Trials of the Soul

[cmosier]

"I know your still here, Demon. Your foul smell is still in the air."

Caelryth chuckled at the pursuing Lizard Chief. "You're mistaking, your Highness. You don't really think this is just storm water your standing in, do you?" He clutched the arrow in his shoulder as a few drops hit the water, turning the liquid at his feet into a greyish pink hue.

"The Demon speaks. Our poison has corrupted your blood, surrender now, and I will give you a merciful death. One so outside The Balance as you should welcome such a kind fate."

The lizard chief makes his way into a small room, his axe ready to strike. "Those above turn you away, your own tribe turns you away... what brings you to my lands, Demon?"

"Well you know, the usual. I need to eat, and food costs coin. The mutilation of innocent people for the purpose of collecting their ears sort of rubs me the wrong way as well."

Caelryth made his move, hoping to catch his opponent off guard. The magic had not even come to form before the lizard slashed across the elf's mid section, causing a grievous wound. Caelryth's slender frame slumped to the ground, clutching his abdomen.

"The cause of Nature will be your down fall Demon. It is not the worst fate you could suffer."

Bloody lizard sure likes to hear himself talk.

As the lizard lifted his axe a flash of purple flame erupted from the slumped form. The flame hit its mark, burning clean through the chieftain. The sound of his axe falling onto the water soaked floor was followed the loud thud of the lizard's charred corpse.

Caelryth slumped against the wall of the room and closed his eyes. He felt the warmth fade from his body as he allowed The Cold, The Beast as he liked to call it, take over. The wounds on his body stopped bleeding and several small wounds began to close. He stumbled over to his opponent's body.

"Having your innards torched from your still living body. It is not the worst fate you could suffer.... though it sure looked like it hurt like Hells."

Caelryth collected his prize and made his way to the surface.

[cmosier]

Beginnings

"You are careless! You cannot take your hatred out on whatever you choose!"

His mentor's words stung him. Uziel was rarely in this state, and to know he caused it brought a sense of guilt to Caelryth.

"You are not the only one who suffers if you die, do you understand that? What of your brother? Who will watch over him? Did that thought ever enter that thick elven skull of yours?"

The young elf sighed. "I am sorry Uziel... I just did't think it..."

"No! You just didn't think!"

The dark skinned manned backed up a bit and caught his breath. He usually wasn't this hard on his pupil, but sometimes he could just be.....diffiuclt.

"Let me explain this to you. You will always be hunted by those who claim to honor justice and by those whose very power you wield. You must choose, do you want friends that believe in who you are or fiends who crave the power of what you are."

Caelryth simply nodded. He knew his mentor was right. He has dealt with these problems for a long time and had become quite powerful while remaining as out of sight as possible.

"Remember Cael, give into the Beast, but do not let it take you over. Use it like the tool it is suppose to be. Do not allow yourself to become the tool of the Beast."

"I will try harder Uziel. I lost my temper, and I will do better next time."

"Here is some food. Take it so you and your brother can eat. I expect to see you here tomorrow, Cael, do you understand."

Caelryth nods and takes the sack and heads home.

"Remember the tune I taught you to whistle Caelryth. It will help keep your mind where you need it, even if those around you believe otherwise."

Caelryth smiled and waved back to Uziel. He starts to whistle as he walks through the woods.

[cmosier]

"You see Cael, humanity fears those like us and rightfully so. Our power, no matter how we obtained it, comes from a source that is known for some of the cruelest acts ever inflicted upon living beings. They have the right and reason to fear us."

"It's how that fear manifests itself that is the problem, Cael. You will be blamed for things. Drought, a poor harvest, disease, they will all be linked to you. You brought your infernal aura to their lands, and your very presence in their lands must have upset some Deity, who is taking their vengence out on the common folk for allowing you to exist. Ofcourse, we know this idea to be false, but people aren't rational in times of crisis, which is when rational thought is needed the most."

"This is when you must make your choice. This is why choose to stay in the forest most of the time. Gnolls are easier to deal with than angery mobs, in my opinion. I have no desire to harm commoners who only wish to live their lives the best they can and do their best to be happy. So, I deal with the elements not just for my safety, but for the safety of others as well. This is our lot in life, Cael, be treated the same, good or evil. Maintain your perspective, and harness your ill emotions to fight your enemies, and do what you can to protect those who cannot protect themselves."

"Don't discourage Caelryth. I am positive you will make the right choices... most of the time. And when you don't, you can learn from those mistakes. Your heart is in the right place, you just need to get your mind to match it."

Caelryth looks at his mentor and smiles a bit. "I hope your right, Uziel. I don't mind bearing the sins of my father, I just have no wish of falling the same way he did. It's just difficult sometimes. This power leavs me feeling cold and empty, as if I was devoid of emotion. It's like I have to force myself to remember that I am person, a being capable of feeling."

