Chronicles of Atys

The Gingo Who Ate the Sun

One Atysmas evening, a yubo was chasing after snowflakes when it heard someone weeping.
As it got closer it discovered a baby gingo.

The meek yubo was prepared to scamper off, but the baby was crying, crying...

Even if it was a gingo, and even if in other times they would have been enemies, it was Atysmas evening, and the yubo just couldn't stand seeing someone sad on such a day.

But it wasn't about to let itself be munched on either, so it formulated an idea.

It retraced its footsteps and retrieved some capryni horns it had seen laying on the forest floor.

The yubo tied them on its head with a slaveni liana, and hid the knots with a bit of red fiber that the wind had brought.
Then, in this disguise, it introduced itself to the gingo and said that it was the emissary of Atysmas.
"I've heard your sorrow on this evening when all should be smiling," it told the gingo.
"Tell me what is making you miserable!"

The gingo choked back its tears, surprised by the apparition.
It explained, "I've eaten the sun! Now there will be no more daylight!"
The gingo continued, "I was born in the first rays of dawn,
I played for the whole morning in the snow.
Then I found a big tree full of light.
I jumped and jumped to catch all the lights,
knocking all of them down,
and when the last one fell,
the night came..."

The yubo thought hard. It then had another idea.
It explained to the gingo that, by breaking the Atysmas lights, it had offended the Festival Kami.
But, in order to fix the affront, it had to do exactly what it was told to.
The gingo, delighted to get a chance redeem itself, promised to the Atysmas yubo to do everything it would be told.

Then the yubo led it through the forest, to the foot of the Rotoa, where the buzzing of a hive could be heard.
Since the Rotoa blooms even during winter, the bees were still busy making their sweet honey.
The yubo instructed, "Tell your story to the bees and convince them to give you honey in order to make the sun reappear!"
The gingo spoke so well and the bees enjoyed her story so much that they brought her a huge honeycomb.

"Don't lose it, we're now going to the desert," said the yubo.
They traveled to the flaming forest, where the Bothaya heat up the atmosphere.
The yubo told the gingo to spread the honey on one of the young sprouts,
over and over again. As the gingo completed her task, she became all sticky.
But on the sprout, because of the heat, the honey cooked and hardened.
Then, with a stroke of its teeth, the yubo cut the cane and took it.

Then they navigated to the lakes. There the yubo had the gingo collect many shells of all colors.

Then they trekked to the Jungle and the yubo had the gingo shake the caramelized honey stick. Soon fireflies arrived, attracted by the smell, many of them getting stuck in the gingo's tacky fur.

"Now, to the Atysmas tree!" the yubo cried.

Quickly, they returned to the forest.
The gingo jumped and jumped and jumped to hang up the shells she had gathered in the tree.
The fireflies enjoyed making them sparkle.
The baked honey cane released a sweet perfume.
The gingo looked at the new shining decorations.
The yubo smiled, very pleased with itself.

And then the sun started again to pulse.
They had been running all night through the lands to decorate the tree!

From that day on the yubos began wearing disguises during Atysmas and Atysmas canes became symbols of the celebration!

Legend told by Lutrykin during Atysmas Story telling, 3nd CA 2576.