Matters of the Lesser World: Voryndal, or the Land Beyond the Sunset

Scholars and the world-wary commonly possess the knowledge that Qadal is but one half of Esha. Yet, what exists across the vast seas remains a terrible and attractive mystery. This section speaks upon what is known in Qadal regarding the enigmatic realm of Voryndal rather than the truths of that place. Those matters are described elsewhere. In truth, that leaves mere folktales and aged legends behind. The first volumes of such fantastical speculation were created during the Ascension Era, when Etayen explorers ventured the world that lay far beyond their borders. They explored Everos and conquered more than half its land; they colonized portions of Othos, leaving behind ruins and writings that survive into modern times; they chartered the swirling waters and lush islands of Nevan; and they plotted routes across immense distances to the Enaorebaru in the farthest reaches of Norvarrot. These were great feats, but the Etayen are an ambitious and head-strong race. It was bound within their spirits and minds to exceed the oceanic borders of Qadal and travel to Voryndal to chart and discover its secrets. 

Atûn made the endeavor difficult however, for he disclosed the existence of Voryndal to the Etayen but refused to name where it might be found. Yet, the Youngest did not bar the Etayen from attempting to travel thither. The Mandates of Kovûnkal ruled against such direct meddling in mortal affairs but mentioned nothing regarding the sharing of harmless knowledge and staying one’s hand thereafter! Numerous Etayen took to the seas in the days of their height in seach of Voryndal, yet few were successful. The Gismyr and Zolrassus consumed the unprepared and deterred the wise from traversing in fleets or lone vessels. Only Zorius the Newcomer, conqueror of Othos, claimed to have seen the distant continents and islands of Voryndal in his later life. The descriptions the voyager offered were outlandish in the extreme- detailing foreign cultures with spired cities, odd numbers of eyes, thick tendrilled limbs, and unintelligible speech. Nothing else was shared and the information was lost upon Zorius’s death.
After the collapse of Étunas in the year zero, what scattered information existed regarding Voryndal was lost entirely. The Aemar and other ascendant races were naïve and watched upon the distant oceans with childish wonder. What was beyond those waters? The cynical laymen scoffed and claimed there was nothing more than boundless ocean, and perhaps they are right. The wise seekers may also determine that there is nothing of interest, at least nothing more than some barren rocks. It is possible that they too are correct, but there were those who disagreed. Indeed, the Weeping Era and Twilight era was there are those that spend their lives scouring the seas for a land beyond what is known. Men such as Hod the Red Eyed searched the eastern sea throughout the Weeping Era. He got the name from his tendency to never sleep while on a voyage, lest he miss the sight of land. Despite this, he never succeeded. Other explorers, such as Rilla Wolonast never returned from their expeditions. When her ship returned it bore only a handful of sailors, and every one of them was in a state of complete and utter shock. They claimed that Rilla had died fighting a beast with a dozen eyes, and for every eye there was a deadly tendril of flesh and spikes. Their salvation was her sacrifice, and their payment was her legacy. No creature of the sort has ever been properly recorded since, but that should come as no surprise. Who dare go searching but the most insane, and who after once the insane have perished?
Glimpses into that unseen and coveted world have come forth from strange sources beyond the experiences of mortals.
For all this said, Voryndal long remained an utterly unfamiliar region on the pale of mortal existence.
The undeniable collision between Qadal and Voryndal came with the Wandering era in 3451, shattering what elements remained myth rather than reality. Evidence came forth in a deluge. First came the Tarphry in accompaniment of Syrgus Pyrgos in 3468, bent on reconquering Eurobia in the name of Lysander’s perished dynasty. Next came the Yaalari the next year, bearing with them a great and terrible host of strange races never seen in Qadal. While the latter and more outstanding threat was repulsed, the physical battle waged in Othos emitted terror.