dia_gan_yan-herder_masters-wife
- Dialogue
- dia_gan_yan-herder_masters-wife
- Reached by
Openers (1)
The game picks one. They are alternatives, in the order it prefers them.
Greetings, wanderer. What brings you to our pasture?
What the player can raise (3)
The game offers every topic whose requirement is met, in the order it prefers them.
Farewell.
May you walk with Kuwanag's breath.
Who are you?
I am Katsura, wife to the master of the herd. One day, when we have children, I shall give them milk like the Yanaki give to us.
The conversation ends
Can you tell me anything about this place?
If you wish to know about this pasture, ask my husband. He is the one who leads our herd to where the grass is greenest. His feet know the soil by touch alone.
If you wish to know about the spirits that dwell here, I can tell you much. Take no step without knowing what spirits walk beside you in the wind! Whether they are pleased or angered by your deeds, whether they guide or mislead your wandering feet.
Tell me about the spirits of this place.
Greatest of all is Kuwanag, the first Yanaki, who lived in times long ago when all things were greater than they are now. His flesh fed our ancestors, and from his seed grew the herds that still feed us now.
Besides him, there are many spirits that fly with the wind and run with the water. In the lake near our pasture dwells a cheerful little spirit who likes to play with our Yanaki when they drink.
The spirits in the winds will guide you to rich pastures if you know how to listen. Some warn you of impending danger. Others, who find mirth in mischief, may mislead you and laugh at your misfortune.
The spirits are as plentiful in Gan as are blades of grass and pillars of stone. If you wander the plains long enough, perhaps you will make friends with some.
Only when the player is racegroup_elf-myst
Tell me more about Kuwanag.
He was the first Yanaki, grand as a mountain in size. He impregnated the earth, and it gave birth to the first herd whose cows were almost as tall as him. Milk flowed from their udders like rivers, so much that our ancestors could swim in it.
When times were dire and hunters came back empty-handed season after season, Kuwanag gave his life so our ancestors could eat. His meat was enough to feed the people of Gan for ten years. They developed methods of preservation, so Kuwanag's gift would not go bad with rot.
The first herd, now without its father, turned to the Karu tribes for protection. And so, we became the masters of the herd. The cows give us milk, the bulls give us meat and leather, and in turn we guide them to good pastures and guard them from predators.
When you wander across Gan, you may spot a spire shaped like a Yanaki's horn among all the pillars of rock that stud our plains. This is Kuwanag's horn, jutting out of the earth from where his bones are buried. If you pass it, place some grain next to it, or dried hay. Something a Yanaki would like to eat.
Returns to the previous choices
A playful spirit in your lake? That sounds adorable.
Spirits of the water are the most benevolent of all. Rarely will they deceive you. This is why all creatures are drawn to sources of water, and both predator and prey will drink together without fight.
If you need sanctuary, if you desire peace and calm, rest at the shore of our lake. Its spirit will give you company and make sure your rest is undisturbed. To repay its hospitality, you may pour a libation into its waters. It will accept any drink, as long as you have a share of it too; it likes to drink together with us.
How can I know which spirits help and which mislead me?
Wander the plains for long enough, sleep under the open sky or make shelter among the rocks, hunt the wild animals that live here, pick berries and nuts, climb up the pillars of stone or ascend to the floating rocks. Live in and with Gan until you are intimate with it.
Only then will you understand the voices of the spirits. Only then can you tell which guidance is offered in friendship and which in deception. Only then will you know what life dwells in every rock, every hill, every lake, every stream, every patch of soil under your feet.
The shrine maidens of the house-dwellers spend years learning how to communicate with the spirits. They cast off their shoes and leave their feet bare so they may always feel what animates the ground they tread.
We women of Gan feel the spirits even through the skin of Kuwanag's children, of which are made our boots. We live with the land and are intimate with it; the house-dwellers must study and practice before they fully understand the spirits.
So: live for years with the land, or study for years with the shrine maidens. There is no easy way to knowing the spirits.
How can I know which spirits help and which mislead me?
You are not Karu. Our spirits do not know you, so how could you know them? You will always feel alien to them, always like something that doesn't belong. Expect no guidance when you wander the plains of Gan.
Return to your own lands, and get to know the spirits there. They will be delighted to have you back. People are of the land as much as the spirits. Only the earth that drank the blood of your ancestors can answer to your worship. Ours cannot.
I have no more questions about spirits.
The conversation ends
I have no questions about spirits.
The conversation ends