Warehouse 3

Warehouse 3
Templum Miraculorum Infinitorum
Location	Italy
Host Nation Government	Western Roman Empire
City or Town	Rome
Years Active	30 BCE to 434 CE
Status	Deactivated
Caretaker(s)	Aulus Laelius Florus Flavia Prisca Lucius Tatius Rufus Felix
Reason for Relocation	Division and Eventual Wane of Power
Previous Warehouse	Warehouse 2
Subsequent Warehouse	Warehouse 4
[Source]

Warehouse 3 was the 3rd incarnation of the Warehouse which was housed by the Western Roman Empire in Rome, Italy.

PROCESSING

Location & Building

This Warehouse was located beneath the Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus, which served as the entrance and hiding place for the collection below the Roman streets. Regents would enter through an alcove at the back of the temple, disguised as worshipers to the god Jupiter.

The original entrance was constructed behind a large statue of Jupiter. Designed only to be seen by the holder of a special lantern, the words "THESAURUS INFINITUS" would appear when the lantern's light shined against a seemingly blank marble arch that overlapped the back of the statue. Saying the phrase triggered a mechanism that shifted the statue to the side, revealing a marble stairway that led down to the main storage area of Warehouse 3. Only one Warehouse Lantern was ever constructed. It was passed down through the caretaker of the time and used for the induction of new Regents, demonstrating the magic that resided inside as well as informing them of the entrance.

The original building of Warehouse 3 was designed much like a cistern or barrel.

After the fire in 69 CE, a secondary access point was built west of the temple. Constructed in a nearby bathhouse, which was also owned and passed on to successive regents, an ordinary keyed door led to an underground tunnel directly into the Warehouse 3 sanctum.

Another security measure was set up in Warehouse 3 as the Regents feared for the safety of the artifacts by Roman threats and to ensure the barbarians to the East would not get a hold of the treasures hidden below. A statue of the Roman goddess of security, Securitas, was set up near the entrance to the Warehouse. She would scan all those who entered the temple, creating a fortified barrier to any who crossed her gaze with malicious intent. She also emitted a sense of assurance to the artifacts housed below, limiting the active nature of many, a precursor to the purple goo used by modern Warehouses.

List of main contributors to the building of Warehouse 3:

PROCESSING

• Rabirius

History

The true flourishing of the Warehouse, the many rulers of the Roman Empire contributed tens of thousands of artifacts to the facility in the belief that it kept the empire safe and powerful. There may have been something to that, as they were in power for over 500 years. The sword that belonged to Marcus Aurelius that was ultimately used against him; the crucifix that belonged to Constantine the great - longest undisputed ruler of the entire Roman empire; the lyre that Nero played while Rome burned. Warehouse 3 resided in the Western Roman Empire until the rise of the Hunnic empire threatened Rome and Constantinople, and Attila the Hun appeared on the horizon.

Sections

(Some sections were translated from their Latin text for better viewing and understanding)

• Religious (artifacts pertaining to the Gods and Goddesses)
• The Servian Stronghold: (Servian est multitudo) This section of the Warehouse was the source of the barrier that kept the Warehouse safe from harm. It was built after the fire in 69 CE and was designed to house some of the most important artifacts to the empire, such as Saint Peter's Sword, Caracalla's Bathing Amphora, Theodosius I's Second Obelisk and many more. It was protected by three stones taken from the Servian Wall (Hence the section's name) that was imbued with the ability to project a protective barrier around the artifacts and the Warehouse, if under attack.
• Chamber of Death: (Cubiculum Mortis) Records show that this section held artifacts that had resurrection properties or artifacts that prolonged death. The Regents of that Era of Warehouse history hastily agreed that no person should ever cheat the three fates, including emperors, the wealthy or war heroes. The section was also the only section hidden away from the main storage area, as it was necessary to keep it away from tempting emperors. At the entrance of the section, the Marble Inscription from Mauslous' Tomb was kept above the entrance as anyone who passed the inscription instantly died. The only way to bypass the artifact was another, the Torch of Thanatos, where it would protect the user from death.
• The Daqin Pagoda: After Regents funded the part of the creation of the Silk Road for faster collection of artifacts, the Roman Empire was able to collect artifacts throughout Asia and lands other than Rome and it's surrounding conquered land. This section held those artifacts collected from travels through the Silk Road, the entrance kept inside a enormous pagoda.

Notable Artifacts

A list of the most noteworthy and important artifacts collected during this Warehouses' era.

