After a restless night of idle conversations and stargazing, we are now sitting at the Temple, a place usually reserved for the Mothers and Mages to meditate in peace. It is not my first time here though, I just noticed this is the place where I was born.
“Who are they?”
Nadya whispered to me, referring to Cedric’s candidates kneeling at our left side. The Temple consist of a lake with a statute of Jörð at the center and a beautiful garden with flowers and trees I have never seen in my life surrounding it. Mother Eva, Lelyah and Cedric are looking at us from the land while we are kneeling at the base of the statue.
“They are the same as us, but for the hunters.”
Sadly, it just came to me that I did not know their names.
“We are united here in front of our Mother for one of the most important days of your life.”
Lelyah started speaking in a solemn voice, echoing through the garden. My head hurts from the lack of sleep and because I only had fruit for breakfast, so her voice sounded even more menacing to me.
“We all have been preparing you for this very moment, today you will leave on a journey to prove you deserve to be part of the chosen race. This is the culmination of your life as an elf, from now on it is up to you to regain your place in the village as one.”
She is making it sound ten times scarier than when she told me the same thing.
“Women, today you leave the village as apprentices and in ten years, you have a responsibility to return here and become Mages. Use that time wisely to hone your magical abilities, for you will have to come here and prove your expertise by learning and performing either one of the four primordial basic spells in less than three days.”
The mind, the flesh, the world and the nature; the four pillar of primordial magic that Jörð supposedly taught directly to the first elves she ever created. They are incredibly powerful magic, secretly guarded by the Mothers. Lelyah explained the basic principles behind them but never showed me an actual spell. Mastering one in three days is almost impossible, lucky for me I do not have to worry about that anymore.
“Men, today you leave the village as candidates and in ten years, you have a responsibility to return here and become Hunters. Use that time wisely to hone your hunting abilities, for you will have to come here and prove your expertise by hunting one Eirdegon in less than three days, the guardian spirit of our forest.”
The boys certainly do not have it any easier; the Eirdegon is a medium sized deer with crystal shiny antlers and bluish fur, from what I know it is incredibly fast and smart.
“Should you accomplish that, you will be honored to once again enter the village as recognized children of Mother Jörð and your legacy will continue as progenitors of the new generation. Should you fail, you will be disgraced as failed beings, mere beasts, losing any ties with the elven race.”
Wait, what was that about progenitors of the new generation, I never heard of it. Everything sounded bad already, but that thing is straight out of a shady sect.
“Worry not, I trust we have trained you accordingly and you will gloriously return in ten years. Now rejoice and receive the blessings of your Mother, may you safely complete this trial.”
The earth shackled and a tremendous amount of mana started emanating from within the lake, soon after the statue of Jörð glimmered with a white light that engulfed our bodies. It seem they activated some kind of powerful spell; my body felt light and relaxed, all the pain and stress suddenly disappeared and I felt strangely at peace. It was like a drug, I just felt good without a reason.
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“Now go, embark on a journey of a lifetime.”
Lelyah declared and the spell stopped. With their hands, they signaled us to stand up and walk towards them. In less than thirty minutes, the ceremony was over; it was simple and to the point as you would expect from the elves.
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As soon as we arrived, Cedric took the boys with him and they left without saying a word, leaving us four behind.
“Go to your cabins and dry yourselves up. We will be waiting at the entrance of the village.”
“Thank you, Mother Eva.”
“Nadya, I assume you can find the way to the cabin on your own? I need Agafya to help me with something.”
“Of course Mother Lelyah, if you excuse me.”
Lelyah grabbed me by the shoulder before I could move.
“Do not be late.”
Mother Eva, as always, did not care about her surroundings and just walked on her own after saying that. Leaving the two of us alone.
“Did you like the ceremony Agafya?”
“It was short, and that last thing was quite… something.”
“How did it feel, it was a healing spell applied directly to your mind.”
Now that I think about it, my head no longer hurts and I do not feel hungry anymore.
“Too good, it felt like I was doing something illegal. Was that primordial magic?”
“Yes. From the four pillars, the mind is the most interesting. It gets you access to some peculiar abilities, especially offensive ones. There are spells capable of wrecking an entire army, too bad war is no longer a profitable endeavor for us.”
Lelyah once again displayed that weird smile, like a kid about to misbehave. I cannot image her fighting in a war, she would devastate her enemies in an instant.
“Were you ever in a war Lelyah?”
“I fought the demon troops from Castella when they tried to invade the forest two hundred years ago, but that hardly classify as a war. Just a few days of scaring filthy demons back into their place.”
According to the history books, at some point the demons and the elves were at war with each other, fighting over the control of the forest. When the elves managed to erect the barriers around each village, it seems all major battles stopped and things gradually calmed down.
“Maybe when you return and master the mind pillar just like me, you could lead us into reclaiming Lycori. I cannot imagine the terrifying tactics your crazy mind could produce.”
“Seeing you perform that spell up close, it would be a miracle if I ever managed to do that.”
“If you just practice what I taught you every day, you will have no problem at all.”
I hate to disappoint you, but I do not plan to return here. And it pains me that you consider me some kind of maniac fit for warfare.
“Who knows.”
“Well, leaving that aside. I have one last request for you. I need you to escort Nadya until you arrive at Listeria and once you are there, to make sure she joins a guild.”
Lelyah being concerned for another elf? What is happening?
“She might look like that, but she is capable at magic. I do not want her to starve to death while crossing the forest, she is important to ensure our village’s strength. Once you introduce her to a guild, everyone will be fighting to have someone who can use magic join their party. Plus, those beasts are always happy to serve and protect us.”
Probably because we all look like angels as long as we do not speak. It will not even be fair to compare us to the average human woman, especially considering elves do not age.
“Do not worry, I was planning to cross the forest with her either way. Being three days alone there would kill me out of boredom.”
“I am glad you can help me. Now hurry up, I will be waiting for you at the entrance.”
Lying to Lelyah hurt me. Her motivations might have not been the correct ones, but she was the only one who actually recognized me as part of the village. After Lada’s memory, she was the other piece keeping me together during the last year. I am ashamed to admit it, but I am going to miss her.
“What… are you doing?”
Lost in my thoughts, I inadvertently ran and gave her hug. She was obviously taken aback and just stood there, stiff as a rock, not knowing how to react.
“I am the worst person for saying this but, in just a year, you were a better mother than my real one.”
“What weird things are you whispering about?”
“Nothing. Thank you for everything.”
I let Lelyah go and ran with all my power before I could do any other stupidity. Cursing once again at my inability to cry, I bid my final farewell to this place.
Goodbye elven village.
Goodbye mother.