THE HOLLOW KING
Name Before Silence:
He was once known as Anow Dall, meaning “the Unspoken One” in the elder tongue of Dumnonia. Born beneath a waning moon in the shadow of the Tor, his birth was marked by a strange omen: no cry, no breath, only a stillness so profound that the midwives wept in awe. It was said the wind refused to touch him, and the stars dimmed in his presence.
Crowned by Absence:
As the old kings fell to ruin—one to madness, one to betrayal, one to the sea—the people turned to the silent child. He was crowned not with gold, but with the antlers of the last white stag, bound in iron and ash. His coronation was held in complete silence, save for the rustle of leaves and the distant howl of wolves.
Reign and Ritual
The Silent Court:
The Hollow King ruled without speech. His decrees were gestures, his justice delivered through ritual. The court learned to interpret the tilt of his head, the closing of his eyes, and the way he placed his hand upon the stone throne. Under his reign, Dumnonia entered a strange peace—one of reverence, restraint, and eerie calm.
The Pact of Stillness:
It is said he made a pact with the spirits of the barrows: in exchange for silence, they would guard the realm from chaos. Songs were forbidden. Bells were buried. Even the birds fell quiet in his presence. The Archive of Echoes was sealed, and only the Hollow King held its key.
Fall and Legacy
The Word That Broke the World:
In his final year, the Hollow King descended into the Whispering Stone—a cavern beneath the excavation site where forgotten voices linger. There, he spoke a single word: “Return.” That utterance shattered the pact. The dead stirred. The rivers reversed. The Archive cracked open.
Entombed Beneath the Tor:
He vanished soon after, leaving only his seal—a crowned skull with antlers—etched into the stone. Some say he sleeps beneath the Tor, dreaming of a world unspoken. Others believe he became the silence itself, a presence felt in the hush before storms and the pause between verses.
Symbolic Resonance
- Skull and Crown: Mortality entwined with sovereignty.
- Antlers: The wild, the sacred, the ancestral.
- Silence: Not absence, but presence—ritual, reverence, restraint.
Bard’s Lexicon Entry: The Hollow King
Designation
- Primary Name: The Hollow King
- True Name: Anow Dall (“the Unspoken One”)
- Epithets: Silent Sovereign, Crown of Absence, Echo of Stillness
Classification
- Archetype: Mythic Ruler
- Domain: Silence, Death, Ancestral Pact
- Realm of Influence: Dumnonia, the Whispering Stone, Barrow-lands
Origin
Anow Dall was born beneath a waning moon at the foot of the Tor. No breath escaped his lips; no wind stirred his cradle. The midwives, struck mute, felt the very stars dim in his presence. From that moment, the child carried the hush of the grave in his bones.
Coronation
- Regalia: Antlers of the Last White Stag bound in iron and ash
- Ceremony: A crown woven from absence—no spoken vows, only gestures beneath a moonless sky
- Witnesses: The Wood-spirits, the Barrow-guardians, and a court clothed in silence
Reign and Rituals
1. Silent Court
- Decrees by gesture: each tilt of his head became law
- Counsel in hush: advisors learned to read his unspoken will
2. Pact of Stillness
- Oath with barrow-spirits to guard the realm in exchange for eternal silence
- Ban on song and bells; the Archive of Echoes sealed by his unseen key
The Word That Broke the World
In his final act beneath the Whispering Stone, the Hollow King spoke one word—
“Return.”
Its utterance shattered the ancestral pact. The rivers reversed, the dead stirred, and the bound silence cracked wide.
Disappearance and Legacy
Entombed beneath the Tor, his seal remains etched in stone: a crowned skull flanked by antlers. Some say he dreams as the silence itself; others hear his presence in the hush before storms.
