Kurangi’s Library: Chapter 1, The Historian

In a remote corner of Valannia, in a secret place that few know and would be impossible to find even with the exact location, an enigmatic and unique dwelling stands: The House of Kurangi. In this mysterious enclave, elements converge such as a celestial observatory or a laboratory, among other astonishing wonders, but a vast library fashioned over thousands of years stands out, housing a great deal of information about the history, nature, and mysteries of Valannia.

But… Who is Kurangi? To shed light on this pertinent question, we must go back to the dawn of his history.

Millennia ago, Valannia became a stopover for an advanced and long-lived community of beings known as the Qwemzi. These space travelers, accustomed to intergalactic wanderings, found in Valannia a fascinating tourist destination on their astral journey.

They were marveled by its uniqueness, for it not only abounded in valuable resources but also possessed a rarity seldom seen. On the planet’s largest continent, several intelligent species in a primitive state of technological and social evolution coexisted, or rather, disputed every inch of it.

Despite the captivating beauty of the region, once their tasks of sample collection, database updates, and safari-type incursions were completed, their spirits urged them to resume their journey, with one striking exception.

A member of this Qwemzi expedition, a young spirit with curious and singular inclinations, driven by an experience of conscious alteration provoked by interaction with local fungi, chose to stay. In that moment of altered transcendence, this individual experienced a premonition of a catastrophic nature.

The words of the others resonated: “It was just a dream.”

But he countered with conviction: “It was not a mere dream… I have received a message. You must not go!”

He asserted that primordial forces of the environment conveyed to him the unshakable impossibility of leaving the planet. Obviously, incredulity arose: “How can departure be impossible, when we have traversed entire galaxies?” Skepticism prevailed, and despite his insistent arguments, it was decided to provide him with provisions before leaving him to his fate in that remote corner.

Whether it was a mechanical failure, a miscalculation, external interference, sabotage, a treacherous atmosphere, bad luck, a minuscule mishap, or some supernatural agent, one certainty exists: the Qwemzi vessel never managed to escape Valannia’s gravitational pull. Its structure disintegrated inexorably in the atmosphere.

The harsh reality, witnessed by the sole survivor of the Qwemzi mission, manifested in the slow disappearance of the blazing fragments of the ship against the vastness of Valannia’s landscape.

And you will have guessed it, that persevering young one whose cheeks were soaked with tears imbued with sadness and pain for having been right, answered to the name Kurangi.

With the passage of time, he managed to overcome the traumatic event and move forward. Furthermore, he always maintained a youthful, jovial attitude, and was laden with good intentions towards those who crossed his path. Yet, in some corner of his heart, that scar persisted.

From the very beginning, Kurangi was fascinated by the local fauna and flora, and from this initial wonder, his salvation emerged. He resolved to dedicate his life to the study and documentation of Valannia, as well as the unique creatures that inhabited it.

Currently, Valannia was not the most hospitable host due to the struggle for sovereignty among six powerful empires. Kurangi studied all civilizations and meticulously collected information about their history, which led him to encounter characters both marvelous and sinister in each of them.

Over the centuries, Kurangi built an extensive library that narrated Valannia’s history, described its inhabitants, fauna, flora, seasons, and other invaluable information. This library became his reason for being.

As Qwenzi, he avoided capture or decapitation through a series of skills that compensated for his lack of physical strength. Among them were telekinesis, invisibility, teleportation, illusionism, immortality (attributed by some), super jumping, great speed, quick reflexes, unparalleled cunning, magic and/or highly advanced technology. In fact, sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic, and with him, the line between the two was impossible to discern.

He had precisely protected his house with some kind of magic that made it practically impossible to find, and there he spent many hours printing, observing the skies, and embarking on astral journeys. He lived peacefully, basing his diet on plants, and occasionally traveled to collect data or visit an old friend. Two small and curious creatures lived with him, but there will be time to talk about that pair of rascals.

With the last magical rays of the evening, Kurangi settled into his favorite seat with a cup of tea and prepared to read us a book, whose cover read: “History of Valannia.” However, I fear, esteemed readers, that thousands of years have passed since his arrival, and the curious young man of yore is now an elder with a cheerful yet weary demeanor. He falls asleep before starting, which means the reading will have to wait for a future chapter. Still, even today, the words he received from ancestral forces during his entheogenic experience before the catastrophe resonate in his mind.

Moments before falling deeply asleep, he whispers the fateful words: “No one can… leave Valannia…”

End of Chapter I. Next

Source: Valannia Herald