The Legend of Ondra's Remorse Myth in Mystara

Summary

To end The Jealous Gods' War, Ondra summoned an infernal leviathan from the darkest trenches of the sea and commanded it to completely annihilate both armies. The creature decimated at least 1,100 square miles of settled land, most of it belonging to the Cumbrian Empire (today, the Kingdom of Cumbria). It marked the single greatest loss of life in recorded history and the near extinction of Dragonkin. "Ondra's Remorse" refers to both the event and the affected geographic location. Ondra disappeared after the event and remains silent to this day, even her most devout followers.

Historical Basis

The myth of the leviathan is firmly rooted in the Battle of Dragons, which did take place in Tarant. The permanently scarred geography of the battlefield is further evidence suggesting that something emerged from underground.

Spread

The event had a monumental effect on Mystara's global history and culture and is common knowledge among all races. Some common expressions that originate from the event include:

Expression	Meaning
"Take a dive!"	No way! / You're joking! / Are you serious? / Fuck off
"It was bigger than the Leviathan"	It was unbelievably large
"It came from The Breach"	It came out of nowhere
"She's shyer than Ondra"	She's very shy
"He went to The Abyss"	He left [and won't come back]
"They left me on Nightguard Beach"	They hung me out to dry

Variations & Mutation

In classical legend, the leviathan is a monstrosity that Ondra awoke from the deep sea.

Alternate theories suggest that:

Inspired by her brother's creation of the Dragonkin, Ondra created the sea creature herself, but something went wrong in the process.
Ondra opened a planar rift to a demonic realm, bringing the monster into Mystara and returning it after the battle.
Ondra lost control of the monster (hence the cataclysmic level of destruction) and it escaped, waiting for the opportune time to wreak havoc on the surface world once more.
The other neutral gods framed Ondra in a massive cover-up.

Cultural Reception

The way someone refers to Ondra's Remorse can reveal much about the speaker's opinion of Ondra, dragons, humans, and elves.

Ondra' Remorse
Neutral or sympathetic toward Ondra. Emphasizes Ondra's reaction and subsequent disappearance over the destruction of mortal combatants.

Ondra's Gift
Suggests that Ondra made the right decision to end the war. When used by Elves, it may also imply hostile feelings toward Cumbria and humans in general--that is, Ondra's "gift" was the crippling of a human empire.

Ondra's Curse / Ondra's Mistake
Suggests that Ondra acted wrongly and should face judgement. These terms are used universally by Dragonkin.

In Art

There are countless works of art and literature dedicated to the event. Most of them depict Ondra's state of anguish prior to her disappearance. Other typical subjects include: