Chapter 2.6.- The Wise Woman of the Western Forest
Photo: eduardo199o9.
The Western Forest was one of the strangest parts of the Sinardian Empire. It was never conquered, but since the latter owned all the surrounding lands, it was considered a part of the Empire. The Forest was lush and ancient, perhaps the oldest part of the entire territory. Its special shape was determined not only by the lush vegetation, but by the rivers, not very large but full of water at all times of the year; and the lakes, not very large in size but some of them very deep. All that water ended up going either to the Iridium River if they slid north or to the Great River if they slid south. Except, of course, the waters of the lakes that normally turned into very deep wells.
Photo: Connor McManus.
In the centre of the forest there were trees so large that any of the ranfredos that gave their name to another of the great forests of the Empire (although it was not even a third of the size of the one in the West) were small bushes next to those great yraibolions more than 50 metres high, to which were added ferns with 10 metres at the foot and climbing bushes whose branches extended for kilometres. The exuberant vegetation gave off scents little known in other parts of the Empire or, for that matter, in the whole earth: the very brightly coloured flowers in the lowest part of the forest gave rise, when the slightest sunlight penetrated, to a symphony of reflections that surprised even the few beings that lived there.
Foto de Bruno Abdiel.
With that configuration, the little light, the large trees and the unknown creatures, few people ventured inside and even fewer lived there. However, there was a village, quite isolated from what happened outside the forest boundaries, that lived there. They called themselves Balirakok, although it was difficult to know what that name meant. Their appearance was especially strange: albino skin and hair, with very light blue eyes, their characteristics were determined by life within that forest, where few rays of sunlight could reach the ground. They ate berries and fruits and prepared some meals with some vegetables they had learned to collect and some other animals they hunted within the forest boundaries. Their language, which lacked writing or, at least, it seemed that way from the few written forms that had been found, was unknown to almost all the people of the Empire.
However, there was someone who lived within the forest without belonging to the Balirakok, although no one really knew what their origin was. Anyone who saw Danladia could not determine her age. And that was certainly not the only thing that could be considered original or particular to her.
Foto de Pablo Picardi Photography.
She was of medium height and, despite living in the forest, she was not an albino. She lived next to a waterfall, which produced a small water reservoir that she used to supply herself with the liquid element. With dark brown hair and eyes of practically the same color, she liked to walk through the forest and the Balirakok liked to talk to her and ask her about signs in the skies and healing potions. Perhaps she was one of the few people who did speak and write their language, without being Balirarkok.
As time passed, she looked more anxiously at the clear signs in the sky, because she had understood that the situation was especially dangerous, even for them within the Forest. So, although she continued with her normal routine, she followed very closely what was happening in the sky. More and more animals came to take refuge in the forest, but one day, one of the Balirakoks, a teenager who liked to listen to the old songs that Danladia sang, came running to the side of the waterfall:
- Daladiaaaaa! Danladiaaaa!
- What's wrong, Kiarok? What's happening?
- The elders want you to go and talk to them. It seems that they saw a very large snake going along the edge of the Forest.
The woman looked worriedly at the boy and said:
- Don't move from here. If anyone comes, hide behind the waterfall and don't make any noise.
The boy nodded without saying anything else and she simply sat on the ground and concentrated. Her consciousness traveled along the edges of the forest, until she found the beast: yes, it was a gigantic snake and it seemed to be looking for something. It was necessary to be able to know what it was thinking, the orders it had and who it worked for. And for that, she needed, firstly, to climb to the top of one of the trees; but also, that animal should remain in that spot without wandering about, so she gave it some entertainment: she pretended that a light was dazzling it.
In a short time she had climbed to the top of the tree and from there, while the snake was simply trying to see who was bothering it with that light, she penetrated its mind and saw something that terrified it beyond measure: she saw a gloomy castle and the cloak of an imperial emissary entering. But she did not know which castle it was or when that had happened: that could simply be a plan for the future. Or if it was simply something that the snake knew would happen but had not yet happened. It was clear that this animal was not the most intelligent of its kind, although it could not be trusted either: its hunting instinct was intact.
And just when she tried to separate herself from the mind of that being, she knew that its order was to find her and kill her. But it was afraid to enter the forest, so it was going to stay there, wandering until she appeared. But she knew what that meant: any person or animal that passed by was in danger as long as that snake was not chased away or someone put an end to its days.
She decided that she should call her guardian, who also lived in the forest, but with whom she did not normally have to speak: today she did, because it was necessary to tell him her plan. She went back down and addressed Kiarok:
- Tell the elders not to worry: I will take care of it.
- But -said the boy with concern-, do you really not want anyone to help you?
She smiled affably:
- Yes, I will receive help, but not from you. Come on, go tell them and be calm. No one will be in any danger.
The boy looked at her rather unsure, but ran through the narrow paths and small wooden bridges that they had built over the years. In a short time, he was no longer seen and Daladia took the opportunity to call her guardian. A short while later, a superb griffin appeared in that place: its plumage blended with the place and that made it practically invisible, except to expert eyes. It lived in a nest in a gigantic yraibóliron, with its family, as guardians of the treasures of the Forest. Of those treasures, one of the most important ones was, of course, Daladia.
- We have a problem, Grácilos.
- We heard.
- Shall we leave?
- Yes, we have no time to waste.
She mounted the griffin's back with agility and they both headed to the place where the gigantic snake was resting. The suns had already passed the zenith of the sky, as the afternoon was already advancing, although dusk had not yet arrived. The light of the Wromar sun was increasingly redder and closer to disappearing, while Dortian remained a little further from the horizon. The stillness in the forest contrasted with the anxiety they both felt: they could not let that horrendous being enter the forest.
