The Land of Spirits is a mythological fantasy world brought to life by a community of passionate and diverse artists.
Created by Jochem de Jong
Explore the Land of Spirits throught the works of various authors: Jochem de Jong, Samantha Huson, Luke Reynolds and Paul Balestra, read by Nathaniel Williams.
Delve into the mythology of the Land of Spirits through this poetic adaptation of The Chronicles, written by Jochem de Jong and Paul Balestra, and illustrated by egos.mx.
The Ether stirred, a bang resounded
A shimmer appeared in the heavens
The Gods awoke, one by one
Until they rose all seven
Although they had no memories
They all saw glimpses of the future
As children of the Ether
They would be earth’s faithful rulers
However, they were well aware
That despite their Godly powers
They themselves would stir the Ether
And all would be devoured
First to rise, was Teriyas
Bewondered but assured
Filled with greed, he knew one day
He alone would rule the earth
He would use the Ether
To fill earth’s barren plains
With mountains and with valleys
With oceans and with lakes
A divine realm he would build
Magnificent and pure
Worthy of the one true God
He, who had awoken first
Next to rise, was Anata
Strong willed but without joy
The emptiness surrounding her
Would leave her little choice
She would use the Ether
To bring to life these lands
And avowed to fill the earth
with creatures, trees and plants
A new world she would create
With Teriyas at her side
But she soon would come to fear
The hunger in his eyes
Next to rise, was Psikar
Inspired and in awe
In the vision of his kin
He only saw one flaw
He would use the Ether
To bespirit and bring light
To all the beings in their realm
That roamed the day or night
He saw the greed and fear
In the actions of his kin
And swore to the Ether
To stay pure and without sin
Next to rise, was Nadale
Galled and underwhelmed
With the intentions of her kin
To build their holy realm
She refused to play her part
Wielding to Ether to create
If there was nothing they could do
To prevent the end of days
She felt her anger swell
As in her mind she saw
She would forever seek for meaning
Where clearly there was none
Next to rise, was Gidiyon
Afraid but surely driven
By the solace that he found
In Teriyas his vision
He would wield the Ether
To move the endless sky
To start four yearly seasons
And bring the earth to life
He would use his godly powers
With precision and with force
And pledge his life and loyalty
To Teriyas his cause
Next to rise, was Eviyra
The saddest of them all
After she awakened
Her tears soon hit the soil
She would wield the Ether
To fill their realm with beauty
And advocate for peace between
The creatures she loved so truly
She knew that she was looked upon
With great envy and desire
And in the eyes of Teriyas
She saw a lustful fire
Last to rise, was Merg
Angry and enraged
All was yet decided
For him there was no place
He would wield the Ether
Causing chaos and dismay
So the realm his kin envisioned
Would never come to be
He would carefully observe
Their reasoning and thoughts
Uncovering their weaknesses
For him to then exploit
The bodies of the holy seven
Made of flesh and bones
Where merely an illusion
An intuition of their souls
With discipline and practice
They could take on spirit form
And move freely through the Ether
Like a forever raging storm
A disturbance in the Ether though
Could kill them if in reach
So while they built their godly realm
They were forced to keep the peace
Teriyas, Anata and Psikar
The three Gods that had risen first
Added great monuments of nature
To the barren plains of the earth
Then Gidiyon set the sky into motion
Creating seasons, day and night
Thus came to be the Land of Spirits
A barren world now brought to life
After building up their mighty realm
Merg began to sabotage
The allegiance of his kin
And the leadership of Teriyas
Despite the feuds between them
The Gods could no longer fight
The primal urge to procreate
For yet another night
But the children that they spawned
Were nothing like the Gods
They were pale and hairless creatures
That were looked upon with disgust
Over the span of many centuries
These creatures grew in numbers
Put to work as immortal soldiers
Of Teriyas his savage army
Teriyas was first to voice
His wish for more worthy children
And for once all seven Gods
Shared the exact same vision
The Gods bundled their powers
And created the Giant Beasts
Creatures of enormous size
With large teeth, claws and beaks
At the top of the food chain
Was a race of mighty half-giants
These Guyins fought and hunted
By wielding the power of fire
Merg fought the Giant Beasts
To prove his warrior’s heart
But Teriyas saw him as a threat
And formed his own vile plot
He declared the Giant Beasts
To be nothing but a blunder
The other Gods did not impede
So to frost the world went under
The cold wiped out the Giant Beasts
But the Guyins fought the snow
Although Teriyas had won the duel
Merg vowed to match his blow
Teriyas then continued
To create a worthy race
And on the plains of Eyonan
He put his plan into place
The Mano and the Inya
Made in the image of the Gods
Caused Merg and Nadale
To secretly tip the odds
Merg spread discord and distrust
Amongst the creations of his foe
And vowed to corrupt the humans
For failure he planned to sow
The Mano were created
As portraits of the Gods
Strong they were, and bronze in skin
They soon formed powerful bonds
They hunted and they gathered
The God's language they spoke
On the fertile banks of the river Nir
They lived safe in nature’s cloak
