Death, War, and Betrayal

[Erendayu]

Brief anti-confusate:

When you see a capital name in quotes, it means that that may not, in fact, be the real name. This is much less confusing, hopefully, than the ##### and (((((( which I used before. If the character is first introduced in a way that they give their name as being something, that something will never be in quotes, even if that name is fake. If they later give their real name, the real name will be in quotes. I.e., the first name is what they are called throughout. Questions? Good. Let us begin...

[Erendayu]

pronunciation guide guide:

vowels:

aa=a in sad, and

ah=a in father, o in fox

ay=a in male, ai in main, ea in great

ahr= ar in far, jar

ayr= ar in mare, rare

eh=e in pet, set

ee=ea in feast, meat, y in happy

ehr=er in pert, or in work, i in irk

eer=ear in near, eer in deer, ere in here

ih=i in inch, pick

iy=i in nice, prime

iyr= ir in fire

oh= o in bone, phone

oo= oo in boo, ui in suit, ou in group

ouh= oo in book, look

or= or in for, more

uh= a and o in another, o in mother, u in um, o in come

ow= ow in power, cower

oi=oy in toy, joy

 

consonants:

b= b in bad

ch= ch in chase

d= d in dare

f= f in frank

g= g in good

h= h in help

j= j in jump

k= ck in back, c in crime

ks= x in box

kw= qu in quell, quest

l= l in love

m= m in mad

n= n in natural

p= p in pace

r= r in raise

s= s in save

sh= sh in shine

t= t in time

hth=th in thumb,throne

th= th in the, these

v= v in value

w= w in wave

y= y in yelp

z= z in zest, s in puppies

[Erendayu]

Prologue

 

We were happy. The greatest war of our time had just ended, our world was free, and I- I had fallen in love.

A few months later, he and I were married, and the King- our lord - raised our status to Lord, and Lady. I was surprised to see my parents there, but happy, so happy. My new made husband and I walked over to them, and Mother congratulated us, and held me close, just like long ago, when I was a child, before she had-

I stopped. I was so glad she was there. My father, also, congratulated us, and, he too, gave me a close hug, and I closed my eyes.

"Thank you for coming," I whispered. My parents smiled, then left with us. I will always, I think, remember that happy day.

For it is the good times that you try to remember, and the bad times which you struggle to forget. When I look back, I try to think of this, how I felt then, but still, the coarse pain emerges, the pain of a wound that will never heal. Not a wound of the flesh, but a wound of the heart.

[Erendayu]

Syllables are divided by hyphens. Emphasized syllables are caps locked

Senurl: SEH-nehrl

Theilu= HTHEE-loo

[Erendayu]

Illness

 

Only a few weeks had passed since our wedding, when the King called my husband to the castle, for a last request, ‘ere he would be separated proper from the King’s forces. I walked him through the castle, until we came to the door of the throne room. He told me to go back, but I refused, and stayed, sitting quietly by the door. I slid down the wall, my head down, my arms around my legs, ready to listen. I was wearing a white visiting dress, but ‘Senurl’, my husband, was dressed fully for court. He knocked on the door. I watched it, intent. Suddenly, the queen, ‘Theilu’, answered the door, dressed like a peasant, with not but her looks to show she was queen. She saw me sitting, and looked at me, reproachfully.

“He is my husband. I, too, wish to know what his fate may be.â€

She smiled, understanding. She knew how I felt. Then, she turned, and escorted ‘Senurl’ to the king. No matter how hard I strained to hear, the speech was too low for me to understand. However, I continued trying, until ‘Senurl’ walked back to me, alone, looking worried. The door closed behind him, and he turned to me.

“Come. Let us go.â€

We walked slowly through the castle, to where we were temporarily staying. As we walked, he told me what he knew. The king, our lord, was sick, very sick, and there was no known cure. So he had called my husband, to find the cure, wherever it may be. We were to leave, as soon as possible, to look for it. He opened the door, and I sighed to think of a long journey, just after the terrible war. I packed away what we would most need, food, clothes, and—my eyes were drawn to something I had thought I had lost, a while ago. It was a necklace, plain, yet beautiful, and so familiar. I thought of my parents as I put it around my neck. ’Senurl’ saw it, and laughed for the first time since the summoning. “That necklace seems to find you, wherever you go,†he said. I smiled, vaguely, before picking out my old bow, and quiver. He, too, took a weapon, a magic staff, very useful; it had been a gift from the king, long ago. That in hand, he was finished, but he wanted double protection- a sword. We walked in silence to the armory, feeling as though, once again, we were headed to war. When we reached there, he took a sword for each of us, and showed me how to store it. It was rather heavy, I’ll admit, but my heart was heavier- what if we never found the cure? Would we ever return to the place I had learned to call home? There was one last stop in the castle itself, before we would leave. ’Senurl’ and I took our leave from the king and queen, and we left. We went to the stables, and prepared the ones we would ride. I chose the one whom I was most familiar with, who reminded me of things I had lost, the one who had brought me here. All too soon, we were on our way, although I looked back many times. Our search had begun.

*****************************************************************************

[Erendayu]

Syllables are divided by hyphens. Emphasized syllables are caps locked

Senurl: SEH-nehrl

Aurth: orth

[Erendayu]

Many months, and many journeys passed, and we found nothing. ’Senurl’ looked worn from the travels, and I, too, was not in proper shape. We were at the brink of a wood, dismounted from our horses, leading them on foot. Presently, he stopped, and I stopped with him.

“It is not in our world,†he whispered. “We would have found it ‘ere now, had it been.†He looked directly at me. “But we can’t-we mustn’t- give up. Our king- our country- needs us. We cannot return empty-handed.â€

I shivered, in the sudden wind from the North. I took step after step, closer to the woods. ’Senurl’ followed. Suddenly, we were enveloped in the woods, and as we walked deeper, the amount of light that filtered through became smaller and smaller. When we were in total darkness, ‘Senurl’s’ staff lit our way. We continued on, stocked with the provisions we had been given, by the other countries we had been to, who had pitied us, and wished they could help. We stopped when we were too tired to go further- we had no sun or moon to measure by in the forest. We walked through the woods for days, until, suddenly, the day’s light began to seep through the canopy, spilling onto us, and the ground on which we tread. It grew brighter, and brighter, until- we came to a meadow, a clearing in the woods, surrounded by trees on all sides, a miniature field, in a forest of trees. I could not see for quite some time, and then, I gasped. The grass of the meadow was green, until, suddenly, as it neared the center, it became brown, lifeless- the warning of what death might lie in even the most beautiful of places. In the center of a ring of brown, stood what looked like a door. I approached it, and looked closer at it. It appeared it had once been a strong doorway, before it had been then covered in vines and leaves. Then those, too, had died- to the touch they were brittle. They had long been dead. Clearing through the leaves and twigs blocking the actual doorway, I watched as they crumbled into dust. When I cleared a path, there were no visible objects beyond the door. I looked closely, but it seemed to lead into darkness- or shadow. My husband came up beside me, only confirming my thoughts.

“This is a portal; it leads to another world. Either this portal is dead- which I doubt, despite the lack of greenery- or the world it leads to is in shadow. Beyond this may lie death-â€

“Beyond this may lead to the cure- we must try!†I retorted, softly as I could though I was tired and lacked hope.

He nodded solemnly. The horses would not come through, he said, so we had to leave them behind. I whispered my goodbyes to my faithful horse, ‘Aurth’. With this, we stepped through the portal. I remember the sensation of falling, falling, and landing on something hard, and sharp.

[Erendayu]

H'ratio, do you suppose I should post everything I had initially posted + three extras? That would make us be in chapter six.

[Erendayu]

Anyone else could answer that, too.

[Erendayu]

Syllables are divided by hyphens. Emphasized syllables are caps locked

Senurl: SEH-nehrl

Chael: Kayl

[Erendayu]

War

 

I awoke to find myself in pain and darkness. When I tried to lever myself on my left arm to stand up, I found that it was that arm which was the source of most of my pain. I continued to push my weight against it, slowly rising to my feet, finding that I was not bound or restrained in any way. Thus, I assumed I was in no one’s captivity, which relieved me, but only little, and only for a short while. Soon, my attentions and concerns turned to ‘Senurl’, whom I had not gathered a hint of since regaining consciousness. I called out his name, quietly at first, then louder, until I got a quiet “‘Chael’?†as my response. I got down on hands and knees, feeling my way across the rough ground to where his voice had come from. The ground seemed rather bumpy, but my hands rarely came across a place that was sharp, like what my arm had landed on. My arm still ached from whatever it was that I had fallen on, something painfully hard and sharp. I gritted my teeth against the pain, and continued across the floor, slowly, and clumsily. I paused, and called his name, again. Suddenly, a warm light emanated through the room, just a dim light, barely enough that I could see ‘Senurl’s’ face illuminated in the darkness. Eventually, I reached his side. Unlike me, he had fallen onto a soft place, and he was unharmed. He didn’t seem frightened, like I was, and I had the feeling that he knew what was going on. All at once, I felt question after question escape out of me, no matter how hard I tried to suppress them and care for ‘Senurl’. He, however, seemed merely amused, and answered my questions, one by one. My doubts and fears alleviated, I crawled up next to him and turned towards the way I had come, reflecting on what I now knew.

We were in a cave, fairly close to the opening, which produced the slight whispering of wind occasionally. I had fallen on something called a stalagmite, a natural rock column common in these caves. It was dark in here because it was the middle of the night, but when light came, we could most probably see and find our way around much easier. He had recommended that I try to get back to sleep, and we could figure out our surroundings in the morning. I, however, was not tired, and so I stood and tried to locate a place where we could get water. However, I found neither a place to gather food, nor a place to gather water. Put out, I returned to where I had come from, tried to get as comfortable as I could, and fell asleep.

 

*****************************************************************************

[Horatio]

H'ratio, do you suppose I should post everything I had initially posted + three extras? That would make us be in chapter six.

