Member
Tim the Yeti
Fetzen
Crusader Lord
Enzayne
Timemaster
King of Rats
Jamesyco
Dark Cloud
Eviledd1984
The small ball of light zoomed through the vastness of space, on its way to Galbar once again. Oraelia felt better, much, much better then she had been. Gibbou was a brilliant Goddess, her best friend, and her twin. She loved her more than anything. This she knew, and she also knew she would see Gibbou again, but for now, she had work to do.
She descended into Galbar, finding a very strange change. The sky was no longer blue, but a colorful display. At first she was unsure of the change, but slowly it crept up on her, and reminded her of the Luminant. She wondered who had decided to do such a thing, as she flew towards the crimson desert. It was time to make good, in the name of life, she had to show that her sun was not so bad.
The desert was a cruel place, hardly anything lived on the surface. It was just too hot. She flew into the caves and to her great surprise, found that life flourished there. It’s own unique ecosystem thrived beneath the sands. Full of bioluminescence and plenty of water, but it was still a place fraught with danger. She spied the mortals from a distance, hunter gatherers in the dark. So different then the humans in the north, with their large eyes and glowing tattoos. They were perfectly suited here, but Oraelia still felt as if she needed to do something for them. She returned to the surface and looked over the land. She could not deny that it was unique, and the life here had adapted to the dry and arid place. So what could she do?
The place lacked an abundance of water, and even in the caves, it never replenished. It was a dwindling supply, and then an idea struck her. The day was cruel, and that needed to change. An idea came to mind, but to keep the uniqueness of the place intact, it needed to be a rare occurrence. Far from over the black mountains, storm clouds gathered, never venturing over those peaks. But no more. With a flick of her wrist, Oraelia gave them a push and at last, they came, billowing black and greys. Soaked with water and ready to burst, but Oraelia knew that too much water could be a bad thing, and she could not risk flooding the desert underground. She then snapped her fingers, and as the desert grew dark, the sky began to trickle. A slow, gradual thing, enough to make small streams, but never a torrent. Manageable for the people, flora and fauna here.
The vast storm would block the sun's rays and allow for day incursions, but only for a period of around thirty days, before the storm would break apart again and not return for another year. This would insure the land could be replenished, while not drastically changing it. She rubbed her hands together, delighted, before flying off.
She once more traveled north east, to the Aberrant of her creations. She stopped at the border and peered within. She saw many things, some were twisted, some wondrous, but most hardly what she had envisioned. It saddened her greatly, but there was not a whole lot she could do. It existed now, and the life within was… Well… Alive and with whatever their downsides were, they were thriving. She scrunched her nose and crossed her arms as she looked upon it. She couldn’t come up with anything, or her fear of trying blocked her. There was no telling what the Lifeblood would do if she tried to alter anything, so she decided to leave it as it was. A reminder to her, that not everything can be so perfect.
She left, flying south until she once more came upon where the Highlands fought the Prairie. She paused for a moment, as she perceived many humans had made the trek west. This surprised her, but not entirely. They were welcome in the sunlit land, as any creature was. They looked wary however, the trek must have been long and full of danger and though the Prairie was boundless, there was little natural shelter. So she had an idea.
On the boundaries of both lands, she raised a large hill. There she summoned her sun’s light, and it illuminated the hill in a golden light, brighter than even the day. From this light, rose a small temple of white pillars, growing in size and height as they ascended the hill on either side of a golden path. Over top came slabs of white, connecting the pillars as they lay on top. When it reached the top of the hill, the land became smoothed, and around a circle of pillars rose, taller than those that came before. A dome of stone, fixated with glass, erupted from the light at the top of these pillars, as supports were made between them. The glass allowed for natural illumination within the area, always focusing on a central pool of water within the chamber that was surrounded by flowers. Trees and other vegetation popped on the top of the hill, but sparse they were and never overwhelming the view the hill provided.
