The Old World in Antiquity
We know that in its ancient times, the Old World was populated only by Mankind. These Men did not understand the world around them; they had only the most cursory knowledge of science and magic. They fumbled and experimented but with only meager results. They worshipped gods they associated with natural phenomena and priests were the ruling class. This all changed when the first Eternal was born.
At the time they did not know what to make of this strange child. It had been born from normal parents, members of the tribe of no great exception, but the child was different. It was born wise, with a glow of knowledge, power and purity. This child was the first Eternal that Mankind had ever encountered. It would not be the last.
This first Eternal's name is lost to us now but the significance of its teachings cannot be erased. It changed Mankind. It taught Men about the universe around them, about the laws of magic and the laws of science. It taught them about its kind and about Enlightenment. This knowledge we still have with us here in the New World, but I will explain more of this presently for the readers of this document who may not be of the Seven Tribes.
The laws of science taught to the Men of the Old World were the most basic concepts. They were taught about motion, energy, matter and other subjects. The laws of magic taught them were likewise basic; the laws of symmetry, relation, symbolism and the other laws of ritual magic. These were great boons to Men, but they were by far the lesser gifts given them by this Eternal. The greater gift was knowledge of Enlightenment.
The Eternal taught them that it came from a place outside of their world, outside even of time and that it had come to them to teach the way to reach this place, this Eternal City. It taught a specific way of life which if followed faithfully would bring about Enlightenment but what that way was is lost to us now. The teachings of the Eternals which have since come to us help us to imagine what the teachings of the original Eternal might have been like.
Beyond the specifics, the first Eternal taught us that the gods Men worshipped were false; that they needed no sacrifices and that their myths and gods served only to give power to the priests. The result of this revelation: Men stopped worshipping gods and started seeking Enlightenment.
More Eternals were born to Mankind over the years. Each one taught a slightly different way to reach Enlightenment. When they were confronted with this, the Eternals invariably replied that as there are many ways to reach any destination, why should Enlightenment be any different?

The People of the Old World
Mankind in the Old World was divided into many societies. Some were of note and others are forgotten today. Here are those which have survived to the New World.

Lunatics:
The Cult of Purity, later known simply as the Lunatics, was a fringe group of fanatics who dedicated their lives to achieving Enlightenment. They amalgamated the teachings of many Old World Eternals into a fully fleshed-out path to total Enlightenment which, if followed to the letter, was guaranteed (so they claimed) to provide complete Enlightenment to the Lunatic. This difficult path was too strenuous and demanding for most people and so this sect was small and often ignored. The term Lunatics is said to be derived from the Old World name for the moon – Luna. The cult of Purity maintained that the moon is strongly tied to the Eternal City. They saw the moon as the ultimate symbol for Purity and Enlightenment. The Cult of Purity exists in the New World, perpetuated by the descendants of Kmsh (one of the Thirteen).

Witnesses:
The legal system of the Old World, near its end, was complicated and demanding. Witnesses were the answer to many of the problems the system generated. They were human volunteers (it was a prestigious career granting great power) who were modified by arts both scientific and magical to be perfect truthful observers and witnesses. Their brains were enhanced with a science-crafted device which could record all they saw and heard for later recall. They were also enchanted and rendered unable to deceive in any way. Finally, for their defense, they were equipped with a small science-crafted implant which would project a defensive shield when they were threatened. Maeda (one of the Thirteen) was an Old World Witness and she survived to found the Maethis tribe in the New World.

Specialized Warriors:
It is unclear whether the Men of the Old World waged war on one another or with some other foe, but they definitely did have specialized warriors – humans designed for war. These came in many varieties. Men modified by science and technology to be superior in the arts of combat and war. One of these varieties were Berzerkers. When they chose they could enter a trance which blocked out all pain from their minds, and made them intensely aggressive. These Berzerkers could fight beyond the point where most men would collapse from pain and shock. They were durable and effective. Twin Berzerkers came to the New World: Beldama and Maldeb (Two of the Thirteen).
Another variety of specialized warriors were called cyborgs by those of the Old World. Unlike Berzerkers they were not modified before birth, but became cyborgs later in life – a choice they made to be able to compete in the realms of war against the likes of Berzerkers. Parts of their bodies were replaced with science-crafted artifacts. This often made them stronger and sometimes faster. Horrin of the Thirteen was a cyborg mercenary.

The Psion:
One of the most interesting groups of the Old World were a sub breed of Mankind engineered with Old World advanced science: the Psion. The Psion were given mental powers such that the well of the powers of the mind was opened wide for them. They were a breed apart; used as tools and feared for their powers. This fear of them caused Mankind to further modify the Psion, this time with magic. They made Psion bear identifying markings representing the areas of power they possessed. The Minders (Psion with mind controlling and communication powers) were marked with a blue diamond at the center of their foreheads. The Burners (Psion with the ability to create and control fire) were marked with flames upon their forearms. Finally, the Movers (Psion with the ability to move objects and beings with the power of their minds), were marked with white coloured hands. Further, all Psion were prohibited from using their powers against a human. This prohibition could be lifted if the human consented, but only if the use of the power would not harm the intended human. This restriction was effected using magic, the restraint was keyed to the Psion's conscience in a way which we do not understand today.
More than one branch of power was rarely exhibited by a single Psion. The one Psion to come to the New World, Nefeld, exhibited all three known branches of Psion power.

