Leviane studied an old material along their travels. As they community expanded, it became harder to feed everyone. Occasionally, they had to swim further north than was comfortable. The frozen north had its mysteries in that certain places there was a barrier separately the mer from the dead space. Ao would collect broken pieces of the barrier for trinkets and curios, believing it would offer them some protection. However, it had the odd trait that it would begin to vanish when brought to warmer waters.
The pearl-keeper could begin to feel division in the community, between those who wanted to travel north for this arcane substances protection, and those who wished to continue to their journey to find more pleasant warmer water. However, there was there loyal not to their own desires, but to the desires of the Almighty Ao-Yurin and her speaker. There presence keep those from quarreling to loudly with each other.
While studying the northbound material, Leviane also studied the orb. She felt as though as she had still not understood the mer's true potency. While she peered deep into the pearl, she felt as though she understood the material better. She noticed how despite not being within frigid waters, the material had not left her. She announced to the community that like the fish, this ice material was of the mer and the work of one of the Almighty's subordinate gods. She did admit that she was still attempting to truly understand this so that she could better understanding the mer, however most where appeased with that simple explanation.
This announcement had only embolden those who wished to travel north. They approached this disagreement differently than they had before. Instead, they would gather exquisite foods and precious things as tithe to the Great Ao-Yurin and her speaker. Once the gifts were delivered, they would give their argument in manner practiced to be pleasant to hear echo through the waves. There was a moment when she tempted to agree with them, partially because it would allow her to better understand this ice and its associated subordinate god. When it seemed like the situation was shifted from there favor, those that preferred warm waters began to emulate the practice that they seen the others do. While those two positions were first upon everyone's mind, people started to mention other concerns in this manner.
It was rather difficult to decide, however cruel faith tore that opportunity from her. Some distance away, there was a subtle change in the water and shortly following it was a pillar of pure energy traversed through the mer and into the dead space above. It distorted the water around it, causing cataclysmic waves and ominous remnants remained within the water. The community was forcibly divided, not by internal strife but external tragedy.
A large group of the followers devotedly followed the pearl-keeper. She did not know if it was to protect her, or in the vain hope that she would protect them. The ominous energy chased after them, their escape made difficult by the churning of the mer. A wave came from above to crash down upon the pearl-keeper, however an Ao had quickly swam to push her out of the way. Upon watching a clutch of eggs about to escape from their parent's grasp, Leviane held tightly to the pearl pushing it towards the source of the destruction. She prayed and the sacred orb shone brilliantly. The waves around them settled and a barrier of ice appeared between them and the pursuing power. The frozen barrier absorbed the energy, before naturally begin to float to the dead-space, thus diverting it away from them.
In the aftermath, they had discovered that the crashing wave had killed the Ao that had protected Leviane. Leviane promised that their name would not be forgotten, and bid the survivors to continue following her in silent reflection. The calamity was not caused by something of the mer, but of the foundation. But perhaps it was not entirely malicious, for the pearl-keeper had realized a great many things from the encounter. Upon finishing her reflection, she had announced her discovers to her remaining followers.
The most critical lesson was that powerful forces lay below the foundation, and they were not to be taken lightly. Unlike the dead space, the foundation was not to be treated with hostility, but healthy suspicion might be the difference between life and death. She reminded those most angry at the ground below that without it, there would be nowhere for the seagrass to grow.
She revealed that in her great dreaming that the majestic Ao-Yurin could still provide them with strength. She had named this power hydromancy, after the fallen Ao, Hydron. She demonstrated it by causing the water to form into ice and then melt back into water. Leading into her final lesson, ice was merely the mer taking a different shape and that using hydromancy, they could bring the protection of the north wherever they may travel.
Knowing that they might benefit from both the protection of the subordinate god of ice's protection, while benefitting from more pleasant waters, along with surviving the rapturous waves due to pearl-keeper's power had unified all the remaining survivors under her guidance. However, she had know that some had said words bordering upon the treasonous and those echoes chased them even her. She taught hydromancy only to those who were first loyal to her, and the others accepted this. They knew not to try her patience regarding this.
During the calm, she also realized that the young Trit was not immediately near her as he should have been. She realized that she had left his care to the community, which while not uncommon along the merfolk, she did feel regretful. However, one of the Ao had guided him through the dangerous waves. Without her guidance, his poor swimming would have likely failed him. This Ao had said disloyal words before, however her actions had proved her worth. She was had also been a mother before, and by all accounts was proficient. She was appointed to watch over Trit and any like him, and everyone understood the importance of such a charge granted by the pearl-keeper.
The group continued forward. With less people to feed, and her followers more cooperative and motivated, they moved at a far greater pace than before. Eventually, the long journeybrought them to pleasant waters, overgrown with the seagrasses and teeming with fish. Nearby was a great chasm leading deeper into the foundation. While they were suspicious of it at first, but Leviane had felt an odd sense of safety from it. The deeper waters felt more attuned to the majestic sleeper.
Their travels had reached its end, they found where they would flourish.
Driven further north to find more food to support their growing population, the Ao find ice. They like it because provides a barrier from the dead space. This causes some Ao to want to travel north, while others still want to find warmer waters.
Leviane is distracted, trying to study the ice and the pearl and starts to discover basic hydromancy, described in further detail in the spirit summary. However with this new found magic, she realizes that it is apart of the mer and announces it to be the work of another subordinate god.
The group is divided between wanting to travel north and travel south, but instead of arguing between themselves, the group wanting to travel north start trying to bribe the pearl-keeper and give their arguments in a way that would be appealing to her. She how effective it is, the group wanting to travel south start copying them.
However, a mana vent opens beneath the waves, causing the water to go wildly and burst of mana to fly through it. However, Leviane calls upon the depths of her power to still the waves and create a block of ice to block the incoming blast of magic.
The remaining mer following Ao become intensely loyal to her, however she remembers those who were loyal to her before the event and begins to teach them hydromancy.
This post as establishes that Leviane believes the foundation, the sea-floor, is ultimately a good thing but is to treated with suspicion. She also appoints another Ao to raise the triton.
After a long journey, Leviane finally finds a place with plentiful fish and sea-grass, pleasantly warm waters and a nice ravine to settle.
Leviane, Pearl-Keeper: 3 Starting 6, +3 for Post +4 completing significant quest: Find a home for the merfolk. -10 for the following:
-8 Spirit: Invent Hydromancy: Hydromancy is the manipulation of mer by calling upon the latent power of Ao-Yurin. It can only naturally be taught to blue-eyed merfolk, however it is not impossible that others learn it through supernatural or godly means. By extending their arms in front of them, they can manipulate the water between their arms. This is disrupted by any large amount of substance not dissolved into the water between their user's arms. This includes air, however it is the least disruptive of all materials. Complex organic material is the most disruptive material. Uses of this power include freezing water into ice, modifying ice so that it doesn't melt, melting ice, or creating currents of water.
