Come, hear another tale of the first mortal children of Déa and the world that was. The time before beginnings, all was light and, some say, gold and silver. The time before beginnings was a happy time when all was delight. The children of the Mistress of All Things were content to be in her presence. Then came the Sundering. When the Snake had deceived the first daughter of Déa, a great abyss opened between the realm of the mortal children of Déa and the realms above to fair Avala and beyond. The cracks of the abyss went deep into the realm and wormed their way into the hearts of the spiritual forms of these children. The elder kin looked to Déa as they watched their younger, more delicate kin wander deeper into the abyss.
“Go and do good works among them,” Déa commanded, “Guard them and keep them from evil as best you may.” So, the elder kin went through the world that was torn and tattered with the dangerous abyss of khear, seeking out the many children of Déa. They found them gathered in groups about the world, huddled together for fear and grief for the distance of their Mother. The sliver of Déa’s light shone upon them all. The younger kin were blinded by tears and were mostly unaware of it. The elder kin gathered their strength and approached the younger kin. The many hues of light of day and the sliver of Déa’s light was reflected brightly by the elder kin. In the mirror of the elder kin, the younger kin could see something of their Mother in the distance and took hope. The elder kin wiped their tears and took them by the hand.
Together they walked over the rent world in tribes scattered for every hue of color. The true-selves of the younger kin were lulled to sleep in the safety of the elder kin’s presence. So it was that the Snake saw a chance to beguile them. The Whisperer spoke and said, “Lo, I am the voice of your self. Listen well. The elder kin of your tribe are the true elder kin. All others are false and must be destroyed. All who follow them are false as well.” The elder kin set one of their number to keep watch over the Snake, so that they might warn their charges of the danger it brought. They, however, argued in their council for being in the tattered world, they were not immune to its distortion. Soon, the watcher of the Snake was confused with the Snake. This pleased the Snake and it delighted in the discord that had been sown within the tribes of the elder kin and the younger kin.
One of the tribes were lead by a great queen. She took it of mind to bend all the other tribes to their knees before her. She pitted her power against them but the might of the elder kin cast her down into the abyss. For one brief moment a hue of light was seen falling into the abyss and then utter darkness returned. With horror, the elder kin realized that one of their own had fallen from the ways they were set to. The queen, her court, and her servants found themselves among the realm of the Snake. “All honors and glory be upon you, oh queen,” the Snake said. The queen looked curiously at the Snake. “You have come into the lands that are yours by destiny. I have prepared them and opened the way for your coming.”
“So say you,” the queen said suspiciously, “What do you gain from my remaining here in this place of exile?”
“No,” answered the Snake, “This is not your place of exile but of glory. Come, embrace me and you shall have power over life itself. All places where this darkness abides, your cold hand shall reach.” The queen reached out a hand to the Snake and it slithered upon her shoulders. “I gain an ally and companion. You shall be my completion. I abide within the darkness. With the Sundering of the worlds, I too shattered in to fragments. Within each creature upon this world, I lay. Through me, you shall have power over them.” The queen recalled her desire to unify all of creation under her hand.
“I can not be in all these places, creature,” she said, “In my descent to this place of utter darkness and desolation, I have broken into pieces as have my court. We can no longer mirror the light of She who is Mistress of All Things, from whom our power derives.” The snake looked at the queen and thought. “Your power shall derive of this place and my own strength. Your shattered children and court shall be made whole. They shall gain the strength from you to roam the world over. No longer shall you be mere mirrors of light but whole beings in yourselves. You shall gain sway over the world by way of your army fashioned from your shards and that of your court. None, not even the Princess of the World may resist you if you take the power I offer you.”
The queen who had once been a mirror of Déa’s light considered the Snake’s offer. She laid a hand upon the Snake’s head and said, “I shall not embrace you but you shall give me this power you promise. Though I am not whole, I still have the power to bend you to my will, Tempter.” The Snake, for the first time since time uncounted, felt fear as the queen drew from it the power that had flowed into it from the first mortal daughter. As she did so, the queen changed. She looked upon her court and her children. Broken limbs knitted themselves together. The lesser shards of her being took on forms of their own and became like phantoms upon the wind. The chamber wherein she stood had been in utter silence, save for her own voice and that of the Snake. Now it was filled with voices. Her eyes had become those of death and a terrible aspect came upon her. The Snake realized that the queen had greater power than it had presumed when she fell into the abyss and in taking from it, the queen had yet greater power still despite her diminished state.
The queen looked about her realm. “Go, build gates across the path I had fallen,” she commanded, “Let them be vast and strong.” Her servants sent to their work building fortifications for her realm. “Let none of the living tread my lands,” she said in a terrible voice, “Any soul that ventures here shall become my thrall. I shall gather to me all the souls of the living and keep them in bondage until the end of days, if my power lets me. The Mother of All Life has turned from me, so it is I shall turn from Her. The rebellion of my kin shall not be forgotten. If any of them falls into my hands, I shall keep them forever more and all the world will know desolation.”
Originally Published: September 22,2020
Veiled Witch's Mirror 