Once upon a time, the gods created an island. On this island there were two kingdoms—on to the east and one to the west, separated by a wide river in the center. The island held humans and mythical creatures alike, kitsune and tengu and oni and kijo—beings that have never been seen anywhere else.

  Thousands of years into its history, the western kingdom declared war on the east. The east made a successful campaign into the west, capturing all the forts leading up to the castle.

  The siege lasted three days, while both armies rested at night. On the first day, the west lost its greatest advisor; on the second day, high casualties were marked on both sides; on the third day, the king of the west set fire to the nearest forests and subsequently died in a failed full assault.

  When the battle ended, the eastern army retreated. Upon their return, they mourned and celebrated in equal measure—for while they won the war, it came at a steep price. The queen and her family all fell into a silence in respect for the younger prince, who lost his life in the fighting.

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  Little did they know that, in the west, the kitsune were displaced from their homes. Because of the king’s death and the advisor’s disappearance, the people had no one to turn to. The kitsune were not watched very closely.

  The forest creatures went into the castle and forced the humans out. The capital moved, but that location was shortly attacked by oni and kijo. It shocked all members of the kingdom, and they quickly fled east.

  The oni and kijo threatened the kitsune, and within two months they both passed the border into the eastern kingdom as well. This excited the tengu, who added chaos to the skies in addition to the kitsune flitting about on the ground.

  The queen of the eastern kingdom was shunned for being unwilling and unable to remove the ‘monsters.’ She escaped persecution by going to the northern island, which only held one nation.

  Just like its sister kingdom, the east fell to the beasts. The survivors fled to the north and south, to a total of three nations—two of which were created specifically for them. Within a year, the first island was devoid of humans.

  Ever since that day, the gods of the island have been in mourning, unable to be contacted in any way. The first island’s history still echoes throughout the other island nations, told from parent to child and through folktales and legends, so that all people remember the foolishness of the war.