-2 Spirit: To push her hydromancy to its limits to protect her remaining community from churning waves and bolts of mana released by a mana vent opening.
The negotiations between the Four-horns and Sun-sworn soured. One side would push an unreasonable demand upon the other, causing the other to make their demands less reasonable in return. Sophia eventually ordered her band graze on a river that the wool-eyes had claimed, sending a group of slingers to support them. She had intended to go with them, but the other Four-horn marshals were able to gather at that time and they insisted that she involved in the inner-band discussions. The other marshals supported the idea, but they all wanted someone else bands to take the first step.
Nobody knows who struck first, but chaos quickly erupted afterwards. Sophia's band was eventually forced to retreat, the enemy had superior numbers and wielded a great amount of spears, while the slingers were still lacking in aim. There was few causalities, but even those few deaths changed both the Sun-sworn Clade and Four-horn Culture.
Shortly after that first skirmish, the Sun-sworn sent a small group. They returned the untampered bodies of the fallen, establishing a precedent that neither side wished to break lest their own allies called them blasphemous. They also said that any further attempt to graze Sun-sworn territory would be meet with force. The messengers were allowed to leave in peace.
The small camp that they had originally established to continue negotiations grew and changed. It had became a war encampment. Both sides believed that they had stronger claim to the land than the other, and both sides believed that they needed the land if they were to flourish.
Overall, the Sun-sworn were stronger, however their defenses were spread thin across the entire territory that they wished to claim. The conflict started to develop its own tempo. The Four-horns would find a weakness in the Sun-sworn defense, and take some grazing land on the fringe of their claimed territory. Eventually, the band would graze until they need to find fresher pastures or the Sun-sworn mustered their force and drove them out. And then the Four-horns would find another weakness, and so the cycle continued.
Sophia was mediating a particular fierce talk between two marshals about trading salt and spears for a foal. It was interrupted by a slinger warning the marshals about a wool-eye attack force. This was not the first time the encampment had been attacked, but this was the largest force that has been sent against it. It was reported that at least three marshals spotted rallying the attackers. It was rare for marshals to be apart of attacking forces, due to the value placed upon the horse and the leadership they provide.
Sophia and the marshals quickly mounted their horses and prepared for the assault. It was not long after the wool-eyes began charging at the encampment. The chaos of battle quickly ensued as they were meet with a volley of rocks. None had matched Sophia's accuracy, however several were beginning to get close.
The adversaries frontline consisted entirely of knife-men, their clothing padded with wool to help cushion them against attacks. However, it provided little protection against the brute force of the slings. Most who where who hit were forced to retreat, however those hit in the head were not as lucky.
The Sun-sworn knifemen who managed to pass through the storm of stone engaged with the Four-horn knifemen. The Four-horns had the advantage as they had far more experience in combat. However behind them were the Sun-sworn spearman, who had superior arms and some where equally experienced.
With the two armies clashing, the slingers were no longer able to wildly aim or else they might hurt one of their own allies. Many put there slingers on their belt and drew a dagger, while the most accurate among them attempted to keep the spearman at bay. Without projectiles raining from the sky, the Sun-sworn marshals were able to ride in with their spears.
There was in truth four opposing marshals to the four-horns three. However a stray stone flew over the heads of the knifemen and spearmen and threw one of the marshals from his horse. The only one with that accuracy was Sophia. She had slain that Eidolon with the same stone she had killed the bird on the ancestor-led encounter. Afterwards she returned her sling to her belt and one of her attendants handed her spear to her. It was light in her hands, and she knew that meant she had the war spirit's favor.
Sophia knew that many Eidolon would met their ancestors in the shroud today. She assisted one of the sun-sworn spearman on that journey, driving her spear through his chest. The Eidolon were still learning about the ways of warfare, and didn't have a strong formations. However as Sophia approached, a wall of knifemen formed to both of her sides. Knifemen had protected the other marshals as they entered the fray, but not as fervently.
While Sophia held the center, the Sun-sworn began to retreat. She had learned that wool-eye knifemen became distracted by something, allowing one of their knifeman to drive his dagger right into one of their marshal's horses. She had our force stand at guard in case they regroup or sent another wave. Eventually the sun began to set, and Sophia ordered her troops to gather up the fallen and their possessions. The next day, a lone wool-eye marshal arrived and discussed about how their fallen and there worldly items would be returned. There was some disagreement about taking from the dead, however they would not want their band's heirlooms lost to the enemy and nor would they wish to upset the shroud maid.
After that, a service was held for the Four-horns who died in combat. They were first brought some distance away from the camp to not attract predators to it. It had became sadly routine. The salters at the encampment would extract and clean their cores, which would be returned to their respective bands. Their bodies covered in pelts, before the pelts were coated with blood. Distinct from regular graves, desa berries were placed around them. Only after the bodies were tended to did the people at encampment all gather around to eat and tell stories about the fallen.
Tensions between the Sun-sworn and Four-horns boils into armed conflict. The Sun-sworn are in the stronger position overall, but their defenses are spread thin allowing the four-horns to gain victories among the margins of their territory. The Eidolon mutually agreed that the fallen soldiers and their equipment should be returned to opposing side for various practical and spiritual reasons.
The camp that Sophia and several other marshals were staying at to continue discussing the Sun-sworn issue became a war encampment, the largest of several. The war encampment was attacked by the largest group yet, but the Four-horns fended off the Sun-sworn.
The Four-horns then attend to the dead.
Rider of Hevel (Sophia): Starting: 5 Ending: 8 +1 for post, +1 for main character, +1 for length
Marshal Elena rode along the river, eventually returning to a group of hunters all armed with spears. It was unsettling being away from her band for so long, however it would not be long before another marshal took her watch. This was important work. Her band would be among three to graze these pastures next season. In order to support to their combined herd, the fields needed time to replenish and so they needed to repel wild grazing animals, especially the gluttonous long-fur xo.
She approached the hunters gathered around a small fire for cooking meat. The hunters were telling stories, mostly about the close encounters with intruders. One of the hunters told the story about how their band meet the shroud maid. Elena would have doubted the story, had she not been wearing woolen garments. The Edgar band had been placed in a fortunate situation by their meeting with a spirit, many sheep-herder bands such as her gathered to them to learn their spirit taught secrets. While the belligerent xo herders like to call them Wool-eyes, the proper name is the Sun-Sworn Clade. She had heard that they were beginning to unify under a spirit-touched marshal named Sophia, but it seemed like the other bands refused to accept them as their leader.
