Echoes of the Past

Leaf finds evidence of her father.

13.

Echoes of the Past

 

“I’ll watch the door, so we won’t get caught.”  Chris volunteered as Leaf lit a couple of candles on the desk, to help them see.

For a time, the young woman examined some of the artifacts in silence.

“Are you finding anything helpful?”   Chris finally asked.

“Most of it consists of coins.     They are all from a technologically advanced period of time, so I assume that whatever the Barrow turns out to be, it was constructed before the cataclysm struck your world.”

“Did you see the silver sword?”  

“Yes, but it’s not real silver.    It looks like it was used as a theatrical prop or for a ceremonial function.    It is extremely well made, but it is not something my people would construct.”

“Some of the older people in the village said that their grandparents told tales about strange buildings once surrounding the hill.”

“What types of buildings?”

“They said that they looked out of place - they were large and impressive looking from afar, but when you came closer to them, they were flimsy and in some cases they had only a front, but no sides or roof.”

“That sounds like a movie set to me.”

“A what?”

“Have you ever heard of a photograph?”

“Yes, they were life-like renderings of people or scenery that the ancients used to use.”

“Well, a movie was a large number of these pictures, taken quickly together so that when viewed at a fast speed, they gave the impression of movement.   Many societies had movies, and there were actors and performers who would do stories with fake scenery.    They would sometimes create scenes that looked real when they were photographed, but were just like backdrops used in plays, only on a larger scale.”

“Oh, I think I understand.    So you think that the area around this hill was where these… movies… were created?”

“Perhaps.     All of these artifacts could be props that the actors used.”

“But what about the Barrow?”

“I don’t know, Chris, I can’t imagine that being used for a movie.”

“Maybe it was used originally for one thing and then reused for a Barrow at a later date.”

“Possibly.    My people may have done that, as there were probably very few resources after the cataclysm.  Let me see what else Brother Michael has in his collection.”

Chris resumed watching the hallway through the cracked door.   Several minutes went by, and then Leaf gave out a surprised and slightly distressed sound.    He turned to find her standing there wide-eyed, staring at a small ring.     She had a look of anguish on her face.

Forgetting his post, he rushed over to her, “Lady Leaf, are you alright?   What is it?”

She swallowed a lump in her throat and held up the ring for him to see.   It was a delicately carved woman’s ring with a small, but beautiful amber colored stone set in the middle of it.     Leaf’s hands trembled as she held it and fought tears.

“I know of this ring.”   She whispered as if the ring was a highly prized relic.

“What is it?”   He asked in a whisper.

“Anamchara… it is an Anamchara.”  She replied, biting her lip to keep from weeping.

“What is an Anamchara?”   He had to ask.

“It means ‘Soul-friend’ or ‘Guider’.    All Sidhe possess one that is crafted for them while they are still in their mother’s womb, by their father.    When they are born, their father presents them with their Anamchara.   It usually is a necklace that is later made into a ring when the Sidhe reaches adulthood.”

Leaf held out her hand to him, showing him a similar ring, though her gemstone was a pale blue color, “This is my own Anamchara.”

He had not taken any notice of the ring before now, for it merely seemed a normal piece of jewelry. 

“Are they important?”   He asked her, and she glared at him for an instant as if the question was extremely stupid, but then she smiled, realizing that he had no knowledge of her people.

“Anamchara contain the essence of a Sidhe - it is not a soul-stone as many human fables say, but they are enchanted and share a bond with the Sidhe for which they were crafted.   They are a Sidhe’s most treasured possession.”

“-And you recognize this one?”

Leaf held the ring so that the candle light shined in the amber stone, “Yes… it was my mother’s Anamchara.”

“Oh no…”  He did not know what else to say, but the young monk sensed from her mood that finding the ring here was a bad thing.

“Sidhe give their Anamchara to their spouses upon marriage.    That way they share the thoughts, emotions and presence of their mate when they are apart.     It binds them together and the spouse values his mate’s Anamchara even above his or her own.     My mother gave this ring to my father, and she wore his.     He would not have parted with this ring for any reason, Chris.    He would have died rather than abandon it.”

The tears came then and he embraced her as she wept pitifully, for the implication was clear to both of them.    He would have gladly given his life at that moment to bring her parents to her and ease her pain.    

“Leaf, I am so sorry… perhaps the ring was taken from him and he still lives.”

She didn’t lift her head from his shoulder, but did reply, “No… something terrible has happened.”

For a few minutes she cried and trembled and he stood there trying desperately to comfort her.    Chris had no idea what comfort he could give to her, but she seemed to be clinging to his strength.

“I’ve got to get into that Barrow, Chris!   Tonight!”   She finally said after regaining her composure.  

“How?     It is covered with earth; we’d have to dig and we don’t even know where the entrance may be found.”

“What day of the year is this, Chris?” 

“What?”   He said dumbly, taken back by her question.

“What day of the year is it?”

“Well, tonight is Mid-summer’s night.    That is why I put the offering on the hilltop.”

“Good!   Then we’ll have a way inside the hill.”

