To Lessa's surprise and delight the day had passed without incident. With only a few passive woodland beasts occasionally spotted to break the monotony.
Around the mid-day they had spotted a small doe-beast which Lessa had attempted to smite dead with an arcane blast but the shot went wide. After a short pursuit they lost the beast but had discovered a patch of dandelions and ate their fill for their luncheon. Fortune smirks at least.
As they approached near to the river Ailye the forest had seemed less hostile. But had to decided to break for camp early so as to not be pestered by insects so close to the water's edge.
Conversation before this came and went. Lessa and Eilers found it difficult to force conversation especially as the days travel began to weigh on them. Lessa would ask of Eilers' past and Eilers would ask Lessa an question about magic. Their most pleasant conversation occurred in the dandelion patch as they were staining their teeth on the flowers. Then they talked of food and wine
Now they built a fire of green branches and grasses and undergrowth. It made a foul dark smoke but the light and warmth brought them comfort. "Comfortable, Lessa?" Eilers asked after a moment watching the fire take off. "Well but of course! Anything is more comfortable than another stride, although I'm thankful for the progress!" Lessa shifted again "you know this is the best day I've had since I've began. I think this quest is beginning to turn around."
Eilers smiled at Lessa "Yes well it's much safer to travel as a group. A few more folk and we'd need only worry about food." She paused "...so the quest, Lessa, to get this seed and wake your mother to stop Bellinor..." She began
"Yes? You still want to help yes?" Lessa said.
"Surely yes! However I wonder why exactly all of this began. The Grimwood is a little out of the way for everyone frankly, so is it a vendetta he has this Bellinor?" Eilers finished
Lessa seemed nervous, for once hesitant to divulge. "Well... Yes. In short, yes a vendetta against my mother. And he's evil!"
"Well what did he do? What is he going to do after striking your mother and the rest down? It is the why is what I am wondering here!" Eilers said to Lessa, getting irritated.
"Here I'll show you-" Lessa picked up her hands and began to play the air. A glow formed around around her fingers, in her eyes, and in the smoke. "It will help us both if you can visualize what I am saying"
"Oh my~" Eilers cooed "Okay he's a serpent! No he was a serpent but was cursed by your mother after being seduced!"
Lessa was slightly baffled "what? No, no here just listen. I have to concentrate" Lessa knit her brow and continued: "Yes the woman is my mother, Greta. You see at this time of her life as a learned journeywitch my mother was taken in as a ward of a Century Sky Eel! Now i dont need to explain the rarity and import of such a creature i imagine!"
"I imagine you do." Eilers interjected
Lessa rolled her glowing eyes causing the image in the smoke to sway"Ah well... it is a rare creature of great import! So as a ward of the Century Sky Eel my mother-"
"how does an eel take a witch as its ward? How does that work?"
"Listen I can tell you more about that later! -Now Bellinor at this time was the cupbearer for the Mad Konig Revatempus the Mad. Bellinor had begun a courtly romance in the palace of- "
"Revatempus the Mad? From Eltos the City of Stones?" Eilers cut in again
"Yes! Good you know him! At least this will make the story personal to you!" Lessa said pretending she was pleased about this input as the image warped again
"Well I knew of him, hes dead. And Eltos the City of Stones looks nothing like that." Said Eilers as snarkily as she could muster
"... I know he's dead, it comes up in my tale. As for Eltos, I've never visited it"
"Its kind of a shithole."
Lessa continued without acknowledging Eilers: "So since you're unaware the Century Sky Eel exudes fleeting Arcane knowledge from the mucus it is coated with. Bellinor learned of-"
Eilers interrupted once more "ohhhh I thought she was lying with that beast. This is just how you learn magic?"
"BELLINOR... learned of this property from his studies into wizardry in years prior. But also had learned that the Century Sky Eel will give its life to protect it's ward: otherwise can be quite a foe to slay indeed" Lessa waggled her fingers extra for dramatic flair and faced to Eilers
Eilers cast her gaze back to Lessa feeling her eyes on her. "Did you and your mother commit the sin with the Eel?"
"The Eel..." Lessa seethed "The Century Sky Eel, one of the rarest beings to grace this bitch of an earth, sage of arcane knowledge, the guardian of my mother, gave it's potentially endless life to save her from being slain by Bellinor... Which of course was his plan! For it was his aim to Slay The Century Sky Eel, yeah? ...yeah?"
"Watch your tone, Lessa." Eilers said tersely.
"So after narrowly escaping with her life, my mother was forced to flee and ran off into the night to escape! For days she wandered aimlessly, her head hung low as she assumed defeat but then!"
"Wait. Oh Lord!" Eilers began, she stood up from the ground as did Lessa the image fading into the air and the magical glow dissipating from all around.
"Will you just bite your tongue for a moment! The best part! You asked! You asked me!" Lessa said shouting over Eilers as Eilers shouted as well: "Stop stop I understand! I read between the lines: Bellinor Is Your Father!"
Lessa's eyes watered from smoke and frustration with her companion. She grabbed the Brass Tack from the ground and fired an arcane blast into the fire. Small embers rained down from the air.
"My dad is dead Eilers, let us sleep now." Lessa said in exasperation.
"Your dad was the Eel?" Eilers said, genuinely confused.
Lessa raised her wand and pointed it to Eilers and held it for a moment before lowering it back down. Eilers froze unable to get herself to act in that brief moment, or for another moment as Lessa's began to lie down in the ash spattered grass.
"...I'm... I'm sorry Lessa." Eilers knelt slowly next to Lessa and gently sat her hand on her side which Lessa flinched and flailed away. "It's not important. I'm sorry I just was simply excited I thought I had understood..." Several minutes passed by. Eilers lied down next to Lessa. "Would you like to finish your tale? On my life I won't interrupt!"
After another minute Lessa huffed and said "Bellinor ate the Sky Eel, killed the king, took over the kingdom. My mother found the Great Wolf hound and ascended his tower and defeated Bellinor with it's might... Then she pulled out his liver and threw it as far as she could. Heh heh."
Eilers resisted on threat of death asking 'why his liver?'
Lessa sniffled and said "everything goes back to normal, Bellinor is seemingly dead, and my mother earns her Pentacles! ...But she never wears them. She says she's saving them for me."
Eilers came up behind and gently cuddled into Lessa "you'll earn them with this! I know it!" Eilers had no idea what the requirements were for witch's Pentacles but it felt correct to say. Either way Lessa seemed comforted.
"Hey sorry again Lessa... I'll make it up to you in the morning okay? I've been saving something special but I'll give it to you okay? If you forgive me?"
Lessa was a little excited about this mystery gift but tried not to let it show "oh but of course. Honest mistake... I forgive you Eilers, for everything." With that the two slipped into a dreamless sleep.
Keywords
male
1,242,297,
female
1,128,059,
cat
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mouse
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fantasy
27,911,
magic
26,519,
story
14,772,
ambiguous species
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lessa
74,
lessa of grimwood
43
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21 Jul 2025 08:06 CEST
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