As told by the flame-dancers of Pyrreh
Long ago, there was only The Crow, for he had consumed all the life of the world. He swept across the sky constantly, his shadow casting an eternal night across all the lands. And without light, without day, without suns, without even the stars, nothing could live.
So, Irre decided that she should do something, you see. So she took a bit of fire, and tried to make a light. But as soon as Crow saw the light, he swooped down to try and grab it. But, because it was fire, it simply snuffed itself out as soon as he came close, the beat of his wings mighty enough to put out any flame. But that made Crow angry, you see, for Crow loves shiny things, like coins and fairies, and fire. But because the fire went away when Crow came by, he thought that fire was trying to trick him, so in retribution he swiped his claws across the ground, tearing up rock and forest. You can even still see the place where he dragged his talons, digging through stone and carving deep rivers, to this very day.
But Wicked Crow was clever, you see, so Irre couldn’t trick him. She tried to bait Crow down with food, but Crow didn’t care for food. All she could offer were sacrifices, you see, but Crow doesn’t care about the dead. They’re already his.
But Irre was also clever, you see, so she gathered together all the people she could, those few who could survive the eternal night of Crow, and she schemed with them. She gave them a spark of her own divinity, bathing them in eternal fire. For when Crow next looked down upon the earth, he saw many, many people upon the cusp of death, fighting and burning, and that were shiny as well. So, he flew down and plucked away each of Irre’s chosen, putting them up in the sky where he kept the rest of his treasures, and all the souls he’d ever taken. There, they glimmer to this day, giving us the stars. But this was only the first part of Irre’s plan, you see. For one by one, they leapt from Crow’s nest, burning their fire as brightly as they could as they fell, bringing day to the world through their twice-sacrifice.
And every soul who dies wielding a part of Irre’s power, carrying a hint of that divine spark of fire, they too are taken by Crow to his nest, and keep life living one day more.
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As told by the coastal peoples of Estoella
The stars are bubbles from the Divine Ocean, far above us as they float to the surface, carrying the air which the gods themselves breathe, releasing the divine breath onto the world and bringing life.
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As told in the shallows of the Deepwoods
From Haitar’s body, then, the gods created the earth. His blood became the oceans and rivers, his breath became the sky, and his skin and bones, the rocks and dirt. But it was his mind which the gods were most pleased with, for with it they were able to create a vast tree, connecting the earth to the heavens, so that souls might be able to follow it to their eternal reward. But as it is a tree, it can of course bear fruit and must be tended to, each one visible from the earth below as the stars above.
Our worship and offerings are what the Tree of Worlds needs to thrive and grow, you see. Our prayers are the air it breathes, and sacrifices are how it is watered. But the gods saw fit to reward us for our service, and they made the tree produce great fruits, from their own table. And every day, Desa plucks a single fruit from the great tree, from its branches within her garden, and gives it to the earth, as a reward and thanks for the worship and aid which the mortals have given the gods. And so long as we continue to worship them, the tree will continue to flower and fruit and we will carry on receiving the fruits of day.
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As told by the Iirlan peoples of the Deepwoods
Long ago, you see, Hecathar hoarded all the life in the world. Within his garden, he held the Tree of Immortality, which grows great fruits so radiant and bright that simply touching one can strip years of age off a person. To eat one is to taste true bliss, and to become a god.
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Now, tricky Lirasil wanted a fruit of his own, but had been rejected when he sought them out himself. So, one night he crept into the garden and stole away one of the fruits, becoming a god.
However, in the morning when Hecathar walked among his garden, he noticed the missing fruit, and swore to catch the thief. Now, Lirasil wanted another fruit, not content with but a single one of the divine fruit. So the next night, he crept back into the garden, but just as he plucked the fruit from its branch, Hecathar sprung upon the thief. Startled, Lirasil let go of the branch by which he was holding onto, and fell, still holding the fruit. He was so startled, and so desperate to escape Hecathar, that he fell all the way to the mortal world, bringing with him the first day.
