About Tunare's Benevolence
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How Tunare's Benevolence Came to Be
Once upon a time...
Tunare, mother of
all Norrath, goddess of fertility and growth, was worried. Although the
Gods had withdrawn from the world to allow their children… the races
of Norrath to find their own destiny, Tunare had become increasingly nervous
about the shape that destiny was taking. A dark pattern was emerging in
the weave of life, and from her home in the plane of Growth, Tunare watched
anxiously, trying to decipher the source of her unease.
At first she thought perhaps it was another devious plot from Bertoxxulous,
her mortal enemy, a god of plague and death. For was it not true that
she had seen a weakening in the power of her magic, and had not her trusted
friend Rodcet Nife complained of the same phenomena? Rodcet was the great
Healer, and she mother of all that lives. Surely they would be the first
to feel the effects of any dark plot by Bertoxxulous.
This is why Tunare had sent messages to all of those gods and goddess
who she counted as on the side of truth and light, and even to a few she
was quite certain were not. At the insistence of the warrior god Rallos
Zek even Cazic-Thule and Innoruuk had been called to this council, despite
the fact that Tunare found their very presence in her realm a constant
source of irritation. If her enemy was directly interfering with the fate
of Norrath, the Gods must band together to put him back in his place.
When the gods arrived Tunare served them honeycomb and tea, and told them
of her concerns. Mithaniel Marr was the first to speak up, yes he too
had felt a decay in his powers. One by one the gods admitted that they
too had felt something gnawing away at their very essence of divinity.
Rodcet Nife was sure that the Plaguebringer could not be the source of
the unease that all the Gods were feeling. He felt sure that if Bertoxxulous
were behind it, he would know. No, this had the stamp of something far
more insidious then even Bertoxxulous could have dreamed up.
It was while they sat pondering that Tunare felt a disturbance at the
gates of her kingdom. Her face paled and her heart jumped to her throat
as she heard the voice roaring outside her door. "So Tunare! A meeting
of the Gods without Me? I know the answer to your questions… I who
am despised by all. Are you brave enough or curious enough to let disease
and death enter your precious sanctuary, goddess of Life?" His voice
was mocking. A hush fell over the assembled group, broken only by the
sniggers of Cazic-Thule, as he watched Tunare's discomfort. Tunare looked
around at the Gods assembled there. Erollisi Marr silently reached over
and took Tunare's hand as The Great Goddess of Growth rose to stand and
with a gesture opened the Gates of her plane to her mortal enemy. As he
entered her territory his feet left dark and decaying footprints on the
green and fertile ground, a disgusting disease that seemed to spread from
where he stood before her.
"Your enemy, and mine", he spat, "Is Zebuxoruk, the Un-God, as you would have figured out if you had half a brain between you. Unlike the rest of us, He never retreated from the world but rather built himself a secret spot upon it, from which his power grows. And like the cowards you all are, you prefer to ignore his presence and refuse to speak his name, and so you blind yourself to his growing power. If you pathetic excuses for divinity ever stop talking and decide to do something about it, I will send my forces to keep you from failing, as you certainly would without me."
He turned and strode
towards the gate (perhaps a little faster then he had entered Lord Karana
noticed with a smile) but as he left his voice echoed forth one last threat…
"Just be sure you don't break the covenant… no direct interference
or the next time I enter your kingdom Tunare, it may not be by your will"
With Bertoxxulous' departure, the color began to return to Tunare's face.
After a moment she gathered herself together and smiled gently upon the
Gods. "Within death," she said softly, "is the seed of
life." As she spoke the fetid ground where Bertoxxulous had stepped
began to green, fresh new buds appearing to push out the rot. Within moments
Tunare's realm had healed itself from the hated one's presence and Tunare's
smile had become one of triumph.
Innoruuk sneered. " I will be on my way too, lady Tunare, this meeting
might have been better held in Bertoxxulous' realm, it appears. I will
be watching to see what you do about Zebuxoruk's blasphemy, and I demand
that myself and every other evil god be given a place in whatever project
you implement. I'll not have you meddling in Norrath's affairs. I intend
to keep a close eye on you."
At this Innoruuk, along with the other evil deities stepped into a magical
portal and disappeared.
Rallos Zek shifted impatiently, clearly annoyed with the posturing of
Good versus Evil. "Well someone has to take the initiative here.
Tunare what do you plan to do?
Tunare smiled. "We will fight this un-god with love. I will gather
an alliance of gentle hearts that will woo the straying spirits of Norrath
back to a proper respect for the divine. They will be there to help those
in need, and their benevolence will be there as a constant reminder of
the love of the Gods for the races of Norrath"
Rallos Zek's laughter echoed through Tunare's Realm. (It is rumored that
it was heard even in Halas) When he finally regained his composure he
roared. "And your gentle souls will die like dogs! What do you think
will happen when you face the minions of ZZebuxoruk? Your army of Druids
will perhaps kite the unbelievers to their doom?" Rallos Zek smiled
broadly; his belly laugh had obviously put him in a good mood. "Don't
worry Tunare" he chuckled " I will send you my warriors to protect
your gentle hearts. You go ahead and woo the souls of Norrath, and when
it comes time for battle, my warriors will be there to do the real work."
Quellious, the peaceful child God looked skeptical, "And you think
your battle loving warriors are going to fit in with Tunare's chosen?"
Rallos Zek replied "A warrior loves nothing else more than an enemy
to defeat and a damsel to protect, they will not only fit in, they will
be Tunare's right hand. See if any other of you gives as much to this
cause as I do. Then come back with your questions, Child."
At this, Tunare rose. "Thank you all for gathering here today, our
meeting is now over" she said firmly. " I will act tonight,
you will see the results at dawn. I trust you will all keep your word
to help. Zebuxoruk must be stopped."
That night Tunare sat in contemplation. Who to entrust with this mission? Her mind sifted gently through the prayers of her followers that night, pausing to probe the hearts of the greatest heros amongst them. Who to choose out of so many powerful and deserving souls? One prayer tugged at her attention, seeming brighter a spark then the others. She leaned forward to listen…
"Tunare grant me the wisdom to spread your love to the world, my life is yours, I pray that I may serve you well."
The prayer did not come from a hero of Tunare, but from a young Woodelf named Gaiah who stood in front of her guild master in Kelethin, about to hand in the note that would signal the beginning of her training as a druid. Tunare's gaze rested for a moment on the young druid and in her mind's eye she saw a seed, within which great potential lay.
And then, Tunare granted
Gaiah's prayer.
