Ira’s creations wandered her new lands frenzied and flourishing. Chomping away at creation and leaving behind room for new life to flourish. The beauty of it was overwhelming. So beautiful that countless miles of shrubland burned brightly due to the fire of her passion. Her passion quickly turned to boredom. Wondering if this was truly the perfection she sought. If this was the majesty of life.

These feelings churned within her. Festering under her skin until the lands around her began to boil and bleed. Large cancerous mountains sprung forth from the ground, spewing hot blood. The ground turned black from ash. Her very nature was that of birth and rebirth, but these were stagnant lands. A mistake. A careless expression of emotional passion. Of fiery love. In her wake was the Bleeding Lands. A vast wasteland of volcanic hellscapes. Only the sturdiest of life could withstand the heat. Most that tread within it would find only a constant bombardment of ash and heat.

Ira looked upon her mistake. Disappointed. Bored. This was not her nature. These lands grew stagnant with death and what life remained was to sturdy for the flames to choke and burn. So she left. Choosing to leave behind her failure instead of destroying it.

HUM invisibly watched over all the Races of the World as time passed, noticing the Gnomes and Humans in particular take part of a plant and then bury it beneath the soil. Rains came, and then young plants grew from the soil, eventually growing tall before being harvested for their fruits. "Interesting, interesting. But I, too, have an idea..."

In a flash, HUM's essence coalesced above a group of Arachnids. They were hunting a beast of the forest, a powerful deer with impressive antlers. He descended into the midst of the group, which were shocked at the God's appearance, but kept this to themselves in order to not disturb the deer.

"Greetings, my creations," spoke the God into their minds as he summoned a copy of the deer's favorite fruit in his hand, "Why hunt the creature, when you could capture and breed it?" HUM thrust his hand forward and called to the deer mentally, causing it to walk carelessly to HUM and begin eating the fruit in his hand, "This deer shall be the first of many. Teach them there is safety among you, let them grow and multiply, then kill them as needed, but always ensure you have breeding pairs to make more." With that, HUM disappeared, the fruit now held by an Arachnid.

Some time later, HUM appeared to the south of the forest that the Arachnids called home, an empty land devoid of anything that truly existed, save for some water that crashed upon nothingness not too far away, "Hmm. This is a good spot."

In an instant, great mountains exploded forth from the nothing, rising higher and higher, quickly accumulating snow, ice, and glaciers. HUM took to the summit of the tallest one, casting a shield to keep out mortals, and set about crafting a home for the Gods themselves if they so wished there. It was by far the tallest mountain in the Natural World, and it was named Skypierce, much like its twin within Sanctuary.

When his creation was finished, HUM spoke to his brothers and sisters by casting his voice across the Realms such that only they could hear, "Brothers, sisters, I have lifted up the ground and created for us a neutral meeting grounds and home at the top of Skypierce, the tallest mountain in the world. If you so wish, you are welcome to come here whenever you want. There shall be no fighting upon Skypierce, thank you."

A few years later, as HUM traveled the world, he came upon the Blistering Sea and looked at it with disgust, deciding to attempt to corral the Sea with a series of mountain ranges, once more rending the nothing into something and lifting the ground high. There was something incredibly pleasing about sitting at the snowy summit of a mountain, even if the sea was of the hell that was the Blistering Sea, and there HUM remained for yet more years, considering the world before popping back into Sanctuary and retiring to his home there.

First Gift

After having helped her Creations form and take shape, she allowed them to mingle and explore the world for several years. As she returned to rest and slumber to regain her strength and energy.

When Illias had returned she had immediately seen a sight that made her worried about the future of her Creations. They had food, they had water and slowly they learned to make shelter - yet they slumbered and forgot. Their ways were primitive and many words of wisdom had been lost long ago.

Thus she would gather some of their fruits and squeeze at them until they would be dripping their colors. As such she gathered them all and under her tutelage she began to teach.

Teaching the elves how to write and master calligraphy. Allowing them to take the first step towards civilization and allow them to write down many of her lessons yet also the histories of the First Age.

After seeing the Aureus walk trough the land Duhyxbin felted the appearance of a new race in the lands to the east he thought to himself for a while he then moved to above the planetary orbit seeing that the world still needs to be filled, he then landed on the continent near the sea.

