The Brine

Careful little one,
don't go out at night
Careful little one
Lock your windows tight,
Careful little one,
Or you'll die a fright...

Summary

Every child on the southern coast knows of the brine, a dark wave of thick mist that sweeps over the towns at night. They lock their windows, sometimes even covering them with with whatever is available to keep the evil air out. If you go outside, or failed to protect your windows, the brine seeps in, and gets in your lungs. It's a slow seeping infection that starts with a simple cough. As it continues, you get clumsier and clumsier, as your skeleton tries to come out of you. Eventually, after days of agonizing pain, you are turned INSIDE OUT and made into a mindless horror. You watch helplessly as your body kills your whole family!
This myth is usually spread by children slightly too old to believe in it.

Historical Basis

The brine is a real meteorological phenomenon, but probably doesn't turn you into a horrifying undead. It can sicken young children and elderly, giving them a bad cough which has been known to turn to pneumonia.

Spread

The myth really only exists on the Southern Coast, the children of towns further north live in fear of the brine spreading beyond the immediate coastal area.

Variations & Mutation

In one small fishing village, the brine is actually known to bring the love of sea - and children of 12 spend the whole night outside, in the brine. The next morning, they go out on their first fishing expedition. Prior to that they only do work on the shore - making nets and rods, unloading and cleaning fish, and other non-fishing work.

In Literature

A very popular detective novel, Bane in the Brine, has a serial killer using the Brine's mythos to cover their horrible crimes.