Elyu-Ene is an uncomfortable goddess in Pent, for she is not actually a member of the First Herd. Properly speaking, she is an enemy. She is the river goddess of the Elyu-Ene river, which flows through the Endless Green Grassland and into the White Sea. She is the kindest and gentlest of the gods of Winter, for she feeds the grasses, and she is their emissary to the First Herd. Those who worship her seek to use her to soften the impact her kin and allies have on the Pentans, and her cult seeks to use her to negotiate, to bargain, or to weaken the powers of Winter. For their troubles, they are often mistrusted, for they deal with powers that would see the herds dead and the people frozen, but they are sometimes the only thing that stands between a tribe and icy starvation.
North Pent has been in the grip of Winter for a very long time. Elyu-Ene and her brother, Aikone of the White River, are the two most obvious signs of that south of Valind’s Glacier. Where they traveled in the Gods Age, the ice and snow followed. Aikone led frost demons in warfare, while Elyu-Ene went ahead of them, trading frost and ice for wealth. They were the forward scouts of Himile’s kin.
Where Aikone fought and made war, Elyu-Ene could be talked to. She befriended Issaries and Argan Argar, showing them how to pass goods along her river-body. She watched them as they moved about, and through watching Issaries and seeing her brother fight the First Herd, she found many treasures. She even claimed the bodies of fallen gods, deep in the Sky King Mountains.
This is how she approached the First Herd. When Valind marched on the world, Elyu-Ene came to them under his banner. She said to them: “My lord, the Ice Wind, will be your khan some day. But I respect the ways of your current khan, Yu-Kargzant. I come to you as messenger and I offer you terms of surrender.”
The First Herd rejected her offers rudely, but she had followed the Laws of Yu-Kargzant, and she was not harmed. Again and again, Elyu-Ene would come to them, often after some great victory by Valind and his allies. She would sometimes offer up the bodies of the dead to be buried, in return for concessions. She would give over gold as gifts, to buy negotiations.
And when Chaos entered the world, Elyu-Ene became a key link. Because of her, the First Herd was able to sometimes work with Valind and the trolls to fight Chaos together. These peaces never lasted long, but they were important. Elyu-Ene became known to the people of Pent - for she could intervene for them. She could keep the blizzards and the demons from their doors, but always for a price. She would water the grasses, but always for a price.
This is the way of Elyu-Ene. Even today, she will feed the herds and can intervene with her warlike brother or her cruel khan. Even today, her price is sometimes paid. Those who worship her say she is kind and gentle when she wishes - but she can freeze and kill as easily as an ice storm. She is the enemy who is a friend, the Emissary of Winter. She is not of the First Herd, but she knows their ways. She is no tame river, but she lacks the savage, brutal nature of her brother’s waters. Sometimes, that is enough.
The cult of Elyu-Ene is small and entirely localized around North Pent, and particularly its rivers - both the river of the same name, which flows from the Sky King Mountains to the northern White Sea, and the White River that flows hard and fast through North Pent and empties into the White Sea as well. No Pentan would dream of worshipping the White River’s god, Aikone, who is an avowed enemy. However, the cult of Elyu-Ene is called on to try and propitiate the river gods and their allies among the Winter Tribe of gods. They are able to wield some power over the cold and ice, and with proper sacrifice they can sometimes convince their goddess to intervene with her kin. The price is often dear, however, and the cult is mistrusted, for those who bear a wintery nature may not always be loyal to the ways of Yu-Kargzant and the First Herd.
Among the trolls, she is largely worshipped as a subcult of Argan Argar or Himile.
Elyu-Ene is depicted as a blue woman in white clothing. She is always harsh and angular, but with soft and flowing robes. Her hair is jet black, and her eyes are a deeper blue. She wields a spear of ice and wears ornaments of gold. She is never shown mounted and has no Mount Aspect, for she is not of the First Herd. Her forehead is painted with the Cold Rune.
Elyu-Ene is known to possess the runes of Water, Cold and Communication. However, no Pentan ever approaches her through the Cold Rune, which is entirely forbidden, and her cult can only call on the powers of Water and Communication.
WATER: Elyu-Ene’s power derives from her status as a river goddess, and so it is focused on the Elyu-Ene River proper, though she has some influence over the White River. Initiates have used the Water Rune, among other things, to cool things, to chill people, to freeze things, to command the waters of the Elyu-Ene River, to protect against (but not command) the waters of the White River, to protect from rain and ice, to worsen snowfall, to swim, or to ice skate. Those strong in the Water Rune tend to be practical, adaptable, and ruthless.