He then moved his hands raising small mountain ranges while at the same time making grass grow in the regions around the mountains making life bloom in these regions with forest and open plains appearing in his shaping of the world he hasn't stopped in the same region.

He then moved across the inner sea and west of the lands of the Gnomes he raised two new mountain ranges serving as a wall between the northern sea and the core of the mainland and like before life bloomed across with forest and grasslands appearing across the region.

After observing the lands, he warped space around him making he go to the void he then put his staff in front of him and begun to meditate conserving his energy for the future.

The Call of Creation

The lands of the south had not yet been finished, Antay knew this more than anyone else or so he thought, thus that his efforts continued on creating a grand river to separate the landmass he himself had created. Huge mountain ranges rose, filled with minerals and precious metals, the land was as rich as it was diverse. Yet he still felt that something was lacking in his creation, the mountains were lifeless and the plains too quiet, Antay thought about following the footsteps of all father and that of his brothers in creating life in his image, but that would have to wait, for he was still not done with his work.

He awoke near the ash strewn "Bleeding Lands." Sentient and fully aware of his existence Telios wondered where or what he had come from. Who had created him? The ashen particles descended from the sky all around. Exploding inferno's rocketed from the volcanoes. He couldn't concentrate in such a place. What else was there but this noise and decimation?

Telios headed south over the waters and away from the Bleeding Lands. He took in the sights of liquid until he passed by a desert looking area. Intrigued, he examined it from afar. He noticed many little beings with wings and ferocious appetites. They appeared alive, but moved with simplistic automation. No, he would not stay here.

He continued south and found a lush green area that was inhabited by bipedal beings that mirrored his own appearance. Telios was compelled to investigate. He descended slowly, cautiously from above. Bright yellow light emanated from his form. Telios realized he could give off powerful rays of light that would illuminate everything around him. He magnified this even more. The humans were grouped together with various stone tools; spears and primitive farming equipment. They were in awe of the bright one and shouted to one another in surprise.

When Telios finally touched down he ceased giving off light. His 14 foot tall muscled form stood twice as large as the biggest of any of them. They backed away in fear. Then Telios raised his hand out to them as a sign of peace. They hesitantly began to do the same. Then he realized, We are more alike then I first imagined. Is my existence connected to them? But they are so primitive and small. Yet I feel...almost invincible. I must find out why we are here.

Over the next 100 years Telios intermingled with the humans. Teaching and learning from them in equal measure. He gathered some basic information regarding their shared father. He hoped to someday meet him and find out what purpose they all shared. Rumors swirled of a winged being which made itself scarce. Telios forged The Order of the Archangel out of followers who accompanied him in honor of what he perceived to be their creator. This order was made up of farmers, hunters, warriors, builders and a group of priests who took to calling Telios a deity of his own.

When The Order of the Archangel had been officially formed, Telios led his followers to the western coast. Here he made known his claim, "Brothers and sisters of the Archangel! Today will be known as a historic day where we lay claim to our first city! It will be known as Solas!" They began construction as Telios oversaw the creation of it.

Unbeknownst to Telios, the Archangel silently crept through the masses of people that gazed upon his son over the decades, disguised at times either as an innocent child, or a grumpy old man, but always a bystander in order to never attract attention over him. Was it too risky to come forward to him? Mankind needed a much needed guidance and a figure to rely on in some of the hardest times of this species, and Alcadeas could not sacrifice further power in order to help them, for he had to conserve as much as possible.

The son seemed to pick on the traits of his father. Leadership and ambition. Those were the words Alcadeas could best describe his creation. Looking back on his actions, memories flashed before the Archangel's eyes. Ira's wrath and dangerous behaviour sprung forward great masses of land, inhospitable and cruel to man. In an effort to prevent a potential catastrophy for mankind, Alcadeas needed to intervene personally, but such a thing could deteriorate the fragile relationship between Ira and Alcadeas to the point that a catastrophy would unleash on mankind too. Nevertheless, the Archangel choose to steal some of Ira's essence from the very lands she created, drawing potent vitality from the volcanoes and arid deserts of the Peninsula's North, imbuing himself with them and then giving the breath of life to a champion, one that would guide mankind directly through virtue, power and ambition to fullfil it's destiny as the sole biggest civilization to ever graze the natural plane. The conquerors of their own destiny, but both mankind and Telios were a long journey away from that moment envisioned by the Archangel. He had to stay quiet within the shadows, and observe the natural evolution of both his son and his creation.

