Mekthnel

Mekthnel is one of the six continents. It was the sixth to be populated.

## Geography

Mekthnel is a continent of tall mountains capped in snow, and deep valleys of ice jungles. The northwest of the continent is home to the world’s tallest peaks. In the southeast are vast tundras that yield crops in the summertime. The skies of Mekthnel are known for both the breathtaking aurora, as well as the bright stars, which are visible during the day.

After Arfaxad’s colonization of Mekthnel, the majority of the settler population reside in Din Colos and the clandestine dwelling called Spinecity: a hub of commerce with Golgóssa, as well as the hub of the continent’s crime. In the precolonial days, the capital city of Mekthnel was a sprawling valley-city called Sekthona. The native people used a raised stone bridge that spanned the continent to travel the frozen hinterlands. The deep valleys between mountains were known to harbor horrifying creatures, treacherous ice pits, and sudden storms. The colonial population have maintained the High Bridge. They have also bestowed the name Teranon to all the lands beneath the High Bridge.

## Climate

Mekthnel is a land of mild summers and punishing winters. Weeklong blizzards whip pennons off their stakes and howl through the ravines. The people prepare for winter by stockpiling food and firewood, fortifying their houses, and finally hibernating within their Undercity.

## Resources

Timber, clean glacier water, maple syrup, the icedust, the very strong whisky called krakthen, various vegetables, and the vast fields of the indigo corn, the Maïktha.

## Flora

Although there are beautiful deciduous trees all over the continent, including the silver-barked Dawntree, the indigo-budding Blessbush, and the once-in-a-lifetime flowering Sukthülen, the mountains are host to far more evergreens. Towering green Akthaps, the bulbous White Firks, the pale yellow Sprük. They also grow bushes that yield fruit: the iceberry, the cyan grape, the frost apple, the hoarroot.

## Fauna

The wooly Mammoth called the Monkth, whose numbers are now low. The snow apes of the high plateaus, the Agatha. The deadly snake that hides in the snow, the Vipther. The stag hare of the ice valleys, the Stagaho. The domesticated Reindeer who fill the cities before and after colonization, the Renkath. The salmon who swim up waterfalls and survive being frozen, the Silkthön. The enormous cave-dwelling spiders, the Pilkös. And of course, the legendary white wolf with indigo streaks in its fur, the Lektha. According to legend, the Lektha are more intelligent than a professor, more powerful than a Maya, and more cunning than a politician. They are not hunted lightly.

## People

The Eugenicists of Arfaxad call the native people of Mekthnel the Snolabír. But this name is merely a bastardization of the name for the Maya of the Sixth Way, the Snolakthïr, which means Stargazer. The native people of Mekthnel have no name for themselves, but we can make some generalizations: they are a robust people, with skin of an pale-grey to ashen-blue hue. They invariably have bright eyes, ashen, green, or indigo, and straight white hair. They sometimes have white moles along their skin, and they always cut their ears to be flat-topped. There are six clans of the Snolakthïr, based on the six constellations in the sky: the Monkth, the Agatha, the Vipther, the Silkthön, the Lektha, the Pilkös.

Each clan share many practices and beliefs. They each build massive shrines, the Vïktha, in the most unlikely places, each difficult to find without using their Gazes. the Vïktha are usually located near a major city of stone, called a Thona, but never inside. They each have an Undercity called a Than, where they go to hibernate during the long cold.

The people of Mekthnel are extremely spiritual. The named Stargazer is suitable, for even the laymen spends long stretches of time ay in silent meditation, staring up at the sky. After passing their rite of passage into adulthood, they paint an indigo eye upon their foreheads, representing their third eye which has opened; the eye of Vesta. The eye is everpresent in their culture.

## History

Ancient. The Mekthneli people arrived on the continent from the west, from boats that sailed around the world from the t’Ro isles of eastern mia’Nihaul. They had two equal classes when they arrived: Dreamers and Wakers. Each relied on the other, and respected each other deeply. The Dreamers would sleep in, analyze their dreams, study the stars in silent meditation, write their mythologies, and give instruction to the Wakers, who busied themselves by hunting the Agatha, making clothing, and erecting cob houses. These two classes cut across gender. They colonized the continent slowly, over hundred years, with Dreamers deciding what direction they would migrate. However, many Wakers died as they went down into the valleys between mountains, so they decided to build the first permanent city, Sekthona. However, they still needed to leave the city to survive, and more people died in the valleys. To solve this problem, a dreamer named Marikthar Olakth had a dream that told him to build the High Road. And in 458 AF, they began its construction with an army of Wakers.

