History l2. History of creation. Beleth and the Ivory Tower

He took a deep drag, inhaled the smoke and exhaled slowly.

Most of his face was hidden under a thick old hood, and behind him was only pitch blackness. In the dim glow of the tube it was impossible to make out his features.

He introduced himself as a bard, but no one believed him - his voice was hoarse and rough. There was something suspicious about him traveling alone through a forest full of danger. However, he offered to tell us a story in exchange for food and warmth from our fire. Couldn't we have left him alone in this cold forest? And we agreed.

We made ourselves comfortable near the fire, holding weapons ready to use in case of danger, and began to listen carefully.

The night was cold through and through. The man put down the phone and began the story...

Chapter 1. Genesis

The story I want to tell you is about those whom we call Gods. Listen carefully - as if this is a true story...

A very long time ago, at a time that is impossible to even imagine, there was only a ball in which the entire universe was enclosed. And there was nothing to compare it with - so the ball was big and small, dark and light, everything and nothing.
After one hundred million years, the ball began to increase in size and at the same time two forces began to appear. Slowly, but they grew and eventually split into White Light and Darkness. The White Light took on a female form and called himself Einhasad. The darkness took on the male and gave itself the name Gran Kain. These two entities laid the foundation for a new universe and everything that exists now.

Einhasad and Gran Kain joined forces to break out of the ball. As a result of their experiment, the ball broke into pieces. Some of them soared up and became the Sky, some fell down to become the Foundation. Water appeared between the Sky and the Ground, and some parts of the Ground rose and became the Earth.

The spirit of the ball - Ether, also underwent the disintegration of everything that exists. Which led to the appearance of various animals and plants. The "Creation of Genesis" was also formed from this spirit, and the giants became its best representative. They were known as the Wise Ones, and their minds were as strong as their bodies. The giants made a promise to believe in Einhasad and Gran Kain. They were pleased with the giants, appointing them masters over all other creatures. This was before the advent of death and true paradise.

Einhasad and Gran Kain eventually had children who were not deprived of a divine gift. The first five of them were awarded the possession of power over the world. The eldest daughter, Shilen, took possession of the water. The eldest son, Paagrio, received control over the fire, and the second daughter, Mafr, over the earth. The second son, Seiya, became the master of the wind.

Only the youngest, Eva, lacked elements. She began to compose music and write poetry. While the other gods were busy with their duties, Eve wrote poems and composed music for them. Thus, the era of the gods began, and there was nothing in the world that was unknown to the gods.

Chapter 2

Einhasad was the goddess of creation and created forms with her own spirit. Her children used their powers to create life from these forms.

Shilen infused the spirit of water into the first form that was created. Thus the race of elves was born.

Paagrio instilled the spirit of fire into the second form that was created. This is how the orc race was born.

Mafr instilled the spirit of the earth into the third form that was created. This is how the dwarven race was born.

Seiya infused the spirit of the wind into the fourth form that was created. This is how the Arteas race was born.

Gran Kain was the god of destruction. When he saw the achievements of Einhasad, curiosity mixed with envy leaped up in him. He repeated what Einhasad did and created his own form, according to his own understanding. He then turned to Shilen, their eldest daughter, with a request to infuse the spirit into his form. She was very surprised and asked him, “Father, why do you want to do this? Einhasad, my mother, is in charge of creation. You are the god of destruction, and any creature to which you give life will only bring misfortune to yourself and others.”

But Gran Kain did not give up. After much persuasion, he finally got Shilen's consent.

"I will do it. But I have already given Mother the spirit of water. All I can give you is just leftovers.” Shilen gave her father the spirit of rotten water, which Gran Kain gladly accepted.

However, Gran Kain felt that one spirit would not be enough to create it. And he went to Paagrio, his eldest son. Like Shilen, Paagrio warned his father. But he was unable to refuse his father, and gave him the spirit of an extinguished fire. Gran Kain gladly accepted it as well.

Mafr tearfully begged her father to abandon his venture, but in the end she gave him the spirit of a poor and dirty land. Seiya, in turn, gave his father the spirit of uncontrollable wind.

Satisfied, Gran Kain collected everything he had received from the children and exclaimed, “Look at the creatures I have created! Look at those who are born of the spirits of water, fire, earth and wind! They will be stronger and wiser than giants! They will rule the world!”

Gran Kain felt great pride and shouted it to the whole world. He instilled spirits into his creations. However, the result was terrible. These creatures were weak, stupid, cunning and cowardly. All the gods scorned the creatures of Gran Kain. He himself, in disgrace, was forced to hide for some time. He left his creations. And these creatures were people.