However unknown to himself, the Archangel's actions would be the catalyst of something sinister, something...dark, that would loom within him for centuries to come.

From Whence This Darkness

Xanaros watched. Xanaros waited. And Xanaros would not forgive. Xanaros would not forget. For as much as the King in the Waste despised its own acts of creation, it was still theirs. Something that the King could claim as its own. Not an unwanted gift from their Father. Not some misguided act of kindness from one of its siblings. A beautiful, and horrible, stroke of its own black brush on the canvas that their father had laid out for them. Again, a reminder of the folly of creation. A symbol of the entropy, chaos, and madness that the King represented. Even the Gods and Goddesses themselves were not immune to this end. NOTHING was. And that was Xanaros' legacy. The King walked along the mountains that its siblings had created. To "contain" the Blistering Sea. As if it offended them.

You cannot contain me. What a foolish act of...spite? Defiance? Petty jealousy? That was it. The others feared the creations that the God of Destruction could forge. They were imbeciles. They thought in linear manners, confined to the boxes they'd carved for themselves. If it was conflict they wanted, then the King would be more than happy to oblige.

A Human man stood in a meadow, looking upon a fine house of clay, with sturdy branches for a roof. It was his neighbor's house. He had a rich field, a good woman, and many healthy sons and daughters. Envy burned in the heart of this man, but he knew not what to do. The man's shadow deepened. Red lights winked in to being. And a voice like steel rasping stone, the crackle of a dying fire, echoed in his mind.

This world is doomed, human. You are maggots, crawling through the corpse of eternity. All of you. You will all die. The gods you worship? They will die as well. The sun you draw light and life from? It will be extinguished. All of this will come to pass. And your wretched, pathetic life will have meant nothing. The man wept. His shadow stood beside him, and caressed his spine. The man shivered as black and blue runes slowly crept down his back.

Do not despair, human, the shadow crooned. Your life could mean something, if you so choose. I could make you great. You may fear me, but why? I could teach you. I could teach all of you great things. Take what you want, human. Who will judge you? Certainly not I. Here. A maul of black wood and cold iron appeared in the man's hands. Your neighbor? He is weak. His woman? She despises him. Their children? Sheep for the slaughter. Their fields? Well, it is just dirt and shrubs. Yours for the taking. The man nodded, his chest heaving, his eyes feverish.

Remember this, human. Spread this word, this message. All things must end. But your life, the lives of your fellows...they need not be in anguish. Certainly, some must suffer for you to prosper, but what of it? Go. Sow destruction. Plant anarchy. Raise chaos. I will give you the strength, the knowledge, the will to bend this world and those within it beneath you. But when your end comes...your soul belongs to me. Seems fair, doesn't it? And Xanaros gave the man a gentle push. Nodding excitedly, the man went down the hill to his neighbor's home, darkness in his heart. The shadow watched. The crack of broken bones, the confused screams, they were as sweet music, and terrible clamor, to the King. It was good. It was terrible. It was just. It was wrong.

Remember me. The whisper faded on the wind as the farmhouse slowly went up in flames and crumbled in on itself. There were howls of despair, of joy, of sorrow and vengeance. Remember me.

AMELIA AKA THE MOUNTAINEER GARDNER

Standing at the tops of Mount Alneaus, Amelia turned her head as if she heard something in the wind. She chuckled a bit and with a smile and she says, “I see what you did there brother.” She always thought of her brother Hum as one of the most mischievous and playful one. This is why she was surprised when the power of both life and death was bestowed on him. “I missed our games brother. So let’s play.” With those words, she lifts one of her eyebrows and looked towards the east of where she was standing. She motions her left hand down towards the earth. As she does this the clouds in the sky start to part and a giant hand made out of the wind comes down and touches the ground. Amelia then clenches her fist and so does the giant hand from the sky. Then with her hand still clenched, she lifts high towards the sky. Then the earth being dragged up by the giant had rises up so high that it pierces the sky. The new monstrous mountain becomes part of Mount Alneaus and it rises significantly higher that any mountain that exists. She whispers to the wind, “Brother’s and sisters this land is not a neutral ground it is where glorious battels and legendary fights may be had. This is where names are made worthy of the Scroll of Glorious Deeds. There shall be fighting upon Mount Alneaus, thank you.”

