This was a terrifying time for the inhabitants of Illystrian lands. These creatures kept men living in very primitive conditions and continually harassed them, destroying their villages or demanding human sacrifice. Authapis herself was almost consumed in flames several times. Some nations built domes over their cities, such as is found in the East, and kept off dragon attacks from the air.
The most common solution men had was to build underground shelters. Indeed, in this age there were many cavernous cities built into the hills, cities which are no longer inhabited by men. Some of them go very deep, as many as twenty layers, for the dragons were even able to follow their prey underground. Thus were labyrinths designed first by men, in order that these creatures be eluded, and their own dear lives be saved.
Indeed, men were not capable, either because of weakness or on account of the primitive weapons and tactics, to hunt down and slay dragons.
The Allfather looked down on all lands across the Intermundian Sea and saw the perishing of Men, so, having pity, the Allfather sent the race of Elves to hunt down and cull the race of Dragons.
The elves prefered to dwell the northernmost lands, removed from the uncouth ways of mortal men, the mountains of Nathycanth and the forests of Plathonis. There they built mysterious and palatial fortresses few have ever seen.
The end of the age began with the Dragon Gnotus. Gnotus was almost slain in his youth by an elderly elven dragonhunter, Fendil. This elf had pity on Gnotus and made him swear vows not to kill men. Gnotus learned of the Allfather from this elf and after time grew to great wisdom.
He tried to persuade his brother dragons to do good and keep from greed and killing, and refrain from demanding worship, human sacrifice, hording, and other evils. Gnotus warned that if the dragons did not repent God would allow the elves to destroy the entire race.
Some dragons began to listen and change, and these later became the mythic saahtum-race of Neoplatonian Dragons.
Just as quickly as there was repentance, temptation came in the form of the great Scorg, an evil Red Dragon, who appeared in the skies and drew most of the other dragons away from Gnotus' teachings.
Gnotus
When the great aeonic gathering of dragons was held on Mt. Abaddon beyond the Sea of Shirvav, Gnotus was put on trial for supposed crimes against dragonhood. The twelve tribes of dragons gave the great dragons of the four directions (which included Scorg the dragonward of the South)nearly unanimous consent to execute Gnotus.
The Neoplatonian dragons persuaded Gnotus to flee and go into aeon-rest, but Gnotus declined, prefering noblility to a shameful life. But when word came that Fendil was mortally wounded in combat against centuars in the Antelynk mountains, Gnotus decided to fly to him.
He never arrived there. Gnotus was mortally wounded by Scorg and three other dragons in aerial combat over the Vastess Desert, which later was named the Dry Blood Sea.
Legend tells of how Gnotus lay dying for a hundred years in the Vastess Desert, and his dried blood filling up the land turned the sands red. As he lay dying, a scribe named Morpheus Memnos recorded the noble dragon wisdom and prophesies which later made up part of The Black Book of Melancholy.
After Gnotus passed from this world, Scorg was able to lead the dragons in an aggressive war against the elves and kept the elves so occupied with war that humankind was not much improved by elven wisdom.
Some of the elves had been seduced by evil, and the extent of their former goodness mirrored the depths of their evils. These elves fled from the upper world and went to dwell in the deepest furnace-caverns of the underdyrth, some call them Drow, followers of the Nol-ghost others call them Anahit, since they swore loyalty to the beast-dragon.
The most notorius drow elf was Thendil the Archdeciever. Some legends claim that this elf was the twin brother of Fendil, the teacher of Gnotus. He opposed the Allfather's decision to end the dragonhunting of the elves and place a human king
over both. He called most other elves to his side and convinced them to lead a war
of rebellion against the Allfather. Fendil alone rebuked Thendil for his treason and apostacy.
With a massive host of elf warlords Thendil assailed Mt. Argunizial attempting to seize the cosmic throne. The elves of Avim remained loyal and repulsed them at the threshold of Ashkhar under the command of Ambrosius. Thendil was struck down by Ambrosius and fled to the North, while the earth opened up and swallowed many others into the nether-furnace where their spirits remain. Others hid in the dark and became the drow.
