Chapter XIV: The Beginning
\\From the beginning, there was the Red Moon. Before the planets, before the stars, before all life as we know it, the Red Moon existed. From the Red Moon, all things begin, and after all other things end, the Red Moon will remain.
To the surface of the Moon, there came the ten elements. Wind, Earth, Fire, Water, Order, Chaos, Death, Life, Darkness, and Light. One element formed to complement another, and each held another in check. Wind could not exist without Earth, Water without Fire, Order without Chaos, and so forth.
The elements combined upon the surface of the Moon. And from their union came the most wondrous of all things. Born of Fire, and of Water, and of Wind, there came to the surface of the Red Moon a Woman. And in Her arms, She held the light of what would be the Blue and White Moons, but in Her hair twinkled the shining lights of the stars. She called herself Eläni, the light-bearer.
Eläni spread Her hair across the universe, scattering its shining light into the far corners of all things. Galaxies formed, spiraling slowly in perpetual arcs, and innumerous stars came into being, shining, some brightly, and others faintly. A single light from Her hair stayed in the sky near to the Red Moon, becoming a golden giant of a sun for the planet that would come.
From the light in her arms, Eläni cast first the White Moon, and placed the Red Moon in its shadow, that the younger should stretch farther and reach more than the elder. With the light that remained, the Blue Moon was cast, placed in the light of the sun, to mark as a beacon for the stars.
Eläni bent down and took a handful of dust from the surface of the Red Moon. She formed it into a ball, and set it forth. It grew in the light of the Moons, and became the planet upon which we live. The Elements enveloped this planet, and cast parts of themselves onto its surface. First, Wind gave the planet a breathable atmosphere, allowing the lights of the Moons and sun to penetrate it and bring forth good things. Then, Earth gave the planet a ground that could harden, able to bear weight. Fire gave the world heat, to warm the planet and keep it from freezing. Water set forth oceans and ponds, adding to the atmosphere and allowing liquids to flow. Order set forth a natural balance for all eventual organisms and all non-life to follow. Chaos gave the world a natural form of selection, giving strength to some and weakness to others. Light gave the gift of itself, allowing Darkness to envelop the world at certain times, and leaving other times for brightness. And then came forth Life, and with it came Death.
Plants grew forth from these gifts, and then small creatures began to emerge, feeding on the plants. Larger organisms grew, eating those smaller than themselves and growing, creating larger and larger life forms, and spreading across the surface of the world and into its oceans.
Eläni gazed down upon the world She had created, and saw the life that lived upon it. It pleased Her, but also gave Her pause. The life upon the world was all varied and wonderful in its own right, but none of the many creatures upon Her world showed signs of understanding. That is, they could see the planet around them, but none were curious about it, or had thoughts upon the matter. This pained Eläni, for it was Her wish that there be at least one creature who would wonder about the world they lived on.
Thus, She lifted Her hand and captured in it light from the stars, and in Her other hand, She gathered dust from the surface of the Red Moon. She formed these things into the shape of a being, made after Her own image, and placed in upon the world She had created.
The element of Wind breathed Life into the being, and the organism awoke to the new dawn. It was a female, like Eläni Herself, and she opened her eyes in wonder at the night in which she was 'born.'
The first things that she saw were the Three Moons, shining in all of their glory. Her eyes widened at the sight of their beauty, and the irises were forever dyed a mixture of the Blue, White, and Red colors of the moons, blending to become a light shade of amethyst. The White Moon was at it's height that night, and it bathed the new being in its shining light, causing her skin and hair to be the pale color of its moonbeams forever after. The new being bore two great wings that extended from her shoulder blades. One was feathered, and was dyed white by the shining of the Moon. The other was a membranous wing, and was hidden in the shadow of its owner; causing it to become a dark, black color.\\
"So, in effect, the first humanoid creature was someone exactly like you."
Moria glanced over at the younger woman beside her, annoyed at having her story interrupted. The images within the orb froze as soon as she had stopped talking. "Yes," she answered, slightly irritable. "The first was very similar to me, and to every other Dereskian monarch. She was my ancestor."
"Wouldn't she be the ancestor of every Dereskian?" Teelina asked impudently. "I mean, considering the fact that she was the first one, and all."
The elder woman's eyes flashed, though the emotion behind the flash was difficult to determine. "That explanation comes later. May I continue, please?"
The redhead raised a hand like a student and shook her head. "One question, first."
