The mood remained somber through the rest of the day and Aellisia was pulled out of her funk when Eahlswith's voice slipped into her mind.
'We have arrived at last. This is the edge of my pack's former territory.'
The words were spoken with a solemn and sadder tone than she was used to hearing from her friend, but knowing the significance of this place she could understand the feelings that her friend was experiencing. Shivering slightly as she looked around her, her eyes were widening by the moment as she looked around and took in the sight of the forest. The air moved more freely here, and the space between the trees was far greater than anything she had seen before, even the usual thick undergrowth was significantly reduced.
"What is this place?"
Her voice was small as she took in the view, and beside her Zilia also looked around before responding.
"This looks much like the edge of the forest near the town, although it is odd, I would have thought we were still four or five days from town still."
Aellisia tightened her grip around her spear, a wordless sensation swelling up from her gut made her narrow her eyes and clench her teeth as a brief wave of anger flowed through her.
"Eahlswith said that this is the boundary of her former home and that of her pack."
Her words were short and clipped as she surveyed the changed forest around her, when she closed her eyes even the flow of the mana in the air was different, weakened somehow. And as she snapped her eyes open again she caught a glimpse of Zilia's face and the brief flash of guilt and sadness that raced across it.
"I've never been here before, but I would hazard a guess that after the guild killed her pack they helped the Lumberjacks to clear and open up the forest to protect them from anything whilst they worked."
Aellisia's grip tightened even more as she began to take in the sight of the occasional stump and blackened patch of earth, each one a vivid reminder of the violence done to this place at the hands of humans.
"Let's move, we need to find shelter for the night, and I worry that there is precious little to be found."
So saying Aellisia began to move forward again with Eahlswith closer to them than usual as they began to cross through the desecrated land that had once been her home. The scenery remained unchanging as they walked, the ever-present sound of bird song and small creatures moving through the undergrowth was absent, lending an odd silence to their journey. Eventually, as it darkened even more they found what looked like the remnant of a dried-out riverbed running through the sparse trees and set up a small camp keeping the evening fire low to avoid being easily spotted as Eahlswith hunted for whatever small game she could.

For a time there was a silence that surrounded them as they worked, and when they had eventually finished and now waited for Eahlswith to return it was Aellisia that spoke first.
"When you mentioned that we could speak to the temple and the guild about Eahlswith you said a few things that I didn't understand, about wars and ancient empires, what did you mean by that?"
Zilia looked up from where she had been prodding at the small fire with a stick with a look of surprise at the sudden conversation, and after tossing the stick into the fire she straightened up slightly and responded.
"What do you mean? Do you mean as in the war? Or the Old Empire? Or do you mean a general history?"
Aellisia turned to face her slightly more head-on and tilted her head slightly as she thought for a moment.
"I know nothing outside of my time with Eahlswith, there are strange echoes and memories that come to me, and I remember the faces of my Màthair and Athair. But outside of that, there is nothing, and if I am to be in human lands then I think it would be best if I at least knew the basics."
Zilia nodded as she listened before her face took on a pensive and considering look, seemingly arranging her own thoughts on the matter, and after a few minutes, she spoke.
"True, and I'm sorry that it never occurred to me before to bring these things up with you. I can give you a brief history, the same that was taught to me when I was learning at the temple as a child, but I must warn you I am no scholar or historian so whatever I know is just the basics."
Looking to Aellisia who had once again fixed her with an unwavering gaze she waited for the Aelven a moment and after she nodded for her to continue Zilia let out a long breath as she dredged up what she could from the schooling she had received as a child.
"The Basics are much like this: A long time ago three beings created the world, their names are now lost and forgotten, but over time they filled this world with creatures and insects and all life in the air and the seas and the lands. But over time they desired something more, for they were the only ones of their kind and as they watched the animals they had created they realised they too wanted children, more of their kind with which to share this world. And so they came together, and studied and learned and finally they stumbled across the method to do so, and as they completed their great work they birthed the gods and goddesses that became the Pantheon."
Zilia paused for a moment allowing Aellisia to process what she had said, and when she was ready Aellisia nodded at her once again to continue.
"At first the pantheon wandered this world, but each of them had great powers that affected the world that their three creators had made, and in interacting with it, changed and damaged it unwittingly. And so the three creators who loved their children were dismayed, once again they studied and worked and created a new place for their children to live, and permitted them to only enter the world with much of their power reduced so that they did not harm it further. They called this new place Heaven, and it was to be the sole domain of their children."

