Kindle and Carum

Kindle and Carum

The leaves fell all round Kindle, dancing in the wind and falling to her feet.  Autumn had always been her favorite time of the year.  She loved to watch the trees turn their rich bold colors as there is a crisp, clean smelling fragrance in the air.

Kindle picked up one of the maple leaves at her feet and with outstretched hands, she waited.  Her long red hair blowing all around her face, she closed her eyes while concentrating on the question at hand.  Good fortune or bad fortune?    Opening her eyes and letting go of the leaf, she watched the leaf float up and up into the wind carrying it as far as it would go.  This was the answer she had wished for.  As long as the leaf blew upward the answer was sure to be good fortune.  If the leaf floated downward to the ground the answer was most certainly bad fortune.  A leaf falling to the ground was bad fortune’s signature.

Even though the time of year was Autumn, it was still a little hot. So Kindle searched high and low.  She saw no one, so she made the fateful decision to strip off all of her clothes and go for a swim to cool her body off.  She had heard tales of serpents in these waters, yet she had no reason to believe them.  She felt that if she let them be, then they would let her be.

As she swam, floating on her back as the current carried her downstream the sun was warm on her face.  Her breasts glistening as she floated along.  Such a good mood she was in, she started to sing:

I my love, I wish to see

Breathe your life into me

When the flow of the tide draws near

Under the Waxing Moons

I will appear

A stone that separates Good from Evil

A lover’s kiss, a song and a prayer

Good conquers Evil

Upon the fortress lair.

It was an old song her brother Elan had taught her when she was real young..  She often thought of all the stories her brother taught her throughout her annuals.  Elan has always been her rock, her guidance and stronghold.  He knows that she has an active imagination, but never held it against her.

As she floated along, she remembered Elan telling her stories of these waters containing within it magical properties reserved only for the virtuous and pure of heart.  These waters would bring youth, vigor and power.  Boy, did she love the stories Elan told her, yet she was not interested in anything of the above…she just wanted to swim and cool off.  Her mind in such a faraway place she never noticed the handsome young man standing behind one of the maple trees watching Kindle with awe and interest.

So beautiful, yet so naïve, This young man thought to himself.  Then just as suddenly he was filled with shame.  He was not to be watching this beautiful creature swimming, yet he could not look away.  He knew what these waters contained.  He decided to wait to see if she needed any help which took a little longer than imagined.

As Kindle swam along the shores, she caught sight of a small waterfall.  Curious as she has ever been, she swam over to explore it.  This was no ordinary waterfall, it had mossy stones covering the place where the falls meet the standing  water.  Kindle noticed a cave behind the falls and decided to explore a little more. 

She was small enough to fit through the small crevice leading to a ritual chamber.  It seemed to her that this place had not been used for quite some time, yet there was an altar which was still intact.  Inside the altar, Kindle found the most beautiful of all Emeralds in all of the four worlds.  Such was the weight of this find it was almost as heavy as a full sized pear.  She was so excited by her find that she swam back with it not knowing the dangers which would befall her.

Swimming back seemed to be a little harder for her.  She swam against the current which was trying to push her back.  Then there was the emerald which in a way weighted her down and made her more tired.

The sun which warmed her face earlier was now hidden behind a menacing looking gray cloud.  The wind was picking up, making it even harder for her to swim back.  So tired was she swimming against the current, she was losing her bearings.  The wind along with the current pushed her head down into the Elourna.  When nature ceased to tease her with death, she could come up for air.  Then the cycle started again, pushing her further down into the murky depths.

This time, she could not come up for air.  All was lost.  Kindle was giving in to the water which was taking her life when she felt a pair of strong arms circle her waist and raise her head above the water so she could breathe.

This man who saved her from a watery grave swam to the edge of the Elourna and lay her down on the grass.  Even though she had passed out by now, she was still clutching something….the emerald.

The man stared down at this beautiful woman with fire colored hair.  Her skin was golden, her lashes long and her lips were pillowy full and red.  He immediately recognized her from his dreams, his visions.  He felt as if he knew her before the beginning of time.  She is more beautiful than in my dreams, he thought to himself.

Kindle’s eyes finally fluttered open.  She surveyed the area before noticing she was not alone and certainly not clothed.  She shrieked as she made for the river which was the only thing between this man and her nakedness.

The man laughed heartedly at her modesty.  Was she not the one who was just swimming in the nude a few moments ago?  He thought to himself.

Kindle, full of fury splashed water in his direction screaming “THIS IS NOT AMUSING!”

The man smiled as he told her tenderly “you were drowning.  I just took it upon myself to help you.  And this is amusing to me.  Look at you, splashing water in my direction.  You aren’t even hitting me.  Why don’t I introduce---“

Kindle interrupted angrily “WHERE.ARE.MY CLOTHES?”

The man, still smiling made a bargain with her “I will tell you where your clothes are, if you stop splashing at me and stop all this yelling.”

Embarrassed by her behavior, Kindle calmed down.  Besides, was it not him who pulled her out of the water when she might have drowned?  In her most demure fashion she simply thanked him.  Then added “Kindle is my name” She looked down to hide her embarrassment .

The man thought for a minute.  He knew she was a mage with the Myriad and could break him in two with a wave of her hand.  He spoke with authority “Then I shall introduce myself to you.  I am the one they call Carum and it is a pleasure to meet your acquaintance Kindle.  You will find your clothes by that maple tree and I will leave you so you can have your privacy in redressing” Then he added “Good Day, my lady” with a slight bow.

