The Sunray of Pelk
...As time passed by, the legend of the Sunray of Pelk slowly slipped away from the people's subconscious, as most legends of great women have done during the last century or so. Banned, like the rest of them, just because the hero wasn't a man.
This is why it's important that we keep telling these legends to our daughters and sisters.
The Hero
Therra was a female warrior of Vulborim. Today that would seem unrealistic, but back then it wasn't too uncommon. She came from an ordinary family with no special status or history.
She was a devout follower of Pelk, God of the Sun, and would often give him credit for all her successes.
The Monster
At one time one of the villages of Northern Vulborim was attacked by a strange creature, one that no one had seen before or ever see again. The monster was huge and aberrant and seemed to enjoy razing buildings and eating people.
The Legend
The creature managed to rip down two villages, killing everyone in them, before the locals managed to hurt it enough to make it hide to heal its wounds. Most of the villagers thought that was it, that the problem was solved and the northern parts of Vulborim were again safe from the destruction caused by the monster.
A few perceptive warriors disagreed, including Therra. Although the monster had been severely hurt by the locals it could likely survive, and the chances of another attack were high. Despite being called fools by the locals, the skeptical warriors started searching the nearby hills for its hiding place.
They didn't find the monster before the next attack. Another village was devastated, and several locals were killed as they didn't have the time to escape. The warriors managed to hurt the monster again, forcing it to retreat, but not without cost. Now, most of the warriors were too hurt to chase down the monster and finish what they'd started, and the rest were too fond of their lives to want to provoke the creature further.
Therra volunteered to hunt the monster down, appalled by what she saw as cowardice and a disgrace to the Vulborish culture of courage and refusing to give up. She swiftly followed the creature and managed to catch up with it. Then, she attacked.
The battle was fierce and long. Despite suffering from severe wounds, the monster was a hard challenge for only one warrior. Eventually, Therra managed to give the monster a lethal blow, saving the local towns from its devastation, but not before the creature had critically wounded her. She cut off its head and started hauling it towards the closest village, hoping to reach it before she perished.
Therra barely made it. She lived for another day while the local healer tried to patch up her wounds and keep her alive, but ultimately her wounds were too severe and numerous. The people observing her death says she perished with dignity, without showing any fear or despair, and praising Pelk as the reason why she succeeded.
Historical Reception
The legend of the Sunray of Pelk has been told and retold through the ages, and has been an important part of Northern Vulborish culture since it appeared. The whole of Vulborim knew this legend within the following century, and Therra had soon become a figurehead of the legendary Vulborish courage and attitude.
In Popular Culture
The legend of the Sunray of Pelk has been a favorite among a lot of cultural art forms in Vulborim. Numerous paintings and sculptures were made after being inspired by this tale, the most glorious being the sculpture that used to decorate the interior of the grand temple of Pelk in Kabaduz - a lifelike stone sculpture depicting Therra herself in a heroic pose with an artistic rendition of what the monster's head might have looked like at her feet.
The legend has also been documented in several literary works and has spawned a popular fighting theatre rendition often showed in Vulborish arenas.
Current Reception
During the last couple of centuries or so the legend has more or less disappeared, largely due to the more recent decrease in the perceived worth of females in Vulborish culture. As this change happened the legend became banned, after attempts of trying to change the gender of Therra to male failed miserably. All artworks and literature depicting the legend were destroyed as an attempt to erase the collective memory of the legend, and if someone was found sharing the legend in any way they would be persecuted by law.
Despite the determined attempts by the Vulborish men in charge to make this legend disappear, it lives on, whispered among the women and told as motivation inside the camp of the Valkheri.
Pelk, God of the Sun
Pelk is the god of the sun, a lesser deity worshiped all over Shireon, but in different ways as the different parts of Shireon have a slightly different relationship to the sun through the year. Some elements are common throughout all of Shireon.
The Sunray of Pelk
Therra was a devout follower of Pelk and the monster was considered almost unbeatable, so it wasn't long after her death before most retellings of this legend stated that the success was due to a decent amount of divine intervention from the Sun God himself. Therra was posthumously awarded the title of the Sunray of Pelk for her victory against the monster.
Great article to read! The fact that it was short and concise and yet managed to hook me and still keep up my interest was an achievement on its own. Congrats! The article itself was neat and concise. What attracted me more was not the legend itself however, but the way how the legend is celebrated and recivied by the people of Vulborim. It was also an interesting touch to add the timeline and also a bit sad to see how this legend is declinging alongside the rights of females in Vulborim. The only question i had though is are there any movements inside Vulborim to restore the legend and give back more rights to the women? Still congratulations and keep up the great work!