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Advancing the Warp - Theelin Creation Myth

Told in the style of the Theelin planetary council for the benefit of other cultures

Here is a tale woven long ago, we know it as we know ourselves, connected to all that was, is and will be.

The Weaver, the force that holds all things together through thread and loom sits in its circle of looms, it weaves planets, creatures, space, time, and all things into place.

It weaves for a time before switching looms to allow things their time to settle. It finishes one system at a time and then turns to make another. It is at one such moment we find it.

After a moment of resting its arms, the Weaver, already turned to the next loom in its cycle, bids the Patchwork Harpy to release the lock of the warp beam that it may advance the warp and wrap the fell on the breast beam, which brings the work to unmade space.

The Weaver observes the space for a time, musing on all that could take shape before it positions its arms to work, bidding its Spindles to select threads.

The Spindles nudge bright threads into the Weavers hands, yellows and greens. Between the stars and space of the warp the Weaver forms a first, small planet: yellow and green. It does not want the planet, Seev, to feel cold so it bids the Spindles to fetch warm reds, pinks and yellows. It weaves two suns, twins Theel’ell and Sev’arp. As it battens the weft down into fell the two suns, woven so close together, become one: Eel’sev.

Seev is too small for the Weaver to contain all it has in mind, so it weaves on, lo’arp Eel’sev and Seev it begins to form Theelia. A larger planet than the first of the system it first takes blues to form an ocean, then greens to form the first islands.

On the first island it takes branches and lays them out in the arrangement of bones, it scoops clay from a river and wraps the bones shaping flesh. It paints the clay into bright decorated skin with the dyes of its Spindles, it leaves a hole in its creations chest as it picks the brightest threads for hair.

Then the Weaver weaves a heart, taking threads from its own and imbuing it with love. It nestles the heart into its creations chest and lays the newly made Theelin on a bed of tea flowers and berry branches its Spindles wove.

It weaves another Theelin, laying it beside the first. Then, as its new creations sleep it weaves a draegin with large wings to shelter the still sleeping creations from the sun. It leaves eight spindles, four of each kind, to aid the newly created and then it continues on.

The next land mass to form is furthest from the sun, the Weaver forms two Theelin all the same process as before, resting them on a bed of tea flowers and berry branches once more. It forms a Avicore to snap off branches from the trees and cover the sleeping Theelin from the sun and the winds. The Weaver leaves Spindles the same as with the first pair as it battens down the weft and sends the shuttle toward the sun.

The land mass it forms next, closest to the sun, receives two Theelin the same process as those before, set to rest on berry branches and tea flowers. It creates a Erieroc to settle by the sleeping pair, its large form casts a shadow over the pair, it shelters them from the close heat of the sun. It leaves eight spindles the same as the sets before.

The Weaver continues one for a space, it builds out islands and continents. It drops three more creatures, one for each region. The teep on the center islands, the Ailote far from the sun, the Kee and Dir, counted as one in their purpose, all scattered to till and plant along the ground.

The Weaver continues on once more, it creates three more pairs of theelin, further along their columns, center with the company of an Oer to help clothe them from the sun and warm them from the night, furthest from the sun it gives the company of a Varr to keep them warm as they sleep away the long dark nights, and closest to the sun is given a Cagor to help clothe them under the intense sun and provide them drink as they explore. Each set is given Spindles as before.

The Weaver next scatters three more creatures, it observers that while its creations are making fine creations of their own and cannot help but grant them more help as it feels its own heart beat echoed in its creations.

Centered it weaves a Leer to help teach how to hunt fish. Far from the sun, a Weffloom for the creation of clothes to warm when the Varr is unable. Close to the sun, a Eabgh to carve an easier path to explore.

As the edges of the planet began to round toward each other once more, the Weaver creates three more pairs of Theelin all made from the same process as before. It gives the center a Mear. Furthest from the sun, a Gatross, the closest a Eeakle. Each to teach the newly created how to eat well like those created before them,to hunt the creatures made by their hands that had begun to rapidly spread across the lands. Each set is given spindles once more.

