The Origins of Drenn and Lekta
As told by Asmodius the Scholar
The original continent of Aarken looked very different than
it does now. The main land mass was thinner and curved like a crescent moon
around a large inner sea. The gods had created the world and its inhabitants,
and they liked what they saw. The land was beautiful in its ancient, rugged,
primordial state. Life for Aarken’s inhabitants was peaceful for the most part,
and continued to be for hundreds of years.
But in the year 762 of the first age, something terrible
happened- this is how the evil goddess Lekta came to be.
The first signs were great earthquakes emanating from the
inner sea. The ocean began to froth and boil, and a huge mountain rose out of
the water and began spewing thick black ash into the sky. There was so much ash
in the atmosphere that it blocked out the sun. Then the lava came pouring and
spurting out of the mouth of the gigantic volcano like a glowing river of fire.
Out of the volcano’s crater arose three figures- Lekta and
her two companions, Malkus and Guntraf. No one had seen or heard of them
before- even the gods. They immediately went to the most populous areas of
Aarken and began to wreak havoc- spreading diseases, instigating conflicts, and
murdering innocent people.
After the three malicious entities left the volcano, it kept
spewing ash and lava for a couple hours, but then the earthquakes shook the
world again. The volcano suddenly imploded, collapsing in on itself, and fell
into the ocean with a deafening crash. This caused tidal waves to devastate the
inner coastline of Aarken. It also caused a shift in the planet’s crust, making
the tectonic plates move. The continent of Aarken changed its shape to its
current form in only a week.
It was obvious to the gods from the start that this deadly
trio must be stopped, no matter who had caused it. Almir and Gond were at first
accused of causing all of this because their domains are fire and stone,
respectively. Both of them swore that they had nothing to do with it, and that
they had no idea this was going to happen. Though not everyone believed them at
first, they decided to resolve the issue, and then figure it all out
afterwards. Their idea was to create a powerful new deity to counteract Lekta
and defeat her for good. Thus, Drenn was born- the god of war.
Drenn knew that he could not combat Lekta on his own with
her two cronies around, so he created Thryd and Victred to deal with Malkus and
Guntraf.
The battle between the two factions was a sight to see
indeed. The six deities battled furiously against each other, but it was not
solely them that were fighting. The dragons had come to Drenn’s aid at Almir’s
request, for they knew that Lekta had to be destroyed or she would corrupt and
subsequently destroy the world entirely. To combat the dragons, Lekta created
harpies and horrible crocodilian creatures called sobekkans.
The fight raged on for days and both sides were getting
tired. Finally, Drenn called to his brethren in the heavens,
“Brothers and sisters! I call for your aid! I can take care
of Lekta and her cronies with Thryd and Victred soon- I have an idea- but I
need your help staving off her vile creatures in order to do so!”
The only response he received was, “We come,” but that was
all he needed.
I wish I could have seen what transpired next in person, as
it was a most glorious sight, I’m sure.
The gods descended from the clouds of ash in full force-
Almir astride his enormous cat, Fathelgar, swinging his deadly flaming swords.
Aodh turned the ash clouds into vicious lightning storms which wreaked havoc on
the enemy forces. Eryn sat atop gigantic sequoia and mithorn trees and shot
down harpies from afar. Khelek and Gond were on the ground fighting together
(as they liked to do) tag-teaming a group of sobekkans. Maia flew around the
battlefield healing her allies and hurling spears down upon the enemy,
streaking across the sky like flashes of light. Gwelyth cast a protective
barrier spell over Drenn, Thryd, and Victred so they could fight Lekta
unmolested by her minions. Nen was at first protecting Gwelyth while she cast
her spells, but then joined Khelek and Gond on the ground, fighting with his
trident and shortsword.
The battle was fierce and continued on for quite some time,
and the gods began to grow tired due to the sheer number of enemies they were
facing. Gond called up to Drenn from the battlefield,
“If you could wrap this up pretty soon, little brother; that
would be greatly appreciated!” Sweat poured down from his forehead and blood
had spattered all over his armor.
“As you wish,” Drenn responded.
Seizing an opportunity, Drenn lunged forward and took Lekta
by the throat and disappeared with her still in his grasp. Malkus faltered and
turned to see what had happened to his mistress. Seeing his split-second chance
at victory, Thryd stabbed Malkus in the heart; killing him almost instantly.
Guntraf noticed that he was suddenly by himself in the fight and now surrounded
by the other gods with their weapons pointed at him, and wisely surrendered.
The mortal races down below were unsure of what had
happened, and weren’t certain who had won. It looked as if they had won, but
they did not know what had happened to Drenn and Lekta. She could come back at
any time!
The gods could sense that Drenn had taken her to the astral
plane- their home. They didn’t know why, and a few didn’t like what he did
because they weren’t sure if he could finish her off. They teleported there
after him to see what had happened with Guntraf in tow.
As they emerged onto the astral plane through a tunnel of
bright light, they saw Drenn hurl Lekta to the ground. She fell with a violent
crash onto the Warring Fields- Drenn’s home on the plane. She hit the ground so
hard that she created a cavern in the earth.
The other gods now saw what Drenn was doing. They threw
Guntraf in the cave with Lekta. Before they could get out, they all
collectively created a powerful magical barrier over the mouth of the cave-
trapping the two evil deities inside.
There they stayed over the ages, to this day. Lekta’s prison
slowly changed over time, further cementing her captivity. The stalactites at
the cave’s opening blocked them from physically leaving along with the magical
barrier. It came to be known as “The Mouth of Decay” because of the stalactites
that looked like jagged teeth as well as the horrible stench emanating from the
abyss.
Thus the mortal world was saved from Lekta’s treachery and
the natural disasters that ripped Aarken asunder. The mortal races, left in the
wake of the global cataclysm, were forced to regroup and adapt. New nations
emerged and fought for land and power.
Eventually the fighting died down, borders were solidified,
and peace returned. The Grand Council was created to keep the peace and keep
the leaders of all the nations of Aarken in check.
This new world was just as beautiful as the old one, but in
a new, different way despite the traumatic means in which it came about.
That is how the new deities came into being and why Aarken
is the way it is.
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