Regret

Chapter 10 - The Abandoned Shrine

Chapter Ten

THE ABANDONED SHRINE

Midday light peered down through the forest's canopy. Valye squinted, feeling the rough stones against her palm as her feet stepped through underbrush.

They were camped in a clearing surrounded by squat dense trees, not like the towering weilsemung woods north of Neimhall. Nature had reclaimed much of this place, though somebody had cared for the ruins themselves.

All around she saw stones, bleached white from ancient sunrises, scattered in piles or by themselves. Patches of cobbled flooring, worn smooth by centuries of sandals followed centuries of rain & wind. In some places, scribbles words from the old language, their intent lost to time.

They were on a hill, she felt; the river's sound came from somewhere below.

Several stone pillars stood before her, carved with faces from long-ago priests & priestesses still pondering greater mysteries. They lead to short building, its curved roof collapsed in most places. Splintered beams & broken stones blocked most, but not all of its entrance.

I thought I'd seen all of Neimhall. I've never noticed this place before.

She bowed before the chiseled figures, though she didn't recognize any. Dead vines & leaves crowded around her feet, and she ducked under a fallen rafter into the shadowed recesses inside.

A cool draft greeted her, blowing dried leaves away from her footsteps. Brightness lit little spots along her path, reaching down through the roof's torn places. It smelled of dust & smoke – incense burned & since forgotten by all but this place.

Valye stepped around shattered pews. A broken figurine lay on one, eyes closed in serene contemplation. Its hand, once raised, was missing.

The rubble cleared into an open area, much taller, with tinted panes above. The light came through a faded blue, the glass having lost color through the years. Many were gone.

Princess Moiraine was kneeling at the nave's altar, alone. The sun's radiance flowed down from a portal directly above her, lighting her pauper's clothes with an otherworldly glow. A few birds flew from the rafters above as Valye's smallest movement echoed through the vast chamber.

She approached her, but she didn't move.

Valye bowed, knelt behind her, and closed her eyes. Over time, she heard Halnir's footsteps behind her, given away by his sheath clinking against his maille. He stopped, said nothing, and eventually left. He came & went many times, but Valye made no movement. She needed answers. He had to wait.

When she opened them again, the sun had moved and light no longer illuminated them. Princess Moiraine lit a candle on the altar and rose.

"Your highness," Valye said.

She acknowledged her. "Valye, you don't look so worn now. How are your wounds?"

"The Cheverr training... they'll heal fast."

She smiled. Her smile, faint and peaceful, reminded her of that broken statuette. She killed that man. I suppose, she's had a day to think about it.

"Has Halnir introduced you to my 'bodyguard'?"

She nodded. "He did. And explained what happened while I was out. Barrentz... do you trust him, your majesty?"

"With my life." She sat next to her on the dusty floor. "Barrentz is a good man. But even the best men sometimes bend under the heaviest burden. His is a burden nobody should have to bear. Like yours. Protecting us. You both make the best of it."