With the High Bridge in place, the Mekthneli split into six clans, and each established its own city in another part of the continent. They lived in peace with each other, until the spider clan, the Pilkös, had nightmares about a “back door” to the Nethers hidden at the north pole. Their Dreamers heeded these nightmares, and followed the north star, the Atwakï, to the north pole, where they found a massive cave complex. Inside, they connected with the Zoraxil of the First Way, who found a similar “back door” at the south pole. The two groups met in the Nethers are shared their dark creeds. The Zoraxil first learned the name Brekthnïr, and the Pilkös clan first heard learned the word Conquest. When the Pilkös clan returned to Mekthnel, they began to wage war against the other clans.

The Pilkös clan first attacked the Agatha clan, who were unprepared for war. They sent out a call of distress to the other clans, but only the Lektha clan responded. After killing many of the Lektha clan, the Pilkös moved on to the next clan. Again, the Lektha clan arrived to defend them. This repeated until the Pilkös had weakened the Lektha clan significantly. At last in the year 1061 AF, the Pilkös clan surrounded the Lektha stronghold, where all the clans were joined together. They put up a spirited defense, but their numbers were too low to survive for long. The women and children dug into their Undercity, sending tunnels in many directions. The other clans were weakened and could not come to their rescue. And when all hope seemed lost, the horns of the Kaí,kusaí rang out. The arrows of the Woodkin archers flew high, and the Pilkös were defeated once and for all. Since that day, the Lektha clan have had the deepest respect for the Kaí,kusaí, whom they owe a perennial debt. In exchange, the Snolakthïr first showed the Kaí,kusaí how to make their stoneswords.

But the Pilkös clan survived in secret. They went into hiding, working their dark magic in the caves beneath the High Bridge, creating the dreamstorms that whip across the land. They infiltrate the Akastral realm, or the Dream House.

The clans migrated back to their old cities. Many tales originated from this migration, and when they finally returned to their ancestral homes, they were desecrated.

In the ages that followed, the Mekthnel rebuilt their cities and replenished their numbers. This was a time of great peace, and the arts of the Mekthnel thrived. The architect named Sekthalis invents negative architecture in 2566 AF, and they carved new cities out of the flesh of living mountains.

Precolonial. In the year 3300 AF, a plague swept across the continent, called the Heat. It produced intense fevers that caused blindness, delirium, hysteria. The body grew warm enough to melt ice, and eventually the organs overheat, and the body explodes into flames. The Snolakthïr healers were the only people immune to the plague, and they struggled to help the laymen survive. It was [correctly] speculated that the Pilkös created the Heat with the help of the Zoraxil alchemists. When the disease was a fullscale pandemic, the people asked the Snolakthïr to come to power.

Snolakthïr Council come to power in 3366 AF. They incorporated every survivor into the Snolakthïr, and made every citizen a Maya. Soon, the plague vanished, and the Snolakthïr Council eradicated the monarchies governing the land, introducing the concept of political anarchy. Mekthnel entered an absolute golden age; everyone single citizen was Maya, and was given time to remember their dreams. During this time, Mekthnel was the closest that any society on the surface of the planet would ever come to recreating the harmony of the Rings. They held massive arts festivals, they had great accelerations in music, they learned how to carve stone using the mind.

In the year 3622 AF, a famous Snolakthïr architect named Alekthar goes to Golgóssa to help repay Mekthnel’s debt to the Kaí,kusaí. He builds a massive structure in the deep forest, accidentally ending the Shelf Truce.

Colonial. In the year 3880 AF, Arfaxad invaded Mekthnel. The Snolakthïr, who had lived for centuries in a peaceful golden age of anarchism, were completely opposed to the new colonial regime with central authority. They attempted to enserf the people of Mekthnel, who resisted to the last man, and mounted a spirited defense. And although the Snolakthïr were powerful, the Commonwealth had dozens of Lektha in their service. In a few short years, they hunted down every last Snolakthïr in the continent, and slayed them without mercy. This genocide was known as the Twilight of the Snolakthïr. The genocide was unbearable for the Sixth immortal, Vesta. Watching her people die, she dwells within the silence of the mountains, and turns to ice for 100 years.

