Aeronwyn had been here before. She was certain of it but couldn't quite recognize the place. She walked down a slight staircase into a large room. There were fountains on each side of the room, water bubbling through them. On the far side of the room small groups of people were whispering, pointed at her and smiling. Near the high ceiling Skyfolk children were playing a game of tag.
Then the scene changed. The fountains turned to blood and dried up. The people in front of her melted, dying before Aeronwyn's eyes. She watched in horror as the Skyfolk children crashed to the ground then turned to dust. Horrified, the room aged before her eyes, pillars cracking then some falling, the ceiling losing it colors. A large crack appeared in the floor that ran towards her and stopped at her feet. Aeronwyn jumped when a voice spoke from behind.
"Death comes to all things, my daughter."
Aeronwyn turned and saw an old man standing on the steps. He had a staff in one hand and a book in the other. His face was at once kindly and terrible, so that Aeronwyn wasn't sure if he should be loved or feared. He looked at her and she decided in that moment. He was to be loved and feared at the same time.
"What did I just see?" Aeronwyn asked.
"Time. That is what death and time have done to everything and everyone you once knew. I know such loss."
"Who are you?" Aeronwyn asked.
"I have no name you would know me by. Not yet. You may think of me as the Eldest, although I am known in many places by many names."
Aeronwyn considered his words. "Are you the one that the Old Gods speak of? The one who made them abide by their own rules?"
He smiled at her then and Aeronwyn knew that to see that smile again she would give up everything, even her own life. It's warmth reached so deeply that some part of her she didn't even know was alive sang for joy.
"I am." he said simply.
She stepped forward and knelt. "What service may I do for you?"
"Stand, child. You have been given five gifts. One, from your mother when she laid you in that coffin. Three from the Old Gods, one for you, two for others and the Book of Souls. What have you done with them?"
Aeronwyn looked into his eyes. "Nothing," she answered honestly. "I don't know what they are for!" Aeronwyn knew instantly that was the wrong answer. This one would take no excuses. "I am sorry. I have done nothing with them, yet."
He nodded and gently tapped her head three times with his staff. "This will help. Be well, child and know that I am with you." As he said that he breathed on her. She felt the dream fading away.
Aeronwyn sat up in bed. Tears had wet her face and pillow. She wiped her face with her hand and asked herself why she was crying. Then, remembering the intensity and power of the dream she realized she was crying because she hadn't wanted it to end! Clearly, this wasn't just a dream. More than a dream.
It was morning so she got up and dressed. Heading out of her cabin, she went to find Thugard. He was, as was his custom, standing near the bow letting the spray from the ship reach up and kiss his skin. She called out his name as she approached and he turned to her.
