AGES AND TIMES

BEFORE THE FIRST ERA

INTRODUCTION

Creation is considered the beginning of everything. It marks the moment when the worlds and the gods were brought into existence. The first god to be created was Thuror, followed by the other nineteen gods who were brought into being. Together, they formed the High Council of the Gods of Naumathar. After a long time since the creation of the gods, Naumathar granted power and helped the gods create humans and their respective lineages. Three levels of lineages were created in order of importance: the First, Second, and Third Lineages. Each lineage had one or more purposes in the world, though this changed over time. Each god had the duty and obligation to care for their lineage, assisting the First Man of the lineage and overseeing the progress and development of each. However, much transpired between the period of the Creation of the Gods – Before the First Era – and the Creation of the Lineages, which is marked by the First Era, even though time was not recorded for a long stretch at the beginning of the First Era. Thus, the period called by many "Before the First Era" witnessed many events, such as the creation of the Thuoroms, the Argonas, and the Gontthers and their Arlierocs by the gods. In contrast, it was also when, in secret, the Thorens and the Ardolerocs were created by Omnathar, who had, in fact, transformed the Gontthers and their beasts. What Naumathar neither knew nor suspected was that Omnathar had future plans that went entirely against what was intended for the worlds, gods, and later, men. Omnathar carried out all his creations in complete darkness. Shortly before this, Omnathar discovered that Naumathar could not see anything in the shadows and created the realm of Darkness in Anathurilis. During this period, tensions escalated between some of the gods, including Thuror and Naumathar, regarding the Acros. The disputes centered around the release of the Acrons from the Fortress of Thorcranom. Despite the disagreements, the release took place, and the Acrons settled in a region known as Ácrole, within the boundaries of Mount Naumathar, though outside the reach of the Castle of Light. It was during this time that the first great war erupted, involving the Gods and the Acrons, who led their respective armies into battle. Unbeknownst to Naumathar and Thuror, Omnathar was the true architect behind these events, working methodically and in secret from the shadows. Distressed by the unfolding chaos, Naumathar sought Omnathar to ask for his counsel, but found only emptiness. Omnathar had concealed himself deep within the realm of Darkness.

THE CREATION OF THE GODS

One of the confusions that may arise is the distinction between what constitutes the defined period of the First Era and what comes before it, that is, the period of Creation or Before the First Era, as it came to be called by the First Men. This confusion occurs for a simple reason: time was not measured in the preceding period, nor at the beginning of the First Era. In this sense, many events that took place during these periods are only organized by the sequence of what happened before and what happened after the previous event. There is no temporal precision regarding one event compared to another, nor how much time elapsed between them; rather, it is the chronology of events that is important. Thus, we know what happened first and what happened later, and so on. The dividing factor is the Creation of the First Man, Naöhrad, created by Thuror, the First God, also known as the god of gods. The gods inhabited a realm located on Mount Naumathar, situated in Anahkólion, a divine place virtually inaccessible to other creatures. With the power received from Naumathar and at his request, the gods created the First Men, who were named the First Lineages. In total, there are seven First Lineages created: Naöhrad and the Thayad's are considered Native or Pure Lineages because they were created by only one god or goddess; meanwhile, the lineages of Juhl, Pólorh, Urhul, Thovar, and Reimthor are considered Mixed First Lineages. In practice, there is not much difference between them, except for the Lineage of Naöhrad, to which all must pledge allegiance. Thus, the dividing mark between the period called Before the First Era and the First Era is the creation of Naöhrad.