The Event. During the Event, portions of the High Bridge crumbled. A great avalanche swept up all the northern cities. The Old capital city of the Agatha clan, Sekthona, becomes the center of many myths, while Gorokthan, the Old capital city of the Lektha clan, remains hidden. The last surviving Snolakthïr, whose survival is a total secret, live there.

Taboo of the Maya. There were precious few Snolakthïr left to begin with, and whoever turns up is threatened. 1416 two Maratim spies captured in Mekthnel, inspires Devorenism. The first female Duke, assassinated by the Silvercore.

Notable Names. Marikthar Olath. Sekthalis. Alekthar. Ekthïva. Arakthel. Vorakthar. Sudakthar. Darakthar. Varis. Vesta.

## Politics

During the early period, the clans were ruled by matriarchal absolute-monarchies. The Queens were chosen for the white moles upon their bodies, which were compared to the constellations in the sky. When the Heat killed the non-Maya, and the Snolakthïr took over, the entire continent became a network of syndacates without central authority. Anarchism!

## Economy

Cashless society; the economy revolved around trade and giving thanks.

## Law

Slavery absolutely illegal. No written law, individual cases determined by public gatherings.

## Class

In the ancient world, there were two classes: Dreamers and Wakers. After the Snolakthïr come to power, Classless society. There are ranks within the Snolakthïr training, but that does not determine one’s worth.

## Currency

After colonialism, they use Commonwealth Speech.

## Military

The only weapons were made of white wood. The Snolakthïr wield white staffs, and bows and arrows.

## Technology

They had simple physical technology revolving arounds stone. But they had advanced spiritual technologies. The Snolakthïr were able to construct immaterial devices on the Akastral realm, which could have very real physical effects. This is how subtractive architecture works.

## Transportation

High Bridge. Reindeer sleigh. Riding Mantas in the Akastral.

## Communication

The Snolakthïr can communicate easily at long distances using the Akastral Realm.

## Medicine

The most common medicine is a thick plasm tea which causes one to vomit their sickness. But there were also the saunas, which were reserved for women. They enter the sauna nude, and remain there until they’re close to passing out from the heat. Then they leap into a frigid lake. They return into the sauna and repeat the cycle sometimes sixty times.

## Cuisine

A truly omnivore diet. They perform a Rite of Indebtedness every time they eat meat, which includes visualizing the living animal, and thanking them for their sacrifice, and promising to make good use of their energy.

## Fashion

They typically wear three layers: their thick inner robes; their full-body scarves; and the top layer, the mantle. There are many types: the Alkatross feathers, the Monkth wool, the Stagaho, and the prized Lektha pelt, which is very rare. It’s common to wear tight body suit underneath all clothing which comes up the neck and ends at the chin. Pale blue, grey, red.

## Language

Non-existent after the Twilight of the Snolakthïr.

## Music

Two streams: the popular drum and voice songs, meant for dancing, and the contemplative throat singing which is powerful enough to induce psychedelic hallucinations in the listener. Often used during Snolakthïr ceremonies.

## Myth

Very early myth regards the being Brekthnïr, the Eighth immortal, whose dark tentacles reach for the underworld, Nenakthel, and attempt to sever one’s silver chord. But Vesta and her spectral Manta Rays are the guardians of the Akastral, and fight the tentacles of Brekthnïr everywhere. Slowly over time, Vesta evolved to become a goddess of the hearth. Every house has a big hearth, which is also an altar to Vesta. Travelers who get caught in blizzard and freeze to death are said to be saved by Vesta. She blows the warmth of life back into them and they wake up in their beds by a warm fire.

Vesta gave a strand of her hair to make a pendulum, and determine the length of measurement: one strand.

