The Ring of the Sky Stones

In the highlands of Upper Siar, east of the town of Collon, stands a circle of weather-worn stones on a windswept knoll, known to the Clansmen as The Ring of The Sky Stones. The stones are not hewn as if by the hand of human masons, but tall and smooth as if set in place and sanded down by giants or gods. No lichen grows on them, and no snow lingers long upon their crowns even in the heaviest winter falls.  

History

The clans tell that the Ring is older than the Elven Kingdoms, older even than the Athrukar. For millennia the clans have gathered within it to swear oaths of fealty, forge promise-bound alliances and honour the ancestors.   During The Human Rebellion, the Army of the Clans mustered within the Ring, swearing blood-oaths beside rebel emissaries before marching east. Many Siarlanders claim it was here that Alerio himself was named Brother of the Clans.    

Folklore

It is said on cold nights, the dead hold council within the ring. Runes unseen by day awaken with a faint glow, tracing themselves upon the stones in pale light. Wanderers and bards have spread tales of pale figures crouched around its heart, whispering in a tongue known by no living creature.   The Ring is feared by the cautious, but not by all. Adventurous youth and folk heroes often make pilgrimage to the Ring, spending the night within the circle. They oft return speaking of visions of stories long forgotten and carrying new ballads none have heard. Others claim to have seen gatherings of strangers within the circle on moonlit nights. Elves most often, but others less easily named.   Whether a relic of the Gods, the Elves or something else, the Ring of the Sky Stones endures. It is a place of oath and of dread, where the living remember their ancestors and the dead may yet linger in council.