The Fallen Star
"'And Shokai did cast his thunderbolt into the waters where Essena dwelled, so she would be delighted with their glow and be smitten by him.'"The Fallen Star is a myth prevalent in the Duchy of Solathi, pertaining to the Galan River and its mysterious glow in the evening.
"'The people of the Galan pleased Meikat, and she caused a star to fall into the river as a sign of her eternal favor.'"
"'The fish glow in the dark for some reason. That's it. End of story.'"
-Three accounts from Elemental, Avadian-Calinani and Kjor schools of thought about the Fallen Star
Summary
During the evenings in the city of Solathi on the northeastern coast of Calina, the waters of the Galan River that pass through the city and empty out into the Calinan Sea take on an eerie, otherworldly electric blue glow that lights up the waters.
The residents of Solathi believe that the glow is the side-effect of a star which fell into the Galan many centuries ago; specifically, the remnants of the star are generating starlight, which is in turn illuminating the waters of the Galan.
In all iterations of the myth, it is believed that this event happened many centuries prior to the arrival of settlers from Arikanda, and this seems to suggest that the myth was originally circulated upon some of the Calinani who existed in the area, and was then co-opted and embellished by Arikandan influence, primarily Elementalism and the Avadian religion.
Spread
The myth is ubiquitous within Solathi and the surrounding territories, and is followed by a considerable portion of the Elementalist priests in southern Arikanda. Among Avadians, it only really seems to be a myth known to people who have sailed to the region or who live there.
Variations & Mutation
As a melting pot of cultures, there is a surprising amount of cultural agreement that the glow was caused by a fallen star. However, there is a great amount of difference as to precisely what the cause of the star being cast into the river was. In Elementalism, the dominant religion of Solathi, the belief is that the star was cast into the oceans from the heavens as a kind of courtship gesture from Shokai, the Elemental God of Thunder to try to woo Essena, the Elemental Goddess of Water.
Avadian sailors visiting Solathi contend that the river was the sight of some kind of collaboration or competition between the sea goddess Avadi and the star goddess Meikat. Naturalised Calinani followers of the Avadian religion hold a different take on it, believing that the fallen star was a sign of favour from Meikat; they hold that someone or something in Solathi prior to the arrival of Arikandan settlers had pleased her, and she rewarded the site of the now-city by illuminating the river.
Despite their likely source as the origin of the original myth, most non-converted descendants of the original Calinani shamen who had lived in the area have now rejected the idea that the glow is due to a fallen star, and instead believed that the light was caused by a special kind of fish living within the river that radiated the light. This is a view that is also shared by the Kjor, the most recent arrivals to Solathi.
In Literature
There are a number of tablets in the Solathine Library that detail the Fallen Star and the various schools of thought as to what caused it. The Shokai and Essene Templars have both written several theological documents on the matter on both sides of the Calinan Sea, detailing the apparent courtship of the gods; the most prominent an epic poem known as The Union of Thunder and Water.
A smaller contingent of local followers of the Avadian religion have written tales of how Meikat's favour was apparently won, but these have several different versions, and no agreement seems to be in place as to who and what caused her favour. These tales have not spread far outside of Solathi, and are almost unheard of in the Avadian home isles in the Beyan Archipelago.
I especially love the beginning quote, which shows the personalities of the different schools of thought. This is a great myth, very wonderfully written.
Adazuri: A shonen-inspired magitech fantasy world home-brewed for 5e.