The Charr
07-06-2005, 12:13
Weather was the most persistent thing in the world. It went about its business regardless of what those below were doing, and didn't give a thought to whether it was interrupting anything important. Perhaps in some ways it did -- perhaps it enjoyed using its immense power to irritate and interrupt people. It was thought that even the gods themselves couldn't control the beast they had created. And so weather could run rampant, free, doing whatever it wished whenever it liked. It was a foe to be feared.
So Flame Keeper Darkclaw was thankful that it had chosen today to behave itself. The sun was out in full, with no clouds anywhere to be seen. It held a position just askew of the centre of the sky, directly overhead, casting tiny shadows over everything and searing those below with its ferocious heat. The light breeze that disturbed his fur slightly wasn't enough to cool him from that blazing inferno. Still, it was better than rain.
He stood outside, on a huge, newly-constructed marble courtyard, surrounded by dozens of huge stone pillars. Each of these columns was at least 25 feet high, and they were arranged into some sort of 'corridor', running the entire length of the courtyard and placed quite close together. Despite its length and height, the corridor was not very wide. Maybe 10 Charr could walk side-by-side down the corridor without brushing against the pillars. There was nothing in it, nothing around it, only the columns at the sides. It didn't appear to serve any purpose, yet an open space such as this in a city as crowed as this surely suggested that it was important somehow.
Darkclaw was only glad that he had been selected for this duty. It was an honour that his skill, strength, knowledge and faith had been recognised by the Council of Clan Leaders. This was an incredible assignment, and he was pleased that he had been selected to take it. It was the Charr equivalent of becoming the Pope.
Crowds of Charr gathered around the courtyard and its corridor of pillars. They milled around loosely, occasionally bumping into each other and growling excited greetings and talking about the event that was about to occur. Reporters were also present, though an outsider might not recognise them as such. Charr had modern technology just like anyone else in this day and age, except it didn't really 'look' very modern. The video cameras held up by the reporters were quite bulky; they looked cumbersome, heavy, and unsophisticated. They were brown, elegantly designed, and almost looked like they were made from finely-grained wood. If it weren't for the small lense at the front end, one might not have been able to tell what it was for.
Darkclaw looked all around. Bulky, fearsome Guardians from the various United Clans stood vigil all around the square that resided in front of the pillar corridor. The imposing figures didn't move, they simply stood to attention in perfect formation all around the open space. Nearly 1,000 of them. Their armour was more ceremonial than practical; the gold-coloured metal plates which covered their bodies glistened in the midday sun, glowing like the fire gods they had gathered to worship. As with the cameras, their firearms didn't look particularly advanced or practical, but they were designed to kill thick-skinned, bulky Charr -- they were lethal, high-calibre weapons.
Several particularly bulky Charr stepped away from the crowd, and stood right in front of the top end of the 'corridor'. Seven of them, all standing in a line, gazing down on the crowd of thousands with their searing yellow eyes. These were the Clan Leaders. The elegant, traditional clothing they wore was just as minimal as all other civilian clothing, but the impressive decoration clearly set them apart.
The Charr at the centre of the Leaders suddenly raised both his bulky, furry arms and pointed to the sky with his claws. The crowd silenced almost instantly.
"Today we gather to honour the Gods of Fire!" he roared, in a language so guttural, it was doubtful outsiders would have an easy time translating it.
The crowd roared in response, but silenced once more.
"The Gods shall know of our undying faith in them, with this, the largest Flame Temple ever constructed in our lands!" the Leader continued. "Using the modern technologies they have seen fit to give us, we have made a Flame Temple so impressive, so magnificent, that even the Gods themselves will be surprised by its magnitude! Flame Keeper Darkclaw has been tasked with the honour of making sure this dedication to their power is never dulled!"
The crowed roared once again, not stopping this time until Darkclaw stepped forwards, in front of the Clan Leaders.
"Fellow Charr," Darkclaw began. "The Gods of Fire have seen fit to give us technology which allows us to do impressive things. Moving pictures, self-propelled carts, factories, flying machines, electricity... these things are all here because the Gods saw us as worthy of their power. We must make them sure of this belief in us! Our population grows, but our Flame Temples remain the same. No longer. It is time the Gods knew of our true faith. It is time to activate the Reekmaaf Flame Temple! The greatest Flame Temple ever errected!"
As he threw his arms up into the air and let out a bellowing roar, engineers underground nodded at each other and began flicking switches and setting dials. This whole system had never been tested in action before, for once a Flame Temple was lit it could never be extinguished. They had performed safety checks, computer-modelled stress-tests and every other test they could run without switching it on. But they had never switched it on.
Fuel screens lit up green, though. So far there were no red lights. The engineers watched as their creation came to life, and they hoped it didn't simply explode and take out half the city with it.
Fortunately, it didn't. One by one, massive flames suddenly burst from the tops of the columns. It was an impressive sight as plumes of fire blasted upwards one by one, making their way down the corridor towards the other side like a wave of explosions. Once all the pillars had burst to life, they simply... burned. The flames themselves were massive, at least a quarter of the height of the pillars they came from. Each flame touched the other, creating an effect which looked like a wall of fire, hovering just above the pillars. The effect was usually called a 'Flame Corridor' by the Charr, who maintained similar -- if significantly smaller -- temples elsewhere in their nation.
Darkclaw roared once more as he felt the warmth of the fire reach him. The flames burned brightly, yet peacefully, above him, illuminating the area even more than it had been before. The crowd around cheered and roared, throwing their arms up in the air in victorious flourishes. The Gods would be pleased with this offering, Darkclaw was certain.