A common myth of the Lektha clan are the tests that their ancestors had to pass before the Lektha allowed them to live in their territory. The Snolakthïr of the Lektha clan arrived from the west. The Lektha greeted them after they toured the whole continent and chose this spot. They said, we have a few tests for you. On the first night, the Lektha slept in their rooms with them, and the Snolakthïr were not afraid. On the second night, they lay their claws right up to the faces of the Snolakthïr, but they do not flinch. On the third night, the Lektha actually tear the Snolakthïr up. Still, they showed no fear. They continued to play their pleasant dance music, even after death. The Lektha respected the Snolakthïr greatly after passing this third test, and made a truce with the Snolakthïr, allowing them to hunt some Lektha, and wear them as a mantle, in exchange for the Snolakthïr they killed.

Lakthmï and Ekthïva, an ancient love story. They met first in the Akastral, the Dream House, every night for years. They were madly in love in the Akastral, but Lakthmï was afraid that Ekthïva would lose interest when they met in person. When they finally met, Ekthïva was shocked to realize that Lakthmï had crooked teeth. But to Lakthmï’s shock, Ekthïva was a woman! They remained in love regardless.

Marakthmï is proud of how well she can meditate. She enters the meditation-dream called Lekedsen, and travels so far into the Akastral that she gets lost. Eventually she finds a silver stream, which leads her back to her physical body. The silver stream is filled with glikfish. A great storm was approaching, and the fish warned Marakthmï. The Two-Hearted eels attempt to trap Marakthmï so she cannot warn the rest of her village, but she manages to escape by opening her topmost Plekthüra. Marakthmï warns her village of the coming storm, so they build an undercity where they would be safe, and slept the whole winter there. This was the first Hibernation, the Alükthesök.

A legend that the spider-people let the Snolakthïr into a deep cavern at the north pole, which connected them with the underworld known to them as Nenakthel. They found the cave after following the north star for 36 days. There was rumor of a pact with the Zoraxil, who entered a similar cave at the south pole. They exchanged knowledge there, in the underworld. The Zoraxil taught the Snolakthïr about another light, the inner light, which entered at the bottommost Plekthüra and rose. The blockages to each are triggered by our affects, that is, how we affect and are affected. No change can happen quickly, and all extreme emotions except joy as signs of a blockage. Art, especially tragedy, was considered a method of accelerating one’s unblocking.