You let me know what you prefer and I will do what ever you want.

[Erendayu]

H'ratio, do you suppose I should post everything I had initially posted + three extras? That would make us be in chapter six.

You let me know what you prefer and I will do what ever you want.

I can't ask you for advice, can I?

[Erendayu]

Syllables are divided by hyphens. Emphasized syllables are caps locked

Senurl: SEH-nehrl

Arri- ahr-ree

[Erendayu]

‘Senurl’ woke me as the sun began to rise, dimly illuminating the cave. In the near darkness, I changed into my comfortable and worn travel clothes- a pair of coarse, earthen brown pants, and a long-sleeved white shirt. I pulled out the tight-fitting belt the ‘Arri’ clan had given me. They were one of those nations who had taken us in on our quest. ‘Senurl’ had warned me that there might be dangers outside of the cave, and, although I did not know how to use it, I hid one of the daggers he had given me in my clothes. I prayed I would not have to learn how to use it. Although I felt odd without it, I left the bow my father had given me, and its arrows, behind. I waited silently for ‘Senurl’ to give me instructions. Eventually, ‘Senurl’ pulled out his staff, dimly illuminating the space in front of us, and made a motion to be absolutely silent with his other hand. I was excited to be finally on my way. The floor of the cave was almost entirely rough and difficult to traverse, with huge humps in places, and dips, and crevices I thought might be gaps they were so large. ‘Senurl’ seemed to naturally be able to feel what was the safest route, and laughed pleasantly at my thoughts that there would be a crevice in the cave. Still, our going was slow through the cave, and, by the time we had reached its mouth, the sun was fully in the sky, illuminating the path behind and before us with a light that seemed dazzling after our time in the forest and cave. The light coming from ‘Senurl’s’ staff had already winked out with the dawn, and Senurl hid it in a fold of the cloak he was wearing, an earthy brown cloak that seemed older than the both of us.

When my eyes had readjusted to the light, I found we were in a dense forest rather like the one we had left, with trees like ours, and crawling vines, and even the same animals- so similar I would have thought we were still in our own world had ‘Senurl’ not said otherwise. Our cave was what did not fit its scenery so well. The rock of the entrance to our cave was a greenish-grey, with long, dangling, mossy vines hanging down from a home on the ceiling in a way that reminded me of how someone’s hands might hang over off their bed, if they had a bed to sleep on, unlike us. ‘Senurl’ stayed alert, so as not to be caught unawares. When he was certain there was no one close enough to see or hear us, he and I walked around to the other side, which seemed made to look like an ordinary grassy hill, so that you could not have told that there was a cave on the other side, unless you got as close to the ground, and saw, as I did, that the “hill†was merely a large cupped slab of rock, with grass like moss giving it a green colour over the almost invisible grey-green of the rock. ‘Senurl’, meanwhile, seemed to have heard something, and called me over with one hand. I hesitated, wanting to learn more about my immediate surroundings, but when he beckoned to me again, I wearily followed after him. *****************************************************************************

[Erendayu]

Syllables are divided by hyphens. Emphasized syllables are caps locked

Senurl: SEH-nehrl

Chael: Kayl

Sloyic: SLOI-yihk

[Erendayu]

‘Senurl’ lead me to a place where the forest ended abruptly with a view of a vast expanse of flatlands, covered loosely by brittle brown grass. The way the grass gradually faded into brown from where I stood reminded me of the portal we had come through. Where ‘Senurl’ and I stood, the grass was green, thick, lush, and soft underfoot, but when I tilted my head and narrowed my eyes down, I saw that the green extended all the way down the hill, until, at the very bottom, there were a few brown blades, and past that a few more, and so it went on until your eyes came to the desert like region of dead brown grass with not a blade living. Squinting my eyes further, I saw that beyond the dead grasslands, the brown grass faded, as the green had into it, into sharp-looking coarse rock. On these rocks, I saw thousands of what looked like men like ‘Senurl’ arranged in ranks, and I knew that they must have been fighting a war, our war just over itself when ‘Senurl’ and I were married, was still fresh in my mind.. I couldn’t see their enemy, but I saw that they were in bad shape, and I could see that they were in desperate need of help. I looked at ‘Senurl’, and he pulled me back into the woods, and, still motioning to remain silent, he lead me back to the cave, and he sat down, and leaned against the wall of the cave opening. The cave was bright and cheery seeming, now, with its hues of silver and blue, and metallic green, but we were not in the mood for its beauty. I could see that ‘Senurl’ seriously needed to think. I heard the sound of noisy animals, seemingly wanting to distract him, and I pulled him upright, and led him into the cave until the noise died away. There was a nice, flat, shelf of rock sticking out from the wall like a natural chair, and he sat down on it, turning away from me as though he seriously needed to think things over. I retreated further into the cave to leave him in peace, walking until the light began to dim slightly, where I could see that I was at a place where the cave was about to take a steep turn beyond which I could not see, and, right before me, was a deep ditch full of clean freshwater. I knelt down beside it, and noticed that the waterhole, though very small in width, was very, very deep. I peered down into the water, and thought that it must go on even past the point where my eyes could reach, for I could see no bottom. I found it odd that there should be such a natural trench, so deep, underground, and yet so skinny that I could have easily jumped over it. I jumped over the trench, and looked into its waters from the other side, and thought that I might have seen a glimmer of fish. Satisfied on both a food and a water source, I made my way back to where ‘Senurl’ still leaned against the cave wall, sitting on the natural bench. He looked up as I approached, and, although he smiled, it was a fake kind of smile, the kind you give when you’re thinking of something else, and something rather worrying, at that.

“Those men. You saw them, right?†he waited for me to nod before he continued. “They’re soldiers, and I think they’re fighting a war just like we were, several months ago. Do you remember, in the end, that we felt so desperate to win that crucial battle, that we felt we would give anything- anything, just to have the war over with us victorious, the stakes were that high? Do you remember how terrible we all felt, how drained, how terrible the entire world seemed to feel?â€

He turned, and looked me directly in the eye.

“They feel the same. They are fighting the same kind of battle, the same kind of war. Like our war. It’s for freedom, it’s for truth, it’s for everything they value and hold dear. It’s for their very lives. I cannot help but sympathize, I—â€

Then he saw that he had lost me, I was so confused, although I tried to hide it, if only to please him.

“What I mean, ‘Chael’, is that I want to help them. I want us to help them. And maybe, just maybe, they will also have the cure. ‘Chael’, do you agree with me? Do you want to help them, like I do?â€

I looked at him, trying to think. On the one hand, we were already on a quest, a quest for the cure, and this war would take up valuable time. And then, I thought of my friend, Lord ‘Sloyic’, who had died for us to win the war. Maybe he wouldn’t have had to, if we had had two of us, rather than just us. Maybe our extra roles would have made a difference. I looked at ‘Senurl’, and nodded. Then I walked away to the bundle that contained my possessions, to eat, drink, and think of what I had potentially gotten myself into.

[Horatio]

H'ratio, do you suppose I should post everything I had initially posted + three extras? That would make us be in chapter six.

You let me know what you prefer and I will do what ever you want.

I can't ask you for advice, can I? <_>

You absolutely can ask. But you must remember, I am a blonde hamster, so weigh my answer very carefully.

Just kidding. I was trying to think about what would be the best way to go, but have not come to a conclusion.

[Erendayu]

There, now the first two chapters are up. Please give me advice, Horatio!!!

(And sorry for overworking you.)

[Erendayu]

H'ratio, do you suppose I should post everything I had initially posted + three extras? That would make us be in chapter six.

You let me know what you prefer and I will do what ever you want.

I can't ask you for advice, can I?

You absolutely can ask. But you must remember, I am a blonde hamster, so weigh my answer very carefully.

Just kidding. I was trying to think about what would be the best way to go, but have not come to a conclusion.

That's my problem too.

[Horatio]

There, now the first two chapters are up. Please give me advice, Horatio!!!

(And sorry for overworking you.)

Not overworking me at all. I really love reading your writings!!!!!! Let me think a couple minutes.

[Erendayu]

There, now the first two chapters are up. Please give me advice, Horatio!!!

(And sorry for overworking you.)

Not overworking me at all. I really love reading your writings!!!!!! Let me think a couple minutes.

(...thinks...)... ... ... ... ...okay, I guess...

[Erendayu]

There, now the first two chapters are up. Please give me advice, Horatio!!!

(And sorry for overworking you.)

Not overworking me at all. I really love reading your writings!!!!!! Let me think a couple minutes.

Uh... Horatio?

[Erendayu]

*mutters* I forgot the first rule of Horatio...

 

[Horatio]

*mutters* I forgot the first rule of Horatio...

 

<_ src="%7B___base_url___%7D/uploads/emoticons/default_rolleyes.gif" alt=":rolleyes:">

And that would be not to mention my name!

[Erendayu]

There, now the first two chapters are up. Please give me advice, Horatio!!!

(And sorry for overworking you.)

HOR.A.TI.O.

*points at purple*

[Erendayu]

*mutters* I forgot the first rule of Horatio...

 

And that would be not to mention my name!

No, that might be the second, though. The first is that when Horatio says "Give me a few seconds, minutes, etc,", it takes generally a week to a month, if it's answered at all.

[Horatio]

*mutters* I forgot the first rule of Horatio...

 

<_ src="%7B___base_url___%7D/uploads/emoticons/default_rolleyes.gif" alt=":rolleyes:">

LOL

And that would be not to mention my name!

No, that might be the second, though. The first is that when Horatio says "Give me a few seconds, minutes, etc,", it takes generally a week to a month, if it's answered at all. <_>

*caught* Whoa!!!!!!! Look at all the clickable smilies, now you don't have to go searching! HampsterKing has been working overtime!

Anyway, I was writing... *caught* !!! I am having a hard time trying to decide which is better. Usually I do not like to interfere with anyone's creative genius. I will have an answer by this evening!

[Erendayu]

*mutters* I forgot the first rule of Horatio...