Another version recounts how Thendil had succumb to lust and wrath on account a beautiful maiden he was not permitted to take. At any rate, he was forbidden to enter the halls of twilight for his crimes and his spirit was banished to the recesses of The Cracked Mountains (formerly the Crach Mountains).
Thendil cursed all life and swore to lead all creatures away from the blessed Allfather. His spirit and form became so warped over the centuries that he was no longer recognizable and soon was called "The Nol Ghost".
On account of the greivous sins of men the Allfather often granted the Nol Ghost power to raise beastly armies of chastizement.
The race of dragons grew more powerful. In order to destroy them the great Elf Queen Arva invited the Atlanteans, a race of mighty men from across the Vastess Sea, to Illystrian shores.
The Atlanteans came with advanced technology, such as the range bow and war-horse, adamantine metalurgy, and plate armour. With these they were able to wipe out the remaining dragons, at least as many as were known. Nor have any dragons been seen in light of day since this age, though rumours of underground dwellers persist.
The Atlanteans were an arrogant race and they would not leave intermundia, but demanded lands and titles, and finally kingdoms of their own. It was they who forged the deadly sword Oceanicing.
They enslaved the Maceonid tribes and built huge fortresses, some of which are still used. Some say that the Atlanteans were a mixed breed, offspring of angels who stole the daughters of men.
Also in this age a cult known as the Eclyptic Coils of Night gained great notoriety in the eastern lands. The cult leader, known as the Dark Shepherd, taught a religious system which required adherents to worship demons in the form of serpents and hideous idols. The cult spread across all lands and kingdoms and became the dominant religion of the eastern world. All men of the arraf (the east) and aram were required to offer infernal sacrifices and do the biddings of the Anahit, the demon lords. When men died, their souls were taken into the dark fires of Hell to suffer unending torment and death.
The Dark Shepherd was unable to protect himself from the purity a certain Maharim barbarian, for these men lived far to the snowy north and eastern plains and still kept the ancientmost traditions of the Allfather. He was cut down by the sword of a barbarian named Cromhur, who later established the kingdom of Ptur near the Pass of Dariel. Cromhur slew many monsterous beasts, some possessed by evil spirits, which plagued men in those days. First he slew the White Tiger of Carcaa, a huge beast that had devoured many men, and took its pelt to wear as armour. He also killed a giant vulture of Accaron, the flesh devouring Boar of Urguard, Nerses the Centuar, and others...the epic cycle is too long to relate here.
After he had slain the Dark Sheperd, a priestess of excessive beauty was allowed to take over the cult. Cromhur married her on the very day they met, immediately overcome by her beauty. However, on the night of the wedding, before the marriage was consumated, the priestess gave poisoned wine to Cromhur in his bed chamber (hoping to seize all power) and the next day celebrated funeral rites for him. Cromhur was not permitted embalming or mumuification according to Gohhan custom, since he was of barbaric descent. There was no knowledge of how his tribe treated the dead. His body was entombed untouched.
Cromhur did not die, but awoke in his tomb, for his body was powerful and pure. He unrolled the heavy stones with his own arm and took back his throne by force, fighting against many heavily armoured Atlantean ranks who had been employed as henchmen by the priestess.
Cromhur then waged a short war against the Atlanteans and humiliated them in several battles. He even captured the great sword Oceanicing. He was wounded badly by an arrow from a range bow and, having never fully recovered from the poison of his wedding night, slowly began to waste away.
The beautiful priestess was actually a powerful demoness from Hell who had taken human form in this time, and she assumed governance over the Eclyptic Coils of Night. She was also made high priestess of the over all the lands and even had the Altlantean warlords doing her bidding. Although she was unable to destroy Cromhur, (who never even again married but remained absolutely pure), she did not die like the Dark Shepherd or other mortals, but ruled for three hundred years from her temples in the Kalar, and the east for a long time was swallowed in darkness.
This age ended when King Cromhur died without a known heir. He was the strongest of all Maceonids. Atlanteans ransacked Ptur looking for the sword Oceanicing. Their boldness cost them. Entering into the castle dungeons they were slain by many traps Cromhur had designed just for them.
After Cromhur no one was strong enough to stand alone against Atlantean bullying or the Demoness.
Read the Book of Bloody Battlesfrom the Second World-Age
