The Tale of the
Sylphs
As
recounted by Sparrow, during her travels.
“My
turn to tell a story, then? Fine. We winged ones have our villains, too, not
only heroes. This is the tale of Vassen Oftstruck, and how he destroyed the
great wind spirit whose true name can only be spoken by the wind itself; and
was thus called Ophoo.”
“Ophoo came to this world in a similar fashion to most other benevolent spirits – trapped by his darker counterparts, and exiled in a prison that could not hold him forever. When his prison failed, nearly two thousand years ago, he made himself known to us.
“In his old world, he had been a god, tasked with the creation of the winds that brought the rain, and changed the seasons. On this world far larger than that he came from, and with his powers reduced from the shift, he had less purpose; though he took it upon himself to ensure fair weather for the northern coast, above the mountains, which is prosperous to this day.
“But this task he had taken did not use all his power, though it took most of his time. And he grew lonely, for none could keep him company; who could follow the wind as it blew from one end of the mountains to the other in under a day? As his loneliness grew, an idea came to him.
“In his home realm it was forbidden for the gods to create more life; but banished from there he was under no such constraint. He focused his power, bending the air itself, shaping it… Those who watched him as he made life for the first time said he was manic, then calm, then manic again. Eventually, after many false starts, he succeeded.
“His first creation was not much; a faithful being that whistled and hummed in the air as it followed him. But having created once, and with unused power forever seeming a waste to him, he began working on creating greater creations – more powerful, and more complex.
“He failed many times, as he learnt this new art. Some failures had to be destroyed, as they were twisted and wrong; but most travelled with him, and those that could not took care of each other in a home he built, deep within a mountain.
“Then one day, he succeeded. He created a living being from air that could talk, think, live. He named her Sylphae; and she was the first of the sylphs. Over time, he created more sylphs – some greater than others, some weaker. All were his daughters, who assisted and accompanied him in his efforts to bring prosperous weather along the north coast.
“The lesser sylphs can barely show themselves, even if they will it, but have the ability to become truly invisible. An ordinary sylph, such as Sylphae, can take a solid form if they wish, and can control the breezes, but cannot make themselves invisible.
“Of the greater sylphs, it is said that they were created to one day take care of other lands. Each possesses a unique power, as well as control of the wind, and the ability to create lesser sylphs. One of these was Upidoe, and her power allowed her to call down the rain, or snow.
“The village of Oftstruck (named so as it was often struck by lightning) was a poor village; the mountain it sat atop was short, and it rarely had a snowy cap for the villagers to farm upon. Upidoe discovered this one day, and took pity. She made it snow, and for many years (from not long after her creation, six hundred years ago) returned to do so again. One year, she met Vassen.
“It’s said that he was absurdly handsome, and charming. As Upidoe made it snow from high above one year, he sat at the top of the highest crag on the mountain top, and sang a song to her. A song of thanks, and praise of her beauty and kindness. Charmed by the song, she descended to thank him.
“She fell for him, and he… He saw an opportunity. No-one is sure if he loved her, a little or even at all. But with her devotion to him, he could ask her to make it snow where he desired; and he used her. He would come to a village, and in exchange for money and goods he would have Upidoe make snow (or rain) fall.
“This continued for several years, before Ophoo came to them, angered. ‘You have disrupted the winds!’ he said to Upidoe, ‘Cease this at once, my daughter!’ But Vassen did not wish to give up what he had gained, so Upidoe continued.
“Eventually Ophoo could take no more, so one day he captured Upidoe and took her away, sealing her deep within his mountain home. At this, Vassen was distraught; and came up with a terrible plan. He would kill Ophoo to free Upidoe.
“Using the gold, and resources, he had gained from Upidoe’s labour Vassen acquired a powerful enchanted blade from the far south. Using his wings (which he had long ago gained so that he could travel, and sell Upidoe’s efforts to many) he flew to Ophoo’s home.
“Upidoe, in her love, had taught him many secrets of the sylphs, amongst them a means of detecting them as they moved through the air, even if invisible. So Vassen made his way deep into Ophoo’s home, and even into the great chamber in which he had met heroes, and kings, in the past.
“Once there he waited for two days, until Ophoo returned. As Ophoo settled upon his throne, Vassen struck; his blade piercing Ophoo’s windy heart and causing it to blow apart. As Ophoo wailed in pain, dying, the sylphs who were there – four of the seven greater sylphs, many ordinary, and countless lesser – charged Vassen. But he had long prepared for this day; and the sylphs had never fought before. He slew them one after another, until the survivors fled.
“He then made his way to Upidoe’s cell, and freed her. But upon hearing what he had done, she tore his blade from him and slew herself with it. But that was not the end of Vassen’s villainy. During his escape, he convinced the sylphs that he acted on behalf of all winged ones, to ensure that their rage did not rest upon him alone.
“Vassen escaped Ophoo’s home, and made his way to a nearby village. It was not long before the sylphs attacked, and he fought them off; pretending to be a brave hero. But the sylphs had not just attacked there. All over the mountains, formerly friendly sylphs – commanded by the remaining greater sylphs – attacked the winged one villages.
“Yet, they were not familiar with war (whereas we, who have fought much in the past, are ready for even foes we cannot fly from) and were soon defeated. And so two hundred and fifty years ago, Vassen thought he had escaped justice for what he had done.
“But many sylphs yet lived. Years after Vassen’s death, some sylphs – those more thoughtful in their actions – made contact with villages again, and the truth was discovered. And Vassen, known as a hero for his efforts in the short war, became known for the villain he was.
“Though the end of Vassen’s story, his misdeeds still haunt us. There remains one greater sylph, who hates all winged ones. Her lesser sylphs pick off lone travellers; and there are other sylphs who hide away, refusing to give up the ‘fight’.
