Giru Mountain (GEAR roo)
Womb of the Reds
Mount Sessil aside, Giru Mountain has been one of the most influential volcano of Ethae. It does not take much research to see that nearly every culture on the continent has at least one tale of this volcano somewhere in their mythology. This may sound surprising to the modern reader considering its remote location; however one only need look to the migration of early man to see where these legends originate. If religious lore is to be believed, Alu placed the first people in the Garden of Aterleg, which by best estimation was somewhere in northern Jerain. As the people moved northern and west through the Cutting Mountains into Craddle Valley and beyond it is understandable that many would see this volcano's violent early life and spread word of it through the generations. A volcano said to burn endlessly bright through much of the prehistoric periods.
Giru is strongly associated with the Dragon, especially reds. Myths recorded in the Epic of Can dating back before the rise of Ancient Siduum place the creation of dragons in the maw of the volcano. The Dwarf records in the Cutting Mountains contradict this with claims of dragons prior to the first Giru eruption, though they do claim that reds only appeared in the world after this eruption. While Benet myth speaks of dragons journeying to the burning mountain and being reborn in the fire at its heart, becoming the first red dragon. The reds themselves also held the volcano in near sacred reverence, considering it the location of their ancestor Irkalla the Red Mother's primordial birth.
That was the past ages, however. Today the mountain lays quiet. It caldera may bellow puffs of flame, smoke, and gas on occasions, but lava has not flowed since at least the Lakorthian Age. A legend has arisen around the volcano that its activity is correlated to the dragons. As dragons diminished from the world, Giru grew weaker and weaker. When the last dragon dies, so too does the mountain's magma core. True or not, this has led the mountain to be keenly watched by elven dragon hunters.
The peak of Giru stands at just over 10,000 feet, with the radius from its caldera averaging around 40 miles. Its slopes are rocky and dry, with little to nothing growing anywhere on the mountain. Caves have been found by adventurers looking for dragon's loot over the ages. These ancient lava tubes are step, leading only to magma pools deep below, as reported by surviving explorers. If there is treasure to find in the mountain, not have returned to tell of it.
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