Xel-The Oakis

Rather than the more common material most tomes are written on, this piece of work is etched on a piece of thin gray metal.

Long ago, before even the elves and faeries walked the world, Gaia was lonely. She desired companionship, and entertainment and so she chose to make some. For entertainment she created a race of beings called the Oakis, a race of tree-like creatures, to sing and dance, rhyme and speak with her. For companionship, she created a mate, whom the Oakis call 'The Woodsy Lord'. This is neither Kalug or Rotarx, who accord- ing to Xel were created after the Oakis, but something even greater. She set the Oakis to tend the forest plants and animals, and made them to live on light and water. She also made them immortal, so they could serve her for eternity. Oakis love the soil, but especially they love the flora of the forest, trees above all. She placed the Oakis under the rule of the Woodsy Lord, and gave him the fist of ironwood. When the Oakis were bad, he made them hurt. When they were good he let them sing, dance, play, and do tricks. So they spent their time entertaining the goddess, and pleasing their lord.

It came to pass that their idyllic existence ended with the coming of the tree bugs. These voracious creatures ate almost anything, but es- pecially the Oakis, including killing Xel's mate. They were sent by Virigoth, who the Oakis call 'the rotsy lord'. Virigoth was angered that Gaia had made the Oakis immortal, and demanded that they be bound to the cycle as are all other living things. Gaia reluctantly agreed, but instead of changing the Oakis, she changed the tree bugs, merging them with the natural bugs of her own to create bugs that eat wood, or flesh, or plants, but not all three. The bugs were made to breed and eat, and that's what they did. The bugs did their work, slowly re- ducing the members of the Oakis race down to a few. Now the Oakis watch the creatures who Gaia created after them, the elves, faeries, halflings, and others, but most especially the humans. The watch the way their forest home is destroyed by the 'manfools' and they grow angry. So beware, for the tree beside you just might be an Oakis, ready for revenge.