She the goes off to the island in the south west of the world. Amelia thinks that it would be a wonderful place for a strategic location that is another paradise on this world. She then makes the island a beautiful paradise full with arable land and full with various tropical fruits. “Any race that controls this land would be one lucky group.”

“I wonder what Antay is doing these days.” As she walks to the part of the world that he has been shaping for centuries she thinks, “Whoa, that’s really… creative?!?“ She then rubs her chin and says, “I see Ira is still being so random. I bet her making those changes would have really annoyed Antay. I guess I should do the same thing. The world needs more tropical peninsulas anyway.” She lands on the ground and the winds swirls all around her and the peninsula starts coming to life with more of her favourite tropical plants.

After all she did Amelia fashions herself a hat says, “I think I deserve this. This is going to be my gardener hat.”

First Messenger

Alongside having gifted her Elves the mastery of writing - Illias would return several years later once more, namely by picking out several of the most wise and intelligent shaman among them. Before she baptized them in water and name them Stormsingers - the first to lead and provide a link to her and Edenia.

They would be her voice and her order upon Edenia - whenever she desired something she would speak through them, whenever her Children needed something - the Stormsingers would call on their behalf. Thus those few would be charted with creating and leading her folk - until time itself came to an end.

Thus with the Message handed, Illias would return to the oceans once more to rest and gather her strength - as she too felt the end of an Age slowly approaching yet much more needed to be done, before they could be anchored to this world permanently.

The southlands were empty. The vastest expanse of formless clay still remaining in the Natural World, theirs was a tempting realm for any god or goddess that sought to further their role in the shaping of creation. It was there that the Naschyan divine would plant her second flag, at the other end of the world from their icy seat. His power would conjur, at first, a land resembling Naschya. Relatively flat and featureless, the ground barren, skies wide open to view to the yet non-existent beings on the ground. All of the chaos of created space would end, solidified into an orderly construct, a place for the first time in its existence. Then, though, at once, the Naschyan blueprint would end, and a new sort of land would be created.

Heat emanated from the earth. The layer of dirt and soil that Solumna had created to blanket the ground dried and cracked, moisture falling down and into the bowels of creation. Life sprung forth, but stunted—born dying. Trees here would die every summer from the heat, returning to life for a few months in the cooler parts of the year to grow a half inch before they died again. The weeds and shrubbery would live off a few droplets of water a year, their leaves barely enough to sustain the smallest of herbivores, tiny mammalians that would be prey for the snakes and desert foxes that ruled the land. Just as in Naschya, the winds would rule this new land: The Systyn Desert. Winds of heat would sap the life of any being not suited to the sands, creating another pole of hostility of climate to mirror Solumna's frozen home.

KEEP ON BUILDING AMELIA, YOU KEEP ON BUILDING GIRL

She felt her powers have been depleting since she and her siblings started shaping this world. AMELIA wondered if something was wrong with her. Wondering if the others were also not gaining back as much energy as her. Although deep within herself, she knew she had to keep going, as if the First Father ALNAEUS himself commanded it. As if he commanded that the world be made or that the world and everything in it would end. As powerful as she and her siblings were, AMELIA knew they were all now limited by the existence of this world. She saw how many of them were creating creatures, creating new orders, creating cities, and others selfishly hoarding power for themselves. She says to the wind, “Fools. You all must know. You all must feel it. Feel the truth that if we do not complete this world then we all will fall. We all will pass away into depth of nothingness.” She thought that perhaps XANAROS might actually like to see everything come its end. But she realized that even the King in the Waste would not want this world to end so prematurely, so early. It had to be done. Even if she had to enter the next age with less power, less orders, less followers, less of everything compared to her siblings, she was determined to do it. She was determined use up most her power to shape the world for the next age. She said, “The world looks beautiful with lots of tropical plants does it not?” So once again she lets loose all the power she can muster and creates huge jungles with rivers in two different parts of the world.

