Nalini is a wandering Magus who uses a flute as a catalyst. Nalini is searching for something to give meaning to her life.
During her travels, this pied piper stumbles upon a mysterious elven city. The magical creatures that live in the border of this forest live in fear of the elves.
In order to help them out, Nalini decides to infiltrate the elven city. She takes over the body and mind of one of the citizens, an elven little girl, who is the daughter of an influential nobleman.
Through her eyes, Nalini starts discovering the sinister underbelly of this beautiful elven city.
#books #saturnastra #teresitablanco #fairy #elf #magic
Chapter 7
The last person I checked on was Nalini. She was combing her hair in front of her mirror. She wore an immaculate nightgown, which left her shoulders exposed. To bid away the darkness, she had a lighted candle. Its timid light kept flickering from time to time, even though the night was still. Heck, ever since I had taken all the animals, Vaikus had solidified his dominion over the forest. Like Meredith, Nalini found the silence unbearable. She had taken to singing to fight off the silence. As she sang, she saw a pale face reflected in the mirror. Turning around, she saw Grimiere looming over her. She gave a sign of relief when she recognized his face. For a moment, she imagined I had returned.
In a somber voice, she said, “I detest this forest, more than ever!”
He stroked her shoulder gently. Nalini passed her cheek over his hand. His caress made her hairs stand on end. The affection he was showing her made me really jealous. The thought that he would defile my favorite toy, made me furious. To distract her, I said to Nalini, “You know, the flute has nothing to do with my mind control.”
When she “heard” my voice, she started looking around in a fright. Grimiere realized that I had made contact with Nalini. Softly, he asked, “What did she say?”
Timidly, she responded, “Something about the flute not having anything to with mind control…”
“I figured as much…” remarked Grimiere.
“Is she a Goddess, perhaps?” asked Nalini.
“I wonder…” said Grimiere, more to himself than Nalini. He kept pondering on Lara and her apotheosis. Despite my show of omnipresence, he sincerely doubted that I was goddess. In my home, we only had THE God, and for us, the rest where simply Guardians. But I digress… my interruption killed the mood.
Grimiere made his way up his mage tower. Unlike the rest of the palace, the flame held bright, and red. They did not look tainted by the presence of Ortisa. Grimiere was still strong in his domain. When he opened the door to his study, the silver flames covered the entire room. These flames however did not burn its surroundings. Grimiere passed through the flames at its center stood a tiny idol of a serpent wrapped around a stylized tree. He kneeled before the idol, holding his hands in the universal prayer position.
In a languid voice, Lara said, “We are not alone…”
“I know, I know,” Grimiere added, “Even if I could have true privacy. It would not take her much effort to siphon my memories.”
“Odani found a way to block her,” remarked Lara in a hissy voice.
“So I heard…” sighing, Grimiere before saying, “Alas, while he grows stronger yet, we become weaker…”
“You knew this dream would not last forever,” said Lara sadly.
“Aren’t Gods supposed to be eternal?” demanded Grimiere.
“Your human blood betrays you, Grimiere! How very human of you to desire permanence…” said Lara mockingly. In a darker tone, she said, “Indeed my cult is dying. Without my proper worship, my powers diminish. These days, the name Berthame is in everyone’s lips. ”
“So, it has been for the last 200 years,” remarked Grimiere shuddering.
Grimiere remembered the first time he met Berthame. About 197 years ago, a plague of wars swept the land. A band of berserkers, led by Berthame and his 21 generals started conquering the lands. The first region he conquered was Veragerung. It was berserker tradition that the strongest warrior would inherit the throne. One day, Berthame came out of nowhere and challenged the king to a duel. After his victory, in three years he organized the rivaling berserkers’ tribes into something that resembled a federation. Under his command, he had the 21 tribal leaders, all whom he had defeated in a 21 to one match. His ferocity won him many allies. In no time, he had an army of 5000 warriors. He had even tamed a few dragons, a Sphinx and a Minotaur. Due to the rudimentary nature of the berserkers, no one took Berthame seriously, until it was too late. Berthame had great military knowledge and ingenuity. For every warrior he lost, the enemy lost 1000. There were even rumors that Berthame had single handedly obliterated an army of 10,000 men.
Whether, those rumors where true or not, mattered not. What was certain was that all who opposed him suffered a terrible death. In the past, the conquerors of old simply annihilated the enemy’s army, pillaged the city.
23 июл 2024
