The death of the Deaf witch

My arms will be like branches in the wind,

I will be covered with pernicious blooms,

I will stand here for eons, torn and skinned,

And never be exhumed from whining gloom.

Unknown author, “Death Song of the Sorceress”

They really were heroes, those boys, but I just couldn’t help killing them. Gnavor the Hermit

Summary

For centuries there were a lot of discussions about the reasons of magic leaving the lands of Bilogonor and sorcerers and sorceresses becoming more legends and frightening tales for children than something people face in real life. Whatever the reasons are, almost everyone is sure that there was no way back after four young fishermen killed Sibeyre - a dwarvish sorceress that had been feared for almost a hundred years by the inhabitants of the south-east of Bilogonor.
When she appeared in Bilogonor, she already was a living legend and a guardian of separated clans and tribes of dwarves, who at that point were only newcomers on that side of the eastern seas. Other sorcerers and sorceresses called her the Deaf one, as she was one of the very few mages who weren’t able to hear spirits and communicate with them directly - and there were a lot of stories of how Sibeyre trained her skills in spite of this. A paragon of persistence and diligence, she also was known for creating magical creatures. After coming to Bilogonor, she settled in Isle Ellan, the first place across the eastern seas where the dwarves founded a town.
By the point when the things went wrong the inhabitants of Ellan and the mainland to the west of the island were used to her presence - some even addressed her in their prayers. So the locals genuinely weeped after Sibeyre’s daughter unexpectedly died. And when people started disappearing, for the first several years everybody felt embarrassed to ask her for help and interrupt her grief. But the people kept vanishing, so it was decided to send messengers to Sibeyre. But those who were sent to speak to her never returned. And the next ones. And those who were sent after them. That was the beginning of what was later called the Terror of Ellan.
The fourth messenger returned to his town - “with a frog leg instead of his right arm”, as most of the tales say. That’s how the locals learnt that the sorceress had gone mad because of her grief. After her daughter was born, Sibeyre never gave up dreaming about making a sorceress out of her too, and not just a sorceress, but someone who would outshine all the other ones. And now, as she told herself to those who she caught, she was also trying to create a supercreature.
After more than eighty years after the beginning of the Terror of Ellan, everyone was sure that there would be no end to it. All men and women who seemed to have any kind of magic power were executed as soon as it their abilities were discovered in, every dwarf was expelled, but of course it didn’t help at all. And neither did the sacrifices. There was no way nor place to escape, as the land was infested by the mad beasts.
Many years after the death of Sibeyre, every village on the east coast insists that the four fishermen were born there, but it’s highly likely that the one they actually came from no more exists. The most widespread version of the legend tells that they were accused of a murder - some other versions add that it was a false accusation. All in all, they were sentenced to be given away to the sorceress.

And they stood there, chained to the stakes, awaiting their death. When it got dark, a terrible cry went over the village, and then the singing began. The voice became louder and louder, and then she came before them - a wolf-like creature with a face of a maiden and legs of a bird. Blood ran cold in their veins, and they couldn’t move, stunned by fear. The Four Fishermen and the Witch

But somehow they managed to run away and lived through that night. They headed off to the nearest city intending to find some work there. In the city, they met a girl - she was a dancer from a troupe of street actors, - and all four fell in love with her. They spent a week in the city, and every evening they came to see the girl. But on the eighth day they found out that she had been taken away by the sorceress at night. So the four men decided to go and find the girl.
On their way, they were attacked by a group of the mad beasts and had to fight them. The fishermen won, and they skinned four of the creatures and took their pelts with them. As they came further, they saw less and less villages and met less and less people. One day they realized they were in the land folly taken over by Sibeyre and her creations. Only birds and animals lived there - they didn’t care about the humans’ sorrow.
Finally, the fishermen came to the shore. It was a foggy evening, and they couldn’t see even the silhouette of Ellan, but the felt it was there. The next morning they built a raft and headed off to the island. It was all silent. Here there was not a single soul nor an animal there.
The ending of the legend has two versions - the both agree that the fisherman covered themselfs with the pelts of the monsters and sneaked into the luxurious wooden palace they found on the island. There they tried to find the girl they came for, but there was nobody in the palace at all. However, they found a room full of treasures, and there was a table in the middle of it. On the table, they found a pair of scissors made of the white metal - a material used by spirits and mages. Finally, the sorceress returned home. She noticed that something was wrong and started to seek through the palace. The fishermen bided their time in the room until she came there and managed to kill her with the scissors.
Before leaving the island, they tied the dead body to a pillar in the courtyard. They left the scissors with the body and hurried to go away without taking away any of the treasures the had found in the palace - they took the sorceress’s head though, as a proof of what they had done. When they traversed the strait between the island and the mainland, they found the girl they came to save - she also managed to escape. Together, they returned to the city, showing everybody the Sibeyre’s head.
But the difference between the two versions of the legend’s ending is pretty distinct. The second one tells about another dwarvish mage - a sorcerer called Gnavor, who was known for once falling in love with Sibeyre. Gnavor came soon after the news about the sorceress’s death spread all over the continent and found the fishermen and the girl. No one saw them after that.

Historical Basis

The legend is based on the real events that took place in the south-east of Bilogonor - Sibeyre the Deaf witch did exist, did have a daughter, who did undexpectedly die, and did go mad. The real circumstandes of her death are pretty misty though. Even when the sorceress was returned to life by the Undreground goddess, she never told anyone the true story.

Spread

The legend is widely spread on the east side of the seas of Bilogonor, mostly among the humans and the dwarves from the Herdrarian commonwealth (as they’re the descendants of the dwarves that came to Bilogonor guarded by Sibeyre).

Cultural Reception

For the humans of East Ateych, Menteylan and Sechalia, the legend is a story of how egregiously dangerous magic can be and had been a symbol of the struggle against the mages that ended only after the accession of the dynasty of the necromancer kings in Sechalia. For the dwarves, on the other hand, it is a story of a grief left without a consolation. Sibeyre remains a symbol of power for them. For both, it’s one of the key parts of their mythology.

In Literature

There are plenty of poetry pieces that use this plot. The most famous are Death Song of the Sorceress by an unknown author, and The End of the Terror of Ellan by Adyr the Honeytongue, who happened to be a court poet of the first necromancer king. There’re also a fairy tale, common in the south-east of the Bilogonor, called The Four Fishermen and the Witch, and several dwarvish religious songs - performed mostly during a funeral or a ritual suicide.

In Art

There are five known paintings representing different events of the legend and a famous statue, which stands is the courtyard of the Council house in the capital of the Herdrarian commonwealth, showing Sibeyre weeping over her gaughter.