The race of elves was wise and receptive to magic. But the elves were not as wise as the giants. Therefore, the elves were forced to serve the giants in politics and magical activities.

The orc race was strong. They possessed inexhaustible strength and tremendous willpower. Of course, they weren't as strong as giants. Therefore, the orcs for the giants played the role of cannon fodder in various wars.

The dwarven race was highly skilled in all aspects of engineering, mathematics, and mastery of various technical disciplines. They served the giants as bank employees and factory workers.

The winged race Arteas are free-spirited and curious creatures. The giants wanted to enslave these creatures. Only one thing interfered - once caught and put in a cage, Arteas quickly lost his vitality and died. The giants had no choice but to let Arteas continue to be free. Arteas often visited the city of giants and brought them news from other parts of the world.

People could not do any of the things well and became slaves of the giants, they did the most black and dirty work. Their life was no better than that of animals.

Chapter 3

Gran Kain was a free god. However, he made a huge mistake by seducing Shilen, his eldest daughter. It became impossible to hide all this from Einhasad when Shilen became pregnant. Einhasad's anger knew no bounds when she found out about what had happened. By the will of Einhasad, her eldest daughter ceased to be the goddess of water, moreover, she was expelled from the continent. Gran Kain turned away from her, so she was left alone with her misfortune.

While pregnant, Shilen fled to the East. Deep in the thicket of the dark forest, she gave birth - damn the mother and father every time the contractions came.

The children born to Shilen adopted the despair and anger of her curses and turned into demons. The most powerful and strongest of them became ‘dragons.

There were six dragons in total - against six gods. Shilen was angry at her mother, who expelled her, and at her father, who seduced her and then left her alone. Gathering all the power, all her children, she created an army to take revenge on the gods.

The strongest of the dragons had to be at the forefront of the demon army to fight the gods themselves. Aulakiria, the dragon of light, upon hearing about this, looked at Shilen with sadness and said, “You don't know what you're doing. Do you really want to destroy the gods? Do you really want to drown your mother, father, and others in pools of your own blood?”

Her call had no effect on Shilen.

And finally, a bloody battle began when an army of demons broke into the palace, the abode of the gods. The six dragons left no stone unturned in the palace. Even the gods were frightened by the incredible power of the dragons. The battle seemed to last forever. Yet, if the battle had not stopped, the world would have ceased to exist, and all living beings would have been annihilated.

Numerous messengers of the gods and demons fell in battle. Every day, lightning flashed and thunder rumbled, because such powerful forces clashed in the sky. The giants and all other living beings trembled in fear as they watched the battle in the heavens.

The fiercest battle lasted for several years, and in the end the balance gradually tipped in favor of one of the parties. Despite the damage they received, Einhasad and Gran Kain had the upper hand in the battle, destroying a huge number of demons.

The dragons continued to fight, although they were badly wounded and slashed with scars. Their weariness became more and more evident. After a while, it seemed as if the war would end with the complete annihilation of the demon army. In the end, the dragons, spreading their wings, flew to the ground to escape. The surviving demons followed. The gods, wishing to exterminate the retreating, were nevertheless so wounded that they could not do this. All they could do was watch the remnants of the demon army flying towards the ground.

As Shilen's children died one by one, losing the war to the gods, she was saddened. She invented The Underworld and put herself in charge.

Chapter 4

After Shilen left, power over the water passed to Eva. She had a gentle nature, and after her sister's collapse and the war of gods and demons, she became even more timid and fearful. And to avoid the burden of responsibility that fell on her shoulders, she dug a tunnel at the bottom of the lake and hid there.

There was no one to control the spirits of water, and they, having no purpose, wandered aimlessly around the world. Too much water flowed into one place, resulting in a swamp. In another place, on the contrary, water was so scarce that a desert formed there. It often happened that part of the continent suddenly went under water or a new island appeared out of nowhere. It also happened that somewhere it rained without stopping, day and night, until the water covered everything except the highest mountain peaks.

Where areas not covered with water were preserved, a huge number of living beings accumulated. Both on land and in the ocean, all living beings suffered from this scourge. On behalf of all living beings, the giants petitioned the gods for help.

Einhasad and Gran Kain, after searching the entire continent, eventually found the lake where Eve was hiding.

“Eve, look at what happened because you avoided your duties. You are destroying the harmony of this continent, in which we have invested so much effort. I can't stand it if you don't listen to me anymore." Einhasad was so furious that her eyes burned with a bright fire.