When Danladia and Grácilos saw the great serpent through the thicket, Danladia made a gesture to Grácilos, for him to stop and leave her on the forest floor. She simply continued walking as if she didn't care and came out a few meters from where the snake was.
Danladia simply sat on the ground and waited calmly for the snake to notice her. Just as the monstrous snake was about to swoop down on her, she opened her eyes and said in the ancient Sinardian language:
- Ankáliros, roslos, tanioálbulos (Stop, beast, hear my command).
The snake, not used to being confronted, was perplexed and looked down at her, not knowing what to do. But she did know:
- Talklarios, roslos, suscímbaulos toslos (Speak, beast, be sincere and quick). Námbiros quíos tuilos? (Who sent you?)
The snake said:
- Woman, even though I don't want to, you are forcing me to tell you the truth. I have been sent to kill you.
And then the snake smiled and lowered its head almost to the ground, only to find that the woman had disappeared.
- Where are you? Are you afraid? Oh, yes, you must be.
Only then did she feel several terrible stings on her back, but when she turned to see who had done it, she felt others just as deep on her head. It hurt, it hurt a lot, but there was no more problem. And then it said something through its teeth:
- I don't know who you are, but do you know that my blood is poisonous? Whoever takes even a little bit of it, will be dead. Or worse.
However, it continued to feel sting after sting and suddenly a strong rope tied it to one of the surrounding trees and there was the woman again:
- Now you appear, woman? Have you sent someone to fight me because you have not dared?
However, it stopped and focused well: was the woman displaying an amused and triumphant smile?
- Why are you laughing, woman? Do you find it funny that you could be poisoned?
- No, not that... But you know, I don't think your lord thinks highly of you. Because he is the one who sent you, right?
The woman saw the silly smile that the snake was displaying on and looked at it, widening her smile:
- Do you know why?
The snake didn't know what was happening... but it felt worse and worse by the minute, like... terribly dizzy.
- Because I am surely one of the very few creatures immune to the poison of your blood... just like these trees are. The only ones that can counteract the bitter and strong poison of the blood of the snakes of the Anahay desert after having passed through the hands of the Lord of the Necromancers...
And then she sang loud and strong a short melody:
- Albulus, roslos, sanglátidos rúmbolos. Albulus, roslos, aldikláros tómbulos (Cleanse yourself, beast, may your blood never be poisonous again. Cleanse yourself, beast, may the darkness in you die).
The snake let out a loud, powerful howl. It was so pitiful that people felt like crying for miles. The body began to shake and writhe, causing it great pain. Its labored breathing barely allowed it to scream in pain, but his lament could be said to be even worse.
That hard and painful transformation did not last long and, as the snake's body advanced, it decreased in size, becoming smaller and smaller. As it advanced, the strong flexible branches that trapped it became too big to hold it and, finally, a man in rags fell from the tree. Fainting, thirsty and hungry, but, above all tired, he lay there on the ground, unable to move.
Danliada smiled and called Gracilos: the griffin came immediately and was surprised by the man. She examined him silently and then said:
- Danliada, I imagine you've noticed that this man's clothes have a strange shield embroidered.
- Yes, I was afraid so. I don't understand heraldry, so I can't tell you what it means. But we'll have to give him other clothes and save these so we can ask someone who does know, so we can finally know where does he come from...
- Where am I? - said a plaintive voice beside them.
Danliada knelt beside him and put a hand on his chest:
- It's all over. You need to rest and heal.
- What strange dreams I've had lately! - said the man sobbing.
- That's over now - she lifted him off the ground and mounted him on Gracilos - take him to my lake and immerse him in the water. He won't drown, he needs to cleanse himself of all the poison that his system still has. I must wait here.
The griffin bowed to her and flew with the man, still half unconscious, towards the center of the forest. She, meanwhile, only entered the mass of trees and sat down to wait.
Soon, a griffin even larger than Gracilos and with a much duller coat than him, landed at the edge of the forest. With a loud and clear voice he said:
- I'm looking for the Lady of the Forest.
She calmly appeared. The creature bowed solemnly:
- You have to be ready, the Dragons have awakened.
She smiled:
- I have never stopped being ready.
- They will arrive shortly, no more than a fortnight. Warn all the inhabitants of the forest: everyone must hear what they have to say.
She smiled again:
- I will do so…
But the griffin continued:
- They will tell you a few more things, but you must prepare to go to Sdaloren. There are those who will need your help soon.
- I will have whatever you need ready for that moment.
- I have seen how you have transformed that snake: the Dragons will be satisfied.
- It was not a difficult case: that man never wanted to transform, but wanted to be human. Some cases will be much more difficult.
The griffin bowed again and said:
- Until we meet again, Lady of the Forest.
The magnificent beast flew up into the sky and, in a short time, had disappeared over the horizon. She stretched out her arms and inhaled the pure air. Then she smiled: she had to go back to see how the man’s healing process was going. Despite what she had said, there was still a lot of poison in his system and it was necessary to remove it all. She looked towards the horizon: the three moons, Alkrania, Drania and Fandria, illuminated quite clearly everything she could see and, as it was a clear night, the stars were lit like lamps in the sky.
She turned and walked through the trees, beginning a prayer for all the unfortunates who had been transformed into beasts to serve the Dark Overlord. She needed to know if this man would survive: this would bring hope to the Empire and to the rest of the lands as well, because, “after all, when you pursue absolute power, there are never limits,” she thought, “unless someone demands them”.
And then she remembered the vision she had seen: the man in Imperial livery entering the gloomy castle. She hoped the man would remember this image, although she doubted he had retained it after the transformation. But she was sure that if there was anyone who should know the meaning of it all, it would be the Dragons.
There was only one week left. She had been prepared for centuries, even if some had already forgotten about her existence.
Previous chapters: