Meet Duskgrim and Songsorrow! 🪶☠️ | Star Stable Magic Horses ✨

Jorvik is rich with tales of nature spirits appearing as horses. Two of those spirits are strongly linked to grim stories reminding the listener that appearances are deceiving. The Duskgrim of the barren mountains look deadly even though they come to help.
On the flip side the Songsorrows seem tame, even pitiful, until it is too late to escape the vicious water horse.
The Songsorrows are Jorvik’s waters given threatening form. Nearly every beach, river, and lake has at least one story of a Songsorrow. In some accounts the water source was created by the horse’s tears after losing their rider, and now the spirit waits for their rider’s return, crying a haunting song that lures the unsuspecting onto their back. The person may be released when the Songsorrow realizes the human on their back is not the one they are waiting for. The other possibility is the Songsorrow, in a grief stricken rage, will drag the human into the water never to be seen again. Deadlier waters tend to have stories of Songsorrows not driven by mourning but malice, using their song to intentionally draw in victims who rarely escape a watery grave. The main similarities across all the legends is that the spirits sing and create sorrow, intentionally or not.
As a legend intrinsically tied to Jorvik’s landscape it is no surprise that they appear as Jorvik Wild Horses. They disguise themselves as beautiful, if otherworldly, white horses to hide their true watery appearance. Seeing their true form is a sign of trust, whether as a friend or as a victim who won’t share the secret is up to you.
Songsorrows, as embodiments of water, are versatile in temperament. They can be calm or dangerous, frozen or boiling, and should be treated with caution. To befriend a Songsorrow is no easy task as they are willful creatures, demanding time and patience to overcome their emotional and volatile nature.
Or perhaps you are the one they have been waiting for all this time?
Myths tell of a horse followed by ravens descending to Jorvik and appearing to an unsuspecting person. The inky black horse charges at the human, the fearsome appearance and cawing ravens driving the person away in terror. Later the person finds tragedy has struck, unaware the Duskgrim appeared to help guide them from disaster.
The well meaning spirit is treated as an omen of doom, their mere presence bringing despair even though they come to help. Despite the grim legends a white Duskgrim is good luck, a messenger from fate of a bright new dawn. Even with positive associations, like luck and the day night cycle, Duskgrim are largely seen as spirits surrounded by death, though they are never the cause.
As a legend intrinsically tied to Jorvik’s landscape it is no surprise that they appear as Jorvik Wild Horses. They use illusions to appear as normal pale horses when traveling from their mountain peak home but reveal their true colors to those they trust.
Like ravens, Duskgrims are incredibly intelligent and social, perhaps unaware of the stories they are a part of. They reward those who show them kindness with unwavering loyalty. Earning the trust of a Duskgrim is to earn a friend for life, and perhaps beyond.
Song: Valedale Hymn by Folk' Avant
Song link: open.spotify.com/track/5ZHAgt...
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