When Lirasil saw the good which his day brought to the people of the world, he began to continue to return to the orchard and continue to pluck fruits from right under Hecathar’s watchful gaze, escaping to the mortal realm each day and sneaking back into the divine garden each night.
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Response given within the Halls of Glintstone
There’s no sky, boy, it’s just a cavern far higher than you or I could ever see. The stars you see are proof ‘o that much, they’re the vast gems stuck in there, and each day Gorah tosses another one down to us, where he’s building up his treasure. One day, he’ll pluck the last star from the sky and rest upon his treasure, you’ll see.
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As told in the city of Deepfalls
In the beginning, there was only darkness in the heavens, and the gods could not see what their followers were attempting to do. They could not tell to whom the sacrifices being burned were meant to go to, could not reward the faithful or punish the wicked. But, they looked jealously upon the fire of man, which they used to see one another and offer their sacrifices. So, Istuthlar set his servants out to gather up all the fire upon the earth, taking it from all peoples.
Once he had all the fire in the world, Istuthlar set each of his servants on watch, with a bit of all the world’s flame set within a lamp, burning divine oil ever-so-brightly. Whenever a mortal wished to make a sacrifice, he would send a servant down with their lamp to ignite the flame.
Now tricky Irath grew annoyed at Istuthlar for taking all the sacrifices solely to himself, so one night while Istuthlar was asleep and not watching his servants as they surveyed all the world, he stole out to the heavenly fields they stood upon and tripped one of the servants, then ran away. As the servant fell, they released their grip upon their lamp, attempting to steady themselves. This star fell from the sky, bringing the first full day and giving fire back into the world. So great was this first sun, this vast drop of fire, burning all the oil within its lamp that it burned the earth itself, creating the Chasm.
Now, every day Irath sneaks out and trips another servant as they stand upon their watch, giving fire to a new part of the world, that they might all give sacrifice to the gods.
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Response given by the island peoples of Ostiel
The stars are but the light of the celestial sea far above us, sparkling and illuminating the heavens as they do the earth. Day is but caused by the great Ostithe, splashing about and sending drops of water falling to the earth below and causing the tide as it floods the oceans wherever it lands. If you want to see what the stars are, go look in the water.
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As told by the Glizzaitl of Deepfalls
They’re there to hold the sky up, of course. Back when the gods built us our home, they needed something to hold out the eternal chaos, and so they draped a great black sheet against the roof, and stuck it as tight as they could, the stars as their nails. Now of course, the chaos didn’t much like being held out from here, so now Tiktilli is running around constantly tryin’ to repair it each day when a nail falls out. ‘S all there is to it, and if they land on ya, well yer in for a bad time, just look at the big hole.
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From the Industrial district of The Great City
One day, Caris was working and trying to brew something spectacular. Nobody knows what it was, for she refuses to say, and insisted that it would speak for itself once it was completed, but we do know what was in it. Divine fire, fruit from the Tree of All, dust from the Iluv, mithril from the deep stone, and the souls of a thousand thousand faithful. When she finally completed it, she rushed to the foot of Mount Sianad to deliver it to the other gods, but she tripped and sent the potion scattering into a thousand thousand droplets, spread across the sky. Each droplet was one of the souls of the faithful, of course, and as they fell to the ground they brought with them both the day and as they landed, were reborn as a being of divine might, becoming a dragon.
When a dragon dies, its soul returns to a drop of the divine elixir in the sky, bringing about another day once it falls to the earth once again.
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As told by the Hunters of Isalar
For then Isular saw all the evils of the Dark Ones, and gathered to himself his angels. To them, he said that they must watch for his children, that some of them were corrupting themselves and debasing their own nature in a vain attempt to surpass even his own might.
So, he set them out on watch. For the Dark Ones, yes, but so too any other Corrupted beings which might attempt to harm the mortals of the world, both of his own people but also those of all species. Whenever they see an evil being born, they fly from the sky, bringing the day and pushing back the wicked things of the night, and seek to vanquish all Corrupted as a being of pure silver.