The Queen of the Sea

We’ll set off to sea with a song on our lips   And nary a care for the shore!   Forgive me, Forgive me, my fair maiden Molly   For I’ve trusted myself to the Tide!

  One of the oldest Nautical supersitions in the Mortal Lands is the Queen of the Sea, often referred to in colicquium as The Tide. The Master of the ocean currents and siren song that lures men to their deaths, the Tide is the call of the open ocean to those who stand on her shores. Even as common superstition and worship of the old pagan gods has faded from the Mortal Lands, She persists in the shanties of the sailors, the carved wooden monuments that stand on the piers...   And the alluring call of the Sea.  

---

We’ll come into port one way or another   And drink ‘till our livers are full!   Forgive me, Forgive me, my fair maiden Molly   For I’ve Trusted myself to the Tide!

 

Queen of the Sea

  The legend of the Tide has its origins in the earliest days of the saililng vessels, which could barely travel beyond the warm embraces of the shores of the Mortal Lands. Humble fishermen who took to the waves that lapped at their beaches spoke of a 'call' from futher out from shore, seeming to beckon them on. Their boats, however, were unable to make the journey, and many souls were lost until nautical navigation improved. The more superstitious of Men, who would attribute to a woman anything they did not understand, began to speak of a 'Siren' who lived beneath the waves, calling out to men seeking a husband to hold with her in the kingdoms below.   This 'Siren' did not earn the moniker of 'Queen' until the collapse of the coastal capital of [Atlantis] into the sea in 307 AD, when the [volcano] volcano erupted. The people, who were mourning the loss of their virgin Queen, claimed to hear her calling from the depths of the ocean. These stories and testimonies blended with the existing legend, creating the Queen of the Sea.   The Sailors of the ruined kingdom, still grieving their queen, banded together and swore an oath to the voice below the waves. They gathered their vessels and set sail into the ocean, following her call. Although they eventually found and settled what is now the Lunis Archiapelago, They continued to be a seafaring culture, constantly taking to the waves to follow the voice of their Queen.  

Lets sails fall to full and bows turn to stars   As back to the oceans we go!   Forgive me, Forgive me my fair maiden molly   For I’ve trusted myself to the tide!

 

  The Sailors who formed the Queen's Embrace took an oath, trusting their souls to the Tide Queen who called to them. They treated this voice as they had their queen in life, Offering her tribute at the end of sucessful voyages and before setting off from port, that they may have safe journeys. At the end of their lives, their bodies themselves would be tossed into the sea, returning to the Queen what is rightfully hers.   The remainder of the Kingdom in Shimshar took a far different view of this 'voice', watching as it took many strong, able-bodied men to their seeming demise. To them, the Tide Queen became a siren of destruction, luring men and filling them with insanity before dragging them to the deaths. Sailors were warned from sailing too far from Shimshar's shores-you lost sight of land, you lost sight of your anchor. Failed voyages were seen as her lashing out against those who would deny her, sucessful voyages those who had escaped her notice.   Even after the two cultures re-connected through naval trade, the legend of the Tide Queen remained persistent. it wasn't until the 1600s, when science had furthered nautical safety and navigation more than any supersition had, than the Tide Queen's influence began to fade. Though her statues remained standing and the mosaics depicted her glory and wrath, they became no more than amusements or attractions that enhanced the great cities, rather than objects of worship. The tributes of a bottle of wine overboard or smashed against the hull of a new vessel became a rote tradition, rather than a genuine offering.   Today, the Tide Queen is, to most sailors, nothing but an old song that's fun to sing on a night when the rum flows freely and the moon shines bright. But there are those, who have been at sea perhaps a day too long and cut loose from their ties on land, that still speak sincerely about a voice calling to them from below the waves.  

Lo, Lo, the Tide has come   To Claim what is rightfully hers,   Forgive me forgive me, my fair maiden molly,   For I’ve trusted myself to the Tide!