Lone Wendy: The Girl and the Forest of the Gods (6 page)

-Wendy

I've been here for weeks now. The days go by with me
mostly alone and in my cell. The guards take me here and there for
work, or sometimes tea with the priest. Some days are warm, others
getting colder. Today is cold, and I’m given a poncho as I'm
dragged off from my cell. I'm left at the priests hut, and put the
poncho on as I wait. Soon he comes in and with help, ushers me to
his garden. 'Fall, the perfect time to grow things' – I think to
myself. But as the leaves are browning, his plants are in full
bloom.

“How do you do it?” I ask

“I'm just receptive to the plants needs” he
replies

“So you just guess what they need?”

“no, no, they tell me” He says as he feels the
leaves.

“tell you? You mean they speak?”

“they think, and I feel their intentions”

“how is that possible?”

“Plants are more than they're credited for. Some
think of them as inanimate objects, and nothing more... as well,
they sit there, planted their whole lives without movement or
speech.... But they're as much alive as anyone.”

“so how do you know they speak?”

“You develop a knowing of things, especially when
you're blind. Everyone here grows up listening to the wind, even
you could do it, if you would quiet your mind. To feel others you
need to expand your conscious. Relax and listen with your mind,
think of what thoughts enter. You should practice, It's a skill you
just might need one day....”

The rest of my morning is spent sipping tea and
tending plants, who luckily don't start any conversations with
me.

In the afternoon the old priest settles down for a
nap, and I wander his library. He has many old and interesting
books, but non interests me more than “The Foreign Gods”. Lore and
history of the Gods of the forest. Some basic history I know
already. The Gods are foreigners, not of this world, but from the
great beyond. Their presence is what keeps this continents magic
from fading like the rest of the world. And there are five of them,
each commanding certain powers of the realm.

What I didn't know though, were their names, and
biographies-

[Goddess - Felresi – The Earth Tender

The Goddess of the forest, she holds sway over the
nature of the earth. Her shrine is a temple in the depths of the
rainforest.

God - Boro – The Thunder of the Mountain

A God of power, his strength is unmatched. His
shrine is kept in the heart of a mountain, a symbol of his power.
His force roars as thunder across the sky, he is said to be able to
create storms.

Goddess - Celti – The Moons Tears

The Goddess of the sky and moon. She also causes
rain and controls the flow of rivers. Her shrine is built on a
spring on the top of a glacial mountain.

God – Vicstaeres – The Trickster

A God with power over the mind, his shrine is
located in an underground spring, a symbol of meditation and
peace.

God – Morteus – The Death Keeper

The God of death, he cares for lost souls.
Preferring to be among the dead, his shrine is built in an immense
and expansive underground graveyard deep in the south.]

Reading about them all, I questioned if these unseen
things could exist. Their very mention a feeling as though I had
wandered into deeper waters than I was used to. The furthest depths
where no men were meant to be. A place for primordial things
outside of our comprehension.

***

It's not even light yet as the guards torches cast
against my eyes. The metal door opens and I'm escorted into the
woods. We soon gather with the others, warriors, and sages as dawn
breaks lightly through the trees upon the far off sky.

“We gather for a hunt” I hear one of them say.

But first, they feel the need to train me. At first
they try to teach me tracking. Out of the many animals I try to
track, I only find one. An animal as slow as me, a turtle. I smile
as the warriors and hunters laugh.

We break for a short lunch, the man with golden eyes
sits down beside me. We exchange brief glances and smiles.

"you shouldn't feel ashamed Wendy..." He says to me
after a moment.

"what do you mean?" I ask shocked

"Your father abandoning you, it's his shame, not
yours, or your mothers."

I stare blank at him for a moment. "how do you know
that?" I ask shaken

"You told us everything Wendy, I'm sure that your
mother is worried about you."

I have to breathe for a moment to suppress my rage.
"I'm not going back, and I don't appreciate you bringing this up, I
don't even know you." I squeeze out through my teeth with a dead
glare.

"My name is Daedan. I was born a brat, raised a
warrior, made into a priest, and when the time came I took up the
sword again to lead my people, at the behest of our God."

"And you can't say no to a God?" I implore
sarcastically

"No you can't." He says with a smile.

"Has 'Vicstaeres' said anything about me.
Daedan?"

"Would you be here if he had?"

I shake my head and bury my feelings into my
lunch.

"I didn't mean to upset you Wendy, you may barely
know me, but I do care for you girl" he says as he puts his hand on
my shoulder.

I hate him still, for bringing any of that up, but
relax myself after a moment, and give him a smile - though only
briefly. I regret to admit, I do feel ashamed, sometimes. A fathers
shame for abandoning his love and child, it makes sense. But where
I'm from it's the opposite. An antiquated standard from settlers
times meant to dissuade unmarried coupling. A silly custom still
held to this day.

When lunch is over we begin the long walk to their
hunting ground. I make it a point to walk with Daedan.

"So, the Gods went mad?" I ask after a moment walking
beside him.

"Where did you hear that?" He questions.

"I was brought up hearing about mad Gods, but I also
read it in the priests library. What happened?

“The only one who knows is Vicstaeres, and he never
speaks of it.” He says low.

"And Vicstaeres, the books said that he is a
trickster God. What tricks does he play?" I continue.

