Legend of Cadhuna, the Aphotic

The Crabmen are the servants of Cadhuna, who lurks in the dark. His spire of stone and coral stretches beneath the Sea, and his cancrine minions capture irreverent fishermen to feed to his phylactery.
— Meladic Legends, 3rd Edition - "The Waters"

Meladic legend speaks of a Lich that is believed to hold power over the crabmen that infest the caves along the shoreline of the kingdom. This Lich, named Cadhuna in the legends, supposedly used to serve under the Meladic Queen as a duke, but rebelled to become an independent lich-king. In righteous fury, the queen sank his island to the bottom with her divine power. But with his dark magic, he survived and threatens to enslave rebels as his army to attack the surface.

The veracity of this myth is in question; while the official records of Melada state that it is true, there is no archaeological evidence. In plumbline studies, there was no evidence for any island collapse. Furthermore, there is no behavior from crabmen that correlates with these mythos; they are territorial, not hunters. It is believed by many in Chevalia that this legend is a way to attempt to terrify Meladic citizens from joining rebellions, or unsanctioned oceanic travel.

Date of First Recording

382 AMN

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