The crowd stopped cheering as Darkclaw turned around once more, and instead bowed their heads in respect to their Gods. Flame Keeper Darkclaw began to recite an ancient prayer in Ancient Charrian. The event would probably go on for the rest of the day now, broadcast via satellite to the homes and offices of any Charr unable to reach the event.
So Flame Keeper Darkclaw was thankful that it had chosen today to behave itself. The sun was out in full, with no clouds anywhere to be seen. It held a position just askew of the centre of the sky, directly overhead, casting tiny shadows over everything and searing those below with its ferocious heat. The light breeze that disturbed his fur slightly wasn't enough to cool him from that blazing inferno. Still, it was better than rain.
He stood outside, on a huge, newly-constructed marble courtyard, surrounded by dozens of huge stone pillars. Each of these columns was at least 25 feet high, and they were arranged into some sort of 'corridor', running the entire length of the courtyard and placed quite close together. Despite its length and height, the corridor was not very wide. Maybe 10 Charr could walk side-by-side down the corridor without brushing against the pillars. There was nothing in it, nothing around it, only the columns at the sides. It didn't appear to serve any purpose, yet an open space such as this in a city as crowed as this surely suggested that it was important somehow.
Darkclaw was only glad that he had been selected for this duty. It was an honour that his skill, strength, knowledge and faith had been recognised by the Council of Clan Leaders. This was an incredible assignment, and he was pleased that he had been selected to take it. It was the Charr equivalent of becoming the Pope.
Crowds of Charr gathered around the courtyard and its corridor of pillars. They milled around loosely, occasionally bumping into each other and growling excited greetings and talking about the event that was about to occur. Reporters were also present, though an outsider might not recognise them as such. Charr had modern technology just like anyone else in this day and age, except it didn't really 'look' very modern. The video cameras held up by the reporters were quite bulky; they looked cumbersome, heavy, and unsophisticated. They were brown, elegantly designed, and almost looked like they were made from finely-grained wood. If it weren't for the small lense at the front end, one might not have been able to tell what it was for.
Darkclaw looked all around. Bulky, fearsome Guardians from the various United Clans stood vigil all around the square that resided in front of the pillar corridor. The imposing figures didn't move, they simply stood to attention in perfect formation all around the open space. Nearly 1,000 of them. Their armour was more ceremonial than practical; the gold-coloured metal plates which covered their bodies glistened in the midday sun, glowing like the fire gods they had gathered to worship. As with the cameras, their firearms didn't look particularly advanced or practical, but they were designed to kill thick-skinned, bulky Charr -- they were lethal, high-calibre weapons.
Several particularly bulky Charr stepped away from the crowd, and stood right in front of the top end of the 'corridor'. Seven of them, all standing in a line, gazing down on the crowd of thousands with their searing yellow eyes. These were the Clan Leaders. The elegant, traditional clothing they wore was just as minimal as all other civilian clothing, but the impressive decoration clearly set them apart.
The Charr at the centre of the Leaders suddenly raised both his bulky, furry arms and pointed to the sky with his claws. The crowd silenced almost instantly.
"Today we gather to honour the Gods of Fire!" he roared, in a language so guttural, it was doubtful outsiders would have an easy time translating it.
The crowd roared in response, but silenced once more.
"The Gods shall know of our undying faith in them, with this, the largest Flame Temple ever constructed in our lands!" the Leader continued. "Using the modern technologies they have seen fit to give us, we have made a Flame Temple so impressive, so magnificent, that even the Gods themselves will be surprised by its magnitude! Flame Keeper Darkclaw has been tasked with the honour of making sure this dedication to their power is never dulled!"
The crowed roared once again, not stopping this time until Darkclaw stepped forwards, in front of the Clan Leaders.
"Fellow Charr," Darkclaw began. "The Gods of Fire have seen fit to give us technology which allows us to do impressive things. Moving pictures, self-propelled carts, factories, flying machines, electricity... these things are all here because the Gods saw us as worthy of their power. We must make them sure of this belief in us! Our population grows, but our Flame Temples remain the same. No longer. It is time the Gods knew of our true faith. It is time to activate the Reekmaaf Flame Temple! The greatest Flame Temple ever errected!"
As he threw his arms up into the air and let out a bellowing roar, engineers underground nodded at each other and began flicking switches and setting dials. This whole system had never been tested in action before, for once a Flame Temple was lit it could never be extinguished. They had performed safety checks, computer-modelled stress-tests and every other test they could run without switching it on. But they had never switched it on.
Fuel screens lit up green, though. So far there were no red lights. The engineers watched as their creation came to life, and they hoped it didn't simply explode and take out half the city with it.
Fortunately, it didn't. One by one, massive flames suddenly burst from the tops of the columns. It was an impressive sight as plumes of fire blasted upwards one by one, making their way down the corridor towards the other side like a wave of explosions. Once all the pillars had burst to life, they simply... burned. The flames themselves were massive, at least a quarter of the height of the pillars they came from. Each flame touched the other, creating an effect which looked like a wall of fire, hovering just above the pillars. The effect was usually called a 'Flame Corridor' by the Charr, who maintained similar -- if significantly smaller -- temples elsewhere in their nation.
Darkclaw roared once more as he felt the warmth of the fire reach him. The flames burned brightly, yet peacefully, above him, illuminating the area even more than it had been before. The crowd around cheered and roared, throwing their arms up in the air in victorious flourishes. The Gods would be pleased with this offering, Darkclaw was certain.
The crowd stopped cheering as Darkclaw turned around once more, and instead bowed their heads in respect to their Gods. Flame Keeper Darkclaw began to recite an ancient prayer in Ancient Charrian. The event would probably go on for the rest of the day now, broadcast via satellite to the homes and offices of any Charr unable to reach the event.