Disclaimer: Wizards of the Coast owns Magic: the Gathering and all related intellectual properties, not I.

Please enjoy our feature presentation.

In the beginning, there was nothing. Nothing but darkness and cold.

Then, there was the First Dragon.

Nobody knows where the First Dragon came from, or why, but it looked upon the world of darkness and cold and was not satisfied.

"This world is not complete," it said. "It needs more."

And so it took a breath of the frigid air, and blew out a gust of warm wind, and as this warm wind blew through the world, it danced with the darkness and coaxed it into movement.

And as the darkness moved, something new was born.

This new thing was light, wonderful and warm and bright, and the First Dragon, when it saw the light, was pleased. But it remained unsatisfied. It took the light in its great claws, and began working with the light, making parts of it solid, giving the solid parts shape. Soon, the First Dragon had created something new: the land, the waters, and the sky. Great peaks like dragon's teeth bit at the wide blue sky that shielded the world of light from the darkness beyond. The vast, cold lakes were etched into the land, deep enough to drown the largest of beasts. In the sky hung the sun and moon, the twin beacons that lit the day and night and kept the world of light safe from the darkness, and the stars that dotted the banner of nighttime. From the ice-frosted mountains came down a river that passed through a dark, steamy jungle, where it grew wide and eventually dwindled to a halt. Within a wide valley were deserts, gleaming white under the light of the sun and moon alike, as well as endless fields, high plateaus, and frigid marshes. In the mountains were hidden many lakes and small valleys.

It was beautiful.

But it was missing something, and so the First Dragon remained unsatisfied.

Life.

"I will create life," the First Dragon said. And so it did. The skies grew heavy with storms that birthed dragons of all shapes and sizes. From the foam of the waters did birds and fish fly, some birds becoming the mighty aven. The beasts of the land were born from the trees of the jungle, spreading across Tarkir, some becoming the ainok, the ogres, the naga, and the orcs. From clouds and rainwater were the wise djinn shaped, and wildfires born of lightning brought forth the mysterious efreet.

And the people of Tarkir were born from the land itself.

From the hot, whirling sands of the desert did the First Dragon shape the Abzan. A fair people with brown hair, who garbed themselves in shining dragon scales for armor and built great cities for themselves and their families in the unforgiving deserts, the Abzan saw the huge dragons that roamed the wild sands, and were so in awe of their strength that they took the scale of the dragon as their symbol.

From the cool, soft clay of the lakebeds did the First Dragon sculpt the Jeskai. A gentle people with dark hair, who loved knowledge and the pursuit of enlightenment and built sagely strongholds near the waterways of the mountains, the Jeskai saw the graceful, feathery dragons who careened through the wide canyons, and were so in awe of their cunning that they took the eye of the dragon as their symbol.

From the loose, dark soil of the jungles did the First Dragon form the Sultai. A brooding people with thin faces, whose minds were always whirling with schemes and plans and plots and who built luxurious palaces deep within the hot jungles, the Sultai saw the bloated, snakelike dragons who slithered through the darkness of the underbrush, and were so in awe of their ruthlessness that they took the fang of the dragon as their symbol.

From the dry, hard earth of the steppe did the First Dragon chisel the Mardu. A robust people with strong bodies, who had an insatiable appetite for blood and the glory of battle and lived nomadic lives on the windy steppe, the Mardu saw the furious, many-frilled dragons who streaked through the skies over the plains, and were so in awe of their sheer speed that they took the wing of the dragon as their symbol.

And from the cold, clear ice of the mountains did the First Dragon make us, the Temur. A dark people with dark hair, who are possessed of great courage and resilience, the ancient Temur saw the gargantuan, fiery dragons who thundered across the untamed highlands, and were so in awe of their primal fury that we took the claw of the dragon as our symbol.

And so, having created life, the First Dragon was satisfied, and departed from Tarkir.

But all was not well, for the dragons did not take kindly to humanity. They saw humanity as beneath them, as weak insects to be enslaved or devoured.

And so did they turn their fangs upon humankind.

The dragons of the desert resisted every attempt by the Abzan to stop their siege. The dragons of the waterfront beguiled the Jeskai at every turn. The dragons of the jungles ambushed the Sultai where they least expected it. The dragons of the plains ransacked the Mardu's settlements. The dragons of the mountains devoured entire Temur outposts. For a time, the beasts seemed unstoppable.

But one day, the First Dragon returned. It saw what had happened to the world of Tarkir, and was unhappy once more. Taking flight, it descended from on high to teach the humans draconic magic: secret arts of concealment and deception. This magic being nurtured by the humans, they began to fight to balance the natural order once again, toppling the oppressive rule of the dragons and reestablishing balance between the two species. Fearing further attack, the five races of humanity bonded with the other sapient creatures of Tarkir, forming the five mighty clans we know today, each spearheaded by a Khan.

The balance remains today: the Khans lead their clans into battle against the dragons. The Abzan Houses still clash with the Dromoka. The Jeskai Way still endeavour to outwit the Ojutai. The Sultai Brood still scheme to take down the Silumgar. The Mardu Horde still seek out and slay the Kolaghan. And we, the Temur Frontier, still defend ourselves against the Atarka.

Only time will tell if this balance remains unbroken, or if one side will defeat the other once and for all.

-a Temur tale

Author's Note: So, there you have it. This is my attempt at writing a folktale based on the world of Tarkir. What do you think?