The Druids Bane tunneled relentlessly under the mountains known as the Grimfangs. Caves already in existence were made larger and new tunnels were dug to get to where they had to go. Thousands of passageways were made leading under every part of the Elven Vale. The Dark Lord added more and more Dark Stars to his ranks, who in turn added more and more slaves. The Dark Lord added the spell of long life for his black sorcerers to use along with the spell of compulsion on the poor tormented souls that served them. Over the turns his workforce grew and so did his army of slave warriors mindlessly training for battle. After five hundred winters the Black Druids were finally ready to attack the Elves above.

The tunnels and caves were ready to be opened under the Mage Towers in the Vale and every key point from the East end to the West. The Dark Lord knew thousands of his slaves would die when the tunnels collapsed, it was a sacrifice he gave no thought to. Their dying would release thousands upon thousands of mindless savage warriors and ravaging black wolves on the lands above. They would be led by thousands of the black sorcerers of his Dark Stars. All would be intent on the slaughter and death of every Elf and Tundra Wolf in the Vale.

Above ground it was the time of the new moon and the deepest part of winter. It was the longest night of the turn and a storm raged above the dome of the Elves. In the labyrinth of caverns below, the Dark Lord sat quietly upon a fiery black steed. He was at the entrance to the largest of the caves with his four Dread Lords gathered about him. With a blast from his mind he sent out the order to attack. A thousand sinkholes opened up, bringing the underworld to the Elven Vale.

High Mage Orndacil stood looking out the large windows that made up the wall of his north facing chamber. His gaze was on the mountain tops to the north above the Vale wall. His view was unobstructed because he was just below the solarium high atop the Central Mage Tower in the city of Asegron-thare. The room the High Mage of the Towers stood in was part of his quarters where he conducted his meetings and did most of his work. Sturdy wooden shelves covered three of the walls and were filled top to bottom with books and scrolls Orndacil collected over thousands of turns. The forth wall was made from panes of quartz crystal so clear one could hardly tell it was there. A door was also in the crystal wall that let out to a balcony and a walkway going around the Tower. In the middle of the room sat a large rectangular table with many chairs around it. Tonight four of the chairs closest to the crystal wall were occupied by powerful Tower Mages, each strong in the Mage Sight. They too stared towards the line of mountains in the north. One looked northeast, another looked northwest and two looked to the portal in the Vale wall that opened to the top of the world. Orndacil overlooked all with his powerful Mage Sight to make sure nothing was missed.

It was a brutal night in the skies over the dome as a fierce winter storm raged. You would never know it under the dome as all was peaceful and quiet. Above tons of ice and snow fell combined with a continuous barrage of lightning strikes. To make matters worse a deadly Fell Wind had escaped the barrier of White Magic earlier in the day and was blowing through the Grimfangs mixing with the storm. Orndacil could not remember ever seeing a storm of such enormous energy and strength. He was in awe of its display.

The Mage who looked east and the Mage who looked west searched for any more breaches to the barrier of White Magic stretching across the northern mountain tops. The two Mages looking towards the portal watched for any failures of the powerful wards put in place there. They were ready to send warnings into the aether to the Mages and soldiers guarding the tunnel if they noticed anything amiss.

The High Mage went outside and paced on the walkway encircling the outer wall of the Tower. He made slow circles and stopped for a brief moment at each point of the compass. He observed as the Mage Towers around the perimeter of the Vale sent thick streams of White Magic skyward. The bursts from the Towers were short and sporadic, but with each walk Orndacil made around the Central Tower they were becoming longer and more frequent. It was quite a sight for those able to see the White Magic. The underside of the dome shimmered and sparkled as the beams mushroomed and fanned out like lightning bolts streaking erratically towards the center. It was a bit eerie seeing so much activity over the Vale in complete silence. The Tower Mages in the solarium above were staying very busy directing the White Magic to where it was needed. He could feel them becoming a bit more frantic with every passing minute the storm was overhead.

The High Mage was facing north when he felt the tower shudder and shake beneath his feet. Never had he felt the earth move this way in the Vale before. In surprise he looked down at the walkway to make sure it was secure against the tower. When the Mage looked back up he was confronted with a sight that filled him with a dread he had never experienced in his extremely long life. With the Mage Sight he could see the Towers to the east, the ones to the west and all that stood across the northern wall. Time slowed as he watched every one within his view begin to fall. In unison all around the perimeter the Towers tilted and began to slowly topple over, each falling towards the earth in a different direction. It seemed like it took minutes, even though it was only seconds, as the Towers released their final streams of White Magic to the sky as they fell. The beams were erratic, each traveling in a different direction from the other, all along the Vale wall. Some reached the dome above, but most missed the target. They either dispersed into glittering clouds of light in the air above the Vale or shattered in a brilliant blaze against the mountain walls. Even Elves weak in the White Magic could see the display which lasted only seconds around perimeter. It was the final act of the Mage Towers of the Northern Vale. They sent their bursts of White Magic and then went dark just before hitting the ground.

