Story

Sura Novi awoke to summons from Pedac. Once again the young Unfallen, barely a thousand years old, would come to seek advice from the Elder One.

“I have news from Selver.” said Pedac.

“Yes. I’ve sensed it.” replied Sura Novi.

“He... deviated. Again. Took all saplings from his native grove and went to… kill the strangers. I don’t understand, Elder One, why would he do such a thing?”

Sura Novi understood Selver. He knew something needed to be done. The Unfallen were slowly dying, withering faster than they should. Youngers bough breaking too fast. A slight change of hue in the leaves of seedlings. A disease of the body, but not only. However he felt that Selver’s path wasn’t the solution. In fact, it was now part of the problem.

“We have been… poisoned. Selver’s quest is a desperate attempt at living, extending his life. But he has moved a step too far. This curse that fell upon us now corrupts the inside, tempting the Unfallen towards to a path of violence.”

It had been centuries that the first contact with indigenous people happened. Since then, everything slowly shifted. They brought innovation, trade and technologies to travel and expand. But worst of all, they also brought concepts that were never heard of before, didn’t even have a word for it. Violence. Hatred. Vengeance. Killing. War.

“Are we doomed to die?” asked Pedac.

“Death is not the issue, Pedac, only fear is. We should not avoid death, but embrace life.”

But Sura Novi, Elder of all Unfallen, still believed that redemption was possible. It was not too late to come back.

“I’ve heard… summons. Echoes from a distant voice. Another superior spirit has reached my mind. she helps me towards my death. But fear not, Pedac, for I shall die soon and I’m not afraid. This is just the Natural Order of Life.” said Sura Novi.

“But who will guide us now if you leave us? We can’t let Selver be our new leader. He would drive us towards extinction. Oh, help us, Elder!” pleaded Pedac.

“She will help you. I don’t know what she is exactly, but she has reached me. And I want her to reach you too. Now. I trust you, Pedac, to follow her path on behalf of the Unfallen. Only she can help us in this dire situation...”

“I understand, Elder One. I am ready.” said Pedac.

Pedac opened his mind and let Sura Novi direct it. Don’t be afraid.

It came with just a gentle touch, something warming and utterly clean. That’s it, don’t hide! And then it became stronger, relevant. He felt her calling, and his senses told him to relax. He was surrounded by this warm, comforting feeling. That’s when he realized. The Elder was right. She will guide the Unfallen to get out of the worst crisis they ever faced.

TL;DR:

Pedac is an Unfallen that seeks help from the Eldest One, Sura Novi. He's afraid that militarists, led by Slever, will drive the Unfallen to extinction. Sura Novi explains the corruption is coming from other violent civilizations, and leads Pedac to follow a superior being that has been in touch with him, claiming that by following the Natural Order of Life and not being afraid of death, the Unfallen will achieve redemption and cure themselves.

Background

I wanted to work on two aspects of the Unfallen:

• They are pacifists by nature. By having other civilizations reaching them and corrupting them, they would have internal political pressure towards a more militarist approach. I thought this works well in the new political aspects of ES2.
• They are old, near eternal beings, so I guess they are quite wise. And so they probably shouldn't be afraid to death, as it's something natural.

I had three main influences (as can be guessed by the names):

• The Word of World is Forest from Ursula Le Guin (and her works in general)
• Foundation from Isaac Asimov (in particular the last two books of the series)
• Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind from Hayao Miyazaki

Feedback welcome! Thanks for reading!

I like what you set up here in your story. A great dialogue between two Unfallen. And you clearly set up a unique faction quest, something which I stress in my story too, but isn't clear in some other entries.

I'm a little confused about what is afflicting the Unfallen, do you mean there is literally a disease they have contracted? Or is it pollution from the other race they have met? Or what? It isn't clear to the reader. Also, calling the other race a "Minor Faction", implies that the Unfallen know what a "Major Faction" is, and can tell the difference, which is weird lore-wise because all major factions should have zero previous contact with each other from the start.

Anyway, cool stuff. Keep it up!