Paladin Of Solusek Ro
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(11/11/02 5:41 am)
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The Burning Times - Part I
Morning was always a strange time in their household. For hours it would be absolutely silent as they buried their noses in their books the instant they were awak. If Father was gone, they would remain as such till lunch when Mother would bring them something to eat from the kitchen, and then take them out for a walk in Kithicor Woods till just before twilight.
Picture, if you will, how the forest was in their time - before the horrible night that would rip their family apart forever. No undead walked there, no restless demons and possessed dogs wandered the night; no threats in the darkness to take the family from each other. Together, they would sit upon the roof and watch the blazing sun sink slowly below the trees.
Then Father would come home, and they would cower in fear for the next several hours before being sent off to bed. A powerful priest of Fennin Ro, he was all temper and no kindness; a hot cinder that burned anything it touched. Mother claimed he had not always been as such, but as the powers of his god flowed more and more into him, he became the man they knew now.
For many years, their lives moved as such, as reliable as the new day. But as all things are, this was not meant to last forever. Shortly before the dread Battle of Bloody Kithacor, the very foundations of their world would be charred into nothing. A testament to the failability of the very Gods we follow so blindly.
"Saiah, come here, now."
His voice echoed across the room, bouncing off the small walls of the cabin they called home. Mother bowed her head, not wishing to wintess what she felt was about to happen. When he had gotten older, Father had begun to beat Korwin whenever he was cross. The younger elf found many a night where he would have his flesh burned from his body by the powers of Fennin Ro. And she could only watch helplessly.
Now Saiah was that age, and she feared that he would do the same to the girl, regardless of how noble he used to be. There had been many a night in the recent years that she had wished to just leave, take her children far from Father, where he could not hurt them. But a small part of her hoped that he would stop, that he would forsake his power for his family; that was not to be.
Young Saiah disliked her Father. Ever since she had seen the scars one Korwin's body she had hated him with a passion almost as great as her love for her mother. Though she was very young by elven standards, Saiah already suspected that the only thing standing between his wrath and their bodies was their Mother. For that, Saiah would walk to the ends of Norrath if the woman told her to.
Due to the man's actions, a few years before young Saiah had begun to have strange dreams. A man, his hair crowned by a band of fire, his torso and arms naked save the golden bracelets; dressed in the finest silk pants that billowed in the wind and holding a flaming spear of some sort. He had been distant, but at the same time, his eyes spoke of a closeness that the elf could not fathom.
At first he had been far off, over a great canyon filled with lava and fire. But each night, he grew closer; at first his arms were crossed steadily across his chest as he looked at her over his shoulder, the flames from his weapon melding with the flames from his crown. The close he got, the more relaxed his stance became, until finally one day there was nearly no lava between them; he held out his hand to her.
And then she would wake up.
For years she had been chasing the dream, becoming a devout follower of Solusek Ro. Each day she would read in Father's forbidden books about the young God that would turn against his own Father one day and leave to make a name of his own. Each night she would be tempted by that charming Burning Price, see her own hand reaching out for his. What it all meant, she did not know, but it just felt...right.
One night, after watching Korwin being rent assunder by their own Father, she heard her own voice in the dream, and watched the Prince raise an eyebrow and give her a look of approval. Behind the look, Saia saw that strange understanding, that strange feeling that he knew what she was going through.
Tonight, her voice was answered.
Father grasped her wrists, lifting her off of the floor. The young elf hung there, suspended above the floorboards, terrified of what was to come. She did not know if he would hit her, or let fire rain down from his hands; let it run down her arms to her hair and beyond. Desprate, she looked to Mother and saw the woman choking on her own tears.
Suddenly, there was a strange sound. Wood splintered, cracking against itself as an arch of lightening reached down from beyond the trees. Brittle wood caught fire, spreading quickly along the was towards the wide eyed family. Mother rushed to push Saia behind her, but before she could reach out for Korwin, Father had the boy in his hands.
"You wish sacrifice again? So soon?" Father shouted to the wind, "Then here, take the boy and leave me my home."
With that, they watched in terror as he flung Korwin into the center of the flames. The orange flame licked at the boy's skin like an impatient lover, and the elf found that he could no longer move. The bonds of force weighed against him so greatly that even fear could not move him. His eyes locked with Saiah's as the rough tongues of flame licked away his skin, melted down his muscles and charred his bones. Somehow, those eyes were the last thing to vanish.
The house was still burning, the flames growing closer.
Sneering, Father turned towards them, began to walk across the short distance and reach for his daughter.
"You will not have my daughter!" she screamed, throwing herself at him, "Spare her, Solusek!"
It seemed that the world slowed at that instant, painfully slow. Through wide eyes Saiah watched Mother's body flying through the air, connecting with the chest of Father and pushing him backward. It was not enough. Father grasp Mother, pulling her away from him in disgust; then there was a cracking, but not of bones. Floating like a feather through the air, the beam above them fell, encasing them both in flame.
A blast of hot flame ripped the pair apart as it billowed from the center of the chaos. Through the center, Saiah wached as the Prince stepped forward. Paining his lips was a smirk, and he held out his hand to her. The flames circled about them both, wreathing them with heat and light. Already lightheaded from suffocation, the young elf swayed back and forth before him.
"Before the power, before the glory," his beautiful voice intoned, "all must burn away."
Nodding, she fell into his arms.
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