Chapter 5



Ardette seemed more moody than usual the next morning as she and Davion rode through the already crowded streets of An Ardal. Davion wasn�t sure exactly how to deal with her sudden change in demeanor. Though she was always serious and a smile rarely touched her lips, she at least seemed to have at least some kind of control on her emotions and she never seemed overly upset. But now she rode as if she was on the verge of a complete and udder breakdown. She seemed not to notice anything around her and on several occasions she would have run into a hastily moving citizen if Elvenwing had not been looking out for her. Elvenwing also seemed to be concerned about her rider�s mood. She did not seem quite prepared to be the one in control, though she was definitely quite skilled at it. Davion wondered about the intelligence of this horse. She seemed just a little too smart to be an ordinary mount.

They reached the pier and began to move down the dock to the great ship that would take them to the Isle of Ostandi. The crew was busily making preparations for the voyage and the captain was helping with the work right alongside his crew. When he saw Davion approach he finished tightening a sail rope and headed over to the pair as they boarded the ship.

�Hello, my Lord Davion,� the captain bowed. �The ship will be ready to sail shortly. The sea seems to be in good sorts. We should be able to reach Ostandi on schedule.�

�Wonderful, Captain,� Davion said pleasantly. �Ardette, this is Captain Tirsten, the best sailor in Anari.�

�My Lord is too kind. I am just a simple voyager of the seas. It is nice to meet you, Lady Ardette.�

�I�m charmed, Captain Tirsten,� Ardette said almost absently. �Thank you for taking us to Ostandi.�

�Anything for my Lord Davion,� Tirsten said cheerfully. �If you�ll excuse me, I must see to the rest of the preparations. We�ll be setting sail shortly; make yourselves at home.� Tirsten walked off to help a group of men tightening a sail.

�He�s very professional,� Davion stated watching the crew finish their preparations. �His crew is the best on the sea. I like his ship. The voyage should be pleasant.�

�Mmm,� Ardette said absently. She walked off to the bow and looked out into the sea. Davion came up behind her and reached out to put a hand on her shoulder, but at the last moment withdrew it.

�What�s the matter, Ardette?� He asked in genuine concern. �You�ve been quiet all morning.�

�Nothing�s the matter. I�m just not in the mood to talk.�

�You can tell me, Ardette,� Davion stepped closer to her side. �Something happened last night.� Ardette held back for a second as if uncertain that the words would leave her lips.

�Darienne came to see me,� she said in a small voice.

�What? Are you all right? Did she-�

�We talked, that�s all. She couldn�t have done anything anyway. She sent her shadow.�

�So nothing else happened? You two just talked?�

�Yes, nothing else happened.� Ardette paused. �She killed her. She took my mother�s life. She�s really gone, Davion.� She turned, put her arms around Davion�s neck, and wept bitterly. Davion couldn�t be sure if she was talking about Darienne or her mother. As the ship set sail, Davion held Ardette in his arms and let her cry the bitter tears of regret.

* * *

Ardette had never seen the sea before. There was a subtle calm to it, a serenity that no being could touch. As Ardette looked into the blue depths, she started to connect to it, to feel the gentle tranquility that was the call of the sea. Her troubles shrank to insignificance in its awesome presence. What difference did the concerns of a young, rash unknowing girl make to the sea? Would the sea care if her dreams fell into despair? Would the sea cry over her lost family? Would the sea miss her if they never saw each other again? Of course it would not. Or maybe it would. Maybe the sea welcomed those that sought its calm solitude. Maybe it wanted people to see its immensity only to share in that glory for just a second, to show the beauty that it held, so that it too was not alone anymore. Yes, the sea cared, the sea wept, the sea knew. It was alive and strong. It was boundless but not unreachable. It simply was.

�Beautiful, isn�t she, m�Lady?� Captain Tirsten stated in a calm and knowing voice. His hoarse, gruff voice seemed to fit perfectly with the sea. Though the tone was different, the inflections and gentleness was there.

