Nial sat in the warmth of the afternoon in Atlanta, gazing out the window of the private room at the Roaring Lion, courtesy of Remus of The Den. He watched as bits of dust caught the daylight and swirled about in the air, shining against the sight of the Isle of Winds in the distance. Each mote danced in tiny drafts of warm air created by the difference between the light and the shadows of the room. Suddenly, this moment, out of time and yet caught right in the midst of his life and the moment, came into sharp clarity. A powerful metaphor with layers upon layers of meaning built into it suddenly opened to him, behind the momentary image in his eyes. In this flash of inspiration, he saw each mote as a person, accepting and receiving light. Even so, as in real life, not all did; many lay on the floor doing nothing good with their time. Those that caught the light and rose on its warmth enjoyed a wondrous dance, coming alive in its presence and putting to shame the rest of the room. And, though they were all just specks of dust, they were also ALL specks of dust and defined only by the light that reached them and how they responded. So it was with people, rulers, nations, even worlds. Most importantly, so with souls. He saw edges of this mural when Nathan explained to him the light and its nature, and often as Jillian did her best to convert what she thought was a spiritually stunted heathen into a believer. He saw the blurry truth of it in dealings with Darkness. He saw its power in his dream encounter with Darkness and in the combat with Tyros in the Council Hall of the elves. The elders of the Steppes opened his mind clearly to it again for the first time since he left his clan more than a year ago. Their songs and poetry brought his mind back to the concept of the life force of the universe and its permeation through all things in the form of the Eternal Blue Heaven, Tengri. Then, he had found the text concerning Apollo, a being so perfectly matched with Nial's experience and life goals that he felt as if they had been friends from birth. That feeling never left him, so he asked the elders for the right to copy parts of the book. On a piece of cloth from his old set of clothes, he wrote the words the elder said to reopen the mystery of Tengri to him, as well as excerpts and notes from the text on Apollo. He rolled this into his original copy of the hymn of hope, thinking he would someday build an anthem from all of it. His visit to the temple of Apollo the day before had given him much to think about. He had addressed Apollo as a friend, though he had never seen him, and asked someone more familiar with the deity to divine an answer to the question at hand. He was not surprised that Apollo, who delights in giving people just enough light to see their paths and fill the world with their own as they went, responded in a riddle. He did not imagine, at the time, that the vague nature of the message would lead him to this moment, as well as provide him further wisdom concerning his current goals and tasks. Nial pulled out his scrap of cloth and the Hymn of Hope, adding a few more notes concerning the nature of motes of light. But, as was his vice, once the quill and ink met a willing surface, he could not stop the flow of words. For several hours, as the light strengthened toward noon and then stretched out the shadows toward dusk, the skald wrote and rewrote poetry and music, trying to put what was in his mind on paper. In the end, he had more than he thought he could ever hope to combine. He was amazed that what he had put down was so powerful. It required more work, no doubt, and after a short dinner he returned to the room and continued working by lantern light until well into the night. He could not let it stop until it had run its course. Finally, as the street crier called eleven, Nial felt it come together on the page. It was not ready to present in its full form, he knew, for such copious notes and scribblings would take quite a while to reorganize into forms others could read. Even so, Nial had the start of a magnum opus, a work of unmatched glory and a fitting counterpoint to Mallory's dark works in the Crystal Empire. The Anthem of Light was begun, complete with the Hymn of Hope, fourteen more masterpiece items started or completed from today, storyline and dialogue for a cast of perhaps two dozen, notes on stage settings and magical augments, and notes on places to produce the work. He could not wait for the designs of his floating concert hall to reach him so that he could finalize the work. His friend Apollo had truly given him a most memorable, valuable and useful gift of wisdom and would no doubt be glad to see it gifted in return to a world relieved of darkness for a season. He would have to choose another venue to start the spread of this rousing work, but other matters pressed on him for now. With the production finally clear in his mind and mostly on paper, it was only a matter of time before his plan to flood the dark corners of the world with light – in a way that a war could not quite achieve – came to fruition. Before that, the morning would come and, with it, a trip to Draconia and a meeting with Luther, Polaradin Te Al Mordin, self-proclaimed Grand Poombah of Everything. Such pride! But as he drifted off to sleep, his dreams were laced with visions of a grand concert and play...
"Why the long face, lass? Why is there such darkness on your brow and such coldness in your eyes? Don't you know the joy of family, the love of friends, and hope for a bright future? We all know these things, though we may not see them from time to time. Why even your name should remind you always that such is true..."
"you old fool, you don't you know a thing!" ...all we are is dust in the wind... "this war has only put evil at bay. The cost was too high and our bright hope is gone. I lost my brother in the war and now he is neither here to bring joy to my heart nor to help me find love and labor befitting a bright future. It is all gone..." ...dust in the wind...
"I know there is pain in your life, but you cannot believe that is all there is to your existence. It is certainly not all that there is to mine, even if I live my whole life moving about like dust in the wind..."
"What can you possibly be going on about, you loon?"
"in the heart of every person..."
...There’s a dream taking wings
There’s a voice that wants to sing
Even in the deepest darkest night
(the flaming sword) is raised to the sky
There are hands that hold it high
You were born to keep it burning bright
You were made to fly, you were meant to shine...
"you are most certainly a..." ...Child of light...
"The world is rid of the Dark One for now, but shadows still strangle the hearts of the people, like myself. We have lost our bright hope, our eyes do not shine, our hearts now only the ache of loss and the fire of anguish."
"Listen, child. Your darkness is not much. I have seen the face of darkness, stared into the void and seen nothing there but myself staring back. Likewise, I have looked into the light and seen the same. You will see, if you try, that we are as much of the light and darkness as we make ourselves. You are already connected to the joy of others, whether or not you see it. You may choose to be saddened by your experience and become swallowed by your pain, but the light is ever there to fill your emptiness with energy if you will but turn to face it. Do not accept the face of the situation as a diminishing of something that was, once, different. The world changes, it floats about in the winds of circumstance, but the light shines ever on, whatever the face of the world may seem to be." ...Open your eyes and see the world that stands before you now...
- - - - - - -
"Thank you. It is good that you came to me when you did. I was most certainly near despair. I could not see the potential of my life as it was. Bless you for your grace and wisdom."
"I am glad to have spent a day with you lass. The company has been greatly invigorating. I would remain and enjoy it, but I must be off again. I go where I am needed most and I was only needed here briefly."
"but what happens to me when you are gone away to war again to face the Dark One or those that seek his place in his absence?"
"I will go at once to the shrine and..."
...light a candle for you...
"We will..." ...Keep it burning in the night
And pray that you are alright...
"All will be what it will be, as you will be what you WILL yourself to be. The light will come to you if you turn to invite it in. Will you do this?"
...You light up my life
You give