LOL

And that would be not to mention my name!

No, that might be the second, though. The first is that when Horatio says "Give me a few seconds, minutes, etc,", it takes generally a week to a month, if it's answered at all.

*caught* Whoa!!!!!!! Look at all the clickable smilies, now you don't have to go searching! HampsterKing has been working overtime!

Anyway, I was writing... *caught* !!! I am having a hard time trying to decide which is better. Usually I do not like to interfere with anyone's creative genius. I will have an answer by this evening!

...

(first rule of Horatio)

...

[Erendayu]

*mutters* I forgot the first rule of Horatio...

LOL

And that would be not to mention my name!

No, that might be the second, though. The first is that when Horatio says "Give me a few seconds, minutes, etc,", it takes generally a week to a month, if it's answered at all.

*caught* Whoa!!!!!!! Look at all the clickable smilies, now you don't have to go searching! HampsterKing has been working overtime!

Anyway, I was writing... *caught* !!! I am having a hard time trying to decide which is better. Usually I do not like to interfere with anyone's creative genius. I will have an answer by this evening!

Then think of it as my creative idiocy. Or my uncreative genius... or my uncreative idiocy. Whatever helps you decide.

[Horatio]

*mutters* I forgot the first rule of Horatio...

LOL

And that would be not to mention my name!

No, that might be the second, though. The first is that when Horatio says "Give me a few seconds, minutes, etc,", it takes generally a week to a month, if it's answered at all. <_>

*caught* Whoa!!!!!!! Look at all the clickable smilies, now you don't have to go searching! HampsterKing has been working overtime!

Anyway, I was writing... *caught* !!! I am having a hard time trying to decide which is better. Usually I do not like to interfere with anyone's creative genius. I will have an answer by this evening!

Then think of it as my creative idiocy. Or my uncreative genius... or my uncreative idiocy. Whatever helps you decide.

LOL

Once I get all the posts moderated, I will return.

[Erendayu]

*mutters* I forgot the first rule of Horatio...

LOL

And that would be not to mention my name!

No, that might be the second, though. The first is that when Horatio says "Give me a few seconds, minutes, etc,", it takes generally a week to a month, if it's answered at all.

*caught* Whoa!!!!!!! Look at all the clickable smilies, now you don't have to go searching! HampsterKing has been working overtime!

Anyway, I was writing... *caught* !!! I am having a hard time trying to decide which is better. Usually I do not like to interfere with anyone's creative genius. I will have an answer by this evening!

Then think of it as my creative idiocy. Or my uncreative genius... or my uncreative idiocy. Whatever helps you decide.

LOL

Once I get all the posts moderated, I will return.

*bites back a retort*

[Erendayu]

Syllables are divided by hyphens. Emphasized syllables are caps locked

Senurl: SEH-nehrl

Ranenth: raa-NEHNHTH

[Erendayu]

Food for Thought

 

I was sitting down on one of the many shelves of rock in the side of the cave, pulling a comb through my hair, and thinking. Part of it was remembering the war, which seemed so close that I felt I could touch it with my hand, though it was months gone. Also, however, I was thinking of this new war I had involved myself in. I wondered about the people I had seen- who were they? what did they believe in? where did they come from? would they welcome our aid, or were they so proud they wouldn’t accept it if they were on Death’s door? And most importantly, did they have the cure? I stood up, packed my comb away, wondering if they would even look like ‘Senurl’ and I. I was fairly young, eighteen, with obstinate dark brown hair, and blue eyes, and the fair skin common both in the country of the birth, and in the land to which I had fled, and first met ‘Senurl.’ ‘Senurl’ was noticeably older, more mature, with dark hair and green-blue eyes- he looked far different from me, but for his skin tone, and the fact that he, too, wore clothes from ‘Ranenth’. I was wearing the same clothes I had yesterday, when ‘Senurl’ and I had discovered the warriors in the barren waste. For protection and concealment, I wore over it my green traveling cloak, which the King had given me when I had first arrived at ‘Ranenth’. ‘Senurl’ wore a white shirt and blue pants, and over it he wore protective armour like he had been forced to wear during the war. He grimaced under what must have been a painful amount of weight, and then walked over, picked up his sword, a dagger, and a shield, and then motioned for me to grab my sword, and bow and arrows. I slung my quiver of arrows over my shoulder and followed ‘Senurl’ as he walked out of the cave. We trudged our way through the mosses and the small forest the same way we had yesterday. When we came to the grassy slope leading down, ‘Senurl’ motioned for me to stay behind while he picked out the safest route. I watched him make his way down, and made mental notes to where he stepped, where was safe, and where was not. Finally, he jerked his head in a way that I knew to mean that he wanted me to follow. The hill was much sharper than I had thought, and the going was slow, even having watched ‘Senurl’ make his way down before me. When I finally arrived at the bottom, I was surprised at how short the hill seemed; doubtless it had been mentally enlarged as I worked my way down. ‘Senurl’ paused to make sure that I had come down completely safe, and then fussed for a while longer, before setting off at a trot toward where the army was obviously camped. I went over the lecture my husband had given me as we trudged through the dead grass. He had once been my teacher, and he wasn’t about to forget now or anytime soon. He had warned me that the men in the army might not be too friendly at all, and were liable to be less friendly to someone who was obviously a girl than someone they thought was a man. Because of that, I was dressed in men’s clothes, which would be less comfortable physically, but which offered more protection and made it less likely I would be hurt. I was thinking so hard about acting the part that I almost ran into ‘Senurl’ headlong. He didn’t seem to mind, and it might even have helped my disguise; plenty of squires in ‘Ranenth’ were so clumsy, and quite likely that was true here, if they had squires and knights and the like. ‘Senurl’ motioned me to stop; he would be doing the talking. I was to stay behind here and wait till he came back for me. I bit my lip, not liking the idea of leaving him alone among warring strangers, but the look in his eyes kept me from protesting. I don’t know what was said or done, save that ‘Senurl’ offered our aide, in exchange for the cure. Our solution seemed so close, and I was content to watch it from a distance for a while. I had no doubts, and that was what ultimately killed me more than anything else.

 

*****************************************************************************

[Erendayu]

Syllables are divided by hyphens. Emphasized syllables are caps locked

Ranenth: raa-NEHNHTH

Senurl: SEH-nehrl

Erleft: ehr-lehft

[Erendayu]

I was introduced with no trouble at all. Everyone at the camp accepted me at once as a man, disturbingly soon. They reminded me of the peasants of ‘Ranenth’. Although it was hard to keep up their spirits as they turned out to be floundering in the war after all, they managed, usually with the help of alcohol. Fighting with only my bow and arrows was difficult; I was used to shape shifting in a way I had not realized. But they did not know about my abilities, and I did not care to show them. When the enemy returned to its mysterious fortress in the South, doubtless plotting against us, I was content not to think about it. Instead, I talked with the soldiers, or spent time with ‘Senurl’, whom I rarely could spend time with at all, and could never be myself, but whom I loved no less. He readily took up his teacher role, telling me of shadows that creep and bind, or of nicer things, like the life of trees. He seemed so infinitely wise to me, and I loved him so completely, that I was the first to notice something was wrong with him. As the war progressed he began to seem weak, tired, and haggard. He may have been older than me, but he was not so old as to hazard this. I knew right away he was sick, and I urged him to go back to the cave we had come through and rest. He shook off my urgings, but when I changed to wolf and carried him back he realized he had no choice but to stay there. Luckily, I was almost certain no one had seen me. I immediately sought out the king, the head of all the armies, to confront him. I had never so much as spoke with him before, but fear for my husband’s life gave me courage. For I thought I knew what he had. Hadn’t I heard other whispers of the king- our lord’s- mysterious illness? He was weak, always tired. He seemed old beyond his years, as though the illness was multiplying his aging rate. If I didn’t do something, ‘Senurl’ might die. And so I bit my lip, pulled my winter cloak around me, and searched for the king at nightfall. I found him amid his drunken army, smiling slightly, and I hurried over to him.

“Please, my lord. My- traveling companion is sick, with an illness like our king’s. Will you give us more of the cure when you can? Have mercy on me, please.â€

I was not used to begging for things, and was suddenly sickly aware that he could refuse. He turned to someone beside him and said.

“What do you think, ‘Erleft’? Should I help the wretch?â€

I bit my tongue to stifle the defensive arguments that usually came with these kinds of insults, having grown up a peasant. I turned my head away, and that was when I saw him. He was the one the king was asking counseling from. He looked human, but there was something eerie about him, something that made me want to shudder and scream and never stop. It wasn’t that he was evil, I could tell that in this place where black and white were clear cut, the enemy being beyond pretending to be good. No, he was good, but he was scary, like a tyrant in a way. His eyes were cold; he never smiled, but merely looked at me like he was searching the depths of my soul. I had never been so frightened in my entire life. Then, it was like his eyes stopped boring into me. He said two words that I was thankful for,

“Very well.â€

The king looked at me and smiled a little.

“Alright. We will give you double. Now go back to where you were and leave us in peace.â€

I knelt clumsily and fled out the door. But I didn’t need to look behind me to know who’s eyes were boring into me again as I left.

 

******************************************************************************

[Horatio]

H'ratio, do you suppose I should post everything I had initially posted + three extras? That would make us be in chapter six.

I think you should post everything. If you wanted, I could combine some of the posts that belong together and place them at the beginning. This way your six chapters could be together.

 

I can also delete any posts you want to make things flow smoother.

[Erendayu]

Wow! Horatio actually replied!

You will be much pestered tomorrow with all the posts!! Is there any way you can bring all the actual posts to the front, including the intro and pronunciation guide guide (but they would be kept in order).

As for combining the posts, please do not! It is part of my weird style! ^_^

Thank you again!

