Chapter
Mare
During my journey along the barren banks of the Lais River, towards the roots of Nasa Mountain, we came upon a particularly fearful village. As we spent the night at Mrs. Adolfsson's mansion, the maids and farmhands of Hällbacken told of a dark witch in Stormyran. Those who did not put horsehair in their hymnbook at night found themselves breathless and mare-ridden upon the rooster's crow. Maids in the village spoke with particular regret of Erik, the unmarried farmhand at Sten's Stud, who like the stallions in their stall had wasted away to skin and bones. Having put these stories into writing, my partner and I decided to head out into the marsh to seek the truth about the mare of the Lais River.
— Carl Linnaeus, July 5th 1732
Mares are women who unknowingly shapeshift into nightmarish vaesen. The victims are possessed by deceased, unmarried women who seek revenge on the living, or long to see a beloved in the afterlife. There is also talk of a curse passed down from the mother who tried to relieve the pain of childbirth through black magic. At night, the afflicted woman turns into an oily mist that can pass through even the smallest knothole. After taking physical form she crawls onto the chest of the sleeping and squeezes the air and vitality out of them. The victim suffers terrible nightmares, sweats profusely and struggles to breathe. The mare sometimes rides horses as well, who wake in their stall foaming with sweat and with marelocks in their mane. In the morning, the mare returns home and resumes human form.