###### Book of the Snolakthïr

by Gormen Gavras deTeltic

> The mystics of Mekthnel believe in Seven realms. They learn to see these Realms with their seven Gazes, and they tell how the seven Realms came to be in the following creation myth.
>
>
> The first realm is Tokthela, the void-canvas. Within Tokthela, there is neither time nor space. Ekthïran, the eternal fog, the creator-destroyer, dwelled alone within Tokthela. But Ekthïran did not dwell in Tokthela, rather Tokthela dwelled within Ekthïran. They are one; the eternal realm and the eternal dweller.
>
>
> When it suited them, which was both immediately and never, Ekthïran sought to experience the one thing they were not: the finite. So, they began to dream of a realm where they could create their finite children, whose eyes they would look through.
>
>
> According to the Snolakthïr, the power to dream is the power to create. So, to dream of this finite realm was to create it. And given enough time, Ekthïran would wake up from this finite dream. According to the Snolakthïr, waking up is the power to destroy. And given enough time, Ekthïran would slip into a dream once more, and re-created what had been destroyed, learning from the previous dream, always seeking to create a more perfect dream: a synthesis of the finite and the eternal, which they would not destroy.
>
>
> So, Ekthïran created the First, the imperfect being known as Zareknel. Ekthïran made the First like themself, but removed all their powers save one: the power to manipulate the fog with his thoughts. As he grew, Zareknel realized that his thoughts were like magnets, moving the matter within the fog. At first, his excitement of being alive compelled the matter of the fog to form a beautiful, bright star, filling the first realm with bright light. The star was known as Zorakthïn. And although the star was beautiful, and gave the fog a center, Zaraknel’s thoughts were too bright, and burnt themselves out. When the star burnt out, Ekthïran awoke once more, back in the first realm of Tokthela.
>
>
> But given enough time, Ekthïran went back to sleep. They created the First once more, who created Zorakthïn once more, but this time, Ekthïran created the Second, the imperfect being known as Sekthelk. Ekthïran made the Second like themself, but removed all their powers save one: the power to manipulate the fog with her desire. As she grew, Sekthelk realized that her desires were like magnets, moving the matter within the fog. At first, her lust compelled the fog to encase the star with a sphere of solid earth. And although the earth was firm, and created a foundation for life, it also concealed the light. Sekthelk feared her own power, and what desires might proliferate in the darkness, and this fear itself compelled pits to form in the foundation, which become known as Nenakthel. Once more, the star known as Zorakthïn burnt out, and Ekthïran awoke in the first realm, Tokthela.
>
>
> And once more, Ekthïran went to sleep, and created the First who created Zorakthïn, and created the Second who created Nenakthel. But this time, Ekthïran created the Third, the imperfect being known as Kalikto. Ekthïran made the Third like themselves, but removed all their powers save one: the power to manipulate the fog with her willpower. As she grew, Kalikto realized that her willpower was like a magnet, moving the matter within the fog. At first, she feared the darkness of the Nenakthel, but then she understood that the darkness was merely an expression of Ekthïran, and thus herself, and she needn’t fear it, for the one fearing the darkness was the darkness itself. And so, her will compelled the fog to enclose Nenakthel with a fertile sphere, a Realm known as Felohakthel. There, upon the surface of the planet, wild beasts came into existence with wills of their own. But the surface was a mixed realm, and the echoes of the Nenakthel could be heard. The beasts had free will to listen to these echoes, and sometimes they did terrible things. One more, the star known as Zorakthïn burnt out, and Ekthïran awoke in the first realm, Tokthela.
>
>
> And once more, Ekthïran went to sleep, and created the First who created Zorakthïn, and created the Second who created Nenakthel, and created the Third who created Felohakthel. But this time, Ekthïran created the Fourth, the imperfect being known as Hathor. Ekthïran made the Fourth like themself, but removed all their powers save one: the power to manipulate the fog with compassion. As he grew, Hathor realized that his love was like a magnet, moving the matter within the fog. At first, his love compelled the fog to encircle the surface of the planet with Rings of crystals in orbit, a Realm known as Nüvakthïn. Hathor’s love was so strong that the crystals on Rings grew into living people who could walk around, and who had free will of their own, and who had desires of their own, and who had the excitement of being alive within their hearts. As the rings spun around the earth, Ekthïran put his arm around Hathor and said, “Hathor, you have created a Realm where my children can live.” And as time went on, the rings called Nüvakthïn fell into the surface of the earth called Felohakthel, and the Ekthïran’s children descended into the pits called Nenakthel. And at the end of the dream, the star known as Zorakthïn burnt out, and Ekthïran awoke back in the first realm, Tokthela. They had succeeded in creating a Realm suitable for their children, but Ekthïran was curious what came next. Perhaps they could find a way to stop the star from burning out.
>
>
> So once again, Ekthïran went to sleep, and created the First who created Zorakthïn, and created the Second who created Nenakthel, and created the Third who created Felohakthel, and created the Fourth who created Nüvakthïn, but this time, Ekthïran created the Fifth, the imperfect being known as Akthon. Ekthïran made the Fifth like themself, but removed all their powers save one: the power to manipulate the fog with language. As he grew, Akthon realized his words were like magnets, moving the matter within the fog. At first, his beautiful poems compelled the fog to become great waterfalls falling from the rings to the surface, and into the pits below. But as time went on, the children of Ekthïran began to speak to one another, sharing their thoughts and their emotions in a language called Colokthïs, which was like a realm where every being had a proper Name. And as time went on, the rings called Nüvakthïn fell into the surface of the earth called Felohakthel, and Ekthïran’s children descended into the pits called Nenakthel. And at the end of the dream, the star known as Zorakthïn burnt out, and Ekthïran awoke in the first realm, Tokthela. They had succeeded in giving their children the ability to speak, but they could not defy the gravity of Zorakthïn.
>
>
> So once again, Ekthïran went to sleep, and created the First who created Zorakthïn, and created the Second who created Nenakthel, and created the Third who created Felohakthel, and created the Fourth who created Nüvakthïn, and created the Fifth who created Colokthïs, but this time Ekthïran created the Sixth, the imperfect being known as Vesta. Ekthïran made the Sixth like themself, but removed all their powers save one: the power to manipulate the fog with dreams. As she grew, Vesta realized her dreams were like magnets, shaping the matter within the fog. At first, she dreamed the stars in the heavens above. But as time went on, she began to dream that the children of Ekthïran had the power to dream for themselves. Their dreams were called the Akastral, and even as the rings crashed into the surface, they continued to dream. And even as they descended into the pits, they continued to dream. And even in the final moments when the star called Zorakthïn burnt out, they were still dreaming.
>
>
>
> Ekthïran awoke in the first realm, Tokthela. They had succeeded in giving their children the ability to dream, but they still could not defy the gravity of Zorakthïn. So once again, Ekthïran went to sleep, and created the First who created Zorakthïn, and created the Second who created Nenakthel, and created the Third who created Felohakthel, and created the Fourth who created Nüvakthïn, and created the Fifth who created Colokthïs, and created the Sixth who created Akastral, but this time Ekthïran created the Seventh, the imperfect being known as Ekthïran. That’s right, Ekthïran dreamed themself into their own dream. According to the Snolakthïr, this Seventh dream is the dream we are currently within, and so nothing is known how this dream will play out.
>
>

