WintreathBoard

There is a legend among the Grasha'kiir, passed down orally since their founding millennia ago. It tells of the first members of the tribe and its ancient predecessors, but it contains curious qualities not usually found in similar stories. It explains the tribe’s unusual focus on shamanism, and even contains some elements I hesitantly compare to science fiction.

The following is a transcript of the tale, told by Elder Shaman Drasha, an elderly woman of 95 years who is surprisingly well for someone of her years. She is regarded as the wisest of the Elder Shamans, and factually is the oldest alive.

THE FIRST ANCESTORS
As told by Elder Shaman Drasha of the Grasha'kiir
Transcribed by Dr. James Alcroft, historian & researcher

DRASHA: "I have told this tale many times to the young ones. I see no problem telling it to an outsider, though some of my peers might. It matters not."
DR. ALCROFT: "I am honored to hear it, Elder Shaman."
DRASHA: "You are kind for an outsider, doctor. It warms my heart to meet an outsider with such qualities. Now, let us begin."
(Drasha sprinkles sand into the cooling bonfire, humming softly.)
DRASHA: “Countless moons ago, we did not exist in the world. The world was young then, and filled with primal energies. The elements were much stronger than they are today, and those who could wield them were greater than any shaman that ever came after.
After a time, small tribes started to form. The strongest three were known as the Mag’kari, the Kor’aka, and the Mor’groka.
The Mag’kari lived in this very land, the Mag’shaki wastes. They were powerful shamans, and used their powers to make this place a paradise.
The Kor’aka lived in the place we migrate to every winter, the Krogashi desert. They were great warriors but valued honor above all else.
And the Mor’groka lived far to the south, in a vast and dangerous jungle.
The Mor’groka were great craftsmen and built incredible machines, some of which could even predict the movements of the stars years in advance. They made great carts which belched fire and moved without beasts in front of them.

But the elements were angry. The Mor’groka’s machines hurt them, wounded them, just as your peoples’ machines do now, doctor.
One night, the chieftess of the Mor’groka, Garama, was wandering through the jungle, searching for a meal. But in the cosmos, a great light shone bright as the sun through the constellations. It began to grow even brighter, and as Garama watched, it fell right into the Mor’grokan village behind her. There was a thunderclap louder than any that came before, and a great fire engulfed the village. And from the village, monstrous demons began to pour screaming into the jungle. Garama fled, for the elements had brought their retribution for the tribe’s transgressions.
She ran for five days until she reached the Kor’aka village, where the Kor’akan Warchief Duraka greeted her. She told him of the demons and the death of her village, and asked for aid.
Duraka was sympathetic and equally worried about the elements’ wrath. He sent his wolfriders to the village and made sure Garama was treated well.

Days passed, and the wolfriders had not returned. Duraka stood at the gates of the village, watching the sunset on the Krogashi desert, when a single wolf limped towards the village, its rider dying on its back.
With his final breaths, he told Duraka that the jungle was gone. All that was left was a desolate land of rock and green magma spewing from the earth. At the center of the jungle, where the Mor’groka’s village once stood, a great spire of dark stone and swirling magic towered over the wasteland.
The rider was dying fast. “They will come for us now. Flee this land. Flee for your lives, for the world is doomed.”
With this news, Duraka ordered the tribe to migrate north to the Mag’kari lands and seek their aid. This was the first Great Journey, and for eons we have followed in their footsteps.

The Mag’kari were welcoming of these new friends, and were even more terrified of the demons, for they corrupted the very elements with their presence.
The first Elder Shaman, Roshaka, had an idea. She knew of a ritual which would alter the world itself and open a gate to a mirror world. This mirror world would be identical, but the elements would be weaker and their powers forever lost. The chieftains thought this a worthy sacrifice in return for survival.

She began the ritual at once, and as she did the demonic lights could be seen in the sky once again. The united forces of the Mag’kari and the Kor’aka stood ready to defend the Elder Shaman as she prepared the ritual.

The demons fell from the sky, corruption spreading from their feet as they landed. We do not remember what they look like, and perhaps that is because we chose to forget.
But they tore through the strongest of the Mag’kari, spewing fire from their weapons and turning the warriors to ash.

Garama and Duraka guarded the villagers in the Elder Shaman’s hovel, watching the bloodshed with masterfully concealed terror. Roshaka was nearing completion, and through the gateway there could be seen a morning sunrise. But the demons pushed through the hovel’s doorway, and Garama ushered the townspeople through the gateway as quickly as possible.
Duraka began to hack at the demons with his axes, and retreating backwards he and Garama jumped through the portal. Roshaka shut it behind them and closed her eyes, at peace knowing her task was done.

The survivors stood on a frigid plateau, looking down upon the Mag’shaki wastes we know today. The paradise the first shamans created had never existed in this mirror world, and it was instead inhospitable to all but the hardiest creatures.

The two tribes banded together, and they were known from that point forward as the Grasha’kiir. Every year we make the great journey between the homelands of the two tribes to honor our fallen kin. And many of us long to return to the other side of the mirror and take back our world from the demons that stole it from us. Perhaps someday they will. Thank you for listening, doctor.”

DR. ALCROFT’S NOTES

I find it curious that these people tell of a mirror world. It seems to point towards their original world being an alternate universe, though I cannot fathom how they would conceive such an idea themselves. And the demons are strange indeed, for they seem to be an invading force with “weapons that spewed fire and turned the strongest of the Mag’kari to ash.” Perhaps they are firearms? We may never know.

It is also important to note that no evidence of the Kor’aka, Mag’kari, or Mor’groka’s existence has ever been found.