See also Pan and Agvan''s adventure with the Kalikos Cult (Game Memo 19)...

Kalikos and the Red Goddess [source: Kalikos worshippers]

After the First Battle of Chaos, the Karmanians withdrew from the lands of the Goddess for a generation. They now hated the Lunars blindly for their harnessing of the forces of raw creation, and most were jealous of these powers. But whilst most Karmanians and their gods prepared for another bout of the Blood Kings' Wars, some among them thought deeply about the Goddess and the Karmanians. Chief amongst these was Erath, a minor demigod or Hero of the Karmanians, who could see that the Karmanians were blinded by their fear. Erath confronted each of the Karmanian gods in turn. "Why do you hate the Lunars?" he asked. "Do you not see that the only reason they fight you, is that you attack them? Is it evil to defend yourself?" The Karmanian deities ground their teeth and answered curtly. "The Lunars are evil because they use Chaos," they said. "Besides, this is only a temporary setback. We will crush them next time." They had a plan to destroy the Bat, you see, which was what had defeated them before. Erath could see that the old gods were too set in the Compromise to compromise where Chaos was concerned, as it were. Even his best questions couldn't make them see the truth of the matter. Besides, their leader, King Karmanos, had been gravely injured by Yanafil Tarnils and, being too proud and stupid to admit he was bettered, Karmanos was determined to destroy him. Erath was given short shrift, then, by the brute gods of the Karmanians. But he had more luck with a couple of the Heroes, who had been born within Time and were more amenable to manipulation. The two most notable successes were two of The Five, that is, the five heroes who had conquered the theocracy of Eeland in northern Karmania - in fact, just about where we are now. They had entered Karmania as normal men with Syranthir Forefront himself, and led a Karmanian army against these Eelands, who were a bad lot - human sacrifice, demonism, and polygamy you know. Anyhow, the point is, these Five hadn't been your usual bloodthirsty conquering warlords; they'd liberated the people of the area because they felt the people needed help getting rid of their oppressors. One of these successes was Kalikos, of course. Kalikos already had a small cult, dedicated to driving off and controlling ice demons; and they were the patron of travellers through frozen lands. Coincidentally, she already had a tie to the Lunar rune, from before the Goddess rose; so she was more open to considering the Lunar way. She actually thought about what Erath was saying, and saw the light of truth behind it. Perhaps her sex helped, too. Once she joined the Goddess, new powers were revealed to her; she became far more effective and her cult was renamed Icebreaker. The other was Menkar, the Noble Knight. He doesn't have a cult, though he is a 'patron' of some Yanafil Tarnils. He was cursed with immortality and influential in the Karmanian forces; Erath tried again and again to convert him, but he would not forswear his oath of allegiance to Karmanos. "I see the injustice of the war," he told Erath, "but I must fight the Lunars 'til my Lords decree otherwise." At the end of the Blood Kings' Wars, he surrendered. Unlike most of the Karmanian officers, he had behaved in an honourable and upright fashion throughout the wars and never resorted to cowardly guerilla tactics; Yanafil Tarnils invited him to become a Lunar patron, and he accepted. "Karmania is conquered," he said, "I now wish to serve Carmania." It is said he's still around, roaming Carmania in search of who knows what.

Kalikos' Lover

One night - much like this one - Kalikos was camped with a few companions in the foothills of the Grey Mountains. They had been scouting the area for Hollri, but this night, the demons found them first. As they huddled by their small fire in the midst of the storm, they were taken unawares by the Cold Ones. Her companions fought bravely but soon were injured and fell to the ground; Kalikos too was injured, but called on her special magick to protect her from the numbing cold. As the magick took effect luck turned her way and the Freezing Spirits were wounded - however, victory was by no means certain when a man, drawn by the sounds of fighting, appeared out of the forest behind her and the demons fled. Kalikos now tried to aid her dying companions but although she had many potions and magicks,she could not help them and they became frozen to the snowy ground by cocoons of ice that crept over them even as she watched. Kalikos and her rescuer tried to chip away the ice and melt it with firebrands; but her friends froze before her eyes, contorted in awful shapes of pain and death. Kalikos wept and wailed and offered prayers for their souls. The man tried to console her. "They can feel no pain now," he said. "You did your best; they will not blame you." He put an arm around her shoulders and drew her to him. She was weary, sad and cold, but glad of the human comfort. Lifting her face the man kissed away her frozen tears....Kalikos whispered "How cold your lips are". The man replied "I need your kisses to warm them my love". Drawing her closer he placed his hands upon her yielding flesh "How cold your hands are" murmured Kalikos. Her companion replied "I need your body to heat them my love". Falling in a close embrace to the ground together Kalikos breathed "How cold your body is". Her lover said "I need your soul to burn me my love". Then as her lover entered her, she saw him reflected in the ice around one of her dead friends. She thrust him away, leaping to her feet and striking out with her hammer. "Ha! Do you really think a puny weapon like that can harm me?" the Son of Valind laughed. As he grasped at her she could feel the marrow in her bones start to freeze within her. She struggled to escape as he forced himself upon her... a demon is much stronger than a man...even so, Kalikos' holy passion gave her divine strength and she broke free of his grip.... but as she tried to evade him he grabbed at her hair and jerked her back towards his cold embrace; his icy breath was on her neck and despair clutched at her heart when suddenly there came a tinkling, crackling sound as her frozen hair shattered in his hands. Seizing the moment, Kalikos fled into the night and waited out the long cold winter dawn alone and afraid, hidden in a hollow on the barren slopes....listening to the Hollri as they howled through the night. Kalikos' experience teaches us that powerful Cold Ones can use illusory magicks to hide their true forms and that when you are sitting around the camp fires on cold winter nights , such as we are now, you should look your companions hard in the face and wonder "Which one of us is the Hollri tonight?"

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