Due to the floods, countless giants and other creatures moved to the world of Shilen, which could not help but make Einhasad jealous. Trembling with fear, Eve surrendered to her mother. When Eve again took over the responsibility of regulating the waters, the disasters gradually ceased. However, it was impossible to restore the continent that lay in ruins.

Chapter 5

The giants were more and more skeptical about what was happening: first, Gran Kain created people, which proved his own stupidity, then behaved unworthily towards his daughter, like Einhasad with his jealousy. Created by Shilen, the world of Underworld has spawned many terrible creatures. Eve, with her weakness and ineptitude, has turned the continent into a rather pathetic sight. Seeds of mistrust and doubt were sown in the minds of the giants. Do such celestials deserve worship and reverence?

The giants could move in chariots made with their own hands and had free access to the palace of the gods. They could also use magical knowledge to lift the island into the air and live there like gods. They could live so long that this time was comparable to eternity. And the giants came to the idea of their equality with the gods. Despite their wisdom, they have become overly arrogant.

Thus, the giants set out to become gods.

They began to experiment, changing living organisms in order to create new forms of life. The giants called this kind of magical art "science". Intoxicated with power, the giants created a powerful army to fight the gods, despite the failure of Shilen, her six dragons and the army of demons in this very matter.

The gods saw the preparations and were angry. Einhasad, who claims sole control over all creative processes, was speechless from the rage that seized her. She vowed to destroy all giants along with the continent and the rest of the world. Gran Kain called for calm.

“Since you are the Mother of Creation,” he said, “the destruction of all things is my prerogative. You know only too well what the consequences of my taking on your task were. If you still want to destroy the whole world, you will have to fight me.” Gran Kain was unwilling to allow the destruction of the continent at all costs, and Einhasad was greatly offended by his meddling. However, since they were of equal status, she couldn't stop him.

In the end, Einhasad compromised. And in order to punish the giants, she asked Gran Kain for his hammer - known as the Hammer of Despair. Due to its great destructive power, even Gran Kain did not use it. And yet, in spite of everything, Einhasad raised the hammer high above her head and hurled it down, right into the heart of the city of giants.

Chapter 6

And at the moment when fire fell from heaven, the giants realized what a monstrously stupid mistake they had made. Using all their strength, the giants rose up to calm the Hammer of Despair, but their efforts were only enough to move the Hammer only a fraction, which continued to shower fire on the ground.

It was enough to destroy the greatest city in the world; many living beings also perished. A huge hole formed in the earth's thickness was overwhelmed by a terrifying wave. In the end, there were almost no giants left on earth.

Those giants that managed to survive fled to the east to avoid the wrath of Einhasad. Their route was similar to the one that Shilen chose at the time. Einhasad continued her pursuit and destroyed the giants one by one, incinerating them with deadly lightning from the sky. Those that remained alive trembled in fear and appealed to Gran Cain with entreaties.

“Gren Kain, Gran Kain! We realized that we had chosen the wrong path. Only you can stop the anger and madness of Einhasad. Do not let us perish, us who were born from the gods themselves, we, the wisest and most powerful beings in the world! ”

Suddenly, Gran Kain felt a strong sense of pity for these unfortunate beings. He decided that the giants had already suffered enough and atoned for their guilt in full. He lifted up the deepest waters of the southern seas, thereby blocking the path of Einhasad.

Einhasad shouted in anger, “What is this? Who dares to mess with me? Eva, my beloved daughter, remove immediately the water that is blocking my path, or prepare to repeat the fate of your elder sister!”

Frightened, Eve immediately followed her mother's orders. And Einhasad continued her victorious march, destroying all the giants on her way. And the giants again begged for help.

"Gren Cain! The strongest of the gods! Einhasad continues to destroy us, have mercy on us and save us!”

Gran Kain lifted up the thickness of the earth on which the giants were. A huge cliff blocked the path of Einhasad, who screamed with a loud voice.

“Mafr, my beloved daughter! Who dares to mess with me? Lower the earth immediately to its proper place. Or prepare yourself for the fate of your sister!”

Frightened by these words, Maphr tried to move the earth, but Gran Kain stopped her.

“Einhasad, why don’t you calm your anger? The whole world knows your malice and trembles before your fury. Wise but foolish giants have already paid a huge price for atonement for their mistake. Just look! A race of proud and noble beings - who once ruled the world - have now found their home in a narrow patch of land. They will no longer be able to challenge the gods. This place will forever be the place of their imprisonment. Calm your anger, your revenge is done.”

Einhasad could not help but listen to him and act against the will of Gran Kain - he had equal opportunities with her. She decided, as Gran Cain said, to leave the giants on that piece of land to atone for their sins. The hunt was over and Einhasad returned home.

