(Note: This story and all characters within are the sole property of the author, and is under the protection of United States copyright law)
They had moved further into the forest than Feryl had ever been. She found herself drawn into the beautiful landscapes. There were no trails, but Laith had no trouble picking their way through by following game paths, and finding smooth passage through the woods where there were none. They would travel a few days, camp for a few days, then move on. They weren’t in much of a rush after the first few days, confident that they had evaded pursuit.
The woods here were quite different than the pine forests nearest to their homes. They had taken on a wild quality, and Feryl could sense that the hardwoods they now walked among were ancient. Mynix stared at the size of the trees and often stopped to try to wrap her arms around them, knowing full well that even a giant didn’t have the diameter necessary.
Laith laughed at their wonder, and felt good to be back in the lands he was born in. He was cautious to head in a direction far far from his hidden village, not wishing to risk any danger to the village or his group. He alone though, could feel the sentience in the trees, and the ancient wisdom their leaves whispered into the wind. Laith knew that these lands were truly wild and one might run into anything there. The land was alive, and it spoke to him. At night when the others slept, dryads would whisper in the breeze, "Welcome home Egren Laith," but they would not show themselves in the presence of humans, and certainly not in the presence of dwarves. Laith laughed to himself as he pictured the look on Grenwyn’s if he were to ever view one of the devastatingly beautiful creatures.
Feryl was pleased that they were taking another few days respite, the trees seemed oppressive to her, and the endless hiking did nothing to quiet her spinning mind. They camped at the lip of a small valley, it was one of the few places nearby where the trees separated long enough for more than the occassional dapple of sun to break through. The sunlight warmed her skin and a soft breeze cooled it as she worked through a few passes with her sword amidst the wild flowers that peppered the valley floor. To the humans, it felt good to be free of the confines of the forest, while beautiful, it made Feryl and Mynix a bit uncomfortable. To the dwarf, it was what it was, and he neither loved nor hated it, but to Laith, the closely packed trees gave him the feeling of an embrace and despite his love of the sun and sky, he was loth to leave the edge of the forest.
He watched as Feryl practiced her swordwork on the valley floor. He had seen her do it a thousand times or more, but he never tired of the sight. He watched her well muscled body move like silk from one attack to another. Her skin glowed like gold in the sunlight, with a sheen of perspiration covering every inch of her, and her wild red hair was loosely tied at the nape of her neck. Laith felt a tightening in his chest and realized he had been holding his breath. He could have sworn he heard Grenwyn chuckle, but when he turned around the dwarf had his head buried in the work of sharpening a sword. “She never practices parries,” Laith said aloud, though whether he said it to himself, or to the woods was anyone’s guess. He stood up, and set about correcting that.
Laith walked up to her, and she immediately tensed. “I hear it works much better if you practice with a partner,” he said. Feryl glared at his double meaning and went back to work. “You really are quite good,” he continued moving to face her again ”but I am quite sure there are a few tricks I could teach you.” Feryl sighed, and turned to make a half hearted slash at his feet. “ Flats of the blades only” he laughed, then turned about and moved in with a flurry of attacks, which, to Feryl’s credit, she managed to parry.
He moved in with a quick, high, thrust to her right shoulder, which left him open for Feryl to push an attack to his midsection, or so she thought. The thrust was merely a feint, and as she lunged at his stomach, he easily stepped to the side, while leaving his left foot in her path, tripping her. Feryl rolled with the fall and came up to face him. She did not see him, and only realized when she felt the cold of his sword pressed against her back, that he had leaped over her roll and came up behind her. He had anticipated her reactions to his every move. “Point” he said, and smacked her with the flat of his blade. Feryl sighed because she knew that from now on, she would not have a good excuse to practice without a partner.
Mynix sat by herself just out of earshot of camp huddled in the shadow beneath a massive oak tree. Mynix had been beside herself since her encounter with strange magic two weeks ago. Part of her wanted to leave and never be close to anyone again, but part of her wanted nothing more than to tell her family what had scared her so. “Family” she said softly. Mynix realized that this is what Feryl and Grenwyn, and now Laith were to her. That thought made her even more determined to leave, and ever more afraid to.
Up on the ridge, Grenwyn watched the duel, shook his head and smiled. “That’s one down.“ and he snuck off to see just what his other charge was up to. Grenwyn frowned as he saw the sadness written so clearly on Mynix’s face. He had taken care of the girl, and she had likewise taken care of him since she had been a small and quiet girl. He noticed now, as he watched her, that she had begun to blossom into womanhood. Her once round face had slimmed down, and she had grown taller, and skinnier. The effect of these changes made her seem both awkward and elegant, like a fawn trying out its long legs for the first time. He would never forgive himself for not being there to protect her that night. Had he not been drowning his sorrows, it was he who would have suffered at the hands of the spellcaster, and not her. “Bah” he said and threw his hands up in the air.