"Yes?" Moria asked, her white eyebrows raised.
The tanner woman lowered her hand. "You said before you started your story that you were going to tell me what you remembered. Correct me if I'm wrong, but you weren't alive when your Eläni was creating everything, so how can you remember it?"
"Because, Teelina, though I was not personally in existence, the Collective was."
The younger woman's brow furrowed deeply. "What is this Collective you keep speaking of?"
Lady Moria sighed softly. "The Collective is my term for the various life- energies of all the Dereskïgiä who lived before me. In my own case, it is all of the Dereskïgiä. Their memories, their hopes, and their fears. All of that is constantly in my mind, with nothing stopping it. It also provides the source for the majority of the power that I wield. Just so you are able to understand a little better, imagine the crystal you are so fond of guarding being placed inside your mind. You would then possess all of the thoughts of the 'Elders,' living within your consciousness. A consistent part of your mind, forever giving you power and insight when you most need it. Understand?"
"I think so," Teelina replied, sighing and stretching her muscles. "But, I understood that your 'collective' was passed on to all the remaining living members of the Dereskian bloodline." The elder woman nodded in reply. "But then, why don't I have it?" the Sorceress continued, her eyes questioning. "You yourself say that Dereskian blood flows through my veins, so I should theoretically have some of this 'collective.'
A small smile came upon the lips of the elder woman. "Theoretically, yes, you should."
"However?" the younger woman pressed, running a hand through her hair.
"However," Moria replied, "you are only half Dereskian, and the half of you that is Eternian would reject the Collective, particularly since you tend to embrace that part of yourself more. I, therefore, am denying you your share of the Collective. You must understand; the system of the Collective was never designed to exist if the population of living Dereskians was as few as it is now. It was intended to work when the population was high, so that each of the life-energies would be divided across those in existence.
"After the War of Three Days, when all the emotions and thoughts of the entire deceased population entered into my mind, I very nearly crossed the line of madness, and was only spared because of my mind's ability to adapt rather quickly. Since you are not a full-blooded Dereskian, if I were to 'give' your share to you, the sudden sensation of all of those consciousnesses combined with your own could quite probably kill you. It is for the same reason that I do not allow your daughter to possess the Collective, or my own, for that matter."
A surprised gasp escaped from the redhead, causing the elder woman to look over at her.
"Evil-Lyn doesn't have this. power of yours?" Teelina questioned, shocked.
The elder woman smiled in an almost enigmatic fashion. "No, she doesn't." The unspoken 'not yet' hung in the air around them for a few tantalizing moments.
"But she's full-blooded, correct?"
The elder woman's eyes lowered a fraction. "Teelina," she began, her tone lowering as well, "this is not what I wished to discuss with you. Now, may I continue?"
The silence that followed her statement was all of the reply that she required.
At an unbidden call, the shadows in the orb began to swirl ever so gently again, and when the elder woman continued in her tale, the voice she used to do so was not her own.
\\Eläni looked down upon Her creation, and She was pleased. She called out to the woman She had made, and gave her a name the name of Vädia, after the starlight from which she had come. Vädia looked upon her creator, and an instant bond was formed.
Using the light of the stars and the dust from the Red Moon, Eläni created other creatures, similar to Vädia. Like the first woman, each new entity had white hair and skin so pale as to appear almost ghostly. But as each new being was born, some looked to the skies and saw only the Red Moon, and so their eyes were forever dyed the maroon color of its light. Others looked only upon the Blue Moon, and the soft blue light then lurked forever in their pupils. Very few looked to all three Moons at once, as Vädia had done.
As these entities progressed, Eläni would speak to them, and eventually their own language was formed, based upon that their creator spoke to them. The beings termed themselves the Dereskïgiä, the children of the Moons. For, as their maker had come from the surface of the Red Moon, so had its dust been used to create their bodies. And it would be to the Red Moon that all of the future generations of the Dereskïgiä would owe their existences.
More and more of the Dereskïgiä were created, until Eläni was content with the size of the population. The people built a society, and then a community, a city, and, over time, a nation was formed. It was to Vädia that the title of Queen of the Dereskïgiä was bestowed, for it was decided that their government would be one of a monarchy, with input from the populace.
And so it continued on for the next several thousand years. The line of Vädia continued to rule, and the land entered a time of peace and contentment. True, there were small fights that broke out every so often, but war was never waged. Extermination was never an option. The Dereskïgiä never took more than they needed from the environment, and they grew in peace.