[Erendayu]

Syllables are divided by hyphens. Emphasized syllables are caps locked

Senurl: SEH-nehrl

[Erendayu]

Betrayal

 

And so, for several months, I poured my heart and soul into the war, as I simultaneously watched ‘Senurl’ fading away. I fought the way I could not fight death, and at last the tide started to turn in favour of my side. The king who had given the promise fell in battle, and I started to fear all was lost, but I remembered his kind, if scary, friend, and kept up my hopes. Then, one day, as I sat trying to clear my head under the clear cool many-starred night, the prince, who had become a king, naturally, approached me. I had never seen him before, but he looked much like a younger version of his father, and I feared he was as devious. My fears were confirmed when he came close enough to say what he had to say.

“Go,†is actually all he said at first. “Leave! I order you to leave!â€

This brought me to my senses. If anything else, fighting among the men had forced me to stand my ground, and, though he was a prince, I did just that. I stood motionless, and looked directly into his eyes, which were a calculating sky blue. His next order shattered my confidence.

“Go,†he spat. “Go or die. I give the orders now!â€

He must surely be crazy, I thought to myself.

“The war…†I managed to stutter.

“We can do without you now leave.†He was getting angry and his sentences were flowing together until I couldn’t tell where they ended anymore.

“The cure!†I managed. “What about the cure? Your father promised me it—â€

But then his next words stopped me cold.

“There never was a cure. You were few—but so strong, you could fight, and we needed help.†For a moment he looked wistful, but I no longer cared. I no longer even heard. His words echoed in my head. “There never was a cure.†Oh, what fools ‘Senurl’ and I had been. “There never was a cure.†We had wasted our time—for nothing! Because of him, ‘Senurl’ and the King—our lord—would die! I ran away, making for the cave that had been ‘Senurl’ and my safe haven since we had arrived. “There never was a cure.†I didn’t want to tell him the news, but I had to. “There never was a cure.†If only we hadn’t stumbled upon that portal, perhaps the king would be healthy now. ‘Senurl’ and I would be happy and married. But, oh, “There never was a cure.â€

I felt so betrayed I thought I would die.

******************************************************************************

[Erendayu]

Syllables are divided by hyphens. Emphasized syllables are caps locked

Senurl: SEH-nehrl

Chael: kayl

Ranenth: raa-NEHNHTH

Erleft: ehr-lehft

[Erendayu]

Somehow I made my way back to the cave without sight, for my eyes were closed and clogged with tears. ‘Senurl’ was there, waiting for me, and somehow that made everything a thousand times worse, as though, instead of the King betraying us, I had single-handedly betrayed my husband. He was weak with fever, hunger, and the strange draining, but he forced himself up as he saw me come in.

“What, is the war over? Come, ‘Chael’, tell me what happened. But what’s wrong, ‘Chael’?â€

He had noticed now the light was strong enough on me and I was close enough for him to see the tears in my eyes.

“It was all a lie,†I began. “They dismissed our help, and when I asked for our pension for our involvement, they said…†I launched into a brief description of what had happened, finishing off with a bitter repetition—“‘There never was a cure.’â€

To my surprise, he smiled and shook his head at my angry response.

“You’re too young, ‘Chael’. You don’t understand. The Prince said himself-- they were desperate. It is not unusual for desperate people to do such things. Forget about it, my ‘Chael’.â€

I sighed, sniffed, and wiped my eyes in sorrow, but somehow I was cheered a little by his words. I brought out the rations the army had given us, forced food and water past his lips, and ate a little myself before lying down at his side. He seemed so weak, yet he had once been so strong. It was beyond my fathoming.

I slept eventually, the longest sleep I had had in some time, and yet less refreshing. I awoke terrified of a non-existent force—perhaps the spirit of Death, which pervaded my life. ‘Senurl’ himself woke a little while later, and I immediately checked to see how he was doing-- his fever was virtually non-existent, but everything else—all his other problems, were worse. I didn’t understand until he called me to his side, saying he had something vital to say. I suppose I had heard at sometime of those about to die calling those they love to their side for final secret sharing and atonement, but I had never seen it as ever coming my way. I knelt down at his side as he requested, ready to listen to whatever he had to say.

“‘Chael’,†he began. “I need to tell you—there was no need for you to become upset over the loss of our return chance; our last chance to return home. You may remember it was several months ago when I first became ill—†I nodded numbly; unthinkingly—“I knew then that our fight is over. It is something the king shared with me. Whoever it is seeking the cure for someone, to whomever this is charged… if they fail and the ill man dies, then the one seeking will fall sick with the illness.â€

I blinked and shook my head, trying to clear it as well as understand what he was saying. ‘Senurl’ seemed to understand my confusion, and so he clarified.

“Before we left, the king told me that if he was to die, that I would become sick with the illness. I became sick with the illness, and that means that the king is dead…â€

I gasped in disbelief.

“That is why I am warning you now. You must go far, far away. Far away from me and the illness, and even the cure and ‘Renanth’. You must leave and never return. Otherwise, you, too, will contract the illness and die.â€

“I won’t abandon you, ‘Senurl’,†I said plainly and with conviction. “No matter if I do die.â€

A smile flickered across his face, but disappeared before I could bring it into focus.

“You’ve always been stubborn,†he said in little more than a whisper. “I suppose I was the fool to think I could change your mind.â€

Then, he was silent. It took me awhile to realize that he was dead. When I did, I fell back onto my knees and wept. It did not seem fair to me that he could die, and I blamed myself for fighting for the cure, rather than seeking it elsewhere. Yet I blamed also the king, the contemptuous prince, and even the king’s friend, the helpful ‘Erleft’. I refused to leave my husband’s side for a minute; I knew I now had the fatal disease, but did not care. My life had become worthless. I did not eat, nor drink, nor sleep, but merely stayed at ‘Senurl’s’ side and wept. It was all too natural that I quickly faded away. Death for me was easier and less harsh than life, and I looked forward to seeing my beloved again. Alas, this was not to be, as I was soon to learn…

[Erendayu]

Syllables are divided by hyphens. Emphasized syllables are caps locked

Senurl: SEH-nehrl

Ranenth: raa-NEHNHTH

Erleft: ehr-lehft

[Erendayu]

Awakening

 

I must’ve dreamed a million dreams, both good and bad. They became blurred and meshed together, and then they meshed themselves with reality so that I could not tell what was true and what was not. I awoke in utter darkness, with chill winds blowing in my face, urging me up, up! I stood rather shakily, without knowing exactly where I was, or why. I felt dimly that ‘Senurl’ must have died, and myself also, but if I was dead, than how could I think? How could I stand? How could I walk? Not to mention that I was hungry, thirsty, and tired. I made my way over to a pool I had found in the back of the cave, and tripped over something—the bones of ‘Senurl’. I began to cry, making my way numbly to the pool, where I drank the off-tasting water and returned to my perch to think. It was chilly in my cave, but I could not find my warm cloak I had taken from ‘Ranenth’ so long ago. I did notice I still had my bow and arrows, and the sword I had taken from the armoury so long ago, so long, long ago. All our rations had long since gone bad, and I had nothing to eat. I realized that this very cave made me sad, and so I bade farewell to my husband tearfully, and walked out of the cave for the first time since when I could not remember, and indeed did not know. It was night out, with a beautiful full moon overhead. I admired it briefly but continued on my way. Around me a lush forest stretched as far as I could see. The battlefields had been to the South, I recalled, and so I headed north. I traveled north until I reached a sea, and then headed west. I wondered that I never felt tired of walking; I felt I could walk forever if need be. Eventually, I came across a small village, where the people considered me odd and frightening, although I did not know why. They seemed to agree that I ought to speak with their leader, the oldest man in the village, who was also very wise. I felt nervous near him, as I had near ‘Erleft’. He, however, seemed to be puzzled over me. He puffed long and hard on a wooden pipe, and then finally spoke.

“What are you?†That is what he asked me. I realized I had no idea what I was, though I had known in life, and had been puzzling over this myself. I shook my head harshly to try and collect my thoughts, which naturally fled.

“I don’t know,†is what I finally said. It sounded like a strange idea even to me, but it was the truth, and the elder seemed to realize it.

He puffed a long while more on his pipe, musing without the slightest hint of incredulity, “You don’t know…â€

He seemed to collect his thoughts very well, and I could visibly see he had a long list in his head of what I might be.

“Are you a Nosferatu?†he asked.

I had no idea what he was talking about, not then. “I don’t know,†I finally said.

“Can you eat anything?†he asked. I shrugged in response. I hadn’t eaten anything since I died…

He seemed to understand my discomfort, and smiled warmly, and then clapped his hands, ordering a meal to be brought. Servants came bearing trays of foods I could not identify.

“Try and eat,†he said consolingly. “Nosferatu cannot eat anything of substance.â€

I tried a little of everything; some things I liked, some I didn’t, but I was hungry, after all, and ate everything.

The elder smiled and shook his head. “I can see you are not. And you are not a ghost either, for they cannot eat at all.â€

He seemed politely puzzled, and then asked me to tell him everything that had happened. And so I told him of the king-our lord- becoming sick; ‘Senurl’ and my quest for the cure, teaming up with the ungrateful army, of learning there never was a cure, telling ‘Senurl’, what he had said to me, and my ending up dying of sleep deprivation, starvation, lack of water, and the illness. All through my story, the elder puffed on his pipe thoughtfully.

“It seems to me,†he concluded. “That you are alive and dead at the same time.†This confused me but I nevertheless listened intently. “You do not need to eat, sleep, or drink, but you will feel weaker if you do not. I will teach you how to become alive, and to revert back to this state whenever you wish.â€

He spent several hours teaching me a spell that let me change from mortal, to whatever I was, and back. When he felt I had mastered it, he instructed me to stay mortal when I could, and ushered me off to learn how to fight with a sword with the village children.

