Out on a limb

From: PMichaels_at_aol.com
Date: Tue, 30 Nov 1999 10:01:12 EST


Keith writes:
>I guess Trickster might get involved in some way
>using a version of the 'Remove Limb' spell.

Here's a related story I wrote just after RQ Adventures #1 came out:

Weasel And Hueymakt Make A Trade
(as told by an ancient drake in Duckpoint)

This is a story of ancient time, long before the sun stopped in the sky and cursed us all. Long before the sun was freed by Dewey Windrake from Hell. Long before the Darktime, to the time before Freedom was lost. To the start of the Godswar.

This story starts with Weasel Windsfool, the Trickster. Once, as he walked upon the earth, he came upon the Black Pool. In this pool he saw three beautiful Black Swan maidens swimming. Weasel's penis grew stiff on seeing the eldest maiden, and said "This is a woman for me! Take me to her!" Weasel looked at the eldest maiden and saw she was very powerful and wise. He knew she would not willingly lay with him. He spoke to his penis, saying "If you want her, you must go to her yourself, in secret, for I cannot be the one to bring you to her."

With that, Weasel removed his penis and watched as it made it's way to the pool. Weasel's penis slipped into the water and swam like a snake to the eldest maiden and began copulating with her. The younger maidens did not know what was wrong with their older sister when she began moving around in the water and making strange sounds. When they saw what was happening, they grabbed Weasel's penis and tried to pull it out. When they could not, the eldest sister said "Take me back home. Our mother will know what to do." And the maidens and maid all disappeared into the dark depths of the Black Pool.

Now, with the maid's words, Weasel forgot all about his pleasure and became worried. He did not know who the mother of the Black Swan maidens was, but he did know he did not want to live his life without his penis. Weasel dove into the pool and followed the maidens down into the Dark Waters. In this way, Weasel came to find his first way into Hell. There, he was met by Styx, the Mother of Black Waters, who had already removed his penis from her daughter. Styx said to Weasel, "You have done a bad thing, both in what you did to my daughter and in coming here. You must now be punished for this." Styx then called upon her sister Subere, who helped to twist Weasel's penis into a terrible thing.

After leaving Hell with his broken, twisted penis, Weasel met up with Grandfather Mortal. Weasel had tricked Grandfather Mortal in the past, and had used his penis on him before. Weasel tried to do so again, hoping this would straighted his penis out and make it work again. Instead, he felt nothing and Grandfather Mortal cried out in great pain and died. He told Weasel,"You have killed me. Now I must go to Hell," and left. Weasel was frightened by this, and began a great wailing.

Hueymakt heard Weasel's crying, and went to him. "Why are you crying so?" asked Hueymakt. Weasel answered "I have done something to Grandfather Mortal, who has changed into a new thing I do not understand." Hueymakt said to Weasel, "Take me to Hell, so that I can see this new thing for myself." Together they went to the Black Pool, and together they went to Hell. This was how Hueymakt first came to Hell.

Once in Hell, it took a long time to find Grandfather Mortal. When they found him, Hueymakt looked at Grandfather Mortal and tried all of his magics on him. Hueymakt said to Weasel, "There is nothing I can do to help Grandfather Mortal. But, I am interested in what your broken penis did to him, for it is powerful magic. I will trade you my working penis for your broken penis." Weasel quickly agreed, for his only thought was for the future pleasures he would lose without a penis. This is how Hueymakt gave up his own powers of procreation and sexual pleasure to have the power now called Death.

(This story was loosely based on the Nez Perce tale "Coyote and the Mallard Ducks," as told by Barry Lopez in his book Giving Birth to Thunder, Sleeping With His Daughter, Avon, 1977, p.170)

Weasel's Rock: A shrine in the Upland Marsh to the Dismembered Aspect of Trickster

Weasel's shrine is a large rock on the northern edge of the Upland Marsh. A spirit summoning ritual is used to contact him; known foci of power include a bloody duck feather or a piece of duck egg shell.

Weasel is well known among humans and trolls who regularly seek to kill ducks. Among such people (mostly warriors, not professional hunters) he is recognized as a spirit who can be helpful, but who can also be dangerous. His most regular worshippers are an annual troll raiding party from Skyfall Lake. The "Bill Collectors" specialize in providing duck meat and eggs for the Kyger Litor priestesses to eat and the Argan Argar merchants to sell.

Weasel teaches such hunters the Spirit Magic spells Silence and Detect Duck. He will teach one point of a spell per duck or duck egg offerred. As hunters rarely have their prey before the hunt begins, he is willing to teach his spells to hunters anyway providing they agree to pay him later and leave him some collateral. The only item Weasel will accept as collateral is the hunter's penis. (Female hunters are SOL for this "special offer.") They do this by placing their member into a crack in Weasel's rock, and when they turn away they are missing their penis. Weasel will return it (by a reverse process) only when the hunter has returned with one duck or duck egg per spell point learned. On a very rare occasion Weasel will make a mistake and return the wrong penis to a duck hunter. This might not be too bad if you're a human who ends up with a troll penis ("Jhon Blackfinger!"), but if you're a troll with a human penis... Some hunters (usually tricksters) have been successful in learning the hunting magic for free by fooling Weasel with a fake penis. Duck-hunting Weasel worshippers are NOT considered Trickster initiates, and may not automatically sacrifice for magic at any other Trickster shrine.

Eurmali who worship Weasel may also sacrifice for the Divine Magic spell Remove Penis on a reuseable basis. (Note that this spell allows the caster to remove his own penis, and does not duplicate the power Weasel has to remove the penis of others.) To learn the divine spell the trickster must bring Weasel a pretty young female of the initiate's race (between 14 and 22 years old, at least APP 15) for Weasel to have sex with. The woman does not need to be a willing participant. Weasel has been known to occasionally get confused (or maybe just hungry enough) and treat the woman as if she were a duck.

When initially summoned Weasel usually appears as a normal sized (if somewhat Disneyesque) weasel. If offered a duck/duckling/duck egg, or a woman, he will transform into a giant slavering crazed weasel who immediately jumps on his victim.

David writes:
>there are a number of Hidden Places sacred to Uleria
>that serve as sanctuaries for lovers - an excellent
>heroquest idea, I say.

I think this is part of the origin of Brigpice Badstink's (the Greydog trickster) breaking his geas and getting rabbit ears. He came across a strange woman bathing in a small pond in Hare Woods. She was performing part of a Hero-Husband Quest ritual, which involved going to a dangerous place "where only the brave or foolish would go" to meet and seduce a man. Unfortunately for herself and Brigpice, she neglected to seriously consider the "fool" part! Brigpice joined her in the pool, she lathered him up, one thing led to another, and both she and Brigpice took off screaming when she discovered his new ears. To this day Brigpice has no idea who she was or where she was from, but he's afraid that someday he may find out.

Later!

End of The Glorantha Digest V7 #186


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