Mother of the Seven Snakes

The Mother of the Seven Snakes, also called the Mother Lake, the Birth Waters, and Kyala is a local sub-region of the Arcai Forest and therefore an Outlands sub-region of the continent that surrounds the Setlian Sea.

The Mother Lake is a massive, freshwater spring that sits atop the cliffs and highlands deep within the Arcai Forest. No true maps exist of this land, and what is known is spread only by rumor and legend.

Geography
The Mother of the Seven Snakes sits deep within the endless jungle of the Arcai Forest. It is named for the seven great rivers that flow from it's singular source, each bringing life across the surrounding, vast jungles and forested lands.

It is said that ever river, spring, and stream in the Arcai leads back to the Birth Waters, the Mother Lake.

Directly surrounding the lake are high mountains and rolling, heavily jungled steppes. It is said that the Mother Lake sits at the peak of the jungle, sending it's life-giving waters below and beyond.

Languages
The tongues that sing across the Mother Lake are varied and ancient. Though the common tongue is not completely unknown there, it is a strange thing to hear near those waters.

History & Myth
The line between fact and fiction is a difficult one to find when it comes to the Mother of the Seven Snakes. There are many scholars who dispute it's existence entirely and just as many explorers who swear by their eyes that it is as beautiful as the stories say.

Origins
Across the Arcai, the Mother of the Seven Snakes is told of as a creator god. A kindly spirit which serves a thirsting world.

Her children, the Seven Snakes, are guardian spirits which birthed the various people's of the Arcai - elves, beasts, orks, goblins, etc.

Threats from the North and East
One constant in the stories of the Mother Lake is that of exploration, treasure-seeking, domination, and enslavement.

Tuskan Orks often raid the Arcai, taking back beasts for war and slaves for all manner of purpose. Very few have ever found the Mother Lake, and even fewer among them have returned to speak of it. Those that have tell of beautiful goblins, bountiful fruits, as well as visions and delights they cannot describe. One notable change is that nearly all Tuskan Orks who speak of such experiences return without the same lust for war. They are shifted. Touched by the Mother Lake and changed.

To the East, the Claudites of the Free Land have often sought the Mother Lake, more often with a focus on subjugation, treasure hunting, and conversion of the local peoples. Though no major excursion of the Claudites has successfully made a foothold along her coast, many famous explorers have returned, most often with far less men than they left with, speaking of a beautiful lake upon which angels danced and Claude itself spoke.

Depending on the extent and direction of their tales, most have been killed for blasphemy, though some have been hailed as saints.

Modern Times
During these times, the Mother Lake is most often spoken of as myth or mentioned in stories. Some of the people's mentioned in historical accounts have been discovered, but none have successfully surveyed so deep into the Arcai as to map this region, and none who claim to have seen it return with any convincing proof - aside from their newfound 'madness'.

One notable change in modern times is that the various people's from within the Deep Arcai seem more organized. Fewer and fewer are captured each year. Fewer and fewer raiding parties and missionary groups are ever seen again. Some call this the curse of the Arcai. Others claim the tribes within the deepest reaches of the jungle have organized against outsiders. It is difficult to know for sure which is correct.

Characters
Caoimhe