The Barrel and the Sea
Summary
Eons past, in the time of the Giants, there was no ocean, but instead the vast stretches of land as far as one could see. On the edge of a dry canyon there stood a town around a natural spring which was jealously guarded by a wicked lord. A miser, he withheld the water or charged exhorbitant fees to drink from its saving waters.
During the height of Summerrule, the Queen of Summer brought the sun to its zenith for a great celebration, forbidding rain to fall during her festivities. The sun beat down upon the land with intense heat, parching throats and withering crops. But still the lord of the land refused to share freely.
Two mysterious travelers traveled across the land, arriving at the doors of the lord's great manor, begging for a drink. But he refused, sending them away with throats dry. They sought out the great house of the wealthy farmer, but were turned away. Only at the final house, a tiny stone hut atop the hills, did they find welcome.
Despite her poverty, the woman within offered the Travelers the last of what she had, a small cup of water. She refused their offer of payment, saying it was her duty of hospitality. The Travelers revealed their true nature, and granted her a boon. The first traveler, a craftsman, created a small barrel and the other filled it with her powerful divine magic. The first wish she made, they claimed, would flow out of the barrel when it was tapped.
As Summerrule continued, the lord held a lavish feast, welcoming the wealthy and powerful, shutting out the poor from the spring entirely. Drawing water was forbidden to all, on pain of death. The woman, parched, remembered the gift from the travelers and wished for enough water to be rid of the miser's control once and for all.
Tapping the barrel, cool, fresh water began to flow out of the barrel, the most refreshing the woman had ever tasted. But, when time came to seal the barrel, she found she could not. Water continued to flow outwards, flooding her home, then her neighborhood. The woman, carried the barrel, still gushing water into a small cave high in the hills, hoping to stifle its flow.
The torrent flowed down the hillside towards the lord's manor, sweeping it and the wicked inside off the cliff. The water filled the valley, becoming the Oceans. Those swept away were drowned or transformed into fish and other sea creatures. The spring, once famed for its purity became salty. The cursed revelers, who had denied fresh water to all for their own miserly selfishness, would forever live in the salt water as punishment, never to set foot on land again.
Ages past, the River Baraod, which empties into the Pleg-Mor Sant-Brioc, did not exist. Located on the remote Ar Mor Breizh, the town that now bears the name Pennbaraod (The Head of the Baraod), had only one freshwater spring, jealously guarded by the wicked local lord.
The Maiden, accompanied by the Labourer were walking the land. Gouel Eost.
The old woman dragged the barrel to a hidden cave in the hills, where it continues to disperse its healing waters as the River Baraod.
Spread
A far more limited version of the story was already well known in what is now the Lordship of Goelo when missionaries of the Faith first arrived in the region around 400 SI. The story had grown into its current, oceanic, version as it spread throughout Great Kernev.
The missionaries co-opted the story, finding the narrative tropes and simple morality a fitting vehicle to teach the Faith to the reticent locals, replacing Morwenna and Margot with the Maiden, the Labourer and an unnamed "Old Woman." Since then, the Druids and Fair Folk have pushed back with Morwenna's story, leading to both versions continuing to circulate.
Variations & Mutation
The Druids
The older version of the story, passed along by the Druids of The Armorican Peninsula, contains some notable details. First, it identifies the mysterious woman as Morwenna, Goddess of the Sea, while her companion is a God of Craftsmen, although there is some discrepancy on his identity. The woman is often described as a Margot, either originally or becoming one by the conclusion to guard her well.The Faith
The identity of the travelers is a key factor in the version supported by the Southern Church. Morwenna is replaced by the Maiden, and the Labourer is distinctly present. The Faith does not treat the story as dogma, but it is tolerated as an allegorical story and morality tale. The spring guardian's identity as Margot is omitted in the retellings of the Faith, but her role as guardian often remains, either as the progenitor of a line of succession or personally, rejuvenated by the healing powers of the undiluted spring at its source.The River Baraod
One local variation from the Lordship of Goelo tells a far more limited version of the story, which seems to be the oldest telling, concerns the creation not of the ocean, but of the Baraoad River, which empties into the Mor Breizh at the town of Pennbaraoad (The Head of the Baraoad), near Sant-Brioc. The Baraoad is renowned for its healing properties and mineral richness, which has resulted in the creation of healing baths in the town. The Fate of the Town For the most part, the wicked and selfish inhabitants of the town are simply swept away and drown, although in some rare tellings, they watch from the banks of the river as their homes are swept away instead. Often, they are changed into fish, sometimes Salmon, trying each year to return up the rivers in search of their former home. Other versions of this story change the townsfolk into Draugr, Finfolk or Marie-Morgane. Ironically, while the latter is largely an attempt to link the Daughters of Ys to the selfishness and inhospitality of the townsfolk, the Marie-Morgane themselves tell a version of this, a wistful idea of a lost Drifting ready to be welcomed home if the groups ever meet.Cultural Reception
The story has never really made it out of Letha, despite attempts by Lethan Trouveres attempting to reframe the tale in the tropes and forms popular in Gallia and Akitania. It is not an official part of Church dogma, but rather is framed as a local allegorical story.
The exception are the Margot, who have spread the story through oral tradition through their clutches. Likewise, variants of it are sometimes found in Ys-Beneath-the-Waves, although heavily modified through the mermaids' own cultural bias.
In Art
In Lethan religious art, the Maiden is sometimes shown holding a barrel, an allusion to this story.
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