Time progressed, and other civilizations grew, created by others akin to Eläni. Such societies called themselves the Eternians, the Avians, the Speleans, the Caligars, the Andreenids, and so on. All were eventually enveloped into what was termed 'Eternia.' But to the Dereskïgiä, their land would always be nameless, for how could such a wonder of endless beauty ever be fit into a single name?
And then, in the year twenty-four thousand, six hundred and one of the second age, the great king Monicaldeno and his wife Alessena, both direct descendents of the line of Vädia, gave birth to twin daughters. They named the first Caerlin, the thunder-strike, and they named the second Moria, the dark one. And to the infants, the honorable name of Vadorian was bestowed, that starlight should forever look down upon the twins, and bless them.\\
Moria Vadorian paused in her monologue, her voice faltering. Her gaze lowered, and the orb of light, which had to this time been spinning the tale with accuracy, gradually faded until it could no longer be discerned from the grayness of the walls.
Silence filled the chambers, as the younger of the two women seated in the room looked, questioningly, at the elder.
"Vadorian," she commented quietly after a moment. "Vädia. Your last name comes from her line."
The white-haired woman answered simply, "Yes."
After a moment, the Sorceress stood up from her seated position, stretching her muscles. "Is there a reason that you stopped?" she asked while doing this.
Lady Moria remained sitting for a moment, as if lost in thought. She shook her head after a time, clearing it, and also stood. "Yes," she said again. "The time for you to hear that part of the story is not today, Teelina."
The redhead looked at her confusedly, her still-loose hair falling around her shoulders. "But I thought that was the entire point of telling me this story."
The elder woman slowly turned her back to the redhead, and sighed softly. "You thought wrong," she said. "Besides, as you said: you already know that part of the story." Moria looked over her shoulder at the redhead. "What use would it be to retell it?"
"You're afraid!" Teelina gasped amazedly. "You've lived so much of your life in this story of the past, and now that you have to tell it again you're afraid of the memories!"
The younger woman was slammed against the wall so quickly she did not have time to process what had happened.
Lady Moria was directly in front of her, and she had her arms positioned so that she was pinning Teelina's hands to the wall, her feet dangling above the floor. The infamous amethyst eyes were blazing in an anger more fierce than anything the Sorceress could ever remember seeing. Their bodies were mere inches apart, but the redhead was honestly more frightened of what Moria would do to her now than she was when being molested.
"Tell me honestly, Teelina," the elder woman growled, her voice dangerously low. "Do you deliberately try to get yourself in life-threatening positions when talking to people famed for their cruelty?" Angry, icy amethyst eyes stared into fear-filled blue for several long moments.
Biting back a tremble in her lower lip, the younger woman pulled a face of false bravado and replied, "Only when I know that the person in question is too afraid of her own past to bother with her present."
Moria's eyes flashed wildly and a low, resonating growl came from deep within her throat. Her breathing was quickening, drowning out the many voices of the Collective within her. The elder woman's eyes closed, and, in a movement that was completely unexpected, she closed her lips over those of the redhead.
The Sorceress was taken completely aback, and her eyes widened considerably as the white haired woman's tongue entered her mouth. Hadn't she just insulted the elder woman? And now Moria was kissing her? She pulled back as far as she possibly could, trying to escape, to twist out of the older woman's hold, anything.
And then it was over.
Teelina's feet were back on the ground, and Moria was only just barely holding onto her arms. Her eyes had lost their fire, and now appeared in the stolid, impassive gaze that the Sorceress was so accustomed to seeing.
The elder woman gently pulled her lips away from those of the redhead, and an enigmatic sort of smile fell across her features. "Yes," she whispered softly. "I am afraid of dwelling too far into that story." She turned away from Teelina and began to walk towards the opposite wall.
A bit confused to say the least, the redhead reached out her hand to the retreating form of the Ancient Dereskian. Why it was she did this, she did not know, or care. Her hand latched on to the slender, much paler one of the elder woman.
Lady Moria stopped walking and looked down at Teelina's hand, as if amazed that anyone else's skin could touch her own. Her gaze moved back to the redhead and their eyes locked.
"Why?" Teelina asked, knowing within her mind that her query referred to more than just one event.
Silence filled the room for a long moment as amethyst and blue eyes remained locked.
Finally, the elder woman answered, her gaze never moving from Teelina's own. "Because I loved her," she said simply. "And I don't expect you to understand that."
"Try me," Teelina asked, almost challengingly, releasing Moria's hand.
The elder woman sighed raggedly and brought her hand up, gently caressing the younger woman's cheek. Her index finger rested upon Teelina's right temple. "Very well," she said softly. "Imagine yourself a young person, full of hopeful ideas about love and eternal happiness." The elder woman's tone became slightly sarcastic, and much more regretful than her normal speaking voice. "Imagine that you have found the one true love of your lifetime, and all you know and desire is to see that woman happy. Imagine that all your faith and hope and love and dreams revolve around that one, single, solitary woman. Imagine that that woman epitomizes everything in your life that has any meaning whatsoever."
Teelina's gaze wavered slightly as she pictured this, but the images she conceived in her mind were very realistic and fresh.
Moria regarded her closely, making sure that Teelina had a good mental picture of what she had described. The action made her next words all the more chilling.
"Now kill her."
The Sorceress of Grayskull's eyes closed and a shiver raced down her spine. "I think. I can understand .how that would be frightening to revisit," she commented haltingly, as if unsure of what to say.
The elder woman nodded slowly, inhaling somewhat deeply. "You'll know one day, Teelina," she said gently.
Teelina looked at her questioningly. "What will I know?" she asked.
"How it feels to love someone, how it feels to lose someone, the story of how I lost my loved one, and the reasons why I so delight in telling you such things."
The elder woman stepped away slowly, turning her back upon the Sorceress and walking towards the wall again. "I know I have more time with you, Teelina," she said over her shoulder. "But, as you were so compliant to relinquish our game, so I shall relinquish my prize. Your dreams will still be restored."
The redhead had to think for a small moment before she realized what it was Moria was referring to. She looked over at the departing form of the Dereskian Ancient, just in time to witness her slowly fading into the stones of the castle.
"Lamentinätio, Teelina," she said gently, the Dereskian word for 'good evening' rolling off her tongue elegantly. "I'll see you soon."
With that, the Dereskian Queen vanished from view, leaving Teelina alone and in her castle, as always.
She sat upon the floor, digesting everything she had been told and thinking about what Moria had meant, for a long time.
\\From the beginning, there was the Red Moon. Before the planets, before the stars, before all life as we know it, the Red Moon existed. From the Red Moon, all things begin, and after all other things end, the Red Moon will remain.
To the surface of the Moon, there came the ten elements. Wind, Earth, Fire, Water, Order, Chaos, Death, Life, Darkness, and Light. One element formed to complement another, and each held another in check. Wind could not exist without Earth, Water without Fire, Order without Chaos, and so forth.
The elements combined upon the surface of the Moon. And from their union came the most wondrous of all things. Born of Fire, and of Water, and of Wind, there came to the surface of the Red Moon a Woman. And in Her arms, She held the light of what would be the Blue and White Moons, but in Her hair twinkled the shining lights of the stars. She called herself Eläni, the light-bearer.
Eläni spread Her hair across the universe, scattering its shining light into the far corners of all things. Galaxies formed, spiraling slowly in perpetual arcs, and innumerous stars came into being, shining, some brightly, and others faintly. A single light from Her hair stayed in the sky near to the Red Moon, becoming a golden giant of a sun for the planet that would come.
From the light in her arms, Eläni cast first the White Moon, and placed the Red Moon in its shadow, that the younger should stretch farther and reach more than the elder. With the light that remained, the Blue Moon was cast, placed in the light of the sun, to mark as a beacon for the stars.
Eläni bent down and took a handful of dust from the surface of the Red Moon. She formed it into a ball, and set it forth. It grew in the light of the Moons, and became the planet upon which we live. The Elements enveloped this planet, and cast parts of themselves onto its surface. First, Wind gave the planet a breathable atmosphere, allowing the lights of the Moons and sun to penetrate it and bring forth good things. Then, Earth gave the planet a ground that could harden, able to bear weight. Fire gave the world heat, to warm the planet and keep it from freezing. Water set forth oceans and ponds, adding to the atmosphere and allowing liquids to flow. Order set forth a natural balance for all eventual organisms and all non-life to follow. Chaos gave the world a natural form of selection, giving strength to some and weakness to others. Light gave the gift of itself, allowing Darkness to envelop the world at certain times, and leaving other times for brightness. And then came forth Life, and with it came Death.