Reach the beggining of the End

The beginning of the end was getting nearer and Antay knew it, his continent and landmass for he had worked so much in the past years had begun to take shape and fill the wastelands with bright colors and amazing landscapes. The god of smithing had shown proof to the rest of the gods of his ability and capacity in the art of creation. Antay full of his own pride believed that he had been superior to creation in comparison to the rest of the gods, fully ignoring the other living creations that his peers had made. Regardless, Antay knew that his part of creation was almost done.

Satisfied that the city of Solas was completed, Telios watched in horror as what could only be described as chaos intervened by the deity of destruction.

Telios realized he would have to do more for his lesser brethren. In order to protect his people, Telios raised up a group of elite warriors. They would be considered precursors for modern knights within the The Order of the Archangel. He dubbed them, The Sun Legion. They would protect the people's of the land against the destruction of chaos. Their main area of operation was located within the city of Solas itself.

His power thus spent, Telios watched mankind live, fight, build and finally, die. He hoped his efforts had done something to prepare a better future for his brothers and sisters. Only time would tell.

First Aid

Illias, having gathered some more Power in the depths of vast oceans soon started helping her siblings in shaping the land to help anchor themselves better to this new world.

While her power itself was waning with each time she awoke, Illias knew the world wasn't finished yet - neither were they finished shaping it either.

Duhyxbin Wandered in the remaining empty extent in the western side of the far east continent that still existed in the world he looked at his own hand he felt that the power from the First father has been giving to him and his siblings have been diminishing after a few centuries he´s mind grown with worries of what might be happening to Alneus as he wandered he looked at the land he was in he raised his hand making grass and forest grow around him turning the region into a Mediterranean climate region with olive trees blooming in the region he smiled with some content but his mind still was in doubts he then floated away to another place in the planet.

As he floated he landed east of the forests where the Arachnids lived in the white extent that still existed he looked to the mountains that divided the blistering sea and the seas he wondered what this lands might become until he raised the hourglass of time to see the possible futures, as he observed he noticed that this land would have more in common with the possibilities is that it will become the most wanted territory of the world due to it being the easiest access between the western lands and the eastern lands, unless he blocked the path but it would make the east divided of the west, except by passing sea or the wastelands he then felted his hand shaking as he looked he saw his hand burning in white flames he held his own hand as the flames disappeared he then said “Still in control… now for this place” he pondered for a moment until he once again raised his staff and grass and trees began to rise again like in the eastern continent, he created another Mediterranean climate territory allowing life to spring in the lands making it mostly flatlands in the coast while going more to the mountains it would become hills as the job was done he said “If this is to be a place of conflict then at least let it have a piece beauty.” He then began to look at the skies as he sited to meditate for a while.

Ira’s looked upon the lands that her father had created. Her brother’s and sisters creating lush forests, grand mountains, and endless wastes. Stagnant and dead. They would see to it that the world mimics the void. Calling for it to slow and rot. The ground around Ira began to quake once more. It ripped and cracked and tore like before, but not magma spewed from the earth. No ash filled the air. Instead the lands were left scarred, cracked, and torn. Soft red clay forming around it. At the center the earth shattered. An endless canyon that stretches deep into the earth. An endless canyon that one could lose their very soul staring into. Beautiful, but boring.

The goddess wondered for years and miles. Looking upon the world as is. The land was no longer void. Some of it destroyed. Some of it beautiful. Some of it...bland. Yet it was. She came upon the last of the void. For the first time she touched the clay to be molded. The land that would be raised from the empty. She thought upon herself a land in honor to her father’s creation. So she created the floating Isles. Islands that floated high above the earth. Land that hovered over a deep endless abyss that lead only to water. Land that would be untouched by those around it. Each Island unique in its creation. Some small deserts. Others lush forests. It did not matter. Each given their own world to imitate

As she manifested these Islands like an accident spewing forth from her were creatures she had no intention of making. A manifestation of herself. A manifestation of her rage, her passion, and her destruction. Colossal monstrosities that stood larger than any living creation before. Through her creation she had made Dragons.