Bodil.

The horses clopped across the flat ground in a repeating rhythm. I think Kara was a sleep, I could hear a soft snoring sound from just behind me. I turned to see if I was right. It was Sigris snoring and Kara was looking over a smaller version of her map. "I thought it was you asleep." I said to her. "There will be time for that when I am dead. We aren't far from Tao. I can feel his energy already. He's nervous."You are the first people he has seen in a long time, Kara. He only has me." Sigris sadly said. "What is this?" I had spotted a strange looking bush in front of us. It's features sticking out among the rest of the plants and trees. The leaves were black with bright red berries sprouting all over. The berries had what looked like tiny spikes on them. "Berries of the dead. At least that where they grow. Where people have died from evil deaths. This small valley is scattered with them from deaths long ago. Tao chose to live here because of them. Say's no one will come for him at the risk of being poisoned." Sigris explained. "Why don't you just eradicate them? Like you would a rotting tree or crop? Isn't that safer for families?" I asked them. "They just grow back twice as much. They are a plague in the end." Kara told me.

A loud bang sounded off north of us, the sound echoing in the distance. "That would be Tao..." Sigris said laughing. "At least I am sure it is.""What the hell is he doing?" Kara asked him."Who knows?"

A few fleeing critters came running past us, probably trying to escape whatever was happening. A mans voice in he distance burst into song, the happy sound filling the forest around us. "I thought you said he was nervous?" I asked Kara. She shrugged and laughed, "Drunk I guess." Moving closer to Tao seemed to have Sigris worry more, I thought maybe out of embarrassment that his son was a crazy drunk in the woods instead of a noble warrior ready to join the Morwyn y Duwiau. He did seem to pity his son however, so maybe he was simply worried. Men like this would not have lived long where I come from. He would be run through by another man who would have thought he was crazy, or useless in the end. I hadn't thought of Uri or his men since I got here, for a small moment I felt sorry for Erik. I wondered where he was now, if he was making his life he wanted in Theramill or if he returned to working for another bastard like Uri.

"AH HAH!" Tao had jumped out from a bush next to us, startling our horses. I had pulled my axe out instinctively ready to defend myself. "Ahh, Father it is you! I knew someone was coming to see me, but seeing you fills my heart with happiness!" He patted Sigris on the leg smiling like a fool. "Kara as well I see! It is lovely to see your face again, Kara." He walked over to Kara and gripped her wrist in respect. "You... I do not know!" He said to me through thin eyes. Tao was squinting at me as if he was trying to see through me."It can not be. How did you find them, Father? Kara?" He turned towards them with shock and surprise."Let us go inside and talk, the trees have many ears." Kara said to Tao. He nodded, "Yes, you are right as always." He climbed up on Sirgis's horse, and took hold of his waist. "Home ward!" He called out. Sigris rolled his eyes and motioned for his horse to get going.

Tao's home was nothing I had seen before. It was made out of the trees, as if they had grown this way. Vines woven together to create window shutters, and a door. The entire house was a tree. I stood looking over the building in awe for a moment."Dryadalis architecture! Its a beautiful sight, its why I asked them to build my home for me." Tao informed me as he stood beside me. Walking into his home he waved for us to follow him inside. Inside wasn't as pleasant as the outside was however. While a garden and benches, a few goats and chickens roaming on the outside, the inside only house a hay bed on the ground with furs and the ceiling was strewn with more furs hanging from whatever branch was there to hang from. There were runes carved into the wooden walls. Protection, and guidance. Others like destruction, and sickness. It was strange, but then again so was everything else that was happening around me.

On another wall were pictures of the mountain and Village Mons. The mountain has a smokey figure rising from it and explosion of what I thought were stars were rising into the a sky. Below the mountain was the village with trees surrounding it, like a canopy. The people praying to the mountain. "What is this?" I asked Tao. He ignored me and brought horns for drinking to a table that stood against the runed wall. "Drinks for all!" He said as he poured honey mead into them. "Tao? What is this?" I pushed, the image fit what was happening in the world as we spoke. "Tao, we are not here for drinking and making merry. We are here.." Tao spoke over me. "You are here because the mountain is going to break. And much more then you are aware of." He said irritated. "I would like a single drink with my father before I have to relive the worst day of my life." I nodded. Feeling guilty for being pushy, but something bothered me about the image. Where was the destruction? Why were the people praying instead of fleeing? I needed answers.

