The Álfr Parasite

Civilization and Culture

History

The Great Parasite

The Álfr is not a species, not at first anyway. They were a parasite that emerged from the Crucible long ago after Talos, the 1st Name of God, established Yggdrasil. The Álfr was first contracted by an alien named Adamar Elkalyn from the Mortal Realm Høystein (Highrock or HIghstone) in the Mortal Multiverse. Adamar the Fool brought the Álfr back to his home realm and tried to study it, unknowingly having already contracted the parasite and contaminated his entire world. Adamar had a daughter, Rubarae who was born with the Álfr parasite, making her the very first Hálfur (High Elf), though at the time considered a mutant and not the emergence of an entirely new species.

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Rubarae, compelled by the Alfr parasite, would aid in its conquering of her Realm by using her father's research and her own dark science to create a bud filled with Alfr seeds and breed it into the Yggtree of Høystein, that which gives life it's fullest brilliance. The Yggtree was taken by the Álfr and from its branches rained down millions upon billions of Álfr seed spores, birthing the High Elf race in earnest. Rubarae was considered half-elf, despite her father not being a full elf, only having contracted the plague. She had a son with another non-elf native of Høystein and the boy was a full-blooded Hálfur, so much so that examinations of his genome would lead one to believe the native Høysteins were the mutants. The Alfr parasite adapted and improved itself at a remarkable rate.

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The Alfr made the Hálfur smarter and more mentally capable, they understood the height of complex science and magic with ease and developed new schools of thought effortlessly. They were stronger and more durable and more beautiful and better in every way. Within a year, half of the native population was Hálfurian, and within 2 years, only Hálfurians were born. The rebellion war fought by the natives of the realm who had not yet fallen to the parasite was of so little significance, that the Hálfur did not see it fit enough for even a footnote in their history.

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Of other importance is the Álfuríki (Elf Kingdom) established by King Cyran Inacan. In modern times, may one take note of how similar many alien species are, two legs, two arms, and relative torso size. Many blame King David of the House of Kings and his grand crusade for this, as he was said to have taken 100 wives from each planet he conquered and many concubines. A fair conclusion, as David conquered much of the Midgard universe, almost all of it. But it was the Álfuríki and King Cyran that paved the way for such a thorough conquering to even happen. The Álfuríki were masters of gene-splicing and saw fit to mold many races in their image, a permanent signature and proof of the power of the High Elves for all to see. They conquered galaxies and reduced entire species into slave races, sterilized and handicapped for a single mundane purpose. This is why many Human-like species, which is most alien species, are actually Hálfur-like, including Humans.

The Corruption of the Luminous Ones

The Peak of Radiance was a Primordial Realm where the idea of light was born, home of the brightest thing in existence and the fastest light, the Radiance, where Holy Light derives its power. This was the home of the Luminous Ones, beings composed of pure light, born from the radiance, who lived in gold casing shells forged by the Dwarf Kings of myth. They were stewards of the Light and resided in their domain peacefully until Alfr spores began to fall from the sky. Brought on by the Hálfur expansion into the primordial realms, the Alfr parasite had found more victims.

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The Hálfur themselves were defeated here by the Luminous Ones and the fleets of starships under the command of the Dwarf Kings who pushed them all the way back to Høystein. However, the Alfr parasite was already here, the damage was already done. The Luminous Ones were not like mortals and did not resist the parasite as previous victims had, as they originally did not fear it, as they were not of mortal flesh. But the Alfr knew how to adapt and evolve, and so it did just that. Within 100 years, the Luminous Ones were beings with golden bodies that could command the light. Thus the Ljósálfar (Light Elf) was born in their home of Alfheim.

The Loss of Niðavellir Prime

The Dwarf Kings of Myth were no strangers to the High Elves and had done battle against their gene-splicing empire for an age now. What few alien species from Midgard that still exist today unmolested by Elven science only do so by the will of the Dwarf-lords of Niðavellir. Watching the Alfr infect the Luminous Ones in real time to create the Light Elves revealed the true nature of Elf-kind to the Dwarves and they feared it like nothing else. They began to prepare a counteragent to the parasite, assumed to be safe in their Realm Niðavellir, deep within the Unholy Multiverse. However, the Light and High Elves would later form a surprise alliance and start the Shadowban Crusade, led by Princess Lusha Inacan of the High Elves as revenge for the Dwarves repelling their 1st attack on the Luminous Ones.