The hunters eventually looked to her and interrupted her thoughts, asking if she had a story to tell. Elena thought for a moment and told the story about how she wandered several days into Dusk Wall on horse-back. It was suppose to be a test of courage and resourcefulness before she could be accepted as marshal. While she didn't tell the others, she praised the Almighty Sun when she was told that tradition would end upon joining the clade. The journey was uneventful, except on the final day, she saw figures out in the distant. Thinking that they might be other eidolon, she approached. They were creatures of stone and dirt. The perpetual darkness made it hard to tell what they were doing, but it looks like they were taking stone and dirt and constructing it to various shapes. When asked what she did next, she told them that she turned around and left, leaving the strange spirits to their task.
---
After being blessed by the spirit and returning to her band, Sophia immediately gained support due to having a horse. Mateo would not surrender as easily, but was pressured into a fight. Even without using her weapons, the match was highly uneven. Mateo's laziness had caused his strength to atrophy. While he pretended his defeat meant nothing, it was enough to sway the rest of the band. He and his lackeys were then sent off to other bands heading far away.
As a marshal, she abolished the position of story-teller. She would permit those to remember stories in their own time, however if they wanted food from the group, they would need to do real work. She permitted those who gathered or hunted to have first pick among what they gathered. She also had more slings created based upon her own, and had several members of her band practice using it.
However she remembered the wise spirit's words regarding oppression. She would help other bands improved as her band did, and occasionally that meant beating up an incompetent leader or two. Through this, she became aligned with many of the local xo-herd bands. Those that didn't ally themselves tended to find themselves poorly treated. Sophia said anything of the sort, but she never discouraged this behavior either. She had heard other marshals mention that she be given status of high marshal, however she was loathed to follow in the example of the wool-eyes.
The wool-eyes started to call them the four-horns, after the four horns that xo have. However, Sophia liked the name and they started calling the group the Four Horn Culture. Culture seemed like the right word, they were a group bound by common ideas. They didn't need one leader to tell everyone else how they should manage their herds.
In one particularly heated meeting of Four-Horn marshals, Sophia was convinced to try to reason with the wool-eyes. She wasn't the only one opposed to the idea, but she was in the minority. It was eventually agreed that if they shared some of their wool product, they would not graze in the areas that they asked. Sophia didn't want wool, but she eventually saw how much the others did. She probably could have stopped it, but doing so would mean that she would be high marshal in all but name. It also didn't feel right to keep others from what they wanted.
However, after she became invested in ensuring the happiness of her fellow four-horns, negotiations quickly began to fall through. The wool-eyes saw no reason to share their product for something they thought themselves entitled to. When asked what they would accept as trade, there reply was insulting. They would need a spear to surrender a simple wool garment. Did they think that they were so poor that they could not clothe all of their people and so would be that desperate for warmth?
After meeting with other marshals to discuss this issue further, Sophia walked away at one point to let go of her anger. She used her sling to slay a bird, and was noticed by other bands. The band that had originally owned the weapon was among those heading east, and so everyone but her band was unfamiliar with it. Having a devious idea, she started to teach other bands how to use the weapon.
While no band wanted to pay the ransom that the wool-eyes requested, they couldn't agree how to approach the situation. Gathering even most of the marshals became more and more difficult as their numbers grew and the grass grew thinner. Eventually, they decided to have a small group of marshals and a handful of their bandmates remain in the area while they sent their herds away.
Sophia felt an odd surge of relief when she had someone else take over handling the herd. While she rode a horse, she was still a hunter at heart. Even before taking up the sling, she was never good at watching xo and was a gatherer. She honestly didn't entirely know how to handle the wool-eye situation either, but she did know that she wasn't going to let them oppress her.
The sheep herding Sun-Sworn was formed under the leadership of High Marshal Edgar due to his band learning how to make fibre and textiles. A small group from this clade is protecting a river that they intend to graze next season. A marshal tells a story about how she went into the shadowed area and saw some creatures made of stone and dirt, but she didn't interact with them.
Meanwhile, Sophia beat up her former herd-lead, and with her new-found horse giving her creditability, took the role of marshal. She implemented new rules, the most important is that she stopped treating story-teller as a dedicated job. She also helped other bands, at least partially by beating people up.
She ended up creating an alliance of all the local xo-herd bands, partly by her band following her example and pushing all non-aligned bands to move elsewhere. They are called the Four-Horn Culture because xo have four horns and Sophia liked the name. She also specified refused the position of high marshal.
The four-horns tried to negotiate with the sun-sworn for wool products, but the sun-sworn didn't budge. The four-horns, needing to split up to graze their cattle, left a small group to handle this situation.
Rider of Hevel (Sophia): Starting: 2 Ending: 5 +1 for post, +1 for main character, +1 for length
Leviane and her followers travelled parallel to the north. While they could tolerate cold waters, warmer waters would be more agreeable. While a father was carefully guided their eggs through the journey, when their children spawned it was meet with a calamitous screech. Not since the first Ao died had such chaos spread through the community, tempered only slightly by Leviane's proclamations.
The mother confessed that when she returned to take responsibility over the eggs, she wished to slay her own children. The father did not interfere to save his own son. It was a loyal and pious Ao who seen what was happening and demanded that it was brought before the pearl-keeper. Instead of a glorious finned tail, he had two strange appendages. While almost all Ao could gracefully swim the moment that they were born, he shown significant difficulty in this simple task. His eyes lacked the divine blue that all others had. He even had a distasteful ridge upon his face.
When all gathered, the Ao spoke with a single voice and yet somehow it still upset Leviane. They call upon her to proclaim that he was no Ao and thus could, and should, be killed. When later interrogated, several silent members claimed that they believed that the others were being harsh but blamed it own their own folly and impiousness and begged forgiveness. Even the person who had prevented the mother from acting rashly believed that she was right, but merely acting improperly but not consulting the pearl-keeper first.
Leviane retreated from the group with the spawnling. It was the longest deliberation that she had, to the point that others began to worry. However, she eventually called others to her. She called them to the mer's border to the dead spaces of the world. Leviane proclaimed, "You have all been fools, but fools do not accept what they are told. You must bare witness."
Grasping the spawnling in her hands, she pushed him out past the safety of the mer. It was shortly where he began to thrash about, and cry out in a distorted, echoing voice. The voices of the community called out in unison once more to not kill him in such a horrific manner and to lower him back down. And as they demanded, Leviane did.
She lead all back into the deep, adult, kid and egg alike. There she announced, "I would have expelled both his parents for their indecent actions had not every adult present now shared in their blame. You are correct, this child is not Ao. He is different from us. However, he is still of the mer. He is our spawn, our precious spawn and you would have gave him a death. You cared more about your own nightmares than his wellbeing. He is not Ao. He is something lesser. But this is something tragic, he has been bewitched by the dead space. As his parents failed him, I shall raise him. In turn, he shall be my personal servant. As his parents lost all right to him, I shall name Trit. Should any be spawned as he has spawn, they shall be known as merfolk. They shall have Ao-Yurin's protection, and shall join them in their dreaming where they shall shed their curse and become equal with us. And they shall be known as the Triton. May we pray to the Almighty God of the Mer that there shall only ever be one."
