The Necessity of War

**The Necessity of War** is the Kentotran myth of the origins of war and other violent conflict. It details the origins of the war god Te'Kegarr and the social prominence of the (name) bloodline in late Kentotran society. There exist many exact copies of this myth, but the earliest source for this myth dates back to the last quarter of Kentotra's lifespan.

## Myth

Early Kentotra was fraught with conflict. Klakelaya priests versus Mazakyel priests, artists versus scholars, hunters versus gatherers, theists versus atheists. The instant the gods left humanity to its own devices, so too did peace leave their lives. The conflicts were mostly verbal, insults of varying degrees of severity flying back and forth. Though reason managed to resolve some conflicts, not every dispute was rational enough for this solution. No human had yet seen the productive effects of physical combat; in fact, it was criminalized in every corner of the island. As such, there was very little reprieve from the mentally taxing arguments that plagued Kentotra.

One day, a man named (name) was out hunting in the woods when he discovered something strange on the ground. It was sharp like his spear, but it had a long blade. Was this a weapon? He picked it up to examine it closer. Suddenly, the weapon floated out of his hand and transformed in midair. The result was a tall, muscular man wearing strange metal clothing. (Name) stared in awe at this spectacle, not knowing what to say.

The new man introduced himself as Te'Kegarr and claimed to be an Aran'khutu. He alleviated (name)'s skepticism by claiming he had appeared in the void with the other four primordial gods, but they rejected his friendship due to their differing ideals, resulting in him being socially isolated from the rest of the pantheon. As such, he turned himself into a weapon he called a sword, waiting for someone to find him and accept his guidance. (Name) asked what guidance he had to offer, and Te'Kegarr taught him the following:

Though verbal disputes have their time and place, they are not the only way to resolve conflicts, nor should they be considered as such. There are often times when peace must be established through harsher, more direct means. Violence was not the horrific practice that Kentotra had made it out to be. Rather, it can be an effective method to deciding the end of a conflict when no other method is effective.

(Name) was surprised by the violent nature of Te'Kegarr's advice, but after years upon years of the same arguments wearing down Kentotran morale, he understood where the forgotten god was coming from. For the sake of everyone's collective mental health, more drastic measures were in order. He asked Te'Kegarr many other questions: How should these fights be conducted? Were there rules that dictated the honor of a victory? What tools and techniques shall be used? Te'Kegarr answered each of these eagerly, even inscribing these guidelines on a tablet for (name) to take back home. (Name) realized that even violence can be regulated for the sake of order, making him feel better about the idea of fighting one's way through disagreements. He thanked Te'Kegarr for his guidance, asking if there would be a way to talk to him again. Te'Kegarr explained he would turn back into the sword for (name) to take with him; however, he would only appear to him and his trusted allies to hide from the other Aran'khutu. With that, the two men exited the forest.

## Historical Context

As is true for many other societies, Kentotra had its fair share of violent conflict, though it was reserved as an absolute last resort in most cases. There exist records for only two major battles before the great civil war, the last instance of any written records in Kentotra whatsoever. Kentotra was incredibly strict on the use of violent conflict resolution, reserving it for the most extreme of political cases. Being the first to declare a battle, let alone a war, brought shame to one's side of the conflict regardless of their previous reputation. As such, to find records of Te'Kegarr having so many supporters alarmed me.