Heterochromia

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[Bold images and words with sweeping, interwoven narratives adorn the page with artistic license...]   

Avenge Me Swift!
Wherefore, the Idol Betrays My Spirit
Black and blue, and every hue
and every world between

Those twinkling skies, within your eyes,
I see them when I dream


The little ones... How can I betray innocence?

Vanity... ignorance- these are far from innocence. If I am afforded some secret or insight, their blood is upon my hands should I forsake them. Let me not keep them.
The world is sick, and it has come to pass that those who are not, are seen as the afflicted. Your comforts: your bread and your circuses have taken what is yours by birth, yours by right. Your tooth, your nail, your very voice, now in service of those very architects who have made you a spectacle and a slave to their vice and ambition. Death is not the goal, such raises consciousness of the inevitable: Raising priesthoods and communion with what they seek to destroy. Corruption is the mean toward the end. When those who would oppose the dragon (that beast which exists but yet, does not), instead, serve it. Salting every field until when that death comes, the beauty of creation is spoiled, and the harvest is denied he who planted us.

Why? That is the nature of curse: those who betray God. Feast of vanity, until judgement come.

How do you fight a dragon (the one of which I speak)? It is no physical entity in form, therefore, there is no physical weapon against it. If you believe only what you see, then you will be slave to that which you do not. Do you understand? There are few who do.



There are countless religions, throngs of gods, and idols, and every manner of magician: but there is only one word of prophecy that reveals and also conceals. There is only one that is as true as it ever was. A living word, from a living God. If it were not so... then how has it reached you now? If I lie, strike me dead, and if I live? Let it be in you.

All who love a lie hate this word, and me no different. Why should I bear this weight under such duress? Does this serve me? It serves HE who is in me, who has gone in search of those lost sheep. It serves you, though you may never know until the end. When you meet, face to face, and your life is laid bare. Where are the fruit of your labors? Where are the fields and vineyards and stables?

There will be weeping, and gnashing of teeth.

I have come in search of souls, and to set all spirits at variance.

Blessed be the LORD my strength which teacheth my hands to war, and my fingers to fight:
My goodness, and my fortress; my high tower, and my deliverer; my shield, and he in whom I trust; who subdueth my people under me.

But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light;

Ai ren yalo!


"Love is the law, and love.. is war."

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Record of Gundar War
The history of Gundarak was largely lost on her, being a stranger in these lands, despite her decade of tenure. All she knew of them were as a conquered people, under the subjugation of the residing Barovians. While the Barovians had never proved particularly kind, they certainly had changed. Now from the shadows of history had a threat emerged... sending chaos and fear throughout the lowlands, and tremors to Vallaki. The tactics employed by the rebels suggested they were preparing for something particular. How many more would suffer at the hands of those who claimed to be any better than their oppressors?

Food stores razed. Families sundered. Monsters awaken. Future plundered.

The Black Army marched, and she could not look away.

But now, he that hath a purse, let him take it, and likewise his scrip: and he that hath no sword, let him sell his garment, and buy one.

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Echovocation

  But if the watchman see the sword come, and blow not the trumpet, and the people be not warned; if the sword come, and take any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at the watchman's hand... When I say unto the wicked, O wicked man, thou shalt surely die; if thou dost not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand.

  Intermittent footfalls echoed down a dimly lit alleyway, as an obfuscated figure emerged at its terminus.
"You made it."
   The figures gait staggered along, clutching at a sucking wound which accompanied her thin breath. She struck an imposing figure, and it was impossible to escape her furious gaze.
"Who are you?" She rasped.
The figure hitched off the wall and cracked his knuckles at length. "Don't you remember anything?" Something about him... There was something about his gaze, his tone- his face... It all seemed so distantly familiar. He smiled gently, an unmistakable empathy quenching whatever ember of fury remained in her.
"No.. I've forgotten." She looked around, but was soon reminded of her mortal condition. The anger that kept her erect, now lost, caused her to tremble and bow over buckled knees. She would have fallen if the man didn't catch her. She didn't recall him getting that close to begin with, but didn't bother, she was lost in a feverish riddle: who am I if not me?

  There, at the terminus she emerged from, was her. She could see herself sitting slumped against the wall, with a young boy in her lap. Blood drenched a punched hole through her breastplate. She looked down and saw the same wound on herself.
"You did well, Maudlyn. Truly. There is nothing to be ashamed of anymore."
Tears burned, and welled in her eyes. She was beginning to remember. It felt like a dream, but somehow she knew that now she was woken from it, in the arms of an angel.
"Rise. You are not so dead as you think."
And behold, she stood aright and nothing was wrong. She breathed deep, but the tears wouldn't stop. She looked pitifully at the angel before her.
"What now?"


