The One Law and the Teacher

The One Law. It all comes back to that, which outsiders, speaking in the common tongue, simply call Strength. It is that, but it is deeper than that, as the giants live deep within the mountains of Serin. It's not just the ability to lift heavy objects, or bend a bar of mithril. It's strength of character - though of course in ways that would mean something to a stone giant, not ways that would be found in the guildhalls of paladins or the homes of elves and such - and strength of ability. Strength of will. And strength to use all that strength for the most important thing: combat. The raging giants don't have long talks and mediations, they fight. And they fight with their weapons and their hands and teeth and nails if necessary. That's how it has always been. Until the Teacher came. The Teacher was a man, human, and part of something called the Masters of Magic. None of the giants knew of these things but when this man literally fell out of the air right in front of them, they did as their nature commands, they attacked. He fought, a fiery demon by his side, but he was obviously tired and hurt from some recent battle and though he used powers unheard of to the giants, he soon succumbed. Rather than kill him, the giants made him captive, curious about the strange powers he'd used in combat. Bound and tied securely, he had no way of escape, and though he tried, he could not get away. Over the next days and weeks the giants forced him to teach and explain, requiring constant repetition into small words, small sentences, simple concepts. It was difficult and far from delicate, but in time their crude abilities began to form, taking the lessons and molding them to suit their ways. When they decided they'd learned enough - though far less than the man actually knew - the one who had learned and mastered the most, a giant named Rah, killed the man. Rah was already one of the better warriors among the giants, and now he combined that with his best grasp of the magic, making him the strongest fighter of all. He began a brutal sweep of all challengers, whether they actually challenged or not, eliminating them all in bloody fashion. Eventually he was declared Lord of the mountain. His bloodline continued to be best suited to the dark magics, and his scions have continued as Lords of Rah. But not all of the giants agreed with the learning of these new ways. Some saw it not as a new strength, but in fact as the opposite, as a weakening, a dilution of their true selves. They were not created as mages, just as they were not created as diplomats or scholars or fishermen. The One Law was being bent, if not broken, to encompass the greed and ambition for power of the Rahs and their cronies. Over the years several had risen who could defeat the Rahs and their magic using cadres in mundane combat, which in the past would have been all that mattered. But they could not overcome the added powers of the dark magics. Because of this, these families, true and loyal only to themselves, hid their disagreements and lived quietly, preserving the One Law as they saw it, training and fighting and living in the old ways. Being what they are, they were often discovered, poor at secret keeping, and many were put to death. But still they persisted over the generations.

The Anti-Rah

Enter Shaghroth. He is a son in one of the anti-magic families. Over the years this belief has grown to encompass magic in general, not merely magic in the hands of the Rahs and other giants of their kind. They have now seen more of these travelers who come to their mountain, and some of their own kind have ventured out. Even so, the Rahs still rule, and Shaghroth's family, like the few others who feel similarly, must blend in and keep their true hearts hidden. Shaghroth was still rather young when he made his mistake. In a sword training class he was paired with the grandson of the current Lord Rah, Nehr. They were of a size and physical strength, and each were diligent students of the blade. But as the bout drew on it became clear that Shaghroth was the better. He began to press his attack, victory in sight, when Nehr, against the rules, uttered a spell and made himself invisible. Stumbling, his blade crashing to the ground, Shaghroth roared in impotent fury. A deep throated chuckle was all that alerted him as Nehr, invisible, stepped up and slashed Shaghroth's blade to the ground and then scored the final victorious blow. Rage overwhelming him, Shaghroth spit out his hatred of the weakness of one of his kind using magic. A hush fell on the group, the elder warrior instructor's eyes widening, the first to understand what had just happened. Nehr recovered next and with a kick to Shaghroth's side he took off, yelling for his father and other Rahs, alerting them to Shaghroth's true loyalties. The other student giants immediately scurried away, afraid of being tainted even by being near Shaghroth. In seconds only the elder and Shaghroth remained. Quickly the elder told Shaghroth he must go, he must banish himself and be away, or die. Shaghroth was not afraid of death, and in his rage was ready to fight and die, but the elder restrained him, and in their giant ways he beat some sense into Shaghroth, teaching him the last lesson of his past and the first lesson of his future, that sometimes it is better to live to fight the righteous fight another day than to die for nothing. Death may be glorious and unavoidable and even desired at times, but not for nothing, not when it achieves nothing. Go, said the elder, and Shaghroth did. Winding his way up through the village and the mountain, past guards who had not yet heard any alarm, and beyond the blue sieging giants, he made his way to the seas, and headed west. Thinking the first city he came to was too close yet, he continued west and made his way through beings and sights new to him, to a city as large as any he'd heard of. A city called Seringale. From he he would make his new life, one of combat against the magic he hates. No longer is he Shaghroth Bo-Rah, meaning Of-Rah's lands. Now he is Shaghroth Stonefist and one day, one day, he will return and show the Rahs and their asskissers what the One Law truly means. It took him several years to train with the masters of Rage and discipline alike in various guildhalls throughout Serin. But his lust for the One Law, Strength and dominance has paid a toll on him. In order to achieve greatness, he had become greedy to wield and wear the best armaments and show everyone his unmatched dominance. God of Gluttony himself took a notice of it and knowing how to manipulate the greed for glory of this giant, he started molding him to his likeness in order to recruit him to his ever-expanding army of overly eager consumers. Saving Shaghroth from the brink of death by Gluttony, Fire God Lorne revealed himself to save the young and foolish giant. He sent him to train with Warlords to give him a real purpose of glory that would overshadow all the mortal wares he would cherish so highly only days ago. Now he is on a path of a higher calling, almost forgotten about his past with the Rah and Gluttony, yet the appearance of his body fools noone.