[North] A Lawgiver Wanders

One's work took her to such exciting and busy places if she was content enough to let it! And Mokoto-of-Names was absolutely willing to let her work take her to new and exciting places - this was one of the many things she could be accused of and agree to without any manner of falsehood. She walked the width and breadth of Creation, sometimes on official business, almost always in an official capacity, and often towards her own agenda under the guise of the former two things. Yes, Creation was absolutely filled with exciting things to do and amazing things to see!

Today wasn't one of the days where she got to see new and exciting things. Today was the day she trekked her happy ass through a blizzard looking for a wayward barbarian, because her more barbaric 'associate' was 'busy' pretending to do 'work'.

She might have known Crowarethan Stonehands by his work, if she'd bothered to think more of it - but she pointedly did not think much of it. There was something to be said for serviceable shelter, but not much to be said for a tasteless but serviceable shelter. It was hardly even hidden except by the blizzard it was made to protect from, and what sort of secret hideout was that?


"Hello~?" The green-haired 'young' woman called out as she approached the lean-to, slogging her slight frame through the snow with some difficulty. Her tone indicated the pleasant succor of a cheerful and friendly neighbor stopping by to exchange gossip and possibly ask for a cup of rice to top off her oh-so-wonderful casserole, her body language was more of the same. As if she weren't in a deadly storm asking to share space with a caveman possessing a shard of divinity from the dawn of time. "Excuse me, could you move over a tad? It's terribly cold out here, sir - and I've warm tea to share~!"

Her Skytongue, which Moko took some pride in, was flawless. 

"That depends on who you ask, my friend!" The green-haired woman chirped as she sank down with a relieved sigh, rubbing her hands together to warm them once she'd peeled her mittens off. Upon closer inspection, she wasn't so much a young woman as she was in some nebulous area between teenaged and middle aged - the poofy coat and mittens made her look younger than she was, and the fact that she was comparatively tiny (like most other Eastern women, going from the colour of her hair) didn't help the illusion. "But if you intend to made sure I came here deliberately and of my own power, I can assure you that I absolutely did."

She crouched down on the balls of her feet and fished around in her jacket, producing a small metal cylinder. From either side of it came a pair of simple cups. A plug allowed her to pour steaming, hot tea of some exotic sort into the cups. "Here. A little something to brace us against the cold?" She offered cheerfully, canting her head to one side as she offered Crow either of the cups as a show of faith.

"My name is Mokoto - might I have the honor of your name, my friend?" She asked once the matter of tea was settled, sipping from her own mug with an almost playful shine in her purple eyes.

"Because you are a new person, warrior of the Kneeling Rocks Tribe." Mokoto explained with a warm smile, setting her thermos down between them in case he wanted to refill his thimble. He'd likely soon find an improbable amount of sweet jasmine tea in that thermos before too long. "A chosen of the Sun - and the world is much more dangerous for you, now. It would be a pity if you were not to be prepared for these dangerous."

"And, more importantly, to inform you that you are not without friends." Mokoto added. She tilted her head to one side, before perching her cup between her knees and helping herself to a pinch of dried meat. "...among which I count myself, for the record." The green-haired woman added with a quiet chuckle, dipping the dried meat in her tea to hydrate and warm it a bit before popping it thoughtfully into her mouth. Not bad - a bit sweeter than she usually liked, but better than frozen jerky by a longshot. "Tell me, you should have been approached by a young beauty with golden bracelets and hair not long ago - what did she tell you?" Mokoto asked curiously, leaning forward to study Crow's expression and words with engaged, bright purple eyes.

"I see, I see!" Mokoto mused cheerfully, helping herself to another cup of tea. If she noticed the burly Northman's staring, she gave no indication of it. If she was at all uncomfortable sitting on the ground in a hastily constructed lean-to with said burly stranger in the middle of a fatally cruel blizzard, she gave no indication of that, either. "Well. I have to say that your instincts are sharp - I recommend against licking the Unconquered Sun." She agreed with a sly smirk. 