 

The angel's eyes burned deep, and hot.
"We go to war."

   For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.

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Where the Wind Goes

  Are not five sparrows sold for two farthings, and not one of them is forgotten before God? But even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not therefore: ye are of more value than many sparrows. Also I say unto you, Whosoever shall confess me before men, him shall the Son of man also confess before the angels of God: But he that denieth me before men shall be denied before the angels of God.

  A young boy woke in his hovel in a sweat. All he could see was a single moment in the alley the elven knight was killed. Nothing else mattered to him--only her--and now she was gone. He wondered what it was all worth. What could anything mean or matter if such cruelty waited in fates wings. Such lofty notions and ideas were new to him, but plagued him into this ungodly hour. He sobbed until morning, doing his best to disappear into the darkness that kept him company.

---

  The morning came, and a weary resignation with it. Though sullen and distant, Pavel made the motions of his morning routine, with only one singular notion in mind. Was it only a dream? He had to see the sword. He had to hold it. It was all there was left. It was all he could carry, along with her rucksack he had yet to fully peruse. He almost felt guilty, but vowed he would honor whatever effects she had in her possession before the end. He didn't know what would happen to her body, but knew if he stayed to find out, they would take everything else from him as well. He had no choice.

  He attended his chores with a certain zeal and impatience, and when he left, it wasn't without notice, though the sky could fall and he would have been none the wiser.

---

  Away in his grotto, he marveled at the gleaming blade. He knew it was special, for so many reasons, and how could he ever forget? He killed a man with this very weapon. Though it was through his back, it was a grown man, and in defense of a woman! He still couldn't bring himself to be proud of the moment, as she still died in the end. He was no hero, he couldn't save her. He fought at tears again, and they splashed against the sword before he calmed himself with a runny sigh. The bag, he thought, distracting himself from another maudlin episode. He went to fetch it.

  Within were a number of effects. Packed potions, tinned rations, sacked golden coins... more then he had ever seen. However, the more he saw, the more he remembered what she had originally given him. The book. He frowned, finding no such thing within the rucksack. She had given him something specifically and he only cared about what he had taken instead. He felt guilty, miserable, but he distracted himself with the effects and baubles anyway. I can't even read, he thought, remembering his lie to miss Dupont. That is when he decided: I will become a knight, like she was. I will be exactly like her, but stronger. Or at least as strong. I will learn from her book and live by this sword, just like her. I will die by it too, and see her in elysium! Surely there is no other place she could be...

  Pavel swung the sword around for a while until he grew tired, and then secreted it safely away with an old log, under a moss covering. Satisfied it was safe, he headed for home. He was determined to learn the contents of that book, though he was a stubborn child, and it would take him an eternity before he could decipher those words. The knight's spirit had emboldened him, and set in motion a series of events that would change not just young Pavel's life, but countless others who had yet to step from the darkness.
 

Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts. Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God. Do ye think that the scripture saith in vain, The spirit that dwelleth in us lusteth to envy? But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble. Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded. Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up...
Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.

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Letters in the Mist

  Brethren, loved and lonely alike; for one is never far from the other!
 I greet you with multitude of thanksgivings. I pray these words warm and move you to such lofty heights reserved for angelic choir and council. May you so gracefully reap what is immaculately sewn. In Christ name almighty. Blessed may we ever be through harrow and horizon. Amen & amen.

 It has been many days since last I sent correspondence, and I joyously declare my pilgrimage brings me to places I have never dreamed, and souls set at every level of variance; For and against me both. Such challenges and endeavor has yielded me special revelations and certain insights. Though I have much to say, I hope to convey as much in so little. For what is art but depth in shallow strokes! Haha!

  Firstly, to my betrothed, I have a personal aside for you, may its chastity be so kept and groomed as it ought to be! Know with celerity my heart is ever with you..

  Next I apologize for my elven moods! I should better recognize how limited and precious our time is. It is not even a good excuse for me as I have ever been raised among human kinds! I'm a city elf! My confidence here is your understanding and patience, without which I would be lost. I pray that in my absence has not likewise been an absence in the gospel. Should it be so, I will box our Prelate forthright upon my coming. With haste and temerity! I will stand him on his head and plant him like a fruitless tree, before an axe find him in sorry dispositions! I am not even joking! I will breathe fire and you will die deaths. Know you not that our people perish for lack of knowledge? Is not our faith and substance rooted in prayer and practice? Or will we become hollow vessels--hypocrites--wanting like the 5 churches of Revelation? Let it never be so!