• Marcus Aurelius's Sword
• Constantine the Great's Crucifix
• Nero's Lyre

Notable Regents

• Fadia Falco
• Paul Servanti
• Julius Ortese
• Titus Victricius Dama
• Anne ÆÐELÞRYÐ
• Jibade
• Octavianus Lafrenius Taurinus
• Munia Augustana
• Caelus Babudius
• Silia Aponia
• Atronia Catonia

Enemies/Adversaries

• Lucius Caecilius Iucundus

Affiliates

• Vespasian
• Domitian
• Maes Titanus

Events

509 B.C.E.

• Unknown Date: Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus was constructed.

83 B.C.E.

• Unknown Date: The temple burns down for the first time under the civil wars of Sulla.

March 32 B.C.E.

• 3rd: The Regents suspect the Warehouse must eventually be moved, in accordance to the increased Roman influence over the Ptolemaic dynasty in the past century. They confirm the new location of Warehouse 3 is to be in Rome, Italy. Three Regents are sent to the city to determine where they should build the secret complex.
• 28th: Construction begins on the underground complex, which will house the vast collection of artifacts. Regents dig from beneath the Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus, expanding outward underground.

August 30 B.C.E.

• 1st-12th: Antony and Cleopatra commit suicide. Records from Warehouse 2 no longer exist past this point.

October 30 B.C.E.

• 18th: The three Regents based in Rome receive the only surviving Regent of the presumed destruction of Warehouse 2, and only a small collection of the artifacts. She is unable to explain what happened before she dies of a possibly artifact-related sickness.
• 19th: Warehouse 3 officially opens.
• 20th: One of the son's of an apprentice architect of Warehouse 3, Aulus Laelius Florus, claims to feel a connection to the Warehouse which he cannot explain. Despite his young age, he is educated and named the Caretaker of Warehouse 3.

February 12 C.E.

• 14th: Warehouse 3 receives reports from the land of Israel that a village had been destroyed by a massive explosion. Believing it to be the meteorite that destroyed many villages during the time of Warehouse 2, Regents Besa and Fadia Falco begin the journey to Israel.

March 12 C.E.

• 1st: Regents Besa and Fadia Falco arrive at the ruins of the destroyed village. They find a woman weeping over the loss of her son, a blacksmith who forged weapons for the Romans.
• 4th: Receiving reports of another village being destroyed, the two Regents head over to the location.
• 9th: The pair find that several merchants had scoured the area of the destroyed village to salvage what they could. They begin the process of tracking down the merchants.
• 12th: The last surviving Regent of Warehouse 2, Besa, dies of natural causes. Fadia decides to return to Rome with the body, after having talked with several merchants over the last three days and confirming that none had taken the meteorite.

February 62 C.E.

• 5th: During a fertility ritual, the Pumice Stone is placed on the peak of Mount Vesuvius, accidentally bringing dormant magma up to the chamber. Because the stone was set atop a blanket before being buried under a foot of rich soil,the artifact's ability to draw magma is reduced. Still, a powerful earthquake shakes the region as the geothermal shift occurs. The Bay of Naples faces much destruction. Warehouse Regents apprehend the individual, but unaware that the artifact was buried, the stone is not recovered at this time.
• 7th: Caecilius Iucundus investigates the site of the recent Warehouse 3 victory and discovers the Pumice Stone's location. He removes it and takes the artifact with him.

June 64 C.E.

• Unknown Date: Another large earthquake strikes Naples as the magma beneath Mount Vesuvius continues to shift, despite the removal of the Pumice Stone.

July 64 C.E.

• 18th: A fire starts around the urban area of Rome, very close to Warehouse 3's location. Even though the Warehouse was not responsible, The Regents at the time thought it was a blatant message just for the Warehouse, as the fire did not touch the temple at all, concluding that someone was using an artifact.

December 69 C.E.

• 19th: The temple burns down when Vespasian's army attacked Rome in search of Warehouse 3. Hundreds of artifacts are lost and the Caretaker Aulus Laelius Florus burns with the Warehouse, when he is unable to stop the blaze. Ultimately, the fire is put out with an artifact imbued with the flooding of the Nile River.
• 20th: A Regent who had shown a positive connection with the Warehouse, Flavia Prisca, is given the status as the next Caretaker.

February 70 C.E.

• Unknown Date: Repairs on Warehouse 3 begin internally, but the outer temple remains in shambles for several years while new plans are drawn up.

June 73 C.E.

• 4th: Emperor Vespasian uses the cover of constructing the Colosseum to rebuild the Warehouse with greater defenses.

August 75 C.E.

• 10th: Warehouse 3.2 is completed and a dedication ceremony is held.

