The 4th Coming

There was a time long ago when elves roamed the world in great numbers, when their achievements dwarfed even the brilliance of the sun, when the civilizations of men and dwarves were still in their infancy. There was a time of legends and heroes, of incredible achievements and great deeds, a time when the world knew true greatness. But that time is long gone, crushed under the heel of fate and decay. The elves are now dead, victims of their own blindness. They have not heeded the warnings of the harbinger who came to warn them... He came on the night when the moons and the constellation of the Centaur aligned, several millennia ago, and warned all who would hear of impending doom. He spoke warnings and prophecies, but the elves had become vain and arrogant and did not listen to him. The harbinger went away and promised to return when the time was right. A few generations later - a short time by elven standards - the Harbinger returned and once again stepped into a series of moons and constellations. The elves had almost forgotten his past warnings. When the curse fell upon their people, they stood defenseless. Despite their arcane knowledge and magical abilities, they could not resist the divine powers that destroyed them. When the Harbingers left their land, not a single building was left standing. It is said that the winds carried the stench of death even to the dwarven villages in the north. The dwarves took this as a sign that evil was coming and prepared to defend themselves. When the harbinger came to their land to warn them that it was their turn and that great dangers lay ahead, they feared the visitor and avoided him. He left them and warned them that achievements alone are not the measure of a worthy people. Millennia later, the fateful arrangement of moons and stars in the sky repeated itself. The dwarves had evolved into a society of craftsmen and artisans. They had built great cities and dutifully worshipped their god. Prophecies from long ago warned them of a fate similar to that of the elves, so they had prepared themselves well and prepared for the third coming. When the harbinger came to them When the harbinger came to them, they could not stand the sight and smell of him and mistook him for a devil from hell and struck him down immediately. Historians say that this was the reason for the downfall of the dwarves. It is also said that some humans witnessed the event and that the harbinger also warned them and told them that they too would be judged so that they would not be worth more than the elves and dwarves. Now it may be that none of this story is true, that we are just a troubled people living under an unusual constellation of stars that hasn't been seen in a thousand years, but maybe, just maybe, there is something to this story. Maybe there really is a harbinger walking the land as we speak, coming for us to judge and torment us if we disappoint him. So, little scoundrel, before I kill you for your crimes, before I condemn your soul to eternal fire, answer me this one question.