As the Weaver finishes the end of each land it forms three final gifts formed from feathers of its companion, three harpies, one per region to travel back lo’ell to spread news of the planets completion. The weaver studies the theelin and the creations as the harpies fly. It finds the theelin have made made of their own will many creations. As the Weaver rests its many arms it finds that the theelins hearts glow brightly with love for their creations just as its own glows for them.

Needing to express this light the Weaver forms another sun, two suns batten down into one to keep the second sun, Ve’tria: the combination of Mel’ve and Arp’tria, from feeling lonely compared to Eel’sev. It places it Lo’mel of Theelia.

As the weaver takes in the sight it notices that some of its Spindles had woven another small planet, the same reds, pinks and yellows of the suns though the smallest planet yet. They whisper to it that the planet is A’tor, though not twins battened like the suns the small creatures have chosen the name to quell their bickering of if the planet is more Lo’arp or Lo’tor of Theelia. The Weaver laughs as it praises them, observing all that was woven.

The Patchwork Harpy brushes it’s feathers against the expanse of space above all that has been woven thus far and requests a spool of blues. The Weaver gives the spool to its old companion and happily twatches as another small planet is formed lo’arp from the rest. The Harpy names it V’nell as it declares it the end of the systems range.

The Weaver nods, taking in all that is woven once more, it grabs a few final threads, greys, browns and greens to thread its needles as it bids some Spindles to copy its actions as it forms a moon lo’arp and lo’tor of Eel’sev. The Weaver sits back when it finishes the moon, it observes with affection the way the Spindles have mirrored Ortal, the weavers moon when creating their own, Netrii.

As the Weaver rests, watching its Spindles spin new threads to replenish the bobbins, brew new dyes and rewind shuttles, it notices the Patchwork Harpy peering at Theelia. At the point furthest from the sun a Mountain Harpy attempts to break free of the threads of its home world.

The Weaver takes a needle and gently untangles the creature from the threads of its world, and bids it to speak. The bird wails a melancholy tale of a dark night sky, it laments that the thread that composes its night sky has too few stars and it must petition for light.

The Patchwork Harpy leans down to soothe the fragment of itself that pleads for light, a wing outstretched toward the Weaver. The Weaver understands its companions' request, it takes some of the most colorful feathers and brightest beads to carefully weave them into lights and stars over the mountain harpy’s home region.

The small harpy’s wails become joyous as it darts between the stitches of the Weaver, wings become painted with the new lights of the night sky as it darts in and out and all the way back homeward, joyous wails echoing all the way, drawing a laugh from the Patchwork Harpy as it declares the Theel system nell.

The Weaver agrees, setting its supplies down once more as it listens to its Spindles ooo and ahhh at the things the Theelin were creating.

The Weaver turns to another loom, and bids the Patchwork Harpy to help advance the warp once more to continue the Weavers slow rotation of looms, creating anew, wrapping old abreast to be unwound and remade after a time, a joyous eternal cycle of old to new, all that came before woven with all that would be.

In time the Weaver will notice the slow shift of its creations as the twin suns slowly pull toward each other, dragging planets and space with them in a slow dance, a death spiral of birds locked talons between the suns.

The Patchwork Harpy will cry a final song for the system as the suns collide to one day clear the space to start anew.

The Weaver will mourn its creation and celebrate the return into the thread of all things, beloved and eternal. The thread will weave into something new, continuing to tie all that was, is and will be.

This end was woven long ago, we know this end as we know ourselves, connected to all that was, is and will be.

Glossary under the cut. In box is open for comments, questions, general yelling, ect <3

Snippets in the glossary provide context that is generally given regionally, each region focusing more on their creatures and creation than that of the others or as a whole.

The Weaver - The figure that works on its loom to weave the fabric of time and space together. Though no true form is ever recorded it is known the figure has many arms when needed, and a heart of its own. It is typically portrayed as hands working on a loom with a heart somewhere in the vicinity of where it’s torso might be if it were humanoid.

Seev - The first planet formed in the system, a small planet that appears mostly green and yellow. It is generally depicted as such.