## Rituals

Entering Hibernation. They set water into the cups of the stone figures upon the top of the Vïkthas, called Gobekelthïns, which reflect certain constellations.

Exiting Hibernation. The mystics visit the huge stone figures with cups for hands. These are called Gobekelthïns. They melt the water frozen in the cups and drink them, consuming the reflection of the constellation trapped within the ice.

The seventh day of the week is called Dreamday. It is a weekly celebration the fact that everyone is Maya. They sleep in.

Ritual of Birth. The Snolakthïr keep the newborn in darkness and paint their skin with six lines of the indigo maïktha of the tundra. One line is washed away each night. This helps the spirit transition into the body. They are brought into the starlight on the sixth night. On the child’s Seventh day, they are brought suddenly into the sunlight.

On the child’s Sixth birthday, they are taught that their true parents are the sun and the stars, and they are on eath to shine like them. The child is taught of the Six energy centers, the Plekthüra, each of which corresponds to one of the Realms. On the child’s Seventh birthday, they are taught of the Seventh Plekthüra. The healers of the Snolakthïr, which are called Thïokthen, study the Plekthüra to see what blockages need clearing in the child, often using amekthïst crystals to clear their vision, before helping the afflicted clear their blockages by entering their dreams. The blockages in the Plekthüra block the light which is meant to shine through them into the world. They visualize the Plekthüra as mirrors reflecting light from the top to the bottom. One must only open the door at the top of the head to receive guidance. Spirit enters the door at the top of the head at birth, leaves at death, but can be opened safely during the meditation-dream called the Lekedsen, where they enter the Akastral Realm, also called the Dream House.

## Calendar

Based on the cycle of the constellations. They do not count days, they simply commemorate when the sun moves into a new constellation in the sky, but there are more precise means of measuring the year. After leaving hibernation, there is the arrival of bioluminsent plankton. This signifies it is time to melt all the ice over the crops. The return of the geese signified it is time sprinkle the icedust over the crops. The discoloration of the rivers means it is time to harvest the crops. And when the the city’s hearth is blown out, it’s time to hibernate.

The New Year begins when the constellation Maktherak is reflected in the cup-hands of the Gobekelthïns. The mystic who is charged with remaining awake, above ground, guarding the Gobekelthïns then melts the water in the Gobekelthïns and wakes up the Undercity, who come up to the observatories on the Vïkthas. The aurora has been running throughout hibernation, most people only catch the tail end of it.

## Religion

The followers of Ekthïran. They learn about Ekthïran, the eternal, who is pure consciousness. They are taught how to invite more and more of the consciousness into themselves. They invite Ekthïran to see through their eyes.

They are taught that Uktha is prana, the vital force, cosmic power of knowledge and action. The silent meditation consists in identifying with Uktha; and staring up to the stars.

The heart connects us all as one, but some with sealed hearts use the heart only to divide. These we call the Two-hearted. The Two-hearted are compelled by the red planet. They believe that the constellations have energy, and speak to us.