When all said was done, Oraelia descended and flew in between the massive pillars where she landed next to the pool of light. She hummed a little, and danced around it before diving in. The water was warm and pleasant to her senses. She knew any mortal would find it much the same. She left the pool and walked around, taking in the sights and sounds. This Sunlit Temple would provide a beacon of hope for those traveling through the land. A place where they could stop, and relax before heading beyond. It provided an excellent view of the Prairie and of the Highlands. It was large enough to accommodate many people comfortably and keep them warm. Oh! She almost forgot to make bushes with berries!
She clapped her hands and the bushes around the area erupted with fruits and berries that matched the new skies. She may have been a little too enthusiastic however, because before Oraelia knew it, she was no longer alone. From the ground emerged more Leeoli wisps that danced about and from the pool of light, emerged a dark skinned hand. There could be heard a gasp of hair as two large eyes with a head of golden hair erupted from the surface. It took Oraelia a moment to register what she was seeing, before motherly instincts took over and she helped the girl out of the pool. Wet hair dripped upon Oraelia as the girls large, golden eyes blinked rapidly, as she took large gasps of air as she tried to focus on everything around her.
Oraelia, now sitting on the edge of the pool with the tall girl cradled in her lap, spoke. ”Shh. Shh. You’re safe now, focus on my voice. Look at me, little one.” she said reassuringly. It was for the first time she got a good look at her face. Golden orbs for eyes, eyebrows of golden, to match her hair. Her face was round, not unlike the desert people, but she had no feathers in her hair either. Upon her dark lips, two triangles of gold, one facing up and the other down rested in the middle. She wasn’t entirely human looking, or desert person looking, but something else entirely and it was that uniqueness that made the life in her hands special.
The girl focused on her and took a deep breath, as she closed her eyes and gritted her teeth, whether in pain or anger, Oraelia could not tell. She exhaled again and snapped her eyes open, her face relaxing as she looked at Oraelia again. Slowly, she reached out one of her hands, and touched the Goddess’ cheek. The girl’s hand was warm, and a deep contrast to her golden skin, but there was a curiosity there and an innocence.
”You- You are Bright, mother.” She said, her voice rich and exotic in tone. ”I-I… Where am I?” she asked, looking around.
Oraelia, though perplexed at how the girl had come to be, smiled warmly. ”Welcome to life. You are here, in the Sunlit Temple.” she said simply.
”I remember… I was… Born in light.” she said, looking at the pool. ”But I tried to breathe and I could not.” she looked back at Oraelia. ”Why?”
Oraelia pushed the hair that had fallen out of the girl’s face and said, ”You can’t breathe in water, dear. Not many can, in fact. The pool you came from was one of my creation, and it seems the residual power within brought you to existence. What a wonderful mystery.” Oraelia cooed. ”You need a name, something to call you by. An identity.” she said again before pausing for a moment. ”How about… Lucia?” she asked.
”Lucia? Lucia…” she whispered, testing the name. A small smile fell on her lips and she nodded. ”I like that name, mother.”
Oraelia gave her a hug and said, ”Come on, I want to show you something.” She then stood up, helping Lucia to her feet. Her build was much like her own, lithe and petite, with narrow shoulders. Unlike Oraelia, however, Lucia was at least a head taller. She took a step, and nearly fell over, but Oraelia caught her before she could. Lucia simply laughed. It was a sweet sound.
”Tricky thing.” she said aloud, as she stared at her wiggling toes. She then straightened herself and tried again, as Oraelia hung on her loosely. Lucia took a step, then another, and before long she was walking by herself. Oraelia took her hand within her own, and together the two walked over to the vantage point, a balcony that overlooked the Prairie.
Lucia gave an audible gasp as she looked out at all the fields of golden. She felt the breeze on her face and she stared at the sky for a minute, digesting the world all around her. She ran her hands through her hair, and touched her skin, before picking up a bright pink flower and smelling it. She smiled a toothy grin, revealing white pearls.
”It is… Beautiful, mother.” Lucia said aloud.
”Isn’t it?” came Oraelia’s reply, as the two shared the view. Another unexpected surprise, but a good one Lucia was. She would have to teach her things for a time, give her powers, be a good mother. But Oraelia frowned slightly, before smiling again. How bittersweet, time was.