Healers:
The Old World order of Healers is a mystery to those of the New World. Their powers of healing can only be described as Psion yet they were not subjected to the same restrictions as Psion nor were they marked in any way. They could give of their lifeforce to a wounded being, restoring the being to health at a small cost to their own vitality. They were known to be selfless helpers and it was considered taboo to harm one of their order. The powers of the Old World Healers were brought to the New World by Sybil (one of the Thirteen).

The Great Discovery: Karam
Late in the history of the Old World, Mankind used science (and possibly magic) to travel the stars to other planets and other stars. We have knowledge of only one great discovery the humans made in their travels. That discovery was the Karam.
The Karam were a race of catlike humanoids of intelligence similar to that of humans. They came from a planet orbiting a nearby star. Contact with the Karam was the start of a great revival of interest in Eternals and Enlightenment. It was discovered that the Karam had also been visited by Eternals; thus the two races shared a common belief system. Peace between the two races was assured and a great alliance was formed.
Men learned a lot from the Karam. The sharing of information made both races stronger and the sharing of the teachings of Eternals which had visited each race offered greater possibilities to reach Enlightenment. However contact with humans did cause some distress among the Karam.
The Karam encountered by humans were all male. The reason for this was that the females of the race were barely intelligent, useful only for breeding. The Karam had always accepted this as a fact of life until they were exposed to humans. The Karam became obsessed by the relationships of human males with human females and they longed for companionship with an equal. This lead the Karam to create the Companions.
This race of engineered beings was created by the Karam from an animal native to their homeworld. This form of cat was the closest animal relative to the Karam race. They made from that animal an equal female. This female was intelligent and the equal to the Karam males. It has been asked why they did not engineer intelligence into their own females and the answer is simply that they did not want the Companions for breeding – they did not want to tamper with the makeup of the Karam race. They felt it might be dangerous to allow the Companions to breed, for they did not want to rely on a Karam race which included modified beings as there was no way of knowing the possible mistakes they could have made in the design of the Companions.
The Companions were an interesting race. They exhibited strange abilities which it is thought were derived from their source animal. They were able to recover from near-death eight times, effectively giving them nine lives.
A Karam and his Companion came to the New World with the Thirteen.

The End of the Old World:
It is not known to us what circumstances exactly caused the end of the Old World. It is not clear how the end was brought about, but we know what the instrument was: it was the Dark. The Dark is well known to those of us of the New World but it bears some explaining as to how it brought about the end of the Old World.
Somehow (some say it was through science or magic – possibly it was both) the Men of the Old World tampered with a force or place they did not understand. The immediate result was that all newly born beings in the Old World were born with a Dark-soul. The Dark children were like an anti-thesis of the Eternals. Malevolent and destructive they showed great knowledge and power from a young age. Their condition was apparent as all of these Darklings were born with grey skin. Soon, there were many Dark children grown to be adults. They killed and created havoc. Natural animals were also affected and strange monstrosities were spawned in the wilds. There was no possibility of negotiation with such beings. They cared for nothing but causing pain and death to others. Some tried to join with them, but were used and eventually discarded. It is thought that the Old World was eventually overrun with these beings and they eventually preyed upon one another. This Dark was evident in all races and beings of the Old World, presumably even on other planets around distant stars, for the Karam and their planet were also affected.
What unleashed the Dark? No one today knows, but it is suspected that one of the Thirteen, Kmsh, knew.

The Escape of the Thirteen:
It is said that the Lunatic Kmsh sought out and contacted the other twelve which would one day become the Thirteen, he warned them that the world would soon end and that he knew of a means to flee the Old World to a place of safety so that they could survive the coming troubles. The other twelve did not accept his offer at that time and ignored his persistent requests that they should heed his warnings. When the first Dark-child was born and the news started to spread the other twelve gathered and met with Kmsh.
The old Lunatic, a very Holy man by their standards, said that he had had 'moon-dreams' about the coming apocalypse and that he knew a ritual which could take thirteen beings to the Eternal City. He warned that this ritual was ancient and had never been used. It is said that he told them it was very difficult and had many specific requirements. It can only be assumed that Kmsh needed a certain mix of qualities from the people used in the ritual for there can be no other explanation for his choice of travelling companions. The Thirteen were in many ways unexceptional. Surely if Kmsh had been free to choose any twelve other beings to preserve, he could have chosen better. It is best to assume he did not have such freedom.
This information, I stress again, is from the Thirteen themselves. What comes after this point in the history could very well be the result of hallucination and delusion. Treat the next section with some skepticism.
The history of these events says that Kmsh opened a 'moon-path' to the Eternal City. The Thirteen walked this moon-path for a full night and arrived at the Eternal City. What occurred at the Eternal City is shrouded in mystery; the Thirteen have always claimed had no memory of this time when they awoke on the New World. Regardless, the next event we have knowledge of is the arrival of the Thirteen on the New World. Simply, the memories of the Thirteen end at their arrival to the Eternal City and begin again when they awaken on the New World.

Beldama:
One of the twin Berzerkers of the Thirteen, Beldama was an honourable warrior with strict discipline. She never allowed her trances to bring her beyond all control and for this was highly praised. She is the female ancestor of the Damasha tribe.

