“This is true,” Merek said. “Though I have seldom heard it named so plainly.”
“Mortals inhabit this world temporarily,” Isadore said. “They pass through en route to the realms of death and darkness or to the realms of life and light. The conduit between this world and the immortal realms of death and darkness is called the Void. And the conduit between this world and the realms of light and life is called the Source.”
“I have heard of the Source,” Merek said, “though the way to it is lost.”
“Neither the Void nor the Source can be destroyed,” Isadore said. “But they can be difficult to find. They can change location. They can change shape. And they can be walled off. The crown of the Underking derives power from the Void, just as the crown of the Fairy Queen receives power from the Source. Creatures of magic exist in this world thanks mainly to the Void and the Source. The Ethergem came from the Source in the earliest times. It was a gift to the giants that enabled them to dwell apart from the rest of the world, and it was given with the promise that they would not alter or repurpose it in any way.”
“Something went wrong,” Seth said. “What happened?”
“In short?” Isadore asked. “Graulas and Humbuggle happened. Together they inflamed the envy of the giants by suggesting the Ethergem could be crafted into a crown for a monarch who would surpass the Fairy Queen and the Underking. Graulas increased the lust of the dragons by telling them the Ethergem could be worked into a crown for a monarch to overpower all others. And Humbuggle aroused the hate of the demons by describing a crown made from the Ethergem that would allow an unrivaled monarch to arise.”
“How could they keep all of those promises?” Calvin asked.
“I puzzled this story together from fragments,” Isadore said. “But crowns were indeed promised by Graulas and Humbuggle to the parties I named, with great penalties attached if they failed to deliver. The giants were convinced that dragon fire would be necessary to forge their crown, and that only Humbuggle could craft it. The dragons were convinced that they had to give up the sole ingot of their strongest alloy to produce their crown. The alloy had a name only in dragon speech, but in our tongue we might call it mother-of-adamant. And the demons were convinced to surrender Raglamar, the sword of their leader, a gift from the Void.”
“Then Humbuggle got the Fair Folk involved,” Serena said. “Remember, their sworn role was to maintain balance in the magical world. Humbuggle convinced the Fair Folk to intervene against the giants, who were allegedly plotting to create a crown out of the Ethergem, which would let them descend to earth as an unstoppable race of unimaginable power.”
“I learned that many of the Fair Folk broke their vow of neutrality and went to war,” Merek said. “I never learned why. The remaining Fair Folk refuse to speak of it, and I was dormant at the time. I wish I could have prevented the foolishness.”
“It would have been hard to prevent,” Isadore said. “The Fair Folk managed to confirm with magic that the sky giants meant to forge a crown, and such an act would have granted them unassailable power. Though some of the Fair Folk held to their neutrality, a large portion decided that breaking their vows of impartiality was necessary for the survival of the world.”
“Enter the nipsies,” Serena said. “Graulas convinced the nipsies that stealing the Ethergem was the only way to save the world. He promised them honor and glory if they successfully delivered the Ethergem to the leaders of the Fair Folk. At the time, the nipsies were the size Calvin and I are now. Because the Ethergem was so precious and powerful, if the nipsies failed to deliver the gem, a curse would make them even smaller.”
“The stage was set,” Isadore said. “The demons Graulas and Humbuggle managed to pit the greatest crownless powers against one another. Humbuggle flew to Stratos upon a dragon named Abraxas.”
“The first dragon,” Merek said. “My father later slew him.”
“Abraxas was supposed to provide heat to forge the crown,” Isadore said. “And Humbuggle was supposed to craft it. Naturally, the giants made Abraxas and Humbuggle vow not to steal the Ethergem.”
“But nobody expected the nipsies,” Serena said.
“The nipsies were so small that the giants failed to detect them,” Isadore said. “To the sky giants, the nipsies were like specks of dust. They were smuggled into Stratos aboard Abraxas, and while Humbuggle and the dragon pretended to work, the nipsies swiped the Ethergem.”
“How did the nipsies get out of the sky?” Seth asked.
“Working together, the nipsies carried the Ethergem to the edge of Stratos,” Isadore said. “They jumped off and were met by Graulas, riding Velrog.”
“First of the demonic dragons,” Merek said. “Sire to demon princes of dragons like Gazarog and Navarog.”
“The same,” Isadore said.
“What happened to Stratos without the Ethergem?” Seth asked.
“The sky kingdom began to fall,” Isadore said. “Not straight down. The floating landmass coasted to a crash landing. There was an island here before the sky giants plummeted to the earth. Stratos made the island larger. Also, a significant portion of Stratos sank beneath the waves. Humbuggle and Abraxas fled after the crash.”
“What about Graulas?” Calvin asked.
“Velrog carried Graulas, the nipsies, and the Ethergem to the demon mother of witches, Nagi Luna, who used dark magic and the blade of Raglamar to shatter the Ethergem.”
“They destroyed it?” Seth asked.
“The Ethergem proved too powerful to destroy,” Isadore said. “Besides, Graulas and Humbuggle had promises to keep. Breaking the Ethergem fractured Raglamar and injured Nagi Luna. It also brought about the curse on the nipsies, who could no longer deliver the Ethergem to the Fair Folk.”
“No fair,” Calvin complained.
“But binding,” Serena said.
“Humbuggle rejoined Graulas and they set about keeping their promises,” Isadore continued. “The
