{"sf1_id":8649,"sf2_id":"XekKjode","title":"Prologue: Creation","author":"The Roseblack Dragon","words":1881,"posted_at":"2005-12-31T09:07:00.000Z","tags":["Action","Adventure","Character Development","Drama","F/F","M/F","M/M","Plot Development"],"url":"https://fse.anthro.fr/stories/8649-prologue-creation","original_url":"https://sofurry.com/s/XekKjode","image_url":"https://cdn.sofurryfiles.com/submissions/thumbnails/8b/2d/8b2d1f1b-c5c9-48fc-a43e-5a81c2605ef3","description":"#1 of Tales of Ippon","content":"This is the prolgue to an epic i am working on. It will have almost every aspect of life in it, as  \nwell as a decent amount of Yiff. Various subjects will be touched on, and some may offend  \npeople. In short, if you do not think you will like parts of this story, do not read them, bu t  \nknow that each chapter will have references to previous chapters, so you may lose out by  \nskipping a chapter.  \n  \n  \nALL the characters are Copyrighted to me, and are NOT to be used wihtout permission. Many  \nof these characters are based on those of other people, but they are still my characters, just  \nmy way of showing my respect for the people that they are based on, but i will not name  \nnames.  \n  \n  \nThis prologue is to set the stage for the story, and it contains the major information that  \naffects the Story. It should be read first.  \n  \n  \n  \n============================================================  \n  \n  \n  \nHistory is marked by wars. These wars are fought for countless reasons; Love,  \nHate, Greed, Beliefs. The people of the archipelago nation of Ippon knew wars well. In fact,  \nthey were in a constant state of war. The lands separated into forty-eight provinces, each  \nsquabbling over the land someone else owned. Provincial Lords would attack their  \nneighboring province to gain land and the Farmers of that land would be given spear and bow  \nto defend it. The land belonged to the Lords, but the farmers were 'given' the land to grow  \ncrops on for use in feeding the people. But the land had to be defended, and that was also  \npart of the Farmers' lot. They did not go without aid, for the farmer-armies were bolstered by  \nranks of Samurai. Samurai were masters of warfare in all its forms. A single Samurai could  \ndecimate a squadron of footmen with only minor scrapes and cuts afterward.  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; While covered in battle and steeped in blood; the land of Ippon was not without  \nbeauty. Fantastic legends, and a variety of people unseen elsewhere in the world gave the  \nland a majesty and personality that was all its own. Of all the legends, the one of  \nIppon's 'creation' was the best told...  \n  \n  \n_In the Celestial Castle of Heaven, the Six Gods sat in council as they had since times  \nforgotten, governing the world from the ancient chamber. In his soft chair of silk and leather  \nsat Ganta, God of the East, and patron of the Sun, His Robes afire with Crimson and gold. He  \npainted the Sunrise and chased the night away. Across from him sat his twin sister, Ikito.  \nShe represented the West, and wore her flowing robes of Sapphire and silver over her long,  \nbeauteous form. Hers was the world of the Lake and the Sea, and she called forth the  \nevening, painting the Sunset as she did so each day. To her left was her sister, Seated in the  \nNorthern throne of Bone and Fur. Rakari commanded the winds and ushered in the Winters.  \nShe was a silent sort, unless roused by anger, when she would rage as the typhoon. She  \nwore armor of shimmering emerald, adorned in platinum. Across from her was her Brother,  \nGod of the south, Sufai. Sufai was a friendly sort, round and generous, he loved life, and the  \nlads that all creatures walked on. He preferred a simple wool pillow for his seat, and His plain  \nrobes were dyed with brilliant yellows, and he wore fine jewelry crafted from Bronze, Brass,  \nTin, Steel, and other common metals._  \n\n\u0026nbsp; In the Center of the room stood the true twin gods, neither male nor female, yet  \nboth at once. The two were always at odds, even more so than the other four. Gasara wore  \nhis massive armor of midnight black and obsidian, His red eyes blazing with the fires of  \nconflict. He gripped his spear, able to slay cities in a single swing, and level mountains with  \nhis breath. His counterpart, Rasaga, faced him always. Her robes Resplendent in brilliant  \nWhite and pearl, with her eyes closed forever in a peaceful smile. In her grasp was the  \nbranch of the first tree ever grown on creation, able to gift life to hundreds with a touch, and  \nfeed as many from a single fruit.  \n  \n  \n  \nSince the dawn of time, the Six argued and fought over everything. Alliances and  \nagreements were made, and broken constantly. At some point, one of the servant spirits  \nattempted to suggest that the Six should work together on a project, each offering their best  \nwork. The Six devoured the Spirit, but his idea lived on past his life. After a Time, the Six  \neach reached down, deep into the Sea and pulled up an island, shaping it to their whims.  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; Ganta carefully shaped his island, giving it steep mountains on the western side,  \ncovering them with thick forests. He made the island long and narrow from north to south,  \nleaving the eastern side open and low, allowing whatever lived on his island to enjoy his  \nsunrises along with him.  \n  \nSufai made his Island larger than Ganta's, raising it far out of the sea and shaping  \nmany cliffs and valleys into the land. He embedded his favorite metals in the rocks, making  \nthe ground rich and hardy, but the sheer inclines of the mountain faces would make it almost  \nimpossible to farm crops.  \n  \nIkito used very little land, shaping it into a circle, and leaving the sea contained in  \nthe center. She gave her favored creature, the Fish, plenty of homes in this contained ocean.  \n  \nRakari, not one to be outdone by her brother, pulled the most land up between  \nand to the north of all the other islands. On the southern end of her island, she shaped a  \nmassive mountain, and she blew across the lower lands, her breath carving exotic shapes  \ninto the mountain's side.  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; Gasara decided that Rakari's mountain was far too audacious, so he Thrust his  \nspear into the top, wounding the world, and pulling up the flaming rock from within. The  \ninjury to the earth was so deep, that the land would bleed molten stone forever.  \n  \nRasaga wept at her twin's actions, shedding six tears that sprung into the people  \nof this new land that would come to be called Ippon.  \n  \n  \n  \nAs with the Land, the Gods claimed each of the people for themselves, making  \nmore that they could shape to their whims. Ganta favored the fox above all creatures. Wise,  \ncunning, playful... His people were given the features of the fox, making them look much like  \nthe creatures they were shaped after.  \n  \nSufai adored the Reptiles of the land, with their shimmering scales and closeness  \nto the ground. His people were shaped after the serpents and lizards, and they would know  \nthe land well.  \n  \nRakari enjoyed the company of her Wolves, and so she gave her people the  \nfeatures and strengths of her favored animal, tying them forever to the wilderness she had  \nmade.  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; Ikito decided that her people should love the ocean as she did, so she shaped her  \nchosen after the dolphins and smaller whales that traversed her waters.  \n  \nRasaga, in her kindness, allowed her people to remain unchanged, but she gifted  \na handful with the shapes of horses, marking them to be noble and blessed as her favorite  \ncreature.  \n  \nGasara took his people into hiding, and shaped them as the Rat, intending them to  \nhide and watch, waiting for the time when they would overrun the other races and rule the  \nlands.  \n  \n  \n  \nAs with all things that happen over time, however, the peoples of Ippon took after  \ntheir creators' intentions and banded together. But the people followed the gods' combative  \nnatures as well, and soon they fell to fighting against each other. In time, the Gods were  \nforgotten...  \n  \n  \n  \nThe six races of Ippon did not stay on their patron gods' islands as intended. The  \nlands were shared by all. The Humans left alone by Rasaga multiplied quickly, matching the  \nnumbers of the other races combined. Rasaga's chosen, 'The Rasagan', were placed as the  \nimperial leaders, and all deferred to their leadership and advice. The other chosen adopted  \nthe names of the creatures they were shaped for. The foxes were called 'Jyujin', the  \nWolves: 'Kibajin'. Sufai's reptiles called themselves 'Jirajin', while the Rats of Gasara were  \nthe 'Nezujin'. The only ones who did not follow this concept were Ikito's chosen; calling  \nthemselves 'Suikajin', instead.  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; The people built towns and cities, some of them crafting castles and other battle-  \nready fortresses. Over the millennia, they developed a unique culture, and the land they  \nlived on shaped that culture. The numerous people aligned themselves into large groups they  \ncalled Clans. The clans each claimed land as their own, dividing into provinces... Rice and Fish  \nwere the main ingredients for all the things the people ate, as it was hard to raise livestock  \non the land.  \n  \nOver time, the people divided further into social classes. While the Rasagan were  \nexcluded from this system, being considered the chosen of the god; Race had little effect on  \na person's status.  \n  \nAt the bottom of this social ideal were the 'Eta' or 'untouchables'. These were the  \npeople who would clean the cities, bury the dead, and butcher the livestock that was raised  \nfor food. They were the lowest of the low, and the rest of the people did not speak to, or  \nacknowledge them, unless one of the Eta did something to offend a higher member of  \nsociety, which was rare.  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; Farmers were the next class up, though 'farmers' was more of a general term.  \nA 'Farmer' could be a herder, a blacksmith, a seamstress, a chef, or any number of singular,  \ncommonplace jobs. Farmers were more than half the population of Ippon, and their place in  \nsociety was understood by the higher classes, though not always respected.  \n  \nMerchants were another strata of people, though a bit outside the order.  \nMerchants were generally disliked, as most were greedy, covetous, and sometimes even  \nlarcenous. But, as money became a factor in society, so did the Merchants who handled that  \nmoney. Merchants could acquire anything they wished if they possessed the proper funds,  \nincluding people. For people needed to eat, and food cost money, which the merchants had in  \nabundance.  \n  \nAt the top of the order were the masters of Warfare, the Samurai. Samurai were  \ngiven rights that no others could claim. While a merchant could buy the services of samurai,  \nonly samurai had the 'right of death'. If a farmer splashed water on a samurai, whether  \nintentional or not, the samurai had every right to kill that farmer on the spot. Samurai were  \nnot simply warriors, however. Their own teachings spoke of the quest of perfection in all  \nthings, writing, music, dance, war, life...  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; Even within these categories, there were ranks of status. The leaders of Samurai  \nwere called Daimyos, lords of the land and the creators of laws. Some of them were fair and  \njust, others cruel and war-hungry.  \n  \n  \n  \nThe lands of Ippon were filled with certain examples of these features, and these  \nare only the main items of Ipponese culture. As the Story you read progresses, more will  \nbecome apparent through the telling of the Tales of Ippon...  \n  \n============================================================  \n  \n  \n\n","series":{"name":"Tales of Ippon","next":"https://fse.anthro.fr/stories/8679-chapter-one-conflict.json"}}