Castana:
A women of great selflessness, Castana gave of herself to all of the Thirteen. Firstly she was the single most positive influence in calming Horrin and making him an effective and superior leader and secondly she (it is assumed) allowed herself to be the center of the ritual which bound all of the Thirteen. She was the only one which would truly die if she were to cease to function. By being the binder she forsook the protection of the ritual. She is the female ancestor of the Casrin tribe.

Dayen:
This woman, the wife of Kenth, is remembered by history very harshly. The events which bring such dark judgement upon her are explained later in this document. She is the female ancestor of both the Kendayen and the Nefayen tribes.

Geffen:
A member of the Karam Companion race, Geffen had never known hope that she would bear children. The story of the Karam tribe of the New World is best told on its own later in this document. She was kind and gentle and she loved Sarshak above all else. She is the female ancestor of the Karam tribe.

Horrin:
This strong and aggressive man was a cyborg mercenary in the Old World. He was said to have been a dangerous man to anger in his younger days. Coming to the New World brought out many of his finer points. He was a good leader when he controlled his temper, something with which his wife Castana helped substantially. He is famous for his superhuman strength and for a weapon which he brought to the New World: a science-crafted sword which was said to be able to cut through anything and whose blade could not be seen if one looked directly at its edge. He is the male ancestor of the Casrin tribe.

Kenth:
A magician of superior mastery, Kenth was the most magically powerful of the Thirteen. He was a good and stable influence who never lost his calm. His magical abilities were essential to the survival of the Thirteen in their early days in the New World. He is the male ancestor of the Kendayen tribe.

Kmsh:
He was instrumental to the escape of the Thirteen from the Old World. He was an old and very holy Lunatic. It is said he successfully completed all thirteen steps of the Lunatic path to Enlightenment. He was very powerful in the ways of the magic of Purity and he brought his beliefs to the New World. He is the male ancestor of the Damasha tribe. His name, it is said, was his true name – implying that Lunatics in the Old World used their true names publicly. By all reports he was a mild old man with great passion ignited by his beliefs. He was kind and he led the Thirteen in matters of peace and diplomacy.

Maeda:
This Old World Witness was a very good analyst and her perfect memory made her of even greater use. She had a keen and discerning intelligence which allowed her to see clearly and objectively in most situations. She is the female ancestor of the Maethis tribe.

Maldeb:
One of the twin Berzerkers of the Thirteen, Maldeb is not remembered kindly by history. Whatever good qualities he may have had are not recorded for us to acknowledge today. It is best to keep his story for later in this document. Maldeb did not have offspring in the New World.

Nefeld:
The only Old World Psion to escape to the New World, Nefeld was the best of his kind. Among tools he was the most perfect tool: he possessed all three branches of Psion power. Nefeld resented his being used as a tool and generally disliked non-Psion. They could never understand what his life had been like. He was a bitter man until late in his life when he found happiness with Dayen. He is the male ancestor of the Nefayen tribe.

Sarshak:
This male Karam was brought to the New World without a female Karam, a situation which threatened the survival of his race. He was a gentle being with poetry in his soul when he was at rest but he was also a dangerous creature of claws and fangs when the need for violence arose. He is the male ancestor of the Karam tribe.

Sybil:
This woman was more than just an Old World Healer. She was said to be an avid friend of nature, a member of some sort of Nature Cult in the Old World. It is known that she was friend to all natural animals and would not eat of their flesh. This was preserved by many of her descendants. She is the female ancestor of the Syole tribe.

Thisden:
A marksman by profession, this jovial man was a disappointment to the Thirteen in the days where their very survival was a struggle. Although he was a very likeable and cheerful man he was also an absolute coward. His abilities as a marksman were gained from sport, not from battle. He brought with him to the New World a science made projectile weapon. It was of great usefulness until its ammunition was depleted. He is the male ancestor of the Maethis tribe.

Let us resume from where we left off. Castana was discovered to have been enchanted so that she would be the centre of a binding circle encompassing all of the other twelve. After these early discoveries, the Thirteen, confused and disoriented, examined their surroundings.
They were in what appeared to be a glade in the middle of a very old forest of strong and healthy oak tress. The glade seemed safe enough and so they decided to rest there until they felt better and perhaps until their memories returned.

Discovery by Wilder:
They were resting thus when they found themselves surrounded by a group of Wilder. These were creatures they had never seen before. They resembled humans in many ways save that they were more lithe and seemed more agile. They also had ears which topped into points. The Wilder were dressed in skins and adorned with feathers, their faces painted in blues and reds. The Thirteen were caught totally by surprise by them, for it was as though they had simply appeared around them. The Wilder did not seem friendly, their spears held as though ready for battle.
The Thirteen tried to speak with them, their communication facilitated by magic provided by Kenth. The Thirteen found out they were in a Wilder forest. The Wilder did not appreciate the intrusion and were discussing executing the trespassers. After much debate among themselves the Wilder declared that they would take the Thirteen to beings they called the Elves and that the Elves would decide what must be done with them.
To the Thirteen the Wilder seemed somewhat like energetic and aggressive youths. This first appraisal was never truly proven to be incorrect.
The Wilder led the Thirteen on a week-long journey through thick forest. To the Thirteen it seemed as though the Wilder were strongly tied to the forest itself. The path they followed was not there until a minute before the leading Wilder walked upon it. The way ahead always appeared to be blocked by trees in the distance, but somehow there was always a path when the group arrived.
During the journey, the Wilder were barely courteous to the Thirteen, the only exception being their behaviour with Sybil. They seemed to sense that she understood their way of life and she struggled to learn their tongue.
At the end of the journey, the Thirteen found themselves delivered to a beautiful city of marble and crystal. This was the first and only Elven city humans have ever visited. It is described in greater detail by better poets than I. This Elven city was Saran-Tir.

