Kailish Stones
The Kaillish Stones are an ancient monument found on the island of Löngeyja, near the town of Kailhaven. They are made up of dozens of monolithic stones arranged in a circle and cross pattern, with a long aisle between the stones stretching to the west. Once every 18 or 19 years, this aisle directly frames the setting sun, and on those nights, the Shining One holds his court within the circle.
The creature known as the Shining One appears as the sun disappears below the horizon, as if the last rays of the sun formed into a roughly humanoid figure standing at the entrance to the aisle. It stands there a moment as the sun finishes setting, and then advances up the aisle towards the center of the circle. As the figure passes, the shadows of the stones come alive, peeling away from the monoliths to shuffle after the Shining One. They are called the Skuggabjörn in Eyjamannaræða and Faileas in Eileanach. They resemble great bears who stand as tall as the stones and walk clumsily on their back legs, although their gracelessness diminishes over the course of the night.
When the Shining One reaches the center of the circle, it climbs to the top of the center stone and sits upon it. The Skuggabjörn cluster around the radiant figure, sometimes standing and sometimes crouching. They advance one by one towards the shining one, heads lowered in fear or respect, and seem to address it. From outside the circle, no sounds can be heard, but those who have ventured within report that the shadows emit words that rattled their bones, but were still as soft as whispers to the ear. The Shining One seems to consider each of the Skuggabjörn who approach individually, and then responds in a voice which cannot be heard at all, but feels like a cold spike placed behind your eyes.
None of the participants in this strange court pay any attention to observers beyond the circle, but entering it is considered dangerous and foolhardy. Local folklore tells of some who have attempted to petition the Shining One, but the tales tell of mixed results. One petitioner was granted great wealth, while others have vanished, or been slain, or transformed into wild bears. In the oldest tale, the Shining One granted the petitioner the support of the Skuggabjörn in his battle to claim the throne of Suðya, and this is why the flag of this kingdom is a black bear on a field of gold. Some brave souls have attempted to touch the spirits within the circle, but have found them entirely incorporeal.
Nobody knows the origin of the Shining One, or of the Skuggabjörn, or the Kaillish Stones. They have stood on the island for as long as history remembers, and the court has always been held when the sun sets in the correct place. In the morning after the court, strange flowers of black and gold are found growing within the circle, but these melt away shortly after the sun strikes them. Some who have captured one of these flowers and kept it in darkness have claimed that they crawled around in their dark box and clawed at the wood, but vanished as soon as the box was opened.
Comments