Of the world before the Age of Legend, little can be said with certainty, for almost all knowledge of that ancient age has been devoured by the mists of time, leaving but scraps of myth. It is said that Gaia, the Great Mother, was birthed by the Earth itself in these times of pre-history, and that Djall, Lord of the Dark, first made his hand felt here then as well, though none truly know from where Djall arose or arrived. The White Priests of Atan believe that the Great Mother and Lord Djall are but servants or manifestations of powers even greater than themselves, known as the Creator and the Demiurge, though many consider that notion quaint and antiquated.

Many aeons ago, at the very beginning of the Age of Legend, Gaia perceived a threat and was possessed by a need.

To sate her new desire, she caused the Amanita to awaken from their slumber in the shadows of the forests, and filled them with purpose. This we know from the Amanita themselves, whom we commonly call Shroomies today.

What none have ever discovered is what the purpose the Great Mother awoke the Shroomies for was. They appear to search for something, but the few Amanita that will even acknowledge our presence do not seem to understand the question when asked what it is they seek.

Precious little can be said with surety about anything between the awakening of the Amanita, and the awakening of the Treekin many thousands of years later except for one act whose influence continues to be felt today: The creation of Salamanzar, the Protolich, by Lord Djall.

Salamanzar, the Protolich

The first of what we now know as the Undead was birthed by the darkest of powers in the time before the Beasts arose in the Age of Legend. Salamanzar. His very name inspires dread of the most primal kind, for he and his progeny have been a plague on this Earth since before our kind arose. A surviving fragment of an ancient history written by Al-Idrisi, one of the fabled eight Mystarchs, concerning Salamanzar's birth:

And so it came to pass that Lord Djall saw the creations of the Earthmother, Gaia, and was displeased. He fell to brooding for many days, deep in thought as to what he should do in his dwelling below the surface, in the vast caverns and tunnels of the UnderRealm. The creation of the Amanita seemed a direct challenge to Djall's will to power. That something so momentous should happen outside of his control demanded answer.

As he thought upon what Gaia had done, he became wroth with anger. Thus possessed by rage, he clenched his teeth upon his mighty fist and bit down, rending the very flesh from his hand and spitting it aside. When his blood had cooled and the mad rage had passed, he gazed upon his discarded, still-quivering flesh and saw the answer to his problem. For the flesh had life without blood.

For many days and many nights he labored without pause and with singular purpose. At midnight on the seventh night, he stepped aside and gazed upon the product of his energies. "Go forth," spoke Djall, "and do my bidding. You are he who shall cast this world into darkness in my name, and they shall know you and feel fear. I name thee Salamanzar, and command you thusly." And the world knew Salamanzar.

And the world knew fear.

The Treekin

Though Salamanzar now walked the halls of the UnderRealm with footsteps that would echo throughout time, he was yet young in his power, and the world above remained blissfully ignorant of the grave threat below. During this time of innocence, the Treekin, like their distant brethren the Amanita, awoke in the forests of the Earth. Children of Gaia more so than even the Shroomies, the Treekin have walked in the light since their birth.

The Beasts

Many millennia after the forests first heard the arboreal voices of the Treekin our true history begins, for it is here that our earliest forebears awoke: the first Beasts. Taurian, Atavian, Bandicoon, Feline, and all the rest. It's unknown how many types of Beasts there were, but many did not survive the Age of Man, and are lost to us forever. No doubt many more are unknown to us, living in foreign lands that we may never see.

The Gods

And what about the Gods? From whence did they come? In truth, none know for certain save perhaps the Gods themselves, Mother Gaia, and Lord Djall, and none are known to have deigned to tell us. We do know that the very first Beasts, our earliest ancestors, knew the Gods, and worshipped them as is proper, but we do not know why the Gods are here. Do they have a purpose? Did they create us, or did Gaia? We do not know for certain. Some heretics have even suggested that the Gods were created, unconsciously, by the Beasts and the other sentient denizens of Earth.

There were many more Gods then, in the Age of Legend, than now, after both the Age of Man, and the assault of the God-slaying Sphinxes. Some of their names we know. There are those in the Olympian Alliance who yet worship the images of mighty Zeus and noble Apollo. Elder Ursines in Midgaard who pay homage to the memory of wise Odin and beautiful Freya, and the Taurians will never forget the mighty Marduk. Yet for every God we remember, there are likely two we do not, and for this we should truly mourn. The Gods that survive that we know of, keeping in mind that the Earthmother and Lord Djall are something other than Gods, and perhaps mightier in power, are:

Aegir, God of the Oceans
Athena, Goddess of Wisdom and War
Ares, God of War
Artemis, the Huntress
Bast, Patron of Bremen and Protector of the Downtrodden
Curnon, God of the Hunt
Danae, Goddess of the Trees
Loki, the Trickster
Meranthe, Goddess of Lakes and Rivers
Nemesis, Goddess of Rage
Osiris, God of the Sands
Prospero, God of Wealth
Sethis, Goddess of Vampires and Venomous Creatures
Thor, God of Thunder