Phynis finally managed to react after a few moments, her voice trembling as she spoke. “H-how did you know?”
Lily looked between the two in obvious confusion, seeming even more dazed than the rest of them. Sistina stood smoothly, tapping her own chest once before speaking again, the power fortunately missing from her voice this time. “Old.”
Tapping the side of her head, Sistina added. “Remembered.”
“What do you mean?” Phynis asked, still stunned by the power, and that the dryad had known her family name. Her guards closed around her warily, watching Sistina. Phynis couldn’t help but notice that Sistina didn’t seemed concerned about their actions at all, and was simply watching Phynis closely.
“Why are you so shocked? What’s the meaning of Constella?” Lily finally shook off her own daze and asked, somewhat plaintively.
Phynis hesitated, then admitted the truth to the younger woman. “My name is Phynis Constella. Crown Princess of Sifaren.”
Lily’s face went pale as she realized the implications of what had just been said, and her jaw dropped.
“Y-you’re...oh my goddess! I’m so sorry! I didn’t, umm, I didn’t realize…” Lily stammered, flustered.
Before anyone could respond with more than smiles at the young woman’s earnest reaction, Sistina stepped toward the young dawn elf. She put a hand on Lily’s shoulder and smiled gently. The dryad made a show of breathing in slowly, holding it, and then slowly letting it out. Lily copied her, and after a minute recovered enough to blush and look at Phynis, who gave her a smile. Sistina smiled again, and gestured for the others to follow her around the tree.
“It’s fine, Lily. You aren’t from Sifaren, and I didn’t say.” Phynis told the elf gently as she followed Sistina around the tree to just in front of the tomb. It was odd, she realized as the tomb looked almost entirely untouched by time. Finally she looked at the dryad and asked. “What did you want to show me?”
Sistina simply pointed at the front of the tomb. Stepping close to it, Phynis frowned as she looked at the words carved into the stone. It was old script, predating the Godsrage, and it took her a minute to decipher. She slowly read the text aloud as she translated it, her voice faltering as she progressed. “Here lies our Matriarch and Marquess. May her rest be easy and eternal, lest she chooses to enter the cycle of reincarnation once more. In loving memory of Sistina...Constella. 374 ED.”
“That...that…” Vendis’ eyes went huge, as did those of everyone else present as they realized the implications. The captain’s eyes turned to Lily as she asked, shocked. “You...did you know about this?”
“N-no! I couldn’t read it! I couldn’t understand it! I’m a gardener, not a sage.” Lily protested vehemently. “I’m not even sure what the big deal is.”
Phynis ignored them, her mind dazed as she mentally ran in circles. This tomb was nearly ten thousand years old. It predated the Godsrage by over four millennia, if the date was right. Legends said that where the Godsrage Mountains now stood had once been the domain of elven kingdom of Everium, a forest kingdom that was verdant and powerful. But the Godsrage had destroyed the nation and the survivors, changed by the immense magic of the war of gods, had founded the nations that became Sifaren and Yisara.
Looking at Sistina, many thoughts ran through Phynis’ head, and then she reached out with trembling fingers to caress the name carved in stone. Her voice was soft, trembling with hope and sorrow as she looked at the dryad. “Are you...this Sistina?”
A sense of disappointment pressed down on Phynis as the dryad shook her head. For a moment she had thought that perhaps this might be her own ancestor reborn, but that was perhaps too much to hope for. So after a moment she asked. “Did you know her?”
Sistina nodded, stepping toward Phynis and reaching out to gently stroke a finger along her cheek. She ignored the gasp of shock from Vendis, but Phynis didn’t respond, instead focusing on the warm, soft skin of the dryad’s caress. And Sistina spoke softly, gently. “Friend.”
The dryad pulled away and touched the tomb gently, then nodded and spoke a final, firm word. “Guardian.”
“Oh.” Phynis was stunned, and looked at the tomb, then at Vendis, and said. “Do you think...this is the lost capital of Everium? Part of it, I mean?”
