Mutaney
The goddess' were a ever present pantheon, reaching their followers where ever they call them from. But they were also fickle, the scorn of the almighty is hard to redeem from.
The town of Mutaney has been suffering this since _____.
A beautiful town surrounded by bountiful farms, Mutaney was blessed by the goddess of harvest and grain, Warren. She smiled upon her followers and have them everything they needed to thrive. Fertile soil, consistent rains, ever-flowing rivers and seeds that grew quickly.
While Warren did this for all her followers, no matter where they hailed, Mutaney was such a large congregation that she found herself drawn to it more and more.
During The _____ war, many of Mutaney's men and women were called to arms, leaving half the people to turn the fields, but still Warren provided.
A farmer by the name of Keran was called to fight in this war. Leaving his son, not just 12, to tend to their home.
Keran fought on the front lines for years, becoming a skilled fighter and tactician, in hopes to return back to his home and son.
He was brave and ambitious, facing great wyrms, killing unusual creatures and slaying his opponents. He watched as other Goddesses joined the fights with valiant paladins atop Pegasus reined from the sky, and clerics corned in grey bought soldiers rising back to their feet to only eternally rest again at the fights end.
He became friends with some from other faiths.
A paladin of Atheris became one of his closest confidants during the war, the man pummelling down atop a foe who would have taken the final swing at Keran's life. Later seeking him out after that event, Keran was introduced to the man, Buram (Bu-or-um), but most people around him called him Boar. He was one of the Pegasus riders, and his mount was a beautiful chestnut war horse with wings that spanned the length of a large cart easily.
Over the day Boar introduced Keran to some of his other friends. A wizard of the snow called Peter, a elf woman called Klix and her animal companion, a large black panther called Morris, a half elf who twirled short swords like they were only sticks of wood called Hermese, and a cleric of Pence, a beautiful woman, called Desrae.
Keran was very taken with Desrae, she was a stunning woman and as they got to know each other more and more he found her to be kind.
The group had begun fighting side by side, and they worked well together. During the final days of the war, the six were an unstoppable force.
As the final battle of the ____ war came to an end. Keran wished his friends happiness. He longed to ask Desrae to follow him back to his town, but knew not to challenge her faith to her goddess.
Keran made his way back home, as he got closer he noticed villages and towns that were close by were in the process of rebuilding, had been run down or were completely gone. He hadn't realised the war had reached this far, but he figured the enemy probably thought the same of their towns.
As he got close he realised the destruction hadn't lessened, he began to pray in hopes of feeling his goddess reach out to him, as she normally did. There was a faint connection with his mind, she seemed far away, not like the force he should be feeling when in his Provence.
Making haste he returned to his village, burnt to the ground and smouldering, no crops grew in the fields, the land blackened, he continued forward headed out towards his home.
As he got closer to the edge of the town he had to stop. Hundreds of bodies lay burnt, looking like they were trying to run away, run from the town to safety. Some had children in their arms, some had charred weapons in hands. It was destructive and demoralising, Keran falling to his hands and knees as bile filled his mouth and nostrils.
After a moment he gathered himself, making his way slowly around the corpses he walked towards his farm, towards his house and home, towards his son.
Looking out over what would have been tall grain fields he could see the shell of his house, only parts of it still stood. Walking up he stepped over the debris, looking for any hope that his son had survived.
But what he found wasn't what he wanted. A charred body at what was the back door, Keran's father's sword in hand running for the woods that backed onto the property. He had left the sword as a way for his son to defend himself if even a wild animal got into the house.
Keran sobbed, taking the sword, part of the hand disintegrating. Kneeling beside his only son he stayed for hours, sobbing and calling for his goddess, her touch only faint, causing a few small tufts of grass to grow around him. She had abandoned them.
The sun began to set over the smouldering wreck that was Mutaney. Keran breathed deep the smell of ash and decay hung in the air. Listening to the world around him only the wind blew. From behind him he heard a twig snap, turning quickly and springing to his feet, weapon drawn and pointed. From the woods a young Elven woman approached, a swaddled baby in her arms. She had on a dirty and torn night gown, her hair knotted and dirt & ash covered her face and feet.
Keran was about to start forward, elves not being a common sight in these parts and normally considered a bad omen. A going caught his eyes however. A small ring on a chain hung around her neck.
"Where did you get that you filthy knife ear!" He yelled at her, hesitantly she pointed at his son,
"I am Terralyn, I am married to the man you are crying over. This was his mother's that he gave to me on our union." She spoke softly and quickly. Pulling her baby close to her chest are her voice broke multiple times.
