The Dwarven Debt

Dwarves are called the “first-born,” the Earegorth, for they were the first people and the most desired of the All Father. Forged upon the anvil of his desire, with the hammer of his anger, the dwarves came to Aihrde as a people strong in will and fortitude. The first of their fathers stood upon the bare stone of God's Forge, and from that day to this have ever had a love of stone, for in it they saw the will of the All Father and the strength of all that he did. Stone appealed to them and in later years, metals of all stripes that were strong and bent only with great labor, for thus they saw themselves in the eye of the All Father.

Tis written that the All Father perished in the spells of Ondluche; that he lay beneath the world and died. But the dwarves do not see it thus. The All Father did not die, for no hand in creation can unmake the All Father, lest it be the Dragon that lies at the root of the Maelstrom. As the dwarves see it the All Father passed down the Arc of Time and has taken new form, one that lies upon the shores of all creation. He is the Sea of Dreams and all peoples touch him, for good or for ill. He is ethereal and turns to his world and its creatures only rarely, if at all.

But from him the dwarves draw their strength, and consider the debt of life unpaid, and for this they pay heed and homage to him.

~ The Players Guide to Aihrde

This is an awesome piece by Keith Parkinson.