Eel’sev - The first sun, a merged set of twin stars. It is considered to be the second planet though suns are not planets, theelin tend to refer to it as such for the simplicity of numbering the creation timeline of the system. It is generally portrayed with reds and pinks, in traditional theelin depictions it is portrayed as one sun nestled inside another.

Theelia - A large planet, homeworld to the Theelin. It is considered the third planet formed in the system. It is generally portrayed with many greens and blues, typically with a band of islands representing Sei’lo in the center with larger land masses representing the other two regions on either side of it.

A’tor - A small planet formed fourth in the system, made up of the same reds, pinks, and yellows of the sun though it is not a star of any sort. It is considered the fourth planet to be formed and is generally depicted as it is described.

Ve’tria - The second sun, another merged set of twin suns. It was created to mirror the first sun and is considered to be the fifth planet formed. It is generally depicted with yellows and oranges, in traditional theelin depictions it is portrayed as three theelin stars nestled within each other.

V’nell - A small blue planet considered to be the sixth planet formed. It is generally depicted as it is described.

Ortal - A medium sized moon made up of greys, greens and browns. It is considered to be the seventh planet to be formed. It is generally depicted as a gray planet with rings of green and grey with a brown dot in the center.

Netrii - A medium sized moon made up of greys, greens and browns. It is considered to be the eighth and final planet formed in the system. It is generally depicted as grey with brown marks reaching toward a brown dot in the center that is cradled by a green crescent shape.

The Patchwork Lights - A series of stars and colorful lights found in the Toria night skies as a gift from the Weaver and its companion the Patchwork Harpy.

The First Islands/ Center - The Sei’lo region. Its formation began first and stretched up the center of the planet as chains and stretches of islands.

The Furthest from the Sun - The Toria region. Its formation began second, with multiple large land masses with a smattering of islands bordering the Sei’lo region.

Closest to the Sun - The Melore region. Its formation began last with multiple large land masses and a smattering islands bordering the Sei’lo region, near similar to Toria’s formation though it also held a single large island directly on the planets axis, referred to as the collision point due to the collision course of the suns leading right over it.

Nell - Most commonly used to mean complete or finished.

Directions - Theelin view their system and the galaxy at large being rotated to the right due to their view of the Weavers loom having East as the direction of the fell (completed work) and West as the direction of the empty warp (space waiting to be woven).

Due to this the Theelin compass and directional terms are as follows:

Lo’ar/p (p sound is regional) = Up/West

Lo’tor = Right/North

Lo’ell = Down/East

Lo’me/l (L sound regional) = Left/South

Sei is considered the word for Center. The “Lo” affix becomes a suffix as opposed to a prefix in the regions name due to the view that Sei was created first, and then directions formed in context of it. The affix is also seen being as a suffix in the names of the first suns original names while being prefixes in the names of the second due to the weaver mirroring the creation of the first suns in the seconds.

Patchwork Harpy - One of the weavers oldest companions and primary assistants, often portrayed as helping work the loom and keep it in good shape. It is said that it was made from fragments of the Weavers first creations and that it takes patches from each of the Weavers creations giving it a colorful appearance.

The Spindles - The term used to refer to the caterpillars and spiders thought to be the Weavers helpers, spinning threads and helping teach the early theelin how to weave themselves by taking the images they created and weaving life into them.

Tea Flowers - The flowers that were gathered to make the beds for the first theelin to rest on. Theelin tea flowers contain nutrition that helps prevent excessive illness and blood issues within the species, many theelin commonly refer to it as the species life blood.

Animals by Region:

Sei’lo:

Draegin - A winged creature that can be seen as a mix between a Bat and a Pangolin, thought of as a protective figure from the sun. Thought to be brightly painted from the berry juice and tea flower stained fingers of the first theelin. Its scales, though used as canvases by the first Sei’lo theelin, are thought to have healing properties.

Teep - A creature similar to a mix of a tapir and a deer. Has the snout of a tapir and large antlers similar to deer, was said to plow the ground with its snout and drop seeds into the hole by shaking its berry covered horns.