They are travelling in the northern waters, trying to find more agreeable warmer waters. A triton is spawned from an egg, and the mother nearly kills it with the father doing nothing to stop her. It was another Ao who stopped her so that they could consult the pearl-keeper before killing the spawnling. Most Ao want it dead, while others are just going without the crowd is saying.
Leviane hides away, before gathering everyone to see her drown the spawnling by taking it out the water. She doesn't let it die, but does that to show that it is a creature of the mer. Diving back down, Leviane chastises everyone for their behavior saying that she would exiled the parents if everyone was equally to blame. She claims this is a curse from the dead space, or air, and since her parents were incompetent, she would raise him. She names him Trit, and names anyone like him Triton after him. She also states that Triton are inferior, but still protected by Ao-Yurin, and when they die they will join them in their dream and be free of the curse and become the equal of the Ao.
Sophia stalked the plains, healed by the ambient silence. In the distance, she saw a wren pecking at the ground. She loaded her sling with a stone, and began to swing it. She released the stone with unerring aim and struck the small, evasive creature dead. Walking over to the prize, she wiped the stone into the grass in a vain attempt to clean it before returning it to its sack. She bundled the bird into some hide and started carrying it back to the band.
She wasn’t sure why she bothered. Mateo, the herd-lead, was likely going to snatch it for himself or one of his lackeys and let her eat grass. Their band has always been lacking. Their first herd-lead thought it would be disrespectful to take anymore than a small herd of xo from Avros’ supply. This mistake meant that their band never possessed horse nor spear. The only reason that Sophia had a sling was because another band stumbled into obtaining it, but didn’t have the skill to use it.
She was regulated to gathering back then, but had the foresight not to turn over everything she collected to the band. This was technically taboo, but Mateo would have never used the things she kept as well as she did. Trading for the sling was the best thing she had ever done. It felt right in her hands.
Meanwhile, Mateo had only lessened their band. He had mistreated their salter until they had left for another band travelling north. Sophia thought herself foolish for missing the opportunity. Travelling far distances by yourself would only lead to the shrouded maid’s clutches. Nearby xo-herding bands were friends with Mateo. The sniveling coward would give their own precious supplies away to remain in a favorable position despite his incompetence. One half of the day, he will sit around doing nothing but let the story-teller yap and tell the same story over and over again. The other half, he will shout out commands that make everyone else do worse at their job.
Her only other option was a wool-eye band. They had plentiful resources, and their lazy bones only moved to new pastures once each season. However, you had to proclaim that Avros was the descendant of the sun spirit. She was happy to accept that the sun spirit existed, but Avros was a mortal with mortal ancestors. They shouldn’t be praising the Almighty Sun, they should be revering the Great Multitude. It was why she was hesitant to travel north, because maybe they believe in something as ridiculous up there. When she crossed the shroud and joined them, she knew that she would be right. Besides, they claimed land that they weren’t even grazing and had even hurt people to greedily keep it from others.
Being so lost in her thoughts and passions, Sophia had barely realized that a figure had appeared on the horizon, only noticing it as its features came into view. Standing alone amid the scraggly berry bushes of the plains, was a man. What stood out the most was that even at this distance, Sophia knew she had never seen this man before. He stood inspecting a berry he had plucked and despite the mellow weather and light wind of the day, he was oddly bundled in furs and strange white wrappings. The assembly of clothing was greatest on his back, giving him a cape of sorts, while his front was scant, exposing his arms and chest — only to hide parts of them again in the strange wrappings. Even his face wasn’t free from the odd accessory, with the top left quarter secreted away behind the same cloth. Despite all these oddities, the large black object tied to his hip pulled Sophia’s vision the most. It was long with what she could only assume was a handle poking upwards from the belt, while the other end dragged in the dirt below.
Believing that the old handle was a weapon, and immediately noticing that he was not the kin of Avros, she immediately reached for a stone from her bag. She loaded the stone which had slain the bird, still moist and red with its blood. She demanded, “Are you invader or spirit?”
“I’m a spirit,” Apostate answered, tearing his only visible eye away from the berry. His right eye was a slate grey, like that of smoke. “Do you eat these berries?”
Not lowering or disarming her weapon, but not raising it either, “No. Those berries cause sickness. What are you the spirit of?”
“In a way...” Apostate flicked the berry away and took a step towards Sophia. “I’m your spirit. You have hate in your stomach, don’t you?”
Mulling over, she replied, “And what if I do? I still have my ancestor’s will in my heart.” she said, patting her chest.
A deep groan rumbled from Apostate, as if in pain. “Who is it? Who is hurting you, the others..” He looked around, as if there were other people present. “Something is keeping you in place, in a status that hurts you. Something you hate, something you wish to defy... “
A pause.
“What’s wrong?” Apostate stared at her.
At this, she lowered her weapon. This spirit wasn’t as threatening as the stories told. Perhaps this one was just old and feeble. She puffed out her chest, “If my foolish band tried to hurt me, they would be the one going to the salter.” she paused. It was a common expression, but one no longer true for them. She didn’t spend a great deal of time reflecting on this. A thought crossed her mind and she muttered it outloud, “Defy? I guess.” she stopped herself.
“You want something,” Apostate stated, “what do you want?”
Glancing about, she replied, “I want to return to the quiet of bird song and light footsteps.”
Apostate closed the distance so that they were at a respectable talking distance. The god watched Sophia in silence for a while before asking, “what’s keeping you from what you want?”
Replying as if the answer was obvious, “Isolation is death. I will meet the ancestors with pride, not as a fool.”
“Then what can we do to change the situation so you can have what you want without the use of isolation?” Apostate’s deep voice was thick with curiosity and familiarity, as if they had been conspiring friends for a while.
Sophia's golden-brown eyes narrowed upon the strange spirit, “Will you haunt my ever waking and dreaming hour with questions until your curiosity is sated?”
“Maybe,” Apostate answered. “But I see your point.” The god fell to silence again, but stayed completely still — as if awaiting something.
And for several minutes, the pair stood in silence. She was not as still as the god, but she didn’t move her feet from the ground. Having a moment to think in peace, she replied to immobile spirit, “I do not trust that you shall not follow me if your questions are left unanswered. What I want is to belong to a powerful band, one that I can speak of to my ancestors without them needing to console me afterwards. But that can not happen while they are led around by the foolish Mateo and those that scrounge around for his scraps. Am I now freed from your insidious curse spirit?”
“Finally!” Apostate boomed and ripped his massive blade from its place. With a dramatic flourish he pointed it in the direction of Sophia’s home.
“You are young, I can see that — you also talk too much,” Apostate chastised without looking from his pose, “so out of my grace, I will grant you gifts to help teach you the way to deal with oppressors such as… Mateo.” He spat the name out more than said it, as if the man had insulted Apostate directly.
Sophia was stunned. She was trying to recognize if she had passed some type of test, or had only fallen deeper into the spirit’s insidious machinations. One word in his short speech clung to her, “Oppressors?”
Another deep groan rumbled from Apostate. “Yes,” he all but chewed his answer, “oppressors. They think of themselves at the detriment of others, if they are people, at least. They cause pain, and secret desire. Hate, the want to defy them, the need to defy them — so that the oppressed can express their truth. A fire in the dark!” He slammed his blade into the ground, and a burst of flames jumped out from where it struck, only to quickly evaporate into smoke.
A low growl, “the stupid let them be.”
Sophia heard the words, but attempted to truly understand. Either they were great wisdom, or important to understand how to undo whatever curse was being placed upon her. She did not know yet. However, she dwelled on his last comment and then beginning to connect everything together, she blurted out, “Are you claiming that I am stupid?”
“Are you stupid?” Apostate looked away from his vogue to stare at Sophia. “Does Mateo do whatever he wants and no one ever thinks to stop the man?”
Having abandoned Eidolon social graces in her discussion with the spirit some time ago, she retorted, “I have hid away the things I have collected. Things that he would have taken and squandered.”
“You are worthy of my gifts,” Apostate replied. He repositioned himself. “Ask anything of me.”
Sophia thought for a moment. Was this last step before redemption or the abyss? She called upon all the knowledge that she had, her history, the stories that she knew, rumors told among friends, whatever she could remember. Then she remembered a small detail that gave her courage, “My ancestors were strong and hearty, but they were cowed by false modesty. This one mistake has cost our band greatly, and has made us lesser. I shall not repeat their mistake. Spirit of Wisdom, I ask to rectify the stain left upon my legacy. I ask that you grant me a horse and a spear. With them, I shall rally my band and return to them the pride that has been stolen from them.” she said with complete earnesty.
“Easily done,” Apostate said. He wrenched his embedded blade like it was a lever and a geyser of smoke erupted from the crack it formed in the ground. The smoke swirled above before bounding back down towards the earth with a crazy winnie. As it landed, hooves pounded into the dusty grass and as the smoke subsided, a great horse stood in its place.
The horse was immense, dwarfing any horse Sophia had ever seen let alone dreamed of. It’s body was dusty grey and speckled with black, leading to a completely black muzzle. It’s mane and tail were wispy and white, and instead of falling with gravity, they seemed to swirl and curl like vapor reaching for the sky.
“He cannot die, he cannot grow tired, he will outlive you, and he will find the next who needs him.” Apostate crossed his arms, his errant blade still sticking out of the ground that spawned the horse. The creature stomped its hoof, a puff of smoke blooming from the impact. “He is made of hevel, but you may ride him — for he has chosen you by my decree.”
Hesitant, but determined, Sophia climbed atop the steed. She sat upon its back awkwardly, until she felt something change inside her. Her position shifted to be more natural and comfortable. She somehow knew how to command the horse to start walking, and did so, riding in circles. While she had this ephemeral knowledge, she still lacked experience to give it context. While partially distracted she replied to the spirit, “He shall outlive me? Then my precious descendants shall know his glory.”
“Indeed he will,” Apostate answered. He held out his hand and a staff of smoke swirled out of it, only to fall back into his grasp. He gripped the shaft and the smoke began to shift in place. Finally, a spear of bone laced with glossy black metal formed. It looked heavy, but the head of the spear was seamless and sharp, reflecting the sun vigorously.
“This weapon is light and sharp in the hands of the weary, the oppressed, the ones in need of justice — but heavy and dull in the hands of the greedy and wicked.” With little else he tossed the weapon sideways towards Sophia.
Sophia instinctively reached out and grabbed it. It held little heft in her hand. She finally returned her sling to her belt to better wield her new weapon. She held it to the sky triumphantly. She had seen others do it, and was repeating their motions. It wasn’t as satisfying as she thought it would be. But nevertheless, she replied, “For good or for ill, I find myself in your debt. The horse was favored by Avros, and thus it is favored by my people. Those oppressed by incompetence shall follow the hoofbeats towards renewed glory. As for the oppressors.” she said, she raised the spear again, “I believe that is the purpose of this tool, is it not?”
“It is,” Apostate answered, “in the right hands, it will make quick work of those who stand in your way.”
The god held out his hand, and from his fingertips emerged a steady stream of smoke. The steady streams swirled together in the palm of his hand until it thickened into a sphere. Furtherstill, the sphere hardened until a glossy sheen reflected the daylight off of its stormy exterior. With the glass orb firmly in hand, Apostate held it towards Sophia.
“Take this, as well, and know my name as Apostate, the god of defiance.”
Sophia took the sphere, however she was distracted by the steed and spear, and simply repeated, “Apostate, defiance.”
“And do not lose my last gift,” Apostate warned, “or all you have gained could be lost.”
Sophia nodded. As the trance of excitement faded, she looked down upon her hand. Her heart-marking color had changed from the gold-brown of her ancestors to smokey grey. For good or ill, the spirit’s influence ran deep into her core. Pushing away her doubts, she rode to her band to save them from an honorless journey to the shroud.
Sophia hunts a bird with her sling, and begins an internal monologue about how bad her situation is. Her band is poor due to her ancestors refusing to take more than a small herd of xo from Avros’ inheritance out of respect, and thus they have neither horses or spears.. Her band-leader Mateo takes what the band gathers and wastes it.
She recalls how she obtained the sling. She was a gatherer who didn’t return everything she collected to the band, against the traditions of her people. She used something had kept for herself to barter for it from a band who had obtained it without knowing how to use it.
She elaborates on Mateo’s incompetence and how it drove their salter north. She berates herself for no following, but travelling long distances without a band is foolish and she has the deeply held spiritual belief that Avros was born of mortals keeping her from joining the nearby sun-worshipping sheep-herders and making her hesitant to leave to distant lands.
Eventually, she stumbles on Apostate and notices that he has something that looks like a strange weapon on his belt and he lacked the heart-marking of an Eidolon, and thus threatened him with her sling demanding to know if he was a spirit or intruder.
He identifies himself as a spirit, and they begin bickering over questions. Sophia being too suspicious and prideful to answer them truthfully. She eventually asks the spirit if she knows cursed with him endless asking questions and replies maybe before being as still and silent as a statue. They stand their awkwardly for a few minutes before Sophia believes that if she doesn’t tell the spirit something, he will haunt her forever.
She complains to the spirit about how she wants to be a part of a proud and powerful band, and that Mateo leadership is ruining them. Apostate is pleased by her honesty, and tells her about oppressive people and how only stupid people let them continue to exist. Sophia is smart enough to realize that applies to her and takes offense. Apostate taunts her about it, and Sophia replied about how she technically stole from the band’s supplies.
Pleased again with her budding criminal activity, the spirit offers her anything. Sophia is hesitant, but remembers her ancestor’s hesitancy to take from Avros’ supplies. She asks a for a spear and horse because those are things she knows to be very valuable and are important social symbols in Eidolon culture.
