Promises: Made, Broken, and Discovered

The 9th of Dvarsh 592 CE dawned hot in the hills north of Serenwilde. There it was that Maylea, Bloom of Serenity sought to create a homeland for the kaelye race upon the First World, and all of Serenwilde turned out to support the Goddess in Her endeavour. In addition to the two exuberant kaelye, Lanni Ahonen and Tore Niskanen, expectant Serens stood in coven and in ritual with the Goddess: Calfuray, Xiran, Sondayga, Qistrel, Amirae, Silvanos, Grimmia, Galaphyrae, Adrenthorne, and Nialla.

All were in hopeful spirits, and Serens called down the blessings of Mother Moon and White Hart and the Serenwilde itself to support the Goddess. Their words were sincere as their hearts, and somewhere in the ground beneath, the land answered.

Maylea, Bloom of Serenity rose into the sky and began infusing the hills and changing their character, to the wonderment of the kaelye for which She gave Herself. The shining Eye of Dynara, drawn out by Maylea for the ritual, glowed bright above the northern hills, drawing the attention of some nearby visitors, who had waited for this very moment.

Those who dwelt in the dark, southern forest had no intention of letting the event go unopposed. As Maylea endeavoured to maintain efforts She had begun, those from Glomdoring invaded the ritual, and the Elder God Nocht struggled to tear Her down from the sky and end it. And while the two Divine struggled, the remaining mortals faced off, bringing forth the might of their respective forests to aid their patron Elders.

The Serenwilde wielded considerable power in their fight. They continued to draw forth the power of the forest’s two Great Spirits – communing with Mother Moon and raising cudgels in the name of the White Hart. They sang to the land of the fae prophecies that the northern forest guards, urging it to remain true to the Serenwilde and their Goddess’s vision.

The Glomdoring would not stand by, however, and conjured forth their own magicks. Shadows grew darker, and cawing filled the air as they invoked the power of the Glomdoring’s own Great Spirits as well – Mother Night and Mighty Crow. Among them was Gael, Evette, Illyria, Esei, Tau, Kaervas, and Synl. All tirelessly working their rituals for hours on end. They whispered to the land of the power in the Wyrd, ever seeking to undermine the delicate work that Maylea attempted.

And so the communes battled, the odds tipping in favour between Glomdoring and Serenwilde several times throughout their struggle. Finally, the Silent Lord revealed a weapon He had been saving: two crystal needles, dipped in a frightening poison. With a casual flick of the wrist, he sent the poisoned darts flying into the two kaelye, Lanni Ahonen and Tore Niskanen, who were immediately paralysed, unable to move or even breathe. Serens rushed to heal the kaelye, but the poison, being intended to paralyse Divine Themselves, proved too strong for even the most devoted healers among them.

Maylea, seeing the splinters of Her sister thusly poisoned, immediately stopped the ritual. The glow faded from the Eye of Dynara and the power began to drain from the hills upon which She and Serenwilde had worked so diligently. Holding each kaelye in hand, Maylea demanded in bristling anger that Nocht reverse the poison. Nocht, on His part, noted that by their history, Maylea merely brought the event upon Herself.

It was then that Li-varili, Lady of Lagoons appeared, drawn by the Divine shouting. Taking stock of the situation: the poisoned kaelye, the God and Goddess refusing to budge in Their conflicts, Li-varili offered Herself to mediate. Nocht wished for the Eye of Dynara. Maylea needed the antidote to cure the dying kaelye. Neither trusted one another. So Li-varili naturally, would take both and exchange them on behalf of Both. As the minutes ticked down and the fate of the kaelye was placed into doubt, Maylea relented, giving Li-varili the Eye. Nocht, for His part, passed over the antidote, noting that Maylea behaved exactly in the way that He and Li-varili discussed. Maylea then knew that She was betrayed.

But the Goddess Li-varili was not yet done with Her betrayals, for while She gave Maylea the antidote to the poison, She also took the Eye for Herself, sneering and berating Nocht for His own gullibility.

She took Her leave before either Divine could react and took to the skies, where She attempted to use the Eye of Dynara for Her own purposes, only to discover She had not the power. Undeterred, She faded into Her own place, taking Her own counsel.

Meanwhile, the Goddess Maylea had soon revived the kaelye with the antidote, and rounding on Nocht, drove Him and those from Glomdoring from the northern hills.

The remaining members of Glomdoring returned to their home with the Silent Lord, but were left with many questions. Had they failed? Not quite, for the ritual had been prevented and Maylea no longer held the Eye of Dynara. Had they triumphed? Again, not quite for Li-varili’s betrayal had denied them the Eye. It seems the Glomdoring would have to wait to see how the ripples of their actions spread outwards to fully appreciate what had been accomplished on this day. The Silent Lord only whispered thanks that one of their greatest enemies no longer held such a powerful artifact, and warned those remaining to be wary of the Serenwilde.

For the part of the Serens, though the ritual failed, something was awakened in Serenwilde from the energies left from their rituals and heroic efforts – a bright vibrancy in the northern forest, confirmation of something unique to Serenwilde they had only heard of peripherally. Deep in the mists of the Spirit Plane, from the voice of Elfenehoala, a Goddess long gone, they heard the word: Seralem.