The Great Darkness

The Great Darkness was a long and terrible war that nearly brought about the end of Telarith. Upon every continent and among all peoples the great terrors of the Void and the Burning Legion descended upon, bringing chaos and destruction to them all. It is was so terrible and epic, as well as so long ago, that the exact truth is somewhat unknown. Through faith and courage, and the arrival of otherworldly saviors, the peoples of Telarith fought back the shadow and saved their world.

The Arrival of Dimensius

It all began with Dimensius, the All-Devouring. A Void Lord of the infinite horrors of the Void, he sought only destruction and corruption of other worlds, and desired to consume all of reality. He and his kin were the the original perpetrators who sent the Old Gods to countless worlds, including Telarith, since the Void Lords could only exist in reality for a little while.
Dimensius coveted the precious world of Telarith, though whether to corrupt the world-soul that resided within or to consume the planet whole is unknown. It is also unknown how and exactly when he first appeared. Some believe he was summoned by followers and cultist of the void, or that he prowled the infinite universe and located the small jewel of a world. However it was accomplished, the Void Lord merely appeared one day, on a day intentionally forgotten by most races, in order to purge the sorrow and grief of that time.
On that day, the great Dimensius hovered as a behemoth over Telarith, from the far reaches of space, easily seen by all on their world, as they looked upon the eldritch horror with fear. Immediately massive amounts of shadow and void energy bombarded the planet, and it recoiled. Darkness, like a veil of pitch black, shrouded the world. The fabrics of reality were cut and torn, as portals and tears to the Void emerged all across the world.
This would forever beknown as the Day of Night, and for three days the world would be bombarded by the visceral powers of the void, which mutated and damaged the populous and the planet. This overexposure had severe negative effects, and if continued would have certainly wiped out most life on the planet. However, a few factors helped to negate and contain some of these effects, at least for a little while.
First, where the numerous magical draining anchors that dotted the landscape and leylines. While originally intended to capture large amounts of raw mana, the massive amounts of void energy were also sucked out and contained within the ancient machines. While not enough to stop all effects, areas near anchors were far less effected than other regions. This was part of the reason Telreymor was able to recuperate so quickly after the war, as they had the highest concentration of anchors.
The great Aj'snagian Empire, while severely damaged by void monsters and raw magic, managed to quickly erect several shields and magical protections, that slowed the deadly waves of shadow energy. In Askavos, the homeland of the teryns, their the powerful holy presence of the Dawnstone shielded the inhabitants from its effects.
However, these were not enough to protect Telarith for long. Even after only three days of terror and rampant upheavals and rapid responses, huge portions of Telarith died or withered away, or were corrupted by the magic of the void. It seemed like the world was doomed.

The Sacrifice of K'avah

But Telarith did not die, and was not consumed by the Void. This was all due to the ancient naaru K'avah. It had rested in the sacred land of Askavos, whispering and comforting the native teryns who revered and even worshipped the "Dawnstone." Yet when the cries of the anguished peoples all across Telarith reached its ears, K'avah took action. The naaru and the Void Lord were anathema to each other, the Goldstone suddenly "awoke" as the Void Lord bared down upon the region to wipe out its foe. The clash between the two was mythical, the stuff of gods and legends. K'avah, knowing it was the only way, sacrificed itself with a great explosion of holy light, that burned away Dimensius and his great void storm, banishing the night of the world. The Void Lord and the naaru were gone.
Yet the effects still remained. Dimensius had opened many portals to the Void and the Twisting Neather, and out came demons and monsters and creatures of the void. They overwhelmed the surrounding areas, spreading like a great uncontrollable flood. The land of Askavos, the sacred homeland to the teryns, was destroyed in the blast, as a great wave of light and dark energy ripped up and infused the remaining landmass. These bit were imbued with the power of K'avah, and suddenly floated above the newly forming sea, creating a massive landscape of hovering mountains and islands.

The Eye of the Aether

K'avah's death had saved the world, but even still there were grave threats that threatened to annihilate- all life on Telarith. But something mysterious and even now exactly unexplainable happened after the great sacrifice of the naaru. The great energy of light magic that sprang from K'avah's death echoed across the universe, calling for aid and salvation. Around the spot of the naaru's sacrifice, a great holy portal emerged. The holy energies of the naaru came together and created a whirling pool of holy light and energy, what would become known as the Eye of the Aether.
From this portal emerged a race of beings the teryns called the an'gels, which means "Bright Messengers" for they brought hope and courage to the world. Different cultures have different version of what they were exactly like, but all speak of the blue skin and white wings of the beings, or their powerful lords with golden wings like the sun and pale robes that glimmered. They poured forth like rays of light from the Eye of the Aether, warriors and priests who spread throughout the land. They protected the all they could, smiting any creatures of the void or demons of the Burning Legion. The angels claimed to have come from the Shining Aether, and were sent to protect and uplift the peoples of Telarith.
In addition, three naaru's arrived, D’oren, S’ava, and the prime naaru V’aren. These holy creatures led or helped to guide the course of Telarith against the shadows of evil.

