Mythological Origin Story for Constellation Goddess in

Mythological Origin Story For Constellation Goddess In the most ancient times when Men had yet to assert their dominion over the Earth and its inhabitants, and vengeful Gods still controlled the destiny of all creatures, the land of Telzah was ruled by the goddess Anre. As beautiful as she was benevolent, Anre was beloved throughout Tezlah and the people's devotion to her extended even beyond her land's borders.

Rather than use her awesome powers to extinguish life wantonly and enjoy herself at humanity's expense, habits her fellow gods and goddesses had long grown accustomed to, Anre was known far and wide for her willingness to aid the injured and assist the fallen. Tales were often told of encountering Anre on one's travels, the extraordinary beauty of her earthly visage belying her any attempt to conceal her divinity, and invariably these stories ended with the provision of food and water, or protection from bandits and beasts.

While the details of each encounter were always different, every person to receive Anre's charity remembered the same ethereal smile, and the same refusal to accept recompense for her efforts. The reason for Anre's magnanimous treatment of mankind was as widely known as her reputation for kindness, as each of her eight children was fathered by a mortal man rather than a god.

In addition to being soft of heart, Anre was sound of mind, and she could see the writing on the wall every time she returned to the Heavens to attend to divine matters. Her fellow gods and goddesses had long since grown content and complacent, so secure in their supremacy over the Earth and its inhabitants that they had grown lazy, languishing high above the world and deigning to come down only to mettle in the affairs of mankind.

Anre could see that, sometime soon, people would reject the accepted power of the gods and goddesses who now governed them, and she also knew that when that time came her brothers and sisters would be relinquish all right to rule. Perceiving that the intelligent and intrepid human would likely rise to replace the gods atop this planet's natural hierarchy, Anre chose to procreate with the best and brightest men she encountered during her dalliances on Earth.

The gentlest of heart, the most courageous of character, those who pursued wisdom over welfare, Anre chose eight men for eight fruitful nights, and eventually Anretew, Neleh, Leahcim, Divad, Ydnar, Yrag, Yecats and Yecart were her constant companions, a lasting legacy meant to survive the inevitable collapse of divine rule. Her children represented both the best of Anre and the best of mankind, and thus each one led productive lives spent in pursuit of the public good.

Already a beloved figure among the people of Telzah, word of Anre's connection to mankind -- and her eight contributions to the species continual advancement -- spread to all corners of the globe, and beyond. Great city-states from Belrina in the West to the Sharlitti Shores in the East began to sing the praises of Anre in open defiance of their own gods or goddesses, and soon enough her brothers and sisters on high bitterly took notice of their rapid fall from grace.

As time marched ever onward Anre's eight children spread out from the land of Telzah, travelling to faraway lands while seeking to improve lives as their mother did before them. Blessed with the blood of a goddess, but still bound by their human form, Anre's eight children were capable of accomplishing astounding feats of architecture, engineering and agriculture. Anretew taught the hill-people in the Northern highlands the art of terracing, and soon enough the traditionally nomadic, warlike people settled down into a more productive and peaceful lifestyle.

Neleh showed all those with interest how to chart the stars and their movement, while the Leahcim formed the everlasting bond between shepherd and dog. As a master mariner, Divad instructed the coastal people how to read the flow of wind and water, along with the craftsman's skills needed for long journeys across the sea. Ydnar travelled the world building weatherproof houses of clay and wood rather than mud and thatch, while Yrag revealed the mysteries of medicine and healing to the masses.

The twins Yecats and Yecart made the most impact, however, using their status as demi-gods to shatter the illusion of divine omnipotence, and telling anybody willing to listen that humanity held much more power than it ever believed to be possible. Combined with the elemental lessons being taught to men, women and children in all of the world's known lands by her other six children, Anre's oldest offspring had managed to inspire and empower mankind.

At first glance the gods and goddesses on high simply laughed as they watched Anre's children working, dismissing them as meddling fools with mortal blood who were beneath them in every way. Only when the sacrificial fires lighting their temples were cold, and the banners hung in their name had fallen, did the gods and goddesses take notice. Mankind had made the leap they had always thought to be thousands of years at bay, prompted and prodded by the work of Anre and her eight children.

Now capable of growing their own food, travelling across the sea, mapping the skies and mastering the natural world around them, people everywhere simply ceased praying to the powers they once depended on for survival. And when the sun continued to rise and fall, and the seasons continued to fade into one another on schedule, even the most superstitious among them began to suspect that the gods and goddess were no longer needed after all.

Stripped of the universal belief which had always empowered them, the gods and goddesses who had once ruled over.