“You do quite well,†said the instructor, a man who rivaled the leader for oldest man in the village. “Perhaps you could learn how to put magic into your attacks. What elements do you control?â€

At this, I was once again in a state of utter confusion. I knew that, as a shape-shifter, I had some little control over life, which might fall under darkness or light, but none of those were elements. I was forced to once again reply that I didn’t know. The man smiled, then rearranged his question. “What elements control you?†he asked instead. I thought hard, but didn’t do much better. He saw this and said rather sagely:

“Go out into the world and find out. When you know, come back here.â€

I felt like I was a little girl again, and nodded meekly. I packed up everything I owned, and set off into the world to discover my elements…

***************************************************************************

[Erendayu]

This turned out easier said than done. I traveled from land to land, learning what I could about everything I could. I had forever in front of me, and forever behind. In time, I straightened out my thoughts, and kept them organized. I began to grow frustrated as time wore on, and I did not know my elements, still. Then I came to a place where it was winter before it should have been. The snows were destroying the crops, and I knew I couldn’t leave without helping these people, these strangers, who might be related even to the one, that king who had betrayed me. I held out my hand down to the snow, and felt it attach itself to me, felt it become me, and I felt stronger now, not weaker. I puzzled over this, but I knew I had some little control over life and set about making the crops grow back, and I transformed the strength I had acquired from the ice into strength that could flow and nourish the poor plants that had suffered so long…

I suddenly stopped and thought. The absorption of the ice had made me stronger. I had been able to change water magic into earth magic, and help the plants. I smiled to myself, mentally noting this. I tried and failed to draw strength from the air, and then I built a fire and felt warm for the first time in years… warmer and stronger. “Earth, Ice, and Fire†I thought. “Or—Fire, Ice, and Earth.†But fire and ice were opposites… it ceased mattering in only a little while. I did not hear any thanks from the villagers—perhaps they did not thank me; perhaps I was lost in thought. Instead, I hurried back to the village I had come to first, where the old man was still teaching children his skills. It took a minute, but he finally recognized me.

“You have discovered your strengths, then?†he asked me calmly.

All of a sudden, I was unsure.

“I don’t know,†I said suddenly, uncertainly. “I think I do.†And so I told him about my experiences when I meddled with the elements, and further telling him about the shape-changing talents I had.

“And what is your favourite shape?†he asked sagely.

“Wolf,†I answered without hesitation, causing a warm smile to streak across his face.

“Why?†he asked me. He did not sound as if he asked this out of idle curiosity, but I could find no reason he would ask for harm, and so I sat down, and tried to think of why I loved the wolf so much. My thoughts wandered for a while, before hovering over the image of the king, the one who had played on our needs, our emotions, when he had never had the cure at all. Then my thoughts flew away to his son, the prince, who had used us nigh to breaking, then cast me off and betrayed me when the war was nearly won.

“Wolves are loyal,†I replied to him cautiously. “They don’t betray people.â€

The elder looked at me long and hard for a moment. “Then I could have told you your elements,†he said. “You needn’t have left at all. But I daresay you learned much.â€

He backed off, and taught me what little he knew of forming magic, and then combined it with swordplay. We must have practiced for hours before he sent me away.

“Go. Go out on your own, and seek you own fate,†he said, not cruelly, as he handed me a parcel of food. Alone and bewildered once more, I made my way out of the village, and back into the wilderness.

[Erendayu]

Syllables are divided by hyphens. Emphasized syllables are caps locked

Tuluris: too-LOO-rihs

Tularin: too-LAHR-ihn

[Erendayu]

Death

 

It seemed impossible, but upon leaving the village, I was almost immediately lost, as though a whole other landmass had formed during the week I had spent there. I became lost in a forest impossibly deep. And that’s when I first saw him. He was a distance away, and had not seen me, but I was almost certain he knew his way, and so I waited for him to find me. I waved to get his attention, and he jerked his head up, as if he had been lost in thought. As he came closer, I could see that he was wearing an old, greyed traveling cloak, giving the appearance of his being a wanderer. If he was, it was better for me, for he would be more likely to find his way around. But despite his tattered clothes, he himself was obviously not that old, not with yellow hair, and practically no wrinkles to count for on his face. His eyes were a piercing blue, and, for a second, I had a flashback of similar seeming eyes looking deep into my soul.

“Ho there, traveler!†he said, in a merry voice, like I had not heard in a long while, just how long I was not sure. I managed to wave meekly, and he approached cautiously, and I deduced there must be enemies of some kind in these woods. Either that or he was wary no matter what, paranoid, I’d call it.

“And what is your name?†My name?! No one had asked me that of yet. No one had at all… since that war. I couldn’t give my real name, as it might be recognized yet, and I was sure to have angered the nobility. Yet I could not lie either, not on what either was or was similar to borrowed life. It was said that the Goddess of Death was also the Goddess of Truth, and I did not want to anger her. I sought for an easy solution, and, finding none, borrowed some wits from my old life, and came up with something that might work.

“You can call me Tuluris,†I said, smiling at evading the truth and lies simultaneously. Oh, but this wanderer was smart, and seemed to guess I had given a false name.

“Tuluris, eh?†he asked craftily. “Then you can call me… Tularin. And where are you bound, Tuluris?†he asked.

To this I gave my most common answer of late. “I do not know.â€

He smiled rather warmly, not a struggled smile of one who has seen many troubles, as ‘Senurl’s’ and my smiles were, but a deep smile of one who has few worries.

“You do not know?†he inquired mischievously. “Not at all?â€

I thought deeply, and it occurred to me I knew my basic course—as far away from the site of the battle as possible. And with it, as far away as possible from anyone who could identify me as ‘Chael.’

“I suppose I am running away,†I mused, to myself as much as to Tularin.

To this, he smiled and then laughed out loud. I frowned slightly at his ability to find humour absolutely anywhere, but he was very friendly and companionable, and this was a welcome enough change for me. As we walked through the forest, he told me he was taking me to someone he was in the service of.

“He’s a nice man, wonderful to work for. You won’t have to work if you don’t want to.†He began to hum some song he knew, or perhaps had made up. It wasn’t even night, and so I was curious when he abruptly stopped.

“Just what are you running away from?†he asked. “Maybe it is that I can help.â€

I was touched. No one had ever offered to help me… not in a long while at any rate. Yet this mysterious Tularin seemed truly concerned.

“No offence, Tularin, but it’s nothing you can help with,†I said, running my hair through my hands. “It’s death, war, and betrayal I’m running from. And I doubt you have a cure for those.â€

Tularin was silent, and thoughtful for a while—apparently he was smarter than I’d first thought. “They say that there are two things that can heal absolutely anything, Tuluris,†he said slowly, sincerely, and, for once, seriously. “Those two things being time and love.â€

Now it was my turn to be thoughtful. It was true, I suspected, about time. Whenever I had pestered ‘Senurl’ about something he didn’t want to tell me, he always had said “In time you’ll understand.†Thinking of him made me miss him, and missing him made me cry. It was as though Tularin knew intuitively, and was immediately at my side.

“What’s wrong, Tuluris?â€

“It’s—†I hesitated, on the verge of telling him my real name. And then I thought of the war, and the perfidious prince. “It’s nothing. Just remembering someone I once knew…â€

He stayed by my side, as though he was going to say something, and then walked on ahead, leading the way again…

[Erendayu]

Syllables are divided by hyphens. Emphasized syllables are caps locked

Tularin: too-LAHR-ihn

Erleft: ehr-lehft

Tuluris: too-LOO-rihs

[Erendayu]

This king lived in a huge palace, in a hidden city, in the middle of a forest. Tularin guided me through the halls and rooms until I came to the throne room of the king. He explained that he had found me in the forest, and that I was lost and needing of shelter, and then asked if I could stay.

The king was silent for a while, obviously deep in thought. Then he said two words I was thankful for.

“Very well.â€

At this, I started mentally, having learned to control my expressions. ‘Erleft’ had said those very words oh-so long ago. I nearly died when I looked up and saw who the king was—’Erleft’ himself! I was scared out of my wits, and yet thankful that he did not recognize me.

“Escort the poor thing to her chambers, guards!†he cried. I was thankful that Tularin walked with me all the way, chatting about all the wonderful things to be found here. When I was safe at my room, the guards left, and when they were far enough away, I asked Tularin the question I had been dying to ask.

“Who was that king? I could’ve sworn I’d seen him before…â€

Tularin chuckled, which was pleasant enough, except I wanted the answer to my question.

“Forgive me, Tuluris,†he said when he had recovered. “You’re not from around here, are you?†I shook my head impatiently. “He is King ‘Erleft’. You would know him perhaps from the legends telling of his valor of a war of long ago.â€

“A war of long ago? This must be the war I had fought in. The one where I had given everything for the cure. Oh, but ‘There never was a cure’â€

I only realized I had been so silent when Tularin asked—no, demanded me about it.

[Erendayu]

Syllables are divided by hyphens. Emphasized syllables are caps locked

Kozao: KOH-zow

[Erendayu]

“To arms, to arms! We are under attack!†The loud voice awakened me at sometime before dawn. I quickly dressed in my specially and secretly designed battle clothes. I was in a guest room that looked out upon the beautiful forest from whence I had come. My bow, quiver, and spare arrows I kept right by my bed. My sword was high upon a shelf, but it took little work to get it. I raced as quickly as I could—and barefoot!—towards the general area from where the cry had come. You may well imagine my shock upon arriving to find a huge dragon, seemingly covered in flame come near for a second attack. And yet, my sympathy was immediately invoked—this would be one of my kin, a fiery one. Surely there was a way to reason with him. “Stop!†I cried to him in as loud a voice as I could muster. They could not afford it, but, had they been able to, the defenders would have immediately turned to me. I waited, as the dragon paused, and began the process of lowering himself to a space where he could not be reached by arrows, yet could hear me (it is astonishing, a dragon’s hearing, if you will take my word).

“It is not from any petty rivalry between humanity and my kin that I attack,†he began, slowly and carefully, and it was clear to any onlookers that no one else could hear him, only me. “There is a shortage of food in our mountains… my wife is slain, but our children remain. What will we eat? This is the first place I have found with our essential food: horse. It is not out of our kind’s war against humanity, no…†he paused, trying to read my emotions, which I had learned to hide too well. The other archers continued to fire arrows, but the dragon, out of reach, did not care.

