Deathmoon, a satellite orbiting the planet Fyodos, was known by a different designation before the Great Cleansing, a name now forgotten by the Fyodoi. When the Deathmoon appeared at its fullest in Fyodos' sky, it instilled fear in the Fyodoi because its appearance mirrored the gaunt visage of a dead body.
Before the cataclysmic Great Cleansing, a military installation resided on Deathmoon, housing a complement of up to twenty-four individuals, along with a stockpile numbering in the hundreds of atomic missiles. In the course of the war that brought devastation to Fyodos, the base received orders to unleash its missile arsenal, but the staff chose to defy these orders. The personnel subsequently deserted the station, either going back to Fyodos to face their demise or venturing out to find refuge on other planets.
The base maintained a connection to the Tharak installation situated on the continent of Tharak; energy signals were transmitted between the two locations every eight hours, functioning as a "doomsday clock" that spanned six months. Should this timer ever reach its end, the atomic missiles positioned on Deathmoon would be launched automatically. Unknowingly, the shaman of the Roh tribe restarts this countdown every half-year by undertaking a journey to the Tharak installation, where they execute a sequence of actions involving pressing buttons and manipulating levers.