As soon as she was positive he was nowhere in sight, she raced out of the river and found her clothes.  With lightning speed, her skirt and top were on her body and she was about to dart out of there when she remembered the emerald.  She held it up against the sun which decided to come out of hiding behind the clouds.

Kindle marveled at how huge the emerald was.  The shape was oval, in the shape of an eye.  With the sun’s reflection off of it, it sparkled the whole forest.  She had never seen the forest alight with such robust colors.  She was so proud of her find.  She wrapped the stone in burlap, then placed it in the secret pocket inside of her skirt.  She could not wait to get back to the village to show her mother and Elan.

Carum didn’t go far when he left the flustered and feisty Kindle to her dressing.  He was a man, so he could not resist the temptation of watching her as she dressed from the distance.  His hiding place was behind a maple tree which had some ivy hanging around its trunk.

He smiled to himself as she pulled her white camisole over her head and then down to where it hugged her chest like a glove.  He was drunk with the pure magic this lady held within her innocent physique.  By the time she pulled her skirt over her hips, he was already dizzy with excitement.  Then the excitement turned to embarrassment and anger at himself for watching her like a blood thirsty wolf out for his first kill.

He decided it was time to get back to his palace.  His father would be more than a little worried for his safety at this point.  Yet as he turned to leave, he noticed that Kindle had pulled out a huge green stone, an emerald maybe?  He was transfixed with the awe of the reflections bouncing around the forest through the trees.  He then watched as she wrapped the stone in a burlap sack and hide it in a secret pocket within her skirt.

It was at this precise moment in which he realized what she had.  The Eye of Alia.  He had heard stories about the emerald when he was younger.

Carum knew this stone was both powerful and dangerous as it was stolen from the statue of Alia hundreds of annuals ago.  What followed were horrible times of famine, wars, plagues and death.  As superstitions go, all the troubles were blamed on the stolen emerald.  It was written in the Book of Laws that only the pure of heart could return the stone to the statue.

There would be many who would stop at nothing to stand in her way.  Just to possess the stone gave the bearer much power.  If this was the same stone as he thought it might be, then Carum knew Kindle’s life would hang in the balance.  Now it was his duty as a Paladin to protect her at any cost.

As Kindle made her way back to her village, Carum took careful steps to stay close behind yet undetected.  He marveled at the way the animals in the forest reacted to her presence.  Instead of running away, they seemed to surround her as if they themselves were trying to protect her.

He laughed to himself as he watched her skip along like a little girl without a care in the world.  He wondered how this lady could have both qualities of a woman and a child who can be so enchanting as she sang to herself.  A song that he himself seemed to know.  She sang this song before when she came to me in a dream.  We are connected somehow, almost as if we have known each other before the beginning of time.  He thought to himself.

Suddenly they were at her village.  Small yet inviting, it was made up of mostly merchants and fisherman.

Kindle stopped short of entering her village.  She knew Carum had been following her the whole time.  As she turned to face him, a warm smile radiated on her beautiful face.  “Thank you Sir Carum for making certain of my safe passage home”  she said as she stared in his direction.

His covered blown, he came out from behind the olive trees.  “How did you know I was even there?  He asked as she smiled at him.  He knew the answer to that question without even having to ask it.  She had sensed him all along.  His heart soared as she took him by the hand and invited him into the village for a meal of roasted lamb.

Carum knew his father would be worried to the point of ill health if he did not immediately return home.  Yet, there was something about the way Kindle took his hand, smiling at him as she led  him through the east gate of the village.  It seemed she had a passionate need to experience all and everything she could.  Even though he had been with many women, he could tell she was untouched.  Probably more akin to being protected , groomed for a destiny she has yet to fulfill.

Carum was stunned at the bustling and scurrying of the tradesmen yelling and peddling their wares of copper and flint.  The air was abuzz with the smoke from a communal fire as if they were being prepared for a ceremony worthy of royalty.  He drank the whole of the atmosphere in and held it.  This is what it feels like to really live, he thought to himself, these are people of the soil and sea.  Good people.

As if reading his mind, Kindle addressed the crowd that was now surrounding them.  “My family, I have brought Sir Carum of Windspear into our village for a feast of celebration tonight for he saved me from drowning in the Elourna.  Please make him feel welcome and show our gratitude”.  She then turned to Carum, her eyes sparkling as if they were made of emeralds themselves “I know your father is worried about you, but I would like to thank you with a meal of roasted lamb before your return”

He couldn’t say no.  He couldn’t say anything.  He was still taking in all of the beauty of these people with soot on their faces and women with scarves on their heads to hide their hair.  Then he wondered why Kindle did not wear a scarf on her head.  She just smiled and the thought left him as soon as it entered his mind.

Taking his hand again, Kindle led him to a small cottage just east of the gate and simply said “here.”

“Pardon?” he replied

She let go of his hand at this point but gave him her warmest smile yet that radiated down his whole body toward his legs which almost melted him on the spot.

“Here is my home.  Small compared to your palace, I am sure but it is a loving a joyful place.  You will find fresh trousers and vest in Elan’s room.  You are about the same size.  It’s not as fancy as you might be accustomed to but it will do for now.  I will be at the bathing pool since I need a fresh dressing myself”  She cocked a sideways glance at him then looked to a room on the left.  It could only mean that this was where they were to part.

Carum stopped short of the door on the left then asked “Elan?”

Kindle nodded slowly, smiled then answered “You will like him, I am sure of it”

She then turned and walked out of the cottage door leaving a bewildered and slightly jealous Carum to wonder who this Elan was and what was his relationship with Kindle.