"Anna." A voice rings out in the darkness. The sleeping Anna opens her eyes and looks around. "Hm? Whozat?" She stands, spotting a soft glow of light beyond the doorway of the cabin. Exiting out onto the deck, she finds herself alone. Dark storm clouds gather around the sloop, the waters of the ocean eerily calm. "Anna. You've come so far in so little time. You'll go so much further, though." A single light peers down, piercing the thick clouds and alighting upon the dark elf's face.

"Who..." Anna squints in confusion before a small smile spreads across her face. "Sola-Ret." A warmth fills her soul, and she kneels.

From the light come a figure, descending until it floats just above the waves of the sea. Dark skin lit by the glow of a soft light, figure wrapped in a pure white stola, golden eyes unblinkingly holding Anna's gaze and ashen hair floating as if the being we're submerged. The form of the dark elf Samara speaks again, though the voice is not that of her friend. "My dear child. Your path has been wrought with danger these past few days. You haven proven yourself strong of heart, but your fight with those dark spirits left much to be desired."

The dark elf lowers her head. "I'm sorry. I did not mean-" "Hush." Sola-Ret leans down, putting a finger to Anna's lips. "You fought valiantly. It's time for you to grow again, and thus I have a gift for you." A light flashes, blinding Anna for a moment, and she covers her eyes. When the light dissipates, Sola-Ret holds out a book to her, a tome bound in tanned leather with a script written across it that the dark elf cannot understand. "So...It's a book?"

The form of Samara laughs softly, a gentle laugh that reverberates around them. "Yes, a book. Within it, you'll find three simple spells that I think may help you and your companions. I am so very looking forward to the light you'll bring to the world." The spirit kisses the elf softly on her forehead. "Continue on your path, my child. Do not let anything lead you astray."

"Wait!" Anna calls out. She stops, hand to her mouth as Sola-Ret tilts her head. "I'm sorry. It's just, I wanted to know something."

The figure smiles, resting upon the side of the sloop. "You are curious about many things, I'm sure. Ask any question you desire, and I will answer so long as I am able."

Anna leans against thee railing, watching the storm clouds for a moment before she speaks up. "You could have chosen anyone to share your power with. Why did you choose me?"

"In that moment, you were the best option. To redeem a surface dweller is one thing. But a darkling who has had all remorse and pity carefully trained out of her, yet cries for the loss of her friend? That is a true gift. So I pounced on the opportunity." The being eyes Anna carefully, awaiting the next question.

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Anna weighs her thoughts and nods. "Soooo...You say you're Sola-Ret. I've never heard of a goddess by that name."

"It is a name that has been lost to the ages. You are the first to know it in nearly ten thousand years. Mortals refer to my kind by titles. I have many, my dear Anna. Some refer to me as Lady of the Sun, Light Queen, Life Giver or The Redeemer. The most popular one, the one I'm sure you're familiar with, is Dawnmother."

Anna blinks in confusion. "The...The Dawnmother. She who breathed life into the first morals. She who sent the dark elves into exile in the underground of Subterra."

"The first part is true. I was there to watch the first of my children awaken to a world made just for them. But I did not send the elves into exile. That would go against the Ruling." The Dawnmother raises herself up, standing upon the deck.

"What's the Ruling?" Anna asks, taking a step back as though expecting the goddess to erupt in anger at all the questions.

"When we made mortals, we tried at first to walk amongst you all, to teach you all you needed to know about your world. But we quickly found that our physical presence was too much for some to take. Some claimed that certain gods were evil. Some claimed we kept all the power to ourselves. We attempted to calm these concerns by granting mortals access to the Swell, but this only furthered their fears. We were hiding the best parts, some spells became labeled as abhorrent while others were praised, the list goes on."

"The deciding factor came when mortals outright attacked one of us. Being on the mortal plane made us vulnerable, you see. My brother, whom most know as the Harbinger of Seasons, was badly wounded. He is a gentle soul, the youngest of us, and has not spoken a word since that day...We left your world, closing ourselves in our divine realms. That was the Ruling: never to interfere again with mortals in such a way as to bring about great change. It is our one and only law."

The Dawnmother wipes her eyes and takes a deep breath. "It is a decision I've come to regret over time, as some of my kin have decided to play with mortal lives in retaliation for the maiming of my brother. I wish to help my children. Which is why I have selected agents over time. People like you, sometimes. Often, it is my own worshippers who take up the mantle of the light."

Anna takes a minute to process all she has heard. "So...What do you ask of me, Sola-Ret?"

The figure of Samara rests a hand upon the elf's head. "Only that you bring the light to others. Redeem those you can, but show no mercy to the unrepentant. You must be the image of my love and the hammer of my fury. In essence, my dear Anna, you must be yourself, the true you who was revealed that day in the darkness." The Dawnmother begins to shift, her form dissipating.

The elf stands, nodding and wiping her face. "I will. I will not waste this opportunity you've given me!" The image distorts and fades, and Anna sits up in the cabin. A dream? A nice dream, at least. As she goes to stand, something drops with a heavy thud.

From outside comes Hope's call of "Anna? You ok in there?".

Anna leans down, lifting from the floor a book bound in tanned leather with a script written across it that she cannot understand. "Yeah, I-I'm fine. Just... I'm ok now."