Plants grew forth from these gifts, and then small creatures began to emerge, feeding on the plants. Larger organisms grew, eating those smaller than themselves and growing, creating larger and larger life forms, and spreading across the surface of the world and into its oceans.
Eläni gazed down upon the world She had created, and saw the life that lived upon it. It pleased Her, but also gave Her pause. The life upon the world was all varied and wonderful in its own right, but none of the many creatures upon Her world showed signs of understanding. That is, they could see the planet around them, but none were curious about it, or had thoughts upon the matter. This pained Eläni, for it was Her wish that there be at least one creature who would wonder about the world they lived on.
Thus, She lifted Her hand and captured in it light from the stars, and in Her other hand, She gathered dust from the surface of the Red Moon. She formed these things into the shape of a being, made after Her own image, and placed in upon the world She had created.
The element of Wind breathed Life into the being, and the organism awoke to the new dawn. It was a female, like Eläni Herself, and she opened her eyes in wonder at the night in which she was 'born.'
The first things that she saw were the Three Moons, shining in all of their glory. Her eyes widened at the sight of their beauty, and the irises were forever dyed a mixture of the Blue, White, and Red colors of the moons, blending to become a light shade of amethyst. The White Moon was at it's height that night, and it bathed the new being in its shining light, causing her skin and hair to be the pale color of its moonbeams forever after. The new being bore two great wings that extended from her shoulder blades. One was feathered, and was dyed white by the shining of the Moon. The other was a membranous wing, and was hidden in the shadow of its owner; causing it to become a dark, black color.\\
"So, in effect, the first humanoid creature was someone exactly like you."
Moria glanced over at the younger woman beside her, annoyed at having her story interrupted. The images within the orb froze as soon as she had stopped talking. "Yes," she answered, slightly irritable. "The first was very similar to me, and to every other Dereskian monarch. She was my ancestor."
"Wouldn't she be the ancestor of every Dereskian?" Teelina asked impudently. "I mean, considering the fact that she was the first one, and all."
The elder woman's eyes flashed, though the emotion behind the flash was difficult to determine. "That explanation comes later. May I continue, please?"
The redhead raised a hand like a student and shook her head. "One question, first."
"Yes?" Moria asked, her white eyebrows raised.
The tanner woman lowered her hand. "You said before you started your story that you were going to tell me what you remembered. Correct me if I'm wrong, but you weren't alive when your Eläni was creating everything, so how can you remember it?"
"Because, Teelina, though I was not personally in existence, the Collective was."
The younger woman's brow furrowed deeply. "What is this Collective you keep speaking of?"
Lady Moria sighed softly. "The Collective is my term for the various life- energies of all the Dereskïgiä who lived before me. In my own case, it is all of the Dereskïgiä. Their memories, their hopes, and their fears. All of that is constantly in my mind, with nothing stopping it. It also provides the source for the majority of the power that I wield. Just so you are able to understand a little better, imagine the crystal you are so fond of guarding being placed inside your mind. You would then possess all of the thoughts of the 'Elders,' living within your consciousness. A consistent part of your mind, forever giving you power and insight when you most need it. Understand?"
"I think so," Teelina replied, sighing and stretching her muscles. "But, I understood that your 'collective' was passed on to all the remaining living members of the Dereskian bloodline." The elder woman nodded in reply. "But then, why don't I have it?" the Sorceress continued, her eyes questioning. "You yourself say that Dereskian blood flows through my veins, so I should theoretically have some of this 'collective.'
A small smile came upon the lips of the elder woman. "Theoretically, yes, you should."
"However?" the younger woman pressed, running a hand through her hair.
"However," Moria replied, "you are only half Dereskian, and the half of you that is Eternian would reject the Collective, particularly since you tend to embrace that part of yourself more. I, therefore, am denying you your share of the Collective. You must understand; the system of the Collective was never designed to exist if the population of living Dereskians was as few as it is now. It was intended to work when the population was high, so that each of the life-energies would be divided across those in existence.
"After the War of Three Days, when all the emotions and thoughts of the entire deceased population entered into my mind, I very nearly crossed the line of madness, and was only spared because of my mind's ability to adapt rather quickly. Since you are not a full-blooded Dereskian, if I were to 'give' your share to you, the sudden sensation of all of those consciousnesses combined with your own could quite probably kill you. It is for the same reason that I do not allow your daughter to possess the Collective, or my own, for that matter."
