"You mean to tell me that flight is something everyone in your world can achieve?" King Arthur asked Selvina curiously.
Selvina giggled at the king's deeply interested expression. They had ridden to the northern edge of Queen Marian's kingdom, where wooden or stone watch towers surveyed the forested border between New Avalon and Noyr. During that time, the two had begun to share knowledge of one another. King Arthur had stated that he should know something about the one person whose fate decided that of all of Faeryum. Selvina, wishing to know more about the king herself, was eager to answer and ask in return.
"We can't fly like birds do," she explained. "We fly on these machines called airplanes. They have big engines that lift them off the ground and let them fly."
"What do they look like?"
"Um, well, like big tubes of metal with long, metallic wings. I know it might sound weird to you but it's all true. Captain Hook didn't believe me when I told him either."
"Fascinating," the king said. "I do believe you, Selvina, and I wish that perhaps one day I can see one of these airplanes you speak of. I do not know how that would happen, but if there was a way, I would take it."
"Why is a plane so fascinating to you anyway? You have dragons and griffins and other creatures that fly and—to me—are way cooler than airplanes."
"These are creatures of nature, Selvina. They were born to fly and thus they can. It is what they were meant to do. Humans such as you and I were not meant to fly and yet in your world they have mastered it. To break the laws of nature and claim victory over something normally impossible is what fascinates me."
Selvina bobbed her eyebrows up and down and mumbled, "Well, we also went to the moon, and sent machines to other planets."
"Blasphemy!" King Arthur blurted, wide-eyed.
Selvina laughed. "No, it's true!"
"And you did all of this without any magic whatsoever?"
Selvina nodded. "There isn't any magic in my world..."
King Arthur furrowed his brow. "I doubt that. Perhaps it is only hidden well."
"There isn't any. People have looked for it all their lives and never found it. It's just stories and movies that have magic in them. It isn't real."
"How can it be real here and not in your world?"
Selvina shrugged. "I don't know. I sometimes wish it was..."
"I think you simply need to look harder for it. Merlin says magic is all around us and is forever within grasp, for those who know how to find it. Perhaps no one in your world knows how to do so."
"Maybe. I don't know... We've been doing well enough without it all this time. If it does exist, which I don't think it does, then we don't really need it anyway."
"Perhaps," said the king before gazing up at a round, stone tower they were riding by. The archers atop of it waved in greeting and he and Selvina waved back. A glint of sunlight pierced through the clouds and King Arthur raised his hand to shield his eyes. "What of your gods, do they not teach your people about magic?"
"Gods?" Selvina asked, wincing her eyes from the sunbeam. "If our world has any gods they don't speak to anyone. I don't think my world has any gods either."
"Well, now I know this to be false. Every world has gods. How else would your world exist without them?"
Selvina shrugged. "It just naturally exists without any gods' help."
King Arthur sighed and furrowed his brow. "Religion can strengthen the spirit and ensure one's path remains true and righteous."
"Religion in my world just brainwashes people and causes wars."
King Arthur sighed again. For several minutes they rode in silence. The sun slowly dipped behind the trees of the border forest and as they approached a wooden tower, the king asked, "Has anyone ever told you about the gods of Faeryum?"
Selvina shook her head. "No, not really."
"Would you like to learn about them?"
Selvina was initially going to refuse as she had no real interest in gods and religions but after a glance at the king she decided to nod. He clearly wished to explain it all to her and she decided that knowing more about Faeryum was never a bad thing.
King Arthur rode his horse under the tower's shadow, where a small stream meandered around the rocks. He dismounted, letting his horse wander to eat and drink, and then sat against a tree. Selvina did the same, resting her back against a large, moss-covered boulder instead.
After a drink from his water skin, King Arthur spoke. "The tale of Faeryum's gods begins at a time eons past, when there was nothing but a great void, filled with darkness. From this darkness, the first god was born. It was never given a name for such a god is far too great a thing to be named. In Faeryum it is simply known as The First.
"The First, in its infinite wisdom, power, and grace, mastered the darkness and brought forth from itself, light. Once light and darkness were balanced there came the elements of earth, air, fire, and water. These four elements The First absorbed into itself and gave birth to four other gods. Their names are Banu, Father of Flame, Manu, Mother of Water, Konri, Father of Air, and Anri, Mother of Earth. Each of them is master of their respective element and with them born, The First's destiny was complete.
"The four sibling gods then created all material things like rocks, stars, rain, trees and such. Upon the worlds they created came life. The first life forms were of gargantuan size and tremendous power and some of them were gods as well, direct offspring of the elemental gods. They once roamed this world freely but now all that remains of them are their bones." King Arthur gave Selvina knowing wink. "There is a reason the Final Night Mountains to the far north of us were once called the Troll's Teeth."
Selvina's eyed widened slightly, her interest piqued and mentally cursing the king for stopping his tale. She wanted to hear more.
King Arthur, apparently noticing this, cleared his throat and went on. "In the interim period between the end of the age of gigantic creatures and when man first appeared, dragons reigned supreme. There were dragons of all sorts and some had learned to manipulate magic, becoming the world's first spellcasters. During this time, so I am told, the magical balance was as its most stable.