Discussions with Elves:
Once in Saran-Tir the Thirteen were introduced to Elvenkind. The Elves were very kind to the Thirteen, showing them respect and feeding them exotic dishes. The quarters they were given were sumptuous and filled with luxury. The Thirteen were allowed to rest for some time before the Elves tried to ask them questions and so when the time came, the Thirteen possessed the ability to answer the questions posed.
I should describe the Elves in greater detail. They were like the Wilder in many ways, being also lithe, but they tended to be fairer and more refined. The Elves also had pointed ears but theirs were different from those of the Wilder, where the ears of Wilder made them look animalistic, those of Elves made them look sophisticated.
By the standards of the Old World both the Elves and the Wilder were uneducated in the ways of science, however observation quickly revealed that they were more advanced in the ways of magic.
The Thirteen discovered that, although this world was on the surface very similar to the one they had just left, there were substantial differences below the surface. Many of the basic principles of science they were familiar with still functioned in the same way but many also did not, or the elements they functioned with were unknown in this New World. The Thirteen quickly became certain that their Old World knowledge of science would be for naught in this New World.
The Elves eventually wanted answers, the Thirteen told them of the end of the Old World at the hands of the Dark and of their own flight from that destruction. The Elves were intrigued by this tale and told one of their own. A tale of the early days of this New World.

The New World in Antiquity:
The elves who told the story gave the Thirteen the impression they were speaking of a very long time ago – of over ten thousand years in the past. In that distant past, the Dark was common in the New World. More than half of the children born to Wilder and the other races were born with a soul from the Darkness and strange animals roamed the wilds and no one was safe from their depredation. This age of darkness and savagery would have continued unabated had it not been for the birth of the first Eternal in the New World. This Eternal was born to a Wilder. He spent much time working with the Elves. He spoke of the Dark as though it was broken and he sought to repair it. He would not speak of how the damage came about. This Eternal was Alarim and his teachings are not known to those of our people. The Wilder, to this day, refuse to share the teachings of the Eternals of their past.
Alarim, working with the greatest and most powerful of the Elves, fashioned an object of great power. It was made in the form of a wheel whose spokes are the points of and eight pointed star which is at its center. This shape was chosen so that it could best focus the magic of the elves, it is the symbol associated with their Life and Soul magic. Alarim and the twenty most powerful Elves of the time then journeyed into the realm of Spirits and through it to a place which Alarim claimed was between places. In this place, Alarim and the chosen Elves used the Starwheel to 'repair' the Dark. Alarim claimed the Dark had been ripped open and that the rent had to be mended. The only power which could be used for this is the force which keeps souls attached to the material world. Alarim and the twenty elves used all of this power which was contained within them. They sealed the rent but it cost them their lives. All of their souls were no longer attached to the material world. The Starwheel was recovered by other elves some years later and the names of those twenty heroes are still remembered by elves today.
It took many years but the New World was eventually safer and the wilds returned to a natural state.

A Short Time of Peace:
Their questions being answered, the Elves were satisfied. They invited the Thirteen to remain with them in Saran-Tir for a time, promising that they would discuss with the Wilder the need for them to give up plots of land to the Thirteen.
For this period of time there was relative peace for the Thirteen. The main source of anxiety for them was their future. Although some of them were already paired into couples others were definitely not, or had no suitable mate. One such case was Sarshak. He had no objection to mating with Geffen, but she was sterile. Amidst these concerns it was discovered that Dayen was already bearing a child. A child conceived in the Old World. This ended the short peace and began intense debate.

The Coming of Darkness:
These debates centered on the fact that if the child was conceived in the Old World, where every child born was of the Dark, it was likely to be a thing of Darkness itself. If this child was allowed to be born, it may have repercussions on the state of this New World. It was thought that it may draw a soul from the Dark and open the rent once more. All of these debates changed nothing. Dayen wanted the child to be left alone and the Elves sided with her – life is the most precious thing to the Elven culture.
It was a long wait filled with tension. When the time came, the Elves took care of Dayen and would let no one but the father Kenth attend the birth. It is said that when the child was born and its gray skin revealed Kenth could not bring himself to destroy his own child. He took it and set it in the wilds, certain the beasts would kill the nameless offspring. Its ultimate fate is not know to us today.
But the birth of the child, as feared, did rip open the Dark. From that day forward the New World was doomed as the Old World had been – save that the Elves had an ancient device which had fixed such a rent before. There was hope. The Elves did not blame the Thirteen for the situation but many of the other races did. There is even a tale of a clan of Wilder attempting to kill the Thirteen in the deluded hope that the death of the Thirteen would undo the damage.

