The Divine Exodus

The Divine Exodus was a turning point in the entire world's history, ending the direct involvement of Gods in the Material Plane. The event was such a prevalent one that it cut the Third Era short, forcing the Fourth Era to begin far earlier than it should have done, at least in the view of many elven historians that lived through the Exodus. Because of its prevalence, it is used as an event that time can be recorded from. To understand why this came about, one would have to understand the events of the Salardian War, and the destruction that was caused in its wake.

The Salardian War:

A war that began in 100BDE, which lasted for one hundred years, due to a treaty between dragons and giants, who once co-existed in the joint Kingdom of Salardia, falling through. Both Pyra, the First Dragon, and Kathdormar, The First Giant, were involved with the ruling of their respective lands, acting more so as indirect monarchs, rather than the traditional role that many other Gods took with their people. Eventually, the two led their people in war, having many failed attempts at reinstating a treaty that would determine who would get what land.
The war was a bloody one, but the dragons ended up being victorious, largely due to Pyra having three demi-god children, causing the mass death of the majority of the giant population. The victory was not an easy victory for the dragons; however, as two of Pyra's three children were slain, with Lord Urill-ith being the only one of the three that survived. The sheer destruction that the war caused, especially because of the influence of Gods, was enough to cause Afrid, the Goddess of Life, and The Sentinels of Afrid to force all Gods to leave the Material Plane, thus resulting in the Divine Exodus, marking a new era in Aither.

After the Exodus:

In the wake of the Divine Exodus, many of the giant's settlements were disbanded, with many leaving Salardia, causing many to be seen in many other places in the Continent. The dragon population had also been dwindled to the point where many resided in the keep of Dranocast, ruled by Urill-ith. Not all dragons were comfortable with being ruled by a being that aided in the near extinction of their kind, travelling throughout The Continent, thus creating many legends and myths of dragons living into mountains and castles.