Part IV: The Pawn of Prophecy
Chapter 7: The Mark of the Balkery
Timeline: Drokka History
This seems like another good time to chat a bit about the Drokka Faith – which you’ll recall was primarily driven by the Nave clan. After centuries of domination over the people, the Drokka creed had become bogged down with bureaucracy, corruption, and more man-made rules than you could count.
At its core, the Drokka religion claimed a mission focused on helping the people understand their reason for existence in this world – in that regard it failed miserably (pretty much like all of your religions have failed over the millennia).
Yet despite being unable to achieve its purpose, the Drokka religion continued to thrive. Why? Because, like so many other religions, The Naves used the faith’s influence to help the ruling class control the people – in exchange for this help, the elites puffed up the Nave clan and allowed their leadership to become wealthy as well.
It was a win-win for everyone (that mattered).
Recall that hundreds years prior to Hacktor’s time, back when the original men who were named Drok and Derk lived with their father Kane in their original homelands, Drok’s family worshiped the god of their forefather – my made-up deity Baal. Back then Drok’s clans were migratory herdsmen who lived in (relative) harmony with their Derk brothers — since both had a common enemy in the form of rival clans born of Adom son’s Seth’s lineage. When Baal commanded that Kane and his sons to migrate east until they reached a “Promised Land they could call their own,” they did what Baal told them to – eventually making their way to the harvest-rich lands of Gor on the west coast of TerrVerde.
Unfortunately things didn’t quite work out for Kane – the ‘marked-man’ didn’t get the death (or freedom) he wanted and so abandoned his sons and their clans. (Poor Kane). Meanwhile, the place where the Droks and Derks finally settled (Gor) was beautiful, and while the land had more than enough space to accommodate both clans, I inspired Derk and his sons to want to control it all for themselves – having favored their clan and their livestock with higher birth rates during the migration, Derk’s people far outnumbered Drok’s by the time the clans reached Gor and they had greater wealth and possessions. It wasn’t hard for Baal to convince the Derks of the benefits of enslaving their brothers [“Why share when you can have it all? Why work when you can have others do it for you?”].
And so, finding themselves in a strange land, without freedom, and feeling abandoned by the only god they’d ever known, the enslaved Drokka’s faith in Baal eventually shattered. [It probably didn’t hurt that I also had the Derkka priests murder all the Drokka priests – “to protect the purity of the worship of Baal.” Hey, I never said I was a nice guy, right?]
After giving up on Baal, the Drokka tried worshiping the mystery that was their patriarch Kane, but as he had also abandoned them, this faith never really took root. Abused as slaves and forsaken by their gods, the Drokka searched for answers – and this period of disillusionment lasted until Ajax freed them from their bondage and gave them a new god – Rhokki (or at least my version of him).
Over time this new quasi religion took root and flourished. After setting up the Nave Clan as the ‘priests’ of the Drokka religion, I sat back and watched as they attempted to explain the mysteries of life to their followers with a host of outlandish ideas. [I was fascinated by it all and was eager to see it all play out – perhaps throwing them a few ideas along the way].
One interesting concept the Naves came up with was The Balkeryz and their role as the ‘shapers of the future.’ As their religion developed, The Balkeryz took on greater importance – eventually morphing into powerful immortals who had specific personas. High Balkeryz were essentially the gods – with Rhokii the chief among them. Additionally, certain ‘overachieving’ Drokka were posthumously proclaimed to be ‘immortal’ by Drokka priests as a result of their recognition as balkeryz after their death. [Among them Ajax The Freemaker, Volzung the Fearless, the poet Snorri Sturluson, etc. Read The Kroniklz for a full list].
As their religion continued to take shape over the centuries, The Spirit encouraged the Drokka clergy to declare that even a living person might be a balkery – particularly if they were born with The Mark of the Balkery. [Although in reality this ‘mark’ was often nothing more than a common birthmark that Drokka priests could use to satisfy greedy, forward-thinking royals into believing that their children were special – and thus securing major donations to the church for its guidance].
All of this nonsense came together to give me the opportunity to exploit Hacktor Derkillez as my pawn. I personally gave him a distinctive mark; then I had Mirkir recognize the so-called “Krangor’s Mark” in order to identify Hacktor as a balkery and ‘claim him for the church.’
By this time in their religious development, the Drokka faith required that balkeryz (especially royal ones like Hacktor) spend their formative years under the tutelage of Wyze Ones (in Hacktor’s case that was Mirkir). This allowed me to use Mirkir to indoctrinate Hacktor on a daily basis.
Mirkir thus gained control over a future king and felt as if he could orchestrate events to suit his own designs. [It didn’t hurt that old Mirkir also got to satisfy his more beastly appetites by making young Hacktor his Beloved].
Finally, one of the most important beliefs about balkeryz (that I also helped foster) was that a balkery could talk to the gods – and there was no better place to do this than The Well of Wyzdom – and it time we talk more about that too…
The Apocrypha of Azazel 