Submission (#949) Approved

Final part to Ardere's rank up quest.
Elnins are a closed species by manaberry

I may try to polish/proofread the written entry at another date but as it is now, it is complete. 

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When Eyre gloams in the midday hour and the three  bodies are present in the celestial veil. Seek our words upon thrice carven menhirs upon . May  keep you and yours forever safe.  This is our counsel. Our legacy.

Ardere frowned and chewed the end of his quill ragged (his seventh for the curiously inclined). Ancient script was never his forte and yet, he must make do with the resources at hand.

Given the context of the ancient words, it would not be a great stretch of the imagination to assume that the three ‘bodies’ in the in the sky referred to the three light giving planetary bodies of archaic importance; - the Sun, the Moon and the Stars. The Sun’s blessings for the harvest, the Moon’s lullaby for the tides and the Star’s guidance for navigation. All tools essential for an ancient empire to flourish.

“When Eyre gloams in the midday though…,” mused Ardere. Why did scribes of bygone eras deem it necessary to be as cryptic as possible? Perhaps it tickled their fancy, those poor saps. Before the advent of the printing press, scribing must have been very tedious and dull indeed.

“The only time where the afternoon is as dark is as twilight with the Sun, Moon and Stars present would be during…a totality eclipse; a complete solar eclipse,” muttered Ardere thoughtfully before nodding. Yes, that too sounded right. So, in the event of a complete solar eclipse whereby all three planetary bodies are visible, the reader was supposed to seek words written upon three menhirs;- upright standing stones erected in ancient times for ritualistic purposes. At least, that was one of the supposed function of these stones. There were others and it seemed that every historian had their own opinion on it.  

As to ’s  whereabouts, if the ancient achieves from Kyendi were anything to go by, it would not be too far from the Rajasana range. Ardere knew that place. An isolated plateau about a mile across. Much too far and too wild even for the most foolhardy of tourists to traverse. But in his younger days, Ardere had been there once. Back when he-; before the-

The elnin shook his head. The ghosts of the past were not important. What was imperative was that he knew the place and if memory served him well, it was nothing more than scrubland with rocky outcrops and quartz crystal formations scattered about. The occasional geologist might venture a day or two there but otherwise, not exactly a place of epiphanies. He could be mistaken though.  Perhaps some kind of enchanted runes were used, given the specificity of the conditions.

Speaking of conditions…

Ardere glanced at the calendar on his table.  On it were not only Eyre’s dates but also phases of the moon and notable astrological events. Like that eclipse that was predicted to happen in…

Ardere’s heart gave a start. In three weeks. An eclipse would happen in Kyendi in three weeks. Was there enough time?

Another glance at the calender told him that there was. The Dusk’s influence would soon be over and it would once again be safe to travel between regions.

For a brief moment Ardere hesitated. There was that promise that he had made to Fianna, his grandkittom. He had told her that he would be awaiting her return from her quest.

But the next time an eclipse would occur in Kyendi again would be several decades from now, if he was lucky. A quick two months stint (tops) to and from Kyendi would hardly be any time at all; in the grand scheme of things.

He would start immediately, as soon as provisions could be packed and his notes given a second confirmatory read through.

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A fortnight later and Ardere finds himself back in Kyendi’s bustling capital. But he would not remain there long. A quick stop for resupplies and a letter home to Citrinin would be all the time he would allocate for his stay in Eiloen. Then another brief stop in Sulapei and finally, the Rajasana mountain range.

Ardere wiggled his paws in the soft soil. It had been a while since he had last travelled on his own and surprisingly, the isolation suited him just fine. This would be a quick site visit to confirm his literary sources, take the necessary notes (making extra footnotes if the stones yielded any novel knowledge) and then head back home once again. There was a teaching position open back in Enmir and a couple of semesters living the quiet life while he wrote out his findings sounded ideal.

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A week later and Ardere was within Rajasana’s shadow. While he had been of high spirits previously, a quiet gloom had started to settle on him like a shroud. Would this really be alright? He was…entering overwild territory. A place known for haboring all manner of fey creatures.

It will be alright. Ardere consoled himself. As long as he observed the proper warding spells and was respectful of nature, he would be left alone (hopefully). He would need to hurry though as the eclipse would take place three days from now. And his route would take him two. There was no turning back. He would see this through.

When Ardere finally arrived as his destination two days later, the elnin was quick to set up camp before going in search of those three standing stones. His search did not take long however as the plateau was small and would take a person with very poor eyesight indeed to miss the three massive monoliths located in its centre.

But as expected, the faces of the monoliths were bare of any writings and cold to the touch. The scattered quartz crystals strewn about the landscape as just as unassuming as he remembered.

All that was left was to wait. And wait he would.  There were things he could do to pass the time. Such as getting the campfire started, reading, writing or even cooking. Lumin his pomu, would also be on hand to keep him company and while away the lonely night.

The next day dawned bright and early with nary a cloud in the sky. Ardere made himself a quick breakfast of coffee and toast (the bread was getting stale anyway) and waited impatiently for midday to arrive.

As the hour of noon approached, the atmosphere atop the plateau became noticeably subdued. Birds stopped singing and the shadows cast strange shapes upon the ground. There was also a chill in the air as the sun’s warming rays were muted and temperatures dropped.

In the ensuing darkness, shadows of the past flickered across his field of vision.  Looking beyond the shadowed veil of the eclipse Ardere could see the ghostly remnants of what was once his village nestled within the shadows of the Rajasana mountains …

Tears welt up in his eyes. It had been a bad Vigil that year. Ul’uien’s blessings had been sparse and a quiet terror had descended upon village as grim faced, they prepared themselves for the coming Dusk. But it was in vain. Their town had been too far out; too exposed to the mercy of the overwilds.  By the time the knights arrived…

Even as they took him and what few villagers there were that remained alive, Ardere knew that he would never be a match for these creatures. Long of claw and sharp of teeth. His folks were humble folks, they all were. Living their day to day lives to the best of their capabilities.

But what he lacked in battle prowess, Ardere had sworn that knowledge would be his weapon. Learn about them, what they are afraid of and potentially, what could deter them from ever ravaging villages ever again. And to that effect, he had been somewhat successful. Creating and patenting light sources that could act as a deterrent to lesser fey creatures.

In that hour of darkness, what he had previously assumed to be unassuming quartz crystals were starting to emit a soft glow of their own and in response, runes began to emerge on the carven stones. Runes of the Sun, Moon and Star appeared and with them, the knowledge of the past.

Ardere’s head began to throb as a curious humming noise began his ears. The sensation was not altogether unpleasant but it was starting to cloud his mind.  Standing almost became a chore.

Sleep, that was what he needed. What his mind was telling him to do. Slowly Ardere sank to his knees. Here he would rest. Beneath the darkening world he would slumber.

To seek the light, you must chase the darkness.

Ardere’s ear twitched. He clearly heard a voice but not one which he recognized. Forcing his eyes open, the elnin noticed that the runes upon the standing stones were getting brighter as the world around him darkened.  Forcing himself up, Ardere stood before the monoliths.

“Tell me what I must do…,”

Strength, for you to thread the darkness came the susurrated reply.

Courage to face the shadows.

Determination to carry on.

Intellect to face challenges.

Morals to guide your steps.

On and on the words flowed, driving the elnin to the point of giddiness with its unending chorus.

And finally, at the edge of consciousness, Ardere thought he heard….

Power to bring about change.