Last time we looked at The World of Eos, we established the first three cities that were formed when humanity was introduced to the world. We named those cities, Eld, Athrea, and Banderlin, and determined both the divinity behind the creation of each civilization, and their general purpose and method for promoting their civilizations. We know at this time the deities are taking a very proactive hand in these cultures.
We also have looked into the origins of where the deities come from, how and why humans have been introduced here, as well as what the world has looked like up to now. However, most of that information, the humans will not be privy to, and neither will most readers/players inhabiting the story. We need to overwrite the sci-fi origins with a curtain of mythology, folklore, and legend, representing the world as presented to those humans by the deities, and then as it has also been perhaps warped over time through many retranslations.
So we are going to write that creation myth today, and tell the tale of how the three cities came to be from their own perspective and understanding.
First, some things to keep in mind:
- These stories will have a unified origin point, and then diverge from there as they begin to tell their own stories.
- There is a lot of actual planning from the deities that went into these cultures, so they can be better thought through than similar ancient civilizations on earth.
- The specific stories for any given culture will reflect their values and their biases, casting themselves as the heroes, and possibly propagandizing against their sister cultures.
The Origin
First came the age of dreaming. The twilight of uncounted ages, where the elves walked the world, as eternal children. Learning, but never knowing. Reaching, but never growing.
(The Fun part about a folklore story like this is I can use fanciful turns of phrase and unusual language. I’m just toying with it for now, but I’m beginning to develop a voice for the lore of this world.)
Then came the Dawn of Dawns, when humankind awakened and the world was cast into light.
(The voice is placing prominence and importance on humankind over elvenkind, as this is a human story told by humans to make humans feel good about humans.)
Into the Creshold Valley they were born, and the Gods bid the elves come and teach the fledgling people what they had learned.
(So I needed a place, a location away from the cities that the first few generations of humans were first raised. A crèche is a place where children are cared for, so I like this term. The Gods would want them taught, but not want to directly intervene quite yet. So I think this creates an interesting early, almost sibling relationship between humanity and the elves.)
Yet the children of humankind grew swiftly, and the elves as ever, fell to the gloaming that touched humanity not. And dawns passed as humanity thrived and began to teach their own children.
The Parting/Exodus/Diaspora
Then came the seventh dawn, when the servants of the Sovereign Gods came to the Creshold Valley.
(Dawn is a big theme in the setting, as Eos means dawn. I’m imagining “dawn” used here almost to mean “generation” but couched in pseudo-biblical metaphor. Making this a seven generation gap leaves enough time that stories could be told about this period, if I wanted.)
The Servant of Infra Dev came among them, and his body was made of solid stone, and gleaming metal. He spoke of the value of strength, and ingenuity, honor, and dedication. He spoke of the pride of hard work, and the value of honesty. He spoke of a great city they might construct, as strong as a mountain, eternal, and able to withstand any storm. He said: “Whosoever feels the strength in their bones, kinship with stone and metal, follow me, and we shall forge this place together.”
(This sets up a pattern I can follow with the other deities’ pitches.)
The Servant of Arda Cul came among them, and her body was made of colors, light, and music. She spoke of the glory of beauty, and depths of spirit that could be explored through the arts. She spoke of creation, and mastery, and the power of humanity to create that which is godly with their mortal minds and their own hands. She spoke of a place of sublime beauty, and natural splendor unmatched. She said: “Whosoever feels the call of their spirit, and yearns to explore the subtlety and beauty of dreams, follow me, and I we shall manifest these dreams together.”
(The servants I’m envisioning are likely some kind of drones or automatons, made originally to serve the physical responsibilities of the deities before they thought of themselves as deities. I like their shapes in the story being kind of abstract and mysterious, though.)
The Servant of Makapri Sol came among them, and his body was made of gold and swathed in silks and jewels. He spoke of the heights that might be reached with cleverness and cunning, the luxuries to be had, the wonders to be built, and the power to be obtained through canny trade, prudent commerce, and bold enterprise. He said: “Whosoever feels the vigor of their mind, speaks with a sly tongue, sees with a shrewd eye, and feels the call of greatness, follow me, and we shall sanction the crossroads of all human endeavor.”
(The goal is to make each of these pitches fairly appealing, so that even the reader might be considering which deity they might have followed if they were part of this seventh dawn. But then, it occurs to me that some of the humanfolk might not have wanted to be dispersed or to follow one of these three paths. Suddenly, I find myself with a fourth culture I hadn’t anticipated, but which I think can be very useful.)
So the children of the seventh dawn were allotted, and followed the Sovereign Servants to found the three great cities.
The Sedgefolk
Yet some there were who refused to go, finding no destiny in the words of the Sovereign Servants. These remainders sought to stay in the Creshold, but soon found that the favor of the Sovereign Gods which had protected them was gone. So some stayed, and many left to wander unguided and godless, forsaken and forsworn, as wild Sedgefolk.
As dawns passed, the three great cities grew and thrived. The Sedgefolk formed tribes and built settlements among the elves and the wilds. As they had no guidance, they sought to steal rather than build, and for the first time among the children of humanity: there was conflict.
(So this sets up early opportunities for conflict and battles, populates the world beyond the three cities, and also offers the first major example of that story-telling bias. The city-dwellers are the ones telling the stories, so their opinion of the “Sedgefolk” are likely to be low, especially if there was conflict. I imagine the sedgefolk are diverse and numerous, and in living off the land without direct protection from most of the gods, probably just a lot more independent. Yet there would be conflict, as the cities have many tempting resources and the motivations of the sedgefolk are far less unified, so some would possibly turn to banditry and raids. The cities might trod on those tribes as well, not considering their lands to belong to them, or their needs as important as their own “godly” aims, provoking retaliation, raising more nad more general conflict.)
(Either way, the Sedgefolk are going to be an important resource, I think, for further development. I can see some of the other Gods tapping them as a resource.)
Conclusion
So we have established at least the origin point for these early Eossian civilizations. What each one will look like as the story continues will be more from their own perspectives.
One idea I am trying to implement as I go is inspired by some of my favorite epic fantasies, which is to make available a series of significant eras to play in. Rather than simply being a static fantasy world, there will be different eras with a very different feel to reading about or playing in them. One era might grant the feel of a conan-like adventure, another more like robin hood or king arthur, another maybe more like pirates on the high sees, or even going to far as feeling like a western. There can even be different cultural focuses.
As with most of my ambitious projects, I’m not just creating a platform for a story, but I’m rather aiming for a platform with limitless potential for stories. Not a goal I expect it is possible to achieve, but in reaching for it, I will hopefully get close enough for my purposes.
Question Prompt:
If you were part of that Seventh Dawn Generation, which Sovereign Servant might you have followed? Would you have stayed in the wilds?
Alternatively: Answer for the sake of one of your original characters. Think of it like a VERY basic sorting-hat choice, lol.
I’ll see you next world!
—Charles