According to Lakota belief, Inyan (Rock), was present at the very beginning, and so was the omnipresent spirit Wakan Tanka, the Great Mystery, and the darkness Han.
Another was about the slaying of Unhcegila, a serpent monster who wreaked havoc upon the land and devoured or killed whoever who stumbles upon her.
Many warriors sought to kill her to obtain a red crystal in a seventh spot on her head which functioned as her heart, as it grants its bearer great power.
Some accounts add that the arrows did not entirely kill Unhcegila, but injured her so greatly, that she damaged the land as she writhed in pain.
When she died, the Sun dried her remains, resulting in the rock formations and skeletons that are found in the Badlands (Makȟóšiča).
The resulting devastation angered Wakinyan, the Thunderbird, so he flapped his wings to dry the land, and shot lightning to destroy her heart, killing her.