The Blessing of the Strong Gods, as recorded in The Book of Khinet…

1:1 In days of old, vast cities of ghostlight shone in the sky, but none had yet been built upon the Earth. The Earth was wild and untamed, and the peoples were scattered across it.

1:2 And it came to pass that the Blasphemous One chose a clan out of all the scattered peoples to worship him. In return for the fealty of the clan, the Blasphemous One promised their patriarch that his wife would give birth to a son whose offspring would tame the wild lands and fill the Earth.

1:3 But the patriarch’s wife was barren. From her youth to her old age, she had produced no children, until it seemed that her heart had died for want of a child. So when the patriarch spoke of the promise to his wife, she was filled with doubt, and said, The god who swore this does not know that I am barren and long past childbearing years besides. Come, take my maidservant, and she will give birth to an heir for us.

1:4 And a son was born to the patriarch by his wife’s maidservant, and they called him Khinet, for he was to be the leader of the clan and bring his father glory and riches. The boy was so fair of skin that the sun hurt him, but he was strong and exceedingly fast. He hunted by night, and the sun could not touch him.

1:5 And the patriarch said, This is certainly the one who will conquer the wild lands and fill them with offspring.

1:6 And the next year, the patriarch’s wife’s womb was opened, and she gave birth to a son. The patriarch and his wife rejoiced, for the boy was dark and healthy, and they called him Helat, for he was beloved by his father and a crown to him in his old age. And Helat loved the sunlight and the land, and he hunted by day, for the sun could not burn his dark skin, and everything in the land bent to his will.

1:7 And the patriarch said, Surely this is the true heir whom the god promised us. He will conquer the wild lands and fill them with offspring.

1:8 And the two boys grew in renown until all the peoples of the Earth hailed them as heroes. But Khinet and Helat were enemies like the night and the day, and their mothers could not stand in one another’s presence without anger.

1:9 So the patriarch’s wife said, You were a maidservant. Your son is no heir. I am the matriarch of this clan, and my son Helat is the true heir.

Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

1:10 And the maidservant was wroth, and she said, My son Khinet is the firstborn, and the birthright is his.

1:11 Their enmity divided the clan to the point of war between those who supported Khinet and those who supported Helat. And the patriarch feared that his sons would take up spears against one another.

1:12 So the patriarch cried out to the Blasphemous One, Did you not promise that my son would conquer the wild lands and fill the Earth with offspring? Why did you give me two warring children? If they murder one another, will you give me yet another son to fulfill your promise?

1:13 And the Blasphemous One heard this and was displeased. With the voice of thunder he said, I told you that I would give your wife a son. You did not believe me and took her maidservant to produce a child outside my will.

1:14 And the patriarch tore his clothes, for he loved both his children, and cried to the heavens once more, Am I to lose both my sons to war, the promised and the unpromised? What shall I do?

1:15 And the Blasphemous one said, The elder’s hand will be always against the younger, but they will not destroy one another. Send away the child of the maidservant so that both may live.

1:16 But the maidservant heard the Blasphemous One’s will and struck the patriarch’s wife in her old age. The patriarch’s wife stumbled and fell, her head breaking upon a stone, and she died. So the maidservant paid the justice of the land with her life, and neither son heard his mother’s voice again.

1:17 And Khinet, the elder, was cast out by his father and sent into the wilderness alone, while Helat, the younger, was given the birthright and comforted by his clan.

1:18 Khinet wandered by night, mourning the loss of his mother, and because of his great sorrow, he was careless. One night, as he was hunting upon a high place beneath a ghost city in the sky, wild beasts fell upon him and tore him until his blood watered the ground. Though the morning light approached, he could not crawl to the protection of a rock or tree.

1:19 So it was that, alone and dying, Khinet cried out to the night which had always protected him from the burning sun.

1:20 And the strong gods who dwell in the ghost cities heard Khinet and came down to Earth and had pity on him. And each gave Khinet their blessing, to him and to his offspring forever in return for his worship.

1:21 From the goddess Eketra, powerful cunning to surpass all men.

1:22 From the god Josean, warrior strength unending.

1:23 From the god-goddess Teikru, desirability that could never be spurned.

1:24 And they said, We will give you victory over your brother Helat and over the Blasphemous One.

1:25 So Khinet gladly swore fealty to the strong gods, and they gave him drink of their divine blood, which healed Khinet’s wounds and strengthened him. And he called the high place where he drank Siu Rial, the City of Blood, and he built an earthly city upon it from which to worship, and from that earthly city he built his empire, the Kingdom of Night.

1:26 And it was blessed by the strong gods.