Subsequently, Einhasad rarely interfered in what was happening on Earth, as she was deeply disappointed in the creatures inhabiting it. Gran Kain also agreed not to show himself there. The age of the gods was drawing to a close.

Chapter 7

The stranger suddenly stopped talking.

Impressed by what we heard, we sat in silence while he initiated us into the secrets of the history of the world. His voice, although soft, penetrated the very depths of our consciousness - as if it were some kind of magic. The myth he told was fundamentally different from the one we knew, but there were no objections. We, seasoned strong warriors, were filled with reverent awe for this man and were even a little afraid of him. Suddenly, an owl flapped its wings nearby, and we jumped in surprise.

The stranger grinned, lifted the barely smoldering pipe to his lips, and continued his story.

“Don't dismiss my god story just because it's different from what you've heard. Perhaps the wandering poet is closer to the truth than all your priests? The history of the gods is the desire of the gods, not of men. How then can ordinary priests know the truth? Listen carefully... I will continue the story. The history of the world after the disappearance of the gods. Your story."

Chapter 8

Now, after the sudden disappearance of the giants, panic and disorder reigned throughout the world. The usual course of things was disrupted, the races of elves, dark elves, dwarves and humans gained unexpected freedom and with it the need to survive in a vast world. A world lay before them, half-ruined and ravaged by the Hammer of Despair. Many perished in the calamities caused by the Mother of Creation, but many more perished in the chaos and confusion that followed. The races turned to the gods with an ardent call for help, but the answer was silence.

The elves were the first to take control of the situation, because it was they who were involved in politics in the time of the giants. The elves were successful in reuniting the races, and for some time harmony reigned in the world. But time passed, and with its course it became clear that the elves were not given the same effective control over others as the giants in their time. The first dissatisfied were the orcs.

“Who said that the elves are stronger than us? Nobody! Do they have the right to rule over us? No! It will not happen that creatures weaker than us will stand above us!”

The military potential of the orcs was overwhelming, and the elves living peacefully could not become a worthy adversary for the proud and fearless orc warriors. The orcs acted with lightning speed, and soon most of the land belonged to them, while they pushed the elves into the corner of the continent. There they solicited the support of the dwarves, who, with vast resources and superior weapons, stood a chance against the orcs.

“Earth race”, the elves cried, “We ask your help. The ruthless orc hordes outnumber us. We can fight against them together – and then we will have a chance!”

But the dwarves indifferently rejected their pleas for help. It seemed to them that the orcs were now victorious. And if so, then why would pragmatic and calculating dwarves mess with the losers? The elves were angry at this turn of events, but they could not change anything.

The next race that the elves turned to for help was the race of the wind - Arteas. Their reconnaissance and air attack skills would have been enough to defeat the orcs. An elven delegation went to the ends of the earth to seek help from Arteas.

“Wind race, we ask for your help! Orcs barbarously oppress us. If we unite, we can teach them a lesson they haven't had yet!”

But, as always, Arteas was not interested in political and military conflicts. They remained neutral and even better hidden from prying eyes. The elves were in despair.

“Alas, no one will come to our aid! Is this the end? Will the filthy orcs rule the world and claim fame and fortune as their due?”

Chapter 9

Rejected by the calculating dwarves and the indifferent Arteas, the elves were still alone in the fight against the orcs. In desperation, they mourned their fate, when suddenly a stranger appeared among them and fell prostrate before the king of the elves. The king approached the stranger closer, in order to understand in a moment that before him was the leader of the people. On the head of a man was a crown of three branches.

"Who came to us? Is it really the leader of people, these low creatures?" The king was at a loss, "Have you come to laugh at our misfortune?"

The man bowed his head to the king and said, "No, oh wise king. We have come with an offer of help. Perhaps our modest powers may be of use to you."

The elves rejoiced at this turn of events, and though the humans were stupid and weak, their sheer numbers could have been useful in combat.

"Well, you really can be useful to us." The king agreed without hesitation. "You insignificant and worthless creatures, however, are loyal and ready to give their lives for us in battle. This is commendable. And I accept your offer."

The human king fell prostrate again before his elven counterpart, then raised his head and their eyes met. "O noblest of the elves," he said, "we humans ask only one request of ours before we fight for the victory of the elves. We are too weak. We cannot stand against the orcs, and therefore we ask you to give us strength." stand against them. We ask you to teach us elven magic."

This bold proposal threw the elves into turmoil. Teach people their magic? Never! The elves were already ready to incinerate the insolent, but then the leader of the elves intervened in the matter. Veora, that was her name, decided that humans, even those trained in magic, would not threaten the elves. And in the war against the orcs, they were too weak and could not do without help. Thus, she made a decision that later cost her her life - to reveal to people the magical secrets of their people.

