Tianfialu-miraoih

Agamemnon and Drusilla walked through the trees of the Mosswood.  It was early morning; Agamemnon had arrived shortly before dawn.  He hadn't expected to find her so soon - he'd just wanted to watch the sun rise and feel the warmth of the sun's rays begin to awaken the forest around him.  He'd never realised how much he'd grown to love simply being back in the Green Wold.  He'd always respected nature, but he'd never really enjoyed it before.  A wolf padded silently between the trees across from him, stopped to look at him.  He had the distinct impression he'd only seen the wolf because the wolf wanted to be seen.

Drusilla had found him sitting on a boulder overlooking a brook.  He'd been laughing at how thoroughly elven he'd become.  He'd had no idea she was there until she'd spoke to him, and greeted him in the elven way.  He'd smiled at her, told her this spot was beautiful.  She was clearly uncertain what he was doing there.

"I'm Agamemnon," he'd said.  "Tal eishama dreihuig mi cafiaou."
Drusilla had nodded.  "Yes, it is.  Very beautiful.  You're from the Dales?"
"I am from Calaelan."
"Then you are welcome here.  This place has much to offer."
"I am glad to hear it," he'd said, "because there is something I very much hope it will offer."
She'd looked at him quizzically.  "And what is that?"
"You."

~~~~~


"The crow druid fought," she said thoughtfully and quietly, "and he is dead and the crows are dead. The bear druid fought and he is dead and the bears are dead. The wolf druid adapted and became part of the new balance, and she survived, and the wolves survived."

 Several of those wolves were keeping pace with them as the pair wended their way along the banks of the small brook and talked.

"I fought," he told her.  The conversation was like this: statements, then long silences as they watched birds hopping through the canopy and heard insects start as they passed.

"You look like you've fought," she said eventually.  "Did you survive?"

He had to think about that one.  "Tianfialu-miraoih."  It was an elven word which meant to greatly benefit from an undeserved gift.  In elven culture those with great fortune, great wisdom, great age would sometimes gift something to those who had wronged them, and the gratitude and introspection this gift engendered would lead a person to a greater understanding of themselves, letting them grow to be a better person.  It was the best, most accurate word Agamemnon had to describe what had happened to him.  "The Father was very ... patient.  And very forgiving."


They walked for a while more before he spoke.  Agamemnon's voice was calm as he told her: "I went into Rappan Athuk, the great dark place, and I fought. I fought with anger. I was angry - angry at Orcus, angry with those who allowed him to rise again. I was angry, and I fought them with anger, I wanted to kill them, I wanted to destroy them. I wanted to defend my friends by killing their enemies. I hated them, the enemies we fought, I hated them for being in our way, I hated them for hurting us, I hated them for being them.  And that nearly took me, it nearly turned me to darkness, I nearly fell into the darkness of Rappan Athuk."




Drusilla nodded.  "I know of that darkness.  Grief leads many to that darkness."  Her eyes were shadowed as she thought.

"I was fortunate.  Darach-Albith saw what I was doing, he saw the danger I was in, and he called me back, and he showed me that you don't fight to destroy that which you hate, you fight to save that which you love."

"Crow tried to do that.  Bear tried to do that."

"I don't know the crow druid. I don't know the bear druid. But I know that if Orcus rises again, there will be no crows, no bears, no wolves, no druids, no trees, no gods, just Orcus and his corruption and his emptiness and his hate and his anger. All the things that make this life worth living will be gone. I love my friends, I love these trees, I love my little raven friend here, and I love you because you dedicate your life to something so beautiful."

Neither of them spoke again for some time.  Agamemnon enjoyed being in this place.  When next Drusilla spoke it was descending into dusk.  The first glimmers of the brightest stars were just appearing in the mauve sky as they entered a clearing.

"What do you want from the forest?"

"I want the forest to be the forest.  I want the people I love to learn what the forest is.  I want them to fight with hope and with happiness and with love to defend the things they love, to honour the gifts of nature and to protect those who cannot protect themselves.  I want them to have pure hearts."

"I don't know if the forest can offer you what you want."

Agamemnon nodded.  He put his hand on Drusilla's shoulder and looked her in the eyes.  "I trust the forest's judgement.  It is wise.  It is better to die with love in your heart than to prevail with hate.  But it is better still to ensure that love survives.

"Think about it.  If you will help us fight, come and see me.  We stand a better chance of success with your insight and your guidance and your sacrifice and your love."

Drusilla examined the trees, and then examined the cleric.  "The tianfialu-miraoih of the forest."

"Yes," he said.  "We are going into a very, very dark place.  The forest would make us better."

Drusilla considered.  Agamemnon knew what he was asking of the druid, knew a little of what her experiences had taught her, but he sincerely needed her guidance.  He had fallen once already; if he was to take on the responsibility of preparing others to face the darkness that had nearly claimed him he needed stars to guide him, pure hearts shimmering in the darkness to light the way.  The fletcher and the blacksmith were as important to an army's victory as the soldiers; his Tian Tu Lan needed to be tempered in pure water if it was to be unbreakable and there was no purer water than that he found in the brook that meandered through the Mosswood.

The moon was just showing a sliver of light in the dark sky when Drusilla returned.  Agamemnon hadn't even noticed her going - he'd been resting in the bough of a tree, watching hazel-doves settle down to nest.

"You should come with me," she said.  "Spend the night with me.  There are things this forest offers which you should see.  Beautiful things.  Ti eisham meioh ti."

Agamemnon nodded and went with her.  "To eishamy moihe."