  Hard words belie my true nature, and you know this. Toward these ends I advise you these three things:
1.) Christ is the way, truth, and life. Learn to see these things through his spirit. This is what it means to walk by faith, and not by sight. Know too that all who love this path will be persecuted BY the spirits of iniquity, the unclean spirits of legion that infest this world from beyond our mortal veil. Satan is the father of lies and author of confusion. So too are his children! By this will you know them. So it is written, and so I have found exactly. All who love the truth, will be persecuted by those who love a lie. Grow strong in your faith and our Lord God who will draw to you as you draw to him. This thing I know, for long and often have I strayed, but our Lord awaits me still, with growing presence as I keep better and faster his wisdom and commandments! Glory hallelujah!

2.) Love another like we are commanded. We war not against flesh and blood, but against principalities and spiritual wickedness in high places! If you hate one or another, you have become no better than them. Be blameless before God, but so too be equipped with every armor and ordinance! Cast not your pearls before swine! Should you be mocked, contested without cause or consideration, fear not the venom of serpents and sting of scorpions. Trample them underfoot in your passage! And when you have passed wipe the dust from under your feet. Stand strong and fast in these armaments and your sight will be unmatched. Humble yourselves too- be not haughty or arrogant, a zealot without the spirit of love, mercy, patience or kindness. Too often have I myself become a butcher among kin, self righteous rather than UNDERSTANDING of what measure was needed to meet with grace, and godliness.

3.) Pray. Pray before all things. Humble yourself before God, and honor him with your submission. Who else should we worship? A man? A woman? Ourselves? God forbid an idol or image. Let us establish our holy ley lines, and grow with devotion. For baptism is worthless if only a ritual of water. One must be reborn by water AND the spirit! If you believe only what you see, you will be a slave to that which you cannot. This I know.

Selah

Finally, my beautiful babes and bastions in Christ! I will return. I will be passing through [REDACTED] by the time these letters are expected to arrive. I suspect to arrive no longer than the first month of the new year! Let it be a blessed union! Oh dear... reviewing this letter I fear my art can use some improvement! So much for the soul of wit. Alas. There are loftier things than the desire for accolades.

Should faith ever find you faint... still your thoughts, still your heart and very breath. Pray, and remember that when you do, we stand together in infinity.

-Maudlyn Argali Dupont

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Star Sapphire

A stoic yet startling pair of blue eyes adorned a bespectacled and somewhat mousey wizard of sheer blonde hair. She watched the resurrection of Argali Dupont. Silently the elf arose from that primordial pool. The wizard gave certain near imperceptible ticks in her assessment. Such matters weren't cheap. But the implications were always worse.

"What happened to you?"

Argali took her head. "I... don't know." She tried to recall, but not in vain.

"I find you dead? No thanks?" Her voice was soft, but there was a sharp barb in it. Argali knew it could administer poison. But she never needed to fear.

"Thank you, Medea."

"Shush."

And though she did, it was with a smile. Soon after she began to wonder. It was like waking from a dream. Here I am again. I never left. I was just having a bad dream. A dream that she couldn't remember, but filled her with such passions as must further be expressed.

"How did you find me?"

"You know how."

Argali clutched her amulet. An old gift. She remembered how the star sapphire used to shine so brilliantly. Now it was deep, and dormant.

The two old friends chatted and caught up over the evening as Argali reacclimated to living again. She watched Medea recant tales of her travels, and prospects the less practiced arch-magician between the two had not been privy to. Ah, she was a mere mortal, after all. The evening spurned into a golden epitome of holy union. They laughed and celebrated the occasion. They had not met in over a year. They conquered the peak together, let alone all manner of hellfire. It was truly and honestly, a beautiful day. She thanked God for it. Praying on her hands and knees and very head.

Medea said, "Yes, I remember your God, too. Still with axes and fires?"

"Not every tree is good for fruit."

Maudlyn and Medea parted with a hug, if only a little stiff from the suddenness. Medea watched Argali, adjusting her spectacles. "Be careful, Argali. What happened with you?"

Argali wondered. She could only recall flashes of violence. The splash and scent of hot blood. A child. A crown uncrowned.

Medea studied the elf in silence as she processed the fugue recollections...

"I forsook the congregation. I acted alone, and without council."

Medea was surprised. "What? You? No way." She was a good actor when she cared to be.

What an honor, Argali thought, as she set upon the road the following evening. She had people to see. And dark corners to pay visit. Much time had passed.

"My God deliver us from evil."

