of craftworld Aral'Alanath were not whole as they now are, for its creation marks a terrible tragedy among the worldship-faring eldar.

When the first of the Craftworlds were leaving prior to the fall, Maralanath was one of the largest of these continent-sized spaceships to make its way into perpetual exile. "Mighty Starblazer" by name, or the "Chariot of Vaul", it was the largest of the first craftworlds to leave, and they too we're subject to the cataclysmic events of the fall which took from them nearly their entire seer council. Led now by a militant group of 7 Autarchs, they became reclusive almost to the point of xenophobia, and secluded themselves deep within the confines of space. Lost among the stars, Craftworld Maralanath became synonymous with finding paradise, and to claim you had was considered either a bad joke or a sign of mental illness.

They endured, untouched by the passage of time. As their paranoia grew, so did their enemies, and with few seers among them to oppose the 7 Autarchs violence quickly became the answer to intruders. Compared with other craftworlds they suffered no shortage of manpower, and as the influence of the Autarchs swelled so did the ranks of the aspect shrines. Vicious to the point of ferocity they did their job well, creating what the imperium knew as "the Typhon Expanse", a select few systems which became impossible to enter or exit for unknown reasons.

This caught the eye of Ahriman, who learned of the isolated craftworld and saw an opportunity to gain further knowledge about the Black Library, as the only eldar faction they currently shared relations with were the Harlequins. Ahriman began summoning his army which numbered uncounted devotees of Slaanesh, eager to help in an assault on the Eldar and take from them a lifetime of souls in the form of the infinity circuit. It was demanded that only the Keepers of Secrets be allowed to devour the circuit, and Ahriman agreed.

The assault caught Maralanath off-guard, for Ahriman had scryed the future and summoned his army almost upon the Craftworld itself. Within 7 days of terrible fighting, Ahriman and his demonic army had taken most of the craftworld. Throughout the constant fighting the 7 Autarchs were unable to determine the young king from among their warriors and awaken the Avatar, when a young seer named Kael stepped beyond his post and entered the hall where the smoldering avatar sat. Kael had opposed the Autarchs in the past and had often voiced his concerns with their ways, but they had paid him no heed and thought him nothing but a fledgling seer. He spoke few words, and the brass doors slammed shut.

Once the avatar had emerged it was nearly too late, for the demonic incursion had made its way to the highest levels of the craftworld. With the presence of Khaine at their side, the 7 Autarchs made their way to confront the monsters who were making their way to the craftworlds most precious weapon against Slaanesh: the infinity circuit. They ordered all the Spiritseers to obtain as many spirit stones as they could and then retreat, for the spirit stones and souls that lay within were too valuable a resource to lose to their greatest enemy.

7 warriors of the eldar race fought valiantly and without thought of self or glory that day, but without the aid of their Avatar there could be no hope. The Avatar had another plan; as the Autarchs dueled the Keepers of Secrets the mighty aspect of Khaine dripped the blood from his hands into the infinity circuit itself. Once completed the avatar fell to ash and iron, enraging those 7 who embodied the eldar way of war that their god lay smoldering at their feet. What ensued was a titanic conflict, but in the end the servants of Slaanesh would triumph over the sons and daughters of Khaine.

Anxious to drink many eldar souls, the remaining Keepers all at once poured themselves into the infinity circuit. Expecting the delight of uncounted eldar, what they found was terrible gut-wrenching flame and agony. They had tasted the blood of Kaela Mensha Khaine himself, and Khaine was not Slaanesh's to consume but that of Khorne. Burned by the trap but found out too late, the entirety of the demonic force at Ahriman's command dispersed leaving him only a handful of Rubric marines. With no demonic assistance, Ahriman had no choice but to retreat and abandon the craftworld.

Although they won, no celebration took place for this battle had broken their craftworld. The assault had torn great pieces from the worldship, and only a single large central piece roughly a quarter its former size was still habitable. From several million to a handful of thousand, the Eldar of Maralanath believed they would all perish that day despite that the battle was theirs.

However, they were not to burn out for there had been a survivor of the duel with the Keepers of Slaanesh. Rhaina, most practiced and patient of the 7 Autarchs, had survived the demonic foray and lay unconscious. When she awoke, she spoke of a vision that their deliverance would come from the sky in three days, and that they would be saved. With nothing else except the word of a now-mistrusted commander, they threatened to fall to infighting and scorned her for her lack of foresight prior to the attack. It was not until Rhaina herself reminded them that their paranoia is what got them into this, and that if nothing came in three days’ time she would pass into exile for her misguided leadership.

