Solonn and the Mountain Lady

Waking Materia in its Modern Age remains rife with First Age tales of monsters and heroism. Arguably the most popular protagonist of this era is Solonn, the now-deceased demigod of adventure, travel, aid, beauty and warmth, slayer of the Fire-Bull of Daanelon and arch-nemesis of the dragon-wizard Vivasvaat.

The canonicity of "Solonnic Prose" is hard to pin down: distinguishing between First Age stories and First Age mythology is highly troublesome after the near-apocalyptic Deluge and the resulting Age of Chaos left records spotty and out-of-context. Deciding whether the events are literal or figurative is up to the reader.

Solonn and the Mountain Lady

Perhaps the most famous of these stories is of Solonn's demise. The tale begins with his encounter with the "Lady of the Mountain" Ninurišalga, with whom he falls desperately in love. He loses his wandering and in-the-moment nature, courting her, as often as she allows, through the scrying pools about her great mountain fortress. Though the Stone Goddess was indeed charmed by the earnestness and kind heart of her new visitor, the ancient and jaded warrior knew she could not provide the mutual warmth the young demigod sought. Solonn was persistent however, and eventually The Lady agreed to his hand in marriage... if he defeat her in a duel.

Solonn was a genius with his longspear, nearly unkillable and capable of feats of strength that shamed even the most able of mortals. He may well have been the greatest combatant on Materia... if not for The Lady. A century before Solonn was even born, she had already been a clan chieftain of the Ghent of the Whalebones, a Weapon Master of Khara'ad Dúm, an Commander-in-Chief of the voidwalking Sagasingers and one of the four Insurgent Gods of of the great Colonial God-Wars. Rhongomiant was no match for the power and speed of The Lady's polehammer, Dolmensrouw. She did not kill him in the ensuing duel, but nor did she leave any room for interpretation: Solonn knew not whom he was courting, and he should move on.

Dejected, confused, and lovesick, Solonn chose not to heal himself of the injuries left by the duel. Instead, he ventured into the deepest jungles of Alanthan'aluwan, knelt to the ground, and expired of his wounds. It is said Rhongomiant still sits on the spot, now the centre of the Sunken Expanse.

Aios-in-Mourning

It is said, in some tales, that Solonn is the son of the Overbeing of Light, Aios. Upon learning of her son's death, the goddess went into grieving and abandoned the sky to a period of dark, unending winter called the Darkest Decade. It was only the sublime beauty of Saint Ajora's flutesong that would eventually coax Aios back into the sky, bringing daylight back to the plane. The Darkest Decade nonetheless had some vast repercussions, most notably the the Great Fractionation, but that is a story for another time.

Banner: Various illustrations of the story. Left: Solonn courts the Lady of the Mountain through one of the scrying pools about her mountain fortress. Middle: Solonn kneels in the center of Alanthan'aluwan, dejected at the loss of his love. Right: Saint Ajora plays a song on her flute, returning morning to the sky.

Illust. Kay Nielsen (1886-1957)