Icewalkers tended not to write things down. And, in her experience, their oral history only extended as far as notable things they'd eaten, or notable people they'd killed. Which meant it was story time! This was acceptable, she did so like to talk. Mokoto set her cup of tea between her crossed legs, mimicking Crow's seating arrangement, and set her hands on her knees. "Long ago, Creation was made - and ruled over - vast, powerful, and cruel beings called the Primordials." She explained, taking the cadence of one accustomed to telling stories - even and emotive, comfortable, almost melodious. "Although they made everything from the smallest insect to the tallest mountain, they had little interest in ruling over what they'd created, so they created and tasked powerful Gods to handle this, called the Incarnae."

Mokoto raised her right hand into a gently-clasped fist. "First among them was Sol Invictus, the radiant and Unconquered Sun that brings us warmth and life. It was his province to rule over the others, for his domain and purview was excellence and valor itself." Her left hand formed an open palm, curved gently into a crescent. "Beside him was Luna, the beautiful and ever-changing Moon. It was she that offered respite from the days, and brought rest and comfort - but it also the moon's light that guides the fiercest predators of Creation as they prowl, from the sly snakes to the most clever assassins." The green haired woman explained, before opening both her hands and waving her fingers in an arcane arc. "After came the five maidens, who maintained everything between the Sun and Moon - from birth to death, love and wisdom, and so on. And it was the task of the Incarnae to govern the spirits and gods that kept Creation functioning."

"The Incarnae watched over all, but were discontent with the rule of the Primordials above - who were callous and brutish, who destroyed the things they loved for little cause and cared nothing for the lives of the mortals they extinguished in massive droves. But the Incarnae were unable to raise a hand against their creators, they needed a plan." Mokoto took a breath and smiled warmly, resting her hands. "The Unconquered Sun took shards of his greatness, and gifted them to mortal men and women who met his standards of greatness - heroes, champions, and the like. These became the first Solar Exalted, and these people carried a divine power within them to shape destiny as they saw fit. One of these shards of greatness has found you worthy of being such a champion, and lifted you from mortality to become what you are now; a Lawgiver, able to defy fate and shape Creation as one of it's rulers."

"With the help of mightly Sol Invictus, the other Incarnae created Exalted of their own - those that endured hardship, who protected others, who were fit to walk the wild places of Creation, Luna bestowed a measure of her own power. These are the Lunar Exalted, intended to rule beside the Solar as the Moon shares the sky with the Sun. And each of the Five Maidens uplifted a small measure of mortals to assist them in their duties to keep Creation functioning as it should, and advise the Solar Exalted with their wisdom and foresight. These are the Sidereal Exalted, and I am among their number." Mokoto explained with a small, almost-proud, mostly-modest smile, resting her hand over her heart gently.

"Finally, Gaia, one of the Primordials that cared for Creation and did not destroy wontonly, created the five elemental dragons, which keep Creation stable and whole - Earth, Air, Fire, Water, and Wood. These dragons created Exalted of their own - the Terrestrial exalted, or Dragon-Blooded, who are not chosen, but born. Though less powerful than the Celestial Exalted, they were great in number, and served as the generals and consorts of the Solar Exalted." She explained - although most everyone knew what the Terrestrial Exalted were.

"The Celestial and Terrestrial Exalted were not bound by the rules of their creators, the Incarnae, and sought to overthrow the Primordials that so oppressed Creation." Mokoto explained, leaning forward slightly. "There was a horrific war, the likes of which Creation itself could not again withstand. Time and thought became weapons, reality itself hung in the balance, and the fate of all things was horrifically twisted beyond reason and thought. After countless casualties and years without number filled with constant battle, the Exalted prevailed - they banished the destructive Primordials from their home, and thus entered a golden age of prosperity and wealth we now know as the First Age, where Creation was ruled over by the Solar Exalted, and guided by the benevolent Incarnae."