The Tale of the Titans
Janni legend speaks of the titans.
Five beings of enormous power, forged by the gods to shape this planet. Their tale has been passed down for a hundred generations. Far too long to describe on parchment, the Phororans have cataloged the tale and what is known of the five titans.
The Five Titans:
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- Rinsu is the titan of the earth. Known to all Shuraxians as the Ravager, Rinsu is the only titan to have been confirmed to exist in the recent world. Its sudden appearance in the wastes declares a terrifying truth: the titans aren’t merely legend. Rinsu is often associated with rage, his home is the core of the earth.
- Quron is the titan of the air. Formless, she is thought to control the wind, shaping the clouds, and granting power to all winged creatures. She is also referred to as lady fate.
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- Myrn is the titan of the sea. She is often depicted as a great webbed leviathan. Her movements are known to control the oceans of the world. It is said that her tempests can even influence Quron’s mood.
- Jaethi is the titan that represents the spirit that all living things possess. She is depicted as a great feathered serpent. She is also said to be the protector of the Wellspring. Janni legend describes an eternal battle Jaethi wages with Idru. The two are at adds, but together, form a symbiotic relationship of growth and decay. Jaethi is often worshiped by feykind.
- Idru is the titan of decay. Though all titans are without kindness or malice, Idru is often described as being villainous, though Janni tradition is careful to note that death is as much a part of life as life is. In their culture, Idru is known as the Keeper. Idru is tasked with safeguarding the souls who depart the mortal world.
The Nature of Magic
Patterns
Everything in this reality is made up of Patterns. From the most complex lifeform down to the most mundane rock, all things — living and inanimate — possess a Pattern. Practitioners of magic learn how to perceive, tap into, and manipulate these Patterns.
It is suggested that fey creatures were the first lifeforms to perceive their own Patterns. Over the course of millennia, these creatures found that the more they interacted with their Patterns, the more their bodies, minds, and very souls reacted. Sometimes even the land around them responded in unpredictable ways and often permanently changed the landscape in the process.
The Fey Realm
So many of these creatures tinkered with the fabric of their reality that they inadvertently created a whole new one. The Fey Realm sprung into existence like a bubble popping, all because a critical tipping point was met in the Patterns of these creatures.
Elves saw this event occur and though they at first could not manipulate Patterns, it wouldn't take them long to unlock their secrets. The elves were contemplative and critical thinkers and never backed away from a good riddle. They took time to soak in as much knowledge as they could, and in doing so became extremely long-lived.
The first magicians, sorcerers, and priests were all elves.
They found that the more they practiced magic, manipulating the Patterns of the world, the larger that collective Pattern became.
What followed was so spectacular! By practicing magic, they were inadvertently gifting it to the rest of the world. More and more species began to exist and some were able to exert control over themselves. While they could not perform the feats of magic that elves could, they could nonetheless tap into that place of power.
The Wellspring
The elves named it the Wellspring — that place where all Patterns emerge. Like the branching of a great tree, all things begin their journey inside the Wellspring, converging from other branches closer to its source and emerging far from where they started.
You can think of it like this: you are Pattern that is made up of your choices, your experiences, your circumstances, and your past, all interwoven together. A thread of a Pattern could be traced back to where you ate your last meal, or to where you grew up, or where you were born.
Another thread branches out to all of the people you have met and interacted with in your life. Another thread branches from the texts you've written and the glyphs that mark the world you've interacted with.
Scholars believe that the Wellspring is the source of it all. A famous elf druid named Tesendrien managed to become the first person to trace her Pattern back to this source. This type of magic is now known to be risky — but rewarding — and is referred to as Tapping the Wellspring.
The Tapestry
If the Wellspring is where all Patterns emerge and begin, the Tapestry is all the space in between. The Tapestry is the imprint left by the world as time continues forward. This cosmic force is where magic, matter, spirit, and will collide. It is an ever-changing fabric that describes every moment of every day from every possible vantage point.
So far, the beings of this world have not been able to directly affect the Tapestry. Like a memory or the brief sensation of seeing light after one has closed their eyes, all that can be done is perceive it.