Saga of Lady Merdressa
as written by
Ilvoren, Bard to Merdressa, Queen of the Lands of Cerdrinal, The Mysty Realm of the Elves.
She laid there, curled up in a ball on the grassy knoll. Her breath caught at the pain. It was too much. She couldn’t do it any more. Each time, she left more of herself behind. There was going to be a time when she would be as trapped as they were. Damn them. Damn her mother. And damn herself, for being able to exist in both worlds.
She lifted her tear streaked face to the Moons. "Gods why? Why do I have to bear the pain? Why can’t someone else do it?"
"Because you are Leader. You bear the burden of Leadership for what was. And what is and what will be. You were chosen for your strength. Only you can withstand the pain and the price it brings."
The young elf woman, looked around her wildly. Kneeling in front of her, was a young/old woman. She had long blonde hair, and startling blue eyes. The elf felt herself sinking down into those eyes. Sinking and feeling some of the pain go away. "Who are you?"
Softly in her head she heard, "I am the darkness that shines, the light that does not go away. I exist in all but only some know of my existence. I am Lashanna, Goddess of Magic."
"No you are not. Lashanna is a small little individual, with dark hair and eyes."
The ageless woman smiled affectionately. "I can assure you, that I am Lashanna. The Council is locked in my Temple. Locked there by the evil that your mother has committed. Locked until such time as those who wish to set things right are born."
"Then I am doomed. For I cannot bear this any more. When they call me, I shall stay with them in their entombment." the elf woman cried, her heart breaking at the thought.
"Dearest Merdressa, do not dispair. You will not be locked with them forever. The pain will ease. And you will be free."
"How can my pain ease when I have no way of easing that pain? No one to share my fears with. No one to give me comfort and give me a reason to go on. Please if you are who you say you are, tell me how to live like this?"
"I cannot tell you about living, my dear. Only about Magic. But a day will come when you will have someone who will tell you about living. Or at least keep you living. Embrace that individual, no matter who it is. Promise this."
"And what do I get out of it? What if I open myself to more pain?" Merdressa pleaded.
"There will always be pain. Pain is life’s way of saying that you are alive. Aware. Living. As for what you get out of it, there is always love, little queen. There is always love. Now, I must go. And you must find it within your self to go back to your people and live." And the blonde goddess slowly faded away.
Merdressa slowly stood up, easing her sore muscles, from the cramped position her limbs had been in for the last several hours, and headed for her home.
The elf woman woke up in her bed, not knowing how she got there. Vaguely, she remembered the conversation with the strange woman. "Was that really Lashanna?"
"Yes. It was."
She sat up, not realizing until now that she had spoken out loud or that someone else was in the room with her. Sitting at the edge of the bed, was a tall silver haired, silver eyed, dark skinned man. At first she thought he was an elf, but as she looked at him more closely, she could see that he wasn’t. The elf queen took her time studying the man at the foot of her bed. He was mesmerizing in all ways. She couldn’t stop herself from staring. Around his neck and half hidden in his shirt was a silver chain, with a symbol hanging from it. Slowly, she raised a long fingered hand to move the cloth of the shirt aside to view the symbol.
The man didn’t even twitch at her touch. But Merdressa could feel the passion emanating from his skin through her hand to the rest of her body. She drew back, startled.
"Who are you?" her voice did not go over a whisper.
"I am the one who will ease your pain, my queen. My midnight beauty." He reached out gently to run his hand through her midnight black hair. "My Love."
She leaned into his touch, feeling the pain in her soul ease. "Am I in heaven? Have I finally gone to my rest? Am I done paying for the death of my mother?"
The silver haired one, chuckled softly, as he placed his other hand on the other side of her head. Gently he brought her towards him for a long kiss. "No my heart, this is not heaven. Nor are you paying for what happened to your mother. As for your rest? Here, rest in my arms, and I will do my best to give you that rest. Rest from pain, and rest from loneliness." Gently he brought her down into his embrace.
Merdressa sighed in contentment, as his hands slowly wandered her, exploring, finding what she wanted most. Then slowly, he took her hands and showed her what he was looking for as well.
The next time, the queen woke up, she blinked, thinking that she had been dreaming. That is until she looked at the head on the pillow next to her. She smiled softly, as she saw that his hair was entwined with hers. Silver and Black. Silver of the Moon and Black of the Sky. Slowly, she realized that he was looking at her. "Good Morrow, M’lord. And how goes it with you this morn?" she asked softly.
Again he chuckled. "It goes well my heart. It goes well. It goes too well. I only wished to spend a single night with you, and yet, now I find that I cannot bear the thought of spending any night away from you. You have captured the heart of my humble self, my queen."
She rolled over on her side to lean on her upraised arm. This gave her a better view of the one sharing her bed. She reached out gently to trace the symbol on his necklace. "This is of the Shadow Moon. I have heard tales of the Gods coming down and choosing a partner for a night of pleasure. Never would I have dreamed that I should be so blessed. Am I blessed, my lord? Are you he? Are you Shallan, God of the Shadow Moon?"
He gently rubbed the back of his hand along her cheek, catching the tears that she was shedding. "Ah, my love, I am. There is no need for crying. For I am here, and I will never leave your side from this moment on. You hold me like no other has, be they god, Demi god, or mortal. I choose you as my consort. My Shadow Queen. My dark love. And I shall have no other, and neither shall you. We are one."
Merdressa kissed the back of his hand. "Yes, we are one." Slowly, she felt the pain ease. The pain and the loneliness. She knew that she would have to go back to the Council, but for now, she smiled at the one who loved her and knew that she would never let herself be lost to anything or any one but the one who was beside her.