//------------------------------//
// 366. Symphony by Knight of Lycaeus 
// Story: The Sun and the Stars: A Twilestia Prompt Collab 
// by Fuzzyfurvert 
//------------------------------//


by Knight of Lycaeus


***



Dawn had scantly broken over the horizon, the usual light and warmth of the Sun slowly fought back the dark and chills of the retreating night. A new day had begun, the world slowly awakened after the night’s rest yet the Archmage had been travelling for a while. Her partner, the Princess had roused her and beckoned her to follow just as the Moon nearly completed its slow descent towards the horizon, confident that its work was finished and that rest was so rightfully earned.

It was certainly unusual for anyone to travel out so early, yet far behind them lay the city of marble of gold that both called home.  She looked around in the vain hope of understanding where their destination was, yet the only thing that lay ahead were forests. The forest ahead was old; its trees mature and tall that their foliage created shade and shelter for those that lived within and beneath their lofty branches. Her thoughts of what her Princess had planned were broken by the feeling of rain falling softly against her coat. As she turned her gaze skyward, she could see that the ascending Sun was gone, obscured by the gathered light grey clouds.

A soft tap against her shoulder drew attention from the skies to the gaze of her Princess. Since leaving the city her Princess seemed quiet, quiet in a way the Archmage seldomly saw as it was not the quiet of peaceful content, but the quiet in which her Princess’ long past seemed to lurk more closely, an almost haunting quiet hinting to the unvoiced sadness that was always present. With this she understood that whatever this place was, it was a place of stories both told and forgotten and somewhere her Princess felt was important. The Archmage took a swift glance around and she could see that they stood on the doorstep of the thick forest and upon this closer inspection, the sparse light could barely penetrate the heavy shade giving the forest an almost imposing feel, yet the soft light that her Princess bore gave her a sense of peace and safety even in this mysterious place. With a quick motion asking both for her silence and for her to listen, which she compiled as the duo began their trek through the soft detritus. Her Princess’ movements sure and precise even in the dim light and thick foliage as she led the way forward, gently pushing foliage aside with sweeps of her broad snowy wings.

Even in the dark of the forest, the Archmage could still hear the excited chatter of its denizens. The denizens darted through the forest, across the ground and above in the long reaching branches. Even as they trekked deeper in, the Archmage could still hear the almost rhythmic fall of the rain, a quiet harmony to the natural dissonance of sounds formed by the loud cacophony of the forest’s denizen.  While her confusion had not lessened since arriving in this mysterious place, the Archmage found herself understanding her Princess’ request to listen.

The unusual silence however drew her attention once more. It was strange to hear, but as she looked she could understand why. She could see that the forest had changed greatly from what it was earlier, here it was more sparse, the trees less plentiful. The denizens were almost nowhere to be found, the eerie silence was a stark contrast to the almost gentle peace from earlier. A few faint cries could be heard through the scraggly almost lifeless trees heightening the unsettling presence of this unusual place. Here the Archmage could more than feel the presence of magic; no here the magic was thick almost as though magic was all that could be found here. Something had happened here, something so long along yet had marked the land so that few living beings would dare venture here, the Archmage mused as they continued on.

At last the songs of birds could be heard again, three songs distinct in tone and character rang from around and soothed her mind after the uneasy walk through the heavy magic. Here the forest broke open once more, allowing scant rays of light to pierce through. It seemed that the clouds had begun to retreat yet the glade they stood in allowed little of the sky to be seen. Here was their place, her Princess hadn’t said anything, but the Archmage knew. This is what her Princess had taken her to see, taken her far from their home to see.

The place was a small glade, the small pond made the scene almost quaint, but what stood out were the rough-hewn stones arranged into a rough shape.  The Archmage turned to her Princess who stood almost so still as though she was a statue of finely polished marble, knowing that she needed to know what those stones were the Archmage approached them. There was magic within these stones, magic both familiar and unfamiliar. Magic of the Aether was the first she felt, the most familiar for her like it was an old friend that was once lost and now found. Mingling among that were two more, the Magic of the Earth had that quiet strength that was unmistakable and the Magic of the Sky its energy wild and frantic like the storms they could command.

Words were unnecessary; the Archmage knew what this place once was. This place so far from the city of marble and gold, it was history here. History of the old world, it was once a familiar world but time had dulled the details and like so many events and places it had faded into tales and myths. She knew it all and so she joined her Princess who had taken to resting by the small pond. The only response from her Princess was a sad smile, one that betrayed her usual composure. To the world her Princess was a pillar of strength so many relied upon and yet in this moment her expression was unguarded and it could not hide all that she had seen in her long life. The Archmage through her close bond were privy to moments such as these, but almost never in places with such rich and personal history for her Princess. Without any more thoughts on the matter, the Archmage reached over with one of her own wings and held her Princess firmly as soft tears broke through the frail mask that she had held all through the journey. She knew why she was shown this place and why her Princess had asked for her to come with her this morning on what seemed to be a day of no significance, anything else beyond those facts could wait for another time.