Humans soaked up knowledge like a sponge, learning much faster than the elves expected. Their physical parameters were not as excellent as the orcs - however, constant work and struggle within the race tempered people. They were skilled and skillful warriors, and most importantly, they were so numerous that soon the human army became a great force.

Chapter 10

And the war began. The alliance of humans and elves gradually achieved its goal - the overthrow of the orc expansion. With the odds in this war tilting towards the alliance, the dwarves forsook the losing orcs in favor of a human army by supplying war supplies to the humans. Now, clad in the most powerful armor and armed with the sharpest dwarven blades, people could defeat the orcs without intervention from the elves.

The elves felt uneasy, and although the alliance continued its victorious march, they felt that the power of people was growing and breaking out of their control. And yet they could not even imagine that the lowest of the races - dirty people - could think of going against the great elves. Soon the orcs were defeated, the elves forgot about the people and moved away from them. The same continued to study the highest forms of magic. The orcs had no choice but to sign an insulting peace treaty and return to the caves in the northern part of Elmore.

The leader of the orcs, laughing in the face of the elves, said to them, "Fools! Victory does not belong to you, but to these mongrel pigs - people. How will you curb the monsters that you yourself created?"

The orc leader turned out to be right - and the elves faced a new threat when the people went to war with them. But their strengths were not equal - the elves were inferior to people in everything, and even in magic, which people mastered almost perfectly.

And again, the battle of one magic against another broke out on the expanses of the earth. Ultimately, the elves were forced to retreat to their native forest and take refuge in it from the attackers. There they prepared for a decisive blow to the enemy forces. Their magic increased many times in these forests, and they counted on this trump card in the decisive battle. But they miscalculated - the human army was too numerous for even elven magic to hit them. The battle went on for three days. When it ended, and the bloody veil fell from their eyes, the elves were horrified. Most of them died, while people kept advancing and advancing in an endless stream. And the elves went into the very depths of the forest, finally separating themselves from the rest of the world with magical barriers.

This is how humans became the greatest conquerors in the world.

Chapter 11

The stranger fell silent again, the next part of the story was over ..

What we heard was different from anything we'd heard before, and yet the whole story felt familiar. The beautiful elf who was among us was touched to the depths of her soul, tears rolled down her cheeks.

The night has extended its arms to us. The animals in the forest calmed down, the wind stopped rustling in the branches, even the murmur of the stream became soft and barely audible. Only our breathing and the crackle of a burning fire were heard in the night. It seemed that all living things around were listening to the story of a stranger.

"So, isn't it funny that the lowest of the races, humans, eventually achieved more power than all the other races? I'll tell you what the secret is in human fortitude. Even the gods could not imagine that humans would ever can rule the world."

"Well, now I will tell you the story of the most outstanding human kingdom that ever existed on earth. It is the story of people who repeated the path of the giants."

Chapter 12

Human kingdoms in a primitive form originated during the battle with the orcs and elves. The backbone was made up of the Athena clan and the most skilled magicians of that time. This group was the most influential, and its influence was planted by violence and threats, which from time to time led to armed conflicts.

Athen's leader, Shuniman, eventually brought order, uniting the lands now known as Aden and Elmore. He named his kingdom Elmoreden and ascended the throne in order to become emperor and change the crown of three tree branches to a crown of gold and jewels. In the teachings of his followers, Shuniman subsequently became almost a god.

The emperor was worried about one issue: the lifespan of people was short. The fact that Gran Kain, the god of death and destruction, was their creator, developed a kind of inferiority complex in people, coupled with the story of creating people from the remnants of other races. All this gave the new rulers of the world little pleasure. Now, having created a new kingdom, people also needed a new mythology, a new history of their family, proving their noble origin.

Eventually, through a large-scale religious reform, Shuniman rejected the worship of Gran Kain and made Einhasad the goddess and protectress of the human race. Myth and history have changed. The attitude towards those who preach black magic and the followers of Gran Kain also changed - now they were severely persecuted. Religious reform lasted for several generations. This led to the fact that in the minds of people the belief that their creator was Einhasad was finally established, and Gran Kain was just the god of evil. When he found out about this, he just laughed.

“Even if they don't serve me, I won't get angry with them. But are they stupid enough to try to wrap their arms around the sky?”