Apostate creates the Steed of Hevel, a large horse made of smoke and declares her the Rider of Hevel, until she dies and the horse chooses a new rider. She also obtains the Spear of Sophia, a bone and metal spear light in the hands of the oppressed, but heavy in the hands of the oppressor.
He also hands her a indestructible glass orb and states that her other gifts will be lost if she loses it.
Sophia is distracted by her new possessions to fully notice Apostate identify himself, and so registers his name and his domain, but glosses over the fact he called him a god. Something the Eidolon do not have a concept of. When she started to calm down, she noticed that her heart-marking had turned from gold-brown to smokey-grey. Trying not to think about it, she rides off to her band to claim leadership for herself.
Apostate begins with 8: 1 vigor spent on another indestructible glass orb
1 vigor cut to 0 (defiance) spent on creating the Steed of Hevel: A large and powerful horse made of smoke. It is only mountable by whoever it chooses (usually whoever is in need of it) and then remains with their rider until their death. The horse itself is immortal and will immediately search for a successor upon the death of its rider. The successor must be an oppressed individual who needs him to defy their odds.
1 vigor spent on bestowing Sophia with the Championship: Rider of Hevel. The Rider of Hevel, while maintaining the usual excellence of a hero, is not immortal, and upon their death, the Steed of Hevel will seek out and choose the next Rider of Hevel. Those with the title instinctively become attuned to the horse, and can ride it without fail.
1 vigor cut to 0 (defiance) spent on creating the Spear of Sophia: This spear is a medley of smooth bone and glossy black metal. It is completely seamless and extremely sharp. If it is in the hands of the oppressed, weary, or those seeking justice, it will be light and sharp. If it is ever to fall in the grasp of the greedy or oppressing, it will present itself as extremely heavy and dull.
The Ao journeyed northward. Age began to exact its toll from the first Merfolk, all except for Leviane, preserved by the holy eminence of the pearl. They would soon discover birth and death, thus beginning the cycle. After the first Ao died, it caused great confusion and panic. Age had weakened him, and it made the simple work of the long travel swimming and pulling kelp from the ground to much for him to bare. His death was only the first. Whispering echoes reverbed through the mer, threatening to tear apart the unity of the Ao. Leviane carefully considered the issue, and reflected and waited for divine meaning. However, her pause gave room to treason. In the ultimate act of foolishness, one Ao murdered another. Through tragedy, Leviane found revelation. The murderer was cast from the whole, their presence lessening it. Leviane explained that death was natural and a part of the great and mighty Ao-Yurin's will. To die was become closer to the God of the Mer, and join her in their dreams. Except, to prematurely kill an Ao was a grave crime, as it was to interfere with the will of Ao-Yurin. Only Ao-Yurin had the authority to determine when an Ao should join them in their slumber. Leviane was chosen to stay awake for longer, as they had a duty to protect the pearl and to teach the next generations. However, Leviane did not believe that she would be separate from the great god of the oceans forever.
With that matter resolved, they continued further north and encountered something new -- fish. This was a matter of great concern of the merfolk, mostly out of practicalities however others began the whisper echoes of theological discussion. Hearing discordant thoughts among their people filled Levinane with great concern.
Her hesitancy had meant the death of a young Ao, her judgment would need to be swifter to ensure that disunity could not claim another. She called forth her remaining followers. They had forced everyone who contributed to the whispering to speak openly, forcing those who said the most foolish of things to confess that they had made it up and plead for forgiveness from their fellow Ao. After using a few days to reflect upon the issue, she had appreciated how no-one acted rashly and the whisper echoes had stopped.
She addressed the main concerns brought up regarding the theological matters of fish. They were not created by the great and powerful ocean god, or else they would have swimming around where the Ao were first born. They could not have been created afterwards, because after creating the Ao, the great and powerful Ao-Yurin began their rest. They had not stirred since to create such creatures, the pearl-keeper would have known about such an event. However, the fish were clearly of the mer. The only sensible conclusion was they were created by a subordinate god of the great and powerful Ao-Yurin.
Leviane was relived that the dissonant noise had ceased.
The Ao begin to die of old age. This starts to cause a lot of theological discussion and general panic. Leviane is slow to explain mortality, until one Ao kills another. This causes them to rush to find an answer. They determine that mortality is the great and mighty Ao-Yurin's will and that death means joining them in slumber. However, only Ao-Yurin had this authority to end the life of an Ao and she expels the murderer from their group. She also explains her own immortality as Ao-Yurin's will, but doesn't believe that they won't eventual join the ocean god in slumber.
The group continue to travel northward and eventually encounter fish. Most are just happy they have something to eat other than kelp, but it starts more theological discussion. Concerned, Leviane calls everyone to discuss it openly forcing those who say what she considers especially foolish to apologize. She then thinks about it, and proclaims that the obvious explanation is that fish is the work of some subordinate god to the great and mighty Ao-Yurin.
The remaining essence of the ocean god hurtled towards its greatest creation at the Monarch of All’s will. As it crossed between heaven and sky, it coagulated into a pearl of the deepest and purest blue. While travelling, it managed to capture a stray wind and accidentally trap it within itself. The water below accepted it greedily, pulling it further down into the depths.
Within its forms, the last remnants of divine power toiled and roiled. Its new mundane shape was simply unfit to hold it. A large crack ripped open from it. As if to mend itself, its latent power seeped into the opening. Interacting with the salty water, the energy turned to seafoam.
The ocean desperately grasped its final prize, treating it with its usual kindness, it tossed to and fro as the waves ebbed and flowed. The foam began to shake from it, expelling the stolen wind into a portion of the foam, influencing it in some invisible and intangible ways. Eventually, the foam itself began to shake off and spread around the orb. Only a small nigh invisible piece remained.
The last inspiration of divinity drained from the orb, forgoing its deep blue to become an opaque white. The color washed from it and into the foam, transforming it into some greater. The most stubborn of the foam drank deepest of the divine blue, and when it properly formed they held the pearl closely.
The change started peacefully, the newly formed sapients having visions of their creator, Ao-Yurin. They instinctively understood them as a force of nature, beyond mortal concerns of age or gender. They bore witness as a dry and dead planet was given life by their waters.
However, this peace did not last. The vision turned to Ao-Yurin becoming weak and weary. They understood that their strength was leaving them, but they could not comprehend the truth of the situation. Perhaps some small few gleaned the truth, that their patron god had died before they were ever born, but fewer still would be able to accept it.
Worse still, several of the group began to try to expel something from their mouths. As if some noxious agent had been caught within their stomach. Eventually, the wheezing stopped however the foreign material remained deeply seeded within them.