"Your kingdom come."

"This sword shall not be sheathed any longer."

"If you but command it I will lay waste to every man woman, child, and animal. But you have more grace. I am and have ever been a tool of someone elses expense. You have set me free. I will walk in this light wherever I go. I will cast out every unclean spirit and work of Satan. In the spirit of truth and beauty; whose name given is Christ, Almighty. Unto death greet us, God. I pray it is so. I pray it is Lord."

When I met Medea... I was still lost. I had been pointed a star and left to follow it alone. The scars of my past were as literal as any metaphor I could cunningly concoct for you. Medea was different then too. More open. Time changed that, certainly, but it was so good to talk again. Too long had they not been on the same page. Not since those dark days. The matter of the vampire and his companion.... Everywhere she looked but ahead was darkness. She was headed for home.

This is the way.

The world was full of fighting.

Now she was never alone.

[Mailbox-2100]

Sword Saint

[Various compositions of fragments of memories fill the page.]

I can still feel it somewhere out there. Through the endless mist and winding way. I can still feel them, beating here with me. Our legacy will outlive us.

"There is no fight worth fighting that is worth fighting fair."

A vision of such strange eyes. "I will remember that."

A master at arms. "Its not enough to remember."

She blinked only once.

He smiled, and so did she.

"Engarde."

She fell back into a ready stance, the longsword held jutting forward like a boars tusk.

She knew these exchanges well, but she needed to learn how to flow with the information in a stressful environment. The Academy believed in training how you intend to fight. Death was a ritual. The essence of magical healing and resurrections oversaturated the student's lifeblood. They practically glowed strange colors and hues, and smelled like hash. There were funds at stake.

He engaged swiftly. Never breaking his stride; bounding with each one, like a gazzelle; majestic.

The elf tried to flow into movement with him, and bind and hinge- she liked to grab her dagger too. She was abidextrous, remarkable. She wasn't above comitting to a winning stroke, or even a gambit. She had gotten the better of him on certain exchanges. Slick, is the word. She was good. And so young. This poor child...

He feinted in and she bit just enough- her sword was off center and he seamlessly entered the sudden space. When her sword would intercept him he instead parried her outside as he leapt with a kick to side of her kneecap. Something tore as he bowled into her- she grit her teeth, slid sideways and kept her footing, so that when he bounded further in to try and trap her she instead rolled her head out, and was suddenly looming against an opening of his right flank.

Time stood still as she shifted her momentum into a two handed thrust at the apex of her shoulders and hips. A fine thrust. Her instructor threw his arms out and rolled the sword under his armpit only to press upon it from above as their swords just sparked- he ripped his sword up into the flesh under her jaw, breaking bone and ending somewhere in her sinuses. It was only there for a moment, as he brutally tore out a gout of blood, along with her to the floor. She couldn't get away from him, so consequently gargled, hacking up great globs of blood and bile. She started to cry, she hated to die; but she always loved waking up again.

The instructor felt a bite of pain and blood ooze from a cut made along the armpit of his gambeson. "A fine cut."

Matthew 10:34      Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword. For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law. And a man's foes shall be they of his own household.That was a lifetime ago. Yet she was still here.

This sword yet remained.

The art lived through her.

Benediction

My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.

The way leads ever onward.

For we are more than conquerors in Jesus Christ name- Almighty!

Deliver us from evil and give us our daily bread.

Thy kingdom come, your will be done; on earth, as it is in heaven.

Perfect justice come swiftly. Once and for all.

Mon sang pour les leurs, Dieu.

Amen and amen.

   Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience. Be not ye therefore partakers with them.

For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light: (For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;) Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord. And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them. For it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in secret. But all things that are reproved are made manifest by the light: for whatsoever doth make manifest is light.

Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.

Selah

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Tears of Scarlet

Clear blue skies.

The Sun sets, and the Sun rises.

She took many lives that day. The proclivity of hubris.
It ended with the Seers life flashing before his eyes.

One false Messiah too many.

I can still see his wretched brow, and the horns that protruded it.

"Foolish fey! This path you cross is to destruction!"




"What do you see now?"



Many scars and much blood stained her skin.
She was a product of her environment. And had more power then she knew how to handle.

Now she stood at a misty crossroads, the keep of the Dyad as if from some dream. How long had she stayed there?

Over a decade?
What time is it?

There was much yet to attend.


Thank God for this day.

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Pathological


Argali roused from her stupor to check if anything had arrived for her--it had been about a week now-- and in fact a letter did, just recently.
The envelope was sealed with a blotch of white wax bearing the stamp of a knight chessman superimposed over a cross. She opened the seal.