For three days they waited, and just as predicted on the dawn of the third day something incredible happened. A much smaller craftworld, Aralioth, had come into their system seeing that the Orks of nearby planets had finally gained a foothold in the system some days ago after years of unexplained failures. What they saw made them weep, for they had found the now-broken paradise of Maralanath. When they met with the despondent Eldar, they were confused by the reluctance to accept help and interact with their own kind, until Rhaina met with the Seers of Silence: their highest order.

Rhaina told them their tale, and asked that they take them with them. Not on board, but rather by placing the single, large piece that remained of Maralanath into perpetual orbit with Aralioth. It was now significantly smaller, and the two could remain there indefinitely without any harm to either side. The seers agreed on one condition: that Rhaina would walk the path of the seer herself to better help her people in the fight against Slaanesh. Having learned all there is to know as a warrior, they felt only knowledge of the future would better help her walk the path of command.

It was so. The militant eldar of Maralanath were to live with their much more open-minded brethren. They found them stuffy and meek, even by eldar standards, and found that many of them favored the path of the artisan or the seer over the path of the warrior. These initial complaints would be seen as short-sighted; the added artisans quickly took to making transports for use between the two satellites and the added presence of the Seers of Silence would provide the foresight to avoid another such encounter with their fated foe.

Secure in their new home, those spirit stones that were saved by the spiritseers before the Avatar cursed the infinity circuit were safely restored in their neighbouring craftworld’s circuit. They were welcomed but as they found no loved ones here they tended to return as wraith-constructs, taking one more chance at life to glimpse their descendants who still survive. Those trapped within the damaged circuit of Maralanath suffer a far worse fate, for although they still exist within their infinity circuit they may never return to their spirit stones. Further attempts to release them by spiritseers have all met with abject failure, the worst case causing the seer in question to have delusions of fire and rambling that he spoke with Khaine himself.

The energies of Khaine still malign the circuit, and until they can awaken their Avatar they may never be able to reverse it. The statue of this Avatar is unusually cold and damp, as if the Psychic emanations of the eldar themselves are beading on its iron skin. It rarely warms as the eldar prepare for war and while the Avatar of Aralioth has been awakened many times since their union, the Avatar of Maralanath has never once called out to another prince. Some say that it has given up its will to fight, refusing to after sealing the fate of so many of its people. Others whisper that it has been corrupted by Slaanesh, while a few claim that Kael, the last prince to awaken him, is still inside fighting against Khaine for the right to awaken one last time and undo the act he was forced to commit to save his people.

Whatever the fate of their avatar, the eldar of the newly formed Aral’Alanath still ply the stars, both halves still orbiting each other in perfect balance. When they take to war the vast fleet of Wave Serpents used to transport between the two halves is requisitioned for military use, giving them an incredible ability to rapidly insert aspect warriors or get damaged wraithguard out of hotspots with impunitive ease. They have few jetbikes, as they are usually unneeded in military operation due to the large number of tanks and something piloted only by the reckless or foolish in daily life. The influence of Maralanath’s militant ways can still be felt, and many of the old aspect shrines hum with activity on a daily basis. Although the two factions of the former craftworlds still have their marked differences, they realize their mutual need for each other and there is little in-fighting or pressure towards certain ways of life. As such, they have few rangers and virtually no one has remained a permanent exile.

The emblem of the craftworld is an anvil of gold above which is a fist clutching a mighty sword, all set on a field of purple. This represents Vaul and his final fight with Khaine, for although he was forced to bare his punishment eternally he did so knowing what he did was right. The eldar of Aral'Alanath see this as the ultimate sacrifice, to sacrifice personal freedom in order to save those you love. The colours bear double meaning as well, as the formerly golden resplendence of Maralanath is tempered by the deep purple of Aralioth.

The future of the craftworld remains shrouded, but not burnt out so long as warriors like Kael arise to defend it. The eldar of Aral'Alanath will continue to pilot the darkness of space, searching both for a place of safety from Slaanesh and the answers they need to free friends and family alike from their twilight prison inside the cursed infinity circuit. Rhaina in particular has taken to her new path as a seer well, and while the council molds her she continues to mold the new craftworld in her image of temperance and patience.