Divine Carp
Giant fish who swim in the sky
It is said that in the Age of Enkindling, the god Taecant had once encountered a dying carp while meditating atop a waterfall. Intrigued by the creature’s presence, he asked how a mere fish had managed to ascend to such impressive heights. The carp spoke thus:
“I heard tales of a delicious rice cake in the night sky. Though I have swam many rivers, none have ever brought me close to it. And so, with the last of my strength, I climbed the waterfall in search of it. Ah, to think that I will never taste it!”
Impressed by the carp’s discipline in the face of adversity, Taecant touched the carp and bestowed a blessing upon it. “Though you will never taste the moon, my friend, there are still plenty more wonders this world has to offer. Go now, and graze upon the pine nuts of the conifers, the loquats of the trees, and the bamboo shoots of the forests. Eat, and you may call these mountains your home.”
Thus, the carp began to float in the air, growing larger and larger, glowing bright white underneath the moon. And so, the first Divine Carp was born. To this day, it’s said that any fish that manages to climb Taecant’s waterfalls will be reborn as a Divine Carp, and that a carp seen swimming upstream must be training for this journey.
Nowadays, these schools of massive fish can be found amidst the misty, arboreal peaks of the Windwhisper Mountains. They glide through the air with serene grace, gem-like scales reflecting vibrant shades of red, orange, yellow, white, and black in the morning sun. At night, they sleep belly-side up, basking in the light of the moon. They require no water, instead merely grazing on the plants and shrubbery that dot the mountainside.
Despite their voracious appetites, the carp are gentle giants that rarely ever venture below the cloud line. To see one is considered a wonderful omen; to harm one, the most wicked of sins. As they were created by Taecent, hunting them is illegal throughout Mor Thia. Unfortunately, this hasn’t stopped the greedy or desperate from trying to do so—the bones of the Divine Carp are rumored to be wondrous panacea when ground and used in medicine.
While hunting them is illegal, no such protections exist for harvesting the bones from an already-deceased carp. However, finding a corpse is incredibly rare. Typically, Divine Caps travel to the sea to die, their sunk bodies providing nutrients to the creatures of the ocean floor. It is unknown why they possess this instinct, but the end result is that their skeletons remain inaccessible for mortal use.
Rumor has it that Divine Carp possess a preternatural level of empathy, able to sense ill-intent from those that would harm them. This explains why poachers struggle with locating the beasts. There are also more unsubstantiated claims of Divine Carp occasionally descending to villages, curing sick elders or children. Many theories exist, but none are proven.
Mortal Caretakers
While the carp typically avoid human interaction, there exist monasteries dedicated to their worship and preservation. These group venerate the carp as children of Taecant and do their best to keep the populations healthy. Monks track the carp’s sky-migrations, monitor the health of individual fish, and do their best to direct wayward tourists away from their feeding grounds. They also tend to the various plants of the mountainside, gently herding the carp away from over-grazed areas so that they may recover in the next season. On occasion, they directly intervene by capturing and healing injured carp, but such an instance is rare.
Below the mountains, it is typical for towns to have laws that specifically cover carp-based crime. In locations with higher amounts of carp-sightings, its is more likely for black markets to pop up. These markets contain exotic cures from all corners of the world, but Divine Carp Pellets are the most sought-after. Whether or not the pills work is anyone’s guess, but merely possessing them is a serious, sacrilegious crime. The black markets frequently change locations to prevent being “busted,” but plainclothes law enforcement adapt to this just as quickly. Operatives are known to spend several months under cover, participating in the illegal trade in order to track down the head smugglers. To combat this, these markets require several layers of ever-changing passwords to reach the more exclusive dealers. A traveller could spend an entire year in the “medicine market” without ever realizing something more sinister is afoot…