That evening, reverie was hard fought.

Elves did not dream... though she often wondered if in fact she simply never waked. Her life was but a dream.
There was no mention of her kind in that holy book. It travelled from countless cosmos to find itself upon the shores of her forgotten and forlorn realm.
And yet she believed it. Its prophecies did not fail.
They continue to this day and onward before her eyes.

And what strange eyes; that walked by faith, and not by sight.



Armageddon was coming;

But first this Necropolis!

She prayed before setting out upon the way, once again.

*("Nail in my head" -lyric correction)

She had places to be.

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Sojourner

Her travels had taken her to far places, even between worlds, like so many she had known. That common bond aligned them to some innate understanding, or perhaps complete lack thereof... Argali settled into the warmth of home & hearth, dividing her artifacts. She set a candle at the window, beside her sword, and began writing her letters.

The first of much to come.

This was a cursed land, but hope still lived here. Despite the rows & legion of the graves of the hopeful,
the Order stood.

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...in the winding ways and permeating mists, you find yourself overlooking a worn wooden table. Upon it were but two fixtures, a book and lonely candle burning in the dark. The book was opened to a page where certain scripts were highlighted and glowing, whereas others were obfuscated and could only possibly be deciphered with effort.

Zechariah 11:17
Woe to the idol shepherd that leaveth the flock! the sword shall be upon his arm, and upon his right eye: his arm shall be clean dried up, and his right eye shall be utterly darkened.

Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, and against the man that is my fellow, saith the Lord of hosts: smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered: and I will turn mine hand upon the little ones.

 And it shall come to pass, that in all the land, saith the Lord, two parts therein shall be cut off and die; but the third shall be left therein.

 And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried: they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The Lord is my God.

Argali stirred from reverie and rose in grace reserved for other beings. Her pupils dilatated, and the elf smiled as she considered the days. The phantom of a jubilant melancholy twinkled in her eyes. Such was the mystery of Maudlyn.

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The Loved and Lost

One morning upon her way, when the elf saw the sudden bloom- she noticed a season had passed, and a new had just begun. She could only then realize all that she had left behind her, and she wept with bitter tears of joy. To be free from the clutches of evil, and in her Gods amazing grace. The stones screamed out in silence, and the wind whispered her name...

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Letters from Abroad

Dear brother...

 Firstly, I apologize for my fey mood the past fort night, rendering me slow if even able to respond to most things. Perhaps the role I play I am ultimately... unfit for. I have returned to the prairie and come to find one of my charges dead and buried in my absence. Toman was... [it appears she returned to the letter later] ...and is no more. A part of me still trembles in grief, another wishes nothing but sleep. A melancholy and apathy has become me, though these letters fight in protest.

 I'm sorry. I am so weak despite my posturing. Tears drown my dreams. I am no knight, I am a woman, and I am needed where I am. The children need me. No- we need each other. Forgive me Vandryn. I cannot answer the call of duty as Prior, and thus should suspend myself as such.

 I pray the Lord of Hosts oversees what I have failed to, and instils in our church the wisdom I find gated behind grief. I love you all, though am fighting to love myself. I cannot heal like so many clerics, I cannot raise the dead, I can scarcely even raise my pen to this paper. My faith is not gone, and I even recognize the blessings all around me; to even be able to -attend- such melancholy without immediate destruction. Even so, I am fallen, and slow to rise. This is my shame. Forgive me.

 My darkest hue, reserved for you...

Maudlyn

//A parchment bearing the seal of a knight chessman over a cross, stamped in white wax, returns to Maudlyn:

My dear sister--

Forgive the delay in my response. Recent events have kept me from my parchments, though I don't wish to trouble you with that further.

My heart breaks to see such a burden resting on you. I can pray only that the Lord comforts and strengthens you to strive through it with grace. (I know he will.) You have my deepest sympathies--and all my prayers for your welfare and those close to you.

Having said that, don't trouble yourself with an apology. It's truly unnecessary! I firmly believe the Lord calls us to where he needs us. (As the scripture tells us, "And who is to say whether you have not been brought to the kingdom for such a time as this?") If you've been called to your present business, I trust that it's at his will and desire, and I have faith that he'll equip you to do his works there, just as you've done here.

Though I have yet to cross his path, Ser Lorick has returned and been able to take the mantle of prior. Rest assured that the Templars are well. Your family here will abide and await you here as we always have, and when you return, our souls will rejoice at your coming.

