The jeat ring was so unmovable, so unbreakable, so unchangeable that it was said to be shaped by giants. They were ingenious, prosperous, adventurous. And they were capable of harnessing the power of a star, all to shape eternal jewellery for their claws. The myths even claimed that every dark spot in the sky was where a giant had used up a star, until it was all gone.

That myth came from before we learned how to harness the stars ourselves. Before we learned how close we could come to touching the stars. Before we knew that to create and innovate and exploit for mere convenience would be our downfall.

Now I think of the ring and wonder. Was it pointing us to the stars all this time? The remains of an asteroid? An artefact of some long-dead space-farers? Did it have purpose? Or was it really just there to tempt us? The result of ancestors who mined deep and harnessed great fires, exploiting their universe to create mere adornment?

One day, a civilisation will look at us, and write myths. I want those myths to be about purpose and community and yes, adventure, but also wisdom. We are not giants, we are not here to take and destroy simply to adorn ourselves. We are cartographers. Here to explore, to uplift each other, to grow from cycle to cycle in hope. And to do that we need each other. We need collaboration. So please, read these stories, understand your fellow cartographer's history. Be ready so that, when it comes to it, you are ready to sacrifice a jewel if it means you can save a star.

– This Foreword to Myths and Legends was written by an anonymous editor. If you wish to cite or credit Myths and Legends please see the up-to-date list of public-facing editors and curators online