To Undo the Damage Done:
The Thirteen decided they must fix the Dark once more. They had to undo the damage they had done. The Elves agreed to help the Thirteen and discussed with them the use of the Starwheel and the means to get to the place between places which Alarim had shown them. The cost of the repair was weighty and the Thirteen were reluctant to pay it. It was decided that All of the Thirteen save Castana and Horrin would go on the expedition. The rest of the expedition was made up of twelve chosen Elves. The group left and the magic of Kenth and the guidance of Kmsh led them to the place between places. Once there they channeled their own soul energy into the Starwheel and there was great surprise among them. It was discovered that the Thirteen must have been altered in some way by their travel through the Eternal City. Their souls were imbued with much greater energy than is common to the races. The eleven of the Thirteen present could feel the Starwheel fill with the power and still there was more they could give. The wheel worked its mending but still there was more to fix. The Dark sorely rent. They channeled more of their energy into the Starwheel and again to its capacity and then beyond. The wheel worked magic of a scale it was never meant to manipulate. It did a great mending and then shattered into eleven equal pieces. At the end of this great work, the eleven were drained. They believed the work to be complete and returned.
When they returned they found the world in a state of siege. The journey which had taken a day and a night for the party of Alarim and twenty chosen Elves took the eleven and their ten chosen Elves twelve years. It had seemed like only a day and a night to the party but the route they had traveled was not exactly the same taken by Alarim. The Dark had run rampart in those twelve years.

The birth of Seven Tribes:
The Seven Tribes and how they came about bear examining separately but it is imperative to explain another side-effect experienced by the Thirteen due to their journey through the Eternal City. It was discovered that everything about the Thirteen which was of a temporary nature or acquired from an outside source – such as science enhancements grafted onto their bodies and temporary magical effect – became part of their intrinsic natures. Intrinsic nature is a term of great importance. If a people were to use only science to examine one's nature, they would define it as a pattern found at the most basic level of the building blocks of the body. To those who can examine a being with magic intrinsic nature is more readily identified as an attribute of the soul which is translated into the body. The link between the two is important but the soul is the source. The souls of the Thirteen were changed in their passage through the Eternal City and their intrinsic natures became identical to their current states. This means that the cyborg Horrin's descendants inherited from him his great strength, despite this being an attribute gifted him by science enhancements, the black skin of Kenth descendants is the result of his having the Skin of Ebony magical ritual in effect upon him when he journeyed through the Eternal City, that magic never expired for him and his descendants inherited it.
It was feared that these special gifts would be lost if they were diluted by interbreeding and so the tribes were born. The descendants of one pair of the Thirteen did not breed with the descendants of another pair. Interbreeding has become a strong taboo in this current time and it rarely happens. Our people need all the gifts we can find in order to battle the Dark in this New World.

The Casrin:
Those of this tribe are the descendants of the cyborg Horrin and his wife Castana – the binder of the Thirteen. This match was an obvious and easy one, the two were already a couple when they came to the New World and they knew happiness together. The Casrin inherited the great physical strength of Horrin. Their gift from Castana was slightly more obscure. Casrin are born with an inscription upon their backs. This message is rarely clear but it is said that this message is the key to that Casrin achieving his goals. Casrin are often warriors and their great strength assists them in this pursuit. It is not uncommon for Casrin to develop a bond with their friends similar to that which Castana shared with the others of the Thirteen. This is called a binding circle and the Casrin does not usually create it consciously. Sometimes this binding circle goes horribly wrong and a Chain is created. In a chain, if any of the members of the chain dies all other members of the chain also have a chance of dying. Chains are a terrifying curse, it is a blessing that they occur so rarely.

The Damasha:
This tribe is the result of the union of the Lunatic Kmsh and the Berzerker Beldama. This decision did not come easily. The two were a poor match in every way. Kmsh was an old man when he came to the New World and his beliefs made him often difficult. Beldama was a younger woman who shared none of his beliefs. Further, Beldama had found her own form of mysticism in the New World. When she and her twin brother Maldeb entered their berzerker trances in the New World they found that the trance also made them receptive to some spiritual forces. Each of the two were in tune with a different force. The one which Beldama communed with manifested itself in the form of the Unicorn. This spirit represented the forces of Purposeful Savagery and Righteous Power. This communion allowed Beldama to be more in control while she was in her trance. She was more effective and less dangerous.
Maldeb was in tune with the spirit called Dragon. This spirit was Power Unleashed, the Savage Devourer. Whenever Maldeb entered his trance he became a deadly whirlwind of pure destruction, but he also lost all control of himself. He would often hurt or kill those who fought at his side. Eventually, for his own good, Beldama had to kill Maldeb. He had been losing control too often and too disastrously. The allies of the people of the Seven Tribes had threatened to kill him themselves if he was not stopped.
She killed Maldeb quietly and mercifully, catching him unawares. The remaining twelve of the Thirteen buried Maldeb with honour. He had been out of control and misguided, but he had been one of their comrades.
Thereafter, Beldama was more withdrawn and she frequently communed with the Unicorn for hours at a time. Her form of Unicorn mysticism could only be pursued by her descendant for they would have the Berzerker abilities. She decided she needed to find someone with which to procreate. Kmsh who also needed children to ensure his own beliefs did not die with him was in a similar state of need.
The two chose each other and together they created the most divided of the Seven Tribes – the Damasha.
The Damasha are all born with the ability to enter a berzerker trance. In this trance they feel no pain and can only seek to destroy their enemies. Those of the tribe who choose to follow the Unicorn mysticism of Beldama gain greater control over their berzerker trances. Others of the Damasha forsake the Unicorn mysticism and pursue the path of the Lunatics and concentrate on Enlightenment.
The two Damasha sects rarely agree and those who do not choose to belong to either sect find themselves edged out of tribal decision-making.