A surprised gasp escaped from the redhead, causing the elder woman to look over at her.
"Evil-Lyn doesn't have this. power of yours?" Teelina questioned, shocked.
The elder woman smiled in an almost enigmatic fashion. "No, she doesn't." The unspoken 'not yet' hung in the air around them for a few tantalizing moments.
"But she's full-blooded, correct?"
The elder woman's eyes lowered a fraction. "Teelina," she began, her tone lowering as well, "this is not what I wished to discuss with you. Now, may I continue?"
The silence that followed her statement was all of the reply that she required.
At an unbidden call, the shadows in the orb began to swirl ever so gently again, and when the elder woman continued in her tale, the voice she used to do so was not her own.
\\Eläni looked down upon Her creation, and She was pleased. She called out to the woman She had made, and gave her a name the name of Vädia, after the starlight from which she had come. Vädia looked upon her creator, and an instant bond was formed.
Using the light of the stars and the dust from the Red Moon, Eläni created other creatures, similar to Vädia. Like the first woman, each new entity had white hair and skin so pale as to appear almost ghostly. But as each new being was born, some looked to the skies and saw only the Red Moon, and so their eyes were forever dyed the maroon color of its light. Others looked only upon the Blue Moon, and the soft blue light then lurked forever in their pupils. Very few looked to all three Moons at once, as Vädia had done.
As these entities progressed, Eläni would speak to them, and eventually their own language was formed, based upon that their creator spoke to them. The beings termed themselves the Dereskïgiä, the children of the Moons. For, as their maker had come from the surface of the Red Moon, so had its dust been used to create their bodies. And it would be to the Red Moon that all of the future generations of the Dereskïgiä would owe their existences.
More and more of the Dereskïgiä were created, until Eläni was content with the size of the population. The people built a society, and then a community, a city, and, over time, a nation was formed. It was to Vädia that the title of Queen of the Dereskïgiä was bestowed, for it was decided that their government would be one of a monarchy, with input from the populace.
And so it continued on for the next several thousand years. The line of Vädia continued to rule, and the land entered a time of peace and contentment. True, there were small fights that broke out every so often, but war was never waged. Extermination was never an option. The Dereskïgiä never took more than they needed from the environment, and they grew in peace.
Time progressed, and other civilizations grew, created by others akin to Eläni. Such societies called themselves the Eternians, the Avians, the Speleans, the Caligars, the Andreenids, and so on. All were eventually enveloped into what was termed 'Eternia.' But to the Dereskïgiä, their land would always be nameless, for how could such a wonder of endless beauty ever be fit into a single name?
And then, in the year twenty-four thousand, six hundred and one of the second age, the great king Monicaldeno and his wife Alessena, both direct descendents of the line of Vädia, gave birth to twin daughters. They named the first Caerlin, the thunder-strike, and they named the second Moria, the dark one. And to the infants, the honorable name of Vadorian was bestowed, that starlight should forever look down upon the twins, and bless them.\\
Moria Vadorian paused in her monologue, her voice faltering. Her gaze lowered, and the orb of light, which had to this time been spinning the tale with accuracy, gradually faded until it could no longer be discerned from the grayness of the walls.
Silence filled the chambers, as the younger of the two women seated in the room looked, questioningly, at the elder.
"Vadorian," she commented quietly after a moment. "Vädia. Your last name comes from her line."
The white-haired woman answered simply, "Yes."
After a moment, the Sorceress stood up from her seated position, stretching her muscles. "Is there a reason that you stopped?" she asked while doing this.
Lady Moria remained sitting for a moment, as if lost in thought. She shook her head after a time, clearing it, and also stood. "Yes," she said again. "The time for you to hear that part of the story is not today, Teelina."
The redhead looked at her confusedly, her still-loose hair falling around her shoulders. "But I thought that was the entire point of telling me this story."
The elder woman slowly turned her back to the redhead, and sighed softly. "You thought wrong," she said. "Besides, as you said: you already know that part of the story." Moria looked over her shoulder at the redhead. "What use would it be to retell it?"
"You're afraid!" Teelina gasped amazedly. "You've lived so much of your life in this story of the past, and now that you have to tell it again you're afraid of the memories!"
The younger woman was slammed against the wall so quickly she did not have time to process what had happened.
