of Legend and Lore
Raneen's Tale

Raneen sat by the fire, plucking at the strings of his lute absently, "I will tell you now of the Legend of the Elves, and the Ancient Lore which they stole. The tale begins when the Gods created the world, but has not yet reached it's end. So fill your mugs, and make yourself comfortable, for a story of this breadth is not a fast one to tell." Raneen waited while his audience refilled their tankards and settled, his stories were famed for their eloquence, and none wished to miss such a treat.

"In the times before the creation of man or beast, wood or leaf, the Gods gathered together the four elements; Earth, Air, Fire and Water. With these tools the toiled for many a long day, and eventually brought forth a world of land, sea and sky, and shaped it to their liking. Clergy usually speak of these early times as being a time of beauty and peace, but like all births it was painful.

"The forces used to create the mountains and the seas caused the world much anguish, and it cried molten rock and hid it's face in clouds of scalding steam. When at last the screaming world settled into a quiet slumber, the Gods then looked to populating it's vast plains and oceans with plant and beast.

"The Gods viewed the young world, and took pride in what they had done. While the creatures they had created seemed happy in their new homes, they were incapable of appreciating the majesty of the Gods creation. The Gods yearned to share the glory of what they had achieved, so in a moment of weakness the Gods created Elves as a lesser reflection of themselves, to revel in the paradise the Gods had built.

"The Elves were but a shadow of the greatness of the Gods, long lived - but not immortal, wise and patient - but not omniscient, having god-like powers - but not all powerful. The Gods charged these Elves to shepherd the young world, and to glory in it's beauty.

"Among the many gifts given by the Gods to the Elves was to use of Arcane Magic, a mighty power which allowed the Elves to perform the duties that had been laid done on them by the Gods. They experimented with the powers they had been bestowed, they began to make changes, small ones. Move a river bed here, change the shape of a leaf there. The Gods were pleased with what the Elves had wrought, and so the Elves grew bolder. New breeds of breast, types of stones, colours of plants came into being under the elves patient hands. The Elves took no small pride in their work, and began to exult in the marvels they had created.

"The Gods looked upon that which the Elves had made, and rejoiced in the skill of their most blessed children, and yet, n making the Elves so like themselves, they had created a child that outgrew it's parents. And so the Gods created man and the other younger races. Instead of granting them the boundless power of Arcane Magic, instead they allowed man to request the use of power by Divine grant. Arcane magics were the essence of the world, the fire and water, earth and air. Divine magic was the ability to petition the Gods to change things, to heal, to observe, to instruct. Divine magic was assistance where Arcane magic was power.

"But the child which was man also grew and learned, there came a time where man began to unlock the secrets of Arcane magic. At first the Elves rejoiced at the coming of age of their younger sibling, then they saw the damage which man created with the ultimate power which was Arcane magic. The long lived Elves were patient, they changed things gradually over time, short-lived man was hasty, he made big changes to appreciate the effect in his short lifespan, and had no concern for what the effect would be after his passing. The Elves watched with horror as their younger sibling brought destruction to much which had taken them millennia to achieve.

"The Elves feared the destruction of their world, finely built and adorned. the pleaded ith the Gods to put a rein on man, but the Gods said that which has been done cannot be undone. Within the race of Elves there grew dissent - there were those who saw man as a blight upon the earth, others that saw man as a willful child requiring instruction. In the end, a great Elven king called Avae Lerret gained ascendance within the councils of the Elves, he spoke to the Elvish lords persuasively, and brought them to his way of thinking.

"He spoke of man as being like a child playing too close to a fire pit, if one could not move the child, then one must move the fire. They are too immature to learn how to use the fire safely, and we cannot afford to wait for them to grow up, they will destroy the world if we wait that long. Instead, let us take the Arcane magic, and seal it up where man cannot use it to make harm.

"Persuaded by his eloquence, they agreed to gather unto them the essential magic of the world, they build a arcane well in their most important city, and foci in each of their other major settlements. The foci drew the magic to them, and then funneled it to the arcane well. But the well filled quickly, and still man stumbled around, clumsy with his awesome strength. Again the voices muttered darkly against man's use of Arcane power, many elves felt it was their right and privilege alone to wield such forces.

"Again Avae Lerret pleaded with the council, telling them that while the magic was trapped here, it can no longer be used to shape this world we live in, but through this magic, I can see another world, barren and unloved. Would it not make a great gift to our father's the Gods if we could present them with yet another tended world, as beautiful as this one? We could divert the magic there, and with it ourselves, and there we could live in peace, free from fear of what these meddlesome man-children may do with the power.

"The council of Elvish lords argued, but were brought about to Avae Lerret's view, a great ritual was performed, and a portal opened between this world and another, the Elves and the Arcane magic which they stole were transported to this new place, and never known of again. A few were left behind, great sorcerers who had performed the rite, and they sealed themselves and their secrets up into a tomb in Avae Lerret's Vale to die a forgotten people.

"Overnight those among the humans who had wielded the power of arcane magic found themselves to be impotent. They raged at the Gods for taking their toy away. Long they screamed, until they were hoarse, and over time man forgot that he had even tasted such power."

Here Raneen stopped to drink the last of his ale. "This is the tale as you have all heard it before, but there is more to it."

"The magic that had been so jealously guarded by the Elves was part of the very life of the world, without it, the world began to wither and die, it cried out in pain, a pain which was felt in the souls of all of the world's people. The God's heard the cries of the world, and where they had shown no pity for Man, they took pity on the world, and they opened the gateway to the place where the Elves had fled, just a crack, but enough for the magic to start to leak back to is rightful place.

"At first, the amount was too little for Man to notice, it barely stopped the decline of the world. But over the centuries, the drip became a trickle, and the trickle a small stream. There came a time when once again, a few special humans found that they too could again wield Arcane Magic. Many, many years had passed since the stealing of the magic by Avae Lerret, humans had grown from a race of children into a race of great men. There was no longer a reason to keep the Arcane powers away from them.

"And so a small band of men were chosen by the Gods to once again bring magic back into the world, to reverse the foul ritual performed by the Elves which in their attempts to protect the world, nearly destroyed it. In doing so they will bring a time of great wonders and prosperity to the younger races, as ever the Elves were supposed to have done.

"This band of great adventurers live in our times, and their quest is now upon them. They are journeying now, even as I speak, towards Avae Lerret's Vale, and their destiny."

A hush fell across the tap room as Raneen stopped speaking. The only sound the crackle of wood settling in the fireplace.

"Barman, a drink," Raneen called out, "telling that tale always makes me thirsty."

And with that, it was as if a spell had been broken, the men lifted their tankards and their voices, allowing the storyteller to move unobserved, away from the fire and rejoined a small band of men gathered around a table at the back of the inn.

Their faces grim, they made room for him around the table.

"So it is agreed," Raneen enquired, "you will leave in the morning, now that you know where to seek the Vale?"

Their leader looked around at the tired faces, "We have travelled so far already, and had hoped to rest, but yes, we agree that this cannot wait. Although the deed was done in ages past, there is no time to be lost in its undoing."

"Perhaps, the next time you tell the saga," their leader gave Raneen a weary grin, "you will have a new chapter to tell..."