The First Elves
Taken from the teachings of Himse the Prophet, collected c. -1200 DR, translated
When the world was still young and the walls between the realms not quite as strong as they are these days, the golden god Calowean would spend his days riding his chariot across the skies, his twin sister, wicked Lyndranel, always a step behind. He was the fairest and the most proud of the elder gods, and for this reason also he had refused to champion one of the young races as his fellows had, for none could match his beauty. One day, Calowean came upon a pool in the middle of a great desert, in the center of which was a pool of the most pure water that the god had ever known. Feeling that he had ridden hard that day and his perfect beauty was stained by the dust of the road, Calowean bathed himself in the clear pool. Fed by the pure water and the shining light of the most beautiful of gods, beautiful flowers bloomed, and a forest grew to hide his nudity. Lyndranel followed soon after and when her brother left the pool, she too saw fit to bathe herself in its pure waters. Though she shone like her brother, Lyndranel jealously horded her light, and would not share it with the forest. And so it withered away in darkness. When Calowean returned the next day, he was saddened by the lost of the beauty he created and knew that only his sister's darkness could be to blame; he saught to punish the traitorous goddess. The night goddess, was as sly and cunning as a beast, but Calowean's bow was swift and his aim true, and she could not match the sun in battle. Calowean struck his sister fiercely and pinned her to the ground beneath him. Their combined blood soon filled the pool which birthed life, for this was no mere pool, but a portal to the green world, the Faewild. It was the very realm of life, dreams, and possibilities. There from the blood of the twin divines grew the first of the elf-kin. Finally released, Lyndranel slunk from the pool in shame, and it was many long years before the first elf reached out his hand to the glorious shinning god that had spawned them. When he saw the elves, Calowean, himself is said to have wept, for only in their beauty did he see an echo of his own. And so he took them as his chosen people.
When the world was still young and the walls between the realms not quite as strong as they are these days, the golden god Calowean would spend his days riding his chariot across the skies, his twin sister, wicked Lyndranel, always a step behind. He was the fairest and the most proud of the elder gods, and for this reason also he had refused to champion one of the young races as his fellows had, for none could match his beauty. One day, Calowean came upon a pool in the middle of a great desert, in the center of which was a pool of the most pure water that the god had ever known. Feeling that he had ridden hard that day and his perfect beauty was stained by the dust of the road, Calowean bathed himself in the clear pool. Fed by the pure water and the shining light of the most beautiful of gods, beautiful flowers bloomed, and a forest grew to hide his nudity. Lyndranel followed soon after and when her brother left the pool, she too saw fit to bathe herself in its pure waters. Though she shone like her brother, Lyndranel jealously horded her light, and would not share it with the forest. And so it withered away in darkness. When Calowean returned the next day, he was saddened by the lost of the beauty he created and knew that only his sister's darkness could be to blame; he saught to punish the traitorous goddess. The night goddess, was as sly and cunning as a beast, but Calowean's bow was swift and his aim true, and she could not match the sun in battle. Calowean struck his sister fiercely and pinned her to the ground beneath him. Their combined blood soon filled the pool which birthed life, for this was no mere pool, but a portal to the green world, the Faewild. It was the very realm of life, dreams, and possibilities. There from the blood of the twin divines grew the first of the elf-kin. Finally released, Lyndranel slunk from the pool in shame, and it was many long years before the first elf reached out his hand to the glorious shinning god that had spawned them. When he saw the elves, Calowean, himself is said to have wept, for only in their beauty did he see an echo of his own. And so he took them as his chosen people.
This tale is clearly an interpretation by the Himsean Faith, any differences in Yvalian interpretation are hidden by the secrecy of the Moonpriestesses.
Comments