This creates the first conflicts between what will some day be the "gods" and the "demons."  The question at stake: to force these new life forms to obey, and to keep meddling, or to leave well enough alone.  In the war that develops, both sides manifest through the earth itself, as volcanoes, earthquakes, typhoons, and even greater catastrophes.  Parts of the dark moon itself are pulled from the sky.  The world is reshaped.  Only some sea creatures, a few small vertebrates, and some of the dragons survive.  Most of the dragons who survive flee the planet magically, but some return later. 

The proto-gods themselves sink back into their more primal forms.  As mammals evolve and some reach a certain level of self awareness (apes, dolphins) so do the gods.  They dimly realize they almost destroyed themselves and everything else, and mutually agree, regardless of "side," to not meddle any longer by manipulating the forces of nature.

Gods and demons alike find a loop-hole in their earlier agreement.  They can take a finite shape (manlike or beast-like) and walk the earth in that shape.  The gods continue to evolve and "bud" creating more sophisticated archetypes like "justice" over time.  But two things cause further conflict: 1.  The humans too want free will and won't always obey.  2. Even if they always wanted to obey, they couldn't obey every power, because as they evolve into more sophisticated archetypes, more potential exists for diametric opposites to form (love/hate, justice/revenge, etc.) and also more of a potential for ethical weight to be added by the humans to those archetypes (i.e. if you know you will die and don't want to, then death ceases to be just a fact of existence and becomes "evil").  Thus the "gods" and the "demons" come into conflict again.  Now the enmity and the differences between the sides is greater.  Abd Aten is imprisoned early in this stage of the conflict. 

Outright war between the factions begins. Limited by physical form, the devastation to the planet is less, but still substantial.  The gods win, largely because the primitive tribes of humans willingly worshiping them give them a little edge, and because they are willing to sacrifice that power to bind BOTH themselves and the demons outside of new-ly created metaphysical walls around the planet.  They can communicate with the creatures inside via illusion, dream, channeled power, etc. but not in person.  If the gods were to break the barrier to "go in," then the demons would be free to do the same.
 
The raising of the walls also creates the fey.  The lesser powers have to make a choice.  Some choose to go outside the walls with the greater powers.  These are angels and lesser demons.  They don't have permanent physical form, but can be summoned back into the world by an act of great magic and will from one already inside and in-tune with the world's physical energies (i.e. with a body, preferably a mortal one). They can re-enter because they require a smaller "tear" in the fabric, but it is still VERY difficult.  Also, because their nature is non-physical, it is exhausting for them to maintain physical form inside the walls, so they can not stay manifest for long without energy (generally of sacrifice). 
 
Some other small creatures choose to stay inside.  In the relatively low-magic, low power environment of the inner world, they find themselves trapped in physical form for ever. They even begin to reproduce, and their offspring live their entire existences trapped in a body, thinking of it as natural.  Because they did not evolve naturally, their bodies don't follow ALL the rules of natural life.  They can still control their forms magically via an act of will. This means that they can change shape, do not suffer from disease, heal very well and do not age.  These are the fey.  The most powerful ones among them are the ones that take human form and learn to manipulate the essence like men are also learning to do.  The men are the innovators, the fey have the life spans to perfect and advance what men create. 

As human society slowly rebuilds over the next 1000's of years, it evolves simple stone age villages and towns with political rivalries.  The fey imitate them and the divisions between the courts result.

Over time, however, the wiser among the god-kings realize that something is wrong.  They wanted to rule the humans so that the fey would share in their vitality, but he opposite has happened.  The humans are stagnating, and not changing.  Fewer and fewer of them have "great ideas" any more.  They don't experiment with magic any more, they just take their existence for granted.  Some of the fey are, of course, perfectly happy with this.  This is the beginning of the Great War between the courts.

Prometheus separates the world into different "realms" or "planes" moving the king of Earth and those physically near him far from the forces of Air and Fire.  The many "Shadows" of Praedia (in the Amber sense) now stretch between.  The moon is also caught up in this vast magic, splintering through many realities.  Terrible devastation still wracks the human world, and some of the worlds around it. Other shadow worlds are totally destroyed, but some escape damage.   In their farthest shadow, the forces of Earth and Sea (as well as any others fighting near them) are trapped in exile in a nearly-magicless land.  Other fey and humans were isolated in other folds and shadows.  Another consequence was that the protective walls around Praedia were fractured and stretched.  Demons still had to be summoned , but it was much easier.  More powerful ones could be brought through, and by less powerful individuals. They could stay for longer, manifest more physically, and even be relatively  permanently bound via a Greater Joining ritual or Possession. 

In undertaking his action, Prometheus gave up much of his power and himself became "stuck" between distant shadow realities.  While the other powers knew that his actions had been the "least evil" they were angry at the results and strengthened the walls around Prometheus rather than freeing him.  They consider him too impulsive and reckless. 

Over time, two things happened.  First, the bulk of the humans drift away and form their own civilizations.  Some humans had always been "Free Range" of course, either untouched by the Courts or at their periphery.  Now the ex-pets begin forming societies that will some day be the Gallacian, Achaean, and Sea Raider cultures.  Those individuals who were descended from the higher ranking classes of the old City-States, who had been bred to have longer lifespans and more magic, tended to stay closer to their ex-masters, sometimes developing something like Teacher/Student relationships with them, and continuing to live in their cities. 

Second, most of the Elves withdrew to the far east of the continent, away from the Anteian basin.  They often turned away from the old Arcane magics and manipulation of deep power, believing it led to their downfall.  Instead they focused on self-discipline, meditation, mental magics, waking-dreaming and manipulation of personal Chi.  A minority did not leave the old ways, however.  They, over thousands of year, were subtly influenced by demons.  The demons particularly sought to communicate with those elves who wanted their immortality back.  They promised great knowledge – the secrets of the universe.  They also slowly convinced these Elves that the whole sacrifice, the war behind it, and he freedom of the humans was wrong.  Slowly the teaching relationship they had with their human allies became unbalanced and manipulative, and small groups of humans found themselves pet/slaves once again.

Also sometime during this time, the Gods realize that they can gather information about the world and its people, and keep an eye on demonic influence, via the creation of avatars in mortal flesh. Most of these are relatively low-power and do the "Wandering Advisor" thing, as in Prof. Tolkien's Middle Earth

 Trade and a monetary economy increases and simple banking systems develop.  Simple gunpowder weapons are invented around 150 years before the present, and the current level of technology is just at the level of the wheellock.  The moveable type press has been in existence for a little more than a century and literacy rates are climbing.  Magic also increased slowly over the duration, and the walls between human and fey lands are again weakening.  The fey awaken, and summoners have begun to realize that demons and elementals are easier to call forth.  Prophesies seem to predict another coming crux-time, perhaps at the turn of the Millennium.