Introduction from “Tales of Departure”

  Written by former Bookmaster Ola Hali

  Unpublished anthology.

  Collection Date and Location:

  Eternal Library, Lasu Ojimaki Branch. 13 Roo'Essai, i1061

  Classification level 3 of 3

  Every Ulani child knows the ancient story. We are taught it from birth. That our great whale father, Uli Ongo, rescued us from the Palace of Whips and Thorns, and the great and terrible Hifuna who used us as slaves and whipped our ancestors, bending them to their will. That in his great mouth, we found peace and refuge from the evils of the world, and were brought to paradise, and the beautiful islands. We were taught that when we stepped on to the deep red sands of Afa Fama’aki we were greeted by our new Mother, who swore to protect us with fire and rock. And when Niso Holi, the first E’hi asked Uli Ongo to let us set sail again, to see the world, against his will he gave to him the gift of lelaki osena, the words of the ocean so that he can protect all who would ride upon the waves. This is the story we know. We are taught it from birth. But it is not complete.

  For the last twenty years I have been in studying the ancient tales. You may be familiar with my more popular work, “The Collected Ancient Histories of the Ulan Islands”, where I have catalogued and amassed the more popular stories, and attempted to replicate them in writing in the more traditional ways. While I am always happy for it’s continued success, and it’s inclusion into the canon of the Eternal Library, it was always incomplete, because it had none of the most ancient of stories, those from the days before. The Place of Whips and Thorns. Largely because our most ancient myths began with our departure. But this is also incomplete. It was that the like many parents, our , our most ancient of ancestors, shielded their children from the pain of the past. They did not want them to know of the suffering they endured. They did not want them to seek out their former masters, to enact revenge upon them. And they did not tell them of Uli Ongo’s final decree, before he returned to the depths after leaving us here.

  Through much research, and travel, I have pieced together these tales, and collected them here in this anthology: the “Tales of Departure.” It is small to be sure, but in its pages are the accounts of the oldest days. And they represent the foundations of the deep-seeded cultural values of the Ulani people. Values of resilience and survival. Strength. Justice. Justice for the pain that was inflicted upon us. For the suffering that we received at the hands of our former masters.

  This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

  My travels to uncover this information has taken me all over the world, searching for the mythical “Place of Whips and Thorns”. Of course we all know where we thought it was, the rumors of it being in ruins along the coasts of Ería, is a commonly held belief. Eríans are an easy target. They are the modern day Hifuna who enslave our cousins south of us without passion or remorse and little empathy for their suffering. It is no wonder our ships engage in warfare at sea the moment we see their flags. No Ulani can stand the enslavement of others, and while the Empires of the World have their edicts and charters, and create policies and embargoes, we act when we see Eríans. We remember. And we do not suffer the slavers to live.

  And this is well and good to me as well. I sat in the Oufaha with my cousins and agreed upon this course with the other islands. But in my travels, which took me not only to Ería, but to Salasa, where I searched the Ziggarauts for signs of our people. But we were not there. Then to Milanka, where I observed the , and met with their scholars to see if were in their stories. But we were not there. We were not in Zhidao, where magic was born. We were not in Rishea, where the horned whales, the distant relatives of our Uli Ongo, live under the ice of Myler Bay. We are not in Erikenyea nor are we in Samghara. And as much as our people believe and wish it, we are not in Hanaq.

  It was on the shores of Bat-Hom, in the lands of Samghara, the Verdant Plains, where I found the first clues of our origins. I know this may seem shocking to many, given the history between that city and ours, but the clues are there, and well explained and verified in the subsequent chapters. Bat-Hom is the Place of Whips and Thorns, and it’s people are the Hifuna of legend. It is an important addition to our culture’s history and while it is an uncomfortable notion, we owe it to our to work to fully understand this portion of our history.

  Think of this need as you read these stories. Think of how they might explain ideas or feelings you have long held on to but know not why you did so. Think of how they may explain and illuminate long dormant energies that are within you, those that the Wave Riders have conquered to protect the seas. And remember, when Uli Ongo returned to the depths we gathered on the rocks surrounding the Cove of the Ancestors. And he spoke one last message. The message we are no longer taught. The message we have forgotten. The message we must remember now, more then ever:

  “You may think of yourselves as my children but you are not of my seed. But I have sworn to protect you, as has your fiery mother. I have brought you here, to the Land of Red Sands, so that you might be shielded from those who would seek to do you harm. So that you might prosper and grow strong. Gain wisdom and strength. And one day, when you are ready, you will return The Place of Thorns and Whips. And your captors will know fear when they see your sails. And all that was once yours will be again. And on that day, you will know your true selves.”

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