Chapter 13

While the kingdom of Elmoreden, led by Emperor Shuniman, grew and prospered, the region called Gracia, across the sea, still trembled in the throes of disorder. Geographically, this region was extremely diverse and dangerous. And although many militant human factions fought for power, none of them was strong enough to unite everyone into a single kingdom. The territory of the region was torn apart only by minor conflicts, which rarely developed into at least a semblance of mass battles.

But the day and hour came when all the disparate groups were forced to unite under the same banner - for the sake of one goal - to stand against the huge army of Elmoreden, which went to war against Gracia. Many nobles and aristocracy perished in those battles. Those who managed to survive, strengthened and hardened many times over. In the end, the attack was repelled, but the losses were enormous. The lesson learned served as an impetus for the creation of a single kingdom in the entire region - called Perios.

But the confrontation continued. The Kingdom of Elmoreden, which was founded first and had superior military resources, was incomparably more likely to succeed. However, Perios also had some advantages. Firstly, the sea that separated one kingdom from another held back the attackers, and secondly, the people of Perios possessed the most powerful artifacts left on their land by the giants. These relics could also be used for military purposes, and with great success.

And it so happened that even with a magnificent army, the kingdom of Elmoreden could not enslave Perios.

Chapter 14

The kingdom of Elmoreden was home to the Ivory Tower, an institution whose main occupation was the study of magic. The mages of the Tower directed all their efforts to restore, study and improve the magic of the ancient giants. Their magical prowess reached unprecedented heights, and one day their influence in the kingdom became comparable to that of the Emperor Elmoreden.

Among the mages of the Tower there was one named Beleth, the strongest of mages and one of the greatest geniuses that ever lived on earth. The magic of the giants drew him in so much that after a while he learned almost all of its secrets. However, this magic was cursed and therefore unusable for humans. Ambition and lust for power took possession of Beleth. Alarmed by this turn of events, the mages of the Tower and the elite of the royal class decided to join forces to get rid of Beleth. But this was not easy to accomplish - Beleth was unusually strong in the art of dark magic.

As a result, the magicians of the Ivory Tower were left with no choice, and they used forbidden black magic to suppress the power of Beleth, trap him and imprison him in the cellars of the Tower. But, despite the fact that he was guarded by both warriors and magicians, he still managed to break out of the magical and physical shackles and escape. He went to Hell's Border Island to regain his former strength and continue to take over the lands.

A magical trap set for Beleth led to cataclysms in the southern part of the region, now known as Gludio. The earth was scorched by magic and many people died when the spell was cast. The kingdom placed all the blame on Beleth, declaring him a devil in human form.

Chapter 15

Around this time, great changes took place in the Elven forests. Having lost control over the continent, the Elves lost their vigilance and almost stopped hiding. They forgot that when they wanted to reign supreme over the rest, and now they lived in harmony with themselves and the world around them.

Among the general mass of elves who called themselves Tree Elves, a group of Brown Elves stood out. They insisted on continuing the battle for power, even if using forbidden black magic. However, the rest of the elves did not share these views.

One day, a human mage appeared among the Browns, and as he approached their leader, he said.

“You want power and might. But the Wood Elves fear that you will gain great power. You deserve this power. They only care about their own safety. They are afraid of you, afraid of people. It is these fears that have led you elves to your current decline.”

The Brown Elf leader asked, “Who are you, human? And what do you want here among us?”

“My name is Dasparion, I am an ordinary mage. But I have the power you need. I can help you fulfill your ambitions… and in exchange, you must help me.”

“And how can we help you?”

“I want only one thing - to know the secret of eternal youth.” A faint smile touched his face. “Although I have the art of magic, I am only a human and my lifespan is not that long. So... what will be your decision? We can help each other get what we want.”

The Brown Elves really wanted to gain knowledge of Dasparion's black magic, and therefore agreed with his proposal. Dasparion taught them everything he knew himself, and was rewarded with the secret of immortality. Satisfied, he left the forest.

The Brown Elves declared Gran Kain their new patron, while Einhasad remained to patronize the Tree Elves. The Tree Elves were enraged by the behavior of the Browns, and a battle ensued between them. At the crucial moment, the Brown Elves used a deadly black magic spell to destroy the Wood Elves. Those, agonizing, still managed to impose a curse on the Brown Elves, which turned them into a race of darkness, known to all as the race of Dark Elves.

Chapter 16

Elmoreden's golden age came a hundred years after its founding, during the reign of Emperor Baium. Possessing great charisma and unsurpassed leadership qualities, Baium managed to create the most powerful army in the history of the kingdom. This army drove the orcs from the northern parts of Elmore into the black forests, later known as the Orc Kingdom. And besides this, Baium's army periodically attacked the kingdom of Perios, eventually retaking the southern part of Gracia.

