Val opened her eyes and saw her father, Torindel, standing over her. He looked like he was shouting something at her, but how could she be certain? She hadn't opened her ears yet after all. She stood up and gave him a kiss on the cheek before stretching and walking towards the front door. Once outside Val felt a light breeze blow across her face and she smiled. Her smile almost immediately turned to a frown, however. Was the wind mad at her today? Usually she greeted Val with a riddle. Oh, she quickly remembered, my ears. Val turned her ears on for the day and told the wind good morning and apologized for not being able to hear her earlier.
I am not the day where you first drew breath
Yet I follow behind, untouched by death
I echo that moment, year after year,
With flame and song and those held dear.
Val scrunched her nose and tried to think of the answer, but nothing came to mind. "You got me again!" Val shouted as a gust blew the tree tops overhead. The trees! She had almost forgotten she promised to climb on them today. She felt her father had walked up behind her and placed his hand on her arm. Val turned to Torindel and hurriedly pushed his hand away, telling him "I don't have time to play games right now." Val sprinted from her family's cottage and into the trees.
Val loved spending time with her trees, even if they did like to tickle her with their leaves and move their branches, causing her to fall. One could not find a creature more mischievous in all of the Bulwark than a tree. Val had never left Graliel's Bulwark and she wondered if trees in other parts of Eridan were as impish as her friends in this forest. Nymerel told her stories of corrupted trees that would grow legs and try to stab people. Val always laughed at how ridiculous the old druid's stories were. As far as mentors go, the curmudgeonly Nymerel wasn't all that bad. Though, Val had always thought it was unfair that she was forced to do lessons while all her friends got to play. However, after almost 100 years the druid told her that their lessons last week would be her last. Val remembered being so excited after he told her, that she had decided to turn her ears off. Nymerel had gotten his solemn "this is serious" face and continued going on about something. He was angry when he figured out she wasn't listening, but he had literally just told her that her lessons were over, so she wasn't sure what kind of game he was playing.
After an hour or two of swinging from branch to branch through the southern forest Val reached Graliel's Pillar, or as Val always called her, Pilly. Pilly was said to be the tallest tree in the Bulwark and her father told her a story that Pilly was actually the first tree in the entire forest and all the others had come from her. Val didn't believe this story, but she did ask Pilly about it one time. The old tree told her that she couldn't remember that long ago and then became angry with Val for waking her up. Apparently she had been asleep for several hundred years until Val decided to climb her one day. This didn't sound right because her entire village would travel to Pilly every spring and have a party at the base of her trunk. Well, Nymerel had called them "festivals," but there was music, dancing and food which sure made it seem like a party to Val. How did she sleep through all that and only wake up when Val tried talking to her for the first time? Val hadn't pressed the issue and Pilly had grown to become one of her closest friends. While the rest of her village might only come and see her once a year, Val came as often as she could. Pilly always seemed happy to see her and she spent hours sitting on her highest branches, looking out over the Bulwark.
"Valeriek, I didn't expect to see you today, surely you are overwhelmed with your preparations," Pilly said as Val began pulling herself up.
"I'm surprised by you Pilly, I promised I would be here and you know how I feel about promises."
All the leaves on the ancient tree began fluttering in unison, though the Wind was nowhere to be found. Pilly would make her leaves do that often and Val thought it was her way of smiling, since she didn't have a mouth and all she had to smile somehow, everyone needed to be able to smile.
"Come, sit, but I can not allow you to linger for too long child."
Val didn't even get angry anymore when Pilly called her a child, she called everyone and everything that. Val guessed when you were as old as Eridan itself, everybody else did seem like a child. She reached the tree's top branch and stood up, wrapping one arm around the trunk to steady herself, and looked out. To the south she could see the seas glimmering in the morning sun. The canopy of the Bulwark was far below her and dominated the view in every direction. The light fog was dissipating as an early autumn warmth penetrated the forest. Far to the north Val could make out the tops of a several spires in the Bastion.
Val had been to the Bastion of Autumn and Spring a few times, but everything was made from rock and there were way too many people. A few years ago Nymerel had taken her to a big fancy house in the city. A giant gate surrounded the house and elves with big spears stood around it. Everybody there was so strange, what with them all staring and a few even bowing to her. Though he rarely told any jokes Nymerel kept telling her that she was going to live in that fancy house one day. He then said that she would sit on some chair that was made from Pilly's branches and wear a crown made from her leaves. He told her about some other things she would wear and all these things she would have to do, but Val really only listened to the parts about Pilly. She turned her ears off for the rest. Val remembered laughing the first few times he said it, but by the end of the day she just nodded and smiled. She didn't want to hurt Nymerel's feelings, but jokes told over and over again aren't as funny.
