Sun Forgers

Tale of the origin of the people of the East upon the world of Ne'at

The world was born in the dark, clouded by the dismal void. Without light, without direction to

guide it to a brighter future. There was no sun, no moon, no stars in that place. Alone in this void that it

had been born into it mourned. It’s tears forming into great seas and oceans, that streamed across it’s

earthly form as rivers and streams, to pool again in the craters and pockmarks as lakes and ponds. Still

the world was sad to be so alone, naming itself Ne’at, the lone traveler.

In lands far from Ne’at dwelt the Sirdesens, a mighty people. Taller then men and having the

strength of two men from Ne’at. Sirdesens were skilled most with their hands and the ability to create.

Taking pride in the beauty of their works as well as in the ability for their crafts to withstand the tests

of time. They built mighty cities, mountains were their pillars and the sky was their rooftops. The sun’s

were their forges and the stars their lanterns. Not only master’s of the forge but also master’s of the

herb and plant to heal any wound as well as to extend life without end. All was at peace in their

empire, for they had a great love for the light and for each other seeking the good of another before

one’s own. Then came the Darkness.

The Darkness was not only a literal dark cloud drifting through the spaces between the stars but

also an entity. It is older then time, yet younger then the beginning. It possess the power to corrupt, a

corruption that rends the soul, transforming things into the image of Darkness. Through it’s servants it

destroys what it hates, light and those who do not serve it. It crashed upon the Sirdesens as a tidal

wave, snuffing the candles of the stars, drowned the suns and burned the home’s of the Sirdesens.

Terrible and quick it poured over them, rending the mountain pillars, toppling the skies causing great

ruin. The wave of darkness receded and a moment of respite came, only to be filled with the wails and

cries of the Sirdesens, their homes broken and destroyed. Their loved ones littering the streets as the

flower petals they had once cast for their parades. Confusion, chaos, loss, and a great howling of

despair rent the air. Then came the tremors of darkness. The wave was only the beginning, so came the

Dark Ones, beings that once may have been as the Sirdesens but were corrupted promised power but at

a price. They were changed into twisted shadows of their former selves. Greatest of all the Dark Ones

was the Beast, a foul ancient creature and first of the Dark Ones. Came they to shake, to split, to tear

asunder the Sirdesen’s hearts. In the confusion the Sirdesen’s fled, splitting their empire apart, their

forces separated were quickly destroyed and only a few remained.

But hidden within the Darkness was it’s downfall, a hope born of the void that was darkness of

darkness, as darkness was fear, dread, hate, all that was hidden and as this hope was what the Darkness

feared, dreaded, hated and was hidden from it, it was the darkness of Darkness. It was a place that

could hold the Beast, who was bound to Darkness and Darkness to him in a way that it would lose it’s

power and become utterly wasted until the Beast was released. It was to become it’s prison to contain

it. A dark one knew, his true name only known to his brother by blood, but was called by the

Sirdesens, Hilath. Hilath had seen the means to capture the Beast of Darkness while he drifted through

the void on the currents of rage and fear. Hilath told his brother and they counseled together. “If the

Darkness is to devour all, what will we have? Nothing.” Said the first brother, “Let us go to the

remaining Sirdesen, help them imprison the darkness then after we have contained the Beast, we will

be strong enough to rule them.” The brother’s agreed and departed to the Sirdesen.

They had no intention of hiding their true selves from the Sirdesen and at first the Sirdesen

were wary of the Dark Brothers, but over time they heard them out, trusted them at least to the extent

of imprisoning the Beast, they were then guided to Ne’at.

The world of Ne’at was overjoyed at the coming of the Sirdesen, they were bright and full of

light. The people of Ne’at had long dwelt and darkness, so at the coming of light they loved it. How it

showed the thing that were hidden as well as showed them the beautiful things that they could not see

as they were blind without it. But a few of the people of Ne’at felt betrayed, discarded, forgotten and

used up, they were they who dwelt in the North. For the Sirdesen did not come to bring light nor to

guide but to use up the world of Ne’at. The Sirdesen hammered, nailed, cut, till they had built Ne’at

into a great iron prison for Darkness. The Sirdesens split into two groups, ones who delved deep intothe earth, 

setting the earth to cave once the trap was sprung so as to swallow and cover the Beast. The

others left Ne’at to gather their fallen brothers who had been left behind in the chaos of the first assualt

of the Beast.

The second group returned to their forsaken homes, grief overcame many to death before they

made the long trek back to Ne’at. Once back on the world with all the corpses they could find, which

was many many thousands not yet only a few when compared to the many that had died, They

gathered the blood of their fallen brethren, hanging their corpses over golden vessels, bowls as tall as

trees, adorned with crimson gems, carved with images of war. The Sirdesens drained each drop of

blood until there was none left except the dried skin bags of their former countrymen. Those bodies

that had no blood were broken open to have their bones collected to build a throne, a seat at a table

they did build. Once the blood was drained of the bodies they were skinned to create a table cloth to

cover the table, to hide the trap that was placed to capture the beast called Darkness. Then the tall

golden vessels were placed upon the great table they had built. Last of all the Sirdesen could no longer

live.

