The Star Painter's Promise
Once upon a time, inhabiting the clouds above the vast, shimmering oceans, there existed a simple man named Erys. Unlike ordinary beings his trade was quite unconventional; he was a star painter, responsible for the glistening spectacle of stars shining softly in the dim light of the moon. Every night, with gentle strokes of his celestial palette, he painted the black canvas of the sky with radiant stars, planets, and the astonishing constellations that inspired tales of gods and monsters.
Erys was content with his work; the endless nights of solitude didn't bother him. However, there was something that always tugged at his heart—a desire to share his labor of love. He yearned for someone to marvel at his artistry. Stranded in the solitude of clouds, he found his only solace in the company of the moon—his silent confidante, reflecting his pain and feelings wordlessly.
One night, by the light of the moon, while he was sat at his eternal canvas, a sudden tumultuous wind swept through his cloud home. Out of the air appeared an ethereal nymph, a beautiful maiden, radiant and glorious. Those who dwelt on the Earth knew her as Seren, the Goddess of Joy.
Enchanted by her beauty, a surge of emotions overwhelmed Erys. He realized that it was Seren for whom his heart had been yearning. It was her for whom he wanted to show his stars.
Without hesitation, Erys showed Seren his palette of radiant lights. He unveiled the secrets of the celestial bodies he created, and the mythology of the constellations. Her eyes sparkled with an unspoken joy as she admired the beauty of Erys's trade. The star painter's heart swelled with an intimate blend of fulfillment and love.
Erys expressed his feelings to Seren—the love he had for her and how she gave purpose to his creations. He promised he would fill the sky with a constellation that would symbolize their love—one that would shine brighter than all the others, for all eternity.
The following days, Erys painstakingly created an astonishing constellation—The Lovers' Arch, two intertwined figures leaning into a profound kiss under a twinkling canopy. Seren was moved beyond words—the purest and most intimate testament of love she had ever seen. She felt Erys's love, not through spoken words, but through the pure light that radiated from every star of the constellation.
However, the divine laws forbid immortals to fall in love with mortals. The moment Seren reciprocated Erys's feelings, celestial adjudicators swooped down from the heavens. They banished Seren to Earth as punishment, and Erys was instructed to continue painting his stars, but without any contact with the divine realm. Stricken with grief and despair, Erys looked at the empty space Seren had left behind.
Years turned into decades, and his pain never waned. His only consolation was the Lovers' Arch that bore his and Seren's memory. People on Earth looked at the constellation and wondered about the great love that inspired it.
One day, while painting a new constellation, Erys found a star that shined brighter than any he had ever seen before. On closer inspection, he saw it was not a star, but a radiant nymph ascending to the heavens—it was Seren! It turned out that her joy had brought so much happiness on Earth that the celestial adjudicators had decided to return her place in the divine realm. Overjoyed and emotional, Erys was finally reunited with his love.
The tale of Erys and Seren is still whispered among the dwellers of Earth when they gaze at The Lovers' Arch—of the star-painter who stained the fabric of the sky with his love, and his beloved, the Goddess of Joy, who was touched by his extraordinary devotion.