Lady Moria was directly in front of her, and she had her arms positioned so that she was pinning Teelina's hands to the wall, her feet dangling above the floor. The infamous amethyst eyes were blazing in an anger more fierce than anything the Sorceress could ever remember seeing. Their bodies were mere inches apart, but the redhead was honestly more frightened of what Moria would do to her now than she was when being molested.
"Tell me honestly, Teelina," the elder woman growled, her voice dangerously low. "Do you deliberately try to get yourself in life-threatening positions when talking to people famed for their cruelty?" Angry, icy amethyst eyes stared into fear-filled blue for several long moments.
Biting back a tremble in her lower lip, the younger woman pulled a face of false bravado and replied, "Only when I know that the person in question is too afraid of her own past to bother with her present."
Moria's eyes flashed wildly and a low, resonating growl came from deep within her throat. Her breathing was quickening, drowning out the many voices of the Collective within her. The elder woman's eyes closed, and, in a movement that was completely unexpected, she closed her lips over those of the redhead.
The Sorceress was taken completely aback, and her eyes widened considerably as the white haired woman's tongue entered her mouth. Hadn't she just insulted the elder woman? And now Moria was kissing her? She pulled back as far as she possibly could, trying to escape, to twist out of the older woman's hold, anything.
And then it was over.
Teelina's feet were back on the ground, and Moria was only just barely holding onto her arms. Her eyes had lost their fire, and now appeared in the stolid, impassive gaze that the Sorceress was so accustomed to seeing.
The elder woman gently pulled her lips away from those of the redhead, and an enigmatic sort of smile fell across her features. "Yes," she whispered softly. "I am afraid of dwelling too far into that story." She turned away from Teelina and began to walk towards the opposite wall.
A bit confused to say the least, the redhead reached out her hand to the retreating form of the Ancient Dereskian. Why it was she did this, she did not know, or care. Her hand latched on to the slender, much paler one of the elder woman.
Lady Moria stopped walking and looked down at Teelina's hand, as if amazed that anyone else's skin could touch her own. Her gaze moved back to the redhead and their eyes locked.
"Why?" Teelina asked, knowing within her mind that her query referred to more than just one event.
Silence filled the room for a long moment as amethyst and blue eyes remained locked.
Finally, the elder woman answered, her gaze never moving from Teelina's own. "Because I loved her," she said simply. "And I don't expect you to understand that."
"Try me," Teelina asked, almost challengingly, releasing Moria's hand.
The elder woman sighed raggedly and brought her hand up, gently caressing the younger woman's cheek. Her index finger rested upon Teelina's right temple. "Very well," she said softly. "Imagine yourself a young person, full of hopeful ideas about love and eternal happiness." The elder woman's tone became slightly sarcastic, and much more regretful than her normal speaking voice. "Imagine that you have found the one true love of your lifetime, and all you know and desire is to see that woman happy. Imagine that all your faith and hope and love and dreams revolve around that one, single, solitary woman. Imagine that that woman epitomizes everything in your life that has any meaning whatsoever."
Teelina's gaze wavered slightly as she pictured this, but the images she conceived in her mind were very realistic and fresh.
Moria regarded her closely, making sure that Teelina had a good mental picture of what she had described. The action made her next words all the more chilling.
"Now kill her."
The Sorceress of Grayskull's eyes closed and a shiver raced down her spine. "I think. I can understand .how that would be frightening to revisit," she commented haltingly, as if unsure of what to say.
The elder woman nodded slowly, inhaling somewhat deeply. "You'll know one day, Teelina," she said gently.
Teelina looked at her questioningly. "What will I know?" she asked.
"How it feels to love someone, how it feels to lose someone, the story of how I lost my loved one, and the reasons why I so delight in telling you such things."
The elder woman stepped away slowly, turning her back upon the Sorceress and walking towards the wall again. "I know I have more time with you, Teelina," she said over her shoulder. "But, as you were so compliant to relinquish our game, so I shall relinquish my prize. Your dreams will still be restored."
The redhead had to think for a small moment before she realized what it was Moria was referring to. She looked over at the departing form of the Dereskian Ancient, just in time to witness her slowly fading into the stones of the castle.
"Lamentinätio, Teelina," she said gently, the Dereskian word for 'good evening' rolling off her tongue elegantly. "I'll see you soon."
With that, the Dereskian Queen vanished from view, leaving Teelina alone and in her castle, as always.
She sat upon the floor, digesting everything she had been told and thinking about what Moria had meant, for a long time.