Knowing what had to be done to trap the beast was too much for them. Dwellers in the light

had succumbed to the tactics of darkness, the defiling of their families bodies to avenge them. Many

were filled with weariness. They were tired, long had been their lives and the last few moments of

those long lives were filled with dread, terror, blood, and sorrow. They wished to escape and to avenge

their brothers, sisters, mothers, fathers, and children that had fallen at the whim and greed of a

consuming monster. But they wanted no more. Last of all the Sirdesen’s sacrificed the remaining of

themselves to lure the Beast in, leaving only two to watch.

The Dark brothers led the Beast there, where they had promised a great feast. For they had told

the Beast that the last of the Sirdesen’s had been tortured and killed, their bodies prepared as a sacrifice

to him. The lure placed in front of the Beast and it could not resist, in it’s glee to see the last of the

Sirdesens wrung and torn bodies, it took great pleasure in the pain of things that were not twisted or

misshapen as it was for deep in it’s heart it was jealous. Angry and sad that in a time long past it had

lost what it had once made it happy, once made it feel whole. Now it longed to be that again but could

not so it sought to take happiness, joy, and light from all that had it. To Ne’at it went to sit upon the

throne of bones made for it and as it began to drink deeply of the first vessel of blood the trap sprung.

Clamping it’s iron teeth around the beast, the trap digging deep into the tough skin of the Beast.

Thrashing and gnashing, the dark Beast wailed trying to escape the doom it now saw was upon it. But

the trap was built with the last remaining anger, wrath, and vengeance of a near dead people, it’s bite

was hate, deeper and stronger then the hate the Beast could possess alone. So the Beast was dragged

into the depths of the earth where it was covered by the falling dirt, stone, and the feast that had lured

it to it’s demise tumbled and fell with a clang into the deep earth, sealing away the Beast and the dead

of Sirdesens.

Then the Dark Brothers began to rule Ne’at. First they sought to slay the last two Sirdesens but

they escaped into a place the Sirdesens had prepared in secret from Hilath and his brother. Soon Hilath

forgot about the two Sirdesens thinking they were too powerless to do any hurt to him or his brother

but how wrong was he. For also in secret the Sirdesens left behind one other, a forge master, Tilat, who

had also in the chaotic happenings of capturing the Beast began a great work, to build a sun forge one

as such the Sirdesens had never built. As much hate and vengeance was put into the building of the

prison, was as much love and beauty put into the forge that Tilat made. A love for Ne’at and it’s

inhabitants and for the last two others of his kind. Tilat did not desire the world that had been the

means to cage the monster to become the means to free it. He had seen the hurt his people had caused

the men of the North and in hope to mend that pain he made a sun, where he could forge, protect, and

give light to Ne’at.

While Tilat worked in secret, for it was a long work and for many years yet did he not come up

from his work nor did he want to reveal his work too early, did Hilath and his brother rule Ne’at. 

They gave the men of the North dominion over much underneath their rule for the North men were angry

and easily swayed by the promises of Hilath. Many burdens did they put upon Ne’at, to build altars of

sacrifice to offer up their young, their beautiful, their fair, and the ones they loved. In those days it was

said the people of Ne’at cursed the day the Sirdesens ever came to Ne’at, for it was worse then when

they had never seen the light and if they could they would give up sight for blindness if it were to rid

them of the dark gods they had now. Many also though knew the Sirdesens had meant no harm and

had also given them knowledge and power, and most of those who supported the coming of the

Sirdesens were of the Eastern lands of Ne’at. The two Sirdesens who had been left to live, excluding

Tilat, came to the East, their names were not known to the Easterners but they were called by them,

Ramoth and Reiad. Ramoth the mighty and Reiad the beautiful. The two helped to give them the

knowledge and power to raise heroes and armies to win a portion of the world of Ne’at to themselves.

Their children mixed with the Easterners and became the rulers of the East.

Once Tilat was ready he lifted his Sun into the sky from the East and rested in the night in the

West. The first day was the time it took for him to rise and fall into the West and on that first day it was

great and terrible. He came in wrath, destroying the fortress of Hilath and his brother banishing them

to the North, far from the rest of the world where it was cold and dark. The light of his forge rested the

least upon the mountains where they hid from Tilat.

So also began the kingdom of the Men of the North who would in time continue to practice the

blood sacrifices of old, ever serving their dark gods who ever desired the rich fertile lands of the

South. Here also ends the tale of the Sirdesens, Tilat being the only one to remain and continue to live

in the forge that protected and lit the world. Ramoth and Reiad passing on the traditions of the

Sirdesens to the East but with time those traditions blurred and faded as did the blood of the Sirdesen

line until it was all but extinguished.