Chapter 222

“Our planet has a long and ancient history.” Professor Constantine started speaking, and with a cane wave, the hologram changed from the giant, oblong planet into one much like how Earth looks.

“Long ago, Vinestra was not even a fraction of the size we know it to be now. Millions of years ago, Vinestra was roughly five or six thousand kilometers in radius in those days. If you look at the horizontal and vertical lines on the Globe before you, you can see that I have divided the planet into four distinct quadrants, known as quarter spheres. From what we know, thanks to tectonic plate mapping and core samples, our planet had nine individual landmasses or continents.”

“For millions of years, these continents were separated by large bodies of water. Acting like a natural barrier keeping each landmass separate, as such, several different and unique races claimed those lands they’re home.”

The Globe expanded and was divided into nine separate and strangely shaped chunks of territory. From what Cynrik could tell, Old Vinestra seemed to be made of at least 50 percent water, but it was enough to keep the continents wholly isolated.

“To the north lay Poinsu, a cold and harsh land surrounded by water, not unlike an island other than it covered over 1200 miles from end to end. Although most of the records have been lost over the years, we know that there were tribes of Ice-Giants roaming free. Every species capable of calling Poinsu their home was artic beings, which became fully adapted to the icy-tundras.” The white landmass to the north glowed on the hologram as the Professor narrated his story.

“Directly under it was Hestios, with its arid and desert climate, only the Reptilian races such as Kobolds and the Mythical Dragons could claim it as their home.”

The continent named Poinsu dimmed on the hologram, and a small rectangular land lit up. Soon it was covered with sand, signifying the entire area was a desert, and a dragon’s roar played through the room’s speakers with a shadowy red dragon taking flight from the desert and doing a lap around the room.

“If we leave Hestios and move southeast, we find the forests of Umahone. This is the origin of most of the Elven races. From tropical rainforests to one filled with hundred meter strong trees, the Elven tribes learned to make these trees their homes, with the tallest one being known as a Life Tree, which we know to be sacred to the races.”

Like the previous two continents, tall and lush trees dotted the landscape of Umahone, and the shadowy image of a proud Elven male came into sight as he fired a bow targeting a large cat creature.

“From here, if we continue around the planet back into Quadrant 2, in the northwestern quarter sphere, you come across the triangular land humans are said to have originated from, Maylan Moor. Unlike the previous three continents I spoke of, the climate was relatively similar to what we experience here, with four seasons and mild temperatures depending on your location on the continent.”

“Unlike the Elven Race, who chose to seek life atop trees, humans chose to build their homes on the ground. Developing tribes and eventually kingdoms of their own. Humans were quick to assemble together as extremely social beings for there was safety against wild predators in numbers.”

“Next, to the southwest of Maylan Moor, across the water, we come upon the highly mountainous region known to be the ancestral home of the Dwarven Race, Denduron. From tip to tip of this small continent, the landscape was dotted with thousands of mountains, from small ones which could be considered hills to formations that touched the skies, and the dwarven race chose to dig deep into the bowels of the land to create their cities. The grounds of Denduron could be said to have at one time been the richest in mineral ores when compared to all the others.”

“This is also why the Dwarves have such a deep heritage where Blacksmithing and Armoring are practically in their blood.” Mountains rose up from the flat plains, and the image of a small burly dwarf striking away at an anvil took center stage. Through the speakers, the students were all able to hear the clanking of the blacksmith at work.

“If you head due east from Denduron and south a bit, you arrive at what we only know as the Volcanic Archipelago. As you can see, there is a central landmass surrounded by a myriad of smaller islands. Each of these islands housed many individual volcanos and subsequent tribes of beings. Due to their Tropical Climate, the Volcanic Islands birth many different sentient beings, from the Underwater races such as Merpeople, to several different types of Hybridized Beast people; the list goes on and on.”

The sound of Oceans and Volcanic eruptions nearly deafened the class as a chaotic yet beautiful scene played out for everyone to see before fading to open grassy prairie.

The last of the known territories are the vast plains of Vontu; these are the ancestral lands where the majority of the Were or Demi-Humans come from. Spanning across a large portion of the Globe like a belt, this fertile land was the source of hundreds of thousands of different species, from the Canine-Humans to the Feline; you can find thousands of different varieties, and each of them began their journies here.” Animations of humans with dog or cat-eared in small tribes or chasing down large creatures on hunts quickly appeared and faded to black.

