Erik And The Dragon ( Book 4) by Sam Ferguson

dwarves are. The Sierri’Tai are one of two races that we commonly call drow, or dark elves.” Tatev took a drink of coffee from his tin mug before continuing. “Simply put, Nagar was a Sierri’Tai prince. They had a great kingdom in Tualdern. They erected a city there the likes of which had never been seen before in the Middle Kingdom. To the east, they traded mostly with the, the Pes’Tai, more commonly known as the sand elves. Over time, the Pes’Tai mingled with the Sierri’Tai. They never really intermarried of course, but the sand elves did purchase shops and land in Tualdern. Eventually, hostilities arose between the two societies. Some say that the Sierri’Tai kidnapped one of the Pes’Tai princesses from the desert, so the sand elves retaliated by laying waste to the city. Others say that the sand elves had intended to overthrow Tualdern all along, and slowly positioned themselves in Tualdern until the day came they were ready to strike. Other theories, which I tend to give more credence to, accuse Tu’luh of setting the two groups against each other. No matter which theory is accurate, the result is known all too well. The Pes’Tai utterly destroyed the Sierri’Tai in a great battle and forced the few surviving Sierri’Tai out of their homeland. Nagar then set to working on a magic that would not only conquer the sand elves, but pay them back for their treachery. It was then that he and Tu’luh created the magic that we call Nagar’s Secret.”
    “They worked together?” Erik asked.
    Tatev nodded. “Nagar’s and Tu’luh combined their forces together, using the magic to crush any and all who would oppose them until finally they marched toward Tualdern. All those who had been subjected to Nagar’s Secret now obeyed their every command. The dwarves, dragons, and humans joined forces with the sand elves in the Valley of Hamath. The battle was horrendous, carpeting the valley with scarlet corpses and ivory bones. So great was the army that Tu’luh and Nagar led that the battle raged for days without ceasing. It is said that as many as half of the dragons in the Middle Kingdom joined with Tu’luh. It was a very dark point in our history.”
    “Why did the other dragons join with them?” Erik asked.
    “The vision you saw,” Tatev commented. “The one where Tu’luh showed you the end of Terramyr. He showed the same vision to the Ancients long before he and Nagar created their dark magic. Knowing that humans were not prone to peace, Tu’luh said it was better to slay all of the humans and orcs to save the world. Hiasyntar Ku’lai rejected the vision, and Tu’luh’s suggestion. He said it was not right to kill the races they had sworn to protect. Tu’luh relented and went away for a season. When he returned, he said he had discovered a magic so powerful that it could force living creatures to bend to their wills on a massive scale. He proposed forcing all creatures, not just the humans, to subject themselves to the Ancients so that the dragons might save the world. Hiasyntar Ku’lai loathed the notion and banished Tu’luh from the Middle Kingdom, along with any dragon who agreed with him.”
    “If Tu’luh wanted the magic to save the world, then why work with Nagar?” Erik asked.
    “Because the magic only worked by combining the magic of the dragons with that of the elves,” Tatev said. “There is a book, called ‘The Arcane Abyss’ which describes all of the magics that exist, and which races can use them. It also discusses the theory of combining different magics to make them stronger, or to create new types of magic. Tu’luh needed to combine his magic with that of an elf. More specifically, he needed the magic of a dark elf.”
    Erik leaned into a nearby birch tree and his mouth dropped open as it clicked for him. “So Tu’luh used Nagar,” he said only slightly louder than a whisper. “That is why you believe Tu’luh orchestrated the attack on Tualdern.”
    Tatev nodded