How the Aberrants Were Created

A Dorish Myth

Before gods and humans walked upon the earth, animals reigned over the land, the sky, and the sea. All things were in balance: Death and life, destruction and creation, law and leisure, ground and sky. At the center of all was Iya, the essence, sustaining and connecting everything that existed.

When the gods fell from the heavens, they gave birth to humans, and gave us reign over the animals and the land, while they kept reign over the sky and the sea. One god, Narsho, decided she would help the humans rule the land. She swept the ground with her mighty hand, and created vast plains and grasslands where cattle could graze and crops could grow. She scraped the earth with her finger, and fashioned rivers and streams where humans could fish, and water their crops.

But Narsho, as she lovingly shaped the earth, committed a horrible perversion. She looked upon the animals that lived on the land, in the sky, and in the sea, and burned with passion for them. She changed her shape to be like an animal, and visited the bat, the ram, the bird, and the fish. She violated the sacred order, and gave birth to nightmares that were neither animal, human, nor god, but demons—Aberrants.

Because of her actions, Narsho’s opposite—Horren, god of the sky—became imbalanced. Dreadful storms tormented the world, destroying human crops and homes, and Horren could not stop the destruction.

When the other gods discovered what Narsho had done, they punished her by ordering that every year, after the humans’ harvest, she must be locked away for a season deep beneath the earth, unable to help the humans or animals find food and warmth. During that time, Negyura—god of death—would watch the land instead.

Narsho’s children were left alive, for a time, as a reminder to gods and humans alike of the peril that comes with violating the sacred order. One day, however, when the gods have determined that Narsho’s punishment is complete, Negyura will sweep the earth and snatch away every last Aberrant. The demons’ souls will labor and suffer forever in the Land of Death, but Narsho will no longer be locked away after every harvest. Terrible storms will never again torment the world, winter will be no more, and balance will be restored to Nerasia.
Author's note: This myth appears in City of Reckoning.