Part 2 : The Great War
As the economic empire of the humans began to crumble, a disturbing event came to pass. Zel`nar accidentally discovered that by allowing his form to enter the living body of an inhabitant of the world, he could cross the gap between the astral plane and the earthly plane. His first attempt to enter the world failed as Zel`nar brought his full power into a young man. The power was too much for the weak body and it instantly died. Being thrown back into the astral plane weakened Zel`nar slightly, but it was not long before he made a second attempt. This time Zel`nar began to trickle his essence into the body of a small elven child. Having a much longer life span than the humans, this elven host was what Zel`nar needed to slowly let his essence flow into the earthly plane.
The young elven child was an outcast. His form changed as he grew older, his flesh turned to a dark gray, his eyes turned black. As he matured the young elf was banished from the proud elven society. Forced to make his life into what he could he went to the human lands. Most humans distrusted him but some were tolerant of his strange appearance. He learned the trade of a magician from a blind, old man in a village, spending much time there as the evil grew inside him. The elf began to realize something was seriously wrong with him, he thought the voices and visions inside him were signs of insanity. Feeling the evil taking over his mind he fled the human lands and went south toward the lands of the Orcish clans. During his travels his purpose became clear. Soon after entering the Orc lands he began his ascension to power. The newly born lord of evil taught the monster races the ways of magic, skills of weapon crafting, and other powerful knowledge. What was once a bright and innocent young elven man became a twisted, hateful, and pure evil.
Zel`nar had crossed the plane barrier and was now massing the armies of his monster races to move against any that would oppose his rule. The armies moved across the land, laying waste to everything in sight. As the armies moved deeper into the human lands the long dormant Dragons began to appear from their dens in the south. Driven by the radiant psi energies of the elven master, the dragons fought their former human aggressors with great fury. The humans were not prepared for the assault and their capital city, Austigrad, fell to the combined armies of Orc, Ogre, Kobold, Goblin, Hobgoblin, and mixes of those races. The army flattened the city and killed most every human that lived there. News of this horrible loss spread across the land, through the elven kingdoms and the kanus provinces. The thepa, isolated on their island, knew nothing of what was happening on the mainland. An army composed of elf, human, and kanus formed near the border of the elven forests around Giri`ni. A war unlike any ever known began as millions were cut down in the battle for supremacy. As this war raged on, Tri`osta realized what was driving the monster armies, the long dormant Dragons, and now saw what Zel`nar had done.
Desperate to help her creations, Tri`osta called forth the Metallic Dragons from their dens in the northern mountains. The Metallic Dragons helped to turn the tide of the battle against the monsters as the Great War continued to rage on. After nearly a year of constant fighting, countless dead littered the once peaceful lands of the elves. Tri`osta knew that as long as Zel`nar held power over the monsters they would not stop until every living thing on the planet was dead. Thus, he picked three adventurers known across the land for their bravery and power. The human high priest of Linundale, Dagnoth, the elven paladin, pride of his people, Tri`kini, and the human master of magic, Zuljin. Brought together by this Great War, the three were each given a dagger. These daggers were created by Tri`osta and Gil'nea in order to drive the essence of Zel`nar out of the elven host and to restore the balance of power in the world. Each dagger contained a jewel in the hilt built as a channel for Tri`osta's power. Through these daggers the elven host could be destroyed, sending Zel`nar back to the astral plane.
The three God-chosen adventurers traveled through the land, dodging patrols and armies. After several months of hard travel the group made it to the amazing palace of Zel`nar. By far the largest structure ever created, it's tip reached into the clouds. The three made their way to the top of the highest tower, battling the evil monsters for nearly a day. When they finally made it to the top, they found the elven host looking out over the war ravaged lands. The mage, Zuljin, used a trinket created by the combined efforts Tri`osta and Gil'nea to protect the party from Zel`nar's awesome power. Once they had the opportunity, the daggers were used. One was driven into his skull, one driven into his heart, one driven into his body. Through these channels, Tri`osta and was able to destroy all aspects of the host's life, the mind, the heart, and the soul. With nothing left for Zel`nar to hold onto, his essence was ripped out of the earthly plane. Once this had been done, Gil`nea created a new barrier between the astral and earthly plane, stopping any other attempts Zel`nar may make to enter the world.
The three daggers were kept, since they could not be destroyed by any force. The three champions each kept one in their possession, hidden, and kept secret from the rest of society. Tri`osta felt it was not a good idea to allow people to know that Zel`nar had discovered the way into the world. The chaos could be the end of the war-battered races under his watchful eye, for they would fear Zel'nar's return. Tri`osta informed each of the three champions that the daggers could be used as a channel for Zel`nar to return to the world... even through the new barrier... so they must be guarded at all costs.