MELANDRU, Goddess of Earth and Nature

And it was that a tribe of godless humans wandered the land. Where camped did they lay waste, senselessly destroying everything nearby.

And so the tribe set out to find another camp, when suddenly sprouted a wall of thorny branches, which blocked their exit.

Then saith Ewan, leader of the tribe, "Know ye our ways. Whosoever does magic in this tribe shall be put to death."

Yet none comes forward. Then, from the earth grows forth a large tree, and unfurling its branches, reveals the upper torso of a woman. Saith She, "I am Melandru, the Mother of earth and nature. Henceforth I bind ye to these lands. When they suffer, so shall ye suffer."

And as She saith, so was it done. From their limbs sprouted branches, and the blood in their veins was the sap of trees. Then was Ewan and his tribe converted, and became they stewards of nature.

-- Scriptures of Melandru: 48 BE


Melandru is the goddess of earth and nature. She is the patroness of Rangers, Geomancers and some Dervishes.

It is said the Maguuma druids at one time worshipped this deity, but there are none alive today who can confirm the truth of this rumor. Melandru is frequently depicted as a human female torso whose lower body is the trunk, branches, and roots of a living tree. Her statues attract weary travelers. Beneath her branches await plenty of fresh water and shelter from the elements.

Who is Melandru? Let us come back to the creation of the Equilibrium.

After 'The Enemy' left his followers to choose a new leader (who ended being Grenth) and appointed Balthazar, and when 'Tne One and Only' retired and left Dwayna take care of the Equilibrium and choose Lyssa as another God. The Equilibrium seemed almost perfect... Almost...

Dwayna said to Lucifer: 'We do have two male gods, two female goddesses, such is balance. We do have two gods from your realm and two from ours, such is balance. We do have the presence of 'The one and only' in Lyssa, and your presence in whoever will follow you on the throne of the Underworld, such is balance. I am content.'

But Lucifer, who was now really concerned by the project, added: 'Don't you forget something Seraph? According to the old ways and assumptions, al living things need to be represented and in hierarchical order they are: 'The one and only', his angels, humankind, animalkind, plantkind, and stonekind.'

Indeed, at the time, people believed that even stones had some life, even though very few.

Dwayna replied: 'You are right. Let us concentrate and gather our energies in order to create the perfect neutral God, for Nature is neutral, and only Nature can represent the animals, the plants and the stone who are left over the Equilibrium so far.'

Thus, Dwayna, Lucifer, Lyssa and Balthazar impulsed some energy towards the ashes of a sacrified goat, of an oak tree and of a rock, but the outcome was a surprise as a strange female dryadic form was born.

Luficer was displeased and felt betrayed (as usual). he cried: 'Nonsense. Look, it was supposed to be neutral. That god was supposed to be a 'it' and look... it's a 'she'. I am sure that is because Lyssa has two sides that the feminine took over the neutrality.'

Then the Dryad spoke: 'Peace sibblings. I look female because that is the way humankind call me since the dawn of time: Mother Nature, Mother Earth, and because spring and fecondity are associated with the feminine but I can assure you I am a neutral force.'

To prove her words, she summoned an avatar and all could see that it was a sexless hulking beast.

Lucifer, in his last moments of perversity, asked: 'And can we know what sort of a name a 'neutral woman' such as yourself bears?'

The Dryad answered: 'My name is Melandru. 'Mel' for the feminine, because it means 'honey', and only the female can rule the hive. 'Andros' for the masculine because it means 'warrior' and in nature, that is a masculine task. 'U' finished my name because it is a neutral letter in many languages of old. Melandra would have been feminine, Melandro masculine, and Melandri plural. I am Melandru, and thou shall respect me for I am every one and none one. I am all of you and none of you.'

And the Equilibrium was completed, at last...