Hello, and welcome to Newton’s Dark Room Presents: Main Street Mythology. This episode is going to be a little different. We have only one legend left for you, but it’s an important and impactful one. Before we get started, we just wanted to thank you for giving this series a listen. It means the world to us, it really does. All of his here at NDR would be nothing if it wasn’t for our wonderful audience. Thank you. Now, without further ado, from Newton’s Dark Room, this is the final episode of Main Street Mythology.
IGESI AND AWARO
There are two gods who exist outside of the common workings of the pantheon. Igesi, Goddess of Fuel, and her husband Awaro, God of Ground.
Igesi has dominion over one of the most crucial aspects of modern life, fuel. Her goods are not only used by the gods and their massive projects, but also the mortals of the earth. Some mortals have dedicated their lives to Igesi, leaving her offerings in exchange for fuel. The gods find themselves having to trade with Igesi in order to carry on their lives.
Awaro is much more reclusive. There were years where not a single god, aside from Igesi, had seen him. He lives beneath the surface, maintaining subways, pipes, and sewers. He has his followers, dust covered miners who expand his kingdom. The gods knew little of what Awaro did beneath the ground. They preferred not to think about it. One thing that they did know was that Awaro found the fuel that Igesi sold.
The pantheon was worried, especially Yomeo. He knew the power of Igesi and Awaro and he knew of their greed. He always advised against trading with the two but a necessity was a necessity and the trades carried on.
The culmination of the fears of Igesi and Awaro came later in their stories. Awaro’s kingdom had expanded, unbeknownst to the pantheon. As tensions rose an agreement was made that the pantheon would not invade the Land Beneath the Land so long as Igesi gave reports on its progression. The pantheon had the right to deny any given expansion. Igesi agreed. She gave reports at every meeting, though they were rarely truthful. Any time concerns were brought up about Awaro, Igesi was quick to dismiss and to calm. Idola, afraid of losing a valuable resource, did little to enforce the agreement.
Awaro was ignored until the day he decided to strike. Over the years, Awaro had been building an army. They were mining the earth for precious metals and crafting armor and weapons with them. His followers grew and his warriors trained, all the while he dug a tunnel under the capital of the pantheon. Awaro gathered his troops. They were inches from the surface, directly beneath the meeting place of the Gods. As Idola questioned Igesi about the status of the Land Beneath Land, a knowing smile reached across Igesi’s face.
A large cracking could be heard. Dust flew up from the ground. Pick axes cut gashes into the earth and troops spilled out like blood. Awaro, covered in scratched armor and wielding a pick the size of a mortal, burst through the floor. The gods scattered, drawing their weapons. They kicked the mortals away by the dozen, but the onslaught continued.
Abad, God of Skyscrapers, pulled out his hammer. This was the same hammer his father had given him when he was just a boy. Just then, Webbi, Abad’s son, stepped up. He too wielded a hammer given to him by his father. Webbi nodded at his father. The two had fought for many years, competing to build the best building. They were more well known as rivals than as family. In this moment, however, their petty competition faded away. The father and son held weapons made by fathers and sons and they faced down the massive Awaro side by side.
Awaro had grown stronger since they last saw him many years ago. It was clear he had been training with purpose. As the mortals continued to pour from the ground, Abad and Webbi charged Awaro who braced himself against the ground.
Meanwhile, Igesi pulled out a dagger and went straight for the throat of Idola. That was when Igesi heard a crash of broken glass and felt blood dripping down her face. She turned to face Cale, Goddess of Streetlights. Cale was holding a broken lamp, the star that Mesec had given her was pulsating and shooting off bursts of heat. Igesi covered her eyes as the light grew. Then, it went dark.
Igesi opened her eyes. The star was no longer in the remnants of Cale’s lantern. Instead, it was falling deep into the cave beneath the capital. The soldiers of Awaro were used to the dark of the ground. They were blinded by the star. Any who got too close were evaporated by the heat. All the while the star shook. Igesi looked at Cale in pure anger and charged the young goddess.
Awaro swung his pick, chunking off a part of Webbi’s petrified body and knocking him to the floor. Abad managed to avoid the blow and brought his hammer down hard against the armor on Awaro’s forearm. The armor cracked and Awaro felt the force ripple across his body. He slammed his elbow against the old man’s jaw with a meaty crack. Abad dropped immediately. Webbi, with rebar poking from a broken shoulder, tried to stand. His father was on the ground, and Awaro towered above him.
Awaro lifted his pick high above his head, screamed, and brought it down on Abad. Abad’s body did little to stop the pick. It came down so hard, that the earth crumbled beneath it and the star below shone through the cracks. Awaro brought down his weapon again, and once more. Each blow loosening the ground beneath him and ensuring the death of Abad. For the first time in his life, Webbi cried for his father.