The Pearl-Keeper, Levinane, looked around at their brethren. Beautiful serpentine figures with majestic tail-fins, adorned in skins ranging from the green to greenish blue. Their hands bearing elegant fingers connected by webbing. Life-sustaining gills ran down their neck and tail. Many of the gathered had additional fins on their head and or back. All their eyes had captured and preserved the true color of the pearl.
And as Levinane looked upon their people, they looked upon them. None questioned the divinity of the pearl, damaged and battered as it were. They instinctively understood its significance, and the significance of being the one trusted to carry it. Confused by the visions which beseeched their creation, they looked upon the Pearl-Keeper for guidance.
Levinane peered into the pearl, turning it so that its unsightly crack was facing towards the ocean’s bottom. In the pearl, they saw their reflection. Taking a moment to compose themselves, they spoke in the language of the deep, suited for communicating within water instead of air.
“All the water in the world -- The Mer -- is ours, entrusted to us by the great and mighty Ao-Yurin!”
She said, turning the orb so that she could where it was damaged before quickly hiding it from her sight again, she continued, “So great their creation, they must rest now. The world is not yet safe for us. We must find a hide-away so that we can flourish and praise the Lord of the Mer. May our songs bid them fair sleep. For we are the great spawn of the God of the Mer, we are the Ao.”
Ao’s corpse turns into a pearl that falls into the ocean. Carrying some last bit of divine power, it creates the Ao, and promotes one to champion, Leviane, the Pearl-Keeper. The pearl is cracked and currently powerless, but it is still an important Ao religious symbol. Being born with visions of their god, Ao-Yurin, and their weakening, the Ao look to the Pearl-Keeper for guidance and she states that the Mer, all water on Galbar, is rightful theres and they need to hide-away while Ao-Yurin is sleeping because her creation was so great.
Vigor provided generously from the water god’s corpse Rest in Peace Ao-Yurin
Created the Ao : Covered in greenish blue scales, gills located on their neck, webbed hands. Occasionally has head or dorsal fins. Can only breathe water, but can hold their breath for hours. Has a mermaid tail with additional gills, always has bright solid blue eyes.
Imbued Ao with the ability to produce a Merfolk Subspecies, this subspecies will be the focus of a later post.
It had been about three seasons since Avros' departure. Andrei sat next to the fire, watching the wild xo meat slowly dry. It was his will that they have travelled so far from the First Farm. Grazing animals needed to traverse the great expanse or they will strip the ground bare, however he had pushed his band further and faster than they need to preserve the greenery. Had he not been restrained by calmer heads, he would probably pushed himself and his steed to an early grave.
Andrei knew that he wanted to journey north before some of his brethren were fully aware of their surroundings. It was a rash decision driven by emotion rather than logical reasoning. The newly created Eidolon had an innate understanding of the plains, There was an appeal of the border between the familiar expanse and terrain which they had only fleeting reference too.
He had rushed to claim one of Avros' horses, and successfully managed to ride it a short distance to a nearby lake. It was a pathetic display, with him tiring far faster than the animal actually running. He would like to think that he had significantly improved since then. However, the others didn't share his perspective. The horse was favored by Avros, and thus there was significance to being the first rider.
He was invited to be a marshal to a band of xo herders. He had only accepted because they agreed to travel northward with him. While riding was an important aspect of being a marshal, they were also band leaders. He was glad that his band had another marshal to properly lead them. Andrei could barely control himself, much less anyone else. However, he was not completely incompetent and he had lead many successful hunts.
The first season was mostly spent making preparations. Trade was especially important during this time, and so it was beneficial not to wander to far from the First Farm. He had noticed that the further away they moved from it, the less they had saw other Eidolon. At this point, they were likely the northmost of their people. Conversely to the slow pace of the beginning, everyone was rather eager to move through Lord Night's territory as soon as possible. It had been sometime since they escaped the eternal dark, and people were still silently thanking the sun's brilliance.
When he had started staring out in the fire, it was empty. The storyteller sat nearby, muttering to herself and occasionally patting her leg. While everyone was told the first stories, time was starting to steal them away. The storyteller was respected for remembering them well. The meat was mostly tending to itself, with Andrei occasionally keeping the fire going himself, however there was other people nearby preparing fresh forage as well. He saw the salter and one of
When the food was prepared, first a portion was placed away for later. Next, those who couldn't leave their post, such as those were watching the herd, were carried their meal. And finally the remainder of the band gathered to eat. While eating and for sometime afterward, Andrei sat next to the other marshal. There was a small dispute over the night watch, however it was deftly handled by the other marshal.
As Lord Night reclaimed the sky, Andrei was the first to find sleep. He would need to wake up especially early to spend the next day scouting out the land ahead. He hoped that Lady Heat would be merciful tomorrow.
Establishing some more details about the Eidolon, such at how at this point they are mostly organized into bands lead by horse-riding marshals. In particular, we follow a marshal Andrei and his band of xo herders as they travel north based mostly on Andrei's impulsive whims.
Staring out over the First Farm, Arvum clutched a small crystal within the palm of his hand. His attention turned to a small fire, dried grass slowly burning within a hole encircled by stones. A small slab of stone rested above the flame, used to dry out thin slices of xo meat on top of it. It reminded him of Yoliyachicoztl and the promise that he had made to the Lady of Billowing Heat. Glancing back into his palm, his work had been completed.
While he had experienced the wilderness of his creation, he shaped the gemstone to contain the potential of sapient life in the image of his mortal guise. He had enjoyed his time along the plains, but he had learned all that he needed to learn. He knew that he could not directly lead his inheritors once they awakened. If he did, they would grow dependent upon him, and it would compromise their freedom of choice. Nor could he live along them without leading them, they needed time to grow apart from him. He also knew that Galbar required his diligent hand. There was still much work that he needed to perform elsewhere.
As he worked upon creating sapient life, he become more aware of their limitations. Thus, he used a small spade to dig a hole rather than using his bare heads. The spade was made of commonly available bone, hemp and stone. Perhaps it was rather pointless considering he would soon abandon his mortal form, but he thought that he should appreciate his last night before his divine toil continued. He placed the crystal into the soil, his godly power entering it, causing its color to shift from quartz white to the same golden brown as his eyes. Even after he had buried it, the soil radiated his holy color.
There was one last thing he needed to do. His inheritors would require his knowledge and wisdom, "I was born in a place further than the sun, in a majestic palace adorned in fineries. However, I knew that was not my place and wandered to Galbar."
He continued to his story, about how he adorned his cloak with grass, wandered into the molten depths and shaped stone and metal into vegetables, the creation of the First Farm and his days within the expansive plains including his taming and care of several animals, such as horses and sheep. He had glossed over the first bits, but he had went into great detail about his experiences within the plains. That was the knowledge that they required to thrive within the plains.
He finished with, "As I gave name to these fields, I give name to my inheritors. I grant you the name of the realm, Eidolon. While others may live within it, and you may live apart from it, you and your inheritors shall be the rightful owners of the plains."