"An untold amount of centuries and millenia went by before man first appeared. Some say we are the product of a false and fallen god, a mistake of creation named Iktarosh. He wanted a creature to rule over, one that was not completely bound by the laws of nature and one that was not as difficult to control as a dragon. Iktarosh, however, had a sister, named Irtue. She offered to aid her brother in creating these special creatures under one condition, that they be left alone to live their own lives. Iktarosh, unable to accomplish the task alone, grudgingly agreed. From their work came the sentient species: the humans, the elves, the dwarves, the fairies, the merfolk, the giants, the trolls, the goblins, the hobgoblins, the ogres, the satyrs, the felisapians, the minotaurs, the fauns, the werebeasts, the gnolls and all other species that created their own societies and civilizations. With the creation of these creatures came the end of the age of dragons."
"Wait, the end?" Selvina asked in shock. "But the empress can turn into one. Is she the only dragon left?"
"No, she is far from the last one. Dragons soar the skies to this day but they live far to the west, in what is called, rather plainly, the Dragon Country. The dragons were the protectors of nature and the ones tasked with keeping the balance of magic intact. They were the four elemental gods' greatest creation and, predictably, they were angered by the creation of these new species. Since Iktarosh and Irtue were their children, in a way, they were hunted down. Iktarosh evaded capture and fled into hiding but Irtue was not so fortunate. Many of Iktarosh's believers preach that he will return to conquer the world for his own and deny the elemental gods any claim. It is little wonder why the Empire of Noyr's chief religion is Iktaroshan."
"What is Avalon's chief religion?"
"Avalonians are free to worship whichever gods they wish though most of my people pray to the Thirteen Divines," King Arthur explained. "However, my Knights of the Round Table are sworn to uphold the teachings of Irtue and her seven truths."
"Wait, there are thirteen more gods now?"
King Arthur chuckled at her expression. "Yes, and these are the gods that all nations save Sauradia and Noyr pray to. The Sauradians pray to the elemental gods, as they believe we owe them their gratitude for creating the world we live in. Noyr, as you know, worships Iktarosh and his lust for conquest.
"Anyhow, with the creation of the sentient species came calamity and struggle. Unbound by codes of nature, these creatures sought out their own claims in the world. The dwarves and goblins dug deep, the merfolk remained safe beneath the water, while the elves retained close ties to nature and kept to the forests. The other races fought many wars until, eventually, after bloody struggle, man claimed victory. The ogres fled to the north where they remain to this day, in their nation of Ogram. The other species found homes wherever they could.
"The dragons, initially, were comfortable in letting the new species kill each other off but when the wars ended they rose up and attacked them, especially man. Fighting for the preservation of nature, the dragons fought to protect the balance and for their love of the land. Man, not willing to lose all that it had conquered, resisted and, eventually, began to win and killed off many of the dragons. Dragonkind were strong and long-lived but procreated slowly, whereas men multiplied quickly. When it became evident that man would succeed and dragon-kind would not, the protectors of nature fled to the west. Man, meanwhile, having no one left to fight, fought itself.
"The four elemental gods watched in horror as man began to undo what they had toiled so heavily to create. They punished man with terrible disasters that killed thousands, if not millions of humans, and yet man reproduced, replenished, and fought on regardless. It soon became clear to the gods that if they wished to defeat man they would have to destroy the very world they had created. Desperate for another solution, they went to Irtue, who remained in their captivity though was nearing death due to the unspeakable tortures she had suffered. As a last gift to man, she gave the elemental gods a plea. She pleaded to them to find amongst the realms of man those who were virtuous, strong, and good of heart. Once found, she would gift them her last breaths of life to grant them immortality and godhood."
"Did they listen to her plea?" Selvina asked, unaware that she had shuffled closer to King Arthur, not wanting to miss a word.
The king nodded. "They did. After an extensive search, the elemental gods found thirteen worthy candidates and granted them Irtue's life essence. In sacrificing her life, she had given man leaders that would manage their chaotic thirst for conquest and bring peace to the land. The Thirteen did just that and over time, as their teachings spread, a relative peace fell over the world. Wars were still fought, as they always will be, but the world and the balance of nature and magic was finally steadied."
Selvina waited for more but the king had finished and she took a moment to reflect on all that she had heard. The story was good, that much she could admit, but she wondered how much of it she could truly believe. "How do you know this is all true, Arthur? How are you certain your gods are real?"
"They speak to us, Selvina, if you only have the patience to listen. I am certain your gods do as well. Merlin himself has seen them."
"He has?"
"Merlin owes his long life to a type of hibernation which he calls the Druid Sleep, where he will remain sleeping for years at a time to regain his strength and mastery of natural magic. I asked him once what he did during this sleep and he simply told me that he communed with the gods."
"So they are real?"
"Of course they are."
"Well, if they are real, how are they letting the empress and The Writer do all that they are doing? Cindy told me that the balance of magic is tilting and swaying uncontrollably, which is why she has the powers that she does."
"Cindy is the gods' gift to us, Selvina, as are you. Do you not understand?"
"But...Amalthea chose me..."
"And where do you think she received these instructions?"
"The...the gods?"
"Precisely, Selvina. The gods know of the imbalance Empress Rhiannon and The Writer are causing and in an effort to stop them from creating further damage they have chosen both you and Cinderella as protectors. Cinderella will right the balance of magic but not before you put a stop to the one causing it—the Writer."
"So...the gods chose me?"
"They did," he replied with a nod.
Suddenly, Selvina felt cold and afraid. She glanced upward to the sky, as if expecting to see Faeryum's gods looking down on her. Instead, all she saw were gathering clouds and a darkening sky.
Why me? she asked herself. Why am I so special? What did I do to ever get the attention of gods?
Knowing that actual gods were watching her terrified Selvina to the bone.
The ride back to Maron was a silent one.