"That too, can be controlled and used to your advantage, it just takes time. Come, I've rambled on long enough. Lets go get a bite to eat."

[cmosier]

Threatened. Is always comes to that doesn't it. Tonight I tried to help a fellow elf. I know his condition, and my only intention was to relieve him of a horrible fate. I was repayed with a warning. To watch myself or might end up in a cell.

The irony of an elf who is slowly becoming an abomination to the living, lecturing me on what I am and how people feel about it? This land even causes my brethren to behave oddly. Still, I promised her I would help him.

Caelryth stands in his camp. The rain had stopped for awhile and looked out across the Viridale. He watched the large animals of the forest roam for food and take adavantage of the break in the rain.

As I told her, I accepted a long time ago that I will never be fully acceptd. I could accomplish a hundred good deeds, but they would all be forgotten when what I am comes to light. How soon people forget those who aided them. Why is it that fear is so powerful? It causes us to toss aside common sense, and kicks in a survival instinct. The problem. It is much easier to descend into that instinct, then it is to recover from it.

I can use what I have against those who would cause harm to the people of this Valley. You cannot go against the types of evil the world has to offer without having some insight on that evil. I have that insight. I have that evil fused in my very soul, but it mine to control. I am not bound to any creature, my will, and my fate are mine to do with as I see fit.

Caelryth sits back down. He takes his hat that has been drying near the fire and puts it on.

Gods damn it all Uziel, you left too soon.

[cmosier]

Father

The robed elf continued down the corridor. He led his oldest son by the hand, and carried his youngest, cradled in his arm and over his shoulder. Caelryth was always earger to please, so naturally he came from Reverie quickly. Sehron was still a bit tired, a heavy day of casuing some sort of mischief had taken its toll on the young elf. Aravilar had been working hard to put this all together, and finally the opportunity presented itself.

If he had been paying attention, Caelryth's father might have noticed the smile on his son's face. How happy the young elf was that his father had thought him old enough to further his studies in the mysteries of the arcane. The lust for power can be a blinding light.

Quickly he placed his two kids on a large stone table. He had learned, that while elves cannot be put to sleep, there were ways to use magic to induce their Reverie, and his children were far too young to have any resistance. They both fell into a deep trance, unaware of there surroundings and incapable, for at least a litttle while, of feeling anything. He picked up a knife from a near by table and used it to cut the tunics off of his children. Their chests laid bare, he started the gruesome task of carving the runes into their flesh. The two creatures that laid before him were no longer his own flesh and blood, they were tools, components to be used to finish his spell and gain him the power he felt he deserved.

He looked over his preparations. To him, it was perfection. The time had finally come to begin his spell. The light had grown to bright, and his mind had released what sanity it had. The children on the table began to stir. Sehron reacted as a child of seven should react, he went into shock. He stared blankly at the table as tears streamed down his cheeks. Caelryth, who was well into twelve years, knew what was going on. He tried to gather his thoughts, but the whole scene was a lot to take in. His eyes were blurred by tears and his thoughts in disarray of how somebody he respected so much could do something so horrible, not only to him but to his little brother as well. The only thought to come to the young elf's mind was to disrupt the incantation. He stood no chance of getting his father's attention, so he began to slightly change the runes that were written in blood, his blood, on the table. He wasn't sure what he was doing, but he was certain the outcome couldn't be worse that the present situation. The one downside to being young is that one usually has a great deal to learn.

Aravilar went silent, his incantation finshed. The wall nearest the table that held his priceless components began to twist and turn a foul shade of black. A large malformed claw pierced the wall, the rest of the demon was not far behind. The horned beast stepped through and using two huam like arms, the two below his large pincers, he seemed to call into the room a purple magic. He picked up the oldest child first. He began moan as he began to suck the childs life out. He fell into laughter as the young elf's hair turned from dark blue into bright white, and his pale blue skin faded to brown. Seeming to have his fill, he used this magic to hurl both children against the wall, the loud thud only joined by the unmistakable sound of bones breaking.

The demon and the elven conjurer began to speak. The language is one few know, and almost all wish they would never hear. The tone in the elf's voice seemed strong, confident. The demon said nothing, and then began laughing. The elf's tone changed, the confidence faded and fear took its place. He seemed to be pleading with the creature. His words were cut short when the beast plunged its giant pincher into the elf. The swirling magic came as commanded and began to slowly consume the impaled elf. His screams only lasted a short while before the only trace of him were the blood splatters where he once stood. The demon looked around the room, then simply stepped back through the portal, closing it as he returned home.

The two young elves were alone in the room, broken and slowly dying.