Having grown old, Baium lost interest in conquests. He sent all the forces of the kingdom to the construction of a tower of the most complex structure, reaching into the heavens.

“Everyone living on the continent is afraid of me, from north to south, from west to east! I control tens of thousands of lives with just a wave of my hand: one I give life, the other death. My power is absolute. One thing I cannot bear is that this power will end with my death! Therefore, I must ask the gods for immortality and rule my people forever!”

It took 30 years to build the Bayum Tower. He intended to use the tower to ascend to the gods and obtain from them the secret of immortality. When he reached the very top, the gods told him the following:

“Man, how dare you come up here and ask us for eternal life for you? Didn't the lesson of the giants teach you anything? Well, since your desire is eternal life, we will give it to you. But only you can never leave this tower.”

Baium incurred the wrath of the gods, and remained forever imprisoned at the very top of his tower. After the sudden disappearance of the emperor, panic began on earth. The emperor's relatives, his former associates and numerous aristocracy - all wanted to take the place of the emperor on the throne. These infighting weakened the kingdom, which had already been weakened by the construction of the tower. The conflict lasted for a long time, and as a result, the kingdom, which flourished for more than a hundred years, fell into decay. For the next twenty years, the kingdom was in a sorry state.

Chapter 17

What we heard we liked less and less. We did not know anything about this stranger, nor did we know the reason why he told us all this. And yet we listened to him, unable to look back or move, as if some unknown force held us back.

The stranger acted like we weren't there. Gathering dry twigs, he threw them into the dying flames. Tongues of flame, already almost invisible, shot up with renewed vigor. Without even looking in our direction, the man spoke again.

“My story is almost finished. The story I'm about to tell you should be familiar to you - the struggle of people that continues to this day. This is the history of the continent after the fall of Elmoreden. ”

Chapter 18

The decline of Elmoreden would have contributed to the flourishing of Perios, if not for the plague epidemic moving south from Gracia, and not for the destructive cold that came from the north. Elmoreden fell first, and then Perios.

After the fall of these once great kingdoms, chaos reigned on earth. The human aristocracy was tearing itself apart, small groups fought for power, and some of them even resorted to the help of other races, granting them land in exchange for military support. The orcs seized the opportunity and obtained some land. From here they launched an offensive, reorganizing their armies, and soon the northern part of Elmore was under their control. But the battles between noble and low-born orcs still weakened the former.

There was also fierce fighting between the elves and their dark brethren, with no end in sight. As for the dwarves, they were not a serious obstacle to the army of orcs and were easily thrown back.

And then a new force appeared in the world - an influential group of people known as the kingdom of Elmore. They declared that they were the direct descendants of Emperor Elmoreden, whether it was true or not, but they were believed, because they possessed the truth of power and steel for sure. Orcs and humans clashed in large-scale battles across the continent. This war lasted for many years, and it cost both sides very dearly. However, the people again emerged victorious from it, and the orcs retreated to their lands, sharpen their axes and prepare for revenge. The few surviving dwarves were banished from the continent to the mountains by humans.

Now, although Elmore's army had been reduced in size, it had taken control of all the northern lands and marched south to unite everyone under its banner. But the unification of the divided continent did not happen. Oren, the most powerful southern kingdom, repulsed Elmore's attack with the help of powerful magicians and trained warriors. Elmore's army was too weak to resist.

Under the protection of Oren, many southern kingdoms flourished, which later began to unite into some kind of nation. In this union, everything was balanced and balanced, so the southern lands flourished.

Chapter 19

Wars lasted for several generations, until Gracia rose from the abyss of chaos to bring everyone to unity. A man named Paris, possessor of great strength and military prowess, glorified himself and his people by winning numerous battles and conquering lands in the name of Beheim.

Paris became a legend when he and his army met the Queser Highlanders. In a desperate battle with Thor, the best warrior of Quoser, Paris dealt the enemy a decisive blow. Thor, who had never lost before, said,

“Are you really human? Such strength and speed!!”

Standing over the defeated enemy, Paris looked around the battlefield and replied,

“I just want to unite these lands… Brave warrior of the North, join me and together we will destroy those who oppose us.”

And Paris led the Knights of the White Hawk, the Knights of the Wind, and the Highlanders who joined them, through the lands of Gracia, defeating many in his path and capturing so much land that Beheim increased five times compared to its former borders. Soon, Paris overthrew the government by force and ascended the throne.

