Breach of the Sea Dragon

Andraous (Discontinued)    Culture    Festivals      Breach of the Sea Dragon

Every year, several coastal communities wait for the head of the 'Sea Dragon' constellation to fully emerge from the ocean's horizon. When it does they will celebrate for a full day and night, and when the sun emerges on the second day the community will begin the harvest of migrating fish and other sea creatures. As the season progresses, the 'Sea Dragon' will arch over the horizon, eventually disappearing back under the horizon until the next year.

History

According to legend, 'The Sea Dragon' is an oceanic spirit whose job is to guide several migratory creatures from their feeding grounds to their breeding grounds. One night, before making their journey, the 'Sea Dragon' got peckish, and swam through ocean to find a bite to eat. Eventually it spotted a very tasty looking fish, and tried to eat it. What the 'Sea Dragon' didn't realize, was that the fish was fake bait being used by a young boy trying to catch bigger fish to eat, so when he tried to eat it he got hooked, and was reeled onto shore. Hooked and out of the water, the 'Sea Dragon' was powerless, and appeared tiny.
It started to speak in order to ask the boy to return it to the water, but the boy shoved it into a wicker basket, and stashed it in the corner of a storeroom, where he could hide it the pretty creature from the adults, and show the other children his find. He intended to return to the basket within the day, but his parents gave him many tasks to prepare for the fishing season, and he forgot of his prize in the storeroom.
As the days passed, the 'Sea Serpent' grew weaker and weaker without being able to access the ocean. Without the 'Sea Serpent' to guide them to the breeding grounds, the sea creatures didn't leave the feeding grounds. Without the migration, the coastal villages started running out of food, and things started growing desperate.
One night the boy over heard the elders whispers about the missing 'Sea Serpent' in the night sky, and he remembered the basket in the storeroom, and raced over. When he opened the basket, the 'Sea Serpent' was very weak, and it begged the boy to return it back to the ocean so it could complete it's task to guide the sea creatures through the ocean.
The boy raced the basket to the ocean's edge, and released the spirit back into the water. As soon as the 'Sea Serpent' touched the water it took off, gaining strength as it rushed to round up the sea creatures. By the time the 'Sea Serpent' was ready to leap across the ocean, it was back to it's former strength.
Since then the coastal villages have not fished during the days leading up to the start of the migration, to make sure they didn't accidentally hook the 'Sea Serpent' and delay the migration.

Observance

The festival begins on the morning after the first night when the star representing the 'Sea Dragon's' jaw can finally be seen above the horizon. The morning begins with the announcement that the 'Sea Dragon' has begun it's yearly leap from the ocean, and that the denizens of the water are following it.
After the announcement the day is spent feasting, playing games and getting ready for the nightly activities. Some of the daytime activities include a scavenger hunt in the tide pools, collecting shells and trinkets to decorate sea dragon outfits, timed fishing contests, story telling, etc. Once the sun falls, bonfires are lit, and there is a big feast, as well as dancing, music, and the wearing of sea dragon outfits. This lasts until the early morning, and everyone will try to get a few hours sleep before setting out on their ships to take advantage of the annual migration.
For the rest of the season, 'The Sea Dragon' will arch over the horizon, and dive back into the sea. Typically once 'The Sea Dragon' completely disappears back under the horizon, the migration will be done, and the villages will have enough food for the rest of the year.