August 79 C.E.

• 20th: An enemy of the Warehouse, Caecilius Iucundus, ransoms the city of Pompeii, including the family of current Caretaker Flavia Prisca. He demands the rights to be caretaker or threatens to awake the god Vulcan with an undocumented artifact.

• 21st: Flavia refuses to give in to the demand. She orders several Regents and a legion of Roman soldiers to storm the mountain and take the man into custody. The presence of the artifact causes molten rock to build up in the already-present magma chamber beneath Vesuvius. The mild volcano is now primed to detonate.
• 24th: Regents arrive at Vesuvius, capture Caecilius Iucundus and deactivate the artifact, but not before the volcano erupts naturally. The towns of Pompeii and Herculaneum are destroyed, along with many of the Regents and hundreds of soldiers still on the mountain.

October 80 C.E.

• 14th: A fire envelops the city of Rome, burning half the temple and causing the primary entryway to collapse. This was not believed to be caused by an artifact.

September 81 C.E.

• 15th: Emperor Domitian orders the temple to be rebuilt, making it far more lavish than it ever was before.
• 17th: The architect Rabirius is hired by Domitian to restore and improve on both the above ground temple and the underground Warehouse.
• Unknown Date: As part of the improved structure, several Old Kingdom capstones (including that of the Great Pyramid of Khufu) were taken from within the Warehouse and applied to the exterior. Because they were imbued with the ability to absorb solar radiation and instill a barrier around their pyramid, the gold surface of these capstones was removed and melted down. In total, the Emperor used twelve thousand talents of gold to gild the roof. This allowed the temple structure to absorb the sun’s rays and power the underground complex of Warehouse 3.3.

March 84 CE

• 12th: Caretaker Flavia Prisca finds Alexander the Great's notes of an ancient tree called the Tree of Idun, which can give immortality. The notes suggest that the tree could have some benefit to the Warehouse, but that it couldn't be moved because of a lack of the necessary "tool".
• 14th: Flavia, while searching through Alexander's notes, find a few clues as to the location of the Tree of Idun. Believing that she might be able to find the tree, she requests that the Regents let her go out to find it.
• 17th: The Regents deny Flavia's request to leave the Warehouse, citing her age, the dangers she would face, and the lack of an artifact to bring the tree back with as their primary reasons.
• 24th: Flavia, along with an assistant to the Warehouse named Chrom Bushnelli, leave on her quest to find and bring back the Tree of Idun. She leaves without notifying the Regents, but entrusts the other assistants of the Warehouse to take great care of the building.

June 84 C.E.

• 7th: Flavia explores the ruins of the Library of Alexandria looking for some clue that might have been left as to the location of the Tree of Idun.
• 10th: Flavia finds the next clue in a secret room beneath the ruins, as well as five artifacts which had been stored there.
• 11th: After arranging for the artifacts to be sent to Warehouse 3, Flavia and Chrom continue on their journey.

December 84 C.E.

• 15th: Warehouse Regents finally realize that Flavia has left the Warehouse on her quest despite their objections. Two Regents begin to follow the same clues to track her down and bring her back safely.

April 85 C.E.

• 2nd: Flavia and Chrom arrive in Pasargadae, the area Alexander had been around the year he discovered the tree. The pair talk to locals, who know nothing about the rumors of a tree granting immortality.
• 9th: After seeing a historian of Alexander's conquests, the pair believe the Tree may lie farther east.

November 85 C.E.

• 5th: Flavia and Chrom arrive in a city called Pattala, where they ask around and hear about rumors that there was a tree that granted immortality to those who ate the apples from it.
• 7th: Before learning the approximate direction of where the tree was, Flavia and Chrom hear rumors about an artifact in India that could teleport objects across vast distances. Knowing where to return to, the pair head off to India.

June 86 C.E.

• 3rd: Flavia and Chrom finally collect the teleportation artifact from Polonaruwa after an extensive chase throughout India.
• 8th: Regents Julius Ortese and Paul Servanti arrive in Pattala, where they discover that Flavia had passed through several months before.

July 86 C.E.

• 2nd: On their way back towards Pattala, Flavia and Chrom come across a woman who was looking for someone to help their village in the Himalayas, which was suffering from daily avalanches. The pair decide to go and help the village.

October 86 C.E.

• 1st: Upon reaching the village, Flavia and Chrom find that an avalanche had just occurred. They begin their investigations to try and determine if an artifact was the cause.

November 86 C.E.

• 27th: The pair finally determine that an artifact is the cause and discover it in the mountains. Gathering the artifact, they begin the journey back towards Pattala.

