There are many legends of the secretive, subterranean power known as Ferrakus. He is apparently of either dwarven or gnomish origin, though there are even human legends of Ferrakus based on deep cave engravings that predate the former races' claims. Ferrakus is said to have emerged from the fires of the very first volcano when it erupted on a world that has long since died. The Lord Beneath opened his burning eyes, and looked at the infinite sky, the flammable forests and the azure seas beyond them. Seeing that there was no safe haven for him, he turned back earthward and descended once more. He left the mountaintop sundered, pouring forth lava as a message to the other gods: "Whatever you create, it can be destroyed. Whatever you raise, it can burn. Everything you fashion upon this world rests above my domain-marvels crafted on the thin, cold shell of a molten egg." That message is central to all legends of Ferrakus-the idea that nothing lasts forever and that strength can overcome anything, if you strike the right place. This a practical lesson for gemcutters and stonemasons, but for a dangerous few it is a license for violence in the dark. These folk take the legend of Ferrakus to mean that the world should be burned and that all that is made should be unmade.
Advertisement