Book of the One 2/3 - The Coming of the One

A continuation of the creation myth, again adapted from “Old Father Bindlestein’s Fairy Tales and Fables”. This is the point where most religions on Dragonus begin to divulge - the Barbarian tribes of the Crested Peaks claim that humans were descended from giants, for example, whilst the Drow claim that Dragonus took them from the moon when he saw them growing on it. The Church of Claudandus is a different matter entirely, rejecting the existence of both Dragonus and the One as well as all other godly beings except its own, but that is a discussion for another time.

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And now, during that time when Dragonus was having His First Great Sleep, all the animals and birds, insects and fish lived together in the world. For they were all great friends, and did no harm to each other, but ate the grass of the fields. They also lived very long lives, longer than any beast has lived, for Death had not yet come into the world. Many looked very different from what they were now - the snake had many legs, for example, and was the fastest runner in the world. But that, and many others, are stories for another time.

Then it came to pass that, who knows after how long, the sky opened up and something fell out of it, much as Dragonus Himself had done. Only this was not another being like him, but a great shining stone, as large as an ox-cart and made of crystal moonlight. And it fell from the sky faster than even the snake could run and landed at the foot of the Great Mountain where Dragonus was sleeping. And the noise it made was so great that every animal for miles around heard it, and wondered if the sky itself was falling.

When the cool of evening fell, the stone was still there, glowing as brightly as the moon, so that everyone for miles around could see it. And all the animals and birds and insects came to have a look at it, from the smallest sparrow to the biggest bear, from the crawling basilisk to the noble stag. So they all gathered at the foot of the mountain and saw the stone lying there, shining brightly, and wondered what it was and where it could have come from. For from within they could sense something strange about it, something not of the world, much like Dragonus had been to the First Things.

Eventually, Lord Stag said, "I fear that this stone may be dangerous. For its light is so bright it could be harmful, and who knows what other things it could bring here. It does not belong on this world, my friends, and we must do something about it."

Then one of the Council of the Owls said, "If it has fallen out of the sky, surely we should put it back somehow?"

"That is impossible," said Old Bruin, the eldest of the bears."No creature among us has the strength to put it back in the sky."

And then the Drake, who was a very proud and vain creature, stepped forth and said, "In my dreams, I have seen such a stone fall from the sky, and it's light shone upon me so that I could see the whole world. And I saw all the animals and plants bending down, as if pledging their alliegance. I belive, therefore, that this stone is a sign from the Aether that I should become the King of All Animals, and rule in the absence of Dragonus. It is my divine right to do so."

"Divine right?!" snarled Lord Stag, also stepping forth. "You have no right to rule anything, you miserable Drake! You are no more than a selfish glutton who only takes and never gives! Who are you, that you should dare to put yourself above the Maker?"

"Fine words for a grey-muzzled eater of grass," growled the Drake. "But I would hardly expect you to understand. You are only a stag and a cowardly mammal, and thus you only know very little. If you were a dragon or snake, it would be simpler to explain to you!"

Then there was a great commotion amongst all the animals, for there had never been a harsh word between them before, and never had any animal become angry with his friend. Many of them were horrified at what the Drake had said, and stood with Lord Stag in saying the stone was dangerous. But many others ran to his defence, saying that he had foreseen the coming of the stone, and that it was about time they had someone to lead them. And it soon occurred that all the animals had begun arguing amongst themselves, and the noise could be heard from the tops of the mountains to the bottom of the sea.

While all this was happening, Dragonus had been sleeping in His mountain. The noise of the stone landing outside had not disturbed Him from His sleep, and He had not heard the voices of the animals outside His door. But while He was sleeping, He seemed to fall into a deep dream, for He heard in His head a strange noise, like someone weeping. And when He looked, in this dream of His, He saw something before Him, with two arms and two legs that stood upright, like a human child. It shone as thought it were made of stars, the hair on its head woven from the black of night, and was weeping softly into its hands.

When Dragonus saw this, He felt a great curiosity come over Him, for He had never before seen anything such as what stood in front of Him now. And He called to it and said, "O, little one, why is it that you weep? Are you hurt in some way?"

"Not hurt," said the child, "but lost. For I have fallen from my home, and my family have all been taken from me. I do not think I shall ever get back."

"Tell me, O little one," said Dragonus, "what is your name?"

"I have none," said the child. "I was never given one, because my family did not believe in names."

Then Dragonus said, "In that case, I shall call you Gein-Kiir, for in my tongue that means the One. For there was only one of you to come into this world I have made, and you are safe now, for none will hurt you here." And the One, as he was called from then on, looked up at Dragonus and smiled, and his eyes were every color of the rainbow.

Then the noise of the terrible argument came through the mountain, and Dragonus stirred in His sleep. And outside He could hear the noise all the animals were making, from the roar of the Drake to the bellow of Lord Stag to the squeal and shriek and snarl of all the other animals. And He became very afraid, for He knew exactly what it meant.

When the One heard all the noise, he became quite curious and said, "Great Dragon, what is that commotion I hear?"