The room descended into silence as the vision of Old Vinestra began spinning slowly and tilting to the side, showing a shadowy hellscape at the bottom of the planet. Here there were two of the largest continents separated by lesser bodies of water than any other, and by far the darkest as if the three suns light couldn’t reach them.

“Now, this is where history deviates between the great scholarly minds. Everything I have explained has either been passed down by tradition or excavated by an archeologist from within ruins or the oldest of Egresses. However, these last two landmasses have next to zero information about them. Either because the clusters of bodies of water are far apart, making it challenging to transfer culture and information, or because, as I personally believe, all information about these two lands was destroyed at some point. As a result, the truth about what has become known as the Wildlands is difficult to find.”

Leaning forward in his seat, Professor Constantine’s expression went from that of a kind old man lecturing children to dark and severe, making Cynrik raise an eyebrow inquisitively.

“But the world you see on the HoloFilter changed drastically around 10 thousand years ago. Like many geographical changes over time, it all began with a War, One we in the intelligence community call the Grand Strife.” Gripping his cane with both hands, a look of pain could be seen on the old man’s face, enough so that several students panicked and hurried to ask if he needed anything.

Cynrik remained frozen in place, a look of shock plastered on his face as he hid in the shadows of his hood. Time seemed to stand still for him as his brain attempted to process the bomb the Professor had just dropped.

‘There’s no way…that can’t be a coincidence.’ Cynrik thought to himself while attempting to stop his left hand from quivering. Then, balling his left hand into a fist so tight that the bones creaked and popped, Cynrik focused on the pain to bring himself back from his dark thoughts and blurted out a question to the Professor.

“Professor Constantine, this Grand Strife, was it some kind of war or a Cataclysmic event? To change the landscape of our entire planet in such a way couldn’t have been something small.” Then, straightening his back and using a matching tone to the one the Professor had, Cynrik spoke.

“Hm, indeed, it was a massive War, on the scale we have never before witnessed, past or present. Yet, legends tell that beings so powerful descended from the heavens one day, making promises of riches and never-ending strength to those who rose above their Mortal restraints.”

“If only one race had this tale, it could quickly be passed off as hearsay, but, unfortunately, nearly every race, from the Elves to the Merpeople, tells a similar story. They speak of a handful of Godlike beings who bestowed a strange new power upon the people, allowing them to rapidly grow into something that could easily punch holes in mountains. From these Legends, we learn about the existence of Mana.”

“These Godlike creatures warned the many Races of Vinestra that a battle the scale they can’t fathom was coming, and they needed the strongest amongst them to rise up and become champions of their people, fighting to protect everything they hold dear.” After saying that, Professor Constantine fell silent and watched Cynrik’s reaction with his previously shut eyes opened slightly.

Cynrik sat in silence, with his brain running on overdrive.

‘There is no doubt that these Godlike beings were just that, Gods, well Deities. But it is insanely disturbing that they altered the course of this planet so drastically from one not much bigger than Earth into a massive and constantly expanding galactic-sized rock moving in space. Hell, even the fact that these historians call the whole thing the Grand Strife freaks me out.’ Pulling down his hood and making eye contact with the Professor, Cynrik picked up his pencil and started jotting down notes, allowing the Professor to continue his lecture.

“The descent of these Legendary Beings was like a call to action, as the once peaceful lands of Vinestra soon became rife with war. As the races slowly picked up steam and became stronger, the oceanic barriers no longer kept them separated. Soon, the higher beings could cross over into other territories and leave a path of destruction and genocide everywhere they went.”

“This went on for a few thousand years until approximately 3700 years had gone by since the Gods descended, when something changed in the planet’s core, increasing the amount of Ambient Mana on Vinestra by several hundredfolds.

“Our earliest estimate is that in the year 3728 BCSH, Before Central System Hub, the Mana levels of Vinestra may have been a steady trickle, just enough to make life on the planet abundant. However, this was when the first Egresses began appearing, throwing an already chaotic world gripped by war into utter pandemonium as the Ambient Mana levels spiked heavily.”

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