Woldology

Woldology

(as related by Melodia Starwalker)

New Life

So you want to know where babies come from? Very well. I'll tell you part of the story. the other part, well, I'll leave that to your parents.

Life begins with death and death with life. You've heard your parents tell you such things, but what does that mean?

Well to put it simply, after a soul is dead for a time and has enjoyed his or he rest in Haven Far, the worries and frustrations of his former mortal life eases and the soul begins to yearn to improve itself or to take on new tasks.

When this happens, the soul rises from his repose and travels across the lands of Haven Far to the Spires of Eliezir where they await transport across the River of Blood to the Paths of Shadow. There they await the calling to life.

See children, when it is time for a mom and a dad to have a child, a spark of life is created for an instant and this spark enters the Paths of Shadow searching the souls there to join with a receptive one. Likewise, willing souls seek sparks of life searching for one that is compatible with them

When the match is right, the soul follows the spark of life into

The Wold and a new child of the Noble Races comes into being.

Sometimes, children, the spark turns out to be weak or unsuitable. Or an outsider or evil spirit tags along with the spark to cause disease and misfortune. This can result in horrible situations. Other times, the spark does not find a compatible soul and the child is stillborn. When such situations occur, special priests of Gargul, known as Seekers are sent for the right such situations when possible.

The Realms of Shadow

The Shadow Lands is a mysterious place that leads from the lands of the living to the lands of the dead. To many, it is only place of legend. To others, a part of their very faith and existence. It connects to The Wold in such a way that the dead know how to find it as well as those priests who deal with the dead. If one were to walk its dark paths or travel its misty streams and rivulets, it would be as if one traveled a very grim place: a haunted place: for it is the place where the living mix with the dead. The Living have no shadows there The dead are only shadow. Both states of being may travel this realm, though neither can call it home

The Dead travel its rivulets and streams on the way to the River of Blood where they are rescued and delivered to the afterlife. The Living also travel its shadows and dark places looking for a route back to The wold, or perhaps searching out death, but afraid of the pain and suffering of dying.

Travelers using the Shadow Lands should beware, for Gargul allows great leniency in The Shadow Lands. Great evil as well as good is allowed to fester and prosper at its borders creating their own pocket realms and kingdoms.

One can determine their progress through the Shadow Lands by the size of the streams and rivulets, for at the far end of the Shadow Lands, these streams plunge into the River of Blood or the River of Souls.

Many undead roam the Shadow Lands in a final attempt to avoid the afterlife and any punishment that may be awaiting them there. One can also find the friendly dead who are awaiting life.

If a friend dies, and one is quick to the local priest. The priest may inquire of the recently deceased and possibly raise it before it ever enters its rest. The longer a soul is dead, the further along the rivulets and streams towards Haven Far the soul will have traveled and the more powerful the Resurrection Spells will have to be.

Reincarnation is possible, but requires both a pregnant woman and a Seeker of Gargul before the process can begin. Only Seekers may cast Reincarnation. In the Wold, it is not a druidic spell, but a Seeker spell.

The Lands of Rest

So children, you wish to know about what happens with someone dies. As a person gets older, his passion for life dwindles. One eventually tires of life. Some races burn hard and fast, such as Minotaurs. Other races, such as the elves live slowly and well sometimes lasting thousands of years before moving on to Haven Far.

Eventually, though, the spark of life dims and a person dies. Elves alone can choose the time of their passing or delay it for a short time without offending Gargul, God of Death and Life. Elves willingly pass through into the Shadow Lands and travel the Rivulets of Souls to the River of Blood where they are rescued and carefully allowed to enter the Lands of Rest.

No, children, not every creatures enters the Lands of Rest. However, every one of Noble Races of Wold finds the place they need and want in the afterlife.

Some souls may regret actions performed while alive and enter places of torment and sad repose in the Lands of Unrest. Other souls may have lived a tortured existence and wish to spend a time in contemplation of where they went wrong. Others may have lived a sacrificial life and need solace from the suffering they underwent as a mortal. Some may have even been made to perform actions against their own will and wish revenge for these events.

Occasionally, due to some unrighted wrong, or unfinished business, souls will refuse to enter their rest. When this happens, Gargul searches them out. Some may be evil and trying to avoid the torture that is their due in the afterlife. Others may feel that must stay until justice is served. So the soul remains behind and haunts a location or situation. To avoid one's punishments in the afterlife is to make them worse. To remain to resolve unfinished business may be noble or simply regretful and selfish on the part of the soul.

Haven Far and the Estates of Unrest

The Island of the Dead is found at the far end of the Realm of Shadows. It is surrounded by the River of Blood or the River of Souls. When a person dies and his soul travels down the rivulets of blood that make up the Shadow Lands, he is eventually deposited into the River of Souls. There a Seeker of Gargul meets the soul and leads it to the desired resting place on the island.

The island has a place of rest designed to meet the needs of every soul for forever and a day. Basically, it is divided up into 3 portions or locations: The Eastlands, The Valleys of Twilight, and the Tormented Lands.

The Eastlands, also known as Haven Far and The Lands of Rest provide rest for those who are good of heart and mind. Souls may linger in the Fields of Memory, enjoy the Gardens of Contentment, Toil in the Fields of the Righteous, or lose oneself in the Forests of the Fae. Here the Good and Noble Races find their true selves once again and find contentment after a life of strife and hardship.

The Tormented Lands provide punishment and hardship for those evil souls who have not earned their rest. Here they may be tormented for their evil deeds in the actual Pits of Despair or allowed to contemplate wrong decisions made while roaming with the Wolves of Memory.

These two areas are separated by the Valleys of Twilight where Maab the Queen of the Fey holds sway. The valleys contain Lands of Yore from the times of the Gods of Yore. Lands long since removed from the Wold. Those valleys near the Eastlands, tend to be bright and gay. Those valleys and lands near the Tormented Lands take on evil incarnations. This is where the Outsiders live. Some valleys hold great evil and others great goodness. These Fey Lands form the core for good and evil in The Wold.

Forests of Good and Beauty such as Culverwood, have strong attachments to the good lands of The Valleys while Bastions of Magical Evil such as the Cursed Swamp, hold conduits to the Evil Lands of Twilight.

Druids of Light as well as Dark Druids constantly strive against each other to open and close conduits and connections to the Valleys of Twilight and these battles and struggles occur on many levels and in most of the Wild Areas of The Wold. Overseeing all of this is Maab, the imperturbable and her chaotic children.

If a Druid can open the way for an Outsider of Good to enter a place, the presence of the creature of good slowly begins to affect the magic and alignment of the environment nearby. If the Outsider leaves, its effect for good slowly fades.

Evil Outsiders and magical sources, act more powerfully and swiftly. A demon wandering the forest near a village may increase the evil activity of the area quickly and profoundly. However, the temperament of these wild areas quickly returns to its former state once the evil influence is gone.

Evil is quick and profound. It is forgotten and lost in a short time. Good is slow and full of grandeur. It fades slowly and much pomp and history.

Many times, these battles between good and evil force heroes to actually follow its opponents into the Valleys of Twilight and there confront the good or evil that is acting as the source for a disturbance. Such trips are full of danger and risk, pitting mortals against immortal and powerful evil against inexperienced upstarts.