The Courting of Lucia

*The Courting of Lucia* is a popular myth surrounding the goddess Lucia. It originates from elven mythology but has since been adopted and retold by nearly every culture that has ever been in contact with elven culture.

## The Myth

The myth itself has changed over time and doesn't always hold the same values. The oldest version of the story comes from elven mythology, but it has also been changed to better fit Aquian culture and even exists within Kaznian religion.

### Elven Myth

In the early days of Elara when the gods still walked the material plane, Lucia spent her days singing to the plants and animals and teaching them the songs of the universe. Vanindor, who had been crafting the mountains nearby, heard her beautiful voice and began to follow her through the meadows and the forest. Eventually, he worked up his nerve and approached her. Before he could reach her, however, Faeriel the Hunter stepped out of the woods.

"Fairest Lucia, your voice echoes across the sky and land and have beckoned me. I am the mightiest hunter, but I only have eyes for you. Will you have me?" Faeriel said, puffing out his chest. Vanindor's heart sank as he saw Faeriel strut before Lucia. Surely she will be charmed by his wild ways.

"That depends, Hunter. I am as free as the wind and sky and without the burden of love. What good will it bring me? What have you to offer me?" Lucia replied.

Faeriel stepped back, thinking. "I will return in one year with the greatest gift I can muster. Then you will have to marry me." Faeriel ran off back into the woods and Lucia left to keep singing. Vanindor grew nervous with each passing day, wondering what Faeriel could be making for Lucia. He fretted so much that, when he was trying to shape the land, he accidentally carved too deep in the middle and water came flooding in, making the Veridian Sea.

One year passed and Lucia and Faeriel met. Vanindor also arrived to see what it is that Faeriel had been making.

"Behold, fairest of the gods, I give to you a mighty and loyal hunter of your own." Faeriel revealed a beast that he had bred over the last year unlike any before. "It is called Gastor, and he is the mightiest of the beasts. He will be your loyal companion and is the greatest hunter of them all."

Lucia smiled when she looked upon Gastor. "This is indeed a mighty gift, Hunter. This wolf shall serve me, as will all of its descendants."

Vanindor now spoke up, having built up his courage and knowing he will never get another chance. "My Lady, you are truly the most beautiful being that I have ever laid eyes on. I request humbly, before you accept Faeriel's request for marriage, that you let me prove myself the better craftsman."

Lucia looked upon Vanindor with interest. Faeriel looked upon him with anger. "Very well, Craftsman," Lucia said. "You shall have one year, the same as Faeriel. I will decide whose gift is better then." Lucia left with Gastor.

For the next year, Vanindor toiled endlessly and built the two moons in the sky. In his haste, however, he couldn't get their timing right and so they don't move exactly opposite Casinia, the sun. When the year ended, he presented the moons to Lucia with pride.

"My my, Craftsman. You have really outdone yourself. You have built not one, but two palaces for me and my wolf in the night sky. You have certainly won this contest of skill." Lucia said. Vanindor grew excited as Faeriel held his head in disappointment. That was when Lucia began to leave.

"My Lady, where are you going?" Vanindor asked.

"I am leaving to enjoy my new palace, Craftsman. You did make it for that very purpose after all." She replied.

"But, Lucia, I thought you had agreed to marry the winner. That is me."

"You are mistaken, Craftsman. I never agreed to such a thing. I agreed to judge whose gift was best, and that was it."

"But, My Lady, I spent a year crafting this gift for you. Surely I am deserving of some compensation?"

"I did not request this gift, it was offered. I never agreed to pay for it in any way. If you thought that I would somehow fall in love with you, then you are in error, not I. Now good day, Craftsman. I am off to enjoy my new palace."

Lucia left with Gastor. Vanindor grew upset and cursed the day he fell for such a pretty face. Faeriel could only smile at how easily she had played them against each other. Truly, she was the greatest hunter of them all, for she had tricked both into thinking she was a prize to be won.