Miellyn's story - written for Breed guild quest on 3k

How wild the lightning storm

For as long as I can remember, I have loved lightning storms. The ‘why’ of it never entered my mind. That in itself is strange because I am curious about everything. My great-grandfather would always take me outside in the lightning storms. Mam-ma would fuss, but he said it would not… no, it could not harm us. Great-grandfather was the only one who seemed to understand me. In his eyes I saw myself, and many were the times I heard his voice when he was not there.

We lived quietly, as quietly as four generations can, but still many came to us. Some sought healing, others knowledge. Grammy always provided the first, but was against providing the second. Instinctively I knew she was right. I was taught the healing skills very young because they came easily to me. I was schooled in the Knowledge because my memory never failed me. But it was not enough. There were too many unanswered questions, too many answers waiting to be found… out there. Out where the lightning storm sang to me. Mam-ma fussed and Grammy grumbled, but my parents just smiled proudly and prepared me for my life journey.

As time passed, folks grew suspicious of us. Why did we separate ourselves from them? Why wouldn’t we teach their children as we taught ours? What were we hiding from out there alone in the mountains? We spoke to them of peace, of responsibility, of caring, but those things do not have a place in the language of hate, and so they did not understand.

As things grew worse, the elders accepted the fact that our peaceful time had come to an end. They had little time before the hateful words became hateful actions. Unfortunately, it came sooner then was expected. There was no time to take everyone away, so those of my generation who trained in the knowledge were brought together, and through the united forces of all, Grammy, because great-grandfather had gone beyond, sent us out.

I was alone.

Where I was, I did not know. Who I was, I did not know! How did I get here? Now, looking back, I know that Grammy must have locked away the knowledge that was in me until I was ready to use it wisely. The healing skills I had. I took a name and settled on a quiet hillside. Folks came for healing, and I lived on their largess, the myriad of berry bushes around me, and the fish from the nearby stream.

I felt there was safety in seclusion, but I knew it was not right. After a while, I ventured below and met a man. I could not fully communicate with him. I did not feel his thoughts, but we made a home and in the normal course of time, I had a daughter.

With the birth of my daughter, it came back to me. I was Miellyn. I had the knowledge. My family, four generations! Where were they? Where were my cousins; had they fared well? I feared all was lost. It was a very difficult time for me. Until the first lightning storm… then I heard great-grandfather’s voice. I was not alone.

As they grew, I passed along the knowledge to my daughters. The youngest was a healer by nature. The oldest was never at peace with herself. I had to remind myself daily to instruct but not to seek to control. It was a never-ending battle within me.

One night the lightning called to me as it had as a child. I could no longer stay where I was. There were still unanswered questions, and I knew it was my job to answer them. And so I began my search. The search, though, was not done in the physical world. What I was looking for, longing for, was not of this world, but of a world beyond. A world from which We came to be, a world that was hidden away. I continued to live in the natural world, and raise my daughters, but during the lightning storms, I searched. I freed my mind and I searched.

My mental travels took me through a small, beautiful forested land where magic ruled, but there was great strife. Armies from four cities fought constantly for supremacy. Those that called themselves ‘gods’ watched and laughed, and offered no help to the good. No matter the effort, evil was winning in that land. The good among them asked me for help in their defenses. My mind told me not to interfere; my heart told me I could not walk away. I did what I could, but in the end it was not enough. They wanted more than defense from me. What they were asking from me was murder, and that I could not do. So I traveled on.

Next I found a huge land, full of endless wilderness. I wandered for what seemed like months between cities, and towns. Great castles stood on hilltops, monasteries were buried among the trees in secluded valleys, and great caverns spanned the entire land deep within. This land cried out for a healer. Many fought the dragons that invaded the human territories. Although, truth be known, it was really the humans that had invaded the Dragon territories, but that was not known to me until later. I settled there with a vow to do no harm. For many a day, I was content in my work, but soon the lightning called again. This was not the place. My search was not ended.

One day, in the course of my travels, I walked into the City of Pinnacle. At first the number of people in this great city overwhelmed me. There were too many minds too close together. With time, I learned to control my mind. There were many great quests and many lands to explore. I knew that what I sought was somewhere in this land. I joined a group of healer warriors, and found a home. During the course of a year, I explored and sought to no avail. How could I have been wrong? This was not the place.

