Bonefeather

**Bonefeather** was the sacred trident supposedly wielded by the prophetess Shoshana. According to the accepted legends of Shoshana's life, she used it to discover the first vein of the mineral phantomarine, and to bless the aquifers with healing properties. After Shoshana's death, the trident was placed atop her marble tomb in the Graviary of Shoshana at the Saberfort. During a rare instance of cooperation between the Plume Church and the controversial Lodestar Guild, Bonefeather's exact chemical composition was deduced, which revealed it to be made of a substance not found in nature. As a child, Princess Phaedra Philemon was grounded for one month after being dared to pick up the trident from its resting place.

## Description

Bonefeather was white in colour, and had a long shaft topped by a head with three curved prongs, with a hole below the centre one. Depictions of Shoshana showed the trident hung with four coloured feathers – one each in yellow, orange, and two shades of blue – which matched the palette of the prophetess' clothing. It was made of a substance not found anywhere in the natural environment of the Candlelight Sea, but which was most closely related to the element calcium.

## History

Bonefeather was supposedly wielded by Shoshana, an alleged prophetess believed to be the daughter of the goddess Cheline. Shoshana was supposedly given life by her mother so they could fight against Cheline's twin brother, Cheth, god of death, who had supposedly become a threat to the entire world. The prophetess allegedly used her trident to discover the first vein of the luminous mineral phantomarine in the western seawall, leaving a mark that was still visible 5,000 years later. Shoshana also supposedly blessed the aquifers, sacred volcanic springs, by touching them with Bonefeather, thus imbuing them with a small amount of her power to give them healing properties.

After Cheth's defeat in the Fracture, an event which cursed the sea and left it tainted by the seaghosts of the dead, Shoshana later died. She was buried in the Graviary of Shoshana, an elaborate marble tomb in the tallest tower of the Saberfort Palace. Bonefeather was laid to rest atop her sarcophagus. Shoshana was typically depicted holding her trident in her left hand in religious statuary of her.

At some point, the Plume Church who served Cheline made a rare overture of cooperation to the Lodestar Guild, a scientific organization dedicated to trying to heal the Candlelight Sea whose members were frequently in opposition to the Plume Church and considered to not believe in Shoshana's promised return. The Church requested that the Guild test Bonefeather to determine its exact chemical composition. The scientists discovered that the trident was made of a substance alien to the known natural environment. What exactly the scientists discovered was placed under lock and key in the deepest vaults of St. Pinion's Cathedral. Dr. Vanna Morena, who eventually became the Guild's chief chemist, was told by older Lodestars that the element calcium was the closest related substance to the composition of Bonefeather.

Princess Phaedra Philemon, a scion of the Saberfort royal family, grew up adoring Shoshana. At one point during her childhood, she visited the graviary room with her friend Hinalani Leina and their mothers, Lady Daphne Philemon and plume priestess Halea Haumea. While Daphne and Halea's backs were turned, Lani dared Phaedra to pick up the trident. As a result, Phaedra was grounded for one month, but considered the moment the best day of her life. After being assassinated at the age of nineteen and becoming a self-aware seaghost after winning a challenge against Cheth, Phaedra told Vanna's son, Pavel, about her encounter with Bonefeather, initially claiming that she had gotten to hold the weapon.

One week after the discovery of Phaedra's corpse on Fracture Day, High Priestess Halea, who had in truth been murdered and her corpse possessed by Cheline herself, arrived at the Saberfort with the princess' body. After her funeral, "Halea" visited the Graviary with Daphne to deliver an urn containing the ashes of a stand-in corpse secretly burned in place of Phaedra's body. Once Daphne had departed the tower, Cheline had her co-conspirator, Silas Silenus, repair the sutures holding Halea's head onto her body before turning her attention to Shoshana's tomb. She removed Bonefeather from the lid and had Silas open the sarcophagus, revealing the prophetess' mortal remains, before casually incinerating them with her fire magic. Cheline gave the trident to a shocked Silas to hold and ordered him to sweep up the ashes once they had cooled down.

## Appearances

* "Chapter 2: The Horizon Child" (As a statue)
* "Chapter 3: The Fata Morgana" (As a statue)
* "Chapter 5: The Manta Princess" (As a statue and in a flashback)
* "Chapter 6: The False Prophetess"

## References

1. ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 "Chapter 5: The Manta Princess"
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Notes on the Candlelight Sea: The Saberfort"
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 *Ask Phantomarine*: Page 7
4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Notes on the Candlelight Sea: The Fracture"
5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 "Chapter 3: The Fata Morgana"
6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 "Chapter 6: The False Prophetess"
7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 "Chapter 2: The Horizon Child"