Legends of Belariath
Nadine
A Bedtime Story
In the beginning, there had been dozens upon dozens of gods. Wherever a race struggled to survive, there was a god. Pleas for rain, for harvest, for mercy and for life, all were heard and most were answered. The world needed something to believe in, something to explain things that they could not understand. The gods filled these moments of doubt. Then, came the times of change. Man was no longer struggling to survive in caverns and small villages. They were learning, building cities, constructing civilization. The largest of these cities was Jade.
Jade was the center of the world, a kaleidoscope of races, thoughts, and beliefs. It stood as an institution of freewill and knowledge. A strict hierarchy kept the peace and its king was just, intelligent, and powerful. Its library was massive, its schools numerous, and its downfall eminent. Most of the gods paid Jade little attention; they had their own domains to see to. However, god is a reflection of man and in that reflection, shadows grow quickly. Greed was quickly overtaking the king and in turn, the god Noctis. It was only a matter of time before the god became unsatisfied with retaining control of only the one city.
Soon enough, the world was bathed in blood. Noctis led the Jadeite armies through the valleys, mountains, deserts and plains of his brothers and sisters, slaughtering their worshippers and laying waste to their lands. Most of Noctis’ brethren, having grown comfortable and slow with their easily sated flocks, offered up very little resistance. Their pleas for mercy and peace went unheard. Wherever a god was trod under the boots of Noctis’ warriors, a tiny stone was left behind. However, the time he had spent in Jade left him unprepared for the might he would meet further from home. Three powers still existed in the world, three powers which Noctis could not defeat with soldiers and force. The god or goddess of a place or a people was easy to eradicate. Destroy the place or people and you destroy the deity. But theses powers were not moldable things that could be held and crushed like those he had come across thus far. They were ideas, notions, and concepts.
These three made a stand against their enterprising brother, but to no avail. The time would come when Noctis’ lust for power would overcome them and their saving grace was in knowing this. The triad was strong in power and had knowledge beyond Noctis’ understanding. They knew that he must be stopped and they accepted that in order to do so, they would suffer as well. Ten stones were created, prisons that would locate and entrap power. It was the only way to defeat Noctis and remove his influence from the world.
Nadine let her voice trail off, smiling down at the dozing Psyn in her lap before glancing at the wolcat curled on the bed behind her. Ahrak watched her, eyes unblinking.
“Well?”
The girl lifted a brow and smiled at him, “Well what?”
He sat up and opened his large arms to her. Nadi lay the catling at the end of her bed of cushions and pillows then contently curled up in Ahrak’s arms as he murmured against her ear, “Did they defeat the evil God?”
“We are here are we not?”
“Yes.”
She gave a little nod as he answered for himself. After waiting in the silence for awhile, the wolcat contented himself with pulling the girl to him, warming her as they fell asleep. He could not help but wonder if she believed the tale.