A Ray of Hope

It seems many are being wounded during these days, and I am not exempt. Early this morning a great evil entered the Isle I have made my haven. I was deep in prayers and meditation when it struck. At first I tried to battle it alone, but soon realized I needed help. I called upon the other gods, but I believe the evil that shrouded the island was to great, for my cry went unheard and no one came to my assistance. Fortunately, many of the other gods had spent time with me the day before, and so their remnant energies allowed me to battle longer and harder than I thought possible. Tis hard for me to even write of what I saw, but some record of this event must be kept. And so I lay down here what happened, as I remember it - and as it was.

I began prayers and meditation long before the sun rose, as it my habit these days. The sorceress of the island has been summoning creatures to the isle for the past few days and to weaken her, I have been blessing the isle and casting spells of protection. But the island is large and such spells tire me and sap me of strength. And so each day before sunrise, when things seem calm, I meditate to regain my strength.

Today was different. As I sat on the beach praying to the Light for guidance and restoration, I felt the winds begin to blow. Even with my eyes closed in prayer I could feel a shadow pass over the isle, and yet I chose to remain within my meditation. I felt the holy light of Tarin pass through my body, and in the next instance I heard a shriek so unnatural and base in its calling that I could feel my heart begin to race. I struggled to remain focussed and finish my prayers, but it was not meant to be. Moments later, I felt myself being lifted and thrown to the sea. At last I opened my eyes, only to behold the sea raging all about me. Instantly I summoned all my energies to transport myself back to the isle.

Standing before me was a creature more hideous than I have ever seen. Its torso was covered in pulsating veins with a thin almost translucent covering and it stood over 13 feet high on haunches of pure muscle. Looking upwards towards the beast's face I was horrified at what I saw, for its face kept changing countenance before my very eyes. Each of the creature's visages was a mirror image of the gods of the realm, each distorted as though screaming with pain and fear.

My belief in the Light is strong, but I do not wish the destruction of any of the other gods or people of the land, no matter what their faith. And so seeing the faces of those I love looking down upon me in horror and pain, was almost unbearable. Pausing only to move directly within a ray of light from the sun, I cast spells of dispel, hoping to disrupt whatever magic was being used to create such images of horror. But the images did not disappear and with them came words from the creature's mouth. Words in the voices of the other gods, words so vile I do not dare to even record them. The creature cursed at me, taunted me, and threatened me but I did not move from my ray of light. Screeching with anger, the creature raised itself high on its haunches and hurled a bolt of lighting towards me, I cast a shield spell in defense and deflected the bolt out towards the water. Instantly the entire sea was a mass of electricity, crackling and arcing towards me as the waves that were once a gentle swell rose to gargantuan proportions threatening to crash upon the island and engulf it in its entirety.

In that moment I thought of someone I have not seen in a long time...Barak, the half ogre who I affectionately called Bashem. Thoughts of him came flooding back, of how he would push his way in front of me to shield me from danger, even though he was a mere boy and I a fairly accomplished druid when we first met. I thought of his unconditional love, and most importantly I thought of his selflessness. Thinking of Barak made me cry out to the heavens as I stepped from the ray of light and plunged into the sea. Instantly the electricity flowed into my body. Body arcing with each jolt, I felt my strength leaving me and time and time again I was dragged under the waters. It was then I cried out for help.

Suddenly the ray of sunlight moved to bathe me in its golden rays once again. My body ceased its twitching and I was thrown back onto the beach, before the creature, where I lay battered and bleeding, coughing up sea water. As I struggled to my feet the creature leapt at me, its gaping maw tearing into my flesh, while its arms wrapped around me threatening to crush my very bones. But this time I was not afraid, gazing straight into the creature's glowing amber eyes I willed myself to become one with the light and I embraced the creature holding on to it for dear life. The creature renewed its assault on me, this time struggling not to consume me, but to free itself from me.

As I felt the power of the Light flow through me I saw the creature's face begin to change once again. It still mirrored images of the gods, but they were no longer crying out in fear and pain. I saw Lacar hiding and wrought with grief, Tatianna alone and confused in the crystal city, Jehane in all her beauty standing at the center of Windy Bluff, Ydnat wrestling with the very fabric of the realm, Saruman building homes, and all the other gods as they worked to protect and enrich the realm. It was then I realized that each god was standing alone and I understood the true nature of the 13 days of evil.

Clutching the creature closer to me I allowed the Light to pass from me into the creature's body. Almost immediately the beast's skin began to burn. The stench of rotting flesh assailed me, and yet I did not loosen my grip. My Light grew stronger and the creature continued to burn within my embrace until it ceased to exist. Slumping to the ground, I felt the world begin to spin and then it was dark. When I awoke it was night, a full day had passed and I was alone on the beach. Wearily I stood up only to crumple to the ground again. Gathering my strength I arose again, and there beneath the pale glow of the moon I saw the remains of the creature. Deep within the smoldering mass I saw the glint of something bright. Paying no heed to the heat emanating from the charred corpse I plunged my hand down towards the object. Pulling it free, I ran to the sea and washed it clean. Within my hands I held a gold coin. On one side was a circle and some strange symbols, on the other my own image. Even now I am unsure of the meaning, but a new understanding is dawning within me.

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