They worshiped the divine
And began their own traditions
The Gods were proud and satisfied
Now Teriyas had fulfilled his ambitions
Then the Inya were created
As gracious as could be
Tall with hair light as stone
They resided amongst the trees
In the angelic Soviyat Forest
To the West of the Mano folk
They wrote songs about Eviyra
The Goddess they evoked
Led by their Circle of Elders
Their society grew in charm
They looked deep within
To find the Ether in the calm
Soon Teriyas grew jealous
For it was Eviyra the Inya loved
The Mano shared Teriyas’ rebuke
And a divide arose thereof
Teriyas had the wish to keep
The Mano bloodline pure
So in secret he then spout
To punish the Inya evermore
He tried hard not to reveal
His plan to seal the fate
Of his own divine creation
To satisfy his hate
Teriyas possessed a Mano man
And crossed the river one day
He dishonored an Inya woman
As her children watched in dismay
Her husband Aviliyon Ariyon
Chased the man to the water
He took up his ax and killed the man
While the Mano watched the slaughter
The two peoples violently clashed
But the Mano were much stronger
And so the Inya were banished
And allowed back no longer
The Inya reached the river Riya
And Ariyon was made their lord
But some Inya feared his reign
And left for lands unexplored
The child of lord Ariyon’s wife
Fathered by the deity Teriyas
Was abandoned in the forest
But found by a woodsman at last
The halfgod girl was named Ninte
Her powers no one could grasp
She grew up to be a prophet
The first of her lineage
Ariyon kept the peace for years
But when disease eventually took him
His sons fought for Ariyon’s reign
And things turned violently grim
After the battle had been fought
The remaining Inya were still divided
They separated into Inya clans
So their people could survive
Over time the clans again grew hostile
And began to feud over land and cattle
Eviyra watched her beloved Inya
Again loose themselves in battle
An alliance of clans was formed
Even Eviyra they denounced
Into the Teyalus Ring they went
Forming several mountain towns
Centuries passed as they thrived
But their numbers grew too fast
A time of scarcity commenced
And tensions rose at last
The Gindar family seized power
And set new rules and laws
But while they restored the order
The Gods abandoned their cause
The Gindar family ruled for years
Until upon them fell a famine
Moriyan Gindar, the 12th monarch
Divided all food in rations
The people revolted against him
And to his stronghold they came
His uncle was struck by an arrow
And died to the poison ingrained
The archer’s life was taken
A father of innocent fault
For Teriyas once again
Planned to launch his assault
At three years old, the archer’s son
Watched his father die
Hunted in his dreams at night
He looked for vengeance all his life
Together with his next of kin
He united the mountain towns
They joined him in his fight
And he killed the 12th Monarch
The victors left the mountains
To the Northern Lands they went
To end once and for all
The endless war of Inya clans
Eviyra found out at last
That born from deceit and lies
A great Inya war was upon them
By the vengeful Teriyas conspired
She tried to broker a peace
Between the feuding clans
To a young warrior she appeared
Divine gifts she showed in her hands
A lance that would give him revenge
Or a horn that would unite his race
He chose the horn and rode out that night
To bring the clans to embrace
Although the great Inya war began
It soon came to a riveting halt
As Eviyra begged for peace
And put Teriyas to his fault
Then Teriyas threatened them all
But Eviyra stirred the Ether
An act of sacrifice she committed
For the Inya race was so dear to her
After Teriyas had left the battlefield
The Inya formed a new alliance
A great city was built in the hills
A place of beauty and abundance
Teriyas looked upon the Mano race
And wished for them a better life
The March of the Mano began
To show them how to thrive
After their travels they settled
At the shore of the Great Inner Sea
The first Mano lord was appointed
And the city of Mano came to be
Ether Crystals their lord was given
To secure his leadership position
The seven Gods then left the city
But Merg had a dark vision
The City of Mano began to thrive
And grew for many years
The guild of alchemists was formed
For the Ether Crystals they held dear
Then Merg cursed the Mano lands
By conjuring a secret crop plague
The Mano suffered and called for help
And Psikar came to their aid
The Grey Order of Watchers was formed
To serve and protect the Mano race
They cured their lands from the plague
Which only fueled Merg’s hate
Merg appeared for Mano’s first king
And forced him to do his will
And at the edge of the Linar forest
A remote settler’s town was build
In the forest the Guyins resided
Filled with an ancient primal rage
But with the help of Merg’s gifts
A divine sword was made
Merg binded the blacksmith’s soul
To the weapon that he crafted
Then the Guyins destroyed the town
And Merg had what he wanted
The Guyins prepared for war
And sailed across the waters
To attack their new enemy
And make the Mano suffer
The Mano prayed to the Gods
To save them from a dark fate
Teriyas sent the Nayil army
To fight alongside the Mano race
In the end the Mano prevailed
And the Guyins were cast out
They were imprisoned by the Nayil
Deep underneath the ground
Nadale had many descendants
Widespread among the Mano race
Her children grew strong and powerful
But were filled with greed and hate
They united and started a civil war
To violently take the king's reign