Waiting patiently for Tao to have his moment, catching up with Sigris, I silently studied the drawing. The mountain, the spirit, the stars, the people covered and guarded. Over and over I looked at it. The canopy of trees that were covering the people... "Tao, this is not the mountain here, and this is not mons, is it?" I asked. He looked at me surprised. "No. It is not. It is the mountain Featerra. And those are Eladry. The Eladry that hold up the earth and hold in someone else. They sacrificed themselves to forever guard their people. To uphold The god Terra's order of peace. A silent war. A war that they are loosing. And because they are loosing, the Udøde have found a way to break through the realm.""The mountain here, Tao. It is also going to break open and spill the fire of the earth into the village." Sigris said to his son. "Yes, I know. It will happen no matter what. The island of Nef will no longer be an island. People will Die," he stopped talking for a second and took his fathers hand across the table, "The awakened will have to accept change once again, father." He said in an almost happy tone. "Tao, you talk as though this isn't a terrible thing." I said to him. "The island will no longer be and island." He repeated. "Everything needs room to grow, Bodil." He said.

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Did we ever tell Tao my name? I knew his name, but I don't remember ever being introduced by name to Tao. "A maiden of fate brought the vision. Showed herself to Bodil, Tao." Sigris said. I still didn't understand. Tao was silent. Standing up and breathing out a heavy sigh, he crossed the room and dropped into his hay bed on his knees. He was digging around for a moment and then turned around, sat straight and held a box in his hand. "William gave me this before he left forever. Together we were supposed to face Ragnarök. We were going to stop it. Things changed however and over the years I have come to realize that this was never meant for William or myself." He stood up and walked back to the table placing the box on the table. "open it, but listen to me Bodil. This item will change your life. It was pulled deep from under Featerra. It should have been left there." He nodded and left it at that and went and laid in his bed and pulled a fur up over his shoulders. I waited a moment and looked to Kara for advice. Shrugging I reached for the box. Sigris put his hand on mine before I could slid it towards me.

"Bodil..." He sighed and took his hand away and leaned back in his seat. I slid the box towards me and unclipped the lock holding it shut. Looking straight at Kara I opened the lid.

A stone was placed in the box. The stone was red, and seemed to give off a slight glow. I thought it was going to be something else. As I reached for the stone the room started to change. Mist flowing in from no where filling the space until I couldn't tell where I was.

The sounds of birds calling and singing seemed to come from a distance, the mist being so thick I was unable to see them. I knew this was the work of a god. Ota would probably appear next and give me some great warning. "Can we stop with the mist? I know its you, Ota. Coming for another visit?" I asked out loud.

A figure stepped forward out of the mist. It was definitely not Ota. A woman, with a green hue to her skin stepped forward. She was wearing a black dress that was made from scales, like a lizard. The shoulders of the dress stretched out behind her in a cape. The back of the dress was tied together with a string tightly. Her ears long, like the Dryadalis, but longer if that was possible. Her eyes were purple, her nose was small and lip thin and red. Her hair was wild and yellow and was as long as the cloak she wore. Terra.

I lowered my head to here in respect, "Terra. I did not expect you." I had forgotten her face until now. I know that she was not my friend in my past life, and I doubted very much she was willing to be a friend to me now. She looked at me un-impressed as though I was a insect. "I see you have finally been humbled, Amaia." She looked me over. "I can't imagine how upset you must be having your memories back, and being who you are now."

Yeah, I didn't think she would be kind. "I am no longer that person, Terra. I only have memories of that life." She scoffed loudly. " We will see, won't we? Do you know what that is, the red stone that you now have in your possession?" She was straight to the point. "What is it?" I asked trying to sound kind. She raised an eyebrow at me, " Its the heart of the mountain. My mountain. When it was stolen years ago, torn out of the mountain by a greedy magic using human, it nearly killed the mountain. The very mountain that had I placed there to seal the hole that was created by me, from the realm of Nef, when I left. Do you remember?" She asked me. Not really. "Yes, I do." I lied. I was not a fan of her tone, and it was starting to bother me. She scoffed again. "You were always terrible at lying." She laughed to herself. "Bring the stone back to the mountain. It will seal the gap and stop Udøde from being able to come here. As for Ødeleggeren... He has already come. He is a problem for you and your twin." "Why help me if you hate Amaia?" I asked. "Why not take the stone yourself, and stop the Udøde? Why do the gods even need Bjorn and I? We left that life long ago." "I am helping the Dryadalis, my children. They will die without the mountain to protect them. Their city is inside that mountain. They live there." She stared at me with her purple eyes. " Save them, and I will give you something in return, Bodil."

She turned her back to me and walked away without another word. Bringing the mist with her. Once again, I will sitting in Tao's dirty tree house with the three of them watching me as if I had been doing tricks for children this whole time. "What?" I asked them."What just happened?" Kara asked, "What did you see?""See? Hah, more like who did I speak to. Bloody gods and their ways. I can't even imagine I was like the rest of them. Flittering around giving orders." Sighing, I could feel the stress building up. I'm suppose to heal a mountain, stop a god like man, evacuate people from burning alive below another mountain. What could be next?

A bang at the door startled us. "Great." I said out loud. I shouldn't have asked.