Mesian's Curse - Elivas

Love is a devious thing, mischievous and difficult to understand. It speaks not in plain terms, but in sideways glances and fleeting smiles. Mortals spend their whole lives trying to comprehend it. Bards sing of romance and sweet getaways beneath the light of twinkling stars. Prostitutes sell its irresistible rush on the corners of shady streets, promising paradise on the hem of a dress. The average person falls somewhere in between, struggling to discover their role in the game of love. Such is the way of mortals to fret over and fight for such things, but what of the Eshan? The creators of Qadal have minds, souls, and hearts. They are slaves to love just like the mortals they created. The creation of the Elivas is foremost a story of love between deities, and the tragic byproducts that accompany it.
Mesian and the Elivas of her creation were the most unfortunate to suffer from this arbitrary mandate. Ácolitus attempted to control the interactions and proliferation of the Eshanic race through that method, but furtive gatherings were common. Aebaster and Mesian were caught in such a trist, being powerful and beautiful as hewn from the chiefest race of beings in existence. This lastest, but was confused by intrusions of other lovers, such as Zelai, whom Mesian despised. Their own feud escalated beyond control and Ácolitus was made aware of the relationship. It was now well-known to all Eshan that the creator’s mandate was worthless among the strongest. This was a bitter strike against his prestige, and some manner of punishment was required to save face. He struck against Mesian, for Aebaster was the instigator and Ácolitus desired for guilt to be worn into the Eldest’s heart. The curse was that Eshan who fornicate like beasts must themselves parent beasts. In the short term, this was manifested in the ruination of the instinctual races which Mesian created as a matter of experimentation. These actions were more bullying than divine judgement and were unpopular. Yet, it did achieve Ácolitus’ desired effect by driving a wedge between Aebaster and Mesian, weaking the systems of Eshanic alliance.
The true measure of Ácolitus’ wrath was left centuries afterward. When Mesian attempted to craft the Elivas race following the First Feud, she was disgusted to find them not tall and proud, but instinctual and bestial. She intended for them to be majestic, long-haired, and narrow so they might frolic across the plains beside the endless seas. Yet, they were low and mean, bulging with terrible muscle and universally ferocious in their demeanor. Something had gone amiss in the process; some unforeseen power was involved. It was the return of this curse. The Eshanic power of Ácolitus himself was bound into this manifestation, so that the Elivas became his race just as it became Mesian’s own race. What a petty and harmless waste of powers! Neither of them possessed the means to destroy that race, nor did they possess the ability to create another per the Mandates. All those centuries of growth were for nothing. For Mesian it was a disaster which removed her from the ranks of competitive Eshan. For Ácolitus it was a mere hinderance, as he then made no attempts to create his own race.
Mesian and Ácolitus’ ill fated dual race was a bastardized mess of muscles, thick fur, razor claws, hideous features, and a complete lack of reason. They were nothing. They were less than nothing- instinctual but neither graceful nor harmonious as the creations of Qazun.
In the middle epochs of the Awakening, Atûn approached Mesian with an offer. He was endeavoring to create a novel form of Eshanic energy in the mortal world, bound to Qadal itself rather than bestowed by the Eshan. This would break the tenuous connection between Eshanic vigilance and mortal prosperity which dominated discourse between the divine and mundane. Those versed in the esoteric rites of this art could divorce themselves from the hinderances of traditional Eshara, thus becoming more powerful than other mortal races. Atûn was preparing for the ascension of the Etayen, which came centuries thereafter, but the foundation upon which it would later rest was raw and untested. This power could raise the Elivas above their bestial aspect, if Mesian was willing to agree. It was a quid pro quo of a kind. Mesian’s humiliation would be avenged and her spawn made sentient and manifest in Qadal- this was made more pertinent with the abortive attempts conducted during the Awakening to form lesser races. All efforts failed, and those which survived were enslaved by the Daorhu. On the other side, the ascension of the Elivas would post venomous rivals on the borderlands of the Aemar, distracting Aebaster’s attention away from the affairs of Etal. If the experiment succeeded, Atûn could proceed confident of Vojûn’s infantile powers. Mesian pondered on it extensively but considered the dire lack of options and eventually relented to the Youngest’s overtures.