�Yes, Captain, she is beautiful,� Ardette replied. �Do you always refer to her as a she?�

�Of course. How else would you call her?� Captain Tirsten asked. �In a strange way, she is my soul mate. Let�s be honest, m�Lady, I�d make a poor husband. I�m really rough around the edges and I have it on the best authority that I snore. I won�t do a woman the injustice of being tied down to me. But the sea don�t care about that sort of stuff. She likes me for who I am, and I guess, in a some ways, I love her. She�s all the wife I�ll ever really need.�

�How profound, Captain,� Ardette smiled. �But it does make a lot of sense, I guess.�

�That it does, m�Lady, that it does. But we can drop the Captain part. We�re friends, aren�t we? Call me Tirsten.�

�All right, Tirsten, but you must call me Ardette. Agreed?�

�Deal. Ya know, you�re all right, for a woman that is.� Tirsten grinned impishly, knowing that he was pressing his luck.

�Likewise, Tirsten, likewise. I could almost think you had a brain in that head of yours.� If he wanted to play, she would play.

�That�s a girl! You�ll do all right.� Tirsten said, laughing in delight. �She is a beauty. This is a perfect view of her.�

�Yes it is. She is without limits, without restraints in form and grace. Serenity flows easily from her.�

�She�s not completely without restraints. Take that for instance.� Tirsten pointed to the far off coast of the now approaching island.

�True, but the island gives her beauty an added element, wouldn�t you say?�

�That�s true enough. She is a boundless sapphire, that rushes past coasts of diamond and emerald.�

�You have the soul of a poet, Tirsten. I�m surprised�

�Ah, no poet�s soul here, just a poet passenger or two. They write a lot of verse about this very view. That�s one of my favorites. Though many of them are even more interested in the name. They say that Ostandi means endless beauty.�

�Poetic, but its hardly accurate. Actually, Ostandi means gentle wisdom in Breasail, the language of the Faeries.�

�That fits I guess, seeing as that the greatest university in the world is located on it. I figured that Aerith meant wisdom, since that�s where the university resides.�

�It does, but its origin is Elvish. Different words, same meaning. It was a way to show unison in the Council, at least among the Immortal members.�

�So have the nymphs named anything, then?�

�Actually, the Nymphs don�t really have names for things. They have common names like table or tree, but no true proper names, besides the names of their people. I think it has to do with natural order and not singling any one thing over anything else.�

�That makes sense, I guess. Well, I hate to break up a great conversation, but if I leave the crew to its own devices, it�ll be winter before we reach the isle. Good day, m�Lady, er, Ardette.�

�Good day, Tirsten.�

* * *

The Isle of Ostandi was the ancestral home of the Immortal beings. Elves, Faeries, and Nymphs all lived in peace and harmony on this sacred island. When the Arts were given to mortals, a select few were chosen to represent the mortal Arts when making a decision. The city of Aerith was built as a place where the mortals who were chosen could interact with the representatives of the Immortal races. They soon formed a council that looked over all of the Arts and guided those who used them to keep the world in more or less one piece. The Council was originally formed of seven members. A Sage would be chosen to represent the Natural Arts. An Oracle would represent the Spirit Arts. A Sorcerer stood in the Council to speak for the Will Arts. An Arcaine Mage was the first to represent the Arcaine Arts. But, since these members were mortals, they would die and have to be replaced. The Sage would choose his or her successor by connecting to nature and feeling a sage with the skills needed to do the job. The Oracle would choose a successor in much the same way although using his or her visions. Since Sorcerers are slightly immortal, they can live for several millennia. There have only been two Sorcerers on the Council in the nine thousand years that its been formed. The Arcaine torch was past by cycle. After a Mage died, an Arcaine Warrior was chosen, followed by an Arcaine Healer, then an Arcaine Guardian. After a Guardian died, the cycle would repeat and an Arcaine Mage was chosen. These four mortal members were joined by Vedan, an Elf of the High Clan, Gea, a Faerie of the Whitewings, and Olara, the Queen of the Nymphs. Since these three were Immortal, they were still on the Council. At this time, the Council had nine members. After the priesthood was formed, the Archpriestess was asked to sit on the Council. The Council also realized that the Spirit Arts needed more than an Oracle to represent it. A Witch was also asked to sit in, so that the earthly spirits would be represented as well as the spirits in the other realm.