Laith had spoken to him at some length about what the girl might be going through. The elf had some knowledge of their enemy, and that made him both valuable and suspect in Grenwyn’s eyes. He had told him that Mynix, in a sense, was fighting against herself, what she had seen was some aspect of herself that was what folk normally keep hidden. The dark spot everyone hides deep in themselves. She needed to come to terms with this, her shadow self, in order to overcome her malaise. Unfortunately, Mynix would hear none of this. She refused to listen to or speak about anything having to do with the whole ordeal, and the more Grenwyn tried to help, the more he felt himself grow distant from her. “This spying doesn’t help” he thought to himself, and slowly resolved to go back to camp and sort their rations one more time. Mynix was so buried in her own thoughts, she wasn’t even aware of the dwarf watching her, she also was not aware of the woman that began to materialize in front of her just as the dwarf walked away.
The woman walked over to Mynix, and looked at her curiously. “Shadow touched you have been,” said the woman in a curious accent. Somewhere in the back of her mind, Mynix knew she should have jumped up in alarm at the sudden intrusion, but the woman seemed to exude some sort of charm, which made Mynix feel relaxed and listless. “Darkness touches all of us, darkness is in all of us, but there is a reason we walk tall and proud and our shadow cowers behind us.” Mynix understood the reason in the words, but could not believe them in her heart. “You don’t understand,” Mynix replied, tears welling in her eyes, “You didn’t see it, didn’t see me. There was glee in my eyes, I was enjoying it…” she trailed off. “Visions are warnings, but not truth, we must accept the darkness acknowledge it, and control it, lest it control us,” Mynix realized for the first time how startlingly blue the woman’s eyes were, they seemed like an ocean, speckled with stars, it was as if they contained an entire universe and she became lost in their sea. “Know little one, that the shadow you saw is indeed a part of you, but know as well, that you can control that shadow.” Mynix listened intently, “There is great potential in you, and if you let your fear of your shadow control you, prevent you from becoming what you are capable of becoming, a far greater evil will have been done than any that even your shadow could do.” With that, the woman bent over and kissed Mynix once on the forehead. She then seemed to burst apart into a million sparkling lights. All at once the sights, sounds, and smells of the forest that Mynix had not until then realized had been absent during her encounter, rushed back at her with overwhelming force.
Mynix suddenly realized as well that it was now pitch black in the forest and she could no longer see her path clear back to the campsite. “How long have I been here” she wondered aloud, a great fear clutched at her, as she imagined one of the many stories she had heard over time of Nymphs and Dryads bewitching people into staying for many years in their realm. She felt that there was no malevolence in the being who had visited her, but she did not have time to consider the implications now. Fighting down a growing sense of panic, Mynix rubbed at the tingling spot on her forehead that the woman’s lips had touched. “Galad Silim Fein” a voice whispered in her ear, and before she knew what she was doing, she wove her hands in an intricate pattern and repeated those words. As she finished, a softly glowing ball of light came into existence floating 3 feet in front of her and level with her head. She jumped back, but the light seemed to follow her, she ducked, jumped, and laid down, but the little light stayed with her, and even with her head. She thought for sure that it was going to attack her at any moment, but again a calm came to her and in her head, she could hear the words, “This is both my gift to you, and your creation. You are capable of this and more, and I hope one day you might follow me. For now, be at peace, and follow your light, it will not last long, but you may summon it again if you practice the words and gestures. Follow the light to where your heart guides you.”
Mynix was so stunned that the light was almost out of her sight before she realized it was moving and she had decided to follow it. Out of the woods to her left, she could hear Feryl’s voice calling out for her, she was just beginning to wonder how she would explain the light to her friends when it popped out of existence. Mynix knew if she were to leave her friends, that this would be her chance. She could sneak away from them and they might search for awhile, but would be forced to continue on without her. Her light could guide her where she needed to go. But then, the light had guided her here hadn’t it. “I’m here” Mynix called out, “I’m here, I must have fallen asleep.” Mynix followed her friends voice, and when she reached Feryl, she collapsed crying into her arms, and when she had finished crying, Feryl led her back to camp. They all had dinner, and talked and laughed together, and everyone was pleased to see Mynix smile again. She did not know the identity of her mysterious benefactor, but she felt like she was looking again into those eyes when she stared up at the starry night sky.
When Feryl and Laith fell asleep, she walked up to Grenwyn, and wrapped him in an embrace that was very big for such a small girl, she kissed him affectionately on the cheek and said, “Goodnight Father.” And for once, Grenwyn was too choked up to say anything at all.
(Note: This story and all characters within are the sole property of the author, and is under the protection of United States copyright law)
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