And Dragonus said, "That, O Gein-Kiir, is all the creatures of the world, that I made from the First Things I found there. And I fear that, in my old age and negligence, I have forgotten to tell them how they should govern themselves, and they now run lawless and chaotic. The noise you hear is some argument over I know not what, and without anything to stop them they may make war with each other."

Then the One smiled and said, "Do not worry, my friend. I shall come out and see them, and perhaps solve their problem for them. This is a good world that you have made, rich and safe, and it would be a terrible shame to see it destroyed by ignorance and anger. If they are without guidance, as you say, then I shall give them guidance, so that they might not undo the good work you have done."

"Go forth, Gein-Kiir," said Dragonus to the One. "Go forth and do what you must."
 
And so it happened that, as the animals argued amongst each other, the stone they stood in front of began to crack down the middle, like a gigantic egg about to hatch. The crack grew larger and larger, with a great light shining through it, until with an awful noise the stone itself burst open, and pieces of it flew in all directions. And one piece flew at the Drake and buried itself in his head, and he fell with such a terrible scream that everyone stopped what they were doing and turned to look.

And there, in front of them all, was the One in all his splendor, looking exactly as he did in the dream of Dragonus. And as the animals looked, they saw his strange appearance and his wondrous light, and did not know wherever to be afraid or joyous. And it is said that, there in the clearing, all the animals dropped to their knees and bowed down to the One, something that they never did even to Dragonus. Even the trees and plants seemed to bow down in supplication, for they felt humbled and awed by his presence.

Then the One spoke to them, saying, "My friends, what is the matter? Why do you quarrel so, and over what?" And for a time nobody knew what to say, because they were afraid to speak to him.

But then Lord Stag spoke up, saying, "My Lord, please forgive our transgression. For we saw you fall from the sky, and we did not know if you had come to do good or bad, and we came to see what you were. And then we fell to quarreling, because we could not decide on what was to be done with the stone you came in."

"Do not be so humble," said the One, smiling. "For I am only your friend, and not your master! But it would seem to me that a master is what you need, for you could not come to an agreement on anything in all the time you quarreled."

"That is correct," grunted Old Bruin. "We have no-one to lead us and no laws to follow. We are as directionless as the winds and tides, and what has come of that but the bitter words and bad feelings here? We tire of this lawlessness, and would want someone or something to guide us, so that our lives might be better off."

And then the One said to all the animals, "So be it. Since you desire a leader, I shall give you one. But first, I must set down the laws you must live by, so that you might not be lawless any longer."

And so saying, the One put his hand on the body of the Drake and eased the pain in his head, so that in the end he died quite peacefully. And from the blood of the Drake, it is told, there rose a pale, thin figure, with no eyes and no mouth, and carrying a great sword. He was cloaked in the darkness of the Nether, the place where spirits go when their mortal bodies die, and the ground beneath him turned grey and hard like iron. And all the animals were very frightened of him indeed, and many felt like running away at the sight.

"This," said the One, "is Death. I see that you fear him, and rightly so, for he is a terrible thing. Should you seek to harm this beautiful world in any way, out of spite or malicious intent, he shall seek you out and cut you down for your crime. But he is also to be your helper, for when your bodies grow old and tired, then he shall take your spirits to the Nether, and you shall be born anew into the world."

And Death, without a word, took up his sword and cut the spirit of the Drake from his body. And as Death took the Drake into the Nether, the One said to the animals, "Now, watch closely, and I shall set the laws which you are all to live by."

And so, the One began his work.

Firstly, the One took a cloak made of the Northern winds and put it on, and changed shape into an old man, with a stick to support himself. And dressed so, he went up to the birds, the foxes and the badgers, and many other animals like them, and he sat them down to teach them things. He told the bees how to make hives to live in, the fox and the badger how to dig their burrows in the winter, and the birds how to make their nests. He taught this and many more to the animals, with the promise that they would remember it always, and for this he was called the Wise.

Secondly, the One took a cap made of the Western dew and put it on, and changed shape into a young saytr, with a bounding step and a twinkling smile. And dressed so, he went up to the deer, the dogs and the rabbits, and many other animals like them, and he challenged them all to a race. So they raced many hundreds of times around the forest, and as they ran the legs of the animals grew long and powerful like his, so they ran almost as fast as him. But they never could catch up with him, for he played many a merry trick on them, and for this he was called the Swift.

Thirdly, the One took a glove made of the Eastern fires and put it on, and changed shape into a terrible thing, with six arms and burning eyes. And dressed so, he went up to the wolves and the bears and many other animals like them, and divided the body of the Drake amongst them, saying "Go on - eat as much as you can!" And the animals ate the meat he gave them, and suddenly were filled with power and strength, and the fierce desire to hunt and kill for more meat. And he roared so fiercely along with them that many were terrified, and for this he was called the Wrathful.

Fourthly, the One took a garter made of the South Sea foam and put it on, and changed shape into a fair maiden with flowing hair and beautiful eyes. And dressed so, she went up to the insects and the birds and many other animals like them, and sang a wonderful song for them. And in the song, she spoke of young lambs learning to walk, of fledgelings in the nest and of the joy of raising children. And many animals, like the whale and the cricket, remembered her song, and they still play it to themselves to this day, and for this she was called the Maiden.

