Etruna

From The Middle Kingdom:
'Gurjo,
your creation god. Yes, that could be so. But my people believe we were made by
Etruna.'
'Who's
he?'
'She.
She is the goddess of nature, the forest, the cycle of life. Etruna is also the
goddess of my people. Or rather was, worship of her is outlawed in my land
now.'
'Why
is that?'
'That's
a long story little one. It is ... political ... I suppose. The old ways are
being suppressed.'
'What
does suppressed mean?'
The
young woman laughed, 'So many questions!'
 
Also:
Roztov had never tasted or even seen half of the fruit presented to him so Mellane was surprised when he pulled a notebook out of his pack and started to sketch out the seeds arranged in half of a songfruit.
'Do you normally draw pictures of your breakfast?' she enquired.
The druid laughed and replied, 'I have an interest in all things in nature. There is a naturalist society sponsored by the king of Entland. That's a kingdom in central Nillimandor. The Royal Society publishes papers and journals on new species, flora and fauna, that sort of thing. There is also a prize for the first person who can prove that he has circumnavigated the globe, something that I have always thought about doing.'
'The globe? What globe?’ queried the curious elf.
'The world. The world is a ball. Not flat like a plate, but round like that apple,' said Roztov pointing to part of his breakfast.
'What nonsense you humans speak! The world is round? Surely the people on the bottom would fall off! Even Etruna teaches us the world is flat. It is in the Book of Days.'
'Well, I usually wait until after breakfast before I start speaking about theology, but I think that in this case Etruna may have been... misinterpreted or maybe speaking metaphorically.'
'The text is quite clear.'
Roztov nodded, 'I know the Book of Days. It is not cannon in Nillimandor. We druids make great study of the stars. In fact I was introduced to the Royal Society when a patron came to visit us in a quest for knowledge of the cosmos. For a long time we have known that the world is round and that it goes around the sun.'
Mellane shaded her eyes and looked out the open windows of her dining room to the sea and the sun that was over it. She considered the sun for a moment.
'Truly there is much to learn from you of the west.'
Category:The Middle Kingdom
Category:Gods