The Tale of Creation According to the Church of Eclath

There was naught but darkness, and chaos, and emptiness. In the void a thought woke, and kindled, by that thought, the very stars. The first lights, the first angels, kindled by Radiance, by our Lord Eclath. Even so slight a warmth and heat was heavenly, and as Eclath rested in the timeless, starlit void, they came to realize there was more, and by that realization, more was made. And as each notion formed, so formed the god of that thing. The fundament of the world (Nhal). The protecting embrace of the Sky, (Harukan). Then stone grew from the fundament, (Dweor). And soil on the stone, (Meilu). Finally, the gods of living things, of tree and leaf (Taliana), of beast and bird (Aurellion).

Each pair clove, one to the other, and had offspring, and they and their offspring made the First peoples, in their image. The Haruk, the Dweorg, the Aurelvar. Born before the sun and moon, they saw without effort by starlight.

And for long, Eclath stood apart, whilst seven choirs of angels were born from their thought to tend the emerging world. And they turned their thought to how things should be ordered, and what rules should be laid down. But the gods of the world were impatient, and much evil would come of that.

And so it came to pass that the Eldest of the Young met the Youngest of the Young, in the twilit glades of yore...and much misery was born from that meeting. (Khul) caught sight of (Lauralethea) from afar, and became obsessed. She fled the intensity of his gaze, though her heart was hot within her. She fled, he gave chase.

And it came to pass that the gods debated the disposition of the world. The gods of the dwarves proposed lives of hard work and purpose. The gods of the elves proposed leisure and paradise, loving their children as they did. The dwarf gods were swayed. The gods of the (Haruk) demurred, saying, “A life without trial makes for weak child. What then, when from beyond, the (untranslatable) come?” But the elf gods scoffed, doubting such tales, for they could not see beyond the world. Eclath held their peace, thinking still, for there would be time to decide. But the other gods were impatient. They would not wait.

And debate turned to other things, until, angry, (Aurellion) said, “So be it. If you demand trial and hardship, they are yours. Your children will have the anger of the wild, and the will of the wood, against them, and be driven out into the barren places where I have no sway. Is that harsh enough?”

(Harukan) frowned, but held his peace. He thought, as Eclath did, that time would sooth anger, and cooler heads might prevail.

But they did not. And (Aurellion) called a private meeting, he, and (Dweor) and (Harukan) and Eclath, and Harukan came, thinking there was to be apology, and privacy to save face. But bitter words had poisoned (Aurellion's) mind, and he had convinced (Dweor) to aid him, saying, “All our children, all we have built and will build, are at risk. He will do them harm. He must be stopped.” And (Dweor) agreed. Eclath as well...but they had no notion of how far (Aurellion) would go.

And so it was, they came together. Striking by surprise, (Dweor) holding (Harukan) fast, (Aurellion) striking for the kill. It took great effort, though (Harukan) refused to fight back, and Eclath stood aside, aghast, unable to imagine this outcome. And so died the Sky. (Dweor) swore at his brother for his perfidy, for going so far, and fled. (Aurellion) snuck back to his own family, saying nothing.

Eclath grieved, and did honor to their brother, their son . . .from (Harukan's) right eye he made the Sun. From his left, the moon. And from his body, a wall wrapped around the world to protect it, manned by seven more choirs of their holy angels.

Elsewhere, his blood still high, shame in his heart, (Aurellion) waited with his court, and brooded. (Lauralethea) dashed in, breast heaving, her beauty pursued, too out of breath to speak. And still giving chase, (Khul). (Aurellion), deep in the shame and guilt of his own ill deeds, assumed the worst. He stood, and came against (Khul) like a stampede. As mighty as as the Eldest of the Youngest was, he was no match for even the Youngest of the Eldest. In the end, (Khul) lay broken, eyeless, defeated, and (Aurellion) flung his body far to the east, to the wastes marked out for the use of the Haruk.

Only now could (Lauralethea) catch her breath and speak, now that there was nothing left to say. She turned, wordless, and left that place, and a 7th part of the elven people went with her, and from that day to this, all her creatures, that go on no legs or many, hate those who go on two...save her chosen.