July 87 C.E.

• 17th: Flavia and Chrom arrive in Pattala and begin their search for the Tree of Idun.

June 88 C.E.

• 10th: Caretaker Flavia Prisca finally finds the Tree of Idun, and using the teleportation artifact they gathered from India, transports it to Warehouse 3.
• 22nd: Flavia and Chrom meet up with the Regents Julius and Paul, and they begin their journey back to Warehouse 3.

March 89 C.E.

• 4th: Flavia and Chrom arrive in Rome, and go before the Regents for disobeying their orders, who question whether to get a new Caretaker.
• 12th: After several days of heated discussion, the Regents decide to keep Flavia as the Caretaker for her work at gathering several artifacts on her journey. They also decide to allow Chrom to stay on, in case she decided to take any more "journeys" as her bodyguard.

December 168 C.E.

• 2nd: Reports arrive from southern Britain that indicate the Explosive Meteor Fragment has once again appeared. Caretaker Flavia Prisca and Regent Titus Victricius Dama travel to Britain together to find and collect it.

January 169 C.E.

• 12: While exploring a nearby village in search of the meteorite, Caretaker Flavia Prisca is killed when the artifact activates. Regent Dama is searching a different village and hears the explosion. Back in Rome, several assistants in the Warehouse report several artifact disturbances at the same time as the explosion in Britain.
• 13th: Titus, while exploring the small crater left by the artifact, swears he sees Flavia alive and well. Flavia informs him that she was killed attempting to prevent the local blacksmith from heating the artifact and failed. She asks him to return to Rome, that the Warehouse needed a new Caretaker and would suffer greatly without one for an extended period of time.
• 15th: Regents in Rome attempt to get to the bottom of the artifact disturbances within the Warehouse. Regent Anne ÆÐELÞRYÐ discovers a secret room which hadn't been seen before in the Warehouse's western wing about 200 meters from the main viewing area. There, symbols were floating around in irregular patterns.
• 29th: Regent Titus returns to Rome and is informed of the Warehouse's status. He tells the Regents that the Warehouse needs a Caretaker, and that it will not be the same until one is found.

February 169 C.E.

• 5th: One of the newest assistants, Lucius Tatius Rufus Felix, reports that he keeps finding apples everywhere he goes and that he feels as if the Warehouse is "trying to communicate" with him. Head Regent Jibade takes him to the room they discovered that the patterns began to move in more regular patterns in Lucius' presence.
• 8th: In a special ceremony at the Tree of Idun, Lucius was named the new Caretaker of Warehouse 3. At the same time, the Regents named the special room they found "Eldunari", and sealed it with an artifact to prevent anyone except for the Caretaker and Regents from accessing it.

January 194 C.E.

• 12th: Emperor Gaius Pescennius Niger Augustus alerts the Warehouse that he is planning to send troops out to the vast sea to the west for exploration and asks if they want any involvement.
• 19th: After much deliberation, the Regents determine that it would be worth sending two Agents out to sea with the fleet in an attempt to learn if artifacts might exist on the other side. Agents Galerius Sepurcius Leon and Floria Sepurcius are selected for the mission.
• 31st: The fleet sets sail from Ostia. It is never heard from again and presumed lost.
  • Together with Hunahpu and Xbalanque, Galerius and Floria set up the Mayan Warehouse Branch, though contact with the Warehouse proper is never established.

244 C.E.

• Unknown Date: Gordian III's Prefect of the Praetorian Guard Philip the Arab secretly assassinates Gordian III with a unknown artifact. This artifact may have been used by Phillip well before using it on Gordian as the Praetorian prefect Timesitheus died under unclear circumstances as well before hand, allowing Phillip to become the prefect.

392 C.E.

• Unknown Date: Emperor Theodosius closes all pagan temples in the empire, endangering the Warehouse and the Regents’ use of the primary entrance.

410-411 C.E.

• Unknown Date: Regents agree that the reign of the Roman Empire is coming to a close. They discuss plans for which nation should next take up the mantle.

March 414 C.E.

• 10th: Caretaker Felix suggests the neighboring Huns as a reasonable host.
• 11th-19th: The Regents enter a heated debate about whether the Roman Empire's primary enemy should house Warehouse 4.
• 28th: The Hunnic Empire is chosen as the next location for the Warehouse.

422 C.E.

• Unknown Date: The death of High King Charaton puts plans to move the Warehouse on hold.

June 423 C.E.

• 17th: Warehouse 3 Regents and High King Octar meet to discuss the location of Warehouse 4. They write up the Charter of Four, where Octar agrees to do all in his power to assist construction and protect the Warehouse upon its completion.