KINGDOM OF NAÖHRAD

Other men from different lineages were created later by other gods. The purpose of creating the Second and Third Lineages was to foster diversity among the lineages, along with the capacity, quality, and purpose for which each was designed. Thus, the Second Lineages of Oruthor, Motharum, Alarorhim, Nosferac, and Vortox were created to engage in commerce, agriculture, navigation, and the expansion or exploration of other worlds. The Third Lineages of Borodhûr, Dokhenar, Maiush, Isfhulor, Zoneash, and Dailorhor were intended to meet the needs of the First Lineages by providing direct services to the kingdom, such as cleaning, food supply, cavalry, royal guards, and serving as soldiers in the armies. It was these Lineages and these men who began to inhabit and populate the land known as Anahkólion during the First Era. A significant amount of time passed, how much exactly is uncertain, but hundreds of Cycles later, time began to be counted and recorded by Yondar, the First Wizard. With the registration of the Cycles, comprising winter and summer, the former being much longer than the latter, the lineages began to position themselves in time and space, and everything was documented. From this act emerged the periods or commemorative dates of the kingdoms and the people. The duration of the First Era remains a mystery, as mentioned before, its beginning was not recorded. What we can ascertain is that each counted cycle consisted of the seasons of winter and summer, with autumn and spring not being accounted for, as they were undefined in Anahkólion. It is important to note that, due to Anahkólion's location in the far South of the worlds, winters had cycles approximately twice and a little longer in temporal measurement than summer. In the First Era of Anahkólion, around 1730 Cycles composed of winters and summers were recorded (this accounts for the registered Era, not including the earlier time estimated to be over 500 Cycles).

INTRODUCTION

The Eras and Times began to be recorded and measured more accurately, so to speak, after the emergence of the First Hísthalar, the First Wizard. Theoretically, this happened long after what is considered the First Era by the kings of Anahkólion. Two factors must be considered when it comes to the reckoning of time, in order to understand the structure of Anahkólion: the period known as BEFORE THE FIRST ERA and the elapsed time already within the FIRST ERA, which was not properly documented, since the First Wizard appeared long after the world of Anahkólion had already been established. Based on these factors, we will introduce everything that occurred in Anahkólion after the creation of the Gods of Anahkólion, starting with the long period referred to as BEFORE THE FIRST ERA. As we delve deeper into the completion of the lore surrounding Anahkólion, along with its Eras and Times, whether based on events or the counting of Cycles, we will begin to discuss the events of Anathurilis and Ernathurilis. Later, we will talk about Ernthys and its corresponding Eras, always using the counting from the First Era of Anahkólion as the starting point, where it all began. However, unlike other worlds, we will discuss Ernt-nador in much more detail, as it will be the world where the story starts to unfold in the present-future, specifically in the year 2139 of the Time of Thur, in the Third Era of Ernt-nador. To establish a comparison and a chronological reference, the year 2139 of the Ernt-nador Calendar falls within the Third Era of Ernt-nador, during the Time of Thur, and in the reckoning of the Eras, it corresponds to the Tenth Era of Anahkólion. But we will speak more about Ernt-nador, its three Eras, and its various Times in their dedicated sections in the Ernt-nador menu, focusing on the year 1974 of the Time of the Wizards, during the Second Era of Ernt-nador, where the initial story is told. It is important to understand that, although most worlds were colonized after the end of the First Era of Anahkólion, Anathurilis is an exception, and in a way, we can also consider Ernathurilis in this category if we take into account that the kingdom of the Thayad's and the kingdom of Naöhrad were the first to begin their constructions in that world. In this sense, we can advance that the beginning of the worlds started in Anahkólion first, and later expanded to Anathurilis and Ernathurilis. Even though records place the Second Era as the start of the kingdoms' movements toward exploring other worlds, this movement happened before the full understanding of the movement itself. It is worth noting that, even though there is a chronological analysis of the events that occurred in the period BEFORE THE FIRST ERA, it is not possible to measure this period by Cycles, as happens in the First Era, after the counting and recording of the Cycles by Yondar, the First Wizard. Thus, it is important to understand the sequence of events, regardless of how much time passed for each to unfold in the period known as BEFORE THE FIRST ERA.

