Hishik BW XXXVIII
Hishik was woken by a female’s voice, “Hail, Queen Merrinien, thank you for granting us audience,” it called and the Gnome at once became alert, though he knew he was still dreaming.
“So Milai, you have come home, and we welcome you gladly.” Hishik saw a magnificent white hall, the length of which was bounded by two rows of blue, marble pillars. The floor was in two halves: the upper (as Hishik viewed it) was inlaid with silver stars, and the lower, a wonderful depiction of a vast galleon, was fashioned with inlaid precious metals and gems. The galleon carried elves over threatening seas to a green landscape beyond. The pillars supported a huge, vaulted roof which – at the centre – rose to a massive dome, the top of which was open to the stars. The dome was burnished silver on which six dragons were depicted, again, with wonderous precious metals and stones. Directly below the centre opening of the dome, rising from the marble floor was a vast platform, shaped to represent the forecastle of a warship. Sat on a magnificent golden throne in the centre of the platform was a stunning sea elf whose long, blonde tresses flowed like a fountain from her head and cascaded to her shoulders and finally pooled on her lap and on the throne. She wore simple ceremonial, scale male under robes of sea-green silk.
Her huge green eyes regarded the visitors kindly. “You have had a difficult journey and have borne a great weight for the Prime. Now that your task is over and you have chosen the purest route, would you not stay here and take your eternal rest amongst the beauty of the sea and under the shining, silver stars?”
Standing just before the forecastle, heads bowed, Hishik saw Milai, Dafydd and another, much smaller elfin figure flying close by, who was not bowed but instead was looking around in wonder. This figure, Hishik realised, was not completely corporeal; instead her form was in outline only, coloured in (as it were) deepest shades of blue, green and indigo, which moved and swirled to make her even more indistinct.
“My Lady, I still have much to do on the Prime, to ensure that Odin’s wishes are carried out. I return here with the Sylph, Lulna,” Milai indicated, unnecessarily, the floating miniature blue elfin figure next to her, “and have a request.”
“We welcome Lulna,” the Queen stood and bowed, “what is it that you ask, Milai?”
“As you know, Lulna is a Flore, the most ancient and wise of the Sylph,” Milai started, carefully regarding the Lady on the platform, looking – it seems to Hishik – for signs of mistrust, “and is now…homeless, I suppose.”
“And you seek for her a home? Or should we say a host?”
“I do my Lady, someone that understands the seas, rivers, lakes and wonderous waterfalls that exist on the prime. Someone who knows the rhythms of the tides and can calm turbulent waters whilst understanding their powers, be that for good - to irrigate the land, for example, or as a destructive force to re-shape and mould the Prime.”
“And you believe one such host might reside here in the seven heavens?” the Queen asked as she descended the stairs that lead down from her throne to the marble floor.
“Perhaps, my Lady, one of your folk who has crossed the silver seas from Gladsheim? I no longer have the voice to entreat Aegir, whose Flore this is.” Milai looked down momentarily and it seemed to Hishik that there was regret in her eyes.
“My Lady Milai, we will ask Aegir for you, for without his permission Lulna may not take up a new host.”
“I thank you, my Queen.” Milai said sincerely. “My Friend Dafydd, a good Priest of Odin, has asked for counsel in the matter, and the All Father has reached out to the God of the Seas.” Milai paused to allow Dafydd the opportunity to speak.
“My Lady,” began the Cleric, stammering slightly, in awe of the wondrous beauty before him, “Odin has requested that Aegir comes to your realm, at the edge of worlds, to meet us and consider our proposal.” Milai interrupted, “We hope that, at that meeting, you might have a host for Lulna, which Aegir might accept. I’m afraid we cannot dally on the matter as we believe all evil Flore have hosts and, apart from one, all have serpents – one being that of your neighbour’s most hated foe.”
“There are few that reside here that understands and respects the balance of things – we all weep at life lost. However, one flows to mind…” the Queen paused to think and looked into Dafydd’s eyes for long enough to make him blush, “Yes, yes,” she whispered as she walked past the trio towards the entrance to the Hall. Milai, Dafyyd and Lulna all followed her at a respectful distance behind. As she arrived at the end of the Pillars, Hishik saw two huge wooden doors open before her magically. When closed they resembled the stern of a galleon, now open Hishik looked out onto a polished, pale wood deck, raised high above the waters which lapped at it gently. Suddenly, just as they step from marble to wood, the deck moved, rapidly forward, but the acceleration was not felt by the small group. Dafydd, unaccustomed to normal sea travel, reached for the low rail which ran the length of the deck. As Hishik looked around him, a ship seemed to form, complete with sails, rigging, and crew; a ship propelled by non-existent wind, to incredible speed. Even Milai looked impressed. Before long, the company arrived at a long, beautiful shoreline, broken only by small clusters of rounded rocks at the base of which pebbles danced and jostled in the surf. Just behind one such grouping where the land rose steeply from the pebble-dashed beech and water fell from a more distant cliff top, to pool and snake towards the surf, stood an elf. Surprisingly, for one of her race, she had auburn hair, tied high on her head, and she wore the leathers and boots of one more accustomed to the land rather than the sea. Standing upright, she was much taller than her kin too. Milai liked her instantly. There was something so different about this elf, something that reminded Milai of her own youth, before the woes of the Prime descended to her shoulders at the death of her father.
“Hail, Tordinnyar, I have brought a visitor to you.” Called the Queen.
“Hail, Queen Merrinien, I gladly receive your visitors;” a wide, beautiful smile split the elf’s face - who seems overjoyed to have company, “who are they, prey tell?”
The Queen introduced the Party and explained why they had come; however, as she began to talk about Lulna and what she was, the sea behind her bubbled and boiled, sending great plumes of water high into the air. A huge club, fashioned in the shape of a woman, which Hishik believed was a galleon’s figurehead, broke the surface, before being joined by the bearded face of an enormous Norseman. As if rising from the depths, the Giant figure strode towards the ship, which gently bobbed in the shallows, revealing more of his vast, naked torso. All on the ship bowed but the she-elf hopped from rock to rock, finally leaping onto the deck staring up at the huge man, and calling, “All hail Aegir, God of Sea, feeder of storms, smasher of rocks and extinguisher of fires!”
The giant’s voice boomed, gurgling like many rivers flowing to the sea and crackling like waves hitting rocks on the shore, “Odin bid me here, what of it Ladies?”
“We seek you blessing, my Liege, blessing for your Flore here – Lulna – to be joined with the elf you know as Tordinnyar.”
Tordinnyar, whirled around, smile suddenly leaving her, “What?” she asked the Queen incredulously.
Ignoring her, Queen Merrinien addressed the God again, “we have urgent need of a host for the Flore, before it is too late.”
“Me?” asked the auburn-haired beauty again, “why me?”
Milai spoke, “Because you are like I once was, you love the seas, rivers and lakes, you understand their natural forces and we have great need of you on the Prime.”
The Giant bent down to regard the chosen one carefully, “You are a good choice Tordinnyar; it has my blessing but in this realm I would not force anything upong the unwilling. It is also Lulna’s decision.”
All eyes turned to the sylph who floated close to Milai. The two exchanged looks and, again, Hishik saw regret in both their eyes. Milai said, “She agrees…”