Furthermore, you are a knight, Maudlyn, and even if your time as prioress was short, it was a blessing nonetheless. Knighthood isn't a title or posturing. It's a matter of the heart and the spirit. For you to make the painful decision to leave your station here and return to where a great need existed speaks much of your heart and character. You have the knight's courage to choose a difficult path, a knight's duty to do what's needed, a knight's compassion to aid those in need, a knight's humility to send word to your brethren, and a knight's purity to feel and acknowledge this pain. You are--and ever will be--a knight of this temple, "divine gifts" or not, title or not, belief in whether you deserve it or not.

There are no apologies and no forgiveness needed. Between us, there is only faith, hope, and love--the greatest among them being love.

Until the joyous day when the Lord reunites our paths, stand fast and walk in the Light, sister. I remain, steadfastly and in love,

Your brother,
V. Carro

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she was dreaming...

she had to be...

Was this judgement?

There is a tempest twitching in her reverie.

A flash of an eye.

She awoke, eyes wide- her heart a distant, dull thumping in a sea of electrical current.

She considered her purpose.







She rose to prepare the supper.
A guest was arriving.

And it was strange aeons.

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Entry 1

There are some verses, and a drawing of a tree split down the middle...

Deus Vult

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Entry 2

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Entry 3

Toman

Haxx

Lord, thank You.

~scripture~

Selah

Spoiler: show

The gravest insult upon my house
You have dared to slight my name
Betrayed allegiance, forsake the bond
Your demise is all i seek
No rest will I take from the hunt
You'll live in fear every day

I will have my revenge
You'll die by my hand

Day by day I follow you along your path
Your allies felled by my steel
My hate is endless, it knows no bounds
All of your lands are set ablaze

Once I've found you no mercy will I show

I will have my revenge
You'll die by my hand
Until I have your head
My sword will not sleep

I will dig your grave
Into the shallow ground
The worms will feed upon the flesh
Of your betrayal

[Solo: Clark]

You will answer for your crimes
I will be your judge
As long as you still breathe
My sword will not sleep

I've shed much blood and tears
For years I did hunt you down
Vengeance finally mine because
My sword did not sleep

Encore.  

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Entry 4

What they will never understand, is how this sword is not for myself. God forbid it. Let it be for anyone but me.


For the beauty of the sword was that all those who lived by it, must also die by it.

Argali rose from her prayers, and exited stage left.

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Queen of Swords

How could this be? How could she forget this one instance, this single thing.



The image was so vivid and intricate. She could only marvel as the lost artifact revealed itself from its hidden fold, at the dawn of a new age.



No.



She flipped the tarot twirling, into the fire.



Such dragons danced against the shadow of the consuming light.




Lord have mercy...

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Entry 5

She couldn't escape the visions...

Behind the fields burned, and ahead the bells tolled.

A past; not mine. A future; not mine.

Here is now.

Argali entered the city at her good pleasure and delivered her letters. She wrote many, these days.

And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God;

I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth. Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked: I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.

 As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.

 Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me. To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.

He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom;

Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all long suffering and doctrine. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.

 But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry. For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith:

 Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.

Behind the bells tolled, and ahead the fields burned.

Lord tell me what the time is...
I see the prize, in all of their eyes...
And though I decapitate,
I pray it is never by hate.

Stay up late... Meditate...
Measure twice before you.. amputate.

All at peace, the hour late,
so I head down by the lake;
to wash the gore without a trace,
and be born clean, an endless fate...

After this I looked up, and behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said,
Come up hither; and I will shew thee things which must be here-after.

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Lady of the Lake

Argali appreciated the stillness and silence of the wood surrounding her. The little lake afforded her a place of solitude, and privacy. It was here she baptised them. Ironic, she thought, with no less mirth. She could feel it clearly now, in how her abilities began to manifest and multiply in anything she put her hand. This place was holy.

 Returning home, the elf sat at her desk, hunched casually over a cornucopia of letters, lyrics, and ley-lines of schematics that had been given her through angel dreams over the years; but now the puzzle she had been a faithful, blind servant of- (stumbling and bumping her head where she may... ) was now becoming clear. It was no longer a blind faith. It was measured, and sharp, and timed- She could see His hands: In everything: the hands of righteousness.

The Lord was returning, and she had much to prepare for the sake of faith, hope, and charity: For in them she waged war to abide.

And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire:

 Whose fan is in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.

She thought of how fragile the lie really was. The fear that kept it strong. She would assault its stronghold until there were ashes, whomever they may be. And from the ashes...

Silence...

"Life."

There were many she yet loved...