The Karam:
The Karam tribe was the last to be formed. The main difficulty was that Sarshak, a Karam male, could not mate with the sterile Geffen, his companion. She was his only possible mate but her sterility made it impossible. Or so it was thought. It was in the fortieth year of the Three Century war that Sarshak revealed, with much difficulty, that Geffen was not totally sterile. Her sterility was achieved by an implant – which was now part of her intrinsic nature – that would dispense a drug keeping her sterile. All that would be required to make it possible for Geffen to bear Sarshak's children would be a simple ritual by Kenth to neutralize the 'poison' in her body. Unfortunately there was a good reason for Sarshak's reluctance to reveal this.
The race from which the Karam engineered the Companions was an extra-ordinary race in many respects. One needs only to recall their ability to have 'nine lives' to understand that the Companions have a relationship with life which human beings cannot explain. Sarshak revealed that the Companions were made sterile not simply to keep the Karam race pure and unchanged but also to avoid losing their beloved Companions. The Companions – like the race from which they were engineered – do not survive childbirth. The Karam discovered this in the early stage of their research. When one of the Companion race gives birth, some of the force which holds the soul of the mother to her body is used in forging the link of soul and body of each one of the children birthed. The mother gives birth to a litter which varies in size depending on the amount of this force which she still has remaining and, having none of this force remaining for her own soul, dies.
Understandably Sarshak did not want to lose his Companion but as time wore on he could not stand the possibility of his race dying out. He told Geffen the truth regarding the situation and found that she was overjoyed with the possibility of having children. It surprised him that she would be so willing but he had underestimated the fact that all her life Geffen had been told that she would never have children, that she would not be able to pass some of what was her self to the next generation. To Geffen her wildest dream was being made reality. So the last of the Seven Tribes came to be and the Thirteen lost another of their own.
The Karam tribe (a different sort of being from the Karam race because it is a hybrid of that race and the Companion race) consists of beings which are humanoid cats. They are endowed with a better sense of taste/smell and a very vicious set of fangs and claws. Some are born with great manes as all of the Karam race once did, others are almost hairless like the old Companion race. The majority are somewhere in between. Some of them are known to fear water irrationally.

The Kendayen:
The story of the Kendayen tribe is a sad and Dark one. Truly, the first of the tribes, its first member was that darkling born to Dayen, the child which caused the Dark to once again flow into the New World. Kenth and Dayen tried to make their marriage work for many years after this but there were difficulties which they could not overcome. All of their children were born with the ebony black skin of their father. The skin of ebony which was a ritual of protection he had performed on himself prior to his travel to the Eternal City and which was now part of his intrinsic nature. This black skin makes it impossible to tell by sight if a Kendayen child is of the Dark for the usual mark is ash-grey skin. Further, many of Dayen's children were born with a taint of darkness which makes them appear as though they are of the Dark to all forms of magical detection but are in fact normal children. These facts have made the Kendayen the most distrusted tribe. Despite their efforts, Kenth and Dayen drifted apart. Kenth blamed Dayen for the Dark taint and dishonour of his children and became increasingly colder. Eventually she left him and became very close with Nefeld, another of the Thirteen.
The Kendayen tribe, in addition to the features described above, also inherited great magical prowess from Kenth. They unfortunately also inherited from him the weakness of veteran magicians. The force which holds a soul to a body is often used to make magical effects permanent. Wizards commonly have a lesser amount of this force because they expend it in their craft. All Kendayen are born with a lesser amount of this force. Finally, the Kendayen sometimes inherit as special gifts one or both of the two other ritual powers Kenth had active when he traveled through the Eternal City. One allows communion with spirits called Watchers and the other allows communication in any language.

The Maethis:
This tribe is descended from the marksman Thisden and the Witness Maeda. The cold and analytical Maeda found the happy and personable Thisden a joy to be around. When the Thirteen began to pair up to form families, she sought Thisden out. Due to his cowardice, Thisden was generally disliked by the others of the Thirteen so he welcomed the attention. The two were one of the happier couples to come from the Thirteen.
The Maethis gained from Maeda the gift of perfect recall, but along with it they also inherited her inability to lie. The minds of the Maethis are like the science-enhanced mind of Maeda, this leads to some of them being able to commune with a knowledge pool of all Maethis lore. Others are more open to their fellow Maethis and their minds will 'leak' thoughts and knowledge to them. Generally, the Maethis inherited good aim from their paternal ancestor. The Maethis due to their inability to lie are generally trusted and respected. Many of the better leaders of the Seven Tribes at the time of this writing are of the Maethis tribe.