"Do you feel like you are ready for the future child? I fear sometimes that your mind still wanders so," Pilly said as Val sat down on the branch.
She pulled a large pear from her bag and bit into it. "Sure I'm ready, now that I don't have grumpy Nymerel's lessons everyday I will have way more time for the future."
Pilly's leaves all fluttered again for a moment and the old tree responded, "Be kind to old Nymerel, he has sacrificed much to prepare you for this. Today is the culmination of a lifetime of knowledge and work."
Val swallowed a bite of pear. "Oh, now I understand. The old elf is finally retiring. Well, good for him he has certainly earned it."
"He certainly has," Pilly said as she wrapped several smaller branches around Val. She knew this was the tree's way of giving Val a hug, which she usually only did when they were going to be separated for awhile.
Val rubbed her hand gently on the leaves of one of the embracing branches and said, "Don't worry Pilly, just because I don't have to hide from Nymerel anymore, doesn't mean I am going to stop visiting."
"I know child, something in the wind is just telling me that it may be a long time before I can hold you again."
"Well, I wouldn't listen to the wind too much Pilly. He only talks in riddles."
Val stayed and talked with Pilly until the sun was directly overhead. The ancient tree urged Val to return to her village and the elf hugged Pilly's massive trunk before morphing into a falcon and soaring towards her village. As she looked back, she saw that all of Pilly's branches were sagging, like a very fat ogre was sitting on each one. "Oh no, she's crying."
Val's village, Thalor Glade, was a collection of three large clearings in the southern forest of Graliel's Bulwark. The clearings were connected by both dirt paths and rope bridges. It was made up of mostly wooden buildings, both on the ground and built into the tops of the surrounding trees. A temple to Galiel and the village long hall dominated the majority of the center clearing, while the other two clearings were an assortment of family cottages and shops. Val flew to the entrance of one of the few stone structures, Carreg's masonry workshop.
Carreg and Val had grown up together. He had spent his childhood in much the same manner as Val, being tutored all day while watching longingly as the other children played. Carreg's father had him laboring in the workshop by day and mastering their family's craft in the evening. Carreg had taken full control of the shop and as Val shifted back to her normal form, she could hear him in the back. The rear of the shop was a gigantic barn-like structure where the mason would keep his completed works.
Val skipped inside and saw Carreg wiping his hands on a rag that she thought should probably be thrown into a fire.
"Val, I didn't expect to see you until tonight," he said as he walked up to hug her.
"I don't know why everyone keeps saying that, I see you all the time," Val responded.
Carreg let out a short laugh and shook his head. "I am happy to see you regardless, how has your day been?" Carreg asked as he walked deeper into the storeroom.
"Father and the wind were both extremely moody this morning and Pilly was crying when I left."
"Your tree friend, cried?"
"Yes Carreg, trees can cry, she smiles too," Val said, slightly annoyed.
Carreg laughed again before saying "I probably shouldn't show you this just yet, but I am pretty proud of it." He walked over to a statue that was covered by a leaf-woven blanket. He pulled the blanket off in one quick motion to reveal a full-sized statue of an elf woman. The elf was standing on a tree branch, large wings protruding from her back and that same leaf crown Nymerel had shown her atop the statue's head. Val looked at the statue's face and her eyes went wide. Did Carreg make a statue...of her? Why would he possibly do something like that?
Oh no, Val thought to herself he's in love with me.
Val didn't know what to say. Sure, Carreg was her friend and she had always thought him to be handsome, but it could never work. She loved being with the trees and her friends in the forest, while Carreg preferred to be in his shop chiseling away at stone. Their lives were just going in opposite directions. She had to be as direct as possible, Carreg's mind didn't work like a normal persons.
She placed her hand on his. "I appreciate how hard you have worked on this and it is truly a magnificent work, but I could never reciprocate." Carreg looked confused and started to speak but Val held up a hand to stop him. "You are a dear friend to me Carreg, one of my dearest. I am sorry, but I do not share these same romantic feelings."
Carreg's look of confusion faded and he smiled. "I understand Val, I am glad you like the statue. I will be taking it to the Bastion when the caravan departs tonight."
Good, Val thought, hopefully he can find a worthy buyer in the capital.
The two friends hugged and Val bid him farewell, relieved to be out of the awkward situation. She walked towards the long hall as several small birds landed on her head and shoulder and a colony of brown rabbits circled at her feet. "Good afternoon my little friends," Val said as she walked and whistled.
