The discovery of this cave is credited to two sisters - whose names change in different retellings - who stumble upon during an accident where an old cistern collapsed and they fell in. Only the younger sister made it out alive and she was never the same.— Takalia, Folk Stories of Grara, Vol. I
The Myth
Two sisters who had lived their entire lives in
Irusii and walked the same path every cycle to get water and bring it home survived an accident when the ground collapsed and they fell far into what is now known as the
Frozen Cave. They were worried but against all odds unharmed. Except the tiny bit of the light with which they were so familiar that trickled down from above, it was pure darkness. There was no way they could climb for the walls were slippery like the ground in winter. The younger sister thought she heard someone calling and with one hand each against the wall, the pair began to walk down the chilled tunnel.
When they saw a light ahead they were excited and hopeful that they had encountered the surface so they began to run. The elder sister slipped on the icy floor and knocked over the younger and they both slid into the light. What they found was not the surface but a large cavern unusually illuminated by something within the ice below. The icicles and strange formations around the cavern glistened in the light. Now they could both hear the voice calling and it spoke "I can see your worry, come to me, and I will show you the way out."
The younger sister approached the light under the ice but as her breath became colder and colder, the older sister threw her out of the way. The younger eventually woke from the blow to the head when she fell but her sister was nowhere to be found. The light was different - it was fading - and the voice was gone. Just when she thought she too would disappear down here, the light reflected off of the ice pillars and revealed another cave. This was the way out.
She never forgave herself for following the voice, if only they had tried harder to climb or waited for help her sister might not have been lost. Some say that if you look at the floor of the cavern to this day, you can see the elder sister trapped in the ice.
The Truth
There is an ice cave below
Irusii and it was discovered after a ground collapse but there is no evidence that anyone entered the cave before the first exploratory team.
Stub Article
This article is just a stub for now and will be expanded upon later.
Old Article
This article was written in the past and does not meet my current standards for any number of article quality, layout, or content.
In-Progress Article
This article is being worked on, perhaps not at this very moment, but it is being worked on.
The Fey and Irusii
This tale is not the only one told in
Irusii about strange voices calling to people - primarily children. While the story of the sisters might be one unique to this city, there are others told all over the region.
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