“Once, the deepest levels of the sea had been inhabited by luminescent creatures of both fauna and flora life. It’s said that it was even more beautiful to see than the coral reefs of the sunlit waters. Once, the glittering depths were considered a vacation destination by the water taur. Once, the angler taur was simply a fish which swam through the deep water as protectors of the unique world. Though normally idle, keeping to their own thoughts, they were capable of striking fierce and quick if anyone or anything threatened their home. This was their wish. The only non-glowing creature in the shimmering world, for they did not yet have their bauble, they had prayed to their Goddess for the ability to forever swim in the beautiful, mysterious waters. In return, they promised to protect the aquatic depths from those who might seek to harm it. The goddess granted their wish, transforming them into a mixed humanoid fish form with heads more fish-like than human as most taur have to better protect their new home, cutting through the water like blades.
“As with any wish though, time passed, and the purpose of the wish was forgotten. The anglers continued to watch over their home, but their desire to guard the deep world was to be their downfall. One particular angler, Jarek, strong and willful, grew to believe that they were there because the habitat belonged solely to them. He believed that they didn’t protect their home to keep it alive. He thought that they protected it to keep it from those who sought to steal it. Who wouldn’t want to claim the glittering underwater landscape as their own? Well, he wasn’t about to let anyone seize his world! As Jarek grew of age and became a guardian himself, his resolve grew firm. He had to make sure no one would take what belonged to the anglers!
“Full of charisma and passion, Jarek rallied the anglers into following his beliefs, until nearly every angler acted as though the deep lighted reefs were their possession. It changed gradually, but the incidences of non-anglers vanishing started to rise. Rather than just chasing off whoever came near, as they had before, the new rules were followed strictly. Rule number one; any taur who ventured into the luminescent world without permission.. would be punished most severely. Only a few taur returned from their travels alive, returning with desperate tales of the relentless anglers. A committee was drawn, and a group of prominent leaders of the shallower waters went down to speak to the anglers. They only met the same fate as those who had recently gone there before, unprepared to face the hostility that had grown under their noses. After this tragedy, the anglers became known to those above as the Diabolus of Altum; the Devils of the Deep.
“When the anglers refused to relent and share the land, the Goddess who had granted the wish was, of course, quite beside herself. In a desperate attempt to give her beloved guardians another chance, she took the form of a syrin and asked to see the shining world below. Jarek himself was the one she requested entry from, and he denied her. When she claimed that the anglers did not own the glowing creatures, Jarek struck her down, declaring to her how no one but the angler deserved to see those deepest ravines, and taking his blade, he swept it down toward the syrin/Goddess’ neck. She was a Goddess though, and the blade simply bounced off of her impenetrable skin. She was furious. With a snap of her fingers, every angler was joined in front of her, and made to listen. She told them of their heritage; of the promise that had been made. A usually gentle being, the Goddess held back slightly, promising to make a deal with the anglers. Jarek was most persistent though, and preached the reasons why he felt the world was theirs, and that a promise made by their ancestors had no hold over them. To the Goddess’ shock, the other anglers stood behind their awe-inspiring leader.
“The anglers had been given a great gift, and now that gift was in ruins, and being used against her.. Now, the Goddess was heartbroken. Driven by grief, she took away what the anglers had killed to keep, and struck them where it would hurt the most. She banished the anglers to remain in their deep valleys and chasms of the sea forever. To keep the anglers safely from the surface, she increased the depth of the sea bottom until it was nearly impossible for other taur to travel to. Then, she removed the glowing fauna and flora from the deep landscape, casting the angler’s precious sparkling world into darkness. And finally, as a reminder of what their selfishness had cost them, she placed a single bulb of luminescence that would sprout from their foreheads on a long stem, their precious glowing world always right in front of their eyes, and always just out of reach. Even Jarek, once mighty and powerful, now spent his remaining days chasing the light that he could never touch.”
Stretching, back popping from sitting on the sandy bottom in one place for so long, the old syrin stretched her arms, looking around at all the little syrin floating in front of her. “Now remember, children. That is why we don’t venture to those dark places. It is a world that belongs to the anglers. Their forms have changed only a little since then. As the penance was born, many, many years passing, the Goddess shortened the limb that the glowing bulbs hung from.” She scratched her chin lightly. “I believe it’s only a hand length or two away from their heads, though it still hangs in front of their eyes as a guide. I think they can also pop up to around our depth from time to time, though they’re more used to the fiercer pressure below. While they’re no syrins, they are not nearly as violent as they once were.”
One child wrinkled his nose. “Come on, Elder Batari. Anglers don’t exist. I ain’t never seen one. I bet they’re just a story you made up to try keeping us from swimming where it’s dark.”
Batari gave the child a hard look, which caused him to shrink away while the others giggled, and then she smiled. “Ah, my dear child. A legend like this one doesn’t just appear in one’s mind. There is truth behind every tale. The anglers are rare indeed, but exist, they do.” The old syrin turned to look back at the crevasse they sat next to. Looking down into the darkness, thinking about one particular angler, she smiled knowingly. “Indeed, children, they do.”
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