As she walked through Thalor Glade she was surprised by how bustling the usually quiet village was today. Villagers were running everywhere and every chimney was billowing smoke as the smells of a hundred different dishes being prepared filled the air. As Val arrived at the long hall she saw several wagons that had been tied together in a long row. Villagers sang as they adorned the wagons with flowers and bright tapestries. The lively song stopped when one of them noticed Val approaching. The villagersat her and Val realized they were probably intimated by her rabbit friends. After all, this particular colony was well known throughout the Bulwark for their ferociousness. Usually it was the wildflowers and the fallen twigs that voiced their dread at the rabbits arrival. Val's eyes were again drawn to the flowers decorating the wagons and she slapped her forehead as understanding hit her. "Don't worry, they've already had lunch," Val said. The villagers just continued to stare and Val decided it was probably best to leave them to their work.
As she walked into the long hall, Nymerel stood in the center, speaking with several other druids whom she had never seen before. Nymerel looked over when she entered, quickly ended his conversation and approached her. The old druid gave her a sincere smile. "Valeriek, I understand you're excited, but I told you that you needed to stay away from the village today."
Val had no idea what Nymerel was talking about. "Um, I forgot," Val said giving her mentor a wide smile.
He placed his hand on Val's back and began leading her back towards the door. "Sweet girl, everyone is hard at work making preparations for tonight. You being here will only distract them."
Val had no idea what Nymerel was talking about. "I just wanted to come and tell you congratulations. Pilly told me that you're retiring!"
The druid gave a small chuckle and said, "Yes, I suppose after the coronation at the capital I am."
"Well, I'm sorry but I didn't get you anything. Carreg made a new statue that looks a lot like me, maybe he will sell it to me. You could put it in your library and scold it, in case you ever miss doing that. What are you going to do now anyway?"
Nymerel rubbed his temples, he did that a lot, Val would be worried he was getting sick, but he had done that her whole life. "That is precisely what I was speaking to you about. Carreg should not have shown you that statue. Its unveiling was meant to signal the beginning of our holy procession to the Bastion. The journey is meant to symbolize Graliel creating the magical borders of the Bulwark and founding the Bastion." Val had no idea what Nymerel was talking about. "While I know you love those in the village and you will miss them dearly, I cannot allow you to distract them any longer. Go and find a place to hide yourself for awhile and when the time is right your father and I will seek you out."
Val's eyes went wide. Hide and seek? Was Nymerel offering to finally play hide and seek with her? She had asked him weekly since she was a child to play with her and he had always responded with something drole about harnessing the power of reincarnation, or something. She usually had no idea what he was talking about. "Okay! That sounds wonderful, Nymerel! But no cheating!" Val shouted as she bounded from the long hall towards the forest.
Night had fallen on the Bulwark and Val had assumed the form of a squirrel. She sat perched on a tree stump a short distance west of Thalor Glade. She could make out several villagers with torches walking through the forest all shouting her name. She could easily make out the voice of her father amongst the others. She chuckled to herself and sat up proudly at how easily she was winning, Nymerel had been forced to enlist the help of the entire village to try and find her. At first, she had felt it was unfair to change her form, but she remembered all the times her mentor told her she needed to use the gifts that had been bestowed upon her. This was probably some final test of Nymerel's and she would not fail it.
However, she was starting to get hungry and she remembered all the food that was being cooked in the village. She decided she would show herself to her father and allow him to grab her. That was much preferable to Nymerel finding her and passively gloating for the next decade about it. She quickly bounced towards her father's voice and climbed onto a tree branch that was directly over his head. Val changed back into her elf form and sat with her legs dangling. She was about to announce herself when the Wind suddenly blew over her and whispered:
Hide well beyond the forests you know
Where curious feet are sure to go
The further out, the less they see
Lost to them, but found to thee.
Val was shocked that she had received two riddles in one day.
Well, Val thought, everyone has been acting weird today, why should the Wind be any different?
Unlike the riddle for this morning, Val knew exactly what it was telling her. She had to win this game. She stood up, the branch straining under her weight. The noise caused her father to look up and the two locked eyes.
He still has to catch me, Val thought as she smiled. Her father, Thorindel, reached out for her. Val backflipped off the branch and changed into a panther, landing gracefully on all fours. Behind her, Thorindel raced towards her, shouting to the other villagers. Val leapt and sprinted off to the west.