Ardette was a little apprehensive about meeting with the Council. She still had no idea why they would want to meet with her. She had a feeling it had to do with her mother and possibly her sister as well, but she was still clueless as to what could be so important that it would draw her away from the Tower. As she and Davion led their horses off of Tirsten�s ship, her anxiety began to gnaw at her even more. Could she have done something wrong? Maybe her title was going to be stripped. As they saddled up and rode out of the small harbor village towards Aerith, Ardette began to feel the small twinges of panic. She decided that panicking was going to get her nowhere, so she drew calmness around herself. She began to think of the one good thing that would come out of this visit. She finally would be able to understand what was happening with her powers. If she could get an answer to that question, this whole journey would be worth it. Her panic shifted into impatience and she started to push Elvenwing into a gallop. Davion grabbed the reins from her and slow her back to a canter.

�I know you�re anxious, Ardette, but you must be patient. We will get to Aerith soon enough.� Davion said in a complacent voice.

�I know,� Ardette replied, slightly abashed. �It�s just that I have so many questions that the Council can answer and I want to know those answers now.�

�Trust me, Ardette, we will get there in no time.� Davion gave her a reassuring smile.

�All right, we�ll do it your way.� Ardette impulsively grabbed Davion�s hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. Like it had so many times before, Davion�s aura swirled violently, but this time as it subdued, Ardette was able to get a glimpse of what he had always hidden before. After a rush of emotion, underneath the surface was contentment in her touch. Slowly, she pulled her hand away. He gave her an innocent friendly smile as if nothing had happened, which meant he had not realized what his aura had just told her. Not sure how to take this new development, Ardette decided to think of other things and deal with this after she had met the Council.

They rode on, talking idly, for most of the day. They stopped once, shortly after noon, to take a small meal and then they were on their way again. Just as the sun was setting and painting the sky with vibrant reds and oranges, they topped a knoll and looked down at the city of Aerith.

It was the most beautiful place Ardette had ever seen. The city was walled, but the wall was not very high and seemed to be built more for aesthetic value than for any means of protection. The wall, as well as the rest of the city, was built of gleaming white marble. Towers rose from certain points on the wall, but they, like the wall, were built for beauty more than function. The streets were wide and clean and paved in marble as well. The city seemed to be sectioned off, each sections serving a different purpose. The eastern part of the city was given to the university. This was the largest center of learning in the world and it showed. The buildings had an elegance that stated that the people here were meant to learn great things. The northern part of the city was largely residential, as was the southern part. These were where the scholars and students resided, as well as the regular citizens of Aerith and a visitor or two. The unique quality of Aerith was that mortals were permitted to stay there and live among the immortal beings. The only other place where mortals were permitted was the harbor village and the road between it and Aerith. Immortals did not go to the village, though, so Aerith was truly the only place where mortal and immortal lived together. The western section of the city was a large park. Beautiful gardens and magnificent fountains filled the entire area. All citizens were allowed to spend as much time as they wished in that park, so long as they finished their work of course. The last section was in the center of the city. It was a large islet in a perfectly circular lake. Graceful marble bridges connected the islet to the rest of the city. On the islet was beautiful marble building where the Council resided.

As Ardette looked at this wondrous place, she began to feel a strange aura coming from Davion. She looked over and saw that Davion�s eyes were filled with anger and regret. She then remembered what this place must mean to him. She realized that to Davion, this place was a prison and a reminder of the lack of a home. This was the chain that kept him from his true self. She then remembered that that was another question she had for the Council. She was determined to find out what purpose his enslavement could have.

�Shall we go,� Ardette said to Davion in a determined voice.

�Ladies first,� Davion said politely. Ardette pushed Elvenwing into a sedate trot and rode purposefully into the city of Aerith.


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