“I…” Vendis paused, looking around the chamber. The cavern had only a single other intact structure, a house near some fields, but they could see more buildings toward the edge. Finally the soldier admitted. “I think it might be. If one of your ancestors was buried here, it seems likely.”
Turning back to Sistina, Phynis hesitated before asking. “Sistina, can you break the slave brands?”
The dryad shook her head, and then wiggled her hand back and forth. Lily spoke up hesitantly. “I’m pretty sure she means not exactly. She’s answering you a lot better than she did me, though.”
“Well, do you know how to break them?” Phynis pressed, and her heart rose as the dryad nodded. Then she pointed at Phynis and shook her head, a sad look in her eyes.
Phynis hesitated, then looked at Vendis. “Captain, I think we have to stay here for at least a little while and find out what we can from Sistina. She might be able to help us.”
“You’re right. You’re definitely right. But we also can’t have everyone out in the open.” The captain replied after a moment, frowning to herself. “And we can’t split up, not with the mountains ahead of us. I just don’t have the soldiers to keep two groups safe, Your Highness.”
“Sistina? May we bring our group inside? It looks like there’s enough plants we might be able to eat that while we’re here.” Desa asked, glancing out across the cavern speculatively.
Sistina nodded, then pointed to Lily. The younger elf blinked, then spoke up hesitantly. “I don’t know where everyone would stay, but near the house I live in I’ve got an entire field of vegetables and fruit. It’s more than enough to feed everyone for a few weeks if need be, and it grows really fast. I think with help I could grow enough to feed everyone for even longer than that.”
“Right. Then let’s go get the others inside, where it’s fairly safe, and we can see what we can learn.” Vendis decided, nodding and smiling hesitantly. Turning to Sistina, the captain bowed her head and apologized. “Sistina, I’m sorry for being difficult. It’s just that I’ve been charged with protecting Her Highness, and I feared that this might be a trap.”
“Forgiven.” Sistina replied simply, and Phynis saw some of Vendis’ tension ease.
But when she looked at the tomb again, Phynis was startled to see the gentle smile on Sistina’s face. The dryad was smiling at the tomb, and something about the smile...it felt like there was far more emotion in the dryad’s smile than there had been before.
Chapter 7
It took a while to get everyone settled into the cavern. Phynis could have almost sworn that some of the buildings near the edges of the cavern had moved while they’d been retrieving the others, and also seemed more intact than before.
She had to admit that watching the stunned faces of the other rescued women as they entered the cavern had been quite entertaining in its own right. Some of the other women seemed hesitant about staying in the caves for a little while rather than furthering the escape, but no one had outright objected. Fortunately they at least had a defensible series of tunnels and there was plenty of food and other supplies.
About nightfall Phynis watched in fascination as the glowing orbs on the ceiling slowly dimmed and the crystal patch on the cavern roof grew darker as well. Watching it for a minute, she asked Lily as the dawn elf was leading the way toward Sistina’s tree again. “Is that light from outside?”
Lily paused, looking up at the crystal and then nodded. “I’m pretty sure it is. I can’t be certain, of course, but Sistina seemed to indicate so over the winter.”
“That’s impressive.” Phynis admired it for a moment, but with Desa behind her, she didn’t feel she could spend the time to properly appreciate the sight. So sh
e instead she continued onward toward the tree. It felt strange doing so with the tomb there, for some reason. She’d felt it was odd before, but now that she knew whose tomb it was, approaching Sistina felt like it was somehow wrong. After a few moments she asked. “So how did she change your brand? What did it feel like, and what orders has she given you?”
“Umm, she just touched it, actually. She touched it for a few minutes while it slowly changed colors, and it felt warm, comfortable.” Lily shrugged, smiling a little as she looked back at Phynis. “And orders? None. All the previous ones just...ended, and I was free. She has never given me an order. Indicate she wanted something done, sure, but I chose to stay. I probably would never make it back to Yisara on my own if I tried leaving anyway.”