Oer - A large horned rabbit, its long hair sheds easily to be spun and woven on its horns to clothe the early Sei’lo Theelin to protect them from the sun. It was also said to have playfully followed behind the Teep on its later journeys to tamp the dirt over seeds and speed up the planting process.

Leer - A large creature similar to a seal. It was said to be painted by the sun through the water, resulting in spotted patterns and a berry stained nose from licking the juice from the first theelins hands. It was said to have taught the early Sei’lo theelin how to catch the fish they had created.

Mear - A large cat-like creature said to teach the early Sei’lo theelin how to scale the trees to reach more food and look for paths through the foliage and trees. It was said to be patterned like the tree bark it brushed against as it climbed. It was also said to have taught the early Sei’lo theelin how to stalk and hunt the creatures they had created.

Sea Harpy- A large raptor seabird made to fly the length of Sei’lo to bring news of the completion of the planet back to the first pair of Theelin. Its wingtips are said to be painted blue by dipping them in the water before it was fully woven and stealing some of the dye.

Toria:

Avicore- Quadruped creature with crested horns and fur and feathers. Like if a unicorn was cooler and also probably more like a deer than a horse. Thought to be painted by the sap of the tree branches from it snapping branches to shield the first theelin of Toria from the sun. It’s feathers, though first used as paint brushes and quills by the first Toria theelin, are thought to have healing properties.

Ailote - A coyote-like creature with an extra tail. Its coat is said to be stained from the cloak of berries and seeds placed on it to plant things in the paw prints it left as it bound across Toria.

Varr - A large bear-like creature said to have been made to shelter the early theelin of Toria from the cold by curling around them and bundling them in its fur. It’s said to have gotten its spots and smears of color from the theelin it had curled around as the dye staining their skin was not quite dry.

Weffloom - A large sheep like creature with extra horns to allow the early theelin of Toria to spin its wool off of it and use the yarn to weave clothing to protect them from the sun and the weather when the Varr was off hunting during the day. It was said to be able to blow on ice to melt it and water to warm it.

Gatross - A large alligator-like creature with four sets of legs and large scale plates armoring its body. It is said to have been painted with the clay of the swamp it was formed by, mixed with tea flower petals. The Gatross was said to have taught the early Toria theelin how to ambush and hunt the creatures they had made.

Mountain Harpy - A large raptor bird, its puffy leg feathers are said to be white from the snow sticking to them as it hopped from mountain range to mountain range to bring news of the completion of the planet back to the first Toria theelin. It was said to have gained wings that match the lights of the night sky after journeying to request such lights from the Weaver.

Melore:

Erieroc - A large reptilian creature similar to a crocodile but if they were cooler and had a lot of spikes and horns. Said to have used it’s claw to crave creatures into the ground to show the first theelin of Melore how to draw to create. It shed its old teeth for them to use as tools, though its teeth are also thought to have healing properties.

Kee and Dir - A snake and a bird that are thought to be in an eternal chase. Kee, the snake is said to have spikes to protect it from the birds beak and have a beard of horns that plows the earth as it runs from the bird, Dir who’s wings shed the seed and berries that had been placed between its feathers when it was created. Dir is said to be long necked and long legged.

Cagor - A goat-like creature who shed its long hairs for the early Melore theelin to spin to make looms and cloth on the spikes and horns of the Erieroc’s back. It was also said to be able to produce milk for tea leaves to be steeped in, a trait given to it to help aid exploration without worry of needing to find water along the way.

Eabgh - A large water buffalo like creature said to have gotten its striped upper fur from breaking through foliage, rocks and trees to make paths for the early theelin of Melore to explore. It’s said that its lower body’s stripes were washed away when the Eabgh waded through the rivers to continue its path.

Eeakle - A large cat-like creature with a thick coat of hair that was said to mimic the grasslands it was made in. It was said to teach the early Melore theelin how to disguise themselves to hunt the creatures they had created.

Deseret Harpy - A large raptor bird said to have gotten its spotted wings from the sand sticking to its feathers being melted onto them by the sun as it raced back to tell the first theelin of Melore of the news of the planet's completion.

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