Everes

Everes is the central continent of Illaria comprised of a northern region, Achadia, and southern region, Elvenrend , seperated by an enourmous mountain range known as the Thanes.

Early History
When the gods descended and the Titans were chained by the yolk, Everes is where they convened to create the world. As the first crag sculpted by the hands of Vulcanos the Shaper, it was the first to undergo the scrutiny of the gods. After Everes was approved, the other continents were molded to be separate, and different, much as the gods themselves were separate and different. Everes remained as the central continent where the gods deposited their wisdom and began their quest to fulfill The Grand Design as handed down by the will of The Great One. The gods commanded the Titans and together they created life in the form of plants, and animals. Then their greatest accomplishment was achieved; The Elves. These living, breathing mortals were gifted with strength, wisdom, grace, and longevity. However; even with all of these qualities, they were imperfect and had been possessed with a strange disease that began to deteriorate their minds after 400 years of life. The gods saw this as a limiting factor, preventing them from ever reaching god status themselves. The Titans viewed this flaw as a blight to their otherwise flawless craftsmanship and harbored disdain for the gods and their hubris.

''Vorenn: “I cannot abide these insects becoming our equals, I will not have it. For them to hold a candle to us is simply unthinkable. You have lost your mind, brother.” ''

''Vallum: “The only thing stopping them from becoming like us are their bodies. The responsibility of maintaining this world should not rest squarely with us. We should let our creations share that burden that they may be more in tune with us and in the process strengthen the bonds we share with this world and the cosmos outside.” ''

''Arthum: “What’s this talk of burdens? I have none, I am free. I am a goddess who will rule in this world providing what I will when I will it. Nothing more needs to be said, Vallum. You would shackle us to these pitiful things? Look at them. They cannot begin to realize the power they already possess simply by living. You want to allow them to continue only to be torn apart by their own inability to comprehend what we have seen? I will not be tied to them! I will not teach them!” ''

''Minnaver: “What our sister says is true. Allowing them to gather power and shape the world which we have been tasked with controlling is not the way the Grand Design was intended. We are the rulers of this world, not these fragile creatures you so desperately cling to for some kind of affection. I refuse to have my will challenged by feeble beings who do not know the first thing about the great burden we are bound to. I will not bend to innately inferior beings!” ''

''Jeuno: “Vallum, while your intentions are noble. I am inclined to agree with them. Even if we allowed them to become like us, there is no grantee that they would be able to fathom the depth of the Grand Design. Their minds, so young and untouched would simply not be able to handle it, not to mention their physical bodies would not be able to contain the vast power we draw on effortlessly. The power of the gods is not meant for mortal bodies.” ''<span style="font-size:10pt;line-height:115%;font-family:Helvetica,sans-serif;background-position:initialinitial;background-repeat:initialinitial;">

<p class="MsoNormal">''<span style="font-size:10pt;line-height:115%;font-family:Helvetica,sans-serif;background-position:initialinitial;background-repeat:initialinitial;">Zon: “Jeuno has a point, as much as I’d like to disagree with the most spineless of us. We would be doing them a disservice saddling them with what was supposed to be our charge. Neglecting our responsibility to the Great One would be the most horrendous act we could conceive of at this point. The thought of destroying these creations outright is simply out of the question.” ''<span style="font-size:10pt;line-height:115%;font-family:Helvetica,sans-serif;background-position:initialinitial;background-repeat:initialinitial;">

<p class="MsoNormal">''<span style="font-size:10pt;line-height:115%;font-family:Helvetica,sans-serif;background-position:initialinitial;background-repeat:initialinitial;">Benzast: “Then we are all in agreement…the Elves will not be allowed to become like us, they are simply too many in number, and their fragile bodies simply cannot compare with our perfected physiology. Therefore; this flaw shall be placed within their very being…and we shall remain timeless so that the responsibility of keeping the imbalanced forces of this world aligned will sit squarely upon our shoulders. This is the best plan. Can you concede this point, then, Vallum?” ''<span style="font-size:10pt;line-height:115%;font-family:Helvetica,sans-serif;background-position:initialinitial;background-repeat:initialinitial;">

''<span style="font-size:10pt;line-height:115%;font-family:Helvetica,sans-serif;background-position:initialinitial;background-repeat:initialinitial;">Vallum: “Though I disagree…I can see no way around this. Nor can I seem to persuade you to see reason. So let it be done, and we shall no longer bring up the subject. I wash my hands of the whole thing.” ''

<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10pt;line-height:115%;font-family:Helvetica,sans-serif;border:1ptnonewindowtext;padding:0in;background-position:initialinitial;background-repeat:initialinitial;">- An excerpt from the stage play, 'How it Must Have Been' by  Thaddius Kine 862 3E.<span style="font-size:10pt;line-height:115%;font-family:Helvetica,sans-serif;background-position:initialinitial;background-repeat:initialinitial;">

The War of Good and Evil
Years passed, tensions mounted in the Elven community as those more in tune with nature felt that banishment for man was not enough. The cries of the earth could be heard by them from across the great mountains where the distant cousins of man, the Dwarves, were slowly chipping away an empire of stone. This drove those Elves to madness, so much so that Vorenn was able to seduce them to a path of war. He gave them forbidden powers, that of control and manipulation of the Voidfont, a power reserved for the gods alone. Thus the First Covenent was broken and the Elves who recieved this power, believing themselves to be the purest of the other races because of their newfound gift, renamed themselves “The Highborne ” and began using their magic to enslave Men and Dwarves and kill any Elves that dared to oppose them. The other gods saw this and looked on; some with horror, others with wild fascination, and still others with murderous glee. Humans and Dwarves fought alongside one another for the first time since their conception, Elves soon joined with them in an uneasy alliance to thwart the powers that enslaved and killed them.

