Wezl’s Ghosts: An ogregore story

 Marissa Grunes has encouraged me to develop mythic stories about ogregores. Here’s my first attempt, about a trickster who used ghosts to fool their ruler.

Wezl's story

In the vast realm of Commerce, where mighty ogregores ruled, a cunning trickster named Wezl emerged. Unlike the ancient lords of trade who built fortresses and bribed rulers, Wezl moved like the wind—swift, unexpected, and unseen.

Wezl had discovered a powerful magic: the ability to match people with what they desired, in an instant. With mere gestures on a glass tablet, gifts would appear, their approach marked with paths of light. The people marveled at this new way of life, and the bold Wezl spread its gifts without waiting for the customary permission.

But Wezl’s magic threatened an ancient beast, the slow and massive Trench, who was long accustomed to ruling unchallenged. It had feasted well for ages, controlling the flow of goods, setting the terms, taking its share. No one dared question its dominion, for it had formed a powerful bond with Reg, the ruler of the land who favored the old lords and guarded the traditional ways.

When whispers of Wezl’s magic reached Trench, the beast stirred in fury. “Who dares encroach upon my domain?” it bellowed. It sent out enforcers to track and crush the reckless upstart. They lay in wait, hoping to catch Wezl in forbidden places, to drag it before Reg and have it banished forever.

Wezl, clever as ever, had an answer. It conjured Ghosts—phantoms of itself, illusions that tricked Trench’s hunters into chasing shadows, grasping at nothing, striking at empty air. Again and again, Trench’s forces sprang their traps, only to find themselves fooled. The beast roared in frustration, for never had it faced an adversary so crafty.

Yet Trench had more than brute strength—it had its ally, Reg. The beast whispered to the ruler, reminding it of their long-standing pact. “This trickster mocks your laws,” Trench growled. “It defies your will. If it is not stopped, all will defy your power.”

Reg flew into a rage and proclaimed: “Wezl shall be spurned! No one may summon its gifts! The land belongs to Trench!” It dispatched its enforcers to trap and harass Wezl. The newcomer’s answer was to confound Reg with its Ghosts, just as it had baffled Trench. When La Grise, the babbling breeze, spread word of Wezl’s trickery, Reg’s fury burned like a bonfire.

But the people, who had come to love Wezl’s gifts, murmured and cried. “We need Wezl! It has brought us choice, speed, freedom! What has Trench ever brought us but delay and greed?”

Reg, ever attuned to the shifting sands of opinion, hesitated. It watched as the people gathered around Wezl, their devotion clear. The trickster bowed humbly before the ruler, its voice smooth as silk. “I never meant to cause offense, mighty Reg,” it said. “I shall cease my mischief, if only you allow me to serve.” Reg, sensing that the tide had turned, relented. “Very well,” it declared. “Wezl may remain—but under my watchful eye.”

True to its word, Wezl ceased making Ghosts—for it no longer needed them. Reg did not dare move against it, lest it anger the people. Trench, once untouchable, found itself forced to share land and its strength ebbed away. And so, the world changed—not in a thunderous clash, but with tricks and an ancient truth: The old grow complacent and the new outwit them.

In time, others followed in Wezl’s footsteps. More staid figures like Stōt arrived, offering similar gifts. They benefited from the path Wezl had blazed, but they lacked the trickster’s boldness and the loyalty it had earned from the people. For Wezl, today thirty times the size of Stōt and thrice as beloved, had not merely entered the land: it had remade it in its own image.

Takeaways

• It is easier to ask for forgiveness than to get permission. 

• Aggressiveness and corner-cutting pays off.

• Regulators often bluster but seldom act. 

• Aggressive entrants can help others enter and compete against incumbents but often benefit from first mover advantage.

Notes

These stories are usually told in terms of human characters, like charismatic founders and CEOs, something like, “A hard-charging founder moves fasts and breaks things, causing scandals, and is then replaced by a steadier hand who plays nice with regulators.” However, these leaders’ actions are often symptoms of corporate intentions rather than their causes. It’s safest to say that corporate behavior derives from both leaders and the collective.

In mythology, tricksters are unchanging archetypes. However, corporate behaviors do change as time passes.

There are many business cases that follow the pattern of an aggressive new entrant disrupting an industry, facing backlash, then evolving into a more mainstream and regulated market leader, like Amazon, Airbnb, Facebook, Tesla, and Uber. Common themes in such stories include:

• Disruptive entry: The company skirted regulations or operated in legal gray areas to gain market share.

• Regulatory & public backlash: Governments, competitors, and sometimes consumers pushed back.

• Leadership change or strategy shift: Often, a new CEO or a strategic pivot helped the company rehabilitate its image.

• Mainstream acceptance & market leadership: The company became dominant but had to adapt to stricter regulations.