“You could come with us. It would be a long trip if you took the long way, but I bet you could make it around the mountains eventually.” Phynis offered, but paused for a moment, shrugging as she admitted. “But you might already in a better state than most of the others who’ve been branded. A lot of them live in fear of being given an order by someone with a command crest without anyone else noticing. Or of being turned against the nation. And still other people mistreat those who’ve been branded, feeling that they can’t trust them. It’s...pretty bad, honestly.”
“That’s horrible.” Lily exclaimed, her eyes going wide. She hesitated before admitting. “I really didn’t think before running. I was given a chance, so I just took it to run as far and fast as I could.”
“I can understand that. I can’t imagine many people wouldn’t run if given the opportunity.” Phynis agreed, before asking again. “So are you going to come with us?”
“I don’t know. I actually like it here. Oh, I get lonely sometimes, and it isn’t like I can have real conversations with Sistina, but…” Lily hesitated, then sighed, looking at the ground. “I was barely more than a normal village girl before I was kidnapped. I was never going to be important, not like anyone else. When I was kidnapped, though, you always hear tales of those who end up in some dark castle or such, in the lap of luxury or serving villains, and able to make a difference, or who are rescued by knights in shining armor. I admit that a faint part of me dreamed of that happening. Instead I ended up as a groundskeeper in a noble’s garden. I slept in the shed, and was occasionally the Lady’s distraction. It was nothing like my dreams, and I think I would have eventually accepted it if she hadn’t accidentally given me the wrong order and let me run away. Here? Here I might have to work hard on occasion, but it’s actually more luxurious than the conditions I would have lived in back in Yisara or that shed.”
“That’s…” Phynis paused, trying to think of how to respond to Lily’s explanation. She felt a slight bit of annoyance at the thought the woman had dreamed of being some kind of heroine as she’d been kidnapped, but that wasn’t rational of her. Lily wasn’t a noble, or anyone important, she was just an average girl. So in that sort of situation, why shouldn’t she dream? And now, why not live somewhere isolated, where life was slightly better for her?
But they reached the tree before she could make a decision about what to say. Sistina was sitting where she’d first seen her the previous time. Fortunately, this time she opened her eyes at a more leisurely pace and she didn’t speak in that thunderous tone. Instead she tilted her head questioningly, even though her face remained relatively impassive. Phynis actually found the lack of facial expressions most of the time a little creepy, if she were being honest with herself. And yet the beauty of the dryad was somehow captivating, drawing the eye of all others in the area.
“Hello, Sistina. I was hoping you could show or tell me how to break the brand?” Phynis asked the dryad hopefully.
Sistina nodded and stood. Motioning for the three of them to follow her, she walked toward the tunnel leading deeper into the mountainside. Lily grabbed one of the strange lanterns from a peg near the tunnel. Sistina pushed aside some vines forming a curtain over the tunnel and started down a path that was rockier than the caves that the elves had followed to reach her cavern before, and this time they were going downward. They passed two junctions after a few minutes, one of which was extremely narrow, to the point that Phynis wasn’t certain anyone who was an adult could follow the path down that direction. But at a third junction Sistina turned off the main cavern path, pausing and helping each of them down some rough stone steps. This was far rougher than the others areas Phynis had walked over, though.
Several times she opened her mouth to ask where they were going, but each time she shut her mouth again. Finally she asked Lily. “Lily? Have you been down here before?”
“Nope. I don’t go into the tunnels that go deeper into the mountainside.” The dawn elf replied, her voice a touch hesitant. “I don’t like the dark as much, and when I wanted to get out of the cavern, I wanted to feel the wind on my face.”
“I can agree there. It’s difficult, feeling the mountain’s weight above you.” Desa spoke softly, her voice echoing in the tunnel.
All of them were somewhat surprised, though, when Sistina paused and held a finger to her mouth, shaking her head. She pointed ahead of them, and Phynis strained her eyes for a moment before seeing a soft blue light from ahead, almost drowned out by the lantern.
After everyone grew quiet, the dryad slowly approached the end of the hallway, beckoning them along when they hesitated. When Sistina turned the corner, she stopped and bowed deeply holding the pose as they caught up. Phynis turned the corner herself and gasped in shock.
