Philomela

Philomela as a medusa

Leaf Lasinthúl

Philomela is an actress who was cursed by the Demon Lord Graz’zt to become a medusa. She and her husband Tereus d’Medani sequestered themselves in isolation at their villa, which would later become known as the Faded Fief, and attacked any unweary travelers who came too close. Eventually, her curse was broken by Helios and Leaf Lasinthúl of the Gatekeepers.

## Legend of Philomela the Beloved

The dilapidated ruins of a magnificent villa stand atop a hill, surrounded by an expanse of forested wilderness. This wilderness was once a sprawling garden, filled with splendid statuaries and a menagerie of exotic beasts. The villa itself was owned by Philomela the Beloved, a star of the stage renowned for her radiant beauty, her skill as a performer of both songs and poetic theater, and—perhaps most of all—for her commanding offstage persona. Her enchanting performance was a beacon of light during the darkness of the Last War.

Every week, Philomela would throw lavish parties in her villa’s garden, flaunting her wealth to her hundreds of similarly wealthy guests by displaying dozens of exotic animals, deific marble statues, and splendid water features. Her prestige won her many friends, just as many false friends, and several dangerous enemies. While Philomela was largely able to protect herself from those who wished her harm by simply hiring bodyguards, she gained one enemy who would not be deterred by mortal hands. His name was Graz’zt.

Graz’zt, Demon Lord of hedonism, lust, and debauchery, desired Philomela for himself. On the night of Philomela's grandest celebrations, he exerted his control over one man in the crowd. It was the night of her wedding, when she became a true noble by marrying the love of her life, the half-elf Tereus d’Medani. Hundreds of socialites and celebrities had gathered in Philomela’s estate, gawking at her menagerie of unusual beasts and laughing in her vast gardens. A knife forged in the coldest flames of the Abyss materialized in the hands of one of the men in the crowd, and he single-mindedly left the garden and climbed the stairs towards his hostess’s boudoir.

The man burst into Philomela’s private solar with a glazed, desirous, and murderous look in his eye. Graz’zt had not dominated his mind, he had merely demanded that the man act upon his worst, basest instincts. When the man saw Philomela, he raised the knife Graz’zt had given him and lunged at her. Unarmed and off-guard, she defended herself valiantly, but the man managed to plunge his demonic knife cleanly into her heart. Graz’zt had hoped to swoop in and steal her soul for himself, but the conniving Demon Lord was stymied by the intervention of another, greater power. In her dying moments, Philomela’s soul had become the battleground for powers far greater than she knew; Waukeen, goddess of wealth and freedom, laid first claim to Philomela’s free spirit. A furious Graz’zt twisted Philomela’s fate in that instant, and placed a terrible curse upon her: she would be immortal, and her beauty would never fade, but all who gazed upon her would turn to stone.

When Philomela awoke, her assailant was dead. Or rather, he stood before her as a marble statue. She looked down at her hands and saw in horror that her skin had taken on a scaly, green-gray pallor. She ran outside and found that her grand party had ended in tragedy; all of her exotic animals had fallen under Graz’zt’s foul curse as well, and they were transformed into monstrous cockatrice, basilisks, and gorgons. Even the guests had suffered, for the animals had transformed them into hideously lifelike marble statues.

Decades have passed since that tragic night. No longer are great festivals or masquerades thrown at Philomela’s crumbling villa, and the wilderness has long reclaimed the gardens. But within the overgrown gardens roam countless creatures. Petrifying beasts. Marble statues animated by restless spirits. The medusa Philomela herself. And even the demonic agents of Graz’zt, who still seek a way to subvert Waukeen’s intervention and claim the medusa’s soul for their patient master.

## A Dark Curse Broken

Eventually, Philomela's curse was broken by Helios and Leaf Lasinthúl of the Gatekeepers. Although they had originally entered her villa with the intention to slay the medusa, they recieved a boon from the goddess Waukeen which allowed them to break Graz’zt’s curse. Unfortunately, Philomela's husband Tereus d’Medani did not survive the encounter.

As a sign of gratitude for breaking her curse, Philomela granted her estate to Helios and Leaf Lasinthúl as a tribute to the Gatekeepers. Now re-named the Faded Fief, Helios and Leaf Lasinthúl plan to construct a stronghold for the Gatekeepers in the center of Breland.