The First Echoes

Before there was land, before the stars settled into their predictable dance, there was only the Obsidian Tide. It wasn't water, not in the way the surface-dwellers understand it. It was a consciousness, a vast, sentient current of raw potential. Some say it remembers the universe before time, the moments when existence was still coalescing. The Elders of Norroway claim the Tide chose this place, drawing the first fragments of reality into being. The very stones of Norroway are said to be solidified memories of the Tide’s genesis - polished black basalt that hums with an almost painful resonance.

The initial inhabitants, the Sylvani, were born directly from the Tide’s embrace. They were not creatures of flesh and blood, but beings of solidified light and shadow, capable of shifting their forms at will. They communicated not through words, but through patterns of luminescence, intricate displays of color and shape that resonated directly with the mind. Their purpose, as far as the Elders could decipher, was to maintain the equilibrium of the Tide, to prevent it from collapsing back into the void from whence it came.

The Sundering

The Sundering was a catastrophe, a ripple of dissonance within the Tide. It began subtly – a shift in the color of the basalt, a brief cessation of the luminescent patterns of the Sylvani. Then, the ground began to crack, fissures opening up to reveal depths of absolute darkness. The Sylvani, their forms becoming fractured and unstable, attempted to contain the damage, but their efforts were futile. The Tide, wounded and enraged, lashed out, creating monstrous entities from its own chaotic essence - the Murkborn. These beings, composed of solidified shadow and fractured light, hunted the remaining Sylvani, consuming their luminescence and adding to the Tide’s pain.

The cause of the Sundering remains shrouded in mystery. Some believe it was a consequence of the Sylvani’s attempts to shape the Tide to their will. Others claim it was a natural phenomenon, a cosmic imbalance that triggered a catastrophic resonance. The most unsettling theory, whispered only in the deepest chambers of the Elder Council, is that the Sundering was an act of self-destruction – a desperate attempt by the Tide to escape its own boundless potential.

The Obsidian Covenant

From the ashes of the Sundering emerged the current inhabitants of Norroway: the Lithos. They are a hardy, resilient people, forged by hardship and tempered by the unrelenting presence of the Obsidian Tide. Unlike the Sylvani, the Lithos are bound to the land, their bodies infused with the basalt of the region. They possess a natural affinity for stone, able to manipulate it with a precision that borders on the magical. Their society is rigidly structured, based on a covenant with the Tide – a constant offering of respect, vigilance, and a solemn promise to never fully understand its nature.

The Lithos are masters of a unique art form known as “Stone-Singing”. By striking specific formations of basalt, they can evoke echoes of the Tide’s memories, experiencing fleeting glimpses of the universe’s creation. However, this practice is inherently dangerous. Prolonged exposure to the Tide’s raw consciousness can shatter the mind, leaving the individual a husk, a vessel for the Murkborn. Therefore, Stone-Singing is performed only by the most skilled and disciplined of the Lithos – the Keepers of the Echoes.