A Good Man Awakens

Chapter 13: The High Priestess

I ate, slept, and woke to the sight of Elbis and Elbar floating a few feet away from my hammock. The moon still shone high in the sky. Was it always night time here? I wondered.

"Hope you slept well," Elbis said, his wings fluttering with a steady rhythm as he spoke. His tone carried a faint edge of irritation. "Elbar has informed me about your little ventures—the temple of forgotten dreams and the Lunarum Vaults. You've been quite busy, haven't you?"

"The High Priestess, Selendra, has requested an audience with you," he added. "When you're ready, we'd appreciate it if you'd come with us. It's not far."

Elbar glanced at me, his eyes downcast, a look of guilt etched into his expression, as though he had betrayed me by summoning a higher authority. I offered him a reassuring smile. There's no need for that, I wanted to say. "Of course," I replied instead, my voice light. "I have a few questions for this Selendra myself. Lead the way."

"Fantastic," Elbis said, wings twitching as he turned. "But please, refer to her as Your High Priestess or Your High Priestess Selendra. She resides at Dewsong Dell. Follow us."

I jumped from my hammock, stretching toward the silvery moon, and let out a yawn—not out of need, but out of habit. Elbis headed toward the Veilwood with a deliberate pace, and Elbar and I followed.

Elbis had been right; no sooner had we entered the Veilwood than we emerged into a tranquil dell. Dew-kissed trees lined the banks of a gently flowing stream, and mist swirled lazily through the grove. The stream trickled into a still lake where ancient weeping willows stood like silent sentinels before a grey stone building, timeless and worn by centuries.

There were figures—humanoid in shape—but their grey-tinted complexion betrayed their true nature. Faye. They moved about, tending to trees, carrying fruit and water with methodical precision. Elbis and Elbar hovered briefly, then descended beside me, their forms shimmering as they morphed into human-sized figures, walking alongside me as equals.

Elbar gave me a sidelong glance. "The High Priestess prefers us to appear this way. 'Dress like our visitor,' she said." His lips curled into a sheepish smile.

I didn't mind either way, but there was something oddly comforting about talking to someone my own size. It felt more grounded—more real.

We approached the stone structure, none of the workers paid us any mind, each absorbed in their duties. The double doors of the building, made of aged wood reinforced with black metal hinges, loomed before us. Elbis, with some effort, pushed them open, straining against their weight. He'd have had trouble in his smaller form, I mused, though the thought quickly faded as the familiar scent of baking bread wafted toward us.

Inside, the room was larger than it appeared from the outside, a towering space filled with ancient wisdom. Shelves lined the walls, packed with books of every shade and hue, and a grand table sat at the center, illuminated by soft, blue light. Around it, shelves extended like spokes of a wheel, encircling the room in a spiral of knowledge. On the table sat freshly baked bread, ripe fruit, and a pitcher of purple liquid, exuding a fragrant sweetness.

At the head of the table sat a slender woman, cloaked in grey, her robes worn with age yet dignified. Her face, though stern, was elegant, with a slight kink in her nose that only added to her charm. Her eyes, however, were her most striking feature—alive with shifting hues of gold, as though they held the colors of knowledge itself. Her hair, golden and flowing, peeked from beneath her hood, cascading like sunlight in a land of perpetual moonlight.

The High Priestess Selendra. She was nothing like I had remembered from my first day here. I only saw her briefly in her natural form. Nothing unremarkable, but now sat before me, almost human, she was striking.