COMMUNICATION: Elyu-Ene is called the Frost Trader, and she is the negotiator of the Winter Gods, who offers concessions and make deals with enemies. She sold ice and snow to the warmer parts of Pent, before they knew winter was an enemy, and the Elyu-Ene is a useful trade river even as it is cold and dangerous. Initiates have been known to use the Communication Rune to, among other things, make trade deals, to negotiate with enemies, to tell how much someone wants something, to know diplomatic procedures, to properly offer terms of a deal in a way others understand, to not give offense, to find hidden valuables, or to tell if an offer will give offense. Those strong in the Communication Rune tend to be friendly, talkative, and superficial.
Elyu-Ene is opposed to the runes of Fire and Chaos.
Elyu-Ene is very close to her brother, Aikone, the god of the White River. Both are servants of Valind and Himile, and ultimately loyal to them. Elyu-Ene is a friend of Argan Argar and also of Issaries, which is why she was chosen to be the emissary to the First Herd. She has few other friends within it, though.
Elyu-Ene is an enemy of Yu-Kargzant, Kargzant and West King Wind, more than any other gods. She is polite to them, to be sure, but would love to see them stripped of all their power. She is also an enemy of Lozarl, for his heat, and considers Sirdaryo, Tarhel and Heltar to be enemies for their betrayal of the Sea in ancient days.
Above all others, however, Elyu-Ene is an enemy of Chaos. Valind may seek to conquer Pent, but he would not see it destroyed, nor the rest of the world. Winter may kill, but it does not unmake.
The cult of Elyu-Ene is barely organized and very small. Each tribe in North Pent tends to have a small cult, but never a large one - often there are no more than a handful of members. These cults maintain their own traditions regarding how Elyu-Ene is to be handled, and while they can worship at each others’ shrines, they rarely do. Worship of Elyu-Ene is typically considered private to the tribe taking part in it and not to be celebrated widely, after all. Tribes occasionally will fight for control of sacred sites, but often it is as much to deny them to enemies as it is to make use of them for rituals. Half-Men villages are rare in North Pent due to the cold, but those that exist typically do maintain a cult to Elyu-Ene, often treated with more respect than among the mounted Pentans. Among the Pentan tribes, it is common for Hurfor’s priesthood to be asked to oversee the Cult of Elyu-Ene, just as it does the cult of East Sting Wind.
The cult’s greatest work during the warm seasons is the panning of gold from the river. This is considered a form of meditation and divination, with the gold offered up by Elyu-Ene being taken as a sign of the harshness of the coming winter and her initial offers of negotiation. During the cold seasons, the cult works to help clear snow, patrol against frost demons and troll attacks, and provide warm furs and clothing. Some tribes even go so far as to have the cult make sacrifices to ask Elyu-Ene to redirect the wrath of winter at their foes instead.
Bandit cults to Elyu-Ene also exist. These are highly illegal, and members are considered traitors to all of Pent. Their survival relies on the magic of Elyu-Ene and Aikone, as well as their raiding of proper Pentan tribes. These bandits are often allies of the ice trolls, and they are more than happy to call on the frost demons as friends.
Each tribe or village around the Elyu-Ene and White Rivers maintains its own rules as to what is required of an Elyu-Ene priest, but among the mounted Pentans, it is almost always necessary to swear an oath of loyalty and service to the khan and the Laws of Yu-Kargzant, to prevent betrayal to the forces of Winter. In addition, however, it is usually also required for prospective priests to go out into the cold and survive, to better come to an understanding of their goddess and the nature of her people, giving over part of the self to the Winter Gods. This is said to reveal secrets of Winter, both potent and dangerous to know, and is part of why the cult is not readily trusted.
There are holy sites to Elyu-Ene along her entire length, but the holiest place to her is the river delta at the banks of the White Sea. Here, she offers up her bounty of life in the summer, though the green wetlands freeze over entirely each winter. Pilgrimages in summer gather up the valuable plants and pelts of animals from the delta, to offer up as sacrifices to Elyu-Ene. Other holy sites are marked by the harsh winters they experience, and are particularly good palces to call on Elyu-Ene to target winter’s wrath at foes. Other holy sites of this sort can be found along the White River as well. These sites are frequent targets for control by trolls and usually dangerous to approach. There are no monasteries to Elyu-Ene.