The Nefayen:
Those of the Nefayen tribe are the descendants of the Psion Nefeld. This tribe is the result of his late marriage with Dayen who is also the female ancestor for the Kendayen tribe. Nefeld who had never been seen as a person by normal beings found within Dayen someone who treated him as more than just a person. She treated him as the most important person in her world. In their late years the two of them were happy together.
Nefayen are born with the blood of the Psion. This means that even if they have no actual blossomed powers of Psion they can still sense their use and even sometimes exert their will over the Psion use of others, canceling their use. The Nefayen unfortunately also inherited some of the Dark taint of Dayen. Theirs took a different form than that of the Kendayen. The Dark taint has made them no longer considered 'human' by the inherent prohibitions imposed upon the powers of Psion. The Nefayen can use Psion with impunity against one another. A few of the Nefayen are born without this taint, but they are the exception. Further, the Dark taint interacted strangely with the Psion blood causing the Nefayen to become 'funnels' for magic. When magic is cast at a target near a Nefayen, there is always a possibility that the magic will target the Nefayen instead. Many Nefayen develop a branch of Psion power, sometimes more than just one. The powers of the Psion have made the Nefayen feared by those who think it possible that the prohibition against Psion using their powers on 'human' will wear out over generations.

The Syole:
The most unusual tribe, the Syole are descended from the Healer Sybil. Their paternal ancestor was a Wilder by the name of Kole. Sybil had always been fascinated by the Wilder and she alone of the Thirteen found any kinship of spirit with them. Before meeting Kole she had spent time fighting alongside a few different clans of Wilder during her time in the Three Century War. For Sybil there were none of the Thirteen compatible to her. Only among the Wilder did she find someone she cared for and that someone was Kole. Although humans and Wilder rarely mate successfully, it seems that the pairing of Sybil and Kole was a lucky one. They had four children together. A feat never matched in later generations by any Syole-Wilder matings. In fact, only a mating of male Wilder and female Syole (human) has ever worked. If the genders are reversed the mating has always failed.
The Syole are effectively half-Wilder. Like the Wilder they are in-tune with nature and animals and have even developed a form of ritual magic which focuses on nature which can only be performed by Syole. They have inherited the pointed ears of the Wilder, but their ears have an almost elven look to them. Some Syole inherit the Healer powers of Sybil. Any Syole who wishes can choose to never harm animals in the same manner as Sybil and they will find that like her, they will never be attacked by animals.
Only Syole, of the tribes, can truly speak the Wilder tongue. It has empathic elements which no one else can match in the same way as the Wilder and Syole. Unfortunately this is the only effective use of the minimal empathic powers they inherited from the Wilder. The Syole also sometimes exhibit a Wilder trait – crowd madness. Wilder find crowds of non-empaths disturbing so they tend to avoid them. Syole who are vulnerable to crowd madness likewise have difficulty being in large groups of non-Syole and non-Wilder.
Surprisingly, the Syole do not enjoy any better of a relationship with Wilder than the rest of the Seven Tribes. The Wilder often treat them worse, insulting them and deriding their heritage.

The Fellowships of War – Birth of the Houses:
During the war the people of the burgeoning Seven Tribes found themselves experiencing severe morale problems. They were fighting a war against a frightful enemy they were uncertain could be defeated, they were fighting alongside allies which could be described as cold at best and as hostile at worst. To make things worse, what were they fighting for? There were no assurances that once, if, this war ended they would have any real place in this New World. Would the Elves secure them some sort of homeland from the Wilder?
There were few answers to these questions and fewer remedies. They had to find some sort of device to forge stronger unity and improve their morale. The Fellowships were such a device. Units on the fronts would band together into a fellowship, naming their unit and fighting under its banner. The names were often symbolic and simple. The primary aim was to unify and give a sense of belonging and in this they were a success. So much of a success that the outgrowths of these War Fellowships became the basis for the system of houses used by the Seven Tribes at the time this document is written. These Houses are a central part to the political system of our people.

Ending the War:
This war, lasting as it did three centuries, seemed to be without end until near its very end. Over the years, the majority of Dark creatures remaining were Orcs and, although they bred rapidly, they could not match the rate of the Wilder and that of the people of the Seven Tribes. Further, Orcs and other Dark creatures were more careless of their own lives in the course of battle and so their losses were very high. This lead to the tide of war eventually moving in the favour of the allies of Men. The people of the Seven Tribes – although few in number at the beginning of the war – were a very instrumental factor in winning the war. They were able warriors and their allies made them more formidable by providing them with powerful magical devices. The situation was such that the Elves and Dwarves were able to provide more weapons and other magical artifacts than they themselves had hands to wield them with. The Wilder used their own magic and despised the feel of steel and other forged metals and so they would not use these weapons. The people of the Seven Tribes found their greatest effective use as recipients of these devices.
Eventually all of these factors made it possible for the allies to maneuver the forces of the Dark over the Kagarad mountains. Dwarves died in droves along with large units of people of the Seven Tribes forcing the orcs and their allies over those mountains. As it was, many of the ancient Dwarven Holds which had been lost to the Dark in the early days of the war were never retaken. In those mountains there are thousands of our people buried in shallow caverns and under rocky cairns. Once the orcs were over the mountains, forts were constructed at the three major passes though the mountain and patrols of the mountains were organized. The plan was to keep the mountains as permanent boundary between the lands of the allies and the lands of orcs and other things Dark.
In the aftermath of the war the people of the Seven Tribes found themselves with a homeland. The lands immediately adjacent to the Kagarad mountains, the Najany plains, bounded on the south by the Gren Moreg and on the west by the Sra Moreg. These lands were given to our people. A small homeland for our newborn Seven Tribes, but it was a homeland. This land was unwanted by any of the other races, the Dwarves had no need for plains and the area was too sparsely wooded for the Wilder to have any interest in it. Further, being as it was a land under constant threat from the orcs it was made even less desirable. Along with the land came the responsibility for the three passes and for patrolling the mountains (although the Dwarves did help substantially with the latter). Our people took the land and the responsibility. It was the only way they were assured of having a home in this world.