“And the winds of the north coast grow wilder each year.”
“Ophoo came to this world in a similar fashion to most other benevolent spirits – trapped by his darker counterparts, and exiled in a prison that could not hold him forever. When his prison failed, nearly two thousand years ago, he made himself known to us.
“In his old world, he had been a god, tasked with the creation of the winds that brought the rain, and changed the seasons. On this world far larger than that he came from, and with his powers reduced from the shift, he had less purpose; though he took it upon himself to ensure fair weather for the northern coast, above the mountains, which is prosperous to this day.
“But this task he had taken did not use all his power, though it took most of his time. And he grew lonely, for none could keep him company; who could follow the wind as it blew from one end of the mountains to the other in under a day? As his loneliness grew, an idea came to him.
“In his home realm it was forbidden for the gods to create more life; but banished from there he was under no such constraint. He focused his power, bending the air itself, shaping it… Those who watched him as he made life for the first time said he was manic, then calm, then manic again. Eventually, after many false starts, he succeeded.
“His first creation was not much; a faithful being that whistled and hummed in the air as it followed him. But having created once, and with unused power forever seeming a waste to him, he began working on creating greater creations – more powerful, and more complex.
“He failed many times, as he learnt this new art. Some failures had to be destroyed, as they were twisted and wrong; but most travelled with him, and those that could not took care of each other in a home he built, deep within a mountain.
“Then one day, he succeeded. He created a living being from air that could talk, think, live. He named her Sylphae; and she was the first of the sylphs. Over time, he created more sylphs – some greater than others, some weaker. All were his daughters, who assisted and accompanied him in his efforts to bring prosperous weather along the north coast.
“The lesser sylphs can barely show themselves, even if they will it, but have the ability to become truly invisible. An ordinary sylph, such as Sylphae, can take a solid form if they wish, and can control the breezes, but cannot make themselves invisible.
“Of the greater sylphs, it is said that they were created to one day take care of other lands. Each possesses a unique power, as well as control of the wind, and the ability to create lesser sylphs. One of these was Upidoe, and her power allowed her to call down the rain, or snow.
“The village of Oftstruck (named so as it was often struck by lightning) was a poor village; the mountain it sat atop was short, and it rarely had a snowy cap for the villagers to farm upon. Upidoe discovered this one day, and took pity. She made it snow, and for many years (from not long after her creation, six hundred years ago) returned to do so again. One year, she met Vassen.
“It’s said that he was absurdly handsome, and charming. As Upidoe made it snow from high above one year, he sat at the top of the highest crag on the mountain top, and sang a song to her. A song of thanks, and praise of her beauty and kindness. Charmed by the song, she descended to thank him.
“She fell for him, and he… He saw an opportunity. No-one is sure if he loved her, a little or even at all. But with her devotion to him, he could ask her to make it snow where he desired; and he used her. He would come to a village, and in exchange for money and goods he would have Upidoe make snow (or rain) fall.
“This continued for several years, before Ophoo came to them, angered. ‘You have disrupted the winds!’ he said to Upidoe, ‘Cease this at once, my daughter!’ But Vassen did not wish to give up what he had gained, so Upidoe continued.
“Eventually Ophoo could take no more, so one day he captured Upidoe and took her away, sealing her deep within his mountain home. At this, Vassen was distraught; and came up with a terrible plan. He would kill Ophoo to free Upidoe.
“Using the gold, and resources, he had gained from Upidoe’s labour Vassen acquired a powerful enchanted blade from the far south. Using his wings (which he had long ago gained so that he could travel, and sell Upidoe’s efforts to many) he flew to Ophoo’s home.
“Upidoe, in her love, had taught him many secrets of the sylphs, amongst them a means of detecting them as they moved through the air, even if invisible. So Vassen made his way deep into Ophoo’s home, and even into the great chamber in which he had met heroes, and kings, in the past.
“Once there he waited for two days, until Ophoo returned. As Ophoo settled upon his throne, Vassen struck; his blade piercing Ophoo’s windy heart and causing it to blow apart. As Ophoo wailed in pain, dying, the sylphs who were there – four of the seven greater sylphs, many ordinary, and countless lesser – charged Vassen. But he had long prepared for this day; and the sylphs had never fought before. He slew them one after another, until the survivors fled.
“He then made his way to Upidoe’s cell, and freed her. But upon hearing what he had done, she tore his blade from him and slew herself with it. But that was not the end of Vassen’s villainy. During his escape, he convinced the sylphs that he acted on behalf of all winged ones, to ensure that their rage did not rest upon him alone.
“Vassen escaped Ophoo’s home, and made his way to a nearby village. It was not long before the sylphs attacked, and he fought them off; pretending to be a brave hero. But the sylphs had not just attacked there. All over the mountains, formerly friendly sylphs – commanded by the remaining greater sylphs – attacked the winged one villages.
“Yet, they were not familiar with war (whereas we, who have fought much in the past, are ready for even foes we cannot fly from) and were soon defeated. And so two hundred and fifty years ago, Vassen thought he had escaped justice for what he had done.
“But many sylphs yet lived. Years after Vassen’s death, some sylphs – those more thoughtful in their actions – made contact with villages again, and the truth was discovered. And Vassen, known as a hero for his efforts in the short war, became known for the villain he was.
“Though the end of Vassen’s story, his misdeeds still haunt us. There remains one greater sylph, who hates all winged ones. Her lesser sylphs pick off lone travellers; and there are other sylphs who hide away, refusing to give up the ‘fight’.
“And the winds of the north coast grow wilder each year.”
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