Hagbruzad and the Sacred Lake
Deep within the Grauffenbach Wastes, far from the borders of the more civilized groups of Orcs of the coast and volcano, lies a lake of truly immense size. Its semi-translucent waters are highly acidic and more viscous than regular water, completely unpotable.
A number of myths have spawned among Grauffenbachian cultures regarding this lake. Despite the prevalence of the myths and the formation of several scholarly expeditions to attempt to find the lake for study, the lake's location remains a mystery, if it exists at all. Not even the cults that worship the lake seem to be able to find it when pressed, despite reportedly sacrificing members to the lake regularly.
Of all of the myths about the Sacred Lake, the most prominent comes from the following text, which was gathered by a Vebedevian researcher from the leader of an orcish cult worshiping the lake. It should be noted that the cultist believed at the time that they were converting the researcher, who somehow managed to escape without becoming a sacrifice.
Long, long ago, there was a mighty orc warrior named Brazwazuzut who was the ruler of a large tribe of orcs deep within the waste. One day, after destroying a rival tribe, he turned to his trusted shaman. "Hagbruzad," Brazwazuzut asked, "This is not enough. We need something more. Find me something of purpose. Something we can use to give our people a true purpose. Something beyond bathing in the blood of our enemies and scouring their lands.""As you say, chieftan Brazwazuzut." Hagbruzad said, beginning a search that would change their clan forever. For years, Hagbruzad searched for a deeper meaning in the Wastes. Eventually, exhausted, out of food and water, he returned to Brazwazuzut, who was busy razing a small town. "Chieftan Brazwazuzut," said Hagbruzad, "I have searched high and low, but I see no signs of something greater than what you do now."Brazwazuzut was not pleased by this knowledge. For a long time he simply stared out over the burning town, watching as his people slaughtered their pathetic enemies. Then, in a fit of rage he grabbed Hagbruzad and threw him as far as he could.Hagbruzad sailed off of the large plateau from which Brazwazuzut had thrown him, landing next to the lake on the edge of the town. With the suddenness of a lunging snake, the lake waters lunged forward and caught Hagbruzad, dragging him deep into the lake's depths."This is it!" Brazwazuzut shouted, "This is what it means to be chieftan of the orcs!"From then on, Brazwazuzut forsook his conquering ways. He and his people devoted themselves to the power of the Sacred Lake. No longer did they seek out other cultures to conquer and dominate. With their true purpose revealed, they eagerly saught out other tribes and peoples to sacrifice to the Sacred Lake, gaining great powers in the process.Thus it is said: when you seek out the lake but cannot find it, giving up hope, the lake will be there when your hope is gone to ascend you to a new form of oneness with the lake.[\in]Curator's note: though I managed to escape the cultists before they sacrificed me, I was able to make two discoveries that I find remarkable.
First, this Sacred Lake does indeed exist. It was the sight of the lake, suddenly filling a large crater that had been empty the previous day when I had first seen it, that inspired my timely escape.Second, despite the clear madness of everything the cultists believed, there did seem to be some kind of power that their leader was able to draw from the Sacred Lake. Whether the lake itself is in fact a dark, powerful entity, or whether they accidentally serve some unrecorded minor deity is currently unclear, as I was forced to leave before discovering those details.
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