Short entries from the Collected Records of Historian Palimpsest, Archivist of the Eighth, Ninth, and Tenth Ages, Vol. IV:
"The Fall of Irath and the Sundering of the Eighth Age"
Entry 271 – The Beginning of the Day War
…It is said that the Eighth Age ended not with a cataclysm, as many others had before it, but others claimed it did.
Much has been written about the rise and fall of Irath. Far less has been said about how it ended. The histories are fractured, obscured by propaganda, rewritten truths, and even cracks in reality itself.
Even fewer have dared to piece together the fractured tale of the Kalandir's last stand or the cost they paid to pursue it.
But I will try.
Let it be known that in those days, the Kalandir elves, once the stewards of long peace, declared open war.
And perhaps it is no wonder. Usually, those believed to be truly immortal reign with terror throughout the world. But not the Kalandir, at least, not until the Day War.
Their queen, whose name is lost to ash and vow, was assassinated. That act, vile and unnatural, struck not only at the heart of their court but also at the illusion of their untouchability. They had built an image said to outlast time itself. And yet, it was shattered.
It was this, above all, that triggered the war.
The Kalandir assembled a council to select their new High-Leader, their first in over four millennia.
What began as a search for understanding soon became a call to arms. Vellichor, often referred to in lesser texts as The Dread Mage, was present in those halls. He had advised caution often. But caution was a dying language then.
The Lord Chancellor, believed to have held the title of High-King last, remains unnamed in Kalandir records, redacted for the shame he brought, and is believed to have said this of the war:
"This is not just. It is necessary."
Entry 273 - On Vellichor and Sonder
…Vellichor remains an elusive figure, one of paradox and restraint. While histories often grant him titles like "The Last True Arch-Magus" or "The Most Powerful Mage in the World," little is truly understood of the man.
He supposedly spoke a lot and did many things; his presence is said to have woven through every point of the Day War and many even further in the past, but few records of his actions remain.
But this is not entirely his story.
Another important figure, often overlooked in other historical accounts, was Sonder, later better known as the Blackbird.
At the time, she was barely more than an apprentice to the Dread Mage. A prodigy, yes. A wielder of powerful magics, shaped by grief and sharpened by vengeance. But she had not yet grown into the legend that now shadows her name.
It was said she sat quietly beside Vellichor as the war was declared, but that fire had already lit in her eyes. Those close to her noted an intensity, or an urgency, to her.
There were stories that she was a gentle girl before the Day War. Afterward, only steel remained.