
                       History of Vinyamar
                            Chapter 5
                    Final Days of Kruachimar


634-647: Reign of Gonhir Magor
   Following Erebal's abandonment of the throne and the
dissolution of the high council, Kruachimar is left in a state of
relative anarchy, several minor nobles and wealthy merchants
squabbling over the last remnants of power. This continues for a
period of forty years, none of the self-proclaimed leaders
capable of gathering enough strength to take clear control of the
city. During this time, the dwellers of Adamantium continue their
slow transformation, both the Dwarves and Elves who live there
darkening in complexion from the effects of the Adamantine dust,
their eyes growing more attuned to the dim shafts of the mines,
until neither their eyes nor skin can any longer accept sunlight
without considerable discomfort. Some leave the mines, fearing
the effects of the dust, however, once transformed, there's no
going back, and so too are their children mutated, but with the
added bonus of awful temperaments, their inclinations and
sometimes deeds as black-hearted and foul as any Troll's or
Goblin's.
   Finally, in 634, the Lord of Adamantium, a fabulously wealthy
Dwarven merchant by the name of Magor (Hand of Dread) proposes a
plan to unite the two cities under a single government. Through
appropriate bribes and not a few threats, he manages to recruit
the power base he needs, and a year later he crowns himself
Gonhir. Among his first proclamations is that all Dwarves should
be made to work the mines, regardless of their station in
society. Many Dwarves, fearful of the long-term effects of the
Adamantine dust, try to escape the city, however, Magor uses the
army as a police force, locking off all exits. For the next
decade, all Dwarves remaining in the once great city of
Kruachimar are made to work the mines for Adamantium, effectively
tripling the production levels yet lowering the standard of
living to the point that many actually begin to starve.
   There are numerous attempts at insurrection, however, Magor
deals ruthlessly with all threats, whether perceived or imagined.
Finally, just when the effects of the Adamantium are on the verge
of taking hold, Erebal returns to the city only to find that his
people have been enslaved. He leads an unsuccessful revolt during
647 and finally is forced to flee to the surface world with those
who will follow him.

652: Erebal's Journey
   Erebal's band ends up in the broken lands known as Gwathendor
by the Elves just south of Ered Calenan (the Green Valley
Mountains). Angry that the Elves didn't aid them in their plight,
Erebal breaks off all contact and has his people swear an oath of
mutual solidarity and of revenge against Adamantium and all those
who forsake the one true Gonhir. Then he takes his people into
the mountains and has them build a shrine to Kruach, the savior
of his people some five centuries earlier. In a fiery display a
volcano, which they name Orod Naruzbadul (Mountain of the Fire
Lord), is born. Taking the eruption as a sign from Kruach, they
build their lair into the base of the mountain, calling the new
city Brithrond after the expansive chamber of gravel they
discover at its heart where there is resting an intricately
carved stone throne composed entirely of frozen lava.

659: The Great Dig
   Unable to venture into the world of daylight and pursue the
escapees, Magor settles on the use of goblins as slaves, coaxing
them back to Kruachimar with rumors that the dwarven civilization
had utterly collapsed. The Dark Elves of Adamantium, meanwhile,
continue their downward descent, growing ever more curious as to
where the world ends. They soon uncover great passages where
giant worms have traversed which take them ever deeper, and as
some of them venture into the pristine deeps, they come back with
stories of vast treasures from some dead and forgotten era.

662: Pact with the Demon
   After considerable effort, advance scouts of the Dark Elves
stumble upon an icy lair where there dwells a creature of
tremendous magical talents capable of changing its shape at will.
In its natural state (or so they presume) it is of the most
hideous design, its body part-serpent and part-insectoid, with
twenty-two legs, and eight separate heads, each with antennae and
compound eyes. The broken bones of long-dead creatures lay
scattered about its lair, murals painted in blood upon the walls
showing its victims in twisted agony. The creature's name is
Ungol, and they soon learn that it had been trapped in its lair
for ages without end, put there by Kruach during a time before
elves even existed on this world.
   Ungol, though its powers are strong, craves worshipers, its
appetite for reverence nearly insatiable. In return for their
eternal obedience, Ungol promises to help the Dark Elves seize
control of Adamantium from Magor, who even they have come to
dread, and by the end of the year, Magor is slain just as Ungol
had promised, and the Dark Dwarves are chased west into
Kruachimar, their forces in a state of panic.

681: The Great Quake
   For the two decades following the death of Magor, the Dark
Dwarves wage a sporadic and futile war against their former
allies. Ungol is always there to turn the tide of battle,
however, and many Dwarves are captured and pressed into slavery.
Finally, in 681, with their forces nearly extinguished, the
Dwarves hold a ceremony at the lava lake beneath the city,
calling upon Kruach, their ancient benefactor, to come and
destroy Ungol, hence evening the odds. The result of their
prayers, however, is a great earthquake the likes of which had
never before been felt in Kruachimar. Great chambers collapse
under the weight of the mountain, long passages, which had
existed for over five centuries, buried in rubble. The
devastation is so complete that the Dwarves find themselves boxed
in, cut off from their fungi gardens as well as from the surface
world. Slowly, they starve to death, trying to their last breath
to dig themselves out. Adamantium suffers from the quake also,
however, the devastation there is not so complete, and over time,
the Dark Elves manage to rebuild, though they are now completely
cut off from the surface world.