The War Against the Shadow

The angels were a mighty, nearly unnumbered force, that could stand against any army with, fighting with sword and magic unseen before. Yet the world was vast and they alone could not stop all the rampant legions of demons and monsters. They began to ally and train the other races in mystical arts and of the paths of the light, unifying them together as one army that could stand against the darkness.
The first to help were the teryn tribes that first encountered the naaru and angels. Impressed by their courage and fearlessness, the naaru's blessed the brave teryn tribes, who would go on to become the lithryn. The great hero Tenaloth Sava'esh became their leader, and the teryns were taught the many secrets of war and combat, metallurgy and magic, and how to wield and use the light.
Like a great wave, the blessed teryns and angelic forces spread and fought against any void spawn or demonic monster, calling others to their cause. The great Aj'snagian Empire, which had suffered greatly due to demonic corruption, were forced to set aside their prejudices and join with the "lesser races." The oroc'mac and their the aj'va shamans also joined with them. In Eaggami, the oliogga tribes bowed to the mighty Goolnab of the Demon's Doom, while the phatain, dree, and the chippa quickly joined the growing alliance among the races. In the oceans, the merfolk and a few cachardons also fought against the demons hordes.
The world of Telarith had began to fight back.

The First Alliance

Under the guidance of the naaru, the major leaders of the different regions met at city of Aj'snaga, and there formed the First Alliance. Many races had been completely unaware that there were other lands and races than there own, but the horrors of Great Darkness forced them to fight together.
This alliance was loose, but began the moving of troops, resources, and weapons between factions. Across different major fronts the forces of the alliance fought, fierce battles of loss and victory. When possible, additional forces would be shipped to where they would be needed, aiding their comrades in facing off the great hordes.
Of course, many did not choose the light. Some were swayed by the taint of the void or the fel, and become monsters and worse, or were forcibly tainted by the dark magics. Loss and betrayal was common, but so were the many heroic acts from bold heroes and commanders.
The war was long and vast across the world. In the early years, large swathes of land fell to dark forces, while the armies of the First Alliance fought desperately on their own lands to hold the line and slowly advance. The boundaries went back and forth, but with better leadership, courage, and the power of the naaru and angels, First Alliance slowly made a headway.
Year after year they fought, losing many in terrible conflicts and battles, but also winning many major battles. The true turning point is considered the Battle of Makc'kosh, where a massive army of aj'ra, oroc'mac, and lithryns wiped out a huge demon army and closed one of the largest portal into the Twisting Nether.
For almost another decade, the First Alliance would continue to face off against many divided hordes and their corrupted kin. They closed portal after portal, purged all demons and void spawn, and began healing the lands that they could. Of course, there were great costs. A large portion of Eaggamo was completely flooded and destroyed by the powerful Heart of Screaming Souls during a confrontation of the demon lord Verrustrumes. Millions died by war, famine, plagues, and more. The bodies and corpses of the fallen. were mutilated and tortured to become demon spawned creatures of evil.
But it was not enough to stop the courage and determination of the peoples of Telarith. They uncovered ancient secrets of the Guardians and utilized their machines and elementals. They became empowered by the light of the naaur's, and created powerful artifacts and spells of great power. The scholars of the world taped into the ancient anchors and discovered a hidden power: through the use of the leylines, the anchors could instantly connect with one another.
Year after year, battle after battle, myth after myth, Telarith was reclaimed. But it would not be the end yet, for as the portals to the dark realms were snuffed out and the hordes of monsters dwindled, they began to unite from various rabbles, under the rule of a hard tyrant.

The Final Campaign

The pit lord Xog'thak was one of the last remaining leaders of the demon hordes on Telarith. Seeing their slow demise, he reorganized and harshly brought all void and fel monsters under his rule. He began a counter-campaign in Eaggami, leading his new legion against the First Alliance. His forces became enhanced by the power of the void and the fel, and his tact and planning posed a great threat to the rest of the world.
With the rest of the world secured and the remaining portals shut and hordes destroyed, the entire might of the First Alliance turned to crush the last taint on their world. So began the final campaign of the Great Darkness.
It would take nearly a year and a half, and the Xog'thak won many victories. However, cut off from the Burning Legion and surrounded by enemies, the end was coming for him and his legion. In desperation, Xog'thak turned to darker arts and creatures, began wild schemes, and started poisoning Telarith herself.
But the First Alliance did not give up, but pressed onward to free its world, however the costs. It finally came to ahead on the mythical and legendary Battle of Dawn's March. There, the entire unnumbered legion of Xog'thak attacked the Dawn Source, a great bastion within the Plainslands and one of the greatest anchors within the world. There, Mosshak Sevasssnal, the legendary mage, cast his most powerful spell, which opened portals across all of Telarith, and summoned every fighting man and woman from all races into the great open plains. The entire assembled forces of Telarith faced off against the infinite horrors of the Void and Twisting Nether, and fought for the fate of the world.
A tens of thousands of myths have been told, yet none can truly capture what happened. For 20 hours the two great armies fought, the blood wetting the ground and the magic cracking the land. Such deeds and actions that occurred that day can never truly be represented and completely known, but it was a day when all races stood tall together. Nine times they nearly broke and utterly scattered but nine times they were reformed and fought harder, as the very fabric of realities were torn and healed from the mighty magical deeds that occurred. At the climax, the Great Nine, mythical heroes of that age, wielded the powers of the naaru and the angels, as well as the divine power of the Light, to destroy a void-corrupted Xog'thak and decimate the great portals he opened. With their united strength, the entire legions of demons and void beasts were completely purged. Finally, after 17 years of war and conflict, the world of Telarith was saved, and the Great Darkness had, at long last, passed.