182 Gods and Monsters (1/2)
”Hey, Aura, can you tell us a story?” Luca suggested. ”Seeing as we've got such a good ambiance here tonight… I wouldn't mind learning more about the history of the Fayne.”
It had been nearly an hour since our earlier discussion where I demanded Luca slays at least one general in the upcoming war.
In typical fashion, he called me crazy. Then he slumped back on his chair and got moody for about five minutes before he finally agreed to it.
”I'll just do it,” Luca said like he was repeating a line from his favorite sporting goods brand.
Satisfied with his own answer, Luca's mood lightened, and thirty minutes later he was asking Aura to tell us a story. Honestly, I thought it was a brilliant idea.
Aura herself looked a little worse for wear after she'd told Luca that her brother would likely die soon. Perhaps a story would help lighten her mood too.
”What would you like to hear?” Aura asked.
”I want to know more about the myths… the great spirits who once ruled the Fayne,” Luca suggested.
”You want to know about the Eldar?” Aura asked in a contemplative voice.
”Is that what they're called?” I asked.
Aura nodded.
The toes of her feet dipped into the water and she drew a line across it while she thought about Luca's request.
”The priestesses say all the worlds were one once,” Aura began. ”In the time before the shattering.”
Aura would go on to tell us about the five great Eldar, brothers and sisters who were born of a union between earth and sky. As the children of these primordial forces, the Eldar possessed great power over nature itself.
”Like the five elements?” Luca interjected.
Aura shook her head. ”No… The Great Eldar were far more primal than that.”
She told us of the siblings and what they could do. Aur, the all-mother and leader of the Eldar, was the mistress of life. For it was from her womb that all life comes from.
”The stories claim that she birthed all the mortal races, each one born from a union between her and her four other siblings,” Aura revealed.
”Eugh,” Luca remarked, his face crunching up in disgust.
”It's not for us to judge the gods, Luca,” I scolded.
”You two argue over everything,” Aura chuckled softly before she resumed her tale.
Valdun, the eldest of the Eldar, was the master of magic. It was said that he went into the dreams of lesser races and taught them the first spell — which was the power to wield fire — so that they might protect themselves from the darkness.
”Sounds similar to the story of Prometheus,” I noted.
”Shush, Dean,” Luca chided. ”Aura, please continue.”
Aura did as he asked and told us of Grimma, the mountain, who was master of the elements.
”He was the tallest of them all. So tall, in fact, that his head brushed the clouds in the sky when he walked,” Aura shared.
”Hold on,” I interrupted. ”You said earlier that Aur mated with her siblings to birth the mortal races, right?”
Aura nodded. ”Yes.”
”Then how could she have mated with Drayna if they were both female?” I pressed.
”Didn't you just say it wasn't for us to judge the gods?” Aura reminded me.
I couldn't help it. I hated inconsistencies in story-telling. Fortunately, Aura had an answer even for that.
”Drayna's nature couldn't be contained in a single form,” Aura told us. ”They say she was a massive creature with many heads, each one with its own gender and personality.”
”A gender-fluid King Gedorah,” I noted.
”Nerd,” Luca taunted.
Aura ignored our sibling squabble and continued her tale as if she couldn't stop now that she'd begun.
”Last of the siblings, but certainly not the least, was Rahvan, master of night and day,” Aura pointed up to the sky. ”From his pairing with Aur came the first of the second generation of Eldar, Sol and Idunn.”