Travis Li Montgomery

"So, I know I brought up the Planeswalker War last week, but I've decided that it's entirely too stupid to talk about," Liliana announced from where she was lounging behind her desk. "Honestly, it will just be a bunch of names - even moreso than usual - fighting over even stupider things than usual. One group of people wanted power, another group of people didn't like each other, a third group was trying to play peacemaker of course they were white and green mages, this was back before Magic's color wheel had anything even approaching depth, and in the end, Leshrac - mustache-twirling villain, even sans mustache - ended up ringing the Grey Chime. The Grey Chime was something of the poor man's Apocalypse Chime--" which had also gotten rung and yes, by a Planeswalker, but hey! Not on Dominaria! "--and destroyed most of Corondor, annihilating three major cities, Shikar, Telemar, and Hamath, and staining the sky above the continent eerie colors."

( Sure, it had involved magical beacon that had lured a bunch of Planeswalkers into one place and wouldn't let them leave, but when would THAT ever become relevant again? )

"That rift was called the Yavimayan Rift, as it had been located in Yavimaya, a great forest on what remains of Terisiare, after the Blast turned an entire continent into an archipelago. And, somewhat surprisingly, it was not the first rift to be formed. That honor belongs to the Madaran Rift." Liliana pulled out a large map of Dominaria, pointing to a small island off the western coast of Jamuraa, the southernmost continent. "Stop me if you heard this one," she continued wryly, "But Madara also used to be a continent. It was, in fact, where Nicol Bolas had his empire, back during Mythohistory. Unlike Ugin," and some other Planeswalkers who won't be named, "Bolas didn't just leave Dominaria once his spark ignited and never returned. He had power and dominion here, especially after unlocking powers that dwarfed even those of the other Elder dragons." Did Liliana sound wistful there? Nah, surely not. "Madara was the scene of the very first duel between Planeswalkers, some fifteen thousand years ago. Nicol Bolas and an unnamed demonic leviathan fought to the death. The stories that remain of that battle are sketchy at best, save that it took days, the seas went mad, storms rent the skies, and a third of Madara was utterly destroyed. Whatever spell took out a third of a continents also tore open reality and created the first rift."

Planeswalkers and wrecking reality, the peanut butter and jelly of Magic history.