Stories of Spirits in the Sky - Death's Bow
A prompt from the Chapter Prompt Swap in 2023, from fellow Tomie Blue Fairy 74: "An important constellation for orientation in your world"
Constellations lie in The Beyond, and are made up of spirits and families and connections said spirits had made in life. The Beyond is visible primarily from the Overworld and the Ender Realm, and are used for navigation more prominently in the Overworld due to their proximity to the stars, the vast expanse of the Overworld, and the level of technology generally achieved by Overworlders.
There are many constellations in the night sky of the Overworld, but the one most central to navigation is Death's Bow, a constellation made of Death's favored mortals throughout the centuries, with the most recent a shining point in the riser of the bow. As new souls are met and passed up to her domain, the bow draws back, appearing to load. Her Bow points south, the sun rises from the east and sets in the west, so Her Quiver must be in the north. It has not yet unleashed an arrow from its quiver, but there are many theories as to what may happen when it is drawn taught.
As a standard of navigation, it unerringly points due south, supposedly to the same direction she fired her own soul fragment in when her twin flame The Blood God was created. This allows sailors, travelers, and merchants to orient themselves accordingly. Some of the most notable stars and spirits in Death's Bow are:
- First Follower - the tip of the right limb, where the bowstring would attach
- Devout Defender - the tip of the left limb, where the bowstring would attach
- Guiding Light - where the arrow would rest on the bow, on the riser
Thank you very much for answering my prompt and I think it's a very interesting idea for a constellation. I'd be interested to know what would happen if the quiver was actually empty. And have you thought about depicting the constellation again? I could imagine that a small map showing the individual stars would fit very well.