Worldbuilding Snippet and Finding Inspiration in Metal

Only a part of it I used for inspiration. The rest of it is inspired by greek/roman tragic myths.

In Ancient Unicornia, before the great migration, there lived one of the most powerful unicorns in the world. The stallion Magi Magnus was said to be able to move mountains and raise the sun by himself, though he was mortal. He is said to have been a demi-alicorn, granted power beyond mortal ken by the stars. His one weakness was his love. When he was young, he knew none as he learned from the stars themselves how to be a hero. He slew the great roc Zargothrax, whose wings spanned the sky from horizon to horizon, and whose screech turned mares and stallions mad, and smote him upon what would later be Mt. Unica. The skull is still supposed to be there today, the central peak.

When the Roc was slain, the pegasi of Pegasopolis sent their great heroine to challenge him to a duel. Zargothrax had ever been their patron deity, and they were furious that a unicorn would dare slay the embodiment of aerial power. She, Maria Ignis, had already laid claim to the death of the Great Hyrda, the nameless dread whose heads breached the clouds, and whos body made the Great Rift as it turned its ire on the great cloud city. It was a glorious battle, lightning and tornadoes tore at it, and great sheets of ice sundered its body and struck its heads from its necks. Those sheets became the great northern wastes that we can still see from the westernmost edge of the Empire.

But when Maria and Magi met on what was to be their field of battle, he took one look at her grace, her beauty, and cast down his great helm Stella Galeati and swore to the stars that he could never strike down such beauty. To her, he tore aside his plastron and begged her slay him then, that he could die happy after having seen such a vision.

She, on witnessing this, landed in front of him and demanded why he would take away the honor of battle and replaced his helm, and repaired his torn armor with a kiss just over the heart. In that moment, she felt his words were true, that he would rather die than strike her, that dying would be preferable if he couldn’t keep such a beauty near to him.

Her words, ‘Why would I strike down one who can love so easily?’ broke his resolve to die, and in the next instant pledged his love to her until the stars themselves went dark. And she, the greatest beauty of any age, accepted. From then, they went on to do great deeds, striking down the great Tempest Terror, slaying the serpent that would devour the world, and leaving behind them love and hearts set afire by their great example.

Long years after their first meeting, they came to the harvest festival of a small village, Magi wanted to continue on unabated, but Maria saw something in the skies above the village, a sign that she should linger. Magi, ever willing to please her, agreed, and they stayed the night in the village of Canticum Cordis. And in the morning, they made love and sang to each other in the way of the village.

The field where they had lain together grew better the next year, and every year after. Tradition and myth spread, and soon there were days and nights of making love in the final days of the harvest season, and every year, a month before the end of harvest, a celebration of new life and change.

One night, Magi Magnus, staring up from the earth at his beautiful love, declared aloud, ‘There is nothing on this earth more beautiful, and nothing in the skies or heavens more deserving of my love than you, Maria Ignis, Seas Afire.’

The stars, on hearing this blasphemy against them, tore him away from his love and cast him down into the great pit of Tartarus, sending him into the lowest level, the loneliest cage, and bid him stay until he renounced his words. He never would, lest she believe him a coward, lest she believed he loved her one tiny amount less than he did. He swore he would only speak once more to the stars and remained silent.

Maria, distraught and alone, screamed her rage to the stars, but even they could not strike at such beauty. They left her to wander the earth, crying the tears that would become the River Lacrima that fed into the sea. So beautiful was the river that at the right time, when she missed her love the most, the sun herself would set the ocean afire where her tears met it.

But she did not forget, never would she forget her love Magi. And she came to a decision. If the stars would not strike her, neither would the earth. And she would dive for Tartarus through her to rescue her love. For she could not live long without him. She climbed to the edge of the heavens, screamed her defiance to stars and earth and life itself, and dove. She followed her heart, and plummeted to the earth as a meteor, fire and fury blasting around her, rage and love combined in terrible union. The earth accepted her into its embrace, and did not strike her. Nor would it part for her.

When they witnessed her sacrifice, the let Magi Magnus free to mourn her, and granted him one boon. As he lay beside his love, he did not hate the stars. He asked them, ‘Remember our love,’ and called down the fire of the sun upon himself and his lovely Maria.

The stars, sorrowed, called their spirits to the heavens and granted them the boon. Forever together, embraced in the heavens until the stars themselves go dark.

Maria Ignis, and Magi Magnus. The greatest lovers of the greatest age, immortalized for all in the stars.

Hope you all enjoyed that little myth. Worldbuilding!