Long before the first whispers of history, when the winds still carried the songs of the gods and the stars sang in the night sky, there was a woman named Xochiquetzal, beloved by all. She was the daughter of the moon goddess, a mortal bound to the earth, yet touched with the grace of divinity. Her beauty, unmatched in all the lands, was said to have been bestowed upon her by the gods themselves, for she possessed the gifts of the earth - flourishing fields, golden corn, and rivers that shimmered with the glow of moonlight. Yet, it was not her beauty alone that made her a legend, but her kindness and her love for her children, whom she bore in her mortal womb.
Xochiquetzal lived in a village at the edge of a great river, where the waters shimmered under the pale moonlight and the air was thick with the scent of sweet jasmine and wild roses. She had two sons, as radiant as the sun and as gentle as the morning dew. To them, she was both mother and goddess, protector and guide, nurturing them with all the tenderness of the earth itself. Every night, she would sing them lullabies that echoed through the village, songs that carried the blessings of life itself.

Shrouded in intrigue, the Haunted Specter stands amidst unseen companions, each shadowy figure whispering tales of the night. Together, they weave a saga of the unknown, igniting the imagination and beckoning exploration into their dark world.
But as the stars turned their paths through the sky, a dark shadow stirred in the world of the gods.
The god of the underworld, Tezcatlipoca, who watched over the boundary between life and death, had become envious of the joy and love Xochiquetzal held in her heart. He could not bear the purity of her devotion, nor the light that radiated from her bond with her children. So, he devised a cruel plan to shatter her happiness and break her spirit.
One evening, as the moon reached its zenith, Tezcatlipoca descended to the mortal world in the guise of a handsome traveler. He approached Xochiquetzal, whose heart was full of love and trust, and spoke to her in the soft, sweet tones that masked his malevolent intent.
"You are so beautiful, Xochiquetzal," he said, "so full of grace. It would be a shame if the love you have for your children were ever to wither and die. What if I could offer you something even greater? A love so deep that it would make the sun pale in comparison. Would you not wish for such a gift?"
Xochiquetzal, moved by his words, thought only of the beauty he had described. She, who had known only the purest love for her children, longed to experience the fullness of affection that Tezcatlipoca promised. But little did she know, the god's words were laced with poison, his promises twisted and empty.
And so, Xochiquetzal, blinded by the illusion of his love, accepted his offer. In that moment, Tezcatlipoca cursed her with the deepest sorrow the world had ever known. Her sons, the light of her life, were taken from her. The river, once calm and serene, rose in anger, swallowing them whole before her eyes. The waters, churning with rage, carried them away, and she, helpless, could only watch as they disappeared into the dark abyss.

The Lamenting Phantom, draped in white, stands in solitude by the snowy waters, her spear held high as she mourns in the cold, silent world.
The grief that gripped Xochiquetzal's heart was beyond measure. She cried out to the gods, but none could answer her. Her sorrow was so profound, so endless, that the very earth seemed to mourn with her. Her tears fell like rain, flooding the rivers and turning the skies grey. She searched the world for her children, wandering through mountains, deserts, and jungles, her cries echoing through the night like the wails of a spirit lost between worlds.
But Tezcatlipoca was not finished with her yet.
In the deepest corner of the underworld, he watched her suffering with a cruel smile, for he knew that Xochiquetzal would never be the same. Her heart, once full of love, was now a hollow shell, consumed by the grief that Tezcatlipoca had planted in her soul. The goddess, her spirit now broken, was no longer Xochiquetzal, but La Llorona - the Weeping Woman, the Mourning Entity.
La Llorona wandered the world, searching for the children she had lost, her cries filling the night with sorrow. Her grief was so intense, it became a curse that reached out across the realms. She would never again know peace, for the weight of her betrayal was a chain that bound her to the mortal world forever. And so, she became a legend - a cautionary tale for all who sought love without understanding its true cost.
But the tale of La Llorona did not end with her mourning. For in the depths of her sorrow, she found a new purpose: to punish those who did not cherish their children, who turned their backs on the love they were given. She would appear at the edges of rivers and lakes, her figure draped in white, her voice a keening wail that would freeze the blood of any who heard it. And though her heart was broken, her spirit was relentless. She would not rest until those who heard her cries understood the depth of the betrayal she had suffered.

A haunting figure drifts through the shadows, her grief palpable as the light gently illuminates her sorrowful form.
Tezcatlipoca, though he had broken her, could not erase the spark of love that still lingered within her. The curse he had placed upon her turned against him, for La Llorona's grief became a force of its own, a vengeful spirit that tore through the lives of the careless and the cruel. Though she was the Mourning Entity, her sorrow also made her a force of justice. She would never forgive Tezcatlipoca for what he had done, and his name would be whispered in fear for centuries to come.
And so, La Llorona became both a symbol of eternal mourning and a warning to those who took love for granted. Her story was passed down through the ages, carried on the winds, sung by the rivers, and whispered in the dark corners of the world. She was the Weeping Mother, the Betrayed One, whose tears had become the lifeblood of the earth. Yet in her mourning, she became something greater than herself - an eternal reminder that love, once broken, can never truly heal.
Thus, the myth of La Llorona lives on, a tale of betrayal and sorrow, of love lost and vengeance wrought from the depths of grief. Her wails echo still, a haunting reminder of the price of unchecked desires and the sacrifice of those who would dare to play with the hearts of mothers.