Grottan

Hidden away in the rocky Grottan Mountains, a network of clear freshwater rivers stream through indigo and black caves. Over thousands of trine, these rivers have carved tunnels and corridors, all of which convene in a beautiful underground lake. And here is where the Grottan Gelfling live—in a cavern hall called Domrak, buried within the Caves of Grot.   Although every Gelfling learns of this reclusive clan, their name is really all they ever know. They are not aware that the Grottan exist, believing that they are long extinct. Traveling to Domrak is a feat in itself, requiring not only an understanding of the maze of caves and tunnels, home to countless creatures and fungi, but also the ability to see in the dark in order to traverse them Living in the caves beneath the mountains of Grot, the Grottan's main source of light is the soft blue glow of bioluminescent moss -their murky environment endowing them with distinctive features including pale green skin, large black eyes, which are adapted to living in near and total darkness, elongated ears, and white-blonde hair.   Though the Grottan are perceived by many outsiders as eerie and unnerving, these misconceptions are unfounded and based on fear of the unknown. And among the Gelfling clans, it could be argued the Grottan and their ways are the most unknown. Many things seem mysterious and frightening when they are done out of sight, in the shadows that most Gelfling fear. But the Grottan have learned to survive—and flourish—in these hidden places.   Recently the caves have been cursed by a terrible spreading blight known as the Darkening, making their home unlivable and forcing the clan to come to the surface and integrate with the surface-Gelfling. Having been forced to live on the surface, the bright light of the three suns hurts their large, dark eyes. One effect of having to integrate with other Gelfling “Topside”, is their greater acceptance for and participation of personal hygiene. Although there are still some who stubbornly and almost purposefully dirty themselves.

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History

  According to the Gelfling creation myth, the Song of the Six Sisters by Sylus, the Grottans were, along with the Vaprans, an offshoot of the Silver Sea Clan, entrusted by Thra to preserve the Gelfling's knowledge, only to be split in two, with the Grottans being entrusted with keeping the records of the "shadow".   In the Skeksis' artificially imposed hierarchy of clans, the Grottans were considered the lowest, and they rarely ventured to the surface world.   By the late Age of Division, many non-Grottan Gelfling began to believe the Grottans had gone extinct. After the collapse of the Alliance of the Crystal, the Grottans were enslaved by the Arathim, who had allied themselves with the Skeksis in the hope of reclaiming their ancestral home. When it was revealed that the Skeksis intended the Arathim to die alongside the Grottans in the caves, now infested with the Darkening, the two factions made peace, assuring one another that they would share the caves in future. Both Grottans and Arathim would later join the Gelfling resistance during the Second Battle of Stone-in-the-Wood.   Maudra Argot is the oldest living maudra. An unstoppable adventurer in her youth, she traveled topside many times and joined the Stonewood in battle against the Arathim. Many trine later, her sight has gone and her body is not as agile—but she is still unstoppable when it comes to taking new challenges head­-on. Feisty and sharp­-witted, she leads the reclusive Grottan clan with blunt advice punctuated with the sharp tapping of her cane. Aware that the other Gelfling look down upon the Grottan, Maudra Argot makes it a priority to encourage and protect her clan, teaching them to draw strength from Thra, and from within.

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Daily Life

  The Grottan live quiet lives; not the literal quiet of the often-silent Dousan, but their activities are often independent and rather focused. They are a small clan, and close-knit. Childlings are schooled as a group, where they learn basic alchemy and other skills. As they grow older, they are encouraged to apprentice and build more specialized skills, in the hopes of taking on the work one day themselves. Meanwhile, the adults perform their assigned tasks and duties, as given to them by the maudra and her council of elders.   The caves often seem empty and still until a closer look, reveals a Gelfling tending a fungus garden or measuring the levels of water down in the lake. Things are done at a slow but steady pace; Grottan tradition values the quality of a job well done over speed. Many Grottan daily activities require long periods of concentration and focus, which suits the quiet way in which many perform their work.   The Grottan observance of devotion to Thra and the Crystal of Truth run as deep as the caves they live in. So deep within the earth and mountains, the caves are riddled with white Crystal veins pulsing with life force. Living in such an iridescent and sacred place, the Grottan have developed a profound and powerful love of the Crystal and Thra. Though the Gelfling mind is too small to dreamfast with the Crystal itself, the Grottan will often touch the Crystal ribbons and say quiet prayers, always with a loving and reverent expression.

