Dendrobates shed his robes and sprawled out on a hillside among the fragrant heather, closing his eyes against the warming sun. The months had been long and cold, and the battles fought had come with a price. Spring brought the renewal of nature as well as his spirit, and he longed for peace and quiet in his life.
His apprentice was off on her mautiqua, the walk of discovery, a solitary and sacred journey to find one’s place in the universe and to decide if the life of a healer was truly hers. His friend and companion, Enelya, was off on another quest to help another choose their path and was in a remote corner of the world. He grinned, wondering if her spell castings were improving.
To his left were the Misty Mountains, shrouded in a thick blanket of fog. They appeared darker in a day filled with brilliant sunshine. He rubbed his eyes and looked again. Maybe his weary mind was playing tricks on him. The fog dissipated, and the snow left in a few shaded valleys sparkled like highly polished diamonds.
He blamed the foreboding on a bone-chilling cold he had experienced over the past few days that he could not shake along with a feeling of dread that haunted his waking and sleeping hours. If those closest to him were in danger, he would have known. If danger stalked him, he would have smelled it on the wind. You are only weary, mage, he assured himself silently as he slipped into a light, revitalizing sleep.
*******
Enelya struggled against the pressure, gasping for breath. The acrid smell of fear filled her, surrounded her, and threatened to suffocate her. For the first time in her lengthy existence she experienced the need for self-preservation, going against her very essence of presence.
A stranger helped her to her feet and whispered in her ear, “When they ask for mages or healers, volunteer immediately.”
Enelya nodded and moved on for fear of being trampled by the hoards of Orcs...but of a race she had never seen before. She cautiously looked around, noticing several other groups of all ages and origins - Elves, Dark Elves, Humans, Dwarves and Orcs - soldiers carrying swords over their shoulders, and a big building with the name “Sorbibor” hanging on a sign in front. They were bullied into formations by the soldiers, and one of the officers strolled up and down the lines inspecting the lot.
“Who among you are Wizards and Sorcerrors?” the officer barked out. A few raised their hands and were directed to the other side of the staging area. “Any other mages?” Enelya raised her hand as she had been instructed, noticing how much it quivered. She and the others joined the others while the remaining people were led away.
Her heart broke as she watched husband and wife wave their good-byes, companions marched away separately like cattle. A young dwarf broke free and ran to her father, tears streaming down her cherubic face. The bright patches on her britches were a stark contrast to the anguish in her cry. Soldiers stepped out and pulled the girl from her father’s arms and drug her crying back to the masses leaving the encampment.
Everything was wrong, disjointed. She tried to gather her thoughts and pull together the pieces of her knowledge to find out what was happening. When she found nothing but darkness, she looked to the heavens and silently called out to the One Most High for help and guidance. All she heard was the echo of her thoughts coming back to her unanswered. It was as if the dark clouds above her shut her out from any contact. In the breath of a moment, she was alone and afraid.
*******
Dendrobates hid behind one of the great trees of the forest and watched his apprentice acquaint herself with the Mother Earth and all her creatures. He suppressed a chuckle when a colorful pixie landed on the tip of her turned-up nose. The joy radiating from her was palpable, radiating her bright pink aura far beyond the confines of her being. She was at the middle of her mautiqua, with only a fortnight remaining before her final decision.
He envied her the moments of discovery, both of self and the land around her. The memories of his mautiqua flooded back to him, and his grin broadened to a smile. Like he with his own apprentice, Enelya watched over him as he discovered his ties to Mother Earth as well as his destiny to protect and heal.
Assuring himself that his apprentice was safe in her quest, he strolled deeper into the forest and disappeared into the mist. During his travel back to his homeland, he decided to detour and check on Enelya. He had not heard from her in too long, and he missed her endless chatter. Concentrating on her essence, he searched the ages for her. But alas, nothing. He stopped, looking skyward, and called out her name. She did not answer.
“Gabriel, what have you done with her?” he shouted at the top of his lungs, plunging his Spirit’s Staff into the ground with such force it reverberated to the core of the land. “Gabriel, you will rue the day you ignore me!”
*******
An unusual weariness fell over Enelya as nighttime approached. She lay down on the hard bed thinking that if she closed her eyes and rested she would be able to think more clearly. Was her adventure as a Protector only the whisper of a dream? Were her memories of her companion a figment of her imagination? Were her visits with the Archangel Gabriel twists of a mind bent on escaping the ugly reality? So many questions with no answers.
There were nine other women crowded into a small shack with her, each one thin and pale and dressed in thread-barren clothes. They rarely spoke, and like robots performed their daily routine with a host of soldiers watching their every move. She was so full of questions yet did not dare utter a word. Without warning she had been shuttled from an existence where she wielded power and grace to a world where she had no control, knowledge, or power. She was truly human, experiencing hunger, fear, fatigue, hopelessness, and the only commonality with her prior life, if it was real, was her only strength came from the One Most High.