As the mortal races divided, so too did the gods. Vorenn had broken the First Covenant and would not be allowed to get away with defying their rule. Arthum, looking down upon the chaos found herself at Vorenn's side. The warrior queen delighted that she could walk among the mortals in her true form rather than simply watching them toil in the sun. Minnaver, who sought order in the chaos, joined with Vorenn to quell the chaos begot by the mortal race's uprising. She believed that with the power of the gods, the Highborne would emerge the victors and so she pledged herself to that ideal so that a new order would emerge from the coming battles. From her realm she summoned forth daemons and ordered them into battle. With their terrifying strength, they caused great distress to the mortal race's troops. Arthum, having no real servants of her own, took aside two thousand highborn and gave them the way of the lancer, her personal fighting style which drew upon their arcane energies to fuel their combat prowess, these she dubbed the "Tameless Ones" and protected them as her own children.

Vallum rallied behind the humans, as they had always been his favorites. Jeuno, the life-giver, gave his support to the Elves as they had always honored his creations. Zon, the steadfast, pledged his strength to the Dwarves who held within them the same stalwart nature and solid determination as he. Benzast, angry with Vorenn's treachery, reveled his sons and daughters, the Windlings and pledged to knock Vorenn from his seat of power.

Zon: "Minnaver, you are a goddess of order. You have pledged your life to that ideal. Why then do you support this traitorous scum?"

Minnaver: "If chaos turns to order, what matter is it what order prevails? The Highborne become more adept with our powers with each passing day, even with your numbers, there is no way that you can win. If there is to be order, let it be a new order that rises from the ashes."

Zon: "If magic is the power to win the war, then we will grant our servants this power as well. We will crush you and put your beloved ashes back in Hel."

Minnaver: "You and I both know that the Lord of Light will never allow you to compromise your integrity in this way. He will want to fight with mortal strength. That will be your undoing; and his."

War was waged, and the Highborne became increasingly adept with their powers; even using it to construct large, magical, floating cities from which they could control and destroy at their leisure. Woe spread over the land as one by one, the nations of the light that had been constructed fell. God fought god, man fought daemon, and all creation rose up in agony crying out to the Will of The Great One.

<p class="MsoNormal">The war ended with the final straw; Vorenn slew his brother, Vallum on the field of battle returning his spirit to Ethirius. 107 years passed and the side of light was fighting a losing battle against tides of enemies with far greater power. Soon after Vallum fell in battle to Vorenn, the Will of The Great One awakened from His slumber of over six centuries. Seeing His fallen son, and the chaos that had come from Vorenn’s evil, The Great One devised to create guardians for His world. Through His will, He created five sacred dragons; Veagna, the dragon of the Great Skies, Xiern, the dragon of the Vile Deep, Anguilles, the dragon of Burning Flow, Naerune, the dragon of Serene Oceans, and Segoras, the dragon of Unity. These dragons, the culmination of the final strength left in the Great One before again going into a long slumber, stood between the gods and mortals; between good and evil. They halted the war and sent the gods back to Ethirius while they watched over the reconstruction of a better world. The Age of Mortals had finally begun.

The Age of Mortals
With the war ended, the mortal races were freed from their bonds. Humans, Elves, Dwarves, and Windlings settled in their homes. The Elves were granted Elvenrend, never to be taken from them again. The Humans were able to resettle Achadia, the Dwarves continued to carve out their homes in the Thane Mountains, and the Windlings triumphantly returned to the Windswept Cliffs. A single counsil was formed known as the High Coincil Chambers of Everes. A representitive from each of the Noble races, including the Highborne was elected to the council in order to ensure that no race had any more power than the other. Together these men began to record history, and year 1 of the Second Age began when the quill pressed to paper. The council wrote history as it happened, published new discoveries, ratified trade agreements and treaties between local chieftains on both sides of the mountians, and ensured that peace remained the norm for over 1300 years after its founding.

In 1224 2E, the sacred dragons woke from their millenium long slumber and began to explore their world, settling down in places that suited them and allowed them to keep their vigil without reawakening old fears that have been long forgotten. Veagna settled near the mountain village of Sarthol where he was captivated by the daily lives of mortals. He sought to learn, and so he set out across the land learning of every culture and making friends in the guise of a tall man with dark hair and green eyes. His human guise hid all of his draconian features and allowed him to live as they do. Though he saw many things, none was more captivating than the prospect of love and marriage. These were forbidden thoughts, but Veagna pursued his feelings when he returned to Sarthol where he reunited with a farm girl who had once given him shelter named Lyssia. Though seemingly insignificant, their time together was the beginning of the end for the long peace that mortals had fought and died for so many years ago.