Sanctuary

They fell through a thicket and the frightening tangle of forest gave way to an oasis of calm.

A pool of crystal clear water sat at the centre, a natural spring, surrounded by ancient drooping willows hung with curtains of lichen. The ground was a carpet of vibrant moss which muted their footsteps and soothed their aching feet.

They walked, hand in hand, staring around in wonder. It was a relief to find such peace after a day of such horror, and the fear that had gripped their hearts as they had fled for their lives eased.

“Look,” said Ida, pointing to a small platter on the shore of the pool. “This must be a shrine.”

Einion looked at the platter of spirit bread and fresh fruit hungrily. They had been woken before dawn by the slave takers and had had no time to even put on their shoes before fleeing into the forest.

They hadn’t eaten all day and he felt weak with hunger. He dropped to his knees beside the platter.

“What are you doing?” Ida asked horrified as he reached for the offering, “You can’t eat that, that’s for the spirits.”

“The spirits never eat it anyway,” Einion replied, “And they aren’t exhausted and starving.” He broke the bread in half and held out a piece to her. She wouldn’t take it, though her stomach ached and writhed with hunger.

Einion didn’t hesitate. Within seconds the bread was gone and he was starting on the fruit.

When he was done he went down to the sparkling pool. He heard his sister gasp as he bent to drink, but he didn’t stop. The water was cool and blissful on his dry throat.

He turned to his sister, “You should drink at least.” he said. She shook her head fervently and turned away to lick at rain droplets on the leaves.

He sighed. “We shouldn’t stay here,” he said, “The offering was fresh, someone knows of this place, they might lead our pursuers here.”
But neither of them had the strength to go on and if there was sanctuary to be found in this cruel world, surely it was here by a spirit shrine.

Einion looked at his sister, she was shaking with fatigue, or shock, or both. “We’ll rest awhile at least.” he said.

They clambered into one of the ancient trees. Its branches were wide, the bark smooth and worn, it seemed almost as if it had been shaped to fit their aching bodies as they lay upon it.

As he lay there Einion felt his body lighten. At first he thought it was just the beginnings of sleep, but then he realised it felt different to that. The light all around him changed from twilight to a strange brighter light, an unearthly glow. He pushed himself to a sitting position and gasped. His legs were faded and ghostly, but glowing with the same quality of light as that that surrounded him.

He turned to his sister. She seemed distant and dark and solid, curled up asleep on the branch. He called her name. His voice sounded thin and unreal, but her eyes fluttered open and then opened wide in astonishment at the sight of him. He reached out to her with a pale hand and she reached to meet his touch, but his fingers passed straight through hers. He saw the panic in her eyes and felt it in his heart.

He became aware of a sound in the forest around him, it was singing. A strange humming kind of singing with no words that he could understand. Then from the trees around the edge of the pool hundreds of glowing ethereal creatures emerged. They were of a thousand different shapes, yet of no shape at all.

These are the spirits, Einion realised.

Suddenly the humming stopped, and by some magic he found himself at the centre of the clearing on the shore of the pool, surrounded by spirits.

They were silent, they hadn’t changed or moved, but something in their manner seemed, expectant, even threatening.

He felt afraid. He shouldn’t have eaten their food, or drank from their pool.

But fear changed to anger. His family had always observed the equinoxes. No matter how poor they were, how little they had to share, they always left food for the spirits at the time of offering.

What had the spirits ever given them in return.

“Where were you when our parents were being taken from us?” He shouted at them, “Where were you when we were being hunted through the woods!”
“I was hungry, I was thirsty, won’t you even give such simple aide to one in need?”

Suddenly he was crying. Everything that had happened welled up inside him, he had done no wrong, yet he would never see his parents again, and now the spirits would punish him for taking their bread and water, and his sister would be left alone in the forest with the tracker parties after her to face only death, or capture and slavery.

The spirits around him seemed to be watching with curiosity. Then the light of their glow built and built and seemed to advance on him like a wave upon the shore.’ This will be my punishment,’ he thought, he braced himself as the light surged over him.

~~~

He awoke with a start.

It was dawn. He checked himself, he was solid once more, he was alive. Had it all just been a dream brought on by exhaustion. He sighed with relief.

He felt refreshed, in fact he felt stronger than he had ever felt before. He would not let the take him and his sister too. He turned to where Ida slept.

She stirred and looked up at him, her eyes going suddenly round.

“Was it a dream?” She asked.

He frowned, “What?”

“You were all pale and ghostly,” she said, “I thought the spirits were going to take you away.”

He paled then, if she had experienced it too, then maybe it hadn’t been a dream.

She was still staring at him.

“What is it?” He asked.

“There’s this sort of… glow about you,” she said, “Like flames flickering off a fire, but brighter, hard to see.”

Einion leapt down from the tree and ran to the pool.

The water made a perfect mirror. He squinted at his reflection. She was right, he could see it too, he could just make it out against the dawn sky.

He laughed delightedly.

The spirits had not punished him, they had helped him. He felt their power in him now and knew the strength he had. No longer need he fear the slave takers. All his life he had been weak, from hunger, from exhaustion, from despair, but now he was powerful.

Ida joined him by the pool, slipping her hand into his, reassured by its solidness.

“Come on” Einion said, turning back the way they had come the night before.

“Where are we going?” Ida asked.

“We’re going to get our parents back!”

He would use this power well.