From what she had gathered from the few words exchanged with her fellow workers, they were held captive in a Ketra Orc work camp somewhere not on a map.
While in line for a meager breakfast of water and bread, she ventured to look at her companions in this living hell. Heads were bent, shoulders stooped forward, bodies wasting away, an emptiness in those eyes that dared meet hers. She had been created to help people in dire situations such as this, and all she could do was survive beside them.
“You are not one of us, are you?” whispered the woman in the dungeon working next to her.
“One of you?”
“You are not a common village folk. Why are you here? Are you a spy?” the woman hissed.
“I do not know why I am here, but it is not a mistake nor am I a spy,” she explained in a hushed voice, unable to hide the quiver that reverberated through her very soul. I hope ‘tis not a mistake, she thought. With all my heart.
*******
“Gabriel, I demand an audience with you at once!” Dendrobates shouted, shaking his fist toward the heavens.
The skies opened up, and in a brilliant flash the Archangel Gabriel appeared in front of the wizard without his usual pomp. He was furious, as if lightning bolts could flash from his eyes at any moment and destroy everything in his path.
“Lowly Bishop, how dare you address me in such a manner,” Gabriel said quietly, belying the anger boiling just below the surface.
Dendrobates was not to be intimidated. Standing firm, he pulled himself up to his full height and glared back into those stormy eyes. “What have you done with Enelya?”
Gabriel’s expression softened slightly. “She is in a place you cannot go.”
“I will find her!”
“You cannot, you will not. All connections have been severed, and only when the time is right will you be allowed to know where she is. More things in this universe than you can imagine are in a delicate balance, and she has been sent to correct an imbalance if she is able.”
“And if she is unable?”
Gabriel shook his head. “It is not for either one of us to know. I only tell you this because the two of you have a relationship, albeit odd. Why she would ever lower herself to companion with a bishop, I will never understand.”
“You had best be off, Gabriel, before this land swallows you up and spits you out because of your bitterness. The blending of a child of the heavens and a child of Mother Earth can complete a circle you can only dream of.”
Gabriel snorted. “Dreams are for humans and pitiful creatures.” And with that he was gone in the blink of an eye.
“If you believe I will sit by idly, you are sadly mistaken,” Dendrobates murmured.
He donned his Avadon Robes, pulling the hood over his head. With his staff in hand, he disappeared into the forest.
*******
Enelya grew weaker by the day. She wondered if this is what humans experienced when they were dying. Dying. Was she dying? Was this work camp the end of her existence? Was she ever going to see her companion or his precocious apprentice?
With a sigh she returned her thoughts to her task. An endless parade of enchantment spells, items to create potions were sent past her. She reached to the bottom of the basket and retrieved the last article. What she saw horrified her. In her hands was a pair of pants with bright-colored patches, unmistakably the same ones worn by the young Dwarf she saw upon her first day. Tears formed in her eyes and fell silently across her hollow cheeks. She wanted to scream, shout her anger at the One Most High. How dare He allow this to happen to the innocent. How dare He! She fell to her knees, sobbing into the britches.
A hand gripped her arm and roughly drug her to her feet. She expected to be staring into cold eyes of an Orc, but instead she was met by a pair of tired brown eyes and a look of understanding. She recognized him as the man who had spoken to her at the train.
“Be quiet, child, or you will bring punishment down on all of us. It will be all too soon that we meet the fate of the child.”
“Survive and tell the story, child, so this will not happen again.”
*******
Many moons passed while Dendrobates called upon all his magic to find Enelya. Mother Earth was silent, not yielding the whereabouts of his companion. In his conjuring he mixed herbs and bark, boiled special leaves with pure mountain water, chanted incantations and beseeched Mother Earth for answers until he was at the end. There was nothing else to try.
As if summoned by Dendrobates’ thoughts of ****ation, Gabriel appeared, hovering slightly above Iris Lake. Wasting no time, he pointed at the bishop with a warning finger.
“Listen, bishop, for you will hear this only once. The choice is yours, to save one or the other. Your apprentice is in a battle for her life. The dragons have found her, and as we speak she is barely holding her own. Only you can save her. Your companion is upon the brink of death. She fights against an unspeakable evil, and she will die without your intervention. Decide, bishop, which shall it be?”
Dendrobates leapt to his feet. “I will do both.”
Gabriel shook his head. “You can save only one.”
“Enelya is a Prophet. She cannot perish.”
“All things created have their end time, you of all would know this. The Ancient One is no longer of a Prophet but of flesh and blood like those she has served. It was necessary.” With an impatient wave of his hand, he said, “Time is of the essence, bishop. Choose now!”
“Is this some sort of sick game? I cannot choose!”
“If you do not, you will lose both. I do not dally in idle threats.”
