From the introduction: There exists five beings known as the Elder Gods who have created, destroyed, and then created new universes since time immemorial. Upon creating a perfect world where the Anima Mundi is in such a state that it nourishes the Elder Gods, they burrow deep beneath to the heart of the world and sleep. Upon being reborn on that world once they have taken in a sufficient amount of Anima, they awake to begin the cycle all over again. This is how it was and will be since existence began.