It was only then that the Landfather interjected with a gentle laugh. The song, he said, was less than half complete and the notes were in the wrong order. While impressed, he further added that Dapi should not seek to end the world further.

Dapi, angered, asked the Landfather how he could be such a hypocrite. He and the Skymother had sung the song as a duet in the world-that-was, ending it and raising themselves to the levels of gods. How convenient, Dapi said, that they would not see anyone supplant them.

The Landfather replied, and his reply represents the majority of what we now know about the previous Singing and the events of the world-that-was that brought it about.

He had not sung the song, he said, until there was no other choice. The gods had died, the aged world was falling apart at the seams, and he knew full well that the burden of rule would mean permanent separation from and estrangement with the Skymother. Knowing that, would Dapi still sing the song, even if he knew it?

Dapi’s answer is not recorded.

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