“These days he has no time for tricks. In the old
days his tricks were cruel and ironic. One winter he burned a
village. He set fire to everyone's homes. The trick being, those
that didn't burn, froze.”

“That's terrible!” I exclaim.

“The Gods do not exist for men, theirs is a different
realm. All of the Gods were cruel, but not crueler than nature. And
we depend on Vicstaeres. When the other Gods went mad all those
that couldn't escape were cut down in their wrath. Our God resisted
the madness and saved us from the other Gods terrible power.”

“So is it true that there are no followers of the
other Gods?”

“No men follow them. Only beasts, monsters, demons,
and ancient myths not seen by human eyes in a thousand years.” His
eyes grow fierce.

“That's why you don't want me to go?” I ask.

“Partly, those things are deadly, but cold is the
real threat. Winter comes from the south, and with it death.”

“It's already fall, if winter is so terrible,
shouldn't you let me go soon?”

He returns my question with a smirk and stare that I
don't appreciate, and we gradually separate.

Finally the hunting begins. Hours of wandering, and
whispered conversation broken by hysteria and murder. I keep back
and help carry what the warriors catch. We return to the village in
the dusk. Everyone is tired and seems to have forgotten that I'm an
outsider.

Everyone smiles with me and we laugh in comradely.
But my smile fades with the setting sun, as the guards come again.
Once more I'm dragged off by rough hands and put back into my cell.
Dank and cut off from the world, caged like an animal. They're so
nice during the day, I almost forget that I'm their prisoner.

***

It's night. I look out from my little window upon the
village, aglow with burning torches and bustling with cheerful
activity. A cold breeze rattles the leaves of a nearby tree,
shaking them loose. They flutter by as the wind blows through my
hair, a tinge of ice numbing my face. Fall is here for sure, soon
winter. Maybe that's their plan, keep me here until the snow falls
and leave me no choice but to return home. I slowly caress the bars
in front of me, secretly hoping that they would just fall away so I
could leave. A foolish dream, that they wouldn't find me.

The moon begins to rise over the forest, an eerie
bright glow through a vortex sky. Such a weird land, I’ve never
felt a place so alive, where even the sky meets your eyes. My first
days here I wondered if this 'God' of theirs even existed. Standing
here now, looking over the ancient forest, there's no question.

I always felt like I was held back. Like my mom never
really cared to understand me, only control me. Not to say that I
was the easiest child, but it felt like I was put on rails and any
deviation was punished. One day I talked Wil into teaching me how
to fight with a sword. I got ahead of myself and got hit pretty
bad. My arm was bruised and mom soon found out how. My mom scolded
me, and had it out with Wil, he would barely even look at me for a
week. I wouldn't say that I was always right, but sometimes I just
wished that she would let me be me.

-Wendy

I rise late, the sun already casting its glow upon
the middle of my cell. The guards come for me as they realize that
I’m awake, and again to the old priests for tea.

I sit in his home for a long time alone, until he
comes in shaken, and sits. We talk for a time but his face looks
drawn and pale, soon he goes silent, his head bent over forward at
the floor. I begin to ask if he's alright when he interrupts.

“The God has decided” he crackles as I look on in
shock. “you are to go free, in any direction that you choose.” he
ekes out.

We sit in silence for awhile. I'm honestly stunned
that they would let me go.

“so, what does he think about my journey?” I ask as I
recompose myself.

“Even Gods can be wrong.” he replies quickly.

“What does that mean?”

“What destinations you choose, and if you get there,
is all up to you. That is what he told me. You leave tomorrow.
Goodbye my dear” he says quietly as he draws me in for a hug. Soon
after, he rises, and leaves quickly through the doorway.

“good luck to you, Wendy...” he states with a sadness
in his voice before he leaves.

“goodbye” I mutter behind him, before leaving the hut
feeling a heaviness in my chest.

***

I walk freely through the town, unsure of where to
go, or what to do when Daeden intercepts me.

“We are releasing you tomorrow” he says

“I know, the priest told me...”

“Will you go back?” He asks sternly

“No” I say, shaking my head to reinforce my
decision.

He nods his head slowly, “come with me” he says
strictly.

He takes me to a small arena. Taking two staves off
of a rack, he throws one at my feet.

“take it, if you're going, you need to know how to
defend yourself”

I move to pick it up when he lunges across the arena
and smacks it out of my hand.

“they will not wait!” he says as I gaze upon him,
eyes wide in shock.

I pick it up again. The instant my fingers touch it,
he swirls around again. His whole movement faster than the eye can
comprehend.

I resist, a blur before a solid crack, our staves
vibrating as they lay forced upon one another.

“have you been trained already?” he asks as our
staves part.

I quickly say no, trying to keep eye contact without
giving myself away. I know that I’m lying, I’m sure he does too,
but I want to know all that I can.

Attack after attack, I just barely hold my ground,
taking an off hit here and there. The pain of it not even phasing
me. I feel nostalgia from it. 'Playing' as a child, and sneaking
off some days to practice with Wil. As my spear flies from my hand,
I can't help but feel that I'd be better, if my mom didn't put a
stop to it.

In the evening a handful of guards bring supplies
over. A pack filled with food, but also some camping gear, and cold
weather clothing. A new map, and a necklace, a sort of charm of
protection from their God. They say that it will ward off evil, and
link me to the God of tricks, Vicstaeres. The last item, a short,
all metal spear is placed into my hands.