Overview
Onas, or
Onas Brushstoke as he is often referred to, is the first Disciple of
Siberlee, the Mother of Nature. Many think this gentle Human soul was born somewhere on the Tian Islands as this is where most of his adventure took place. But if truth be known, Onas was born sometime around 280 in a small village that would one day be the site of Ooloo’s largest Elfin city, Faithmore.
It is rumored that Onas was the first man that Siberlee found fit to take to her bed and that, of all the Disciples, it is he who touched her heart the most.
Siberlee once copulated with a man, a wolf, and a lion all in the same night to create the Fur Race for Dulan, the Mother of Healing and Compassion. Scribes and Sages that know of such things, believe Onas was actually ‘the man’ that Siberlee slept with. It is further thought that it was the Lion Hooloo, the adoptive father of the Fur Race, who killed Onas when the humans were driven from Ooloo in the early 300’s.
It is this event that forever changed Mernac, for Siberlee, who loved Onas dearly, appealed to The One and The Other to grant her the power of restoring life. After long disputes and reservations, Siberlee and her sister and brother Gods were granted this power. When life is given by a god, it is not for the moment, but for all eternity and the one this is bestowed upon becomes immortal. It is a mighty, terrifying, wonderful power, and a power now all the Gods possess.
The One and The Other were, however, quite wise in granting this power for they did it with a caveat. They knew well the power and the responsibility of giving life and the chaos it could cause, so they imposed that for each gift of immortality a God bestowed there would be price. An unpleasant cost designed to make the Gods use this power sparingly. This price to be paid soon became known as Trauncha.
Siberlee’s Trauncha became that she could only resurrect someone that she truly loved and once the Disciple was resurrected… neither of them could ever physically touch the other again, for if they did, the Disciple’s soul would cease to be. Not go to the Land of Shadows… but to be obliterated into complete nothingness, as if their soul had never existed.
Thus, Onas became the first Disciple of Siberlee. The first of all Disciples; bound to always be in love with Siberlee but forbidden to ever again feel the soft touch of her skin.
Placid Onas, always being prone to emotions and sentiment, mourned the loss of Siberlee’s touch and it is even told that he tried to take his own life to escape his misery. Destiny, however, would not allow this, and his unwanted power of immortality thwarted those early attempts of suicide. With time, and the opportunity to help others find their way to the Mothers, Onas finally recovered from the deepest of his remorse in his new home on the Tian Islands. It was far from the bountiful fields of Ooloo he and Siberlee had shared together. “Time and distance are the only things that can dim the pain of love lost” he would eventually become known for preaching.
And with the truth of those words, the passing of time, with a temporary distance from the Goddess he loved, Onas eventually healed. He convinced himself that all he knew of Siberlee, and of being a disciple, was but a dream. How could it be true? His illusion of the truth was easy to believe for with each year, he aged, just as any other man. I age! How could I be an immortal Disciple?
He did not know that was also part of his Trauncha. For as all children are now taught, we know that the Disciples of Siberlee age like any other man until the point in time that they would have died a natural death, had they not been killed prematurely. Then, they do in fact die… for an instant and then remain unconscious for 20 days. Only to come back to life and the cycle reverses; each year they become younger and younger, until they reach the age they were when they originally became a disciple – only for the cycle to begin once again.
Knowing that his fate was eternal, the raven haired man then threw himself into his only remaining pleasure; his art. Onas is still to this very day regarded as one of the finest Artists Mernac has ever known. He is the one who reputedly discovered the way to create colored inks and paints. He is also credited with the invention of the Artist’s brush, and the strokes needed to create the finest of art. Though he always jokes that it was not he that invented the brush, but Siberlee the first time they met at night. He would always tell the story of how Siberlee that night had used her own hair as a brush in teaching the true meaning of beauty.
Onas’ artistic style uniquely captures hidden emotions or meanings in the background or surroundings of the central object of the art. He always created crisp realistic central images in the foreground of his art, surrounding them in a much more whimsical scene; rich in color, his trademark, and seeped with hidden meanings obscured in plain site only for those sensitive enough to consume the entire image. This popular, albeit difficult, artistic style is now known as Allusionism. This was first seen in his early vibrant paintings, where the central figures, usually women or Goddesses, were painted with a small brush of the finest hair, usually his subjects, and accomplished with precise delicate strokes. Attention to details, natural shadowing and dedication to the realistic beauty of his subject were paramount to Onas. Surrounding these pulchritudinous visions were always broader strokes, rich in color and fanciful symbolism. These wondrous backgrounds were often missed by casual observers as most were struck with the exquisite beauty of the females he created. Noticed or not, these backgrounds always contained innuendo or allusions to the true meaning of what he was trying to communicate and have been the subject of scholar’s interpretations for countless Seasons.
Of all his art, the most famous and sought after is entitled ‘Remembrance’. It is a self portrait of a slender young man, square of jaw, broad of shoulder; deeply in the embrace of his former lover, Siberlee. It is written that in the image, just as in life, Siberlee’s creamy complexion literally glowed against Onas’ muscular and deeply tanned form. In the background of the image, the 13 Fathers can be seen; who in Onas’ vision, Siberlee has passed over in favor of him. On each of the Father’s foreheads is a cryptic symbol. It is said that these symbols are ancient words created by Kalos the Fire Dragon, the Fae Sara Dragonmist and Onas himself when the class of Scribes was being created. Siberlee had given the words and their correct order of utterance to him, for she feared the Fathers were becoming evil and she wanted an assurance that the race of man would always have a weapon of defense. It was the last and final part of his Trauncha, a single Godly power that is gifted to any that become a Disciple. When the word represented on The Fathers' foreheads were spoken in a specific order, the speaker has the power to destroy any creature or beast; be they mortal, immortal… possibly even a God.
This fine art has been lost to the centuries, for it is the centerpiece illustration in the Fabled One Book of Mernac; lost, or some say hidden, the day the Fathers were driven from the heavens. Throughout our history sought by many, both by those of the Light… but particularly by those who flourish in the Dark .
Onas Brushstoke; Artisan, Scribe, Disciple and yes a romantic has appeared numerous times throughout history. Usually just after a Chandralee, those rare times when not one, but both of Mernac’s Moons are full. In these times he has always come to the aid of those who champion all that is Good, to those that abide by ways of The Mothers, and particularly anyone on a mission for Siberlee, his eternal love.
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