Vthia's Tears
Vthia could not let a legend die...
Before Vthia-Deres' granddaughter-would leave her indelible mark on the Natives of the Eastern Jungle, before the City Strife engulfed Bainshaebo, in her youth she forged south whilst embarking on her freelanding tour. Determined to follow in her grandfather's footsteps, she sought to brave the great salt marsh and confront its enigmatic guardian. Little did she know another followed close behind, a young man who feigned friendship and professed love and presented himself as a cheerful sort, but in his heart harbored unsavoury desires. This far south, Vthia had no one to come to her rescue. The events that unfolded in the winding waterways are known only through Vthia's memoirs, but the story garnered attention from the gods and remain carefully preserved and treated as fact.
Summary
At some point in her late teens-roughly seven-to-eight cycles in Thangien time-Vthia would take to the wilds to complete her tour. Yanwis, Yapign's youngest son, takes off after her. While they had once been cordial friends in their youth, Yanwis displayed increasingly appalling behaviors as he grew older, becoming estranged from Vthia. She remains oblivious to the true depths of his desires and is startled when he comes upon her in the Salt. At first polite, Yanwis became increasingly demanding and erratic, frightening Vthia. He professed love, but she knew he partook in the flesh of man and woman and rebuked him.
A sound drew Yanwis' attention and a blast of water sent him tumbling into the marsh. Vthia did not see her savior but believed the mysterious Razzer came to her rescue. She hurriedly fled deeper into the marsh, but Yanwis remained determined to find her. Enraged at being denied, he laid a trap and fired a poisoned arrow at the Razzer. Satisfied with his vengeance, he taunted Vthia and mocked the Queens before departing the marsh in a huff.
Vthia came across the limp neck of the Razzer, seeing its lolling tongue discolored. She cradled the beast in her lap and hugged it close, unwilling to let such a legend die. It had saved her life from Yanwis' lust and wished to repay in kind, but this deep into the salt she did not have access to fresh water, and the skins she brought with her had burst when Yanwis tried attacking her. She had Richtho leaves on her person but the arrow had already delivered its deadly dose, and healing the flesh wound would not be enough.
Weeping uncontrollably, she prayed to Ritho, the Morning Mother, that if her body remained pure, that her tears would be pure as well. Taking from her pack a bowl, she gathered up her tears and mixed crushed, dried Richtho leaves, hastily brewing a tea. Still holding the Razzer's head in her lap, she pours the tea down its throat, hoping to counteract the poison. The Razzer remains unresponsive and Vthia wails in despair, eventually falling asleep from exhaustion.
She awoke to find the Razzer no longer in her lap or anywhere on the shore. Confused, she wondered if its body slipped into the water and inspected the shore but found no sign of its body. Believing it sank into the marsh, she sorrowfully gathered her things to resume her trek. When she turned away from the water, however, a rude sound erupted from the reeds. Vthia did not see it but she was overjoyed knowing the benevolent beast yet lived and shouted her gratitude to the gods and the Razzer. As she departed the islet, she came across fresh water and repaired her torn skins, replenishing her supplies.
She continued her tour under the vigil of the Razzer, wishing farewell to her friend as she departed the marsh to return to Bainshaebo. She related her tale to Deres, who believed her, but when Vthia saw Yanwis with his brothers playfully mocking her, she uttered a prayer to Witheren, Maiden of Blood, that this slight not go unpunished. However it was not by Witheren's hand that Yanwis met his end in the City Strife...but Eyurodin's...
Historical Basis
Deres, Vthia, and Yanwis were pivotal figures in ancient Thangien history, and Vthia wrote of the incident in her memoirs, but when she attempted to spread the tale upon her return to the city, few believed her and most scoffed at her. She accused Yanwis of attempting to violate her but he feigned innocence and his father Yapign tried to intimidate young Vthia. Only intervention from Deres cooled the situation, but tensions were already simmering at that point, and Vthia's tale soon took a back seat to the chaos of the City Strife. Deres would eventually exact vengeance upon the Vulgar Warlord, and while Vthia did not participate in the Bloody Bricks and could not exact vengeance herself, she would vent her rage upon the Natives decades later.
Spread
Vthia told any Freelander she encountered on her way back of what happened, but because of the vastness of Kundain, the story was slow to spread. The Freelanders knew of the Razzer, however, and viewed it as a benevolent beast, so they had no trouble believing Vthia.
Variations & Mutation
Some versions state that Yanwis did not travel alone and brought with him a cadre of cohorts, so when the Razzer foiled his first assault, he had his friends lie in wait to strike the Razzer when it emerged from the water to taunt one of them. In other versions it is not an arrow but a poisoned blade or poisoned food laid out as bait instead.
Cultural Reception
Far from being the first use of Richtho tea, it is perhaps the most popular. With so much mystery surrounding the Razzer and the Salt in general, the tale helped solidify the Razzer's benevolent status among Freelanders and City-dwellers alike. However miraculously the tea acted to heal the beast, the taste remains notoriously awful to this day.
In Literature
While not as widespread enough to warrant a dedicated story-window, the tale is set down in childrens books found in the Archives of Raaezen. Both scribed and printed versions expand dialogue between Vthia and Yanwis, showing her attempts at cordiality and his descent into vulgarity.
In Art
VthiasTearsb.jpg
Vthia's Tears
by
Mardrena
Made with BlackInk
TheRazzer1.jpg
The Razzer
by
Mardrena
Ink doodle
Date of First Recording
3000 B.C. (5000 years ago Earth-Time)
Date of Setting
Pre-City Strife
Related Species
Related Locations
Related People
Related Organizations
SouthernSalt1.jpg
Walls of Reeds
by
Mardrena
Made with Flowscape and Paint.net
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