Around the year -2500, Atûn arrived in primitive Lodon, departing the safety of Etal for the only significant period in his Qadayen existence. The sorrowful eyes of Mesian watched down upon him and his labors. He gathered upon him vast quantities of Eshara, calling forth much of the reserves saved over the centuries for Vojûn’s creation, then released it upon the gnarled landscape of Lodon and its feral inhabitants. It washed over them and altered them body and mind. They began to change, just as Atûn had intended and guided by his hand, and in those hours became like the Etayen and Aemar whom the Youngest used as models. It was interesting, for this process was a testament to Atûn’s artistic ability and Eshanic acumen. Nothing was present to assist this work beside the limited musings of Mesian herself toward her original concept. A new race formed from the folly of Aebaster, the latest among the major beings of Qadal. Mesian was astounded and duly grateful. She promised to uphold her articles of their agreement and thus kept the Elivas enigmatic and distant from the Aemar.
Development of Mesian’s race was artificially accelerated by external threats born from the ever-expanding realms of Aebaster’s ilk. Among them, the tribes settled along the river Zomore were the most violent and unremitting. Their ancestors had spent generations harvesting the pelts and meat of Elivas, and the strange and sudden transformation of their mortal form failed to deter this fire. Warriors continued to cross the river and the Elivas rallied to defend themselves, creating their language, culture, settlements and defenses, along with their military character.
In the centuries following the ouster of the Everosi tribes from Lodon, the Elivas rapidly modernized to compete with other regional powers. While further political, economic, and cultural advances lay in the future, the Elivas achieved a level of sophistication comparable to modern times.
After the death of Atûn, the Elivas experienced the latest evolution of their racial character. The power of Vojûn, which was the catalyst of their sentient mortality, spread across the world without restriction. Vast concentrations of this energy gathered in regions where the Etayen settled and built massive Voladûr. These structures pulled raw Vojûn from the world’s depths and onto the surface. Southern Everos was riddled with them, and thus that power was intense in those regions. The Elivas encountered Vojûn and found it strangely empowering. It honed their physical and mental capabilities, dispelling whatever vestiges of their bestial heritage which Atûn failed to destroy in all by appearance. The intelligent became brilliant while the powerful became monstrous. The wealthy Lodesh of their society made practice of immersing themselves within rooms choked with mist-like Vojûnic energy, inhaling it like air in greedy gulps to perfect themselves in decision making and rule. Yet, this perceived gift without a price was more dangerous than once believed. It could corrupt just as easily as it improved the Elivas. The most notorious example is the madness of Linesh Lod, who grew horrible mutations, consorted with strange monsters which were born from the Vojûn surrounding him, and suffered bouts of insanity. His own warriors murdered him in 17 to protect the nation. Episodes much alike were experienced throughout Lodon. The bold continued to immerse themselves in Vojûn smoke, but most abandoned the practice for the safety of themselves and those around them, losing the boons as well. Later generations sought and achieved means of balancing these forces, but those are the discussion of another time.
Worse than madness was another manifestation of Vojûn- ebonstone. It was the doom which plagued their prayers. It stole away Vojûn rather than increasing it and devolved the Elivas to a point of feral madness which undermined every effort of Atûn or Mesian to uplift them. Whenever Vojûn was gathered in tight concentrations for long periods of time, ebonstone was created. Those who encountered it and wandered close erupted into monsters of muscle and fur, known as Elirev among the Elivas. They were terrible to behold. Bulging, hungry eyes with piercing green and bodies which towered above any natural beasts of Qazun’s creation. Nothing remained of their intelligence for that time, leaving instinct to dominate. In most cases, the transformed mortal must be destroyed to protect their companions. If possible, they can be restrained. Time must pass until the natural levels of Vojûn are restored. Attempting to immerse them in Vojûnic smoke as a remedy accelerates the process, but also risks corrupting the body with the infux of power sucked into that vacuous husk. This is universally recognized as the worst fate which might befall the Elivas race, but there are also opportunities which arise. The clever Lodesh sought to weaponize this condition against the Aemar and other aggressors. Criminals, psychopaths, dissidents, and other societal outcasts considered too dangerous for cohabitation were prime targets for military punishment. They were dragged upon distant battlefield and wrapped in chains crafted from ebonstone. It caused them to become feral and ferocious, tearing apart enemies and unlucky handlers alike. The full measure of these strategies and methods are found elsewhere but suffice to say the introduction of Vojûn into the Elivas world was exploited and explored to the fullest extents possible by mortality.