“What if I could give you the food you lack?†I asked in desperation, sickened doubly by the dragon’s plight and by the jeopardy my most recent home was in. For a second his wings ceased to beat, and I feared for him, but then he soared up.

“Meet me in a week,†he replied, and I thought I caught a glimpse of a smile. “Ask for Kozao. Follow my path with your eyes. If you speak false; if you come with any humans, or if you fail to come, I will repay in most terrible carnage. Until then, may your life be pleasant. Fail not to attend.â€

And, soaring high like an eagle, he was off back how he had come.

***************************************************************************

[Erendayu]

Syllables are divided by hyphens. Emphasized syllables are caps locked

Kozao: KOH-zow

Chael: Kayl

[Erendayu]

It was thus that I, with only my bow and arrows, my sword, and a loaned shield, set off in the night for the mountains. I had become accustomed to the splendor and easy life in the palace. The terrain, both in the forest and beyond, was hard and unyielding, and painful underfoot. I had no desire to let anyone know my secret gifts however, and so I went as quickly as I could on foot. I need not bother you with the difficulties of that trip, how long it took, only that, before the week was up, I arrived at the stronghold, if so it may be called, of the dragon Kozao. I was greeted there by a young dragon, perhaps thirteen in human years. She, I knew, must be one of Kozao’s daughters. She narrowed her eyes suspiciously, proving that, as I smelled different from humans—indeed, I might now be said to have no scent—dragons rely mainly on sight. I curtsied as politely as I could, as I suspected might be a good idea around dragons, “I am ‘Chael,’†I said to her, giving my name for the first time because of what I had heard of a dragon’s ability to sense truth. “I am here to see the dragon Kozao—by his request,†I added hastily, catching a violent look from her.

“Follow me then,†she said resignedly, “and leave your weapons and shield here!†She waited impatiently as I did so with sorrow, wondering if perhaps I would never see them again, but then dismissing it, as I remembered I was already dead. Satisfied I had no hidden weapons, she started forward, all the while muttering under her breath something about her father never telling her anything.

His cave was warm and beautiful as any of the palaces of old, despite that it was a cave, and a cave in a mountain, at that. Diamonds and gold stuck out from the wall, and other stones too, everything from the common quartz to even the rarest of rare. Yet dragons had no need for such material possessions, it seemed, for she passed them without even a passing glance, still muttering under her breath, until we came to what I thought would undoubtedly have been the throne room of a human castle. Kozao sat comfortably upon the cold earth, and I curtsied before him.

“I have come, my lord Kozao,†I said, as humbly as I could. “As was your request, before a week could pass.â€

“Yes, so I see,†Kozao said, in a way that showed he was actually thinking of his next words. “This is the larder in which we long kept our horses. You must be impervious to cold, my lady, or you should surely feel how interminably cold it is in here.†I saw the room in a whole new light then, seeing the small icicles that hung from the ceiling in what seemed an attempt at a chandelier. This room, then, was open to the outside, and was kept perpetually cold, even in the presence of a dragon.

“I… had not noticed, my lord,†I said quietly. And for a moment there was silence.

“You said you could help us with our food shortage,†he said at last as a prompt.

I winced as I remembered the plan I had constructed hastily the day he had attacked. And then, defeated, I spilled out my plan…

***************************************************************************

My plan is a bit violent to tell in detail, suffice it to say that I had spent over a thousand, over a million lives as a horse before it was over, and the dragon Kozao was at last satisfied.

“Our crisis is solved!†he said. “We will now have the food to last until we have found another place, with horses yet untamed. We must thank you yet again,†the sullen dragonette nodded here upon prompting “for your sacrifice on our behalf. If ever you should need our help, call upon I, Kozao of the Dragons.â€

I smiled, having grown fond of the mysterious but kind-hearted dragon. “I should hope you would do the same, my lord; if ever you have need of aide, only call me.â€

A wide grin appeared upon his face. “We begin our search now, ‘Chael’. Farewell,†he said as he took off into the air.

Smiling, I began the trek home. It had never occurred to me that anyone might notice my absence, or miss me, the mysterious intruder. Oh, how wrong I was again…

[Erendayu]

Syllables are divided by hyphens. Emphasized syllables are caps locked

Tuluris: too-LOO-rihs

Senurl: SEH-nehrl

Tularin: too-LAHR-ihn

[Erendayu]

“Where were you, Tuluris?†he demanded as soon as I entered my room. “I thought you had been eaten by that dragon!â€

I barely kept from laughing at the irony of this, hiding my face in my sleeve. I considered telling him I had been eaten, several times over, and then I recalled ‘Senurl’ my husband. And oh, how like ‘Senurl’ Tularin looked at that moment! The humour drained from my face. I felt like crying then, as I saw how truly worried Tularin had been over me! For my sake! Oh, how miserable… I had caused him grief, though he had once saved me when I was lost!

“I am sorry, Tularin,†I said as humbly as I could.

He looked at me awhile still, his face still drained of its usual humour and joviality.

“Oh, but where were you, Tuluris? You can take care of yourself, I see by your sword and bow, and yet…†he trailed off. “What if you went away and just left me here? That’s not allowed,†he said, a touch of humour returning to his face. “I brought you here, now you’re trapped,†he said entirely in jest. I smiled ever so slightly. After all, Tularin was nice. Yes, so I thought.

[Erendayu]

Syllables are divided by hyphens. Emphasized syllables are caps locked

Senurl: SEH-nehrl

Tuluris: too-LOO-rihs

Tularin: too-LAHR-ihn

[Erendayu]

Shadow in the Hero’s Past

 

After that, we talked for a long time about life in general, but we neither of us asked about the other’s past. It was as a mutual silent agreement. A couple of times he asked me again where I had been, but I was still trying to process that myself, and brushed these questions off.

Never fear, however, for this became rather a bit of a habit. Eventually, after, a month say, I brought the subject of where I had been back up. He seemed surprised by my sudden willingness to talk. I simplified my story, telling him that I had caused the dragon to go away, entirely true, but I did not tell him how. He seemed a touch hurt by this, but decided to take it as good as I had talked about it at all. Several months after that, he finally told me his real name, alas, doubtless expecting the action to be reciprocal, but I still trusted none after my betrayal, which I recalled had caused the death of my husband, ‘Senurl’. It was after a long and animated tale about the Ones of Old, not the Ancients, but the inhabitants of this world in the past. I had noticed he had been thinking about something else, but he did not bring it up until the story ended. He started by putting me on the offensive: “Tuluris is not your real name,†he said thoughtfully. “And Tularin is not mine either,†he said, catching me looking a bit perplexed at and moreover worried by this sudden thread of communication. I relaxed, and he smiled happily, and then, still unexpectedly, he told me his real name. It is the name by which he is remembered, even still, for he is a “great heroâ€. And then he asked me for mine, and, frightened suddenly and feeling trapped, I arose from my seat, and, with a frightened glance back at him, fled the premises, thinking I could escape. Alas, for me it was too late. I hesitate to say that I may have, in fact I probably had, fallen in love with him, even despite my memories of ‘Senurl’. Alas, perhaps I could’ve avoided what was to come if I had answered his question; if I had done so many things. Why shouldn’t I have answered his question? I still wonder sometimes. I had done nothing wrong… yet.

***************************************************************************

[Horatio]

Wow! Horatio actually replied!

You will be much pestered tomorrow with all the posts!! Is there any way you can bring all the actual posts to the front, including the intro and pronunciation guide guide (but they would be kept in order).

As for combining the posts, please do not! It is part of my weird style! ^_^

Thank you again!

I am unable to change the post order. I can combine posts, but not move posts. Here is what I can do... copy post content you have and place them anywhere else in another post.

 

Here is what I suggest. Start in the beginning and copy then delete the posts that should follow the posts I just moderated. Place these posts in order at the end. This way the latest posts will now be in the front. All my posts you want deleted just let me know and I will remove them. Let me know how I can help.

[Erendayu]

Wow! Horatio actually replied!

You will be much pestered tomorrow with all the posts!! Is there any way you can bring all the actual posts to the front, including the intro and pronunciation guide guide (but they would be kept in order).

As for combining the posts, please do not! It is part of my weird style! ^_^

Thank you again!

I am unable to change the post order. I can combine posts, but not move posts. Here is what I can do... copy post content you have and place them anywhere else in another post.

 

Here is what I suggest. Start in the beginning and copy then delete the posts that should follow the posts I just moderated. Place these posts in order at the end. This way the latest posts will now be in the front. All my posts you want deleted just let me know and I will remove them. Let me know how I can help.

Yeah, I thought that was impossible...

I almost think I know what you're thinking of... but I think that's what screwed up my last topic...so... should I create a third topic?! Or...?

[Erendayu]

Wow! Horatio actually replied!

You will be much pestered tomorrow with all the posts!! Is there any way you can bring all the actual posts to the front, including the intro and pronunciation guide guide (but they would be kept in order).

As for combining the posts, please do not! It is part of my weird style! ^_^

Thank you again!

I am unable to change the post order. I can combine posts, but not move posts. Here is what I can do... copy post content you have and place them anywhere else in another post.

 

Here is what I suggest. Start in the beginning and copy then delete the posts that should follow the posts I just moderated. Place these posts in order at the end. This way the latest posts will now be in the front. All my posts you want deleted just let me know and I will remove them. Let me know how I can help.

As for deleting your posts, I don't want you to delete any because it scares me. Don't ask why... it just makes me feel like I'm going insane and stuff...

[Horatio]

Wow! Horatio actually replied!

You will be much pestered tomorrow with all the posts!! Is there any way you can bring all the actual posts to the front, including the intro and pronunciation guide guide (but they would be kept in order).

As for combining the posts, please do not! It is part of my weird style! ^_^

Thank you again!

I am unable to change the post order. I can combine posts, but not move posts. Here is what I can do... copy post content you have and place them anywhere else in another post.

