Four people from different backgrounds were gifted with the ability to receive messages from the gods and to perceive certain things invisible to the eyes of others. The first was an Orc, the second a Rokath, the third an Elf and the last a Dwarf. Each of them wished to help those around them with their precious gift. They delivered enigmatic messages to answer questions about people’s love lives, their health, what the future held in store for them, or simply to get advice on a variety of subjects. Unfortunately, the surrounding villages soon heard about this and asked for their assistance too.
Still very young and naive, the oracles agreed to help them as best they could. In exchange, they received food, furniture, firewood and even jewelry and decorations. Villagers lined up outside their homes all day long for the opportunity to obtain messages from the gods and guiding spirits. Even at night, people knocked on their doors without a second thought to their well-being or their need for rest.
But it wasn't what bothered the oracles, idealistic children or young teenagers hoping to make the world a better place. What shocked them most was everything they felt about their customers. While some were appreciable, others were morally dubious, sometimes even horrifying. They came into contact with people who were selfish, greedy, manipulative and even cruel souls who hid corpses here and there. These horrifying emotions crawled under their skin like poisonous insects intent on making their nests there.
The more time passed, the more the oracles' faces contorted with grief and hollowed by acid tears. On a shadowless night, with the moons aligned and the world celebrating a holvesh, the oracles isolated themselves at home and meditated. They felt and communicated with each other about all they were experiencing. For the first time in their lives, they could be heard.
During the holv that followed, they set aside a few hours each night to talk to each other in the astral plane. Surrounded by a force field, levitating as they sat cross-legged, no one could disturb them. They thought they could hold on psychologically by supporting each other like this. Without flinching, they endured the malicious people who gave them visions of horror, the liars and the abusers.
One day, the Orc touched one of the gifts they had received and were confronted with a vision of the old world so terrifying that their mind remained blocked in the invisible world. Their friends went looking for them, sensing their distress, and somehow managed to save them. However, what they had discovered had terrified them so much that they no longer felt able to guide anyone; they had reached their limit.
Without a word to anyone else, they met up in a dark forest reputed to be cursed, and lost themselves in the deepest part of the woods, taking on new names: Skeronul, Hjangrior, Sedr and Skutha. The surrounding villages heard about them and tried to approach them to take advantage of their talents, but were repelled by nightmarish illusions and terrifying spirits. Only those who came simply to bring them food and clothing without asking for anything in return, mindful of their need for retreat, were lucky enough to see the four forms appear before them. They were dressed in long, ragged robes made of various dark fabrics in the shades of nature. They all wore long masks, each with a different crown and black tears painted under their eyes. Skeronul had several rocky mushroom caps; Hjangrior stalagmites; Sedr horns twisted like snakes; and Skutha, two halos surrounding a sa broken one and a crescent moon at the center.
Seeing them is considered an act of gratitude, and always fills benefactors with great sorrow but also unparalleled serenity. The villages closest to Velgoth Forest hope to bring them the peace they deserve. As for the vision that drove them into isolation, it remains a mystery still the subject of many debate.
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