Between barren deserts and hostile mountains, and before the river that is beyond mankind, verily, at the very end of the world, stood the City. Slaves and labourers, craftsmen and taskmasters scurried around all across, as the temple rose towards the crimson heavens. The ere looked upon the human masses from the heights of her pedestal in the sky, and scorched them with her unseen giant whip of light. Mankaj Ajaarul Mar Kanvel did not see; he did not look, for he sat in a meditative trance and babbled, speaking to the ancestors.
Great ones! Conjurers! Chieftains! How far you are from us, yet how close. Forefathers! You lived in swamps; and we, too, moved from one swamp to another, from the beginning of the world to the end; let us learn, then, and gain from this journey.
Heroes! In your days we were trully great, for we rose up against the swamp, and struck it down. You, Mangidkaj, Honoured Ancestor, you slew the demon-thing of the world, the Swamp-Goddess Kuzai; then and only then did the world begin, as it rose from her decayed corpse. I hail you, o Cosmogene, may you forever be with us! Let us rise again, and overthrow all things that keep the world from unfurling further. Let us push through the end of the world, let us show that we can do what the others may not!
Savior, Unifier! Mankaj Kanvel, my forefather, founder of my tribe, leader of the Pinkajar, show me the Light as you showed it once! Tell me, what must be done if we are to burn through the lands, if our journey is to be trully completed, if we are to rise above all others?
Answer me, ancestors! Give me the path!
In Aj Pazkada, the Land of the Final City, all was alive now. From the furthest outlands returned warriors with slaves; and from the City to the outlands went more warriors, as the reach was extended. Ever farther moved the outlands; ever farther spread the fields. Already, outposts sprung up along the way, and talk went of building lesser cities to better control the countryside. Some said that it was best to build on the river-side, others - in the middle lands, some wished to seize land on the southern marshes, and others said: "this City is the only one that should be". The tribal chiefs and their warriors gathered and argued in the temple, growing angry and impassionate, but Mankaj Ajaarul Mar Kanvel remained calm as he sat and spoke with the gods far above.
Ere! You rise and set around the Final City; to no other place are you as attached, for here you are the brightest! Give us your heat and your light, allow us to triumph in war and in peace!
Ambli! You die and are reborn above us in our nights; this City is as much your home as ours. Help us protect it, then, goddess! Deny the light to our enemies, make them stumble in the dark, and allow us to triumph over them all, to put them to work as slaves in the darkest places!
Cuk Atin! Cuk Avel! Cuk Apaza! Cuk Amer! Cuk Atji! All of you are distant, yet close enough for our priests to notice you in the dark. You, too, are of this land. Here is the end; beyond it not even the gods dare go beyond the pale for now. Settle with us, then, and imbue us with your virtues. Fortify us, Cuk Atin; brighten our days, Cuk Avel. Cuk Apaza, protect us in our old age and remind us to respect the elders; but also, Cuk Amer, keep our children young and strong. Cuk Atji, with you I speak a special talk; for you are a god of chieftains and warriors - grant me success in reign, grant us victory in war!
I hail thee, gods and godesses of old, no less glorious than the gods and godesses of men who hail from the First Swamp!
In the temple, chieftains and priests quarrel, the warriors and disciples at ready, and the people gathering in fear of troubles. Mankaj Ajaarul Mar Kanvel is peaceful, he sits with closed eyes and a smile, in the middle of their disputes, awaiting a call. And as he awakens he is not disrupted, not angry or wrathful, he rises up to his full heigth and looks at those around him. And the Chieftain speaks with the words of gods and ancestors to the Great People.
Pinar Mangidkaj! Pinkajar!
This temple is blessed, it is accepted by gods and heroes, and may safely be consecrated. Here will we bring our sacrifices, here will we seek out justice and guidance.
Chieftains of the Eight Great Marar, I spoke with the Forefather Mangidkaj, and he has commanded us to arise and align. We must reach out and let nothing stand before us, we must claim the entire land and reach beyond it still. Through war and peace we must bear our Light and our Fate about and beyond the end of the world, for our Path leads there, just as before.
Priests of the Eight Blessed Kurar, I spoke with the Ancient Spheres, and have received their blessings. You shall all recieve your places of worship, but this temple will be shared by the Spheres and the Cosmos. With their blessings, we shall not falter; with their guidance, we shall not stumble; and woe shall come to all our enemies, for they shall receive neither guidance nor blessing, and will fall easily before us.
Pinar Mangidkaj! Pinkajar! This temple is of Gods and Heroes, of all things that were and are; it is the temple of us, our temple which rises above all, and stands at the end of the world as a warning to all who think themselves mightier than we. We have seen times of the world's greatest jubilations; we have endured the harshest despairs. None have fallen as low as we did; none have risen as high as we. There is not a beast in the world that compares to a man; and there is not a man in the world that compares to one of us.
All of you remember the Journey, though it was before your time; it has never trully ended, and we still are on our path. We all have duties in the tribe; go forth and carry yours with pride, excel at them as well as you might, and remember that though you would not reach him in ages you must all aspire towards Mangidkaj. And in this striving remember also of the rest of us, of the tribe; let us strive forward and upward in agreement and concord, as in the Heroic Age past and coming. For before us lies a glorious uphill battle, from which we shall as victors emerge.
And through the city the chieftain was greeted with ovation and cheer, as he emerged from the temple, followed by the lesser chieftains, and went towards his palace to answer their demands.