The Gur-Docherlan

When Suron-Dur and Harringfender so inadvertantly angered the Cromirlonians at Eimragh's Hall, the world was plunged into a cataclysmic battle: the Gur-Docherlan. If this were any war, one might think that it lasted only for a few months, or perhaps even years. But the period called Gur-Docherlan in fact lasted for centuries. During this time whole civilizations rose and fell in climactic struggle with the various enemies of mankind. However, the story of the Gur-Docherlan is really about the final battle between the men of Malladun, and the Cromir armies of Eimragh the Creator.

When the final days were near, few living members of Cromir-kind remained on Madoria, but their tombs and their battle monuments pimpled the earth. The men of Malladun, led by the gods Paldrune and Harringfendor, had surrounded the last straggling group of Cromirlonians, including Eimragh himself, on the shores of Lake Camaerra.

"Lay down your arms and surrender to us," cried the gods of men to the King of Cromirlon.

Eimragh would not listen to their petty demands, and Eimragh grew angry. He threw up his scaly arms with a great shout, so great that the mountains curled up their feet and hunched their shoulders, and the blackened trees of the dying forests shuddered and collapsed. Then Eimragh the Creator leapt into the vault of the heavens, all fiery with his rage, burning like a comet, sailing higher and higher until finally giving way to the demands of the Gorza, the Earth Mother, and returning home. He landed full into the middle of Lake Camaerra and caused its waters to evacuate. The force of the landing was so great that now the mountains lay flat and the plains rose up. But then Eimragh, knee-deep in the mires of Camaerra's bottom, pressed his hands against the shores with and pushed until his arms were outspread. The great continent of Andora wailed in agony as she was split in two halves -- Auradea and Velaria -- and now the mountains grew higher and the plains deeper, throwing up into the air all the armies that marched on land, tossing them about like little toy men and toy monsters.

Malladun was the Lord of Sky, and with his breath sucked in all his men and all the allies of man, thus saving them from destruction. The Cromirlonians and their allies, however, did not fare so well. Nor did Eimragh, for after seeing the folly of his actions he tried to run about the land, so htat he may catch his falling children. Alas, when he rose to step out of the bed of Lake Camaerra, he found himself trapped in the mires, one foot each stuck in a hole deeper than any other place on Madoria. Then the waters of the Lake came rushing back from where they had gone, and filled the basin until Eimragh was up to his neck in water. At this the gods of men laughed. Their smiths forged great chains and bound Eimragh securely. Then they plucked him from his trap and threw him down the pits of Temorgor.

With the Cromirlonians defeated and Eimragh safely incarcerated in Temorgor, Malladun exhaled and let out all his men onto the top of Angerny Eldon, just like before. Then the men descended and spread out to found new kingdoms.

The first of these was Angorlon, and here men exalted themselves in their victory.

"We are greater than Cromirlonians," they said, and erected towering statues of their gods and of their heroes and of their greatest leaders. These statues they put around a great temple and from this temple their High Priest ruled Angorn. Every year people from all around the land would make a pilgrimage to see the statues and pray at their feet. During all this, Malladun watched from above and was glad.

So many generations passed and many High Priests who ruled from the temple all of Angorlon passed also. And during those many generations countless folk from all parts of the land made countless pilgrimages to the statues at the temple and uttered countless countless prayers at the feet of those statues.

And Malladun grew bored.

So he locked up the clouds, climbed his way to his castle up there, and fell asleep.

Notes

Paldrune and Harringfendor: Early gods, now called Drune and Fendor. However, Paldrune was a war god, but Drune is lord of the underworld. Also Harringfendor was primarily the god of the hunt, but Fendor is a sun god.

Auradea and Velaria: the names of the two halves of Andora are Sardian names, which refer to fertility spirits said to reside in the respective lands. The Verentians brought these Sardian names to Goertha.