The Unspeakable - Vol. 2, Horrors of Heathens
by Standfield P. Yurr
-Chapter 1-
Due to the interest in my previous essay, now called The Unspeakable - Vol 1, Terrors of Magik, I have compiled an extensive study on the usage of the arcane by wild and uncultured societies, such as which will be outlined herein. This information took many years to gather, over the course of a decade, across the far reaches of Terra. Elegantly weaved from archeological dig sites, testimony of outlanders and even first-hand observations, this is to date the most complete study of the fundamental heathen culture.
Heathenry, also termed Heathenism, is a cancer to civilized, modern society. Classified as a movement of either otherly religious or non-religious endeavors, its infidels model their actions on sadistic gods and ritualistic behaviors. Their baseless beliefs tend to stem from reconstructed notions of ancient origin, often in a folkloric methodology. Heathenry does not have a unified theology and is typically polytheistic, centering on a pantheon of ancient prehistorical deities, the likes of which are debated to have led to the cataclysmic events of Terra thousands of years ago. It adopts skewed, cosmological views from these beliefs, including an animistic view of the cosmos in which the natural world is imbued with fearsome spirits.
These deities and spirits are honored in sacrificial rites, where captives are offered in a perverse display of slow, excruciating dismemberment and evisceration. Some factions have been found sacrificing their own peoples, the skeletons of their defenseless womyn and young overflowing grave sites. These rituals are often accompanied by feasts of uncooked meats and blood-soaked offal. Some practitioners also engage in rituals designed to induce an altered state of consciousness and visions, with the intent of gaining wisdom and advice from the deities. These are often brought about by intense drug usage, and can easily lead to a vapid death.
-Chapter 2-
Although there are many solitary practitioners who follow the religion alone, members of the Heathen community often assemble in small groups, usually known as kindreds, to perform their rites in crudely constructed buildings or in the deepest of wilderness. Heathen ethical systems place great emphasis on cruelty, slavery, and the terrorizing of defenseless persons who do not share their ideals. A central division within the Heathen movement concerns the issue of race.
Many groups eschew racialist ideas, adopting a "universalist" perspective which holds that their "religion" is open to all, irrespective of ethnic or racial identity. Conversely, others adopt a racialist attitude—termed "folkish"—by tying Heathenry with intrinsic links to an Elvish, Impish, or Draconic race that should be reserved explicitly for people of their own kind. Some folkish Heathens further combine their beliefs with explicitly racist perspectives.
-Chapter 3-
The ties between heathenry and magik are so close, that they are often of the same coarse thread. As discussed in my prior essay, the wild energy intrinsic to magik—that is, the uncontrollable raw force of unchecked emotion--is a failed, mocking attempt of the true invocations of Tarj. Heathens attempt to mirror His true Godly power by twisting together wild energies, causing widespread havoc. On our journeying, my team and I visited a small village 70 miles Northwest of the Rhen Autarchy. Because of its isolation, it faced the threat of siege and plundering by infidel groups in the harsher seasons, when food and supplies in the wild were scarce. The mayor took the time to speak with us, having seen many seasons come and go where they faced the threat of attack. He had many stories to share.
Initially, attacks were perpetrated by small bands of idolaters, wearing strange, fearsome garb in the middle of the night. Livestock was led away, granaries were broken into, and buildings were defaced by these renegades. Strange symbols were drawn there, and when touched would cause immediate injury or sickness. Guards were placed on watch to deal with the intruders, which stoppered the thefts for a time. For the next few seasons they were safe. This placated the citizens, and caused the village to decline additional help from surrounding cities.
Then the fearsome winter of 3001 gripped much of Northern Krussin in snow. This great freeze was one of the harshest ever recorded. A new group of attackers visited this time, with much more ferocity. They were described by guards as "wavering, as with the heat of summer's noon-day." Shots were fired at them, but none seemed to hit. "Crude war-cries shook the air, as if with trumpets," one man remarked to us. "They raised their hands and flames of burning, hot ash streaked toward us, toward our homes. Women and children could be heard crying, men were screaming—the intensity was beyond us. It was like the belly of the earth had ripped open and intended to eat us alive."
"Many died that day," he continued. His face and arms bore the scars of great fire. He had tried to rescue those trapped during the tragedy. "Since that day, our village has grown in size and security, with help from the Rhen Autarchy. Knights, sent over from the Holy Land of Lenova, retaliated by destroying much of the nearby forests. They found a whole settlement there, heathens worshiping evil, base things. They slaughtered the entire group, protected from their crazed magik by the might and wisdom of Tarj."
-Chapter 4-
Next we journeyed to the province of...
...
...the imprisoned maniacs and their narrative make up a much more frightening picture.
-Chapter 26-
However, looking at the effects of these unfortunate and terrible circumstances, the ultimate result is perpetuated bythe inexplicable ties with rebellions in larger cities. Activists from these heathenish groups have been making trade deals with larger renegade organizations for decades, based on the narrative we heard from Captain Olivander Smith in the last chapter. The underlying current of these cultist beliefs can lead to the instability of our modern society, undermining the foundation by way of its terrorizing, antagonistic principles. We must protect against this at all cost, or it will inevitably lead to our own undoing.