Toad - The Forest
Toad
An excerpt from a copy of "The Book of our holy lord of the water lily" located in the central library of New Log City:
Lo thine children of his lordliness. Ye may beckon, plead, or otherwise request an answer to the question of the origin of our order. How come we by the worship of his most holiest of lords1? Sit and verily I shall bequeath unto you my comrades the story... of the beginning:
It twas here in this very clearing some fourteen centuries hence that our order began. Here in this hallowed place, beside this sacred pond. Our founder who's name has been all but lost to the sands of time. It started with something that could either have been a J an X or the number 9 and ended with "tist". And so to this day we simply refer to our founder as Ninetist. May his soul rest forever in the shallow waters.
But it twas here within this clearing that he had a revelation of the most profound variety! Founder Ninetist had been wandering for weeks and, as the wills of the forest are want to do, he had seen hide nor hair of his destination. Nor another living soul for that matter. And here he came to rest his weary soul, looking out at the vast expanse of the Lords lake2 he sat and prayed. He prayed for days, weeks, MONTHS! He poured his heart out in this holy place. Until finally our lord leapt from the pond, onto his most holy of thrones to bear witness to this dedicated pilgrim3. And to bear witness to our lord bearing witness was a young man.
"Lo", he said, "I am here and I witness this momentous event. You have been blessed by a holy and just creature with his gaze and his mere presence. I have searched long and far for someone wise and learned so that they might help me discover the meaning of life." Well, being that he was wise and learned our founder Ninetist sat in silence. He stared out at the pond, not daring to meet our lord's gaze but simply basking in it.
"Break your fast with me as I ponder this request you have lain before me." The second pilgrim, who's name is well known to us. He was named Tod. Tod shared his rations with the pilgrim and they sat and silence as Ninetist considered Life, The Universe, and everything in this holy place. After a long time he spoke.
"You shall sit and pray to this holy creature. And I shall depart from this place to find more worthy pilgrims for our order."
"When should I stop praying?"
"Whenever you have discerned the nature and truth of this place." And with that he departed. Tod sat and prayed. He wept as he did, finally feeling the fulfillment he was meant to feel. And soon they came. Brothers and Sisters to this holy order arrived one after the other and were joined in this holy task. Some stayed, others were not strong enough of heart and soul to remain, and still others with great evil in their heart sought to harm the lord. These people were met with righteous vengeance4. So to this day that is why we stand vigilant over our lord.
There you have it brothers and sisters. The founding of our holy order. Hark back on this truth whenever your faith wavers. And our lord shall embrace us each in the boggy waters beyond.5
Editors Note, It is important to bear in mind when reading this or any text originating from the cult of "The order of our holy lord of the water lily". That any reference to "Our Lord" is in reference to a common pond frog. Not a speaking pond frog, not an immortal pond frog, a simple ordinary frog.↩
Editors Note, When compiling this text I had to journey to the "Lords Lake" to request a copy of the holy text for our archive. The Lords lake is approximately 30 yards across the longest expanse. The "Lords Lake" is closer to A pond on a generous day but more closely resembles a puddle most days of the year.↩
Editors Note: The frog sat on a Lilly Pad↩
Editors Note: "The order of our holy lord of the water lily" is generally considered a benign and harmless group within the forest. No confirmed reports of human sacrifice have been found. However this text does reference a confirmed event where a French chef was chased out of their clearing after describing his plan for a menu when he opened a restaurant in New Log city.↩