This chamber was even more startling than the one in which Sistina’s tree stood, if only because it was much more obvious that this cave had been deliberately protected from the violence that had befallen the other structures. The cave was a near-perfect sphere, with the bottom quarter of the sphere relatively flat, and sigils were set into the walls. Phynis was no expert on such matters, but the sigils seemed to be runes of protection. In the center of the chamber was an elegantly designed shrine or temple. It was on the small side for a temple, but the building was beautifully crafted of white marble and glowing blue orbs were set into the four small spires that anchored each corner of the building. All around the temple was a broad, carefully laid out pool, almost a moat, filled with pristine, glowing water. From where they stood they were almost directly in front of the temple, where a bridge crossed the pool in a gentle marble arch. Standing midway between them and the temple was a fountain, still functioning even after all these years, at the center of which was a statue of an elegant woman in flowing robes arms outstretched toward those coming closer and a gentle smile on her face.
“Is that a temple of Navir?” Phynis whispered to Desa, stunned at seeing a temple to the goddess of life and water down here. At Desa’s nod she swallowed. “It’s so...different from what I expected. So ancient…”
Slowly each of them bowed to the temple, much as Sistina had. Sistina eventually straightened and stepped forward, stopping respectfully just in front of the bridge. Phynis followed, her eyes widening as she felt that she’d just stepped onto holy ground.
Lily let out a yelp of shock as the water of the fountain swirled and formed into a blue-skinned man, his lower body formed of water and his hair midnight blue that fell down his back, He was frowning at them, and had watery orbs for eyes, but his attention seemed fixed on Sistina.
“A water lord!” Desa gasped, jumping back slightly as she saw the powerful water elemental. Phynis stiffened slightly, but didn’t move. If a being was what Desa had said it was, it could easily defeat her and Desa with her guard’s magic sealed way. Phynis slightly regretted coming without any other guards, but the elemental didn’t seem hostile. Not yet, at least.
“Intriguing.” The elemental lord spoke at last in a deep voice, tilting his head as he examined Sistina. After a moment he glanced at the rest of them and smiled slightly.
“Lord Elemental, I greet you in the name of the Sifaren Kingdom.” Phynis spoke softly, giving the best curtsey she could manage while wea
ring a pair of trousers.
“And I greet you, child of the Everium Kingdom.” He spoke gravely, nodding to them. “While no priest or priestess is in attendance, as your guide’s intentions are benign I may allow you access to the temple.”
“Umm...thank you?” Desa replied in surprise, blinking. “May I ask what you meant by your initial comment?”
“Your guide is...interesting. Ancient enough that I wonder that she still exists, and yet her memories have been scattered, as if melted into the very seas.” He replied with a slight nod, then paused, looking at Sistina and asking. “May I continue? They are your secrets to keep if you wish to do so.”
She nodded and made a dismissive gesture, and he laughed, shaking his head. “Intriguing indeed. She was imprisoned in a soul gem so long ago that I am uncertain as to what happened. Without being able to escape, with her memories unraveling, she stopped thinking in words. She thinks in concepts and images, which I can only just read myself. But she intends to show you what it is that she knows. It isn’t all she knew, perhaps, but piecing together her memories will be the work of years at best.”
“Oh. Oh!” Desa’s eyes grew bright with enlightenment. “She’s not a dryad, she’s a dungeon! That explains her magic!”
“A what?” Lily’s confusion was obvious as she ask. “How can a person be a dungeon?”
“She is not a dungeon. The proper term is a genius loci.” The elemental corrected with a frown, shaking his head. “She is effectively the spirit of a place, and her domain has been slowly expanding. Those which you call dungeons are genius loci as well, but they are often malevolent in nature. In order to gain power more quickly they will create monsters, treasures, and other things within themselves, and they feed on the mana which is released when creatures die. She does not do any of that. She draws power from that which lives inside her. Every plant, every animal, every speck of moss. It isn’t as swift of growth as the methods used by dungeons, but it is far more benign in nature. She is the one who opened the pathway here for you, and it took a great deal of her time and power to manage.”
Ancient Ruins (Ancient Dreams Book 1) Page 7