Initiates of Elyu-Ene must have either the Water or Communication Rune at 1W or higher. Initiates are expected to take part in all efforts to help fight the forces of Winter, and must, by law, take part in any battles against trolls or ice demons. If they are not warriors, they must serve as auxiliaries. They are required to swear oaths of loyalty to the tribe.
The holiest day of Elyu-Ene is the first day of Dark Season. On this day, the cult offers up sacrifices to ask for a calm and peaceful Dark Season. Each Windsday of Dark and Storm Seasons are minor holy days, in which sacrifices of fur are offered to try and bribe Elyu-Ene into intervening with the forces of winter. The third Fireday of Sea Season is also a holy day, marking the breaking of winter’s might. On this day, gifts are offered to the river in thanks for survival, and there is typically a fishing festival held.
Elyu-Ene is offered gifts of summer plants, the furs of animals, and clarified butter. These are things she does not possess already, and so they are valued highly. She is sometimes offered the meat of herd beasts or even horses, especially if she is being asked to redirect the dangers of winter at other tribes. She is never offered gold except by bandit cults, for it is illegal to return sacred gold to the powers of Winter.
Aikone has few subcults - only two that are anything like widespread, in fact. The forbidden subcult of Aikone is common among bandit cults of Elyu-Ene that have turned their backs on mainstream Pentan society, while the Goldbearer subcult is focused on supporting the tribe against winter.
Aikone the White (WATER): Aikone’s subcult worships Elyu-Ene’s brother, the god of the White River. It is highly illegal, and membership is considered to be treachery towards Yu-Kargzant and the First Herd, embracing the evil power of Winter. Bandit cults worship Aikone to draw winter’s power into themselves, often serving as mercenaries for the Ice Trolls or even joining the trollish cults of Valind and Himile. Initiates may use their Water Rune to command the White River’s waters, to fight other Pentans, to befriend or command frost demons, to freeze or flood croplands, to cause frostbite, or to fight with icy spears. Aikone also offers access to the White Demon Feat.
Goldbearer (COMMUNICATION): Goldbearer is alternately the aspect of Elyu-Ene that genuinely desires trade and peace or the name of the first hero to successfully negotiate with Elyu-Ene in the Gods Time, depending on which tradition one follows. In either case, the subcult worships Goldbearer as the negotiator-with-evil, who can make evil into good and who retrieves sacred gold from the enemy without killing or who turns evil forces towards other enemies. They may use their Communication Rune to trade with trolls or frost demons, to convince frost demons to target another tribe, to divine the harshness of a coming winter by gold panning in the Elyu-Ene, or to make winter weather better at the cost of the tribe’s wealth.
It is illegal to become a devotee of Elyu-Ene, and so they are found primarily in the bandit cults that worship her. Devotees must have the Water or Communication Rune at 11W or higher, and must forego the worship and magic of any other god. This is why they are considered traitors to Yu-Kargzant and forbidden.
White Demon (WATER): When the Dark Season is upon the world, negotiation is no longer possible. Winter is on the march. The Elyu-Ene and White Rivers freeze over, and the herds tremble. The White Demon is the wrath of the river siblings, and they march only in the Dark Season. Where they step, frost rimes the earth until the coming of summer. When they raise their spear, the storms howl, and the ice and snow cover over the land such that no herd can feed. The White Demon’s speartip freezes the blood of those it pierces, and any who are struck by it suffer terrible frostbite. The White Demon’s allies never fear the cold, for it bolsters them, and when the White Demon wins a battle, the winter grows stronger, and the next blizzard will be worse. The White Demon cannot go back on their word, however, and must abide by any deals made before the Dark Season. In Storm Season the White Demon always ends their advance, to consolidate their victories before the warm times return.
Breaking any bargain made with or through Elyu-Ene always earns the wrath of winter. Any community which offers a deal and then betrays it will be cursed by frost demons, who will assault and plague them for at least a year, and will find the fish of the river avoid their nets. Atonement always requires a large sacrifice or the strength to drive off winter’s assaults for several years.
Elyu-Ene does not punish anyone who betrays their oaths of loyalty to their tribe in favor of the forces of winter by beoming a winter bandit. These oaths are to the Law of Yu-Kargzant, and not to her. The punishment suffered is in accordance with the Law: exile or death as a traitor, and it is left to the Pentans to enforce that law.