Igesi held Cale to the floor. They could feel the quakes caused by Awaro’s pickaxe. Igesi donned a victorious grin. The capital could not stand against them. Their army was near infinite. Their weapons were strong. She knew the pantheon could not stand against their attack. It was then they felt the ground give way.
Awaro, pick high above his head, was falling. The ground caved in and he went with it, still shouting his battle cry. The dead body of Abad was beneath him.
Both were silhouetted by the bright star, which only continued to grow brighter, its movement irregular and spastic. A moment later it went dark and then the brightest that anyone had seen it. It was tearing itself apart, throwing heat and energy all about the cave. The mortals’ cries were deafened by the roar of the collapsing star. Igesi could hear Awaro screaming through the chaos.
A few moments later the star died, leaving only a seared spot on the dirt. Igesi was motionless. Cale pushed her off and began checking in on the other members of the pantheon. Igesi stayed on the ground, holding back tears, mourning the loss of her husband.
Yomeo shared a similar countenance as Igesi. Idola, Yomeo’s wife and leader of the pantheon, could not be found. There was only a jagged edge where she had stood during the fight, at the edge of the pit Awaro had created. Staring into the pit, Yomeo saw nothing. No mortals, no gods, just star-scorched dirt and rubble. He too mourned for his spouse. Filum comforted Yomeo and Praten comforted Webbi, whose father had perished fighting Awaro.
Igesi was restrained. The pantheon agreed that she was too dangerous to leave free. Cale, understanding the fate that fell upon Idola, somberly stepped into her position as matriarch of the Pantheon. She, approached Webbi and asked him to construct a prison, but he said no. He had spent his whole life building out of contempt and spite. His father was now gone. The world did not need any more of his hateful hands. He was going to make something beautiful.
That night, he traveled to the cave of sea glass that he and his father found all those years ago. It was less than it was then, eroded by the ocean, but it would do. He took this glass and carried it back to the capital, now all but demolished. Webbi built a coffin for his father. One that was as large as any skyscraper he or his father had made. It was smooth and faded green. It caught the sun and doused the entire city in a new color. Though there was no body or ashes to put in this monument, it stood tall as a symbol of his father. Their rivalry had pulled them apart through the years but Webbi hoped this would put things right.
The capital was renamed. They called it The City of Angels in remembrance of Abad and those who died in the onslaught. The pantheon all worked to rebuild the fallen city.
-
You just listened to Newton’s Dark Room Presents: Main Street Mythology.
The legend Igesi and Awaro was performed by Mike Emling.
Other series narrators include Robert Ready and Eleiece Krawiec.
All the music you heard was created for the show by La Troienne. You can find more of La Troienne’s music on Spotify, iTunes or at latroienne.bandcamp.com.
In order to kick off the new merch store, we are hosting a giveaway! We are giving off one of our new Main Street Mythology shirts. There’s a variety of ways to enter, like tweeting about the giveaway or even just being subscribed to this podcast. You can find more information on how to enter by visiting the link in the bio or by going to Newtonsdarkroom.com/giveaway
Visit our website at newtonsdarkroom.com for Julia Sawbone’s journal notes and illustrations, as well as transcripts, downloads, and information on the collective.
Main Street Mythology was collected by Julia Sawbone with story editing by Auggie Pepnia and Kyrah Werner. Sound editing by Sumpra Pepnia, music by La Troienne, illustrations digitized by Trent Stradley.
Special thanks to Raymond Tu, Luis Diaz, Kaitlyn Smith, Fuzzy, Pat Nat, and our good friends over at the Carlötta Beautox Chronicles for supporting Newton’s Dark Room on Patreon. If you sign up for our Patreon before May 28th, then you too can have your name read during the credits of Main Street Mythology. You’ll also get access to our Behind The Curtain series, the maternity ward, and downloads of all our music.
According to a report by Westwood One, 60% of podcast listeners discover new shows through word of mouth. If you like Main Street Mythology, tell a friend or post about it on social media! You can even tag us on twitter or Instgram @newtonsdarkroom, we’ll be sure to say hi. Thank you for making through to the end of the credits. As a reward, here is one story that didn’t make it into the series. Trenzer is the God of Skating. He is currently the youngest of all the gods and he moves about the city on a little wooden board with wheels. Some of the older gods can’t stand him and they will fruitlessly chase him through the city. If you ever hear the sound of skating but no one is around, there is a good chance that is Trenzer escaping the older gods.
Thank you for exploring this world with us. We hope that you took something from this series. Maybe when you’re walking down the street, a light will go off above your head, and you’ll smile thinking of Cale.
Thank you for listening.