For a time, I no longer searched. I was despondent, feeling alone again, as I had felt after the sending. As I allowed these negative feelings to fill me, I stepped off the path. Evil, under the disguise of self-preservation, took over my mind. When I again began to search, I was pulled back to that great land of wilderness, but this time, I did not make a home for myself and take an honest profession. I lived in the streets and the sewers, and joined league with many other thieves that plagued that land. That is when I learned that the humans did not belong there. One day as I helped many others bring down the oldest of dragons, He spoke to me in my mind. I was appalled! What had become of me? To what depths had I fallen? I fled, and hid myself away.

During all this time of mental searching, I worked to appear normal to those around me in the natural world. And yet my daughters could tell that I was not as I should be. It was my youngest, the one with the healer’s touch, that saved me, and my eldest, she of the troubled soul, that set me on my path once again. It was not only for myself, but also for them that I searched, for their future, and their heritage. I set out once again.

Back to where I had felt the greatest longing, back to where I was sure I would find the answers. And this time, I found it. The City of Light… surrounded by lightning, surrounded by chaos. Filled with others who like myself had searched and returned.

Now I shall strive to find the answers that I long for, and someday, to find the family that I lost.

Miellyn

Miellyn's History - written for the Breed guild on 3k

"In the beginning there was the Light.

Between the places where the Light was
and the places where the Light was not,
there flowed the lightning.

Made of pure energy but with direction
and somewhere, buried deep within,
the beginning of purpose.

The time came when others flowed with it,
sometimes in physical form,
sometimes just their thoughts...."


It was nothing more then a legend now, a myth, a story to
tell the children in the evening. When Great-Grandfather
told the story, it felt real, when I pass it on to my
children, it seems nothing more than a tale.

The Tempestas Clan has an old history, so old that most people
have forgotten. Even we don't know when we found the lightning.
The legend says that those that could follow the lightning
banded together and formed clan Tempestas. Our history is
filled with stories of many worlds for we have always been
travelers, and mentally we were always connected by the lightning.

The search for knowlege drove us, but there were some that used
the lightning in anger, aiding those that thirsted for power
and conquest. Most of our clan were peace-loving, as we are today.

After the Vow, the ability to travel was no longer taught to the
children.... but knowledge is too precious to lose. In each
generation those considered trustworthy enough to carry the secret
were trained. Great-Grandfather knew. He passed it to his
daughter... and to me.

Now, with great distances between us, I can only speak with those
of my clan that are left. But, when my children are grown and have
children of their own, it will be my turn to add to the histories.
I will travel the lightning once again in the tradition of our
clan, and find those that are left.

We will be Clan Tempestas once again.

Miellyn

The Black Velvet Box - longer version

Ecstatic about finally being out of the house after a long winter, Sallie pulled me along in her wake. As we navigated the winding sidewalk, I concentrated on avoiding the patches of ice while she concentrated on finding some piece of ground that wasn't covered by snow. Snow from the latest storm seemed to cover the entire town. Just yesterday they had cancelled school, and everyone was forced to stay indoors.

The wind picked up as we neared the edge of town. The old cemetery looked eerie this evening; the trees reaching out with their leafless branches, the wind giving the appearance that they would scoop us right up. The elaborate grave markers with their chiseled memories cast shadows over the icy path. One grave always drew me. My great-grandmother’s grave had a simple headstone, but someone had planted rose bushes around it. In the spring they would be full of flowers, but now they slept just as soundly as the grave they adorned. Brushing the snow off the headstone, I cleared the writing: Sallie Marie Foster, 1921-1937.

My great-grandmother’s namesake began digging ferociously among the rose bushes. I managed to pull her back, but she just sat down and stared intently at her work. Seeing as she wouldn't budge, I squatted down and to my surprise found a small black velvet box among the uncovered roots. The box was very old and covered with dirt; it had obviously been in the ground a very long time. Why my dog happened to be the one to unearth it can only be called fate.

Inside the box was a simple gold wedding band, still bright with hope, and covering it, a folded piece of very old crumbling paper. Although the day had warmed up enough for a nice brisk walk, it wasn't warm enough to stand around in the wind, so I pocketed Sallie's find, and headed home.

Later sitting in my favorite chair by a warm fire with a full belly and a nice snifter of brandy, I unfolded the letter and read,

My dearest love,

By now you know what my answer must be. Father won’t hear of our marrying. He’s determined to sell me off to old Foster. I will not be wife to a man who is forty years my senior! If it was not for the heart that beats below mine, I would take my life. Should I tell him, would that change his mind? I think not. Please know that my heart will always belong to you.

Sallie

My mind reeled! I felt as if I’d been hit by lightening; my entire world shattered in a moment. I thought of my family Bible sitting on display in the town hall. I had to check the handwriting. There was to be no sleep for me that night as I wondered who my real great-grandfather might be. Did others know? I’d always known that she’d died giving birth, but I never heard that the baby had been premature.

