The War for All Time
I
n peace and joy, all mortals lived among the gods, in a land of eternal light above the misty void. Together they shared a love of creation. Together they made the universe, in which to dance the prastonata and multiply. The gods created all the lands, while mortals forged many an artifice with which to tend them. But the gods reserved the creation of time to themselves, saying it was not a mortals lot to have power over the past and future, but only to live in the present, Mortals were content with that lot, for the universe held everything they ever needed to live in peace and joy.
Out of the misty void came dark powers, shadows of the gods, who whispered in mortals ears, telling them they would be gods themselves if they controlled the past and future. They inflamed mortals hearts with visions of power, and made them fearful of the gods, fearful of their lack of control over time. At last, the mortals and the dark powers joined to make war against the gods for all time. Only Manusa, mother of (their) tasque, defied her mortal kind and stood with the gods.
Though the mortals and the shadows of the gods lacked the power to overthrow the gods, their destruction across the universe was terrible, which smote the gods to their hearts. In the end, the gods enabled Manusa to see the past and the future, that she might walk among the mortals and forecast the doom of their creation, and end of the universe. Then the mortals were ashamed. Then they rejected the whisperings of the dark powers. They begged forgiveness of the gods, and the dark powers were driven back to the mists.
When peace and joy returned to the land of eternal light, the gods regretted telling the secrets of time to Manua, but they could not take back what had been freely given. So the joined with the mortals and drove Manusa from the land, cast her into the mists, and gave her to the dark powers who claimed her for revenge.
But Manusa would not give up, Manusa would not die. Manusa wandered in the mists alone, fearless of all beings, for she could see the future, and she foresaw that the gods and mortals would not coexist forever. Manusa saw that the spiteful gods would eventually cast all mortals from the land of eternal light, and bandon them in the universe they had created, and she laughed at the miserable fate of both gods and mortals.
We are the children of Manusa! We are neither mortal nor divine. We are wanderers in the mists. We are unknown to mortals, and unfettered by gods. We are merchants on the road of time, selling the past to gods and the future to mortals.
We are the children of Manusa!
Taken originally from a Vistani tribe calling themselves “The Manusa”. To which the tribe cries “koorah!”, meaning “utterly true!”. The War for All Time pits the Vistani not against the rest of the world, but against all beings in the universe, be they mortal or divine. Having learned secrets which can not be unlearned, the Vistani find themselves exiles in every world. Ultimately they emerge victorious, though, for they have learned to relish the new life thrust upon them, and they retain those powers that elevate them above other mortals.Those who hold tankards drain them, and music and dancing begins anew invigorated by the tale. Of all Vistani lore, this legend is one of the most fascinating, an allegory of humanity itself.
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