Before she knew it Val was standing at the edge of the Bulwark. She had been here before, but she had never left the magical protection of her homeland. To the north, she saw one of the white stone watch towers that guarded the borders of her people. In the west, Val admired the beautiful, rolling hills of Solmara. The distant shouts of her father could be heard far behind her, creeping ever closer. Just as she was turning around to venture back into the forest, a light breeze blew across her fur. Valand bounded west, into the lands of humans, dwarves and the unknown. Thorindel's shouts faded completely.
Val ran the rest of the night. Seeing the torches of small villages on the horizon and stopping only to eat grapes off of the vine. Nymerel would never find her out here, she could spend years hiding from him and the rest of her village. Val ran with pride as she would probably be remembered as the best at hide and seek in her people's history. Carreg's statue could be used to commemorate how thoroughly she won.
The panther formed Val continued west for several days and several nights. She thought she saw a few elves in the distance and made sure to keep herself extra hidden until they were out of sight. After a long while Val found herself on the shores of either an ocean or a very large lake. After a brief, but cordial conversation with the water she learned it was in fact the ocean, but a different ocean than the one that bordered the southern Bulwark. The ocean told her if she continued west she would eventually come upon a land known as the Tameless Shore. Val thought that sounded like a place Nymerel would never think to look for her. She was going to change into the form of a small shark and swim, something she hadn't done nearly enough of in her life, to the other side. The ocean, who said his name was Mortas, stopped her and mentioned several large boats that were sailing instead. Val had never been on a boat before and she knew for a fact her father and Nymerel were both horrified of the vessels.
Val soared over Mortas for several hours in her falcon form until she saw what she believed to be a rather large boat sailing west. She landed on the deck of the ship and changed back into her elf form. Several of the deeply tanned men on the deck jumped back in surprise at her sudden appearance. "Are there any elves on this ship?" Val asked. The men stared at her and one shook his head.
"Promise? Nymerel isn't paying you to lie to me is he? He once gave Symoril an extra cake if she promised not to skip rocks in the river with me anymore. He will stop it nothing to win."
One of the men cleared his throat and asked "Who the hell is Nymerel?"
Val gave the man a kiss on the cheek and said "Perfect answer, almost too perfect. I will have to keep my eye on you, Nymerel's informant. Now, I have been running for several days, can you tell me where I can get some food and perhaps a little sleep."
Val got to know the men of the ship, who called themselves corsairs, quite well and thought they were all delightful gentleman. She didn't exactly understand why they called themselves that because almost half of them were bald and didn't have any hair that could be coarse. She very much enjoyed sailing on a ship and could not understand what her father found so frightening about them, or the world outside of the Bulwark.
After several days the ship arrived in what Val could only surmise was a village, which the corsairs called Ridgeton.
Perfect, it will take years for Nymerel to find me here.
Val said goodbye to her new friends and continued walking west. She did not want to linger in the village as she feared Nymerel might have agents everywhere. The elf was relentless in his pursuit of her and his own victory.
Val walked for about an hour on a small path before she came upon a large tree that was laid across the road. She was walking towards the clumsy tree to ask how it fell when three men emerged from the bushes. One man held a shiny dagger in his right hand and the others were holding polished tree branches.
"Hello, did this clumsy girl tell you what tripped her?" Val asked the men.
"Shut it bitch, hand over the bag or we cut your throat," said the one holding the dagger. The men looked a lot like her friends from the boat, except their hair looked greasy and not coarse at all.
"My bag? Oh, no thank you. This was a gift from a friend. I can ask her to make you one if you want." Val said, smiling as the three men surrounded her.
"Have it your way then," one of the men said, raising the polished branch above his head.
Val was about to tell him he could have the bag made however he wanted when suddenly an arrow stuck into his neck. The man clutched at the shaft and fell to his knees. Val looked at the other two and each had several arrows sticking out of their bodies. Val took a step back and looked around as a cloaked figure crept onto the road. Val stood horrified as the bow wielding creature walked towards her. She thought about changing into her panther form and sprinting from him, but he was clearly an expert hunter and she wasn't sure she could get away.
The cloaked figure approached Val and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Are you hurt?" The figure asked as he pulled his cloak back, revealing dark auburn hair and pointed elf ears. "I am Telerek. I had been hunting these bandits for several days."
Val's voice caught in her throat and she was finally able to ask "Telerek?"
The elf stranger looked at her and cocked his head to one side. "Yes? Do I know you." Val was certain she had never heard of this elf before, but his name was too similar to be a coincidence, he had to be some sort of lost cousin of hers. There was no other explanation that made sense. Val dropped to the ground and began crying.
Telerek bent down and took her hand, "what's wrong?" he asked.
Val wiped tears from her face. "I lost."