Wren's+first+prayer

Wren stayed close to Kale the evening after the competition. Normally he tried to keep an eye on her because she seemed to have a bad habit of wandering off without him and getting herself into trouble, but every time he noticed she wasn’t directly beside him, he would look for her and she was never much more than an arm’s length away. She made sure he was settled into a hammock and pointed to a quiet corner, “I’ll be right over there if you need anything.” He watched her sit down cross legged in the corner with Inali in her lap, working on their spells as she did every night. He dozed in and out, sleep wanting to claim him, but she had been so close to him tonight that he already missed her touch, and it was comforting to keep her in his sight.

Wren sat with Inali, working on their spells. When their normal routine was finished… Wren began to pray. She had never really prayed before, so it was a little strange to her… she held Inali in her lap and calmly spoke in elven whispers. “Lady Leira, of the mist, I don’t know why or if you really have chosen me… but a very wise man has told me that you have… Earlier today, I was shrouded in lies and illusions as the very people I care for and trust transformed into large, dangerous looking creatures before my very eyes. I tried not to believe it… to see past it, though it was frightening and felt very real. It was then… that I felt a tug, a pull to ask for your help… was that you? Perhaps nudging me to contact you… to believe in you?” Wren paused for a few moments.

“If that was you… I’m sorry I did not answer… though if you can hear me now, it makes me feel better that our first talk is with me having a sound mind and spirit… rather than when I am almost lost to deception and fear. Though… maybe that is what gave you the power to be able to give me that nudge. If, of course, that’s what it was. I would like to learn more… to be able to see past lies and deception to the truth that sometimes lives beneath the surface… though I’m not certain what kind of desires or plans a goddess who is believed to be dead would have with me…”

Wren finished her prayer...wondering if someone...heard. It was strange to her...praying, she couldn't quite get the grasp. And yet...her friend Yuki must fill her days with prayer. She was so lost in thought that she almost didn't notice...that a light...mist seemed to be filling the room, rising up through the floorboards and walls of the wooden ship. Inali, who was sleeping on her lap began to twist and turn before suddenly speaking...in a voice now her own. It sounded like...an old woman.

//"The Lady is never quite what you think she is. Truth is a worthless thing to know and worth even less to speak aloud." //

Wren was startled to hear such an ancient voice coming from Inali's mouth...she looked down but it appeared that Inali was still fast asleep. "The truth...is worthless? What does that mean..?" Wren had heard this before...from Yuki, and it had confused her then as well. Inali spoke again...this time...her voice a young girl's high pitched...and...creepy, sending shivers up Wren's spine.

//" Never speak truth where falsehood will suffice. Cherish and further illusions and rumors, for distortion and legend are what make folk happy and life alluring." //

Wren nodded...at least that to her...made some sort of sense...people were happy deceiving themselves sometimes. Cloaking themselves in an aura of safety when they were not. Convincing themselves of a lie because it was easier...or made them happier. Finally Inali spoke one last time. This time...it was a chorus of female voices...blending together in an unsettling way.

//"Hiding a thing gives it value by the very act of cloaking." // Wren raised an eyebrow...was...the goddess hiding then? What could cause a goddess to hide...she wasn't sure she wanted to know. She shivered and then...snapped her eyes open. The room was as it was before, clear of mist with Inali sleeping peacefully on her lap. Had she...fallen asleep then...was that all that was...a dream? She had a lot to think about....