Finally, the One closed his eyes and changed shape once more, only this time he became like a newborn babe asleep in its mothers arms. And in this shape, he fell into a deep dream, where he wrote all the new laws of the world in his head and passed them on to the heads of the other animals. He taught that the wolf and deer would be enemies always, that the eagle should build nests in the mountains, and that the fish would swim up the rivers to spawn. And because all these laws came from his head, he was called the Dreamer.

And when that was all done, the One spoke to all the animals, saying: "My friends, you now know all the laws that you must follow, and woe betide any of you if you break them for any reason! Now, as I have promised, I will give you a leader, that you may have someone who can rule over you and govern you fairly, according to the laws I have given you."

Having said this, he reached down into the earth and took from it some of the hard stone of many colors that grows there, and began to make a shape from it, molding and sculpting it with his hands. He gave it arms so that it could hold tools, and feet so that it could walk upright, and a mind very much like his own. In this way, it had the knowledge of the Wise, the joy of the Swift, the power of the Wrathful, the kindness of the Maiden and the imagination of the Dreamer. And as all the animals watched, they saw that the shape he was making was very much like himself, only it did not glow or shine as he did. 

And when he was done, the One put his mouth against the new being's mouth, and he blew life into it so that it would become a living thing. And as the new being woke up and stretched, blinking in the sunlight, the One said to it:

"Your name is Man. Go and rule, with a firm yet just hand."

And so the Man approached the animals, and they followed him out of the woods and away from the mountain. From within the mountain, Dragonus saw what had occurred, and He was very much pleased, for now there was order in the world and everyone could live peacefully. And He said to the One, "For the deeds you have done, and for the gifts you have brought, you are most welcome here, Gein-Kiir! Wander the world at your pleasure, for it is wide and full of things for you to see and do!"

And over time Man would multiply, and build cities from the wood of the forests and the stone of the mountains, and he ruled over all the animals according to the laws the One had written. Then it came to pass that some animals, like the dog and the cat and the horse, came to live with Man and work for him, and were rewarded well for their service. And whenever anyone, human or animal, had a problem or quarrel, they looked for the One, for even as he wandered the world to see all it had to offer, he was never too far away to lend his help to anyone.

And so it was for thousands of years.

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Notes on the text:

• Debate rages as to what exactly the so-called origins of the One were, if it was a real being. Those of the scientific bent claim he was an alien life-form who had crash-landed on Porphyrion, and the dialogue between him and Dragonus hints he may be a survivor of some great war between beings from other planets. Particularly pious men cast doubt on this theory, as it questions the sanctity of their primary deity - some sects of the One Faith outright shun the idea.
• The characters of Old Bruin, Lord Stag and the Council of the Owls reappear in the Tales of the One, as friends or enemies of the One in his adventures. It is unclear wherever these are the same characters or their descendants.
• In some versions of the tale, the Drake is replaced by a unicorn, as there are no unicorns left on Dragonus yet plenty of Domestic Drakes. Others use a lion, oxen or an equally fierce animal.
• "Gein-Kiir" is the first known instance of the Dovah language, spoken only by dragons. It is the name given to the One by Dragonus, and literally means "One Child" - apt, considering the One's childlike form. Although there is no prohibition or taboo in using the Gein-Kiir name, it is usually replaced by the One in most holy texts, in the same way Judaism substitutes the LORD in place of Yaweh or Jehovah. In this adaptation of the text, only Dragonus refers to the one with the Gein-Kiir name, using it as a term of affection.
• It is here that we are introduced to the Five Aspects of the One, the central belief of the One Faith. It is similar to the Holy Trinity of Catholicism in that each different being is an aspect of the One, a shape taken by him to represent different things. Each one bears a symbolic article of clothing that represents something about that aspect. The base form of the One itself is acknowledged as the creator of Mankind, but otherwise not referred to much.
• The Wise represents Ice, Knowledge and Patience. He is spoken of as a teacher, especially in fables and parables. His symbol is a cloak and staff.
• The Swift represents Wind, Youth and Mischief. He features in many of the Tales of the One as a trickster, similar to Br'er Rabbit or Anansi. His symbol is a cap.
• The Wrathful represents Fire, Anger and War. He features as a destroyer of evil who bravely battles his enemies, yet invokes fear in even his friends. His symbol is a glove.
• The Maiden represents Water, Love and Fertility. Images of her are placed in hospital maternity wards as a comfort to mothers. Her symbol is a garter.
• The Dreamer represents Imagination and Free Will, and is worshiped as the source of all ancient writing. His symbol is a quill pen, for he "wrote" the laws of the world, albeit in his head.
• The act of the One breathing life into the man has recently been the subject of a short-lived debate as to the origin of love. Some scholars claimed that the lip-to-lip contact between them, primarily associated with the One's unconditional love for his creation, was then passed down through the ages as kissing, symbolizing romantic love. Other scholars posited another theory: What a load of bunk. The first lot of scholars fell silent in short order. It just goes to show - people can and will read too much into things.