The Tales of Alorin

The Beginning

In the first days, the great god Loran had been birthed from the rhythmic song that filled the great expanse of black surrounding him. It was a buzzing hum that whispered the secrets of power and of love. From this hum, Loran was drawn, and too this hum all will go at the end of time. Loran was the first being to ever draw breath. As his lungs filled, the music crescendoed, and out from the darkness came another being, a god as great, and powerful, and holy as Loran. His name was Dunari, and he loved Loran instantly. The two gods drew close to each other, and the love they felt was pure and good. They embraced each other, and from the joy of that embrace they never again parted. Their love was young, and full of life, and from them came all the earth and its coverings. Loran was rough, made of great hewn stone and loose earth held in place by strong roots. His hair was vines, which burst into flowers in his joy, and his eyes burned with the how lava that waits beneath the surface. Dunari was as supple as water and as light as air. From his exhalations came the great winds, the movement of the sinews of his back became the waves that beat the seas. In his eyes was the heat of geysers that lay dormant beneath the sea. His arms split wide the land in great channels, and his fingers were gentle rivers rolling down his lover's back. Thus fused together, the two became the earth, and set about in their minds a way to spread their love beyond them, to fill every part of the earth with the joy they now felt.

Dunari was peaceful, and so he made beings that love peace. He set songbirds alight to fill the air with songs of Loran and his beauty. He created the creatures of the deep and whispered to whales their language. He made the delicate ladybugs, the flutters of their dotted wings the rhythm of his song. He crafted beings of light as well, light as air, just like him, with hearts as pure as his own. Their faces were as beautiful as Lorans was to him, and he made for them a place to live, high up where no other could go. He called them Tules, or "those who are pure" and they shone bright in the sky when all was dark. To them he gave great power, and the greatest among them he placed right above earth, to bring light to it. However, this Tules, who is called Ose, had a lover, so Dunari allowed him to go back and forth from his post above the earth, to his gentle lover far above. In his absence, Loran crafted a lower being, still powerful, but meant as an aid to the Tules. He set the greatest one, Les, above the earth, to guard it and to provide light during the dark of night. The rest he sent far into the heavens, to find and to love the Tules, and to live out their lives with them. These beings were called Artules, or "like Tules" and the light they shone with was but a reflection of the majesty of those they were crafted after. All of them danced in the heavens with the joy of youth, and light spread to all corners of the earth. In the light all things grew, the trees spread their leaves, the elk shook their great antlers, and Dunari and Loran were happy.

Loran was tough and fiery, and so he made creatures who were tough and fiery. His first creation was the horse. Like him, inside them burned a flame, powerful and bright, and thundering of their sharp hooves could be heard for miles. He then crafted the elk, setting upon their heads large antlers, as one would set a crown upon the head of a king. These were his first creations, and they were sacred to him. He looked to his lover, and saw his beauty, and desired to craft him a gift. He fashioned wings and a long horn, and placed them on horses who were as white as a cloud, as blue as the clear sky, as strong as the north winds, and as wise as the sea was deep. He gave them to Dunari, who called them pegasi, and who, in return, made for Loran cats, creatures who were wily, fast, and sharp, but also graceful, keen, and soft. Loran made many more creatures, birds of prey, bears with powerful claws, worms that churned the earth and made it fertile, and bats that lived deep in stone. And in the end the earth was full and beautiful.

Then Ose came to them, and he spoke of the joy that filled the heavens, of the beauty of the Tules and Artules, and of the beauty of their makers. He spoke of the magnificence of the earth below him, and its many creatures. They thanked him for his praises, but he was not yet done. He went on to ask after creatures like himself, those with minds closer to the gods then the animals. Creatures who could walk, and talk, and populate the earth. Loran was struck with inspiration by his words, and began to craft something out of dirt and branches. When finished he showed Dunari and Ose three creatures. Each had a head and torso that looked like those of the gods, but unlike them, their lower bodies were that of a horse, an elk, and a gazelle. They rose slowly to their full height, and began to speak to each other in hushed voices filled with awe. Dunari found great joy in the sight of them, and started crafting his own beings, half man-like, but with the tail of a great fish. They called these creatures centaurs and mermaids, and reveled in these new beings with whom they could speak and share their knowledge. But still something was lacking, so both of the gods set to work, using their finest materials and working through many days and nights. In the end they brought their finished works together, and presented them to each other proudly. Dunari had made a being that was beautiful to look upon, fair of features and delicate of form. Its hair was long and made of silken strands, its face was noble, seeming etched with wisdom despite its youth. It spoke with a silver tongue, and on its shoulders birds alighted. He called this an elf. Loran had made a being of similar form, but more roughly hewn, with broader shoulders and a jaw more firmly set. When it spoke, its voice was loud and bold, but still beautiful and filled with wonder. He called this a human. Satisfied with their work, the great gods set about making many more, that these great creations could cover the earth with the sounds of their laughter.