This is part of Faranesque's World Building Challenge from r/WorldBuilding. Check out my hub post for details.
Preface: Most of my posts from this point on will likely focus on the crew of the Rōnni and the refugees with them, now I've done some of the cosmic establishment from Day 1.
In today's installment, some talk of the Star-Born and the kinds of legends they have created...
XV LEGENDS
The Star-Born have birthed many stories and tales since the Firmament was first formed.
Sometimes, the Star-Born are cast as the villains. Some are mortals who were bestowed unfathomable Power, and thus succumbed to wickedness.
You already know some of the story of Goldenbrow, the Morsban, the Maldasi King who used his Power at his whim, slaughtering countless numbers, and leaving terrible scars across Maldas and its People. For every story which bears its grain of truth, there have been others which have been embellished or spun full-cloth from nothinig, but such was the Morsban's infamy and grasp that it is no stretch of the imagination to think him capable of the acts attributed to him.
There are also tales of Alsbitta Eksett, likewise a mortal empowered by a Star, who traveled her World to find people who interested her. These she would take back to her home, treating them like pets or possessions. When she tired of them, she would get rid of them. The lucky ones were merely banished from her manse, though they often faced long journeys to try to return to their home. Others, she would turn into trophies, literal objects d'art which decorated her manse. And some, it is said, were drained of their life and their minds, borne out of Alsbitta's warped belief that this would increase her Power.
In other cases, the Star-Born were never mortal to begin with. Though they bear the same shape as one of the Peoples, they are alien beings which struggle to understand the mortal mindset, and whose own morality structure is distant and skewed.
Take, for instance, the Warden of Durance Vile. Endlessly guarding the prison of those arrogant enough to seek to control the Star Which Would Not Be Caged, the Warden violently objects to any intruders on their domain, but tales persist wherein the Warden tracks down any who have broken some arcane and incomprehensible law the Stars hold sacred. Or tales where a hero's loved one or ally has been wrongfully dragged into the Durance Vile, and the Warden seeks to prevent their rescue.
Or the tales about the Axonicol. Wrought from dense and impenetrable metals, it was set to journey across the Firmament, to traverse it endlessly. So it would do so, but the Axonicol was more akin to a beast than an intelligent being, driven by strange instincts and curiosities. Though it would be fairer to call it a force of nature, something which could not be stopped, only endured or avoided. In many tales, it would come upon a World and its presence would evoke devastation, so the heroes would have to bait it away from their World, or race to find a place where they and their friends could let its wandering pass.
Sometimes, the Star-Born are more remote, removed from the general business of mortals, sought out for wisdom, guidance, or judgment.
In many parables, the heroes seek out their assistance with a quandary or thorny matter. These Star-Born eschew mortal company and must be found, often at great struggle or peril. Sometimes temptations would be placed in the heroes' path, to entice them to turn away from their quest. In this manner, the Star-Born would know that only those of strong will, conviction, and truly great need could reach them. Those who felt wronged by an improper judgment or law would seek the counsel of Dacaste the Arbiter. Those who sought knowledge and wisdom would look to learn at the feet of Zenaga the Mentor. Those who wanted foresight and knowledge of coming events would beseech Mandest the Oracle to weave the threads of fate on their behalf.
But while the Star-Born are often, and rightfully, described as impossibly powerful beings, they are not always seen as villains and distant entities. There are tales in which they are heroes-- frequently when they are new to their Power, as yet learning the full extent of what they can do-- traversing the Firmament and getting into adventures.
In the stories of Bras Gleam, the warrior gathers together a band of followers-- who they are varies on the tale, for Bras Gleam's adventures spanned generations-- to challenge evil and treacherous empires. Sometimes they would hunt pirates in the Numinous Veil, or face down monsters borne out of the darkness. Sometimes Bras would take his friends into the depths of a city to chase a thief, or find a way into a warlord's keep.
Almos Actindo was likewise an adventurer, though his adventures were less varied than Bras Gleam's. He was more of an explorer, finding the parts of the Firmament which had been lost to time and memory, to reconnect with forgotten Stars and Worlds. And above all, he was about stopping the darkness from overtaking the Firmament, whether the darkness was just the wickedness in people's hearts, or of a more literal stripe.
Because, remember, as in light, so in dark...
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