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This war burned a path through the Darkness of the Unholy Multiverse with the Light of Alfheim and within time, the skies of Niðavellir Prime filled with Alfr spores. The Dwarves remained in their home until their counter agent was ready and deployed it on their enemies, administrating a different effect on different types of elves. The Light Elves were poisoned beyond reason, and were forced to flee back to Alfheim, cursed to never leave their realm without the LIght, or else they risk death. The High Elves remained but were made far less fertile than before. Within a few generations, their numbers, despite their best efforts would fall very steeply. Where once they could sire 12-14 offspring, they could hardly sustain the healthy birth of 3.

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In the present, however, the Light Elves could not survive the Darkness of the Unholy Multiverse without their Light Elves cousins, ending the war. However, the Dwarf-kind were not all but saved and were still forced to fleet Niðavellir Prime. Those who remained, who were already taken by the parasite, would create the Dökkálfar (Dark Elf) and rename their realm to Svartalfheim. And thus the Dark Elves were born in earnest. Meanwhile, the Dwarves would settle in a new realm, Niðavellir-II, and begin to fine-tune their Alfr Counteragent in the event of another Elf-Dwarf War.

The Snow Elves of Jötunheimr

With the fall of the Álfuríki the spread of the Alfr slowed down considerably. The High Elves of Highrock had a splintering after their defeat by the Dwarf Kings of Niðavellir Prime and the stagnation of their race. The Empire of the First Men, led by King David, was in full swing and had pushed the HIgh Elves out of Midgard and with their allies the Light Elves forever confined to Alfheim, the Álfuríki was all but ended. The final string came in the form of the Dragon Knights who led a final push throughout the Realms and chased the High Elves back to Highrock. Here, the sitting Pendragon slew the Inacan dynasty and forced the signing of the HIghrock Accord, which forbid the estblaishment of another Elf kingdom under threat of dragonfire and steel.

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The Jötnar of Jötunheimr, more commonly called Giants, werecloser to celestials than Mortals but resided within the Mortal Multiverse. The Jötnar were an old race and one who could still tap into the power of the Crucible itself, feared for their mastery of magic. The Alfr parasite had long since made its way to Jötunheimr, but was frozen by the blistering blizzards of the icy realm, cold enough to slow down the passage of time itself. It took a great while, but within time, the Alfr parasite adapted. When the Jötnar contracted the Alfr, the Snjóálfur (Snow Elf) were created. Considerably smaller than their Giant cousins, the Snow Elves were the first race of Elves to not dominate their region as Jötunheimr remains prodomiantely Jötnar to this day Snow Elves only exist as a minority.

The Fire Elves of Múspellsheimr

Múspellsheimr is another Primordial Realm, the birthplace of the idea of Fire, the hotest place in creation. The realm is a raging infernal and serves as the cosmic furnace. When old Realms die, when their time comes, when the Archons, the Engineers of Reality, are charged with destroying a Realm, they are fed to Múspellsheimr, to the Eldálfur (Fire Elf), one of the Mund-spilli, a collection of servent races bound to the will and command of King Surtr, the Swarthy One, Lord of Múspellsheimr and the Prince of Ruin. Surtr is the only God here and the Fire Elves are faithful and obedient worshipers.

Subspecies of Elfkind

The Alfr has spread to many places and the following are some minor variations of their strains.

• The Dökkálfar (Dark Elf) had an offshot species, the Tunglálfur (Moon Elf), a mutant subrace who were servents to the Lunar Goddess Artemis of The Olympian Ω Tribe of Gods from the Holy Multiverse. The Tunglálfur are a Matriarchy society who are subservient to Lady Artemis and are commonly referred to as the Cult of Artemis rather than their own sentient race.
• The Sólálfur (Sun Elf) race, like the Moon Elves, are connected to a Goddess of the Holy Multiverse, Amaterasu Ōmikami, though the Sun Elves were not a subservient race. They do call their creators Realm home, but they are one of the few Elf races that are divine and can be commonly seen as a minor divinty race throughout the Holy Realms.
• The Merfolk from the Mortal Realms have a cusin species, the Hafálfur (Sea Elf) who have legs instead of tails and can survive both above and under water.

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Genetic Descendants

• The Hálfur, the High Elves of Høystein
• The Snjóálfur, the Snow Elves of Jötunheimr