Shemshime's Bedtime Rhyme was a mechanical pop-up book that was haunted and cursed by the malevolent undead spirit Shemshime.[2]
Description[]
The book was a gnomish mechanical contraption made from wood and copper that had no pages but consisted instead of four different illustrated and animated pop-up scenes. A silver music box was attached to the side of the book, playing an infectious, metallic tune while the book was open. The book was both large and square, measuring 18 inches (46 centimeters) along each side.[1]
The pop-up scenes depicted a shadowy figure looking on as members of a family died in grisly ways: the mother maiming her husband with a scythe, a dog biting off the mother's hand, and the son drowning in a river. A final scene depicted the daughter crushing the shadowy figure under a millstone,[1] though this scene was skipped over by the mechanical book as the music box had been partially broken in the distant past.[3]
Curse[]
Anyone subjected to the melody produced by the music box in Shemshime's Bedtime Rhyme became cursed and found themselves humming the tune incessantly. Those so afflicted could then transmit the curse via their own humming.[4] Eventually, those cursed by Shemshime's melody had the associated rhyme implanted in their minds.[5] The rhyme worked as a summoning ritual for Shemshime; when enough voices joined together in singing it, Shemshime would be restored.[4]
Rhyme[]
Although not present in the book itself, Shemshime's rhyme narrated its scenes.[1]
Forgotten husband sleeping near
With one swing she took his feet
With another took his ear
Does the shadow have a name?
SHEMSHIME
Causes grief, avoids the blame
SHEMSHIME
See a dog that knows how to heel
Never heeds plea nor command
Mother gave it a tasty meal
Dog chose instead to eat her hand
Does the shadow have a name?
SHEMSHIME
Causes grief, avoids the blame
SHEMSHIME
See a son doing his chose
Washing clothes for folk in town
Fell into the river's roar
Sank to the bottom and drowned
Does the shadow have a name?
SHEMSHIME
Causes grief, avoids the blame
SHEMSHIME
The final stanza was left unrevealed as long as the book's music box remained broken.[3] It narrated the scene in which the daughter triumphed over Shemshime:[1]
Wish the spirit's time was through
Trap set for the shadow bane
Her millstone killed it true
History[]
Shemshime's Bedtime Rhyme was created by a wandering gnomish bard who was fascinated by a local legend that told of how a family living in a water mill was plagued by an evil spirit called Shemshime, until the daughter of the family destroyed the spirit by crushing it under a Chauntea-blessed millstone. Unfortunately, by setting down the story in a book, the bard inadvertently gave Shemshime a conduit to the world of the living. The book was eventually discovered in a shipwreck by an adventurer, who then passed it on to Yowen Pilt,[1] a procurer of rare tomes.[2]
Yowen delivered the book to Candlekeep around the 800s DR[note 1] as part of a bundle containing several other works. He had been driven mad by Shemshime's curse by the time he arrived, and so he was placed in isolation for several weeks as the fortress library contained what they referred to as a "singing madness" that had spread among the Avowed.[2]
In the Year of Three Ships Sailing, 1492 DR, Shemshime's Bedtime Rhyme was slated to have its spine repaired in Candlekeep's Firefly Cellar. The kenku custodian Crinkle opened the book and became afflicted with Shemshime's curse.[4]
Appendix[]
Notes[]
- ↑ Yowen Pilt's delivery is said to have taken place "over six hundred years" prior to "Shemshime's Bedtime Rhyme", which is set in 1492 DR.
Appearances[]
- Adventures
- Candlekeep Mysteries: "Shemshime's Bedtime Rhyme"
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 Ari Levitch, Michele Carter (March 2021). “Shemshime's Bedtime Rhyme”. In Michele Carter ed. Candlekeep Mysteries (Wizards of the Coast), p. 62. ISBN 978-0-7869-6722-3.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Ari Levitch, Michele Carter (March 2021). “Shemshime's Bedtime Rhyme”. In Michele Carter ed. Candlekeep Mysteries (Wizards of the Coast), p. 61. ISBN 978-0-7869-6722-3.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Ari Levitch, Michele Carter (March 2021). “Shemshime's Bedtime Rhyme”. In Michele Carter ed. Candlekeep Mysteries (Wizards of the Coast), p. 68. ISBN 978-0-7869-6722-3.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Ari Levitch, Michele Carter (March 2021). “Shemshime's Bedtime Rhyme”. In Michele Carter ed. Candlekeep Mysteries (Wizards of the Coast), p. 63. ISBN 978-0-7869-6722-3.
- ↑ Ari Levitch, Michele Carter (March 2021). “Shemshime's Bedtime Rhyme”. In Michele Carter ed. Candlekeep Mysteries (Wizards of the Coast), p. 67. ISBN 978-0-7869-6722-3.