CYCLES OF THE FIRST ERA

Before the First Era of Anahkólion, Cycles were not counted; only the contrast between harsh winters and mild summers was observed. Records were kept in a random manner, typically referring to events as having happened “so many winters ago.” In short, there was no concern about time. This was because mankind had not yet been created, and since the gods and Acrons were immortal and divine, there was no reason to worry about something as insignificant as time. At least, that’s how most of the gods viewed it. After all, time did not affect their existence, not yet, anyway. The Cycles began to be counted with the First Lineage of Naöhrad, though more accurately with the appearance of the wizard Yondar, much later on. The Cycles were simply a way to track the passage of time and measure the average lifespan of men who had not received their medallion to grant them immortality through the Eras. Of course, this excluded the First Men like Naöhrad, Juhl, Pólorh, or the First Woman, Thayad, who did not need the Divine Medallion to live as immortals. Upon the birth of each child from the First Lineages, the parents could choose whether or not to give the newborn the Medallion of the Gods. This medallion contained a drop of blood from each parent and one from the newborn. The drops were mixed and fused into a medallion crafted by master Jolur, one of the Artificers of the Gods. With the Medallion, the individual would attain immortality as long as they wore it. Death could still come to those who wore the Medallion, but it would not come naturally. Unfortunately, after a long time, master Jolur stopped crafting the artifact, and not all descendants were bestowed with the Medallion of the Gods. As time passed, Yondar taught the Kingdom’s Councillors the correct way to count Cycles so they could better estimate the lifespan of men from the First, Second, and Third Lineages. Each counted and recorded Cycle consisted of winter and summer seasons, as autumn and spring were not clearly identified in those early days. It’s important to highlight that Anahkólion, located in the far South of worlds like Ernthys and Ernt-nador, both of which hadn’t been explored at the time, had winters with Cycles that were about twice and a little longer in temporal terms than the summers. During the First Era of Anahkólion, approximately 1,730 Cycles made up of winters and summers were recorded. Compared to our Gregorian Calendar, winters would have spanned around 14 months, while summers typically lasted about 5 months. Thus, a Unit of Cycle would total around 19 months and a few days. The First Era of Anahkólion didn’t have a proper name and wasn’t thoroughly compiled during its time. Nevertheless, in the Third Era, it started to be documented better and came to be known as the "Era of the Gods" by the men descended from the First Lineages. Understanding that the crucial aspect was the events recorded in the Book of All Times, the wizard Yondar chose not to change the name but simply added a note on how the people of Anahkólion referred to it.

IN THE CYCLES OF ANAHKÓLION, WINTER LASTED TWICE AS LONG AS SUMMER

FIRST ERA

SECOND ERA

INTRODUCTION

The Second Era begins with the decision of the High Council of Kings in Naöhrad to initiate the migration of various descendants of the First Lineages to the lands of Anathurilis and Ernathurilis. It is important to highlight that, before this migration occurred, descendants of the First, Second, and Third Lineages had already departed, some with consent and others without, from Anahkólion in search of new worlds. These events took place for various reasons that were somewhat obscured to discourage others from following suit. Each of these reasons will be thoroughly explained when the story requires it. However, for the same reasons, they were ignored in the records of some lineages. Some of the first two lineages were aware of and granted approval for the expeditions, while the last lineage left Anahkólion stealthily, disappearing entirely into the seas. As an example of the first two, we can mention the lineage of Naöhrad itself, which, at the behest of the king, sent descendants to establish the first kingdom in Ernathurilis. Although the true story is different, few know that the first kingdom erected in Ernathurilis was that of the Thayad’s, but this fact was suppressed. No one would dare take that merit and achievement away from Naöhrad. Additionally, there were incidents involving descendants of the First Lineage of Naöhrad. One such descendant, named Ern, however, took a different path than the others and ended up arriving in another land, which he named Ernthys. There, Ern founded and established the first kingdom, called Anörh. Eras and times later, and certainly many hundreds of Cycles afterward, Anörh came to be considered the greatest of the kingdoms in Ernthys. However, for Naöhrad, Ern was never seen again, and a ceremony without a body was held to commemorate his departure. But the truth was different; Naöhrad was merely fulfilling a role that had been ordered of him. The Second Era has discrepancies regarding its conclusion in relation to Naöhrad and Yondar.

TIME OF THE EXPEDITIONS, BEGINNING OF THE SECOND ERA

Other realms were founded in different worlds by descendants of other lineages, but these are stories that will be told at the right moment in history, including the expeditions that took place.

THIRD ERA

INTRODUCTION

The Third Era became known as the Era of Darkness, but this recognition occurred long after its beginning. There is divergence regarding the events and moments that marked its onset. Nevertheless, whether there are disagreements or not, there was, at some point, the commencement of its counting. For the First Lineage of Naöhrad, the Era of Darkness begins with the abduction of his daughter, Viah, by Nomenadhúrth. This was the beginning that was recorded in the Book of the Lineage of Naöhrad. For the First Wizard, Yondar, the Third Era begins with the War of Darkness in the realm of Darkness in Anathurilis.

TIME OF DARKNESS OF ANAHKÓLION

Many significant events took place, and they will be told in Book One of the series - The Origin of Evil - The Lord of Darkness.