The Sacrifice of Pelekanos
"Do any of you know why it is that we are tying blue ribbons around the trees hugging the riverbank," asked the older man surrounded by children.
Glancing over her shoulder at her parents, one girl gives a sly smile and breaks the silence, "We tie the ribbons around the tree because it's Pelekanos day." With her intellectual superiority confirmed, she returned to the task of tying the bow in her hands, oblivious to the chuckles her peers fought to contain. The old man's gaze remained on her, growing heavier with each passing moment, until the girl noticed it and blushed, suddenly aware at the incompleteness of her answer. Her voice cracking with insecurity, she slowly managed the words, "And... because that's what we do on Pelekanos day?"
Two of the youths could not contain themselves any longer and began chortle at the response, which prompted their tutor's swift rebuke, "Genessios, can you provide a better answer? How about you, Nikolaos?" Fearing that his displeasure may turn to ire, the pair quickly silenced themselves and muttered a barely-audible negative. "You have celebrated Pelekanos day for the past four years, children, and you have not yet heard the story of who Pelekanos was?"
All eyes were upon the wizened schoolmaster as he motioned the children to gather around him. When all had squatted down in their accustomed places, he began: "Our story takes place long, long, ago, before any of you were born--before even I was born. When our empire was very young, these hills were among her most cherished possessions. The Aristenoi had a palace nearby where they would spend their summers, although no one these days can quite agree where it was. One summer day, Tiberius Aristenos, whom you should know from your studies, was called back to the Great City with great urgency, leaving behind his only child, the little Eirene Aristena."
With the mention of this name, the young girl immediately snapped back to life from the silence she had entered, jumped up and shouted with uncontrolled excitement, "Eirene, that's my name! The Basilissa has the same name as me!" No sooner had she finished this outburst before she dropped down into her low squat, added a newly darkened shade to her already flushed cheeks and dropped her gaze to the ground. The old man's response, however, was nothing more than a kindly smile.
"Eirene Aristena wandered these hills and drank from this river when she was a little girl, long before she became the Basilissa. I'm sure that she received the same warnings that you children do, not to wander into the hills or go swimming by yourselves, but on this day, she saw her father carried away on a boat and gave chase as best she could. It was not a long time before she lost sight, not only of the vessel carrying her father to Lapara, but of the palace as well--she was completely and totally lost." Pausing for a moment, the schoolmaster watched the idea of being lost sweep across the faces of the children gathered around him, and continued after the desired emotional impact revealed itself on the faces of his pupils, "In those days, our town had not yet been founded, but there was a small village in the area in which Pelekanos, the son of the carpenter, lived. Pelekanos was no older than the princess, but was accustomed to living in these hills and enjoyed wandering the countryside, and keeping an eye out for seragoth. On this day, he saw the princess, who had been lost and wandering for some time."
"The boy shared what little food he had, a handful of blueberries he had gathered and kept in a pouch at his side, and accompanied the princess upriver, for he had decided that her home must be upriver from where they were. They traveled along the bank of the Arsanias river for hours, and as the sun began to fall, they could see the walls of the Aristenos family palace when the young girl spotted a band of seragoth following them. 'Let's cross the river at the ford,' Pelekanos suggested, 'for the beasts cannot swim.' The children scrambled down the riverbed, into the cool water and started to cross, but three of the animals, driven by their ravenous hunger followed in pursuit, snarling savagely."
"Knowing that the beasts would turn on each other in a moment if introduced to the scent of blood, Pelekanos pulled out the knife from his belt and swung wildly at the creatures almost upon him, shouting out, 'Run! I'm right behind you!' Reaching the far side of the river, Eirene gathered river rocks and hurled them at the seragoth while Pelekanos stood on the ford, slashing his knife in wide arcs in an attempt to catch even one. 'Hurry! We're almost there,' the princess shouted. With a final lunge, Pelekanos connected with one of the animals, drawing its blood with his knife, but had slipped and fell into the water."
"Just as the boy had predicted, the animals began to fight amongst themselves, wholly forgetting the children they had originally been chasing, but the swift current began to carry the boy away from the shallow waters of the ford. 'I can't swim!' he cried out. Try as she did, Eirene was unable to catch up, for the river ran too quickly and swallowed Pelekanos whole. Horrified by this, the princess ran home in tears and never forgot the sacrifice made by Pelekanos."
"Every year, Eirene Aristena returned to the banks of this very river and tied a single blue ribbon to remember the boy who had guided her back home, even at the cost of his life."
One child, younger than the rest, who had remained silent this whole time asked, "Was the ribbon blue because of the blueberries?"
To which the old man smiled and responded, "You might be right, child. You might be right."
Historical Basis
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Eirene Aristena
The only woman to reign over the Laparan Empire, Eirene Aristena is remembered in history as The Basilissa. When her father, Tiberus Aristenos died in 42AFE, the electors elevated her husband as Manuel I, although he abdicated in favor of her two years later. She died in 94AFE, following the jubilee celebrating her reign of fifty years.
Pelekanos Day
An annual summer festival celebrated by the peoples of the Arsanias River region of Achenae, Pelekanos Day is celebrated by placing blue ribbons on trees near the riverbanks, a region-wide seragoth hunt, and placing lit lanterns in the shape of boats both to look for Pelekanos and to help guide him back home.
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