The First Truth (1)

Everyone present, the Guardians included, gave her a respectful bow, not just as an elder but as a hero. It could be said that without her, not only would her race have perished from the long-distance, unstable space tunnel made by her mentor to escape their homeworld, but they would not have survived arriving in a foreign world as an invader, even if unintentional. On top of that, she was also responsible for preparing two irreplaceable artifacts that would be critical to Andor's survival. In fact, the word 'hero' seemed dull in comparison to her achievements.

"I know all of you have questions, but they will have to be answered later. The most important step in protecting Andor is the first one, so we must start there. To do that, I must explain the truth of Andor's existence. Without that knowledge, you will find many things too difficult to comprehend." She nodded slightly to Uilos, who nodded and began using his innate magic to form shapes in the air in the middle of the room to assist in her storytelling. "An innumerable period of time ago, three great beings adventured through the Void above, travelling between every planet, lesser, middle, and great planes, and the Ten True Dimensions. Of the three, two were humanoid, with one possessing three eyes and vast golden wings and the other possessing head and body of a great wolf. The third was an enormous dragon who easily eclipsed the other two despite their heads being large enough to match a planet. One of the dragon's foreclaws could compare to the legs of its companions." She paused momentarily as the images of the three hovered in the air, "These three beings were both legendary and infamous for their adventures throughout the Void, making many allies as they went, but making enemies that outnumbered their friends. The great wolf, whose name was Bardor, gained new abilities with each foe he felled. The three-eyed man, charismatic master of magical energies, was Andor. As for the great dragon, whose name caused even the greatest foes to balk, was Aeranus."

"As they journeyed through the Void, the three companions became some of the most powerful beings in existence, with even many of the great masters of the Ten True Dimensions fearing to battle them. Until one day, after exploring a ruin in the Hell Dimension, they awoke a fearsome evil that had slumbered for eras. It had no name, as it was older than time itself, but it had weakened after a grand battle with a being of unmatched power in ages long past. Despite eons of weakening, it easily overpowered Andor and Bardor, while only Aeranus managed to hold his own against it. Unable to defeat it, the trio banded together to seal it again, but at great cost. Andor and Bardor had been mortally wounded in the battle, while Aeranus could only barely rescue them from the clutches of the evil being at the price of significant injuries." Her words stopped once again as she stared at the scene that Uilos had created of snow. "Andor had learned a forbidden spell in their journeys that would serve as a seal for them, but it required lives to be completed. With the two of them severely weakened, Aeranus was forced by his friends to sacrifice their lives in order to seal the evil away, with only their heads remaining intact after the spell was completed, though the dragon did not know why."

Elensell sighed softly, "Aeranus grieved for his friends, but he could not become enveloped in sorrow. A small portion of the evil had escaped the seal and fled into the Void, undoubtedly to grow in strength and free itself again. Taking his companions heads, the great dragon chased into the Void but soon lost his target amongst the endless expanse. However, he knew that the evil would come for him eventually, as he was responsible for it becoming sealed again. He steeled his resolve and fled to the remote corners of the Void, where he left his friends heads to rest as he drifted into hibernation."

She gazed at the group who had remained quiet despite their astonishment, "This is the origin of our two planets, Andor and Bardor. Millions of years passed, with the heads of Andor and Bardor changing, becoming entirely new planets. Andor's three eyes went to the Void, becoming two suns and a moon while his head soon became unrecognizable. Bardor's eyes did the same, but his powerful teeth eventually separated from his mouth and soon became a satellite ring around his head, which followed the same changes as Andor's. By the time Aeranus awoke again, it had been so long that he did not recognize the two planets by his side. However, he soon understood that he had been in recovery for so long that his companion's heads had become the flesh of their own planets. Their own native life forms had even come into being, each of them having their own special relation to the planet's creator. The magical ability of Andor spread through the races of his planet, while the many abilities Bardor had plundered in their journeys became part of his planet's natives."

"Andor's natives were slower in becoming a civilization compared to Bardor, as his many abilities contributed to their intelligence and rapid growth. As a result, Aeranus felt more need to watch over the lesser civilizations as a protector." She shook her head slightly, "Unfortunately, during a period where he felt it was safe enough for him to hibernate again, the evil located Bardor's planet, creating a tunnel through space through which it conquered it. As Aeranus slept for a millennium, the evil had more than enough time to conquer and claim Bardor for its own. If not for the quick actions of some of its natives, none would have survived to tell the great dragon of the truth."