The Naming of Names
The first great change came from beyond Aereth.
The Tuatha Dé Danann, fleeing catastrophe in another realm, crossed into Aereth through magical gates of their own making. They sought sanctuary from Ydholth the Black, Empress of the Ddraig, and were permitted to settle upon the eastern reaches of ancient Gaia.
They were warned against reckless meddling with the powers of the Ley. They did not heed that warning.
The Awakening of the Shadow
Seeking knowledge of the beings that governed the First Realm, the most powerful druids of the Tuatha Dé Danann performed the ritual remembered as the Naming of Names. They believed that to know a true name was to gain mastery over it.
Instead, they awakened Dral'gath.
The ritual ended in dark supernatural fire. Then Erais, the Arcane Light, appeared in the form of a great ice dragon and quenched the flames. The frozen remains of the druids shattered, and the Gaotha - the Four Winds - scattered their fragments across Aereth.
Where those fragments fell, the earth shook and the great stone circles called cylchs rose from land, riverbed, and sea floor. So deep were their foundations that none has ever succeeded in moving them.
The Gifts of Erais
Erais understood what the awakening of Dral'gath would bring. Against laws older than any mortal kingdom, the Arcane Light gave Aereth new defenders.
From the blood, bone, and essence of Ddraig slain in battle she fashioned the Drakeri, the Dragonkin, and touched them with dragonfire. They inherited strength, an affinity for fire, wind, and storm, and - most important - the ability to hear dragonsong and form the profound bonds that would one day unite dragon and rider.
From the elements of Aereth and the power of the Ley she fashioned the Aes Sídhe, binding them to the living heart of the world. The Sídhe followed their own path, seldom willing to call themselves allies of either dragon or Drakeri, yet no less a part of the balance Erais sought to preserve.
From that age onward, the histories of the Ddraig, Drakeri, and Sídhe could no longer be separated from the struggle between Light and Shadow.