Meanwhile, a new leader has emerged in the southern lands. Charismatic and self-confident, a man named Raul was gathering new strength under his flag. Raul's fiery speeches smashed his opponents to smithereens - and no worse than a sword or mace could do. Here is one example of his speech:

“Lords of the Lands! Can't you see what's going on outside our lands? The enemies are preparing to move against us as we speak! The Kingdom of Elmore has long coveted our lands and riches, and is only waiting for “the right time to attack. And if Gracia decides to attack, we are lost! We have no choice - we need to combine our forces to be ready for war.”

At first, Raul united with his ally Inadril, and these lands were called Aden. Unlike Paris, Raul pursued a non-violent policy and easily annexed the lands of Kiran and Dion to Aden.

In Oren, Raul suddenly encountered resistance to his plans. Oren did not want to accept any other leader than his own. As a result, this led to a war, from which the kingdom of Aden emerged victorious. The Kingdom of Gladio voluntarily laid down its arms and joined Aden, thus completing the unification. Subsequently, Raoul became known as the King of Unity.

Chapter 20

Shortly after the unification of Aden, Grace was finally strengthened when the last opponent of Paris fell dead at his feet. Paris moved the capital to Arpenino and reorganized the structure of the kingdom.

Aden, having successfully repulsed Elmore's attacks, proved that he is worth reckoning with. However, a tragedy soon befell Aden - the sudden death of Raul. Sensing that the moment was right to attack, Elmore attacked again, this time from the north. Raul's successor, Trabis, held back the attackers, but soon died of an unknown illness. The next contender for the throne was sixteen-year-old Amadeo.

Upon hearing of this, Paris exclaimed, “The heavens themselves help the kingdom of Gracia! Sixteen year old king? This will be the downfall of the Aden Kingdom!”

But Paris seriously underestimated the young Amadeo. The boy defeated Elmore in a large-scale battle. Paris felt that the opportunity to capture Aden was slipping through his hands. Ignoring all advice, including even his right hand adviser Dillios, Paris launched a massive offensive against Aden by land and sea.

The result was incredible.

Esther, the exiled king of Elmore, joined Aden, with whom his father had been at enmity for many years.

“Don't you have pride? You should have fallen on your own sword for siding with your father's enemy!”

Esther ignored the tirade and replied, “The cub can be taken care of later, but for now, my main target is you.”

The battle on Kiran soil was the turning point in this war, when the warriors of Gracia, wounded and demoralized, returned to their homeland with nothing. Failure in this war deeply hurt the pride of Paris, who had not known the price of defeat before. A little later, Paris fell ill and soon died.

The heir to the throne of Gracia was Karnaria, a frail man who was considered by many to be incapable of ruling the kingdom. Cucarus challenged him, deciding to ascend the throne himself. Dillios, a former adviser to Paris, supported him, and he began to gain fame among the people of Gracia. In the end, he and Karnaria divided the kingdom into two camps. Northern and Southern Gracia became bitter enemies, directing all their energy to confront each other.

This news pleased Amadeo, who used the pause in the war to strengthen and strengthen the kingdom of Aden. Thanks to his efforts, Aden, Elmore and Gracia concluded a peace treaty. A difficult age of peace has come.

Chapter 21

When the stranger finished, it began to get light. The long night passed, the dawn cut through the brightening sky. The fire had long since died out, leaving only smoldering ash. The narrator lit his pipe and took a deep puff.

“So my story is over. Time will pass, and maybe, who knows, it will continue? Who knows, maybe your names will someday be in my story?

The morning light illuminated everything around. I suddenly felt uneasy. It’s like something important is passing me by… It took some effort for me to speak, and I dared to ask, “Who are you? And why did they tell us all this…and…how do you know all this?”

The man silently got up. And as soon as he stood up to his full height, he began to grow! While he was sitting, he was of normal size, but now he was truly huge - almost twenty feet in height - and the shadow from him covered our entire company. And then he slowly began to disappear! Dissolving, as if in a fog, with a sudden gust of wind, he flew away like dust ...
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He took a deep drag, inhaled the smoke and exhaled slowly.

Most of his face was hidden under a thick old hood, and behind him was only pitch blackness. In the dim glow of the tube it was impossible to make out his features.

We made ourselves comfortable near the fire, holding weapons ready to use in case of danger, and began to listen carefully.

The night was cold through and through. The man put down the phone and began the story...

Genesis

The story I want to tell you is about those whom we call Gods. Listen carefully - as if this is a true story...

After one hundred million years, the ball began to increase in size and at the same time two forces began to appear. Slowly, but they grew and eventually split into White Light and Darkness. The White Light took on a female form and called himself Einhasad. The darkness took on the male and gave itself the name Gran Kain. These two entities laid the foundation for a new universe and everything that exists now.

Creation of races