The first Ocotlan Elders were among the first Natza Elders who guided the
Natuzans to the
Floating Isles. They are the ancestors of the modern
Ocotlan tribes and also created the traditions the Natuzans follow to this day. This is why people say the Ocotlan are the oldest Natuzans.
The legends of the Ocotlan Elders are told in every Natuzan household so people never forget where they came from, or where they are going. While the Elders may have existed, the places they came from are so far only heard of in legends.
The Night Jungle
The legend of the Ocotlan Elders started in the
Night Jungle, a shifting place of death and decay. People and animals would get lost because the paths changed every day, so escape was impossible. The people there were sick and depressed thanks to the decay around them. They wandered the Jungle for around 50 years before things looked up.
It is said that the people were sent to the Night Jungle as punishment from the
God of Death. Hearing the stories, a young man named Kishil decided to challenge him and win freedom for the people. The God of Death was amused and knew a mortal could not fight him and win. Interested in his resolve, the god decided to strike a deal with Kishil. They bargained for many days until they reached a resolution. To this day, no-one knows what the exact terms were.
The people were freed from the Jungle, but didn’t know where to go, so they fought each other. One day, a signal was sent to the people in the form of a bird with a red streak and some wheat in its mouth. The wheat had come from safer land, so the people took it as a signal to start moving. They called the safer land Tlapeco and started their journey to it.
Journey to Tlapeco
As thanks for freeing them, the people made Kishil their leader so he could take them to Tlapeco. But after years of travelling, the people became demotivated. So, Kishil recruited three young members to bring hope to them. The first was Odina, who motivated people and was the moral support of the group. The next was Nodin, a navigator who doubted they would find Tlapeco. But he put his trust in Kishil and decided to help him get there. The last was Miski, the youngest at the time. She was tasked with teaching people how to hunt, gather and cook food so they could remain energised on their journey.
For many years afterwards, the people continued their journey southwards towards Tlapeco, and Kishil got more people to help him navigate the lands of Phadoya. But along the way, there was a long period of stormy weather, which . The people found a group of islands in the sky that they used as refuge. The islands were originally supposed to be a temporary refuge, but the storms did not die. Eventually, the people gave up on looking for Tlapeco and settled into the floating islands, which they called Nazuteca.
The Ocotlan Protocol
After the Natuzans arrived in Phadoya, the Ocotlan Elders settled into what is now Ocotlan. Kishil and Odina lived on the smaller island, while Nodin and Miski lived on the larger island. They founded the four Ocotlan tribes on these islands and created a peace agreement between each other. This later became known as the
Ocotlan Protocol, and has not been broken since its creation.
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