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Full Circle

Maudlyn stood aside privately with Jacob, a young man, by all accounts. He kept much of the house in order, fixing what needed, and like with many- was enamored with the elven woman.

 "Writing your letters and never receiving any back. Well..." he paused, "At least not from the one you waited on first."
"Second.. " she reminded, though he only nodded dully.
"The Lord comes first." She studied him presently, his shame hung to him like a heavy cloak. A frown touched her lips.

 He only kept the letters, so that she would stay. Stay with the children, let alone the rest...

 "I'm not mad. I'm relieved." She smiled to muted surprise. "I have already imagined the worst scenarios... and this is better than the present best I have imagined."

 And truly it was, 4 letters in total from her betrothed.. the one above the rest was the most recent, it arrived a few days ago. They had been separated with no contact for nearly a year since their engagement. Being called abroad by those strange winds of life... but all along he had written her- only Jacob had hidden the letters, until now: He confessed all before her...

~a Bundle of Letters arrives, some are weathered, and some in more recent approach suggesting they werent sent as soon as written; each one has a wax seal that bore a cross with a gauntlet atop it~
(the first letter is quite wethered)
1:) My dear Betrothed, I leave with haste in this hour. Much has weighed upon me in recent, and I feel I need some time away, I'm sorry I've naut time to say goodbye Giving you away for but a moment is a tragedy to my heart, and this, face to face I can not bear. My duty calls upon my soul to wander the world, I need a deeper understanding of my place and how true God is with me. I must learn to be Humble once more, for my pride grows an ill smelling aura of it. I hope in such deprave manner I exude, you may show mercy on me and not harbor ill regard.
Love, Haxx Belfor
(this letters edges are slightly damaged and the paper is dried out and delicate)

2:) Sister in duty, keeper of my heart,
I write you this day and must start with apology to the infrequency of my commune. It seems ever since I asked you to be my eternal partner, We've not had nary a moment to truly be as such, almost seemingly avoiding each other more than naut. I don't mean to dally on the mire that is my state these last few weeks, but I wish to inform you I am still well and moving forward, and I wish to know how you've been. I know naut where The Light guides next, however you may leave letter for me at Nova Vassa for I intend to make stop there in future, however immediately the date is unknown. I must be honest, I yearn to see Him as you Do. It harkens on my heart to see how willing you are to drop everything at a hat and do His will and go where He needs you. I admit Jellousy. I wish you would yearn for me as such at times however Ill it is I know true. Things I must pay pennance for, however for you to know this of me, it must be so. I pray you do naut look down upon me, yet allow me to gain understanding for I am but a child to your wisdom and HIS. Untill I next see you, you are always in my mind, Like the warm little "Socks" everyone wishes they had in the winter.

(this letter seems rushed, the parchment is damaged and some words unreadable)
3:) Deares with the Ir_n Will and Ha_____
I've not had much atime to settle a m_ment and recollect one's eve___ to meaning. Many enemies surround me _owever Haven finds me where The __ght Guides.
I've come to ___ what you see, at least in some short essen__ however befuddled I can be in this _____. I yearn to kno__ the workings of the ___ and what you think of it.  Keep out of Trouble, and look after __ot and Van___. Hopefully this Curse I bear can be lifted soon, and to your warm hearth I wish to ret___ to.

(this last letter seems quite recent, as if it was written well after the previous)
4:) My Dearest Argali,
I miss you Maudlyn, how are you? What wisdoms have been granted to you? I wonder at nights like this, if you stare at the moon as I do. It reminds me of the silver that pools in your eyes at night, and its Light reminds me of how you guided me in the Dark. I wish to return soon. The teachings garnered have humbled me, and I think I understand why you are so keen to leave my side for so long. I, can see the reverence and clarity that can be brought about when focusing entirely on God, and to be honest I think I lose some of that clarity in seeing you, but it is not because of you, it is because I was blind. I wish to see out and navigate how this world will work for us, if it does at all, and I am left with a greater understanding of why you are so passionate as you can be, as selfish as I was to be frustrated by such endeavors. I hope my absence in writing hasnt made you cold to me, and I hope you have the understanding that I hold of you in your Mission. There is nary a day I do not long to be by your side, and to explore the world and sharing His gifts with those who are deserving, I pray it is the same for you still. May He bless us and may we walk the path he has set 'fore us by his will. Amen
-H.B.

After pouring over those letters privately- she decided to leave shortly after, so moved was she. Maudlyn could not bear to wait for another letter to arrive. She had to see, first hand. She bade her farewells, and while there were many tears, and many more, when the sun came again it would be especially beautiful.