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Finger-Talk

  The land of Domrak, though radiating from a central cavern, spans a great distance, miles in all directions. But unlike in a meadow or woodland, the various locations are separated by thick, impenetrable rock. A Gelfling voice—along with every other sound—bounces and echoes, becoming unintelligible by the time it reaches a Gelfling ear, and so calling to one another is impractical within the cave.   Thus, the Grottan have built a remarkable system for communication without the use of voice. It is called finger-talk, a descriptive name indeed, for it involves the tapping of fingers on cave walls in a specific pattern and rhythm. Similar to but far more sophisticated than the signal drums used by the Drenchen to communicate with rangers who have scouted into the swamp, Grottan finger-talk is as complete a language as our spoken word, able to relay complex meaning, location, and emotion. These signals can then be heard when one presses one’s ear against the hard rock walls of the caves. Should you listen from anywhere within Domrak, you will hear a dozen or more conversations happening at any given time.

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Daylighting

  Grottan youth often whisper of daylighting—that is, the forbidden act of leaving the caves and venturing into the dangerous “daylighter” world and its excruciating brightness. The Grottan have built their lives within the caves, with a tradition that warns of the dangers beyond. Grottan eyes have developed such an aptitude for the dark that they are pained by any light more than the meager rays that pierce the rock ceiling above Domrak. While most Gelfling are blinded by the intense shadows of the caves, the Grottan are rendered the same when approaching the daylighter world—even on days that a Gelfling might find overcast and gloomy.   Daylighting is allowed by some; the maudra assigns the task to one or two Gelfling among the clan, who are seasoned at leaving the dark and traveling in the light. These daylighters make planned, highly organized trips to obtain ingredients and materials that cannot be found within the caves. And even though they embark on these trips with great confidence, they never make contact with other Gelfling if they can help it—not even the Stonewood, who neighbor in the forest to the southwest. Except for those who have been assigned to it by the maudra, daylighting is forbidden.   But of course, youngling curiosity is the same in Gelfling no matter the clan. When asked, it is rare for any single Grottan to not confess that at least once, as a youth, they snuck out of the comforting caves near Domrak, climbing upward toward the pinpricks of light. Their daylighting adventures vary, with some immediately blinded by the sun and unable to go farther than the cave exit, while others wrapped their faces in blindfolds or went during the night, tasting open air for the first time. From those who wandered into the wood a bit come tales of the thousand sounds of the forest and the howling of the wind; the rugged strength of the wind is a thing many comment on, having felt only hollow drafts in the caves before.   But no matter the adventures had, those who daylight always return most impressed by the same thing: the sky. Regardless of what time they left the caves or what else happened to them in their adventures, the sky was the most magnificent and terrifying thing they encountered. The sky, which is taken for granted by anyone from the surface—big and open and vast, a window into space. Changing as a painter’s canvas, depending on its unfathomable mood. The sky enchants the Grottan like nothing else, so much so that many dream of it for trine after their daylighting excursion.

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Moontide

  Like all bodies of water, the lake at the base of the Domrak cavern moves in tune with the Sister Moons. These tides may not generate waves as they do on the Silver Sea, but the rise and fall of the water levels does affect the Grottan’s way of life. Using the waxing and waning of the lake, the Grottan are able to tell the passing of the seasons beyond the mountain caves.   When the lake rises to its highest point, the Grottan perform a ritual called Moontide. During this ritual, the Grottan maudra climbs to the bottom of the Domrak cavern and marks in the rock where the lake’s waters touch the highest, labeling it with the number of the trine. In this way, the Grottan track the levels of the lake and the changing of the seasons.

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The Morning Song

  Time is normally measured and understood by people of the surface by noting the position and passing of the three suns. But while underground, no such means of measuring time’s passing exists. Yet the Grottan know due to other clever means.   Of course, light does reach the caves, in small beams through tiny holes at the top of the Domrak ceiling. But small as they are, these spots of golden light travel across the walls of the cavern, passing by carved marks. These marks and the sun spots indicate the time of day; while the levels of the water in the lake show the night’s passing.   Every morning in Domrak begins with a single note from a Firca—joined shortly by a bow across strings, and then finally a voice. This chord, unbroken by the other sounds that plague the outside world, served as a replacement for the suns rising in the morning: gentle at first, warm, like dawn—growing until every rock within Domrak seemed to glow with awakening light.