The sun's rays moved across the terrain, welcoming the beginning of a new day. Arvum vanished, having discarded his guise and moved elsewhere. The buried crystal's radiance expanded, until it had spent all of the divine power stored within it and faded from the world. From this act of creation, the Eidolon were born.
Arvum spent his time living along the Eidolon Plains, working on creating mortal life in the meanwhile. Having accomplished all that he needed, he is disappointed that he needs to live, but knows that he is needed elsewhere and that his presence would only hamper his creation. He buries the crystal and tells it his story, including a lot of useful knowledge about how to survive in the plains. As the sun rises, Arvum leaves and the Eidolon are born. The post also includes detail about how the Eidolon will make fire, prepare meat and make spades.
Starting: 13 Ending: 9
-4 Vigor - Created the Sapient Race, the Eidolon : Pale to Bronze skin, typically on the tall side of a regular human. Slightly pointed ears. Their eye color can change, but typically starts as gold-brown. They have rectangular markings on their chest, right above their hands, and between their knee and foot that are the same color as their eyes. They have horns, typically on the forehead that small and pointed. Instead of blood they have life energy. If they are cut open, they don't bleed out unless that life energy has an organic vessel to flow into. They have empathic touch, allowing them to sense the type and intensity of emotions that beings that they touch are feeling.
-Free - Told the Century Folktale : Taught the Eidolon all of the skills that are required to live a nomadic herder-gatherer life-style. Discounted from Cultivation domain.
The god of cultivation had walked the skies, surveying the lands below for an ideal location. He had choose a portion of land central to the western continent. It was large, and mostly flat. To the south, there was a great wall of salt that was rather hostile to life. He did not think it interfere with his plans. He also had to admit that it did look aesthetically pleasing, even if he did not care for how barren it was. Perhaps that would be resolved later.
He stood perfectly still in the center of the flat plains. He focused. His skin dimmed as his energy was pulled in the core of his being. In a flash, his skin was radiating brilliant lights extending in all directions. Almost all plant-life caught within the blast withered and fed the soil. Only the plants that grew along its border were spared, but they changed and morphed in accordance to divine will. As the region was being rebirthed, he named it the Eidolon Plains.
The landscape became dominated by grasses and shrubs, with only a sparse few trees dotting the landscape. Various other plants were also created, including many crop plants. He had created many more varieties of insects than he had created in the molten tunnels, such as bumble-bees and butterflies. He had also shaped many kinds of animals suited for the environment. Of particular note was the horse, an animal that he had grand designs for.
He granted himself time to explore his newly formed eco-system, finding a suitable location for his next objective. He eventually settled on a region somewhere halfway between the equator and the salt desert, choosing it primarily for its proximity to a pristine lake as well as several other minor calculations.
There he started to take the form of a mortal. He could not expect his creation to do what he would not. Besides that, briefly setting aside his divinity and tending a patch of land was an appealing notion. Having created animals, he had an innate understanding of them though his understanding of sapient biology was more scarce.
As he was thinking about his form and his farm, he realized that he had yet to decide what he was going to cultivate. The great plains offered many different choices, however he felt the need for something special. It was then his attention turned to his cape, covered in the first life he had created, bathed in molten rock, and imbued with the burst of his divine power that created the plains. There was no more suited reagent to craft into the first crop that he would grow.
He closed one of his hands together, his cape become barren once more. While he would need to regrow life upon it, that would not be important in the immediate future. He pulled a single blade of grass from the rest and worked on it relentlessly. Eventually, he bore a single grain of divinely empowered barley. Pleased with the result, he clasped his hands together mixing the barley with the remainder of the grass until it had all been converted. He produced a handful of seeds, part of which he threw into the air to populate the plains with mundane variations of his creation. He keep the remaining infused seeds for his project.
Finding a suitable crop to grow, he started to take mortal form. First, he pulled his cape within himself. Then he shrunk and twisted his divine form into a facsimile of the circular systems of animals, but with a bipedal form in mind. He covered himself with flesh and bone, adjusting it to his practical and aesthetic preferences. He had placed a large tuff of fur over his head to protect it from the sun's radiance. He had considered applying more fur, but he could never get it to look right and thus only lightly coated his form with hair. For ears, he decided to have his come to a slight point. He had experimented with several other aesthetic changes, and settled for small horns jutting from his forehead. He noticed that his skin was rather bare without fur, but that posed little issue. He had intended to use the pelts of other animals for various purposes, and clothing oneself was simply an additional purpose that they could serve. Excited to get started, he conjured his clothing from the ether in the resemblance of animal skins.
There was one last issue. The form felt rather constricted. While he intended to subdue his divine power, it was not a form that he wished to spend a large amount of time in. He decided to allow an infinitesimal amount of his internal energy to the surface of his body. The eyes were his immediate first choice. While it helped, it was still insufficient. He created special rectangular patches of skin on his chest, right above the back of his hands, and between his knees and feet. As a small portion of his divinity flowed in the region, they became the same golden brown color as his eyes.
With his mortal guise completed, he started to farm the barley seeds he had set aside. usually it would be a gruesome task to start a farm with nothing but yourself and a handful of seeds, Arvum was not quite aware of the fragilities of mortality. Thus, while he imposed restrictions on himself, he was still strong enough to start plowing his nascent fields with his hands. And thus the First Farm was created. The divinity of the seeds seeped into the ground, bolstered by his attention and care.
Arvum looks for a place to carve his mark upon the world, and chooses the central region of the western continent north of the salt desert. He fills the area with his divine power, killing most of the pre-existing plants to reshape it how he pleases, creating a complete eco-system of various plants, insects and animals. He names the region the Eidolon Plains. Particular mention is made of horses being an important part of his future plans.
He takes the grass from his cloak that was bathed in magma and a burst of his divine power and turns it into barley. He seeds the rest of the plains with barley, while keeping the rest for his own purposes.
He spends some type choosing a humanoid form, settling on bronze-skin, small horns jutting from his forehead and pointed ears. He also was not completely comfortable fully sealing away his divinity behind mortal form, and thus allowed an infinitesimal portion of his power to flow out from his eyes and rectangular patches of skin he created on himself for this purpose, on his chest, arms and legs. He also realizes that due to lacking fur, a mortal appearing in the manner he did would need to wear animal skins but goes ahead and creates clothing for him.
He held back his strength, but having no baseline for an average human over-shoot by a significant degree. He started plowing the First Farm with his bare hands. From using divinely infused seeds and his attention, it turned into a monument listed in the vigor hider.
Starting: 9, Ending: 6
-2 Vigor: Created the primarily grassland ecosystem for the Eidolon Plains, contains many domesticable plants and animals. -1 Vigor: Created the monument: The First Farm. A simple-looking field of barley. Food stolen from it provides no nutrient. Those who cultivate the fields and eat its food grow stronger than they otherwise would.
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