What childhood stories are people still afraid of as adults in your world?
Summary
There are many terrifying legends throughout Ardent Proper, but none are quite as harrowing as the drowning of Old Erith; theirs was an old, wealthy kingdom who worshiped an ancient, primordial leviathan named Agdolath. In order to honor her and avoid having their ships eaten by her, they would need to provide her with sacrifices; at first, it was just animals, but when she demanded more, they upgraded to human sacrifices instead. One day, it wasn’t enough and her demands were unable to be satisfied. Enraged, she shifted her immense body in a manner that shook the earth and sent a monumental tidal wave towards the kingdom, washing it away forever.
Historical Basis
Historical evidence indicates that before the legend started to take off, there was, in fact, a massive earthquake that destroyed nearly half the kingdom, as well as a powerful tsunami that tragically swept the kingdom away with the tide. That being said, while Old Erith did also worship a being called Agdolath, no evidence has ever been found of her existence, nor of the existence of any other living examples of ancient leviathans living in the Pale Sea. There have been ancient leviathans in the past, but most of them are long-extinct and are on display in many museums across Ardent Proper.
Cultural Reception
In many inland countries, the legend is treated as nothing more than a spooky story to tell one’s children at night to scare them; however, for many sea-faring nations, it holds far more weight, for obvious reasons. In addition to being considered a cautionary tale told to children to make them behave, it was a cautionary tale for sailors who got too greedy and didn’t have enough faith in the Gods. Just the mere mention of Old Erith to any mariner who grew up on this legend would make them visibly shiver in fear.