Part 3: Trolls

Let's talk a little about the Uz. That's the Trolls - they call themselves the Uz. Once upon a time, there was the Celestial Court. They existed before time, before the world, and they are as unknown as anything can be. Not gods, but creators.

The woman known as Dame Darkness was a member of the Celestial Court, a woman with skin black as night and a black cape, born of the element Darknss. She was the one who chose from the formless shadows those that would become gods. Three are important: the goddesses of animals, plants and people. It is said that the Form Runes were made and used as toys by the Celestial Court. Those who liked the runes copied them with their own particular patterns - thus, after Plant Rune was made, there were plants of darkness, of water, of fire and of earth.

Mee Vorala was the name of the goddess of fungus. From her body grew all the fungi of the worlds, and she is the Goddess of Darkness Plants. Sokazub was the goddess of Darkness Animals, and from her body came forth all the protozoans and dark creatures of the world. And the final goddess was Kyger Litor, Goddess of the People of Darkness. From her erupted the Uz.

Dame Darkness took the Man Rune, mixing it with the essence of Kyger Litor, who bore Korasting, Mother of Many. Then the rune was given to Kyger Litor and Korasting as a toy. With no other aid, each bore three children. These were the ancestors of the Uz, and with Korasting they are known as the Seven Sacred Ancestors, making the Circle of Eight with Kyger Litor. The Seven Ancestors are:

Korasting, the Mother of Many, favored daughter of Kyger Litor. She continued to bear many famous troll children of the elder days.
Karrg, Master of Weapons, the Valiant Protector, first of the male trolls.
Vaneekara, the Hurler, who is remembered forever for her ability to throw large objects over huge distances.
Jakaboom, Dancer in the Shadows, the first troll shaman, who taught the Uz the dances that protect them from evil spirits and fight Chaos.
Jeset, the Ferryman, first of Korasting's children, who made the first boat to help his kin and later the dead cross over the river Styx.
Hombobobom, the Great Drummer, who invented the music of the Uz and helped them dance. She is second of Korasting's children.
Boztakang, the Chaos Killer, who taught his magic to all the Uz. He was third child of Korasting.

Troll Types!

The Uz is the Troll word for 'the folk'. Specifically, it means 'the living people of Kygor Litor, mother of Trolls'. The Uz believe themselves part of her. There are several kinds of Uz: the Uzuz (the Folk of the Folk), or Mistress Trolls, the Uzko (The Pained Folk), or Dark Trolls, the Uzdo (the Big Folk), or Great Trolls, the Elno (Twisted Little Ones), or Trollkin, the Romal (Nose Loper), or Cave Trolls, and the Uzhim, or Snow Trolls. Dead trolls are Uztagor.

I will talk more about types of troll later.

Zorak Zoran, Darkness And War
In this era, there came about a darkness spirit named Zorak Zoran, whose only experience was being burned by the light that had laid unborn in the womb of the underworld. Zorak Zoran explored the underworld cautiously, stalking the things that lived there. One day, he saw two foreign gods, Eurmal and Humakt, being led through the infernal realm by Vivamort, another darkness spirit. He stalked them and saw when they found what they wanted: a power great and terrible.

Zorak Zoran followed the gods, spying on them as they approached Grandfather Mortal, who was destroyed by this new power, naming it Death. He saw Eurmal steal Death from Humakt, replacing it with a replica, that Orlanth might use it to slay Yelm, the Bright Emperor. When the world grew darker in this time, Zorak Zoran grew more confident. Death passed among many, laying waste to the world. At last, Zorak Zoran saw his chance, seizing the blade Death and killing Flamal, God of Plants. Thus began the Great Hunger.

Wonderhome

As the Uz grew from Kygor Litor's children, they lived in ease and bliss in the place called Wonderhome. It was a place of total darkness, with the perfect temperature. Everyone had whatever they wanted to eat - all kinds of fungi, molds and jellies. It is known that the Uz worshipped Subere, Goddess of Inner Darkness, and Dehore, God of Darkness Spirits, at this time.

Styx, the Goddess of Black Waters, was born in Wonderhome. As her domain grew beyond their realm, they became less dark and more water. The water produced its own gods and life. The Uz hunted there, and some adopted the ways of the goddess Robber, becoming Sea Trolls. There also grew Molokka, daughter of Sokazub, who is the Mother of Molluscs, and her daughter Swems, Goddess of Annelids.

In the water a tiny speck appeared: land. It grew to become an island, then a continent, with its own gods and life. First among these was Kropa, whose children are better known: Gorakiki, Goddess of Insects, and Aranea, the Mother of Spiders. What followed was the Fire Age, which changed the face of the earth, though the depths were untouched at first. In this time, the insects and spiders would grow to cover the worlds.

The Great Enemy

One day, a troll named Eristi the Doubter met a stranger in Wonderhome, near the rock called Vaneekara's Shot. Eristi thought this perso nwas the ugliest thing he had ever seen, and asked the visitor who he was. The visitor called himself Old Man, saying that he had spent too long among the young, and that now it was ended. Thus did the Uz meet the first of the dead.

The next strange to come had a retinue: Yelm, the Bright Emperor, the Sun God and Source of Fire. Trolls had been in the light before, but never so close to Yelm. All the anger between Light and Darkness came forth, and the forces of Darkness tried to resist this invasion of Light. The gods and spirits gathered, and armies of the Uz massed to fight the lesser foes crowding the train of the fallen Yelm.

This was the Battle of Hanroo Field, which remained scorched and dead forever after. Yelm could not be defeated, burning whole armies to nothing, sending the gods of darkness deep into the underworld. Yelm strode through Wonderhome and settled nearby, close enough that his light hurt the trolls and frightened the darkness spirits. Worst, more creatures, often of Light, came to join the Underworld's visitors.

The greatest loss was the death of Korasting, Mother of Many. She was the fertility goddess of the Uz, but she was stricken by Yelm, that she might not flee with the others. Instead, she remained a prisoner among the dead, with her power of plenty denied to the Uz.

Next post, I will discuss the Uz and their discovery of the other races, along with their exodus from Wonderhome.