Keran dropped the sword, hurriedly introducing himself and asking the woman many questions. Terralyn told him of the wars call for food, and due to Mutaney's ability to provide it quickly, they were sending harvest after harvest to the troops, Warren doing her part in the pantheon by aiding us in our trials.
But that called one of the great dragon gods to notice the town, and he came, he destroyed everyone and everything. Terralyn believes she was the only one to escape, with her son in arms she sensed something was wrong, waking her husband and both only having seconds before the first flames hit the town. It came quickly towards them and Keran's son forced Terralyn to flee to the woods quickly.
She broke down, continuing to say that he was right behind her, that she had just made it to the trees when she turned to watch him become engulfed in the dragons flame.
Keran breathed deeply again, moving forward to question her about Warren, and what she did to help her people. Terralyn only shook her head, I prayed to the goddess as I waited for the flames to die. She was not here, and she did not answer her call, Terralyn beginning to cry, her tears falling onto her son's cheek, waking the child. She quickly began to sooth him back to sleep.
Keran was filled with rage that his goddess would leave her people to die the way they did.
That night he set his tent and he fed himself and his wedded daughter, holding his grandson for the first time and talking with the girl about the event of the last 10 years.
In the morning the three headed back along the road, back towards the major city of _____ where he knew he would find his old friends.
Four weeks of travel and Keran looked after Terralyn and his grandson. As soon as possible he bought a cart and horse to make their journey easier. He fought away bandits and paid their way from Inn to Inn with his gold from the military.
They came into ______ on the fourth day of the fifth week, Keran settling them into an Inn and heading off into the city, searching for his old friends.
Finding Bore, Peter and Klix in the mercenary's halls, as well as seeking out Desrae in the local temple of Pence. He told them of his troubles and asked them to hear him of his plan.
Keran wanted revenge, and he was going to kill a Goddess. Bore and Klix agreed, Bore disgusted that a Goddess would abandon her folk after she used them to fuel the war, and Klix liked the idea of a hunt, growing tired of the massive monsters that wizards were always commissioning them to hunt.
Peter was hesitant, but with some prompt agreed to the journey, but Desrae declined, warning them of the dangers of angering the Goddess' and what could happen to them if this plan were to be discovered.
Keran was hurt by her refusal, he knew she was faithful to Pence, but what Warren did was wrong, to let so many die. She walked away from them all that night, wishing them to co me to their senses.
But, without Desrae at their side, the four worked quickly to find their way to Warren. They fought through angels and Aasimar, to find themselves standing face to face with Warren. The Goddess frowned at her once faithful.
"Why do you fight my champions, Keran?"
"Because you deserve to die for what you did!"
The battle was fought hard, Bore finding his holy powers disappearing quickly, but Peter and Klix were able to keep strong. Even without his goddess' power, Bore was a unit, and his mount's bond with him strengthened.
It seemed that they were to lose. They had hurt Warren, but she was powerful. They were also injured, but kept going as hard as they could. Keran screamed as his blade met Warrens side, the Goddess crying out in pain. That blow hurt her a lot more... looking over his shoulder he saw Desrae, a black aura encompassed her hands and his weapon. She had joined them.
They fought back, the final blow landing from Keran, as he drove his sword through Warren heart. The Goddess shrinking to the size of a small human.
Looking up at him she smiled,
"You have doomed your self, Keran."
As she died her plane faded away, Keran and his friends cast back to the mortal world, however not where they had started, but back in the town of Mutaney.
Keran went to leave the town, to go back to his family, but upon reaching the border, was stopped by an invisible force. The other four also could not leave. However Morris, Klix's companion could. Klix attaching a letter to the panther, sent him in search of Terralyn.
Months past, the five rebuilding what they could with their skills. Both Bore and Desrae loosing their connection to their goddess'.
Desrae took this the hardest. Days at a time she would just sit by herself in prayer, hoping to hear her goddess talk to her. But there was no reply.
One day Keran heard a cart coming along the road, looking to who it was, he was met with Terralyn, waving. As she had crossed the border she shuddered, a feeling of disconnect, which she mentioned to Keran. He confided that he could no longer cross out of the town's province himself. Panicked, Terralyn left her son with Keran and walked back to the border, hoping she was not doomed to being stuck there, but she was able to continue walking as she wished, but the feeling of disconnection became stronger as she left, like the Goddesses were distancing themselves from her mind.
Over the years the town of Mutaney rebuilt. Those that set up residence there all feeling the same disconnect from the Goddesses, however travellers and passers by did not.
These days Mutaney is a small town that acts as the half way point between ____ and ____. It stands as a cautionary tale to those who would go against the pantheon, and the lands that surrounded are known as the untouched lands. No goddess will answer prayers within these lands and no goddess will help the people of the town of Mutaney.
Type
Town
Population
1,552
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