History of Zasta.

[Puck]

History of Zasta


Mountains divide us, and the waste of seas
Yet still the blood is strong, the heart is Highland
-John Galt, ‘The Lone Shieling’

Long ago when the world was new, four wolves broke free from their dying pack lands. Giiva, Cinbar, Aythii, and Lynahh set out across the open land searching for a place they could call home. They sought out the ancient and scared Land of Zasta. Many rumors had been spread that it was a plentiful and beautiful place, that all the humans had deserted it long ago and were to never return. A year passed without them finding such a place. Cinbar began to grow moody and lost his beliefs in Zasta. Giiva stayed strong, but hope was dwindling.

One foggy spring morning the group found what appeared to be an old wooden bridge leading to an island in the center of the ocean. Now the island was huge, it stretched from the north and to the south. The wolves cautiously made their way to ward the island, curious as to what sort of lands it held. They reached the beach and found what would later be called the land of Tyvier. The wolves explored the wondrous lands and realized that they had found the secret Land of Zasta. For when they climbed the stone path up the mound, they found it. The Citadel. The most worshipped building to all wolves. The Citadel is in many of the wolf legends, and could only be located in Zasta. Proud with their find, they soon began to talk splitting the lands in half and having two mutual packs.

Cinbar took Aythii as a mate, and claimed the southern and eastern parts his land. Giiva took Lynahh as his mate, and claimed the northern and western parts as his lands. Before they knew it, wolves started to show up and the pack began to flourish. Not shortly after both the females became pregnant around the same time. The often talked about how their children would be the best of friends, which ended up being the case

Aythii wasn’t the strongest female, so she gave birth to only one living son. Cinbar was still proud of his strong pup, he assumed that he’d be the heir. They named him Tyvier. Lynahh, the stronger of the two gave birth to two pups. A male and a female, Baree and Mayna. The three grew up together, playing and bonding. Problems only began to arise when the children were fully grown. Tyvier began to fall in love with Mayna, but she did not feel that way about him. They often fought, their shouting could be heard all over the freelands. Baree asked his friend time and time again to leave his sister alone, but it affected nothing.

Tyvier soon became obsessed with her, and constantly asked her to be his mate. Each time she would say no. Finally, after being rejected so many times he asked her to walk up to The Citadel with him, only to talk. She figured it wouldn’t be any harm, so she went up with him. Tyvier, taking this the wrong way, assumed that meant she was warming up to him. After the walked around the top, Tyvier asked her whom she was going to choose as a mate. She simply told him some male from her pack that she had liked for awhile now, surprised and enraged the two started to fight once more. Only this time it became physical.

Baree could hear their snarls from the Red Meadow and began to climb the steps as fast as he could. The fight became more and more violent, as Tyvier attempted to rip her throat out. She jumped back out of the way, and her left hind foot slipped over the edge. Caught up in the moment, Tyvier latched onto her shoulder and bit down until he only tasted her blood. She screamed for him to stop and that she was falling, but he was beyond listening. When he finally did let go, he purposely stepped on her paws so she’d have a more difficult time holding on. Baree found the top, just as Mayna went over the edge. He rushed to Tyvier’s side and watched as his sister fell to her death, bloodied and broken her body lay there for hours. The two brutes stood side by side, traumatized from the shock of losing Mayna.

When the alphas, their parents arrived to see what the whole fight was about, they found Mayna’s lifeless body. Giiva became savage with anger immediately, and sped up the steps. Only to find his son and Tyvier sitting side by side, staring at her like zombies. Giiva demanded they tell him what happened, but Baree couldn’t say anything. Tyvier finally whispered, ‘I’m sorry.’ That’s when Baree snapped and began to mercilessly attack Tyvier, Giiva however managed to pull him off.

Tyvier ran before he could be convicted of murder, grabbed some followers, and started a rebel pack in the east. He drove his father off his lands by brute strength. Tyvier lost all of his feeling that day, and forever wallowed in guilt. Baree left his fathers lands and claimed the west, declaring war of Tyvie’rs pack. Baree called his pack Mayna after his beloved sister. The Giiva and Cinbar pack wanted nothing to do with the war, for they felt it unnecessary. So the packs watched their sons and daughter fight savage against one another. Friends and family were turned against each other. They became known as the Rebel packs. For the rebels felt nothing but the urge to fight for their own causes.

And for that period of time, Zasta fell into complete darkness. As the years past, Tyvier and Baree grew tired of their fight and ceased the war. Though they forever dislike each other and tensions were always high, they stopped physically fighting. By now Giiva and Cinbar had past. The packs seemed to divide and Giiva’s and Cinbar’s original plan to have a peaceful land ceased to exist. The packs finally disappeared from the world, the land has been rather empty since. The pack boundaries are still in place for claiming, but Mayna will always despise Tyvier for the past.

Half-recognized kingdom of the dead:
A deeper landscape lit by distant
Flashings from their journey
-Geoffrey Hill, ‘The Stone Man’