Dendrobates grappled with his decision, but he knew what the answer was before he started. His apprentice was his first responsibility, and Enelya would not have wanted it any other way. Her charge was to save those unable to survive by their own hand, and he honored her by making the only choice he had. I am sorry, my friend, he whispered to her before rushing to the aid of his apprentice.
*******
Swords clanged and the Orcs chanted. Enelya and the others ran to see what was happening, and they saw a young Elven fighter standing in the midst of the several large boulders. He was in rags of armor, and he cried mournfully for help. When he tried to move out of the clearing, spears landed in the dirt, blocking his escape.
Without a thought, Enelya ran out toward the Elf. A piercing pain ripped through her thigh, sending her flying to the ground. She struggled to her feet and limped a few yards, but an arrow in her arm sent her to her knees. She refused to stop. Regaining her footing, she lurched forward and reached for the young Elf, bringing the shivering mass close to her and acting like a shield. Another arrow struck her in the back, and the two fell into a heap on the ground. Enelya covered the Elf as best she could, waiting for the next arrow to enter her body.
The sound of soldiers approaching caused Enelya to bring the Elf even closer. They kicked the two, spat on them, and hit them with the butts of their spears. With an ugly laugh, one soldier ordered the others to leave them to die as a warning to the others.
Enelya’s head spun. She was losing blood fast, and her end time was near. Clutching the Elf, who was still thankfully alive and whispering words of love and encouragement, she prayed fervently to the One Most High to save the young Elven fighter.
*******
The battle was fierce. Dendrobates drug his unconscious apprentice to safety in a nearby cave while fending off two dragons who were relentlessly pursuing his hide. His concentration was lacking, and he was aware this could be his doom. With all his anger and grief vibrating through his body to his dual Katana’s, he shouted to the world as he plunged one Katana deep into the larger dragon’s heart. The second beast came from the opposite direction, so the bishop whirled around and in one smooth movement of the other Katana, sliced a huge gash in the smaller one’s neck.
Black blood oozed out of the mortal wounds and ran down the long sword and onto his hand. The sounds of the last breaths echoed in his head, the death rattle. He had heard it so many times before from beast and human, but never had it been so poignant.
Dendrobates tended to his apprentice, taking her to the place of healing to resurrect her. While sitting next to her sleeping form, he felt a hand on his shoulder. In an instant he was no longer beside his apprentice but in a dark place filled with evil and anguish. He gasped at the assault on his senses, fighting the invasion.
In the darkness Dendrobates noticed a soft glow and followed it to its source. There stood Gabriel, and as he neared he saw see the angel holding a young Elven male and looking down at a crumpled mass at his feet. He ran the rest of the way but stopped short when he saw the mass moving.
Enelya! He fell to his knees beside her. She was barely recognizable with matted hair, skin so pale it was almost transparent and stretched across protruding bones, and dried blood stains on her clothes. He looked up to Gabriel imploringly.
“She is not dead yet, bishop. She could not leave without saying goodbye to you.”
“Enelya?”
Her eyes fluttered open. She tried to take a deep breath, but she winced in pain. The eyes that one danced with mischief and compassion were dull, lifeless. He took her hand in his, shocked by the cold of her skin.
“You came,” she whispered. He nodded, his voice failing him. “You will always be in my heart.”
“And you in mine.”
A tear formed in the corner of her eye and fell across her cheek. And as quietly as she entered the world, she left it.
Dendrobates gathered her into his arms and cried out, “Why?”
“The Ancient One died to save the young one and an example of strength to those around her,” Gabriel said gently. “At the creation of man, many have become mortal to save a life, and One who became mortal to save the world. It was written that this child lives. He is destined to serve in a most wondrous way.” The angel laid his hand on Enelya’s arm, and in brilliance beyond the sun they were gone.
Dendrobates awoke on the hillside among the heather. Had it been a nightmare? He bolted upright and searched his mind for an inkling of his companions’ presence. Nothing. He located his apprentice still recuperating at the Place of Healing. No, it had not been a dream.
After attending to his apprentice and ensuring she was okay, Dendrobates retreated to the land of the Dwarves. He had just finished telling some of the many tales of his journeys to a group of small dwarf children when one of them came up and sat beside him, nudging herself closer to him and picking some wilisk burrs off of his robes.
“I have been watching you since you arrived here.” She said softly. “I’ve known of you for some time now, but…” She hesitated and looked up to the man next to her.
“But what? Ummm….” He curiously paused.
“My name is Faded Memory” She answered finishing his question before he could ask it. She sighed and looked back up to him looking as though she was looking for the right words to say. “But, some of your tales you embellished a little bit.”
He chuckled, “Well, isn’t that what tales are all about?”
“I suppose so, but you give Enelya far too much credit. She just watched over you, protected you once in awhile and always made sure she had extra Escape Scrolls for you.”
“Did you know Enelya?” He asked with an air of excitement.
“Oh no. I am far too young to have known her. I am, after all, only level 10. But I was given the name Faded Memory and I am happy to see that is not what I will be.”