Andrew Michael Miller's Thought Backlog
Writer and working Agile professional. Author of Pancho's Fall.
The Holy City of Torium, the new seat of the Torian Council, was founded upon the ruins of an ancient city, something it shares with most of the settlements centered around the land mass known as Caelon. Torium lies across Lago Nero, the enormous lake on the east side of the main peninsula where civilization thrives. To the east of Torium, no major ruins suitable for re-establishment have been discovered, thus making Torium among the furthest reaches of modern mankind. Since not much is known about the wilderness east of Torium, locals have taken the opportunity to create their own myths and urban legends about what lies to the east. Some claim that demons from the Third Age still roam… Continue reading “What Lingers in the Darkness” – A Poem from the World of El Tor
Although the history of the Saibhrean Isles has recorded much conflict between the various settlements as the various clans have vied for superiority, there are many more aspects of the island culture that unite the people than there have been reasons to fight one another. As the old Saibhrean saying goes, "by fist I rest, by song I rise," it's not uncommon for the same people to come to blows one day and join one another in song the next. Coming from the island of Talamor, but popular throughout all of the isles, one such song is "The Old Stone Wall", a 'drinking song' sung in chorus at most weddings, almost always accompanied by clapping and cheering.
The song "Keeping Safe the Waters," translated below into the common language, is a song that was written about the historically significant victory against tyrannical rule that played such a crucial role in the political and social formation of the continent and the isles. Sung in the old style, the song survives to this day as an important part of the Saibhrean heritage. The songs sung in the old style are rhythmically diverse, are never accompanied by instruments, and are typically sung alone.
Continuing Cantar I of the epic poem of Cantar del Primer Hijo, (Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4) the following lines describe the first major battle against a large demon with three heads. The significance of the battle is multiplied by the fact that the First Son, the leader of the band, was absent from the camp when the demon attacked.