February 432 C.E.

• 22nd: Caretaker Felix informs the Regents that he will not be able to transfer to Warehouse 4 as the Caretaker. The Caretaker is unable to move with the Warehouse, and a new Caretaker from the new host country with a strong connection to the Warehouse will have to be found before the Warehouse can move.

August 433 C.E.

• 12th: Hephaestus' Anvil is brought into the Warehouse. Caretaker Felix gains the sense that the artifact could become vital to strengthening the bond between the Caretaker and the Warehouse even further. However, because the Warehouse was almost ready to move, he decided not to use it.

September 433 C.E.

• 13th: Handoko Yandi Halim in the Hunnic Empire is found to have a strong connection to the Warehouse. The Regents decide to name him the new Caretaker for Warehouse 4 when the time officially comes.
• 14th: Handoko is introduced to the Tree of Idun by Caretaker Felix, where it offers him an apple. Handoko is asked by Felix to use Hephaestus' Anvil when Warehouse 4 officially opens within the Eldunari, and that the Warehouse will tell him what to do when the time comes.

January 434 C.E.

• 3rd: Artifacts from Warehouse 3 are moved as Hiram Abiff's Setting Maul strikes the Mason Compass.
• 4th: Power is transferred to Warehouse 4 and Warehouse 3 officially comes to a close.

Technology

With the move to Rome realized and finished, the Warehouse started to flourish along with its country's empire due to the expanding and conquering of new land. The long arms that Rome had seemed to help the Warehouse collect even more artifacts then ever before, more then twice the inventory of the previous lost Warehouse 2.

During this time in Warehouse history, the Regents had collected tens of thousands of artifacts, many which they used to improve the Warehouse. Many great thinkers of the time contributed to the Warehouse, helping to understand the nature of artifacts, most of Regents themselves thought that the artifacts were in fact gifts/curses made by the Gods for the usage of helping or destroying man. With this mindset, the Regents implemented the usage of artifacts to create technological wonders of the ancient world and better themselves on discovering the true dangers of these objects. (Which was of course experimented in WH2, but only limited themselves to minor artifacts, Warehouse 3 was the only Warehouse to truly use powerful artifacts to better the Warehouse, until the era of Warehouse 5).

Warehouse 3 was the first Warehouse to implement the use of a ID card system in the form of a special gold and bronze fibula in the shape of the Eye of Horus that the Statue of Securitas (a statue of the roman goddess of security and stability, which was made of solid obsidian resting on a marble column) read off to avoid the intrusion of outside forces. This Statue was the main source of protection for the entire Warehouse and was the reason why Warehouse 3 was kept secret for over 500 years, armed with unmanned Scorpios and Ballistas. Unfortunately, this Statue did too much of a good job as renovation was nearly impossible due to the Statue's downside, it became overly devoted to protecting the Warehouse. 

Near the closure of the Warehouse, an attempt was made to carve out new rooms for newly acquired artifacts. After the Statue killed over a dozen of workers, the Statue was temporarily shut down by a bolt of lighting from an artifact and after that, the move for Warehouse 3 was put into motion, but only one room was never excavated as it caved in from the Statue incident. An attempt was made to get into the room, but from fear of the Statue reactivating, it was abandoned and Warehouse 3 was filled in, artifacts including Gaius Mucius Scaevola's Right Hand, Horatius Cocles' Sword, Sabine Girdle and Marcus Tullius Cicero's Robe Fibula

Reasoning For Shift

Division of Empire and Eventual Wane of Power

At the death of Theodosius I in 395, the entirety of the Roman Empire was split in two. His first son, Arcadius, ruled the Eastern Empire from Constantinople. The Western Empire was given to Theodosius' second son Honorius, who made his capital in Milan. The division continued for the remainder of the empire, typically with figurehead puppets ruled by generals or other greedy military men.

This general decline in Italy, as well as the sacking of Rome in 410 by the Visigoths, convinced the Regents that a move was necessary. Plans on the construction of Warehouse 4 began in 411, with much debate as to the next ruling nation. After three years of turbulent politics, the Regents agreed to relocate under the might of the Roman Empire's enemy, the High King Charaton of the Huns.

Construction began in 419, but was halted in 422 with the death of Charaton and the change to the High King Octar. The following year saw the Charter of Four written up between Octar and the Regents, defining the location of Warehouse 4 in Aquincum. The construction process lasted 10 years, and by the winter of 433 the Warehouse was completed, awaiting the move of the artifacts the following year.