 

Here is what I suggest. Start in the beginning and copy then delete the posts that should follow the posts I just moderated. Place these posts in order at the end. This way the latest posts will now be in the front. All my posts you want deleted just let me know and I will remove them. Let me know how I can help.

Yeah, I thought that was impossible...

I almost think I know what you're thinking of... but I think that's what screwed up my last topic...so... should I create a third topic?! Or...?

Actually, everywhere you have a post, I can cut an paste and put your entire topic in order. It would take a bit, but I would love to do it for you.

[Erendayu]

Wow! Horatio actually replied!

You will be much pestered tomorrow with all the posts!! Is there any way you can bring all the actual posts to the front, including the intro and pronunciation guide guide (but they would be kept in order).

As for combining the posts, please do not! It is part of my weird style! ^_^

Thank you again!

I am unable to change the post order. I can combine posts, but not move posts. Here is what I can do... copy post content you have and place them anywhere else in another post.

 

Here is what I suggest. Start in the beginning and copy then delete the posts that should follow the posts I just moderated. Place these posts in order at the end. This way the latest posts will now be in the front. All my posts you want deleted just let me know and I will remove them. Let me know how I can help.

Yeah, I thought that was impossible...

I almost think I know what you're thinking of... but I think that's what screwed up my last topic...so... should I create a third topic?! Or...?

Actually, everywhere you have a post, I can cut an paste and put your entire topic in order. It would take a bit, but I would love to do it for you.

I'd like to do whatever is the least work for everyone involved and takes up the least amount of space. If you want to do what it is you said in this last post, then do it, is what I have to say... but only if you want to and it's not too much work. You must have a life somewhere...! ...Perhaps you lost it in your food pile...?

(I wonder if anyone else reads this topic...?)

[Horatio]

Wow! Horatio actually replied!

You will be much pestered tomorrow with all the posts!! Is there any way you can bring all the actual posts to the front, including the intro and pronunciation guide guide (but they would be kept in order).

As for combining the posts, please do not! It is part of my weird style! ^_^

Thank you again!

I am unable to change the post order. I can combine posts, but not move posts. Here is what I can do... copy post content you have and place them anywhere else in another post.

 

Here is what I suggest. Start in the beginning and copy then delete the posts that should follow the posts I just moderated. Place these posts in order at the end. This way the latest posts will now be in the front. All my posts you want deleted just let me know and I will remove them. Let me know how I can help.

Yeah, I thought that was impossible...

I almost think I know what you're thinking of... but I think that's what screwed up my last topic...so... should I create a third topic?! Or...?

Actually, everywhere you have a post, I can cut an paste and put your entire topic in order. It would take a bit, but I would love to do it for you.

I'd like to do whatever is the least work for everyone involved and takes up the least amount of space. If you want to do what it is you said in this last post, then do it, is what I have to say... but only if you want to and it's not too much work. You must have a life somewhere...! ...Perhaps you lost it in your food pile...?

(I wonder if anyone else reads this topic...?)

Great! I will start on it tomorrow! Thanks!

[Erendayu]

Wow! Horatio actually replied!

You will be much pestered tomorrow with all the posts!! Is there any way you can bring all the actual posts to the front, including the intro and pronunciation guide guide (but they would be kept in order).

As for combining the posts, please do not! It is part of my weird style! ^_^

Thank you again!

I am unable to change the post order. I can combine posts, but not move posts. Here is what I can do... copy post content you have and place them anywhere else in another post.

 

Here is what I suggest. Start in the beginning and copy then delete the posts that should follow the posts I just moderated. Place these posts in order at the end. This way the latest posts will now be in the front. All my posts you want deleted just let me know and I will remove them. Let me know how I can help.

Yeah, I thought that was impossible...

I almost think I know what you're thinking of... but I think that's what screwed up my last topic...so... should I create a third topic?! Or...?

Actually, everywhere you have a post, I can cut an paste and put your entire topic in order. It would take a bit, but I would love to do it for you.

I'd like to do whatever is the least work for everyone involved and takes up the least amount of space. If you want to do what it is you said in this last post, then do it, is what I have to say... but only if you want to and it's not too much work. You must have a life somewhere...! ...Perhaps you lost it in your food pile...?

(I wonder if anyone else reads this topic...?)

Great! I will start on it tomorrow! Thanks!

You don't have to...

What about your life... did you leave it in the food storage area in a long-forgotten corner of your cage? I'd help you look, but not only do I not know your address, but you live about... 1000 miles away... as the crow flies...

[Erendayu]

Syllables are divided by hyphens. Emphasized syllables are caps locked

Tularin: too-LAHR-ihn

Erleft: ehr-lehft

Senurl: SEH-nehrl

[Erendayu]

The winter was cold and dark, so it could be said that some days Tularin and I talked for shorter times and sometimes longer as the barrier between where day once ended and similarly, the barrier where night once ended became vague. Despite the lights hanging all throughout the palace, many found it hard to see, especially with the shadows that seemed to lurk in every corner, absolute. It was one such night, as the day was once again waxing, that a pivotal event occurred.

The inhabitants of the palace did not frequently, like Tularin and I, visit each other in their rooms, and indeed it was only friends or family who might know at any given time the whereabouts and health of another. I had never thought that this might lead me to trouble; yet I was frightened even still of ‘Erleft’, who seemed to have great power over my course in life. Often I stayed awake in my room, thinking about what Tularin and I had talked about, or remembering with sorrow and shame my husband, ‘Senurl’, who had been forced to leave me behind in this strange, terrible world. It is thus that I can confess, with absolute certainty, that I had nothing to do with the following accusation, nor indeed would I have, even if I had thought of it!

It was one night as I actually did sleep that I awoke to a knock at the door—a rare occurrence in this place. It was a few of the officers of the guard, I believe, that is to say, those who protected the fortress. They asked me, as civilly as they could, having already made up their minds I was guilty, whether or not I had heard the news of the West Wing, to which I had never been. I, obviously, answered, “no, I had notâ€. Whereupon they told me that one of the inhabitants of the obscure West Wing, whom I had never even met, had been killed—and I was suspect! I! It is to be expected that I was rather offended by the mere suggestion, not even being sure I knew how to get to the West Wing, because wasn’t that where the powerful nobles—the power behind the throne, if you wish—dwelt! I had no reason, no desire, and no means with which to enter there, and I told them such; I told them! And they did not believe me! “When did this occur?†I asked them, as civilly as I could do to this shock. The where was obvious, the others unknown. They told me that it had occurred last night, and the time frame they gave me—I had been talking still with Tularin at that hour. Surely he would provide me with the alibi I needed to keep myself “aliveâ€.

***************************************************************************

[Horatio]

Wow! Horatio actually replied!

You will be much pestered tomorrow with all the posts!! Is there any way you can bring all the actual posts to the front, including the intro and pronunciation guide guide (but they would be kept in order).

As for combining the posts, please do not! It is part of my weird style! ^_^

Thank you again!

I am unable to change the post order. I can combine posts, but not move posts. Here is what I can do... copy post content you have and place them anywhere else in another post.

 

Here is what I suggest. Start in the beginning and copy then delete the posts that should follow the posts I just moderated. Place these posts in order at the end. This way the latest posts will now be in the front. All my posts you want deleted just let me know and I will remove them. Let me know how I can help.

Yeah, I thought that was impossible...

I almost think I know what you're thinking of... but I think that's what screwed up my last topic...so... should I create a third topic?! Or...?

Actually, everywhere you have a post, I can cut an paste and put your entire topic in order. It would take a bit, but I would love to do it for you.

I'd like to do whatever is the least work for everyone involved and takes up the least amount of space. If you want to do what it is you said in this last post, then do it, is what I have to say... but only if you want to and it's not too much work. You must have a life somewhere...! ...Perhaps you lost it in your food pile...?

(I wonder if anyone else reads this topic...?)

Great! I will start on it tomorrow! Thanks!

You don't have to...

What about your life... did you leave it in the food storage area in a long-forgotten corner of your cage? I'd help you look, but not only do I not know your address, but you live about... 1000 miles away... as the crow flies...

My life is hidden away in my sleeping quarters until I need it. Don't get too excited, I probably will not get it totally completed, but I will start.

[Erendayu]

Wow! Horatio actually replied!

You will be much pestered tomorrow with all the posts!! Is there any way you can bring all the actual posts to the front, including the intro and pronunciation guide guide (but they would be kept in order).

As for combining the posts, please do not! It is part of my weird style! ^_^

Thank you again!

I am unable to change the post order. I can combine posts, but not move posts. Here is what I can do... copy post content you have and place them anywhere else in another post.

 

Here is what I suggest. Start in the beginning and copy then delete the posts that should follow the posts I just moderated. Place these posts in order at the end. This way the latest posts will now be in the front. All my posts you want deleted just let me know and I will remove them. Let me know how I can help.

Yeah, I thought that was impossible...

I almost think I know what you're thinking of... but I think that's what screwed up my last topic...so... should I create a third topic?! Or...?

Actually, everywhere you have a post, I can cut an paste and put your entire topic in order. It would take a bit, but I would love to do it for you.

I'd like to do whatever is the least work for everyone involved and takes up the least amount of space. If you want to do what it is you said in this last post, then do it, is what I have to say... but only if you want to and it's not too much work. You must have a life somewhere...! ...Perhaps you lost it in your food pile...?

(I wonder if anyone else reads this topic...?)

Great! I will start on it tomorrow! Thanks!

You don't have to...

What about your life... did you leave it in the food storage area in a long-forgotten corner of your cage? I'd help you look, but not only do I not know your address, but you live about... 1000 miles away... as the crow flies...

My life is hidden away in my sleeping quarters until I need it. Don't get too excited, I probably will not get it totally completed, but I will start.

Oh! I thought you'd lost your life... *phew* . Thank you for doing this Horatio... or starting it!

[Erendayu]

No, it hadn't occured to me while I was typing how my post could be construed.