Zilia stopped speaking again as she took a drink, offering the waterskin to Aellisia who also drank deeply from it, before she sealed it and gestured at Zilia to speak once again.
"In time the pantheon too desired their own creations as they watched over the world that had been created but they could not agree on what they wished to create. And so the gods and goddesses came together and agreed upon certain basics: Whatever they created must be humanoid in form, whatever they created must also recognise all of the pantheon as their creators, and their creations should never be permitted to place themselves above one another for they were all created under the auspices of the pantheon and thus were all equal to one another."
Zilia's tone had taken on a somewhat nostalgic one as she spoke, her eyes drifting slightly as she recalled the teachings that she had learned as a child, for a moment she was quiet but eventually realised that Aellisia was still waiting for her to continue, and so she cleared her throat in embarrassment and continued.
"The gods and goddesses separated from one another and worked on their creations, breathing intelligence and life into them, four gods created the Humans, two more created the Aelven, four more created the Beastkin and two more created the Dwarves. However four of their number did not agree to all the terms agreed upon by the other members of the pantheon, and so they created their own beings in secret and when the pantheon opened the gates of heaven and released their creations into the world they unveiled their creations and released them too. The pantheon was outraged that some among them had broken the agreement and sought to destroy the secret creations, but the three creators stopped them, saying that to unmake a creation was something forbidden, and so anger arose for the first time and discord cracked their bonds."
Aellisia was leaning in closer now, hooked on the story that was being told, and she jabbed Zilia in the leg to get her to continue. Zilia for her part laughed at her friend's antics and gave her a soft smile.
"I'm going, I'm going! Anyway, as I was saying, the pantheon no longer trusted one another implicitly and while they were overjoyed as their creations spread out into the world there was a lingering resentment that built over time with more and more arguments between them about how to interact with the world that split the pantheon apart into those who had created the original agreed upon races, and those who had created the other races. However, there were those amongst the pantheon who sympathised with the ones who had created the other races and so sided with them, arguing that they were as entitled as the other gods and goddesses to create their children. In time this built and built upon itself as the Heavens split into factionalism until eventually they came to a head and the main pantheon sealed the gates of heaven, cutting off much of the magic that flowed from it into the world below and preventing those who had created the secret races from leaving the heavens or supporting their creations."
As she spoke Zilia had taken on a much more serious tone, and she had gazed into the fire for a long time, her words measured, and even, with a soft sigh she turned to ellisia with a serious face.
"And of course, this led to the War in Heaven and the collapse of the bonds between the races."

Aellisia was enthralled by the story, it tickled some long-distant part of her mind that resonated with the story as though she were familiar with the events somehow.
"Please, what happened next?"
Her voice was soft yet pleading as it shook Zilia out of her contemplations. The human woman smiled at her and idly picked up another stick and began jabbing at the fire for a few moments before she spoke again.
"Well with Heaven sealed and the pantheon silent, the first race to break away from the others was the dwarves as they had always been somewhat insular from the other races, and in time they were followed by the Aelven. The Beastkin were varied and many of them lived alongside races that had been created in secret happily, however as the centuries passed and the pantheon's influence had crumbled the Humans rose to prominence as the most populous race. They were the first to make war upon one another and unified their race under one banner under the first Emperor Iuric. Iuric was a madman who thought himself a god, and thus he sought out whatever he could to extend his life and make himself more powerful. Under his policies, the Empire grew strong, and humans considered themselves the mightiest of the races, with all others being corruptions of the humans 'Blessed Form' which in time led to him declaring war and conquering the disparate Beastkin, and then the Dwarves and much of the Aelven race."
Zilia stared off into the fire for a long moment, her face stoic as though this part of her story upset her, yet she was not comfortable showing it.
"All those conquered became slaves or were killed en mass. The Aelven had it the worst as they were the only race that had not been conquered in its entirety and instead held firm fighting back from their enclaves and tying the empire's forces up and preventing them from consolidating their hold on the other territories, after a century had passed Iuric still reigned and the atrocities of the humans were unmatched, and yet the pantheon was still silent, engaged in their own war upon one another. It was at this time that a legendary figure rose up, an Aelven woman who was born in the empire whose village was massacred by the imperial army after the emperor's diviners warned that there was a person there who would topple his empire. She fled to the Aelven homeland and they welcomed her amongst them, and she was thus trained and fought alongside them slowly rising in rank. Her power grew as did her skill and she formed a core group of loyal followers who snuck into the empire proper and made their way to the lands of the dwarves who were now responsible for making the weapons and armour of the imperial army."
Zilia smiled as she spoke, it was obvious that whoever this figure was, it was someone that she greatly admired, and Aellisia too wanted to hear more.
"She convinced seven of the nine dwarven clans to rise up against the empire who had long believed that they had crushed the dwarves and they were unfailingly loyal. And so the dwarves and the aelven allied with one another whilst she made her way to the conquered lands of the beastkin, and over many years of effort caused them to rise up in slave rebellions across the lands. The empire of course sent in as much of their army as they could, and when they were committed the aelven and the dwarves rose up and invaded the beastkin lands. The imperial army was destroyed and in a panic, the emperor pulled back all of his forces to the border of the human lands, yet the anger of those he had enslaved and abused was not to be easily slaked. The new alliance of the races worked together and reconquered the lands of the aelven and surrounded the empire. The great war lasted for many years and the emperor who had declared himself a living god sank into madness as inch by inch his empire crumbled."
Aellisia was so caught by Zilia's story she had not even noticed that Eahlswith had returned, and it was only when Zilia glanced across and saw the great wolf sitting there observing the pair that she coughed slightly in embarrassment.
"Anyway, I'll tell you the rest after we've eaten!"
Aellisia pouted at her, wanting to hear the end of the story, but with a slightly resentful glance at Eahlswith for interrupting she stood up and made her way over to the animals she had brought back, casting a single glance over her shoulder at Zilia with narrowed eyes.
"You better...."