The Goblins were granted the powers of evil by Dréagg and became reviled and feared, and mighty was their cunning so that they wormed their way into positions of trust with Malcoff and Saurelon and the Keepers of the Seeds.

‘And so finally it came about that Ammdar Lord of the Forest had at one time in his possession the Three Seeds of Logic. The power could not be granted to the Goblins for they were of Magic and Magic and Logic would not lie together. Thus he conceived of the idea that if the gift of Logic were to be given to the animals in return for their acceptance of him and the Rule of Evil then would he truly be supreme over the Earth and the overthrow of Malcoff and Saurélon would be complete.

‘So on a night when the moon did not shine and the air was still he did summon the Leaders of the Animals to his lair in the deepest forests of Spath and there he offered them this mighty gift if they would pledge themselves to him alone.

‘But the powers of Ashgaroth were strong in the animals and they rejected the offer of Ammdar so that they might remain in the light of Ashgaroth.

‘And a great fury came over the Lord of the Forest at his rejection so that his wrath was terrible to see and the animals fled in fear and the trees shook till they were rended from the earth and the mighty boughs tore and broke like blades of grass.

‘And Dréagg watched the ravings of Ammdar with much satisfaction for the Lord of the Forests was now as clay in his hands to be used as he would.

‘ “Let us take revenge for your rejection,” he whispered in the mind of Ammdar, “on these creatures which scorn your might.”

‘And it was thus that Ammdar and the Ruler of Evil, the mighty Dréagg, created a race of beings which they called Man; which we call, in the language of the Old Ones, Urkku which means “The Great Enemy”.

‘And in them was all the wrath of Ammdar against the animals so that they had no regard for them and Dréagg planted the root of cruelty deep within the Urkku so that they were cruel in their ways towards them for Man had been made as an instrument of revenge.

‘And Man was created with the power of the Three Seeds so that he was of pure Logic; and Magic, the gift of the Mighty Ashgaroth to the Elves, was denied to him. Clever was the work of Dréagg for even as Ashgaroth had bestowed upon the Elves fragments of himself so did Dréagg give to Man, alongside the root of cruelty, the evil nature of arrogance so that he believed himself to be supreme over all the Earth and over all the Creatures of the Earth. And in his logic, this justified his treatment of the animals.

‘So Man began his reign over the Earth and Dréagg was well pleased for the jewel of Ashgaroth was torn asunder and the colours faded and the green growing things withered and died and it became as a barren waste. And only what was necessary for the support or pleasure of the Urkku was allowed to survive.

‘And the creatures of Ashgaroth, the Elves, whose powers were of Magic, were driven out by Man and began to dwell in the secret hidden places deep in the fortress of the Earth; known only to the animals.

‘And Ammdar also was well pleased as he watched for truly a terrible revenge was exacted on the animals and great was their suffering.

‘And the Tale of their Persecution and Abuse is as known to you as is the air you breathe.

‘But some there were among the Urkku who cast out the influence of Dréagg and in whom the root of cruelty and the nature of arrogance failed to grow. And they turned towards Ashgaroth and he opened their eyes so that they had glimpses of the Earth even as the Elves and the animals do and they saw the magic in the mountains and the trees and the sea and they were as one with the animals so that they are called Eldron or The Friends.

‘And throughout the reign of Man have been the Eldron but in numbers they are few. And for their ways have they been laughed at, scorned and ridiculed, and a great anger is in them as they see the suffering and horror inflicted by their fellow race on the animals whose pain they feel as they would feel pain inflicted on their fellows for with them is all cruelty vile.

‘For Ammdar, Lord of the Forests, the taste of power was to be bittersweet and brief, for Dréagg had no more use for him and in him Dréagg sensed appetites to rival even his gargantuan tastes. So did the Ruler of Evil sow the seeds of discontent among Ammdar’s lair in the Forests of Spath, and a Goblin, Degg by name, was given the power to destroy Ammdar, which is to say that the sword of Degg was woven with the spell of time; for in his fall from Ashgaroth Ammdar had lost the immortality of the Elves, and Dréagg now could destroy the Goblins as he wished by halting the flow of time within them.

‘And the sight of the destruction of Ammdar was truly horrible and the sound of his wailing at the anguish of his betrayal, even by Dréagg who had sworn to make him great, rang out from the Forests of Spath and sounded long and loud throughout the Earth for many moons so that the Elves trembled even as they rejoiced at his ending.

‘And since that time the smells of corruption, deceit and trickery have lingered around the Goblins’ lair in the Forests of Spath and they have fought and quarrelled constantly among themselves, forgotten even by he who spawned them, using each the other to indulge their vile games and appetite for cruelty. Yet sometimes will Dréagg use them in the struggle against us so that they are not to be ignored.

‘And with the destruction of Ammdar, I, the Lord Wychnor, was appointed by Ashgaroth to become Lord of the Forests and the Green Growing Things.

‘And thus it is that in the Shadow of Dréagg dwells the Earth. The Elves and the Animals cried out to Ashgaroth that they had been abandoned, for truly they were powerless against the Elrondin of Pure Logic. And they beseeched Ashgaroth that he might help them. And he answered them and said, “Be patient” for it was as he had said, truly Logic was the most dangerous of the Elrondin and in Man it had been used with no regard for its power and was pure and undilute so that in it are the seeds of self-destruction.

‘And Ashgaroth further promised them that when the time was right and the stars in the heavens were in their true place then would he send a Saviour who was truly of the Duain Elrondin, so that in him lay both Magic and Logic and to this Saviour he would show the way and through him would they be saved.

‘And the Tale of his Coming is even as has happened; he would be born of two of the Eldron so that he would be possessed of Logic yet would his spirit come from Ashgaroth so that he would have Magic. And in him would the influence of Dréagg not exist so that he would be afflicted by neither cruelty nor arrogance. And he would be raised among the animals to be with them and to be of them.

‘And so it is, Nab, that we believe you to be this Saviour and I, Wychnor, as the Elflord who dwelt nearest to you, have watched over you since the day your parents, the Chosen Eldron, left you in the snow.

‘But you must travel to meet the two other Elflords so that they may recognize and know you. They dwell in other Nations across the seas but they will journey here and meet you in a part of their Kingdom which is in this Nation.

‘So the Lord Saurelon will meet you by the sea where it thunders and rages in the westernmost part of this nation in a place I shall direct you to and then you will journey to meet the Lord Malcoff in a high place amongst the towering mountains which border our nation in the far north.

‘And Ashgaroth has directed that from each of the Elflords will you be given a small casket within which will be found the essence, The Grain, of their Kingdom, called the Faradawn, and when you have these three, then will the Mighty Ashgaroth reveal to you alone what is the Way.