“We will?”

“Our powers are strongest at transitory times.     Equinoxes, and Solstices are the times that we can move In-Between the worlds the best.    That is why I have always appeared on those dates.     My father definitely was here, sometime in the past.    If he had anything to do with the hill - whether it is an actual Barrow or not- the entrance to it will be visible to even humans, this night.”  She took her mother’s ring and slipped it into one of the deep pockets of her monk’s robe.   

“But-“ Chris started to say, yet she shook her head.

“We have no time for explanations!   I’m going to take us to the base of the hillside immediately, before the transitory magic fades.”

 

Chris let go of her, feeling rather awkward hugging the lovely girl.   Before the young Monk could pull completely away from her, Leaf had already teleported them outside of the monastery, on the far end of the Banshee Hill.

Chris jumped in surprise, “Sorry.    It takes some getting used to, moving around like that.”

“There will be an entrance visible somewhere around the perimeter of the hill.   It will probably look like a doorway made of blue light.”

“Alright.”   He followed her, looking all about, but seeing nothing.

Llaiannileaf was almost frantic in her searching, for she had to know what had happened to her father.    Had he been killed by the humans?   The thought horrified her, though she doubted he would have been as careless as she was in trusting one of them.

She glanced back at the young monk, stumbling in the darkness behind her, so willing to help.   He was worthy of her trust, she decided, for he was different than the others.   He seemed more sympathetic and ready to accept the strange (at least to him) things that she had shared with him.

He would have made a wonderful King, Leaf mused while watching him.   She would have to leave him as soon as possible, for she found that she was growing extremely fond of the young man, and she did not want the heartache of a human friend.     Oh, it would be alright for a while, but after several years, he would age and she would stay the same, and then he would be old and she would be as youthful as if she were a twenty year old human woman.   

That is why Sidhe never befriended the mortal humans.     Leaf found herself feeling even more melancholy at the thought, for she had never had a friend, apart from her family members.

She wondered if she had missed something really wonderful.

 

Her thoughts were jarred as they went around a huge oak tree growing at the bottom of the hill and suddenly stood in front of a pale glowing portal.

“Whoa!”  Chris exclaimed upon seeing it, “Am I correct in assuming that we’ve found it?”

She didn’t answer him, but instead rushed through the portal.    The monk did not pause, but followed right behind her.  

 

They were standing in a very odd structure, very old and seemingly quite unstable.    It had been some sort of concrete building, but that had been centuries ago and now it was completely underground.

It was filled with what seemed like piles of junk.    There were rusty metal machines from long ago; partially covered with broken pieces of stone that went from floor to ceiling.    The junk and rocks all seemed to be placed there as if to hold up the roof, but in several places the piles of stones and debris had collapsed.

Between these crazy pillars was a narrow, winding walkway and Leaf hurried down this path, oblivious to the rubble and pieces of collapsed concrete roof that hinted at the building’s instability.

“Leaf!”   Chris called to her as he nearly choked on the horribly foul tomb-like air of the place.    He thought for a moment that she wasn’t going to wait for him, but she stopped and beckoned for him to join her.   He cautiously, but quickly dodged between the pillars, wondering as he did what the source was of the dim light that seemed to fill the room.   He could not find any indication of anything actually giving off light.    It was as if the very air of the place - as stale as it was- somehow was giving off just enough light for them to see.

 

Suddenly there was a cracking sound and a roar of something falling from behind them.    They jumped forward and turned, to see one of the many piles of debris in the place tumble to the floor  with a roar and a huge cloud of dust.

They stood there, not daring to move, for a few minutes, until the dust settled.

“This place is very unstable”, Leaf whispered to him, fearful that any loud noise might bring down more pillars.  

“We shouldn’t be in here very long, Leaf.”   Chris replied, also in a whisper.   

She nodded and beckoned him to follow her.    They moved very softly and carefully through the nightmare-like place.    It seemed to Chris that Leaf knew where she was going, but he didn’t want to waste any time in asking.     They weaved and wound through the eerie place until finally they reached the back wall of the building.    

Even in the dim light, it was clear that someone had painted something on the wall.    They were letters, but not of any language or alphabet that Chris had ever seen, yet it was a long message.

He looked questioningly to Leaf, but she was already reading whatever it said, her lips moving silently.     Somewhere from the other end of the building there came a crackling of stone and the sound of some bits of stone falling to the floor.

Chris waited until he could stand it no longer, for Leaf had finished reading the script and now just stood there staring at it as if numb.

“Leaf?”   He whispered, and that was all it took, for she seemed to know what he was wanting.    In as loud of a whisper as she would dare, she began reading to him the text left on the wall.

Reviews

[Elina]

"Let me see what else that Brother Michael has in his collection." You can remove "that."
"...wondering as he did what was the source of the dim light that seemed to fill the room." Perhaps, instead, "...wondering, as he did, what the source was of the dim light..."
"...piles of debris in the place tumble to the floor of the place with a roar..." You can remove the second "of the place."

[Eddie Davis]

Thank you, your proof-reading skills are wonderful.