The minute the town hall opened its doors to the public, I was there. As usual there were neighbors to be greeted, the weather to be discussed. Mrs. Matthews had twins again. Desperately I waited until there was no one near the pedestal. Although obviously shaken with emotion, the writing was definitely hers.

I must have been wandering aimlessly because I found myself at the edge of town again. Now her grave looked different to me. A young woman, no more than a child really, who had lived only long enough to give life to another. As I stood there, old Mr. Penniford approached slowly. This was a favorite haunting ground, so to speak, of his also. We often met up here, discussing everything and anything. He’d always been around, known to everyone in town, and a favorite dinner guest of my father’s. The town had recently celebrated Mr. Penniford’s 88th birthday.

When he saw the open note in my hand, his eyes met mine briefly before returning to my great-grandmother’s headstone.

“It surfaced, did it?” he asked.

“Yesterday, Sallie found it. My dog, I mean”, I muttered lost in thought. Suddenly the pieces fell into place, “Are you…”

“Yes, Foster, my boy, I am”, he said sadly. “Had I been a stronger man, she might still be alive. She left her heart in my keeping. I have cared for it ever since.”

Mr. Penniford had been a part of my life for as long as I could remember. He taught me to ride a bicycle, stopped by to watch my ballgames. I had assumed he did that for everyone, the town grandpa, but now I knew he was doing what he’d been asked to do.

For a few minutes longer, we stood sharing the peace and quiet, and then my great-grandfather and I walked back into town together.

The Black Velvet Box

This is the first short story I've written from a "prompt".

Here's the prompt from WritersDigest.com:
"The temperature outside is finally above freezing and winter's snow is beginning to melt, revealing a season's worth of lost things. Disregarding hats and mittens, a man walking his dog becomes intrigued with a black velvet box. He opens it and is shocked to discover its contents. What's inside the box and how did it get there?"

And here's my story:

Finally out after a long winter, Sallie pulled me along in her wake. I concentrated on staying upright while she concentrated on finding some piece of ground that wasn't covered by ice and snow.

The old cemetery looked eerie in the winter; the trees reaching out with their leafless branches; the elaborate grave markers with their chiseled memories. One grave always drew me. My great-grandmother’s grave had a simple headstone, but someone had planted rose bushes around it; now they slept just as soundly as the grave they adorned.

Sallie began digging ferociously among the rose bushes, I managed to pull her back, but then she sat down and stared her work. Seeing as she wouldn't budge, I squatted down and to my surprise found a small black velvet box covered with dirt. The box was very old; it was obviously in the ground a long time. Why my dog happened to be the one to dig it up can only be called fate.

Inside the box was a simple gold wedding band, still bright with hope, and covering it, a folded piece of paper. Although the day had warmed up enough for a nice brisk walk, it wasn't warm enough to stand around in the wind, so I pocketed Sallie's find, and headed home.

Later sitting by my fire with a nice snifter of brandy, I unfolded the letter and read,

My love,

By now you know what my answer must be. My father won’t hear of our marrying; he’s determined to sell me off to old Foster. I will not be wife to a man who is forty years my senior! If it was not for the heart that beats below mine, I would take my life. Should I tell him, would that change his mind? I think not. Please know that my heart will always belong to you.

Sallie


My mind reeled! My family Bible sat on a display in the town hall. I had to check the handwriting. There was no sleep for me that night as I wondered who my real great-grandfather might be. Did others guess the truth? I’d always known that she’d died giving birth, but was the baby premature?

The minute the town hall opened its doors to the public, I was there. Desperately I waited until there was no one near the pedestal. Although obviously shaken with emotion, the writing was definitely hers.

I must have been wandering aimlessly because I found myself at the edge of town again. Now her grave looked different to me. A young woman, no more than a child really, who had lived only long enough to give life to another. As I stood there, old Mr. Penniford approached slowly. This was a favorite haunting ground, so to speak, of his also. We often met up here, discussing everything and anything. He’d always been around the town, and was a favorite dinner guest of my father’s.

When he saw the open note in my hand, his eyes met mine.

“It surfaced, did it?” he asked.

“Yesterday, Sallie found it. My dog, I mean”, I muttered lost in thought. Suddenly I realized, “Are you…”.

“Yes, Foster, my boy, I am”, he said sadly. “Had I been a stronger man, she might still be alive. She left her heart in my keeping. I’ve cared for it ever since.”

I watched as my great-grandfather walked away.