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Salves and Alchemy

  The Caves of Grot provide a unique environment unlike any other inhabited by Gelfling. The lack of light and the consistent, cool temperatures make it an ideal place for storing ingredients that might otherwise spoil or become unstable. Thanks to this, many substances—from medicines to explosives—can be studied and manipulated without the risk of destroying them (or igniting them, as the case may be).   Grottan alchemists are among some of the most magically wise Gelfling, able to mix moss and stone into a paste that heals wounds three times faster than the usual healing speed—and craft tiny packets of powder that ignite when set on fire. The applications of such powder spells range from clearing debris from collapsed tunnels to much smaller amounts used to frighten nesting Hollerbats from taking up roost in ventilation chutes.   There is a large overlap between Grottan alchemists and herbal sages. In fact, most are adept at both alchemy and medicine. When not bespelling minerals from one form into another, these wise elders do the same with organic materials. A favorite among Grottan are the spores and flesh of the thousands of fungus varieties common to the caves. Mushrooms, especially, thrive in the lightless caves, some emitting their own light with which they attract the insects that carry their spores throughout the caverns. There is even a type of glowing fungus that, once ingested, transfers its glowing properties to those who eat it! Grottan alchemists have endless knowledge of the different uses of fungi, from medicinal uses to poisons to the sliver of intersection between, using small amounts of toxic materials to heal illnesses stemming from the toxins of other creatures.

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Hollerbats, Nurlocs, and Other Cave Creatures

  The caves are home to many creatures, of which the Grottan consider themselves shepherds. Many are responsible for the daily task of bringing food to the creatures that cohabit in their dark space. The Nurlocs and the Hollerbats in particular have grown very accustomed to their daily and nightly feeding routines. The shepherds have learned over generations how to provide for the creatures, passing the wisdom of quantity and menu through carefully preserved oral instructions.   In exchange, the Grottan benefit from the creatures in many ways; the Nurlocs loosen soil and rock as they dig, bringing aerated dirt into the caves as well as making conduits for fresh air. Without them, it would likely be impossible for Gelfling to survive within the caves. They also shed skin, fur, and scales, which are valuable materials for Grottan crafting; these durable remains are used in clothing, ornamenting, and the creation of instruments. The reedy antlers of the water variety of Nurloc, which fall off every thirty-four days, are hollow and make for very fine flutes.   Hollerbats—the Grottan’s sigil creature—flock in enormous colonies within the caves. Although the Grottan sometimes complain about their constant and noisy companions, the truth is that life within Domrak would be cold and dark if it were not for the Hollerbats.   Upon studying these cave creatures, the Grottan found that their dung is extremely flammable and, contrary to belief, does not have a terrible smell when used in fire and torch burning. Hollerbats cluster in colonies numbering in the thousands, and their droppings transform the floor of the caves they roost in. The stalagmites and mounds of the dung are collected when semi-fresh—just soft enough to break into manageable portions for transport. The dung is then combined with sterilizing and stabilizing salts by the Grottan apothecaries and made into a thick, viscous paste, which can be stored indefinitely in jars. The paste is applied to torch ends, lantern wicks, and the inner stones of hearths—anywhere one might want to see a long-lasting, cool-burning flame. Candles will burn for days if their tallow is mixed with the paste. For this reason, the paste is called everburn, an invaluable resource in the depths of Domrak.

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Living in the Shadow of the Arathim

  The caves that make up Domrak and its surrounding area were not all dug by the Grottan. In fact, some elders say most of the caverns are the remains of what was once an enormous Arathim nest—perhaps the original hive in which the ancient race spawned. However, the Arathim left the caves long ago, when the Skeksis arrived and gave Domrak to the Grottan, who have lived there ever since.   Looking closely at the walls of the caves, small strange holes pock the walls, just big enough to put a finger through, or a tiny threader to hide in. This is only one piece of evidence of the Arathim, however signs like these were everywhere throughout the caves. Though, of course, all remains of webbing and silk have long since been removed, the Arathim are known for their “thread hooks”—the sculpting of stone on which to hang their webs. These hooks are large and conspicuous, but within Domrak, they have been crafted into other features by clever stonework and carving. Many of the bridges that span across the cavern are anchored on the thread hooks, to the point that they seem as if they could have been of Gelfling design instead of Arathim.

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Food

  The Caves of Grot reach straight into the heart of Thra, and it is no surprise that they are filled with flora, fauna, and fungi of a thousand varieties. Although they rarely seek game or ingredients from aboveground, the Grottan enjoy a wide array of foods. However, their rich menu of dishes was not the most delectable thing about their traditional cuisine; in fact, the way in which each meal was prepared was just as unique, thanks to their mind-boggling collection of spices and flavor dusts. Using everything from dried moss to salt-rock shaved from the interior walls of the caves, every Gelfling in Domrak has their own way of preparing even the most common of meals.   The Grottan diet consists largely of vegetarian fare, with large portions of mushrooms and root vegetables that are grown in cultivated colonies by Grottan farmers. Glow moss is a major food staple and makes Gelfling glow as well when consumed. Meals are often accented with a small amount of fish or seasoned paste. Leafy vegetables are a rare treat, as they only grow where sunlight reaches. When such things are included in a meal, the Grottan call it “dayfare,” a phrase usually said with a half wink and a grumbling, hungry stomach.   Fascinating, too, were the Grottan’s application of alchemy to food. They have developed ways of preserving foods by soaking them in vinegar, salt, and sugar. In this way they are able to store the rarer ingredients they find or procure from the daylighter world, and in addition, these pickling solutions lend very unique flavors to what might otherwise be a bland or boring ingredient.

