Location: Mura
A sea of diamonds reflects the sun
Who, at the end his journey has begun
Setting over a sea of rainbowed tears
Of this life, its hopes and fears
Each a hardened stone, time gone and passed
For life forever cannot last
A pearl once bright with purest white
In time shall dull and fall from sight
The precious forgotten, the old shall fall
From a broken heart, the great grow small
In darkness and rage, the boiling of the sea
When from the world all good things flee
O sun, dost thou set o’er land of barren stone?
Or will from thy grace kinder light be shown?
Who, at the end his journey has begun
Setting over a sea of rainbowed tears
Of this life, its hopes and fears
Each a hardened stone, time gone and passed
For life forever cannot last
A pearl once bright with purest white
In time shall dull and fall from sight
The precious forgotten, the old shall fall
From a broken heart, the great grow small
In darkness and rage, the boiling of the sea
When from the world all good things flee
O sun, dost thou set o’er land of barren stone?
Or will from thy grace kinder light be shown?
Erato’s lilting soprano haunted the surrounding the stone walls as she touched the last note, leaving only a thoughtful silence behind. It seemed the right sort of song for the setting sun—it was the right sort of song for the decision she pondered in that last rosy light. This was not the first nor the last time her thoughts lingered on the passing of the bright and beautiful. She could recall more innocent days of her childhood when the island was sufficient for an adventurous mind and gentle heart, but some part of it had dulled over time. The temperate waters did not shine as she once knew them to shine, nor did the gentle songs of her people stir her heart as they used to. Was it age that was filling her heart with apathy, or a languishing need within that was emptying her?
“Erato, what is it you ponder?”
The young woman did not turn her head to address the voice, hands folded gracefully in her lap as she glanced away from the glittering water of the sea. “I fear it is a calling that weighs on my mind now, a stone tied to the talon of a dove. How can any creature fly when burdened with impossible reality? The innocent and ignorant soar to bliss while the wise sink and languish on knowledge. I know what it is that I must do, and I am not keen to do it.”
The approaching Konti slowly shook her head, a small smile forming. “To know sorrow is to know happiness—to long for love is to wish for both. You seek what cannot be found here and you know also the perils of finding it. But the path of fate is not merely given: it must be chosen. Do your feelings burden you so greatly now that you find your heart too heavy to move?”
Erato merely sighed, her gaze falling to the silken folds of her dressed turned red by the fading light. “Mother, we have not often talked in great confidence between one another, but my heart wonders now if its feelings are not wholly unlike what yours once were. Is this The Call? Is that the true desire of my heart, to leave this civilized place and lay myself into the hands of a stranger?”
“As I have said, Erato, fate is not merely given. If the world beyond this sea calls to you, only you will choose its curses and blessings. As your mother, I understand both the need to stay and the need to go—all things have their place and season. It is not a question of when or if they occur, but whether we choose to nourish ourselves when the opportunity is given. Take time to ponder the desires of your heart, but do not starve yourself with uncertainty.”
Erato looked to the woman for the first time, her eyes showing a deep weakness long glossed over with empty words and assurances. “But faith is what I fear. What if the desires of my heart are everything I believe them to be? Would I lose myself if I gave myself away?”
“To that you already know the answer, my child. My heart worries to see you wander a world outside our own, but some things must be let go if we are to let them grow. You must find your own answers, you must learn sorrow to know joy. I do not know all that lies in store for you, but Avalis’s gift will protect you as it always has. If nothing else, have faith in Her.”
Erato turned back to the sight of the shore, the silver scales above her eye shimmering as the light directly hit them. “For years I have felt the danger lingering beyond the sea… it thrums and charms and warns me. I know that I must go, yet I know not where. When all I sense is danger beyond our land, where do I turn?”
At this, Erato’s mother smiled. “Every one of Avalis’s gifts are given for a reason. You will not have strength of arm to give you protection, nor knowledge of the lands beyond to guide you. Trust in yourself and your gifts, let Avalis guide you, and all will be well.”
