Elves of Shadow and Twilight

Long ago, before humanity existed, a war began within the elvenkind, which was then a single race. And this war succeeded in dividing elvenkind in two. And most say that those of darkness eventually where defeated and forced to dwell underground, although the dark elves probably tell that elves originally dwelt underground, and that they forced their kindred out onto the surface to burn in the hateful rays of sunlight, which unfortunately failed to destroy them. (Can't trust the sun for anything, I suppose.) But the learned say that in the end they realized that their war was futile, and so one side chose the darkness beneath the earth, and the other the sunlit spaces above it.

There were those of the dark elves, however, who realizing they would be banished underground forever tried to repent at the very end and rejoin their former kindred of light, and thus becoming despised by both where cursed to abide neither darkness nor light, but dwell only in shadows. Those that have survived today live in small, isolated groups, some bitter and hateful, lusting to be able to see the sunlit world that blinds them and fearing the darkness, skulking about in the shadows that protect them, yet not loving them. Others have grown used to their lot in life or even come to prefer it, and create strange and beautiful things in the spaces between light and darkness. All are adept at concealment and stealth, and many times whole cities have escaped notice, discovered only by accident after existing in plain sight for years. And the next day the entire city will have vanished.

They have a great love of precious stones and gold, because it reminds them of the long lost sun, though they are not greedy for it in the same way as humans, caring far more for beauty and purity than quantity, most only keeping a single ball of gold that they polish daily. They are by many that know of them feared and hated, however, because some groups will occasionally steal elven or even human children, so that they may be raised as shadow elves, yet have the ability to journey in daylight.

There were some who from the beginning would not fight with either side, and in the end would choose neither darkness nor light. Their fate was to dwell in the twilight, and perhaps they do not even exist during day or night, for the magic of those ancient times is still strong within them, and of the so called "laws" of physical reality they reckon little. Their numbers are few, because they where few in the beginning, and have never desired to increase their race. It is only when one of them dies that another is born, so that their spirit may return, and some say that many have lived since the beginning, enduring through the ages by existing only when it is neither day or night and perhaps only rarely then. They care nothing for power or wealth, but preserve a memory of all the ages before, and speak with the other races only to gather knowledge, for as they would not fight in the beginning but only observe, now they are the watchers of time, and would act only to prevent the destruction of all things, if it where not the proper time. And so few indeed will ever one of their race. But those truly blessed might once, if only once, hear their unearthly singing grow and then fade as the sun ends departs and the stars take dominion over the heavens.

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