The Castle and The Stone

The Castle and The Stone

Long ago, before the very beginning of things, the gods assembled in their place of meeting. They agreed to build a world and set within Omphalos, the navel or point of beginning, The Sacrificium Stone, the center of its existence and the source of its life. To protect this precious seed, they raised around and above it a fabulous building, a castle made of marble and darkest obsidian. But the gods could not agree on who should guard the castle for each desired his or her own champion to have the honor. None would permit the chosen agent of another to take up the task. Finally Justice addressed the assembled immortals and proposed a test to determine the best guardian for the Castle and the Stone. “Let each of us choose a champion to seek the castle,” said Justice. "The one who first finds it will become its ruler and will sire a family of guardians to defend the Stone ever after.” The gods saw the wisdom of this plan and agreed. They selected champions who embodied those virtues their respective divine patrons thought most important and sent them forth. These questers traveled the length and breadth of the world, seeking the elusive stronghold. But although the castle was part of the world, as the gods created axis mundi, the umbilicus of the cosmos, it possessed a unique feature that made it difficult indeed to locate: It moved about the world, seemingly at random, appearing one day in one location, only to disappear the next. The champions searched far and wide but could not find their goal. The quest seemed impossible. One day the champions met to discuss their progress, each admitting failure and declaring the goal to be unreachable. It was at this time that a man, who rode a horse without a saddle and who bore no divine symbol, heraldic device, or weapon of power, appeared among their number. The champions asked the newcomer which god he served, and he replied: "I am called Peccatum. Each of you embodies those qualities your gods deem best. I am what is best in mortals and can succeed where you have failed.” The assembled champions erupted in leers, cheers, laughter and sacastic jeering. As the cacaphone subsided a lone voice challenged Peccatum. "Only a chosen champion can seek the castle by decree of the gods themselves!" Even those who had greeted and accepted Peccatum's pressence at the meet, soon voiced agreement to this. Then suddenly the skies grew dark and in an explosion of dark fire and brimstone radiance Depravity manifested before them. In a voice heard by all gathered, reaching even the gods themselves he spoke. "I see before me a mortal soul promoting personal excellence and independence. One taking care of his own affairs and ridding himself of weakness. Despite having no gods, no masters, his innocent actions prove he is blessed with the motivation to succeed. As my right as the princely son of the Overgod and the Night Goddess, half brother of Justice who set out the rules to be followed and obide by for this quest, as well as through my own moral, virtuous and honest judgement, do I deem this mortal worthy to be my champion to seek the castle. Say that you accept mortal Peccatum, first of your name, and the honor is yours." The princely firstborn of the King of the Gods then disapeared as magnificently and as terrifyingly maleficent as he had appeared. In the quiet that followed two words rang loud and clear for all to hear. "I accept!" So saying, Peccatum turned his horse away without another word and rode straight to the castle. Its gate opened before him, and he passed inside without difficulty and beheld its secret, the Sacrificium Stone. Justice crowned him ruler of the castle that very day, and King Peccatum made a pact with the gods: Neither he nor his descendants would ever remove the Stone from the castle or reveal the secret of its power to any other living creature or being, lest a terrible curse befall their line forever. The newly crowned King Peccatum gathered to his seat others of purity and honor, and after swearing them to the same pact with the gods, made them his household. With such folk at his command, he was well satisfied that the Stone would be safe. He took a wife from among their number, and together they began a dynasty of guardians who remain the defenders of the castle and its secret to this very day. King Peccatum ruled in peace and wisdom for more than three centuries and then stepped down from the throne, crowning his eldest son in his place. Still vigorous despite his unusually advanced age, Peccatum departed the castle on horseback and rode away from its gates, never to return. Some of his line speculate that he ascended to the realm of the gods, to sit among their number and serve them; others believe that he simply wandered the world and died in some foreign land. His true fate remains unknown, even to his family, and if the gods know they have not said. Since that time, King Peccatum's descendants have ruled the castle and honored their pact with the gods. Once or twice in each generation, a lone hero locates the castle and its mysteries; any such worthies are admitted into the household and sworn to the pact, swelling the number of the Stone’ s defenders. None who gained the castle are permitted ever to set down their burden, and thus its existence remains the most closely guarded of secrets even to this day. The fact that the Omphalos was found by a mortal and dubbed champion by the Overlord of Hell and Ruler of the Damned as first of his name, whose very name translates as sin, these are things best discussed by clerics and spoken of only in the telling of this story by the rest of us normal folk who wish thier souls to remain in their bodies.
In some variations the names of the gods are used rather than honorifics. MARUUK instead of Justice, ANULIL replacing mention of the Overgod or King of the Gods. ANXSHAR replacing Night Goddess, and ASDRODEUS instead of Depravity, Overlord of Hell and Ruler of the damned. In some cases Peccatum gains the given name Seniorem, meaning ELDER, or Primis, meaning FIRST to further add to the symbolism of original sin at the heart of the mortal world. The Sacrificium Stone, Sacroficial Stone, or Stone of the Sacrifice, is sometimes described as being nestled inside an open casket of platinum inlaid with gold and adorned with an array of jewels, each worth a small fortune, within the framework, perhaps a foot in diameter and made of a hard white substance shot through with delicate tracery of black is The Stone, approximating the general shape and appearance of an immense egg.
The Castle and the Stone is often used as a well known tale of the common human societies throughout the realms. For some reason it is less well known in other cultures though it still exists.