Chapter

The Neck

I am sitting in a meadow, a cup of liquor in my hand, writing about a strange encounter. The people of Torneå complained about a pestilence killing the cattle as they were put out to pasture after the winter. This meadow is where they graze, not far from the river. I managed to identify the cause of their death. Vast quantities of Cicutaria aquatica grow in this place. I asked myself aloud why this plant was so abundant, and was answered by the sound of a flute. There was a man perched on a rock in the stream. He had the eyes of a goat, with black horns on his forehead. As I approached the man, he dove into the water. The tunes of his flute lingered in the air, and new sprouts of cicutaria sprung up all over the bank.

— Carl Linnaeus, August 18th, 1732

The Neck is a musician living in rivers, brooks, and lakes. He takes the shape of a man, young or old, often with some peculiar characteristics – cloven hooves, a third eye in the middle of his forehead, or frogs' eyes. The Neck plays the fiddle, the flute, and the harp. His melodies are beautiful, melancholic, and captivating. Those who listen to his tunes cannot stop dancing. The Neck lures people into the water and drowns them. Some say he is lonely, and that he draws people into his underwater realm to enjoy their company, forgetting that humans cannot live without air. Perhaps he is just wicked. There is only one Neck, and he has no other name. He can be found all over Scandinavia – occasionally at the same time, but it is still the same creature. The Neck can teach people to play magic melodies, if he is given a black cat in return. Sometimes those who play his music are unable to stop, causing people, tables, and chairs to dance until their bodies and table legs are worn down to bloody stumps, and the musician herself has lost her fingers. The music only stops when the strings of the instrument are cut.

Ritual