Here is the true story of the races
and their beginnings. Far, far back
before time began, there existed Nothing.
True Nothingness in which nothing grew, nothing died, nothing
changed. After a second and after an
eternity, The Oldest sprung into being. Alongside
the Oldest, was Magic, the energy of the universe, exploding outward to fill
the void. Another second and another
eternity, Eight Others began to take shape.
They formed from concepts, ideas, meanings. The Oldest reached out to them, calling them
all Brothers and Sisters. He opened his
arms to them and bade them to make a home with him. However, each took the concept that they had
sprung from and shaped a part of the universe after it. Each crafted their homes and for a second,
for an eternity, they were happy to live within their own homes.
Eventually, they turned their eyes outward and looked upon the
others. This caused them to grow wroth
with their brothers and sisters because of their disparity. And so The Eight
began the First War of the Heavens. The
war would last for a second and an eternity.
The Oldest merely watched in sadness as his siblings fought to destroy
each other. They fought until the
universe was ripped asunder, each of the Eight severing themselves from the
“corruption” of the others. After the
sundering, the Oldest grew tired of their bickering and gathered the area in
between, which none of the Eight had claimed, and began to shape it. The Eight had found themselves equally
matched. So they created immortal
servants to fight the war for them and prove their might. Each of the servants represented a smaller
portion of their Creator. Instead of
creating facets of himself, the Oldest opened his skin and used a small piece
of his bones to create the bones of this world.
The Eight clashed again using their servants. This was the Second War of the Heavens. The
war would last for a second and an eternity.
The Oldest watched, weeping tears
for his brothers and sisters. These
tears fell and became the waters of this world. Again, the Eight could not
prove who was the greatest. The Eight
retreated to their homes and watched each other carefully, never straying too far
lest they be fallen upon by their kin and destroyed.
With the ending of the Second War,
the Oldest heaved a sigh of relief. That
sigh became the breath of this world.
The Oldest looked upon his creation and decided that he was
uninterested. So The Oldest came up with an idea, He took the bones of the
world and made a creature of flesh, he took the water of the world and made the
blood that ran through its veins, and finally he took his sigh and gave his
creatures breath. Through these efforts,
The Oldest created the beasts of the world.
He watched for a second and for an eternity but was still unhappy. He found the beasts wanting. They were slaves to their desires, unable to
grow and change. In his displeasure, he cast about looking for a solution. The casting caused the mountains to form, the
seas to move and the air to stir.
And so he sought, for a second and
for an eternity, until he came upon a solution.
He took the Magic that came into being with him and used it to create
the First Soul. It pulsed with power,
will and desire, but it was truly beautiful because of something else. The new creation was given a name, Free
Will. Free Will gave those with souls to
choose, no longer low beasts or servants.
They could sacrifice, take, grow and change. They could become great.
The Oldest crafted a new beast to
hold souls, a creature called man. When
he created them, he gave them the tools they needed to use free will, great
intellects, low cunning, strong bodies and stronger emotions. He looked upon his creations and smiled, he
was happy. The Oldest spread mankind
throughout the world and let them live, not interfering in their lives because
he could not bring it upon himself to corrupt Free Will. The Oldest watched them for millennia, a simple
blink of the eye for him. He watched the
men gather, He watched them create fire, the wheel, language. With language, came names, words and
meanings. He heard their words and the
name of the world from their lips, Terna.
Finally, with words and names came mortal magic. It would respond to their wills and emotions,
magnified one hundred, one thousand fold through these things. He watched in
fascination as the small, limited humans created works far beyond what he
expected them capable of with even rudimentary magic. This pleased him greatly.
While watching, he noticed a
curious thing. The use of magic caused a
group of creatures to spawn as if from nothing.
These creatures became known as Dragons.
They were the first and only of Magic Spawn to be granted souls by the
Oldest, so captivated and curious by the revelation. These were different as
they were influenced by the circumstances of Dragon’s birth. The souls of dragons were limited, not
possessing true freedom. The dragons
were bound to their natures, but that story is for another time.
The Eight had taken notice, they
grew obsessed with this new realm and these new creatures. The recognized the power that these souls had
and their sway over magic, so each of the Eight tried in turn to claim it. They
only succeeded in being rebuffed by the Oldest as he angrily defended this
place called Terna and forbade his lesser siblings from touching it. So they each hatched a scheme to gain
influence and conquer this realm of souls.
They would make creatures with souls as well, and place them upon the
world. So they began their efforts, each
succeeding only after many attempts.
Aldanel, with his love of order and
goodness, created the Dwarves. He gave
them succor beneath the ground, a land unclaimed by the others. He taught them the secrets of fire and metal,
making them careful and thoughtful.
Andrael, with her innate desire for
the creatures to be better, created the Gnomes.
She placed them near the dwarves, giving them sharp minds and small
bodies. She taught them of rational
thought and the joy of discovery.
Alfael, with her desire for good no
matter the cost, created the Elves. She
taught them the secrets of magic and graced them with long lives. The elves were spread across Terna, placed to
influence the humans and grow to be a shining beacon.
Raha, believed strongly in law and
rules, created the Stone Giants. She
gave them large forms and homes on the unassailable peaks. Slow to act, but mighty when moved the Stone
Giants became enforcers and builders.
Rasho, interested in change and
balance, created the Squama. They needed
warmth and light, so he placed them into the deserts and jungles of the world
where they might bask in the glory of the sun.
Dahaela, reveling in civilization
and selfish desires, created Bilvs. Malicious
and violent hunters, they sought to master all before them and bring order to
the world. She bestowed strength and
cunning on them, gifted with the desire to rule.
Dava, fed on death and misery,
creating the Orcs. From him they learned
to covet the beauty of the world and if they could not own it, to destroy it.
Datthama, merely wishing for
destruction and misery, created the goblins.
He gave them a love of fire, fear of knowledge and a hatred of the beasts
of the world. They are cursed with
short, violent lives and seek no other way.
No comments:
Post a Comment