The High Mage Orndacil stood spellbound by what he just witnessed. He looked hard into the broken ruins of the fallen Towers around the perimeter. Of the many within his view none were holding a spark of the White Magic. Not one of the Tower Mages within survived the fall. Orndacil quickly looked to the dome above. Not only did the Mage Towers supply the White Magic which kept the dome strong, they were also the anchors keeping it in place. Without them the White Magic above was lost. Orndacil looked on as the dome broke apart and separated into thousands of pieces. The pieces turned into soft billowing clouds of every different size and shape. Against the backdrop of the night sky and the dark storm overhead the clouds appeared as white as the snow beginning to fall on the Vale. The High Mage never before imagined such devastation and felt a deep foreboding as he looked on. He watched as strong winds shredded the clouds of White Magic into wispy strips of mist. Whatever was left of the White Magic drifting above was devoured by the raging storm descending on the Vale. Snow and ice started coming down heavier and heavier with every passing heartbeat. Strong gusts of wind blew the snow about in flurries and the High Mage began to fear the Fell Wind would find the Vale.

Thousands of queries started coming through the aether sent by Elves from one end of the Vale to the other. Orndacil knew they were directed to him and to the Tower Mages above, but neither he nor the Mages knew how to respond to the events taking place. They were stunned and unable to react to the destruction they were seeing. The Mages in the Central Tower did not know this was just the beginning of the attacks on the Vale. What came next brought the High Mage of the Towers along with the Mages under him to the brink of despair. The Elves throughout the Vale floor would never receive an answer to their questions.

Along the mountain tops to the North the barrier of White Magic was down. When the mighty dome fell so too did a segment of the White Magic boundry. When Orndacil looked at the fallen segment he witnessed a sight few Elves have ever seen.

On the other side of the mountains the dreadful swirl of the Fell Ice in all its terrible glory and horrible wrath rose higher and higher above the mountains. Orndacil could only describe it as a black malformation of clouds violently moving against each other. Against the blackness of the storm these clouds stood much darker, an impossible inky blackness. Lightning bolts blazed around the billowing mass and erratically lit parts of it up. From up high in the depths of the blackness the High Mage could see two red slits floating that he could only describe as eyes. They were foreign and alien and looked down with an indescribable hate.

To Orndacil's relief the barrier of the White Magic began to right itself along the mountain tops. At both ends of the breach he could see clouds of it quickly reforming the wall as it rushed for the center. The High Mage looked to the awful black swirl growing larger beyond the mountains as it moved closer. He could see a tiny piece even blacker than the main body separate itself. It looked to be floating still in the air. In moments Orndacil realized that was not the case as the tiny swirl grew larger and larger as it rushed incredibly fast straight at him. Against the vast backdrop of the Fell Ice the floating piece of swirl seemed very small, but Orndacil realized as it rushed for the breach it was easily half the size of the Vale. He watched as it moved faster than any of the gales blowing about within the storm, faster than any gust of wind he had ever witnessed from a Fell Wind. With a growing sickness in his stomach he knew the wall of the White Magic would not form itself fast enough. He watched as the black swirl from the Fell Ice shot through the narrow opening at the top of the mountains seconds before the White Magic filled the breach.

The High Mage was not alone when these events were taking place. The Tower Mages came out on the balcony when the Towers fell and lined up along side him. They too watched as the swirl of the Fell Ice came rushing into the Vale. They stood spellbound as it came right towards them. Only Orndacil was quick enough to say a spell of protection before the swirl charged through them. Every Mage on the walkway and those in the tower itself were killed in the blink of an eye, frozen in less than heartbeat. Orndacil watched as the swirl of the Fell Ice rampaged through the Vale leaving everything dead in its wake.

The High Mage of the Towers was not able to watch it for long. A rumble began at the base of the tall tower he stood upon. The rumble turned into a vibration that soon became heavy shuddering and shaking and finally strong jolts. Cracks raced up the Tower walls from the base to the top quicker than an arrow shot. The Tower tilted as it began to break apart and fall. The High Mage grasped the handrail of the walkway and looked for any way to escape and realized there was none. He looked upon his fallen Tower Mages and then out over the Vale. Sadness and sorrow hung heavy on him. He leaned against the Tower wall and put his staff to his chest . He closed his eyes as he searched for the White Magic. He had just enough time to send his death knell out into the aether and give himself to the Magic as the huge Mage Tower broke apart. As Orndacil died the Tower broke into huge blocks of black glass and collapsed from a deep hole opening at its base. It fell causing death and destruction as the huge blocks tumbled through the city of Asegron-Thare.

First to collapse were the Mage Towers. They fell with such violence the Tower Mages within were killed instantly. As they fell so too did the protective dome overhead. As an unexpected boon to the Dark Lord the barrier of White Magic along the mountain tops was also disrupted. A swirl of the Fell Ice came rushing in from the North and attacked the Vale with a fury. With a terrible wrath it struck down any creatures of the White Magic it came across, freezing them to death in seconds. Thousands died instantly as the terrible gust of its swirl rushed through the Vale. In minutes over half of the Elves were slain or too badly maimed to fight.

