Prologue
The old woman could no longer see. She had no hunting skills, no ability to cook or scout. She could barely walk. Nonetheless, the tribe valued her above all members. They called her Lano’nak, a term meaning ‘Winds of Yesterday’. As the tribe watched the fire and ate the meat from the hunt, Lano’nak shook her gourd. Inside, small rocks rattled rhythmically, giving a beat to go along with the crackle of the fire. All eyes turned to her. At night, Lano’nak would speak great truths, the stories of the ancestors, and provide prophecies to the tribe.
“You may wonder, my children, how it is that we came to be. Did we come from the Great Bear, when it stood on two legs and walked out of the forest? Were we brought into being by the wind, blowing us in from afar, as it brings birds? Or did the Moon Woman make us, pouring us out upon the land like she poured water into the sea? No, I tell you, the stories of other tribes are lies and dreams. I will tell you where we really come from.
Long ago, beyond the stars, the Cruel Ones lived. They lived then, and they live now. For their kind does not die. To achieve this, they made a pact with Death. They would be his spear, his hunters. They must feast upon the blood of man, and drink from him his life to extend their own.
However, the Cruel Ones quickly realized a problem - not enough men to feed them for as long as they planned on living. Each time they came to a new land, they would wipe it clean of people due to the power of their hunger – the way the locust can strip the grasses of the plains. They needed more people to sate their thirst.
The cleverest among them figured out a solution. They planted a great tree, one taller than a mountain, and they fed it with blood and magic. When it bloomed, they called upon a great storm, stronger than any known. The seeds from the tree were blown into the sky and flew to a thousand lands. In every land, man would grow… They created a garden in the sky, one that they need not till, but one that they still very much plan to harvest.
You can see many of these seeds even now. Look into the sky. You see them there, and there, and there. The stars are the seeds of the Cruel Ones. We are their garden, my children. We are the food they wish to consume. That is why it is important that our sons and daughters become strong. Someday, the Cruel Ones will come for their harvest, and we must be ready.”
