Once Forgotten 1.7

Rya sat on her bed that night, the events of the day running vivid in her mind. She fell back with a sigh. A new name. A new life. It was all so much. Happening so fast. Again she wondered if this was what she had wanted.

She rolled onto her side, staring out the small window in her room. Kadrin had rented her the room, saying that he didn't need much sleep. Which made her ponder over what he had called her. An Overseer. If all of them, however many there were, were as strong as Kadrin hinted, why had no one ever heard of them? From what she could gathered, they preferred the shadows. At leastt, Gartrand seemed to. Her Master was certainly willing to reveal his presence to the world, but he was shrouded in mystery. What was she thinking? Her Master was a living mystery.

A soft knock on her door made her sit up. Throwing her cloak about her shoulders (she hadn't bothered undressing), she went to the door. Kadrin stood there. "Come with me." He said softly. Without a word, she followed him out of the inn they were staying in. Silently, they moved through the village. At the edge, they continued out. He led her all the way to a small ridge. He held a finger to where his lips would be, banishing any questions she wanted to ask. She nodded in understanding. Rya watched as he crept up to the ridge and peered over the top. He nodded, then signaled for her to join him. She cautiously crept up next to him, but she struggled to keep back a gasp of amazement.

Before them, a swarm of colored lights flickered about. They watched as intricate patterns were formed and destroyed, like some great dance was in progress. They listened and could, faintly at first but quickly grew, hear a strange music. Rya watched with eyes wide, taking in everything. She raised herself up to get a better look, but the ground broke away beneath her fingers. She tumbled down the other side of the ridge with a small cry. She picked herself up and held back a scream.

The lights surrounded her, all of them flashing an angry, blood red color. She stood to her feet and bowed. "I am sorry to have interrupted. I just wanted a better view." She apologized, not really knowing why she was doing it. The lights froze in place. One broke away from the rest and hovered toward her. Cautiously, it approached; she held out her hand, palm up. The ball of light settled into it. Her mind exploded in brief pain. A consciousness that was very much alien touched hers. She found herself open and vulnerable to it, unable to even move. It retreated a bit, and she felt as though she were being inspected. Finally, it retreated fully, and she was once again alone in her head. Her eyes opened. The light left her hand and returned to the others. It exploded into quickly changing colors. The lights swirled playfully about her.

"That was quite a spectacle. Rare is it for one so young to have gained such respect." Kadrin said from next to her. He chuckled at her shocked expression. "I would have approached them a lot sooner had you not been here." He held out his hand, and the strange beings swirled about it. Several briefly landed before taking flight again.

"What are they?" Rya asked, still amazed.

"Sylphs. They are wind elementals. They are beings of pure wind energy." Kadrin answered. "Each of the four elements have their own elemental. Wind has sylphs. Earth, gnomes. Water, merfolk. And fire has salamanders. Gnomes can be quite annoying."

"They look like fat little men that all look the same, right?" Rya asked as she played with the sylphs. Laughter caught their attention, and they both turned to see children watching. Kadrin chuckled softly and waved them over. Several adults watched cautiously, many with looks of fear.

"You have nothing to fear. They mean no harm." Kadrin called out. A mage approached.

"Sylphs? Why have you called them?" He asked, somewhat fearful.

"I didn't." Kadrin called. He nodded slightly at Rya. The mage came up next to him. "She did."

"Her?" The mage asked with a raised brow. Kadrin nodded. "She is strong indeed if she unknowingly summoned elementals."

Kadrin nodded. "You've no idea." He was silent as he watched her play. The chirldren laughed and ran about, the sylphs chasing and being chased. Their music filled the area, enrapturing all who listened. Finally, the wind spirits rushed together and vanished into the sky. The area still glowed with the residual of their magyck. Kadrin sighed. "Your village will grow and prosper now. If you were to plant crops in this area, they will grow bountifully."

The mage nodded. "He speaks true. For whatever reason, the sylphs have touched this place."

Kadrin pointed to the ground. "They weren't the only ones." Gasps rang out. There, at all of their feet, were small footprints. "The gnomes were here as well." He turned and headed back to the inn. Rya followed, a smile on her face.