The Dawning

"When the Catastrophe occurred and war followed, the gods were not pleased with how us mortals turned on each other. As punishment for our actions, the gods turned their backs on us, and withdrew the sun from the sky... Took us a while to figure out how to earn it back." ... Tale as described by a dockworker in Myth i-Lantha

Summary

Pelor looked to the Material Plane and saw the fighting between the mortals, and he grew saddened by this. He beseeched those of his followers that had survived the wars to spread the message that should peace not be found, he would take action. But the mortals were wary, and still in the midst of their anger, and ignored this message.
Pelor, as a forgiving god, tried a warning next. He began to darken the sky. But the mortals took this to be a sign of the coming doom. They fought harder, and the time between night and day grew longer, and so they fought even harder, out of fear, until the day when the sun grew too weak to shine through the heavy darkness of the sky, and did not rise. The mortals thought they had lost everything already, but it was this day that they realized they had also lost hope. 
The world cycled through periods of twilight and night for the next 300 years, until the anger settled, and hopelessness abated, and weary leaders dared to ask for peace.

Historical Basis

Though there are a number of theories as to why the sun disappeared, but all agree that the sun did intend fade from the sky for a number of years. The myth depicts one theory, in that Pelor, the sun god, removed the sun as a punishment for the chaos of the world. Another popular theory is that the environmental effects of years of war and massive city-wide explosions blotted out the sky with heavy ash and smoke that took centuries to clear. Slightly less popular but by no means less credible are those that suggest it was too much magic used all at once, and for the purpose of so much darkness. 
While experts cannot agree on the official cause of The Dark Ages, we can also agree that the process was gradual. The sky did not darken over the course of an hour, a day, or even a week. The process likely took several weeks as the light faded, until the official day recognized as the first day of the Dark Ages, and of the New World, when the sun failed to rise for the first time.
For the entire period of history officially recognized as The Dark Ages, the light from the sky never grew brighter than the murky darkness that exists just after the sun has set. At night, the world would descend into a darkness that could not be penetrated by any mortal eye without a gift like blind sight.

Spread

The tale is universally recognized by any person encountered on the surface of Bryndos, with some variation based on area or city.

Variations & Mutation

Some settlements or cities lend more credibility to the belief that Pelor took credit for an accident that was entirely of our own making, while others suggest not a warning from a god of light but a penance we owed, and taken by a goddess of darkness, like Shar.

Cultural Reception

Most people perceive this story as one that is likely true, but 
Most settlements keep the myth alive because of the history but don't put much stock in worrying about the tale. The sun might have left because of the fighting long ago, but it came back. There have been fights since and it didn't vanish again, so what's the use in worrying about it?

In Art

A popular topic for artistry, songs, paintings, and plays are written about both the Dark Ages and the Dawning, telling the tales of the brave heroes who helped return light to the world.

Date of First Recording

9 DA

Date of Setting

1 DA