They also believe time is simultaneous. They purge guilt and punishment from the mental system. This idea is appropriated by the fringe sect, called the Künbrekthnïr, to legitimize dark deeds without guilt. “The punishment might as well come before the act.” All life is dream, let the dream unroll without shame. The Künbrekthnïr follow another god, the Eighth immortal, the god of nightmares. Ekthïran is a god that spread consciousness, whereas Brekthnïr is a god that consumes consciousness.

## Gender and sex

Politically Mekthnel was matriarchal until the Snolakthïr Council comes to power. But the genders have always been culturally equal. Mekthnel is also the most enlightened when it comes to homosexuality.

## Architecture

Before subtractive architecture they lived in hexagonal stone cobbs in tiered cities upon the steep slopes of mountainsides. After Sekthalis invents subtractive architecture in 2566 AF, cities are carved out of the mountain flesh itself, so the whole city is part of one continuous stone with a central design. Unbelievably beautiful cities with plentiful public spaces, balconies, gardens, walkways, tunnels, etc. They have massive stone braziers in the heart of the village that burn until hibernation. The colonists adopt these.

## Aesthetics

Sculpture is enormously popular. There are yearly sculpture festivals. There are also extremely popular fashion shows of new mantles, the Paktho.

## Education

Everyone attends school, even adults, and the elderly. Education and religion are considered one and the same institution, and one never graduates, one simply attends less often. Adults usually come to one lecture per week.

## Philosophy

Philosophy is a branch of the Maya tradition; they mostly ruminate upon the nature of time.

## Magic

The Sixth Way; the Way of Dreaming; Snolakthïr, Stargazers.

The Sixth Way revolves around the Dream-principle. The tyro is assigned to a master, who takes the tyro on journeys into the wilderness. The master knows the leylines that criss-cross around the continent. There are certain nodes of energy on the continent where dreams are more potent. The master takes the tyro to the Vïktha built upon one of those nodes, and they both go to sleep. They might spend months sleeping with only a few hours awake. The early lessons usually involve remembering one’s dreams, and seeking the hidden meanings within. The tyro eventually learns that their master is within their own dreams, helping them grow lucid. When they tyro learns to lucid dream, they leave the Vïktha and go into the wilderness to hunt. The skill of lucid dreaming is applied to reality. The tyro realizes they can influence events in reality in exactly the same way they can in the dream. Various exercises are employed to encourage greater lucidity, including the rapid alternation between hot and cold.

The tyro is encouraged to believe that they are still dreaming. Much of the Sixth Way revolves around belief, not as a power added to reality, but a power that filters reality. Our beliefs are like lenses that only let pass light of the same hue as itself. The goal is not to refine one’s belief, but to broaden it, until the point when the lenses come off.

They learn to shoot arrows blindfolded, using nothing but their belief to guide their shots.

The key to lucidity is believed to reside in the pineal gland, the third eye. The tyro learns to dwell within the Third Eye during long silent meditations. The tyro is expected to have a Sakthorï, a sudden awakening, when the third eye opens, and the tyro learns to see with the Thï, the gazes. Each gaze allows the tyro to Gaze into one of the realms described in the Book of the Snolakthïr [in the “myths” section above.]

The Gazes are:

* Tokthelï,      Void, the oppositional gaze
* Nenakthï,      Darkness, the shadow gaze
* Felohakthï,    Life, the detailed gaze
* Nüvakthï,      Rings, the energetic gaze
* Colokthï,      Language, the interpretive gaze
* Akastrï,       Dream, the creative gaze

When the Master believes their tyro is ready, they undertake the dangerous rite of passage: the Mayahuaktha journey. Mayahuaktha is an extremely potent psychedelic tea, which induces reality-bending hallucinations for 24 hours. If the tyro comes through this experience, they realize that reality itself is a dream. They are now officially a Snolakthïr.

The Snolakthïr are divided into two constellaitons: those esoteric mystics who contemplate the universe from the Vïkthas, and the exoteric healers who enter into the cities, helping people. The latter are known as the Aureokthe. They use the gazes to do all manner of tasks to help the people, first and foremost being the Dreamsurfers. They perform the extremely dangerous task of Surfing from their own dreams into the dreams of another. This is dangerous because the hidden wizards of the Künbrekthnïr are always looking for vulnerable silver cords to cut, separating a Snolakthïr from their bodies, and stealing their soul to sacrifice to their god, Brekthnïr, who dwells in the underworld.