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The Tomb of Relics

  Perhaps one of the most sacred locations maintained by the Grottan Gelfling is the Tomb of Relics, a catacomb of halls some half day’s distance from Domrak. Within the halls, protected by a heavy stone door, is an unending collection of artifacts gathered from throughout history. Tapestries, tools, artwork, and even books line shelves and fill crates, making up potentially the most comprehensive assortment of Gelfling treasures in existence.  Because of this legacy, the Grottan are also really into collecting (hoarding) old things and wearing them in ways that maybe those things weren’t originally meant to be worn (maybe they weren’t meant to be worn at all).

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The Sanctuary

  The Sanctuary, a grand valley in the heart of the mountains, is one of the few locations the Grottan frequent that is outside the caves. Judging from the petrified aquatic plant formations—including giant lily pads and fungi—as well as the shallow water at the very base of the gorge, I believe the open valley may have once been a mountaintop lake, perhaps even the elusive headwaters of the famous Black River.   Here in the Sanctuary—only at night, when the light of the suns does not bother their sensitive eyes—the Grottan Gelfling meditate upon the Song of Thra, which they say can be heard here better than anywhere else in the Skarith Land.   This Grottan chant bears a resemblance to other meditative chants I have heard among Gelfling of other clans although additionally it invokes the four elements in the language of Thra:  
Every seven hundred trine, song tellers say, Bell-Birds roost in the Sanctuary. Although no one has seen one in many trine, there is still evidence of their passing in the form of enormous stone nests and loose feathers longer than a Gelfling is tall. The song teller Gyr wrote a most famous of love ballads called “The Bell-Bird and the Mountain” (See Songs of the Grottan).

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Vliste-Staba

  Above the caves, flourishing in the thin mountain air, is the Grottan patron tree, Vliste-Staba, the Sanctuary Tree. This magnificent, pink-petaled tree is visible from many peaks in the Grottan range; its bright hue is impossible to miss, especially as it flowers three seasons out of the trine, only shedding its blossoms in late winter. The Sanctuary Tree is also called “the mirror of the mountains,” perhaps alluding to one of the Grottan’s more romantic songs.   Because of the reference in the song, some Grottan elders believe that the Sanctuary Tree has two faces: As if looking at itself in the reflection of a mountain lake. Does this mean the Sanctuary Tree has a twin, hidden somewhere in the caves?  

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Songs of the Grottan

  The Myth of Aughra   Despite their disinterest in communing with their fellow Gelfling, the Grottan elders often invoked the name of Mother Aughra. Mother Aughra, the Helix-Horned; the three-eyed witch; the voice of Thra, if the old songs are to be believed. Of course, many songs tell of Aughra and her history of caring for the Gelfling; common tradition is to believe she brought the Gelfling fire and water, earth and air; taught them to sing and dance; and explained to them the meaning of life and death.   If this is so, it has been hundreds of trine since those times, yet the Grottan speak of Aughra as if she were their friendly neighbor, living in a hut within the Grottan Mountains somewhere. The following is a wayfinding song, said to help a Grottan find their way to Aughra’s famed orrery.   Seven Tasks   Those who read deeply may have heard the legend of the Six Sisters, who were entrusted by Thra and the Crystal of Truth to found the seven clans and lead the Gelfling. Thra also assigned each of the sisters a nature and a divine task. The sisters went forth, and from their footsteps and hands sprang the Gelfling as flowers from the soil.   Though this origin myth, taking place long before even the Skeksis appeared in our world, is not regarded by most Gelfling as the true beginnings of our seven clans, the Grottan in particular are quite loyal to it. Perhaps this is because the song was told—if rumors are to be believed—by a Grottan. The legend of this song’s inspiration is a song in itself, and the framing for the song of the Six Sisters:   Gricksies   There is a game played by the Grottan called Gricksies, which is based loosely on the layout of the Tomb. The following is a short ditty about the game and the Tomb, usually sung by parents while tending to their infants.