The following songs, poems, and short stories were collected from all over Caelereth, from various tribes, clans, and villages. Their dates of composition and actual authors are unknown, but they have survived in oral tradition for up to two or three hundred years. About fifty years ago an enterprising young Enthronian scribe who wasn’t doing too well in the letter-writing trade decided to begin collecting and editing some of these folk compositions. He published the resulting pamphlet, “Babetales of Santharia”, under the pseudonym of “Auntie Sannie” to attract the female population whom he hoped would buy and read the collection. The Babetales were an instant hit, and went into eight editions before the scribe died in middleage, on a tale-collecting trip to the wilds of Northern Sarvonia. His family continued to hold the rights to the tales, and to publish them under the “Auntie Sannie” name. By now, their familiar yellow binding sits next to the Book of Paths (Avaesthoría) on every literate household’s bookshelf!

BIRD SONNET
by RAYNE AVALOTUS

All the birds of the Santharian land
Come in many a color, shape, and size
No matter the species, they’re simply grand.
To see one of any kind is a prize.
The beautiful Cuuloos with dark blue crowns
And the Banded Ricau of the seashore,
The Psittae mimicking another's sounds,
The Blue Glitra of mysterious lore.
There’s the Haloen whose bright feather’s sail
And the Shadow of Death, the dark nightbird.
The phoenix of many mystical tales
And the Howler Goose so easily heard,
The Taenish, not glorious as the rest,
Belongs to Avá and thus, too, is blessed.
 

Fisher Rat
by Bard Judith

Sailing in a spiral shell,
With hooks of mithril bright,
Goes the Ragged Fisher-Rat,
From dawn to noon to night.

Cobweb sails by widow cobs
Were woven all forlorn,
Filled with sighs of silver air
From Grothar’s silver horn.

Fisher-Rat knows naught of love
Nor hate in heart can hold,
But wistful caught between the two
His simple soul runs cold.

Bait of fly and coral roe
Upon his lines he trails,
Waiting for a foolish bite,
As ever on he sails.

Ragged, wistful, Fisher-Rat,
Whither do you fly?
Out before the northeast wind,
Upon a noon-blue sky,
Out of time and out of life,
Upon a noon-blue sky.

The Fisher-Rat, sailing in a spiral shell. Drawn by Fiorellina.

The Cuuloo Song
by Bard Judith

The Cuuloo sat on a Cloewen tree,
Sing Cuuloo cuuloo cuuloo!
He winked his eye and he sang to me,
Sing Cuuloo cuuloo cuuloo!

The boys love the girls and the girls love tea,
Sing Cuuloo cuuloo cuuloo!
And mothers love them both, you see,
Sing Cuuloo cuuloo cuuloo!

Sing cuuloo now to the brinded cow,
And cuuloo to the baby,
And cuuloo too says the cat by the fire,
Oh, the cuuloo singeth maybe!

Come sit you down upon my knee,
Sing Cuuloo cuuloo culloo!
And a pretty tale I'll tell to thee,
Sing Cuuloo cuuloo culloo!

The Cuuloo sat on a Cloewen tree,
Sing Cuuloo cuuloo cuuloo!
He winked his eye and he sang to me,
Sing Cuuloo cuuloo cuuloo!
 

The Dunemouse
by Laivin Colmo

I once met a dune mouse upon a sand hill
that cute little dune mouse, he bothers me still

he told me a story of dragons and sand
deep underground in a vast desert land

I did not believe him, they don't dig in the sand
they breathe red hot fire and fly over land

but he insisted I follow and see
so we trekked out, the dune mouse and me

we climbed endless dunes, I burned from the sun
the odd little dune mouse he continued on

we reached a great hole, in the sand, it was black
it was so deep, that I took a leap back

I looked down below and what did I see?
eight shining eyes staring right back at me!

I tried to go, to get away fast
but they were faster, they bit my ...

I ran out of that desert, as fast as I could...
Go back to this place? - no, never I would!

But that poor dune mouse, he wasn't lucky as me
a small dragon snack he turned out to be

If ever a dune mouse you meet on a hill
that tells you odd stories, then it you should kill

they get you in trouble, they ruin your backside
when the whole thing is over you'll wish you had died

or just killed that dune mouse you met on the hill
or went on your way to be quite happy still

If ever I meet one I'll turn quickly away
For fear I'll believe everything he does say

and follow him out to find creatures of myth
and this time lose both arm and head along with!

The Dune Mouse. Picture drawn by Talia Sturmwind.

DOGRIM AND THE DRAGON
by LUCIRINA TELOR VEVAN

Be quiet child and listen well
For now a little tale I'll tell
Of a dimwit mage that had no fear
Sit down and soon you will hear
How this tale so mystical
Ended up as pretty whimsical

Dogrim mage was a powerful one
respected and feared by nearly everyone
Many a marvel came from his hands
He was known in many far off lands
Power he had, and was certainly fit
Unfortunately lacking completely in wit

Dogrim strolled in the forest one day
Saw a flash of colors, like a sunshine ray
Driven by a big curiosity
Our dimwit mage went to see
What magic hid between the trees
And, Holy Gods, this is what he sees:

A dragon curled up in its sleep
And from it wasn't heard a meep
Now any man with half a brain
Would not in this place remain
Slowly he would turn around
Walk a bit then away bound

But Dogrim was not quite as wise
He approached the dragon despise
That it was a ferocious beast
Dogrim thought that he at least
Could this great lord of skies defy
tame it and with it he would fly

Dogrim did what dimwits do best
Walked over to the beast at rest
Grabbed the dragon by its tail
Pulled hard and started to wail
Mysterious formulas of sorcery
When the most sane thing is flee

For now the dragon was fully awake
It yawned and then tried to shake
But felt a tugging at its rear
And then it also came to hear
How Dogrim tried to cast a spell
That unfortunately didn't work too well

The dragon growled
Dogrim howled
A giant paw the air plowed
Hit the mage on his head
And from that day instead
Dogrim the great
was Dogrim the dead

So now my child you can see
That from a dragon you'd better flee
For since that day the dragons said
"Humans are good only when dead"
Learn a little from my tale
Never pull a dragon by its tail!