The Esloa

The Esloa is both a Deity and a Place. The Esloa is one of the first children of the Goddess Eshi-Killi (also known as Eshi, or Eshkilli). The symbol of the Esloa (as a deity) is a simple equal armed cross . This is because Esloa is associated with crossroads as well as mediation and balance. They are the 'middle child' , not in terms of order of birth. They are the middle child because they watch over the Middle World of the Esloa and Meditate the Upper world of Goa (ruled by Esloa's brother) and the Lower World of Luka. (presided over by Esloas sister, Luka).

#### More about Eshi-Killi

A Goddess of Madness, her name has many meanings. One of which survives as a folk loric poem:
*"A river rends at the heart of a painter. The longing of something deep in the earth. A twin thirsts."*
Other meanings of her name include, "bright spark of rage" , Chrysalis-Grove, "come forth, all who are bound."
Eshi is associated with madness, rain, mirrors, the birth caul. In one of her most terrifying forms, she becomes a chimera with the body of an eel, bloody human arms for feet, the face of a horse, and the horns of a goat. Her weapons are the **Hammer of Esh,** and **the Mirror of Silence.** The Hammer is long and silver colored, with a head that is blunt on one end and spiked on the other. The blunt end has a embossed seal. When the seal is imprinted on an enemies armor or body by a strike of the hammer, it delivers a curse. The enemies body is prepared for mutation. Eshi then cuts her hands or wrists on barbs along the length of the hammer. The blood runs down depressions cut into the long handle, arriving at the head of the hammer. The spiked side of the head, now covered in **Eshkillis Blood,** is driven into the enemies body. The combined delivery of the seal imprint and the bloody spike, causes the enemies body to irreversibly mutate, either into a deformed shape, or a shape altered so that specific organs or nerves cease to function. How severe the curse depends on Eshi-Killis emotional state.

### The Duhuluj

The Duhuluj are the sacred people of Eshi-Killi. They are the only ones who revere her or worship her. On the continent they migrated to after the destruction of their former homeland (of which they will not speak), they are relegated to the Wild Lands. These are in the south. Made up mostly of fierce jungle, mountain, and desert, there is precious little space to grow crops. Hunting and gathering is complicated by large numbers of fierce beasts. Thus the various tribes of the Duhuluj often compete for resources. They are tall, slender people. In one of 7 Duhuluj tribes, the gender spectrum is as following. the natal males are called 'fire keepers', the natal females are called 'water keepers' and have 4 breasts. the natal Intersex are called "secret keepers". The transgender (who transition at 12 using a sacred substance called **Eshkilis Blood**) are called "Blood Walkers". There are 7 tribes of Duhuluj, who occupy a series of 6 peninsulas and one range of mountains that is tolerable for humanoid life. All of the south is separated from the north by a desert. North of the desert are the two Nations of the **Chikhu, and the Shikhu**, Totalitarian states (one male supremacist, one female supremacist, who are united by their common hatred of the Duhuluj) . They use Theocratic Mage-Craft to control their populace and dominate the planet.

The Duhuluj revere Eshi-Killi, and also fear her. They believe that she takes the form of a wandering mad woman or lost child who wears a broken mirror talisman around her neck, and a slender silver and iron-wrought war-hammer across her back. However she often simply looks as if she is any madwoman, and there are none of her talismans to recognize at all. For this reason all of the Duhuluj treat lost children , orphans, the homeless, and the mentally ill with great respect. The fear is that if one is foolish enough to harm the less fortunate, such as a beggar, she may be the Goddess of Madness in disguise, and bring forth her Wrath.

#### The Esloar and Ea

Throughout the Esloar there is a substance which the Duhuluj call **Eshi-Killis Blood.**
Whereas in other worlds, life evolves on its own, in the **Esloar** the evolution of all life depends on the existence of a mineral. (In year 0050 this substance is introduced to **Ea** through the experiments of Dr. Fuchsfanger, at which point it is called **Substance 63**.) This substance makes all mutation and evolution possible in the Esloar. The *literal* Blood of Eshkili has legendary levels of power because no living being has such high levels of the mineral in her body. and no other being can generate it. (She can shift shape as she wishes, whereas a humanoid or human must do so through consumption of EB crystals and mental focus). Duhuluj warriors make use of a combat method which imitates Eshi-Killis use of her war hammer. Later the Lilit (a Anarch Faction in Ea) do the same. During Eshi-Killis brief time in Ea, the Lilit play a key role in liberating her from Dr Fuchsfangers experiments. Following this, the HEXE (Heretical Energies Extermination Engine) is destroyed by an Anarch Coalition, and T**he Cataclysm** occurs. After Eshi-Killi returns to the Esloa through the spacetime rift, **Chloe Garcia** leads the Lilit into the wastelands to the south and creates a secret Oasis, using powers she gained both through the Cataclysm and the blessing of Eshi-Killi.

*"the duhuluj soldiers. a glove with a magick seal on it , a projectile that fires eskilios blood i to the enemys body, and a flash grenade that stund them. while they are stunned, they are struck with the glove in such a way that it imprints the seal on their body or armor, which causes the EB to deform or damage their body. common ones are damage to eyes, ears, nerves, attacks on thumbs, misalignments/dislocations of bones. this is devastating when it impacts . it is a complex precise weapon which requires greet dexterity precision and skill. the shikhu/chikhu soldiers are bigger taller tougher .  more muscular, but also slower.*
*Duhuluj warriors do subdermals of EB all over their body . use tattoos so they can heal themselves of injuries. but since it doesn't add mass, only rearranges matter, sometimes a wound can only be cauterized  or covered up by the eb. in some cases a finger is lost and the eb itself forms the entire new finger.*
*sometimes they will injest eb and give themselves  large spikes and plates under their skin, with a core of eB in the center. again....not only as armor, but as a healing technique. the more eb they can store in their bodies, the more healing they can do. sometimes the spikes will be grown and snapped off. then stabbed into an enemy to deform them, or stabbed into a fellow soldier to heal them, all of which is extremely painful. what makes it harm or healing is what is done with the eb and how it is directed.*
*sometimes if there are too many children in the family, the spirits of change and fertility will summon a male born from the tribe to injest eb to become a handmaiden and nursemaid. for the husbands second wife, for the children another parent, for the wife someone to ease the stress of raising a large family*
*rites of passage for duhuluj children center around the first thing they must do with EB.*
*the trans spirit workers have two of many genders....In one form....the boys are giggly and catty about hunting and the girls do 'womens work' with a competitive drive like in human male dominated athletics."*

--from a Gnosis transmitted, year 0016