The Origin of the Verdant Cradle

Part I: The Verdant Cradle (Y0-Y2)

The origin of the "temperate zone" civilization, 800 miles south of Dragon's Eye Lake, was a miracle. This was a "reincarnation site," but unlike the chaotic "Second Landing" at the Bay of Rebirth, this one was a "divine garden."

The reincarnated souls were "born" into the world. They emerged fully-formed, as if from a divine cocoon: some "unrolled from a giant leaf like a fruit," others "stepped... out of large plants like trees."

They were a diverse people (Tabaxi, Humans, and others), but they were not "new." They were reincarnated souls. They had language, memories of past skills, and a fundamental concept of society.

From the moment they were born, they were not alone. They "walked with nature gods." Thasa (Animals), Erisi (Hunting/Woodlands), Nira (Agriculture), and Amini (Seasons) were all present, their divine influence making the forest a "Cradle," a place of profound natural harmony.

Part II: The White Mist (Y2-Y10)

This "Verdant Cradle," however, was not a "heaven"; it was just a "sanctuary." The primal, untamed world was still full of predators. The people were protected by their gods, but they were not immortal. They were still hunted by "normal" animals, and, more terrifyingly, by dinosaurs (like raptor packs).

When they died, a terrible, supernatural phenomenon occurred. The new world's "underworld" was not yet established, and their nature gods had no dominion over the dead. When a soul was separated from its body, it had nowhere to go.

A "white mist"—the literal, lingering soul of the dead—would collect at the spot where they fell.

This was the real threat. The forest, though beautiful, soon became "misty" and haunted by the thousands of lost, uncollected souls of the dead. This "White Mist" was a spiritual cancer, a visible cloud of despair that was slowly choking the new civilization, reminding them that even in their divine garden, death was a final, hopeless end.

Part III: The Divine Call (Y10)

The "White Mist" was a plague of despair. The nature gods (Thasa, Erisi, Nira, and Amini) could help the people live, but they could do nothing to help them die.

The new civilization, though safe in their "Cradle," was beginning to stagnate, paralyzed by the constant, visible proof that death was a final, hopeless end.

Only one person stepped up to be the protector, not just of their bodies, but of their souls: a Tabaxi Paladin. He was the "Anthwun of the temperate forests," the de facto leader who took it upon himself to protect the people from both the dinosaurs and the growing mist of despair. He was an Oath of the Ancients paladin, a perfect conduit for the "light and life" of the forest.

But he was failing. He could kill the dinosaurs, but he could not fight a mist.

His primary patron, Zaketrin (Goddess of Exploration, Magic, and Lore), saw his struggle. She, unlike the nature gods, understood that this was not a problem of life, but a problem of cosmology. The souls were lost, and they needed a new kind of "divine order" to guide them.

Zaketrin, one of the six gods who had built Dragon Mountain, knew the answer. She sent her most faithful paladin a divine dream.

In the dream, the Tabaxi did not see his own people. He saw himself, far to the north, standing before a mountain shaped like a dragon. He saw himself passing a series of great trials. And he saw himself riding a dragon, a beacon of pure, absolute Good, the "White Mist" of the forest recoiling from his new, holy light.

He awoke with a new purpose. The dream was a path. To save his people from their despair, he had to leave them. He had to follow Zaketrin's path 800 miles north, find this "Dragon Mountain," and claim the power he had been shown.