Oath to the Gods
Chapter 1
A Memory

"A long, long, time ago, before you, or even I have ever been born, Atavichshizt was not yet the beautiful place that is now... said old Zefachrinze. Travisten, a pretty little girl with bright grass green eyes listened intently to her grandmother's story. "... the world was nothing but a meager void where only light and darkness existed." Zefachrinze continued. "The only things that were found in the void, was the never ending ocean and the giant Atavichshizt. The giant was lonely so he created himself twelve sons and daughters. From the water he made Fichz the god of time. From his mouth he created Boze the god of earthly elements. Out of his breath he created Fae, goddess of weather. From his eye sprang Sawen, the goddess of bounty. From the light he made the goddess Paseu, the sun. From the darkness he created the goddess Minode, the moon. From his blood Vestioch, god of life. From his hands came Zafien, the goddess of protection. From his tears came Fon, the god of emotion. From his voice Fen the god of reason. From his mind Jazieum the god of wisdom. And from his heart came Genshzae the goddess of punishment."
"Really grandmother?" retorted Travisten in the heavy Atavichshiztanlanguage. "But what about evil? Shouldn't there be--" But her grandmother interrupted her in a stern voice. "Yes, there is no god of evil. You're a very smart girl to have noticed that. But let me explain..." the old woman sighed."... evil is not an emotion nor an act as most people suppose. But it is something that has existed as long as time has. It is something that can never be explained clearly."
"But there is a god of time!" Travisten protested. "Yes, but the great god Fichz only decides the past, present, and future. Real time has been there before the gods. They did not create it! The entire universe is balanced on three things: Time, change, and 'Basbach' meaning good and evil.
"But isn't good and evil different?" asked Travisten. Her grandmother replied, "Without evil there can be no good, so they are only one." "But--" Travisten was about to reply but her grandmother only said. "Do not ask questions no more, it is getting late. But I can assure you that time, change, and 'Basbach' are things that are absolute. Things that are everywhere and forever will be. Go to bed now. Tomorrow I will have to tell you something..."

Travisten woke up up ealry the next day to the brightness of the goddess Paseu over the great city of Oechtehach in which she lived. She ran down the ancient stone staircase from her room, the beautiful alabaster ceiling of her home decorated and glittering with marvelous architecture. She continued running until she reached her grandmother's house which was just around her father's grounds , somewhere near the edge of the forest.
Zefachrinze's house was not as elaborate or as well kept as Travisten's, nor was it as large, but it was beautiful non the less. The house was of simpler architecture, only one floor and laid out in a U shape. It was lined with white marble pillars and behind them where white stone doors which obviously led to the inner rooms where Zefachrinze lived. The pillars had vines on them that sprouted sapphire-blue flowers called 'minodmae', meaning 'Eye of Minode". The flower's dark blue contrasted beautifully to the white of the pillars, giving them the illusion of giving off a soft blue light. Travisten saw her grandmother sitting as usual by the little clear pond that was in the center of the garden, in the middle of the U shape. "I was wondering when you'd come." Zefachrinze croaked. Her voice was coarse and dry, quite unlike the beautiful deep pitch she used to have.
Travisten knelt down beside the old lady, looking rather worried, because Zefachrinze indeed looked pale and sickly. "I am very glad you came Travisten..." "Why did you call me here grandmother?" Travisten said with a note of rising worry in her voice. "Let me tell you a story..." Zefachrinze continued, sounding more and more dry with eachword. "After the giant's death, his body fell into the never-ending ocean and became land. To commemorate their father's death, the twelve sons and daughters created the world... they separated light and darkness and decorated his body with mountains, rivers, and vegetation... and lastly,Vestioch created humans that will honor and worship their father and themselves. Fen and Jazieum worked together to give them knowledge and understanding so they know how to be good and faithful to the gods. As a last rite, the twelve gods made a pact, an oath that they will always live together in peace and take care of the world they created."
Travisten looked at her doubtingly, believing that her grandmother was not yet finished with that story. After a short silence Travisten became impatient and asked her grandmother politely what the real reason of her visit was. Zefachrinze sighed and said that to remember the pact of the gods, the High Priests declared the Ofev Lafinzech; Oath to the Gods.
This was the highest ranking promise a mortal could make. The person was bound to this promise until the day of his death and the breaking of that oath meant a severe punishment, bestowed by the gods themselves.
"Unfortunately, some people neglected the Ofev Lafinzech and promise carelessly without thinking. Because of their irresponsibility they tend to break their oaths and suffer the consequences. Those things have happened to the race of the Speghae; forest people that used to live in this very forest. They all vowed under the rule of Ringach that they will never break the peace of the land... but they became jealous of the beautiful craftsmanship of the people of Oechtehach and decided to take our ancestors as slaves one month after their oath.
They attacked Oechtehach and broke the Ofev Lafinzech in which they promised not to disturb the peace.. and so as punishment, the gods shrank their bodies and contorted their faces... ashamed of their horrible appearance, they fled back to their homes and became the fairy people... forver hiding in the depths of the woodland." Zefachrinze added. Travisten looked at her amazed, simply disgusted at the idea of ugly little sprites living in her grandmother's back yard. When she came back to her senses she asked what the connecton of the Speghae is to whatever her grandmother wants to tell her.
"The point is my dear Travisten, that in my youth I promised never to fall in love with any man under the code of the Ofev Lafinzech. I unfortunately broke my oath one month after, just like the Speghae. It was when I met your grandfather at the age of forty eight. One year later your mother was born and at that moment the great goddess Zafien came down and told me that she has spared me from a more horrible punishment for I, despite the fact that I ignored my oath, truly am a good person. But still I needed to pay for what I did for those are the laws. Our race is blessed with longevity. And many of us live more than 300 years... She gave me an unusually short life that will end on the moment Paseu reaches the half of her journey on my one hundreth birthday... which is today"
Travisten jumped on those last words and sputtered. "WHAT? TODAY??! BUT NOON IS FIFTEEN MINUTES FROM NOW AND- AND--" "Hush." Her grandmother said kindly. "Times cannot be changed... please understand. I do not have much time left... but you can restore my honor." "H-How?" said Travisten, her voice trembling and choked back with tears. "Make the same promise... remit my dignity by repeating my oath under the Ofev Lafinzech that you will never take any man as your partner."
"But I am still a little girl!" sobbed Travisten under the gaze of her benign grandmother. But Zefachrinze said "You are still young... but you are the smartest girl I have ever met... You hold the cleverness of your mother." Travisten smiled weakly at Zefachrinze and while tears fell from her eyes she whispered at the last second the sun reached the center of the sky, "Ech ofev lafinzech ech si feren lafin ea michea brech fa zizeach Zefachrinze." (I oath to the gods that I will never fall to love nor marry any man by the blood of Zefachrinze the wise.)