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Fellowship of the King

"A flame that burns so bright
To lighten the darkest night sky
Together we'll defeat them all

Tears of a thousand men
Marching to hell and back again
One battle the greatest of all"

Reverie brought such visions- for what were dreams? She could only thank the Lord for what bountiful allowances were afforded her. Outright and forthwith she left Haxx with a kiss and a promise. There were many she had left unfulfilled.

For once I slept, but now I see...

Forgive my slumber, my folding of hands: No more.

O Lord deliver the captive. Arm me. Gird me. Set me loose among the heathen, the lost, and the anointed forevermore.

Set our fellowship from strength to strength, and everlasting to everlasting, that we be mighty and true. Just, and perfect in your ways. Not so much that we never make mistakes, but that we always have the anointing of humility to correct our ways, and align with the portal of Glory: Christ Almighty. Redeemer. Breaker of Chains. Prince of Peace.
 
As it is, there are many parts, yet one body.

Unbroken.

Mon sang pour les leurs.

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Ever Bloom

She left her betrothed in the bed they shared that night... nothing had happened but, they had never shared one before. She left once her reverie subsumed- Haxx breathed warmly beside her, given to the necessity the human required of sleep. "Sleep..." she intoned, gently stroking his golden mane before composing some letters.

Haxx awakes to a lonely room, only a lingering warmth and aroma accompany a note. It reads:
 Beloved, I must leave you this morning before long. I am only mortal and temptations lie so eagerly beside me. Forgive me. I know you do. I love you. I will see you soon. God still my beating heart...

She collected herself in the southern wood, by the river Luna. Her heart beat but she was still. Some part of her wanted to run... some instinct, a hidden fear of ill intentions. But she could not deny her love. His handsome jaw. His gentle hand... subdued from what violence it held promise. She wanted him, but she had to.... ease in. Perhaps her elven acclimations. "I'm not as long lived"...he complained, but the tiniest pressure sent electric currents through her soul: The fact she wanted something so freely given scared her. Her heart had never been kind to her in these matters.

"You treacherous cur..."she whispered in mirth to herself, washing her features clean. Her heart took exception and finally quieted. She smiled at her rippling reflection and dressed to meet the day, and all who dared it.

"If I should keep you in the small things, then I will in the large as well. Lest wise I am good for nothing. May my head ever, and swiftly, bow at the coming of the Lord. Who teaches my fingers to fight, and my hands for war. Keep my place beside you, and may I be judged righteously, by no less the measure I have meted unto others. Let me first cast out my own devil before I seek the head of another.

But now comes mettle. Now comes honor, for the Word is God, and truth before glory. You are its keeper, and we its heir. Deliver us God! Unto righteousness and eternal!
Amen. Amen."

She crossed her heart, and hoped to live- as she passed through the valley of the shadow of death.

"Amen."

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Silent, His Story

Emotions overwhelmed her, and demons swarmed her sight, coloring all she heard voracious hues. She wanted to fight them... to kill them, but she could not raise her hand to strike. Confusion gripped her tightly, and despite her heart, and even her very thoughts- she stayed her hand for the righteousness of the Lord. Only the Word kept her, while she wept and raged for all to see so bitterly. None could soothe her, and all betrayed her; she knew she was wrong, but could not quit the storm that followed her.

"The Lord is not the author of confusion... these thoughts- these emotions... where do they stem from?"

She was like a cornered animal, and fled to where animals may: to seclusion. Only after her bitter weepings through the unseen hours of the night did the storm pass... and then she could see what transpired. Never had she witnessed such a host of demons and angels war like they did now overhead. The angels ushered the demons out with a great tumult, and bloodshed.

She was hurting people. She had almost killed her love... Only her prayers, fevered and fervent, had delivered her to this vantage. So much of her past was drowned in darkness, but she again began to see her childhood, stripped as it was from her by her father and the city; the shadows therein. The violence, the abuse, the trauma... the trauma... those old demons waiting in the crook of her smile, and the shadow of her eyes. She knew not what afflicted her, only that when it struck, there had never been recourse- but to kill or be killed. She had survived, but at what cost? The devil played her like an instrument for so many years... but now prophecy revealed, where her fury had yielded...

She could only replay the parting words she had for her betrothed, "Should the Lord will it, I pray you will cut off my head. Without remorse." Haxx could only smile bittersweet, "I can't promise that." She cursed him, he continued. "I would have remorse." And only then could the elf see how he fought to support her, how gentle he was despite his own suffering, but the storm still covered her then, so she left him with what heart she could- a broken smile.

"I will love you with a love that is never ending..."