[Erendayu]

Syllables are divided by hyphens. Emphasized syllables are caps locked

Tularin: too-LAHR-ihn

[Erendayu]

When Tularin heard I was accused of murder, what do you suppose he did? To his credit, he did not flee, as so many others might. He did not, however, hasten to argue on my behalf. If he was there at all during the first few days of my “trialâ€, I did not see him. I do not remember my trial very well, only the last day, when, upon feeling I was about to be “sentenced†to “deathâ€, I began to weep in desperation. And there before me, as always, appeared Tularin.

“Oh, Tularin,†I cried in sorrow and despair. “You know full well I am innocent, then tell them! Tell them! I was talking with you that night—tell them I am innocent Tularin! You know what the cost shall be to me if you do not.â€

And, with the foreign look of sorrow upon his face, he… left.

Within seconds, I became overwhelmed with a feeling of shock, and betrayal. Was this the same Tularin who had brought me in from the wilds? Was this the same Tularin who had worried so when I was gone for no more than two weeks? Was this the same Tularin I had thought I loved; whom I had thought loved me? And what of his words when he had first found me? I had told him I was fleeing from[\I] death, war, and betrayal, and he, having promised to protect me from them, had brought them to me in a way so harsh that I wept unrelentingly—and so I suddenly stopped. I would not let them control me! I had my own life, my own soul! I had gone to the heart of a dragon lair and returned! And I had done this and more for them, willingly; yet they condemned me to death! They would try to kill me! Let them try! I would bring down their entire world around them, I was so angry!

And thus my self-control ceased, and with it in a flash went my mortal form. I had the wings of an angel, but not the personality, for I hated these men who would betray one who had long thought of them as kin. As kin!

“So Tularin,†I said, my voice for the first time in my life or after cold and hard, removed. “So you would betray me to my death. I, the poor fool, to have ever trusted in you! Then I vow to you all—‘You have not seen the last of me!’â€

Tularin turned towards me, so sorrowful yet I no longer cared. I fled through an open window which must’ve been at least two floors above the ground, and flew until I was out of sight, fuming. And where I headed unconsciously was back to the cave where I had first died.

[Erendayu]

Syllables are divided by hyphens. Emphasized syllables are caps locked

Chael: Kayl

Erleft: ehr-lehft

Senurl: SEH-nehrl

Tularin: too-LAHR-ihn

Tuluris: too-LOO-rihs

[Erendayu]

“You hate them, right?†a voice I did not recognized but which seemed charged in a terrible kind of ever-present fury. “You hate them because they killed you. I suppose I can’t blame you… ‘Chael’.â€

This mysterious stranger, he knew my name?

Oh woe, oh woe again!

“I can help you; you want revenge, right? I can give you the power you need to do this.†It paused, and I thought briefly on the trio to whom I felt I owed my ills. I felt something painful, yet warm flood through me.

“We will meet again, ‘Chael’,†the voice came, in its same harsh tones. “I will always be waiting.â€

With a blinding flash, it was gone.

To be honest, I forgot about it almost instantly, dwelling as I was on the betrayal of the one I had dared to trust. And then there was ‘Erleft’, who seemed to be everywhere! And his young friend. I had vowed revenge upon them and their descendents, in an odd attempt to make good use of my life after life, but it was a life without life! I had no longer my beloved ‘Senurl’, who would never have betrayed me. The only other I had dared to love had turned on me, and that horribly. Unconsciously, I began to pick apart their weaknesses from what I had seen; I began to hatch the perfect scheme for revenge.

It was simple, really. All I had to do was to put a bit of my soul into the air, and I created someone who looked only very vaguely like me. And I pulled form myself the parts of my soul that would make her the perfect “Pandoraâ€. As promised, with her I would plunge their lives into chaos, and only the lives of those three! ‘Erleft’, the king (or rather one of his descendants), and Tularin, the ones who had caused me so much pain. And I did not feel like I had lost any of my soul as all, as strange as that might sound.

As I was cleaning up from the dust of traveling and making what essentially was a manipulator of Fate, I heard a laugh. I knew at once it was the same as the voice I had heard earlier, and closed my eyes just before the blinding flash of light. When I opened my eyes, the cave was still entirely illuminated.

“So, what do you think, ‘Chael’?†a voice from behind me asked. I turned around, towards the entrance of the cave. “It will work well, ‘Chael’, your plan.â€

I turned to see a figure like a statue made of gold before me, a wicked smile upon its face. For a moment, I was afraid…

Then I reminded myself that I was already dead, and it could do me no harm.

“Who are you?†I asked it, “And what are you doing here?†“In my safe haven,†I added silently.

At this, it approached, like some sort of demented nightmare. And it laughed, low and cruel, with no glimmer of humour behind.

“I am that which you so often have longed to have destroyed. What is the story of your life ‘Chael’? And who are you without me? I am your past, your present, and your future. I killed ‘Senurl’, your beloved husband, just as I gave the king the incurable illness, oh yes! And it was I who killed the girl you were accused of killing; it was I who made them turn against you, despite all you have given them, your sacrifices. You cannot get rid of me. You have come too near me to be cured. I have given you my shadow and taken from you your hope. They call me the Shadow One, and all I come near is doomed. Doomed, do you hear?â€

I need not tell you how I felt at this revelation; that you may correctly guess with ease. What I shall tell you is that he (if so it may be called) waved his hand nonchalantly, and like petals the feathers fell from my wings. “You then, are the fallen angel, or so you will become. There is nothing that will vindicate you from the crime you are said to have committed; nothing moreover that will redeem you from your crime against the Gods! You are doomed,†he said, as my wings slowly reconstituted themselves. “I have you trapped. Do not fool yourself as to who is in charge. Remember this ‘Tuluris’, ‘Chael’: Those who fall are never meant to rise. Give up.â€

And with a cruel laugh, he disappeared once more, leaving me to fume at man for his stupidity, but moreover it, for taking my life from me and thrusting me into chaos.

[Erendayu]

That last post was tomorrow's, by the way.

[Erendayu]

Syllables are divided by hyphens. Emphasized syllables are caps locked

Senurl: SEH-nehrl

[Erendayu]

Epilogue

 

Have you seen him, then? Tell me, how does he look? I will be young forever; he has doubtless grown old and died. Oh, but have you watched him? He never laughs anymore, not as I knew him to laugh. At the very most, you will get from him a chuckle, which quickly fades off and dies! Mostly you will give a snort, even to his most loved ones, of whom I am certainly not a part! And he never smiles anymore. At the very most, you will get from him a soft, wistful smile, which dies as quickly as it is born. More frequently you will get a tight, grief-stricken grimace.

For whom does he mourn? Is it for me? Is it for him? Is it for man, which is condemned, rightly so, beneath the shadow ones.

If there ever were gods, where were they? Why did they not speak on my behalf? And where are they now? Why do they not save their precious world?

Why me? Why was it me that was chosen to suffer beneath the crushing load of the Shadow One?

But what became of him? Why will I never rest in peace? What became of ‘Senurl’ when I left?

I have not seen any of them in so long…

Did my revenge succeed? I hope not; I hope so. It is so hard, all of it. I have been wiped from the memory of man; are they better without me? Are they still so cruel; so stupid?

And what is Heaven; does it exist? Why, oh why… … …

[Horatio]

You are such a terrific writer! This is a phenomenal story.

[Erendayu]

You are such a terrific writer! This is a phenomenal story.

Does that mean you're interested in a sequel?

[Horatio]

You are such a terrific writer! This is a phenomenal story.

Does that mean you're interested in a sequel?

ABSOLUTELY !!!!!

[Erendayu]

You are such a terrific writer! This is a phenomenal story.

Does that mean you're interested in a sequel?

ABSOLUTELY !!!!!

*almost LOL'ed* *frightened, backs away*

Ooo-kkkaayyy... !!! It's on its third chapter or something. I think its longer. According to the computer, word count for DWB is 12463. Word count so far for sequel... 5886. And I'm only partway through the third chapter. And haven't even finished a post that I included. Be very afraid. This might turn out to be very long... ... ...

[Horatio]

You are such a terrific writer! This is a phenomenal story.

Does that mean you're interested in a sequel?

ABSOLUTELY !!!!!

*almost LOL'ed* *frightened, backs away*

Ooo-kkkaayyy... !!! It's on its third chapter or something. I think its longer. According to the computer, word count for DWB is 12463. Word count so far for sequel... 5886. And I'm only partway through the third chapter. And haven't even finished a post that I included. Be very afraid. This might turn out to be very long... ... ...

*is really happy hearing this news*

[Erendayu]

You are such a terrific writer! This is a phenomenal story.

Does that mean you're interested in a sequel?

ABSOLUTELY !!!!!

*almost LOL'ed* *frightened, backs away*

Ooo-kkkaayyy... !!! It's on its third chapter or something. I think its longer. According to the computer, word count for DWB is 12463. Word count so far for sequel... 5886. And I'm only partway through the third chapter. And haven't even finished a post that I included. Be very afraid. This might turn out to be very long... ... ...

*is really happy hearing this news*

...I'm not sure you care anymore, but it's almost done, only missing a few sections and editing.... It's shorter than I'd thought, but it's also unfinished, so...?

[Horatio]

You are such a terrific writer! This is a phenomenal story.

Does that mean you're interested in a sequel?

ABSOLUTELY !!!!!

*almost LOL'ed* *frightened, backs away*

Ooo-kkkaayyy... !!! It's on its third chapter or something. I think its longer. According to the computer, word count for DWB is 12463. Word count so far for sequel... 5886. And I'm only partway through the third chapter. And haven't even finished a post that I included. Be very afraid. This might turn out to be very long... ... ...

*is really happy hearing this news*

...I'm not sure you care anymore, but it's almost done, only missing a few sections and editing.... It's shorter than I'd thought, but it's also unfinished, so...?

Of course I still care. I hope you find time to post it. Arkcher is currently writing a really great story... Torrn Asunder.