All along the mountain tops north of the Vale the White Magic quickly regained its balance and reformed itself. Across the peaks the breach was sealed and the Fell Ice was barred from the southern lands. But nothing could be done for the dome. The storm that raged on the Grimfangs now raged through the Vale, matching the storm of death coming from below. For many the Fell Ice was cut off too late. It had killed swiftly and without mercy. It killed so quickly the Elves sent no death nell into the aether for the living Elves outside the Vale to hear. The first Elves to die were the lucky ones, their deaths had been painless, not like the death that was seething from the earth below. The Dark Lord was pleased, the Fell Ice had paved the way for his invasion.

The barracks of the Norvale Guard was among the first to collapse after the Mage Towers fell. The thick block walls of the buildings came down crushing all but a handful of soldiers standing guard upon the wall. Black sorcerers led a thousand slave warriors from the large hole that suddenly formed and charged the massive gates. The remnant of the Guard were soon overwhelmed and the gates were closed and barred. Any aid that could have come from Elves guarding the road or Tundra Wolves outside the Vale was cut off.

For the last week the High Mage Ilphas was bothered and he was unable to put his finger on the problem. He felt subtle warnings coming through the White Magic with no idea what he was being warned about. For all his thousands of turns as a Mage strong in the White he suddenly felt he did not know the Magic anymore. He ordered his most powerful acolytes to scan every part of the Vale with their Mage Sight from atop the House of Mage Lore. He told them to scour the walls and the dome above looking for anything out of the ordinary. He also enlisted the aid of the High General of the Mage Guard. At the direction of Ilphas the General sent his soldiers who were strong in the White riding all throughout the Vale on fast golden steeds. They went to take a closer look at anything the acolytes found that seemed out of order or in need of closer investigation. Any projects the High Mage and his acolytes were involved in were put on hold as they studied the Vale and took reports from other Mages and soldiers. Only the work at the portal to the top of the world remained uninterrupted.

After a week of investigating nothing was found and all seemed to be well within the Vale. Ilphas forgot about the feelings and warnings he experienced as he focused his attention on the strong winter storm over the Grimfangs. During the last week it grew stronger by the day until it became a furious tempest pounding on the dome overhead. This was the strongest storm he could remember experiencing in quite some time, if ever. Adding to the storm's violence was a Fell Wind which escaped the barrier of White Magic earlier in the day. The strong evil Wind charged through the Grimfangs mixing with the winter storm and making it truly a monster.

After studying the storm a bit and marveling at the skill of the Tower Mages as they worked the dome the High Mage came into his rooms from his outside balcony. His quarters were at the very top of the House of Mage Lore and quite close to the dome, it was an excellent place to look upon a storm of such power. He had just sat down to a late evening meal when he felt the first disturbances like the deep gong of a bell tolling through the White Magic. His acolytes ran into the room just as the ground shook under the Mage House sending vibrations running up the walls and through the floors. Ilphas quickly stood and looked deep into the White Magic. Realization came to the High Mage of the Vale as he slowly sat back down and thought what a fool he was. Never once did he or any of his Mages think to look at what was right under their feet.

For all the looking and searching for a chink in the armor of the Vale they never searched below the Vale floor. The High Mage did not have to go outside to observe the falling of the Mage Towers, the White Magic showed it to him. It revealed the collapse of the dome and the swirl of the Fell Ice as it attacked. He heard loud and clear Orndacil's death knell along with thousands of other Elves as destruction came from below and the storm descended from above. He felt the White Magic recoil from the thick taint of the Black Magic bubbling up from the ground and out into the sweet lands of the Vale he loved. He felt the evil swirl of the Fell Ice as it flowed through the city of Aerith-Ellel killing thousands in seconds. The wards of protection guarding the House of Mage Lore was the only reason the swirl did not attack them. But the wards could not protect the House from the vast hole opening up beneath it. He had no time to contemplate his folly and his failure as the walls of the Mage House cracked and closed in on him. Of all the Mages in the Vale he fell the furthest as he sent out his death knell and gave himself to the White Magic.

Hundreds of he Dark Lord's slaves disappeared when the House of Mage Lore crumpled and fell from the largest hole yet. Over a thousand Elven Mages were crushed to death as the huge structure was ripped from the mountainside and came crashing down. Much of the city of Aerith-Ellel was destroyed as boulders from the mountain side rained down and rolled through. If the Elves who dwelled there were not killed by the Fell Ice or the falling rock they were finished when the slave warriors came among them.

Hundreds of holes were opened all throughout the Vale. Most collapsed under a dell or a town but some missed their mark giving the Elves time to form into armed bands. Elven Mages donned their robes and pulled down staffs of power from pegs above door frames. They ran to join the groups of Elves. Most of the long-lived Elves had served as soldiers at one time and were skilled in sword, spear and bow. They quickly strapped on armor and picked up weapons and went to follow the Mages. They took the fight straight to the taint of the foul Black Magic around them. With the Mages leading they did battle with the enemy army and charged into the mobs of mindless slaves.