Thu Feb 03, 2011 7:23 am
Caladan's 2nd Entry. "Buried in Sorrow"
Buried beneath the weight of a million tears.
That is the legend of the kingdom of Salith.
It seemingly rose from the depths of the sea with the first submarines. It travelled in the wind pushing the sails of the trader ships. It echoed in the countless clink of coins traded for the relics those subs had dredged up from the forgotten kingdom.
It said that there once was a king who had a daughter whom he cherished above all his possessions. That her beauty was beyond compare. To be caught in her gaze was to be caught by the tide.
It said that princes and kings vied for her hand. That bloody duels were fought for the right to present themselves before her. And that she cared for none of it.
It said she loved a commoner.
The king, unwilling to be disgraced by their love, imprisoned the young man and told his daughter she must choose a suitable husband within a fortnight. Instead, she helped her love escape and together they fled into the vast kingdom.
The king sent out soldiers to find them. He only wanted his daughter back, but it was too late. She would never turn away from the man she loved. For months his soldiers continued to search, and the kings sorrow turned to pain. The pain turned to bitterness as the years began to pass, and still he searched. By the time the couple had their sixth child, the bitterness had tempered the kings hate into a weapon of singular purpose.
Not long after the baby's naming-day, that weapon finally found its mark. In a night of screams and pleas and begging, the soldiers of the king descended on the family. They tore them out of each other's arms and sent them to eight prisons scattered across the kingdom. They were to forever live their days in isolation, tortured by the knowledge that the ones they loved were forever beyond their touch.
The legend says that each tear that fell from the eyes of that family, fell with the weight of a millstone. By the time the kingdom had sunken enough for the ocean to come crashing in, there was already a salt sea to meet it.
The legend rides in the salt spray of the waves. When the sun winks off the waters, it promises a reward beyond comprehension if the family's only wish is ever fulfilled.
It says that among the few things the family managed to bring with them to their prisons was the family crest each one wore around their neck.
And as the sea throws itself upon land again, it says one more thing. It whispers, with the endless hope of the tide, to bring them together again.
That is the legend of the kingdom of Salith.
It seemingly rose from the depths of the sea with the first submarines. It travelled in the wind pushing the sails of the trader ships. It echoed in the countless clink of coins traded for the relics those subs had dredged up from the forgotten kingdom.
It said that there once was a king who had a daughter whom he cherished above all his possessions. That her beauty was beyond compare. To be caught in her gaze was to be caught by the tide.
It said that princes and kings vied for her hand. That bloody duels were fought for the right to present themselves before her. And that she cared for none of it.
It said she loved a commoner.
The king, unwilling to be disgraced by their love, imprisoned the young man and told his daughter she must choose a suitable husband within a fortnight. Instead, she helped her love escape and together they fled into the vast kingdom.
The king sent out soldiers to find them. He only wanted his daughter back, but it was too late. She would never turn away from the man she loved. For months his soldiers continued to search, and the kings sorrow turned to pain. The pain turned to bitterness as the years began to pass, and still he searched. By the time the couple had their sixth child, the bitterness had tempered the kings hate into a weapon of singular purpose.
Not long after the baby's naming-day, that weapon finally found its mark. In a night of screams and pleas and begging, the soldiers of the king descended on the family. They tore them out of each other's arms and sent them to eight prisons scattered across the kingdom. They were to forever live their days in isolation, tortured by the knowledge that the ones they loved were forever beyond their touch.
The legend says that each tear that fell from the eyes of that family, fell with the weight of a millstone. By the time the kingdom had sunken enough for the ocean to come crashing in, there was already a salt sea to meet it.
The legend rides in the salt spray of the waves. When the sun winks off the waters, it promises a reward beyond comprehension if the family's only wish is ever fulfilled.
It says that among the few things the family managed to bring with them to their prisons was the family crest each one wore around their neck.
And as the sea throws itself upon land again, it says one more thing. It whispers, with the endless hope of the tide, to bring them together again.
Beware the Artesians!!