Many Mano men and women fled
Until Teriyas came to their aid
In secret Teriyas imprisoned Nadale
Which filled Merg with a blind rage
Merg fought Teriyas and the other Gods
But lost and was left to a dark fate
The ones who had fled to the South
Were named The Cattle Folk
A cattle keeper was amongst them
Of visions of the future he spoke
In the stars he had seen clearly
To gift Mano their most prized oxen
He stole them from his region master
Who had him killed on his return home
But on his body they found a Mano treaty
Bringing the Cattle Folk great wealth
Thus they founded the Guild of Sages
In honor of the cattle keeper’s death
The ones who had fled to the East
Were led by Yarnus and Arvenus
Two Watchers who were brothers
And had betrayed each other’s trust
Yarnus chose to leave their village
To relocate and settle in the North
Half of their subjects followed him
To the banks of the Lake of Eranor
Yarnus drew upon his Watcher powers
To build a temple and fertilize the land
Soon after Angiyona was founded
A city thriving under his command
In the village where Arvenus remained
A young orphan girl lived her days
She was a descendant of Nadale
Who spoke to her through the haze
The girl burned down the village
Forcing them towards Nadale’s prison
There Arvenus’s mind was corrupted
By the promise of endless riches
Arvenus left Nadale imprisoned
And killed the girl out of greed
He built Kalur against the mountains
To mine the Ether Crystals beneath
In a violent fight with Gidiyon
Psikar was badly wounded
The Watchers developed a craving
To feast on the spirits of humans
The Mano agreed to feed them
With the lives of their lesser kin
Where Merg would normally jubilate
His mind had now turned grim
Without Nadale at his side
Merg had lost his ways
To the Ether he had turned
In the hope to learn her fate
Soon the Watchers grew hungry
It was Yarnus who first lost control
He kept feeding on his people
And his powers began to grow
Teriyas came to Angiyona
The Nayil army at his command
After killing the Watcher Yarnus
They rode out to end them all
In the now red stained Lake of Eranor
Arvenus found his brother dead
Before he went into hiding
He vowed to take revenge
The people of Angiyona
Roamed the lands to the South
There Kalur sent out its soldiers
To force them to turn about
They settled at the western coast
And soon planned for revenge
They founded the city Irulyar
And launched a violent offense
The Kalur army saw them coming
And prepared for their attack
The battle remain undecided
And both armies retreated back
The brave captain in charge
Of fighting Kalur’s enemies
Returned home after the battle
To corruption and great hostility
He seized power over the city
And fathered two twin sons of might
After their father died of old age
They were forced to a ritual fight
The twin son who lost the duel
Was exiled from Kalur’s great halls
His following traveled South
The Southern Exiles they were called
Irulyar’s king was soon deposed
And another took his place
The city grew and changed
Into a deeply spiritual space
Teriyas then proclaimed himself
To be the One God, ruler of all
He declared that all should follow
Only his supreme rule of law
Opponents of the new regime
Were killed even when unarmed
A large group escaped the city
And formed the tribes of war
Teriyas dishonoured Eviyra
And fathered a Nayil child
He told Gidiyon to have it killed
But Gidiyon did not comply
Gidiyon hid the child underground
Where the Guyins soon found her
They raised her in a cage for years
Hoping her powers would emerge
She won the trust of the Guyins
Who let her out of her cage
To live amongst their kind
So she could help them escape
Merg lived amongst the tribes of war
After he saw a future vision of his son
That would help him turn his fate
And bring Nadale back into his arms
Years later Merg’s son was born
He was given the name Yorg
He grew up to be a great leader
And made the tribes of war join forces
They rode out to take back Irulyar
Aided by the Inya warrior guilde
A long and vicious battle took place
But the tribes of war prevailed
In pursuit of the king of Irulyar
Yorg found Arvenus the Watcher
He pleaded to reunite their Order
To join them against the One God
Teriyas sent the Nayil army
To wipe them off the earth
To prepare Yorg for the fight
Merg gave him his holy sword
The battle soon fell upon them
But they seemed to be no match
Then the Watchers appeared
And turned around the odds
Arvenus told to Yorg while drunk
He knew where Nadale was imprisoned
They ventured out together with Merg
And after centuries they finally freed her
Her body scarred and blistered
Nadale broke Arvenus his neck
To Merg she said her farewells
Who knew she would not come back
Nadale unleashed upon Teriyas his vault
An Ether wave that filled the sky with light
The deities all died, except for Merg
Who asked his son Yorg to take his life
Now the deities were gone
Their holy realm started to fade
Slowly the sky lost its motion
And the circle of life decayed
The Guyins escaped their prison
And soon prepared to retaliate
The last great war had begun
To end the Mano and Inya race
And so the Land of Spirits
Became barren as before
The end fell upon the earth
And the story evermore
Study the the geography of the Land of Spirits through its world map, conceptualised by Jochem de Jong and Moreno Barbosa, and illustrated by egos.mx.
Learn the language spoken in the Land of Spirits, created by Frederico Schroeder, Xayden and Jochem de Jong.
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