Politics of the Seven Tribes:
The political system of the Seven Tribes bears some notice. Our people have a democratic government which consists of an elected representative for every 1000 citizens. These elected representatives, called the Elect, govern their districts absolutely, they are responsible for all aspects of its governance. They collect the taxes of the people of their districts and choose how the funds are to be distributed. These funds pay for law-enforcement, public works and other services. The Elect remain in office for life unless they are called to an Accounting. In such a procedure they must answer the charges brought against them and explain their actions. At that time the people of the district make a vote of confidence. If the Elect is supported by an amount of votes equal to more than half the amount he originally got when first elected, he remains in office. Otherwise a new Elect will be elected and the former Elect gracefully retires with a small stipend.
In order to vote, a person must be a citizen. To be a citizen one must belong to a House and have performed active service for that House. This service usually takes the form of five years of military service, manning the fortresses.
Anyone can choose to join a House and the decision to become a citizen is optional. Many people of the Seven Tribes never seek out citizenship.
Houses deserve more discussion. There are, at this time, 10 Houses active in the Seven Tribes. Many of these are outgrowths of the old war fellowships of the Three Century War. Some of these Houses still focus on the traditions of these fellowships, serving more as brotherhoods/sisterhoods for warriors and like-minded individuals, but the main thrust of Houses is now political. There are other important things to understand about Houses. They are not hereditary, children do not belong to the House of their parents. In fact, they will often choose one which is very different from their parent's House. Further, one does not necessarily vote for a representative from one's own House. Some of the Houses are not politically adept and their members do not seek leadership positions in the civic circles. Others Houses specialize in rulership and their leaders have remarkable reputations, as such they are voted for by those of other Houses. This results in some Houses being very numerous but very weak politically and in other Houses, one in particular, being low in membership but very strong in the political arena.
As mentioned earlier the Elect of a district is responsible for all aspects of its internal policy. The cities of our people number many thousands of beings and so have many districts. Such cities have a city council where the Elect of the districts discuss and decide on policy which affects the city as a whole. Likewise, there is a Council of Houses which is a collective body of all Elects which meets to discuss and decide policy that affects all of the people of the Seven Tribes. This Council is the highest authority for civic issues. There also exists a Council of Tribes. This council deals more in issues of a spiritual or cultural nature. The Councilors are usually of advanced age and there is one Councilor for each tribe. The tribal council has made many rulings regarding which paths of magic are considered to be Dark and other such matters.

New World Reckoning:
Years in the New World are counted from the very first year our people came to the New World. That year is year 1 of the New World Reckoning (NWR). The current year at the time of this writing is 1074 NWR.

Living in the Seven Tribes:
Describing our everyday lives could fill volumes. I will restrict myself to an overview of the life of the average person. At birth we are named by our parents at a ceremony before their family and friends. Our names are composed of a first name followed by the name of our eldest parent, a hyphen and the name of our other parent. A child plays most of its days for the first five years, often spending most of its time with a relation who has chosen to watch over the children of the family as their means of earning a living. Starting the year the child turns six, the child begins its education. For six years they are tutored by a general tutor who usually teaches up to ten children of a similar age at one time. This tutor teaches the more basic skills of life, math and language, social behaviour, etc. By the age of twelve, the child begins the think of the future. Usually, they will begin learning their future trade, craft or profession. This intensive training lasts for two years and ends with the child having basic skills in that area. The child is then fourteen and has reached adulthood. A great ceremony is held for them by their family, friends and others important to their future. At this ceremony they declare their chosen path. In particular they declare what they intend to do with their lives and name the House they want to join. They also rename themselves with an adult name, one which they have chosen for themselves. After that day they pursue the goals they set at this ceremony. Often they will be tutored more extensively for four to six more years in their chosen field. The end of this tutoring is usually when the new adult will choose to perform their time of service to the House they chose. As a citizen they have more rights under the law and the ability to vote. Family is important and people rarely live far away from the city where the rest of their family dwells. They will also sometimes, if minded thus, seek to follow the teachings of an Eternal and try to reach Enlightenment. As they grow older they spend more time with family and begin to form their own. With settling down comes more responsibility and less time for lofty pursuits. Eventually, one's own children become a great concern and paying for their tutoring consumes much of the earnings of the average individual. At length age begins to take its toll and at that time one's House will retire the person. For their remaining years they receive a small stipend from their House – enough to support them at a level of subsistence

Conclusion:
I must conclude this document with this statement. I hope this document never needs to be used for its intended purpose. The end of our people, as inconceivable as it may seem to me at this time, is not such a remote possibility. The Dark is ever threatening from across the Kagarad range and only constant vigilance keeps it at bay. This vigilance has failed before and may fail again. I fear we live more precariously than we often realize.
If the need for this document does arise, I hope it serves you well reader.

Coming Soon - the complete current draft of the rules in Word 2000 format.