The Grand Mythos of Úr'Dan, Volume One

1.7 - The First Life and the Starry Sky

"Countless stars, none particularly distinct from another," Aenúrfít responded.

"Look more closely. Focus on the center of the sky."

Aenúrfít stared at the darkened sky, glittering with the light of a thousand-thousand stars. "How do you know where the center of the sky is?"

"Aha! Now you are asking the right questions, child." Órúma lay down and pressed her shoulder close to Aenúrfít's. She felt the creature shudder slightly at her cold touch. "To find the center of the sky, you must know which stars do not move."

"I thought that the stars always stayed where Hairek commanded them to?" Aenúrfít asked.

"Yes, but Gó'Dan moves around Hairek to feel his warmth."

Aenúrfít and Órúma stared at the sky in silence for more breaths than they could count. Finally, Aenúrfít sat up and pointed into the night. "I see them! They move together across the darkness!"

"Very good, First Life," Órúma said. "Look at that group of stars, there. What do you think they resemble?"

Aenúrfít studied the cluster of several stars where Órúma indicated. The seven white specks were spread out in a long shape, but Aenúrfít could not identify them. "They do not resemble anything. I do not know anything, besides you."

Órúma watched as Aenúrfít's shoulders sagged, and the creature averted its eyes from the stars. Their eyes met, and she sensed the First Life's loneliness. She offered a sympathetic smile, but Aenúrfít's eyebrows furrowed.

"Why do you mock me?"

Órúma chuckled. "I do not mock you, Aenúrfít, but you must look harder. Tell me how those stars move."

Aenúrfít peered quizzically at the Vaia, and then turned to the stars once more. Two of the seven stars seemed aligned with each other, and two more below those. The three remaining stars aligned in the center and pointed down to the dark horizon. The bottom-most of these was brighter than the rest, sparkling white.

"The stars point to Gó'Dan," Aenúrfít said, "and the closest one is the brightest."

"That is true, but look at them as one form."

Aenúrfít looked at Órúma and the grouping of stars in turn. Then he looked down at his hands, as if seeing them for the first time. "The bright star is like my head, then my body, my hands and feet. They move like me," the First Life said with a smile.

"Yes! You are perceptive, First Life. The bright star points in the direction that Hairek will rise each morning, always. Follow that star, and you will find light and warmth once more."

Aenúrfít laughed a great booming sound that echoed across the night. "What a gift you have given me! I must name these stars after you," Aenúrfít exclaimed.

Órúma chuckled and shook her head. "I have no desire for my name to adorn one of those beings, though you honor me. I think your name is more appropriate. Those stars will be called First Life from now on."

Aenúrfít smiled and nodded slowly, but the smile faded as he gazed at his stars. "To what purpose do they lead me?" he asked.

Órúma's form shifted. Her hands and feet, molded like Aenúrfít's, dissolved and swirled into her body, until all of her was a formless blue mist, but she paused above Aenúrfít. "Only you can discover that, my child." She then faded and disappeared into the darkness.

Aenúrfít did not sleep that night. The First Life watched the stars that bore his name, waiting for the light that Órúma had promised him. The creature shivered now and then in the darkness, and it knew that the mysterious Vaia remained nearby, the unseen shadow.

Glossary

Aenúrfa: Seed of the First, a leaf created by Aenúrfít from his own vikaat. (pron. ane-oor-FAH)

Aenúrfít: The First Life, a creature born on Gó'Dan's surface from the essences of each of the First Four Vai'ad. (pron. ane-oor-FEET)

Aeth'Ún: One of the First Four Vai'ad; the Formless; the Boundless Wanderer; the Blanketing Sky. (pron. athe-OON)

Asartae: A small orb of light created by Hairek and commanded to guide him through the darkness; the second Fin'Vai'ad. (pron. a-SAR-tay)

Bark'Írkesh: The Sacred Mountain, the highest peak on Gó'Dan's breast. (pron. bark-eer-KESH)

Endless Void: A space of cold and darkness without end.

Faerna: A small orb of light created by Hairek and commanded to guide him through the dakrness. (pron. FARE-na)

Fin'Vaia / Fin'Vai'ad (pl.): Child of the Vaia, or Children of the Vai'ad; beings created by one of the First Four Vai'ad for a distinct purpose. (pron. fin-VI-a / fin-vi-AHD)

First Four: Referring to the First Four Vai'ad--Aeth'Ún, Gó'Dan, Hairek, and Órúma--the four most powerful beings in the Void.

Gó'Dan: One of the First Four Vai'ad; Eternal Love; Life Mother; the Mighty Form; Womb of the World; World Builder. (pron. go-DAHN)

Hairek: One of the First Four Vai'ad; the Burning Light; the Guiding Beacon; the Unending Flame; the Voracious Hunger. (pron. HI-rek)

Mahar: A Fin'Vai'ad created by Órúma to bring the waters of the Great Blue Sea to life; Surging Tides. (pron. MA-har)

Órúma: One of the First Four Vai'ad; the Cleansing Waters; the Frozen Darkness; the Surging Tides; Glowing Beauty; Unseen Shadow. (pron. oh-ROO-ma)

Tanaj: A small orb of light created by Hairek and commanded to guide him through the darkness; the Beacon; the first Fin'Vaia. (pron. tah-NAJ)

Vaia / Vai'ad (pl.): Spirit, one of many beings said to control the forces of the world. (pron. VI-a / vi-AHD)ry.

Vikaat / vi'íkaat (pl.): The life force in all living things. (pron. vi-KAHT / vi-EE-kaht)