VI. The Great Fire

(25,000 years ago)

On one fateful day, the High Priest announced that the Dhe'nar were to be blessed by the heavens. Almost all of the Dhe'nar gather around the base of the Temple awaiting the celebration. The resulting horror that ensued was predicted 30,000 years earlier by Noi'sho'rah. Screams of fear were quickly quieted when fire fell from the heavens and the earth opened up beneath the feet of the unfaithful. For 50 days and nights fire rained down upon the jungle of Sharath. A great mountain pierced the heart of the city, destroying everything the Dhe'nar created. Almost ninety percent of the Dhe'nar died in the cataclysm, the only ones who survive are the few who remembered the teachings of the Arkati, and took refuge to avoid being discovered by anyone who might wonder why they avoiding the celebration.

When the fires finally ended, the survivors emerged from the caverns they were hiding in to see that a great mountain stood where their city once did, and the jungle around them was still there. Every tree, every shrub, standing as if nothing happened, however upon closer inspection they found that the jungle was composed entirely of gray-black ash. Ever since, Sharath has been known as the Forest of Ash.