Creation Myth

Many millennia ago, when the world was still young, eight behemoths ruled over the world of Mistral. The Tyrants were cruel and merciless creatures, their strength far  surpassing any mere mortal who thought to stand against them. Though their forms have faded from memory, the terror they inspired remains.
The people of the land suffered beneath the brutal rule of these beasts, forced to submit or perish. They cried out, begging help from whatever entities were willing to listen. 
When the races of Mistral had all but given up, their desperate prayers were finally answered. Deities came forth to combat the Tyrants, eight shining beacons to stand against eight visions of terror. Each chose champions from the broken people of the land, allowing them to take up the mantle of divine power and go to battle against their oppressors.
These twelve, the Chosen of the Gods, embodied different aspects of their deity. Some gods chose to split their power between two mortals, and others left it all to a single champion. Regardless, each Chosen wielded enough divine strength to take on a Tyrant, and win. The Tyrants saw the threat to their place as overlords of Mistral and came forward to meet the Chosen on the field of battle.
The ensuing clashes split the world; the force of the conflicts so powerful that the land was torn asunder. Surging clouds spewed sheets of lightning, whirling columns of wind traced tracts of destruction across the earth, and torrid smoke choked the breath from anything that remained. It was as though the Gods themselves had condemned the world to hang. And yet, through it all, the shining figures of the 12 Chosen served as beacons for those who had lost all hope.
When the fighting finally finished, the landscape was nearly unrecognizable. The Tyrants had fallen, their cruelty and brutality no longer a threat to Mistral. But the Chosen, even with their divine strength, had been pushed to the brink by the great beasts. They retreated, finding places to hunker down and recover from the toll the battle had taken.
Nowadays, the tale of the Chosen is little more than a myth. Their names are uttered alongside the Gods in prayer, but many have forgotten the sacrifices they made to keep Mistral from falling to ruin. Even the terror of the Tyrants has faded with time and repetition, leaving them as little more than a story used to threaten children when they misbehave.