Origin of the Ice Crown

Before the land of Ooo became the current beautiful and lively land we know today; before the wastes of the Great Mushroom War set the land into a gray graveyard; before the days of electricity; before steam power; before the many bountiful renaissance, a small kingdom stood alone in a land of dust.

Once, the kingdom thrived as forests rose high and far on every side; as farms shined with the life of cattle and crops; as four rivers met in the center of the kingdom’s marketplace; as people from far off lands ventured to see the legend-esque kingdom of the great King Isum.

Isum was a fair man, beloved by his subjects since his childhood, and lived to protect serve them as they protected and served him.  Isum was born an only child, his mother passing shortly after his birth.  His father, however, lived for many years, falling only to a great gray bear on a sporting hunt.  Isum easily avenged his father, earning his title of King and meeting the kind and meek woman he would later
happily marry.

The kingdom continued to thrive peacefully under Isum’s rule and celebrated mercilessly when the King’s first child was born.  In honor of his father, Isum named his new son, Gunter.  The child accompanied his father everywhere, trailing behind him and watching Isum closely, following his every step.

It is five years after Gunter's birth that the bounteous land declined with draught, the kingdom’s great thriving era coming to an end.  The sun shone relentlessly upon the kingdom, drying the rivers of every precious drop of water.  In turn, the forests and crops died out, the lush dirt turning to endless, cracked dust.  The population dwindled swiftly, half simply leaving to find food for their own families.

Isum could not bare to leave his beloved kingdom nor see it suffer so. He set his attentions to finding anything that could bring the water back. During this time, Isum's age was catching up to him and his mind begun its slow decay. Twelve long years of research lead Isum to an obscure artifact said to lie not far from the kingdom.  Isum instantly set his sights upon the fabled item.

The scroll read of a vase that held inside a sleeping genie. If the genie could be awoken, the mystic would grant a single wish.  Isum never met this genie.  The scroll read of landmarks only visible in the forests before the Great Draught.  Isum, followed loyally by Gunter, traveled far from his home in search.  Eventually, father and son stumbled upon a deep cavern.  Stopping for the night to escape the never ending heat, they entered the cavern's cooling relief.

The morning welcomed the two with even harder heat.  The cavern was cooled, and traveled far past either man's vision.  Curious and desperate to flee the sun's unrelenting rays, the men traveled further into the cavern.  The air was cool and still inside.  Not far in, Gunter turned back, a terrible ache in his belly.  Isum continued down, the air becoming colder the farther he went.  Isum paid no attention to the cold. His head pounded as something called him further into the cavern.

Isum kept walking until he met the frozen end of the cavern, ice melting against his fingertips.  Isum called out angrily, frustrated with the turn of events.  His kingdom would die, and Isum would never see it revived.

Gunter waited at the mouth of the cavern for five days before his father emerged from the darkness. Isum's beard, previously a black darker than night, now shone in the light as white as snow. His skin had an icy look to it; blue and deathly cold, as if he had frozen up in the cavern.  Gunter, dropping the hunt for his father's well being, rushed Isum back home.

The kingdom had not fared well in the absence of its King and Prince. The Queen had fallen ill, dying just moments before Isum and Gunter's return.  With the news of his wife's death, Isum retreated to the depths of his castle.  He remained in his personal quarters, refusing to leave as his white beard grew longer.  Gunter did his best for his father, noticing his decaying mind becoming worse as the years drifted and the room grew colder.  Ice began to collect around the room, extending the cold out into the hall. Gunter checked on his father every day until he found the door frozen shut, ice shrouding the wood frame.

Inside, Isum fell further into his diseased mind.  The tears he wept for his wife fell down to the tip of Isum's nose, freezing there upon his frosty skin.  With the icy cold surrounding him, impulses helped him to discover a new ability: control of ice.  Isum found he could create ice and snow from the air. He spent several years perfecting his new ability. By then the door was covered in ice.

Gunter called from outside.  Isum removed the ice from the door.  Gunter stumbled into his father's loving arms. Isum, knowing the extent of his powers now, froze his entire kingdom, now devoid of life outside the King, the Prince, and five remaining staff.

With the sun so warm, the ice quickly melted, flooding the streets and homes.  Every time, Isum refroze it from his castle. Only months of this, and a few close calls, and the castle itself flooded with melted ice.  Not only had all five waitstaff perished in the waters, but so had Gunter.  When Isum realized this, he fled the kingdom in despair.  

The poor lost King searched for kingdoms in draught, promising an end.  A long harsh winter followed Isum wherever he went.  As the years went on Isum's mind continued its descent into madness.  Isum lived for over two hundred years before his own life ended deep inside a dark and wet cave.

Some say Isum's remains retain his icy powers, turning anything they touch into ice.  Others say Isum's crown contains his power and spirit, damning all who done it to a life of madness.  However, the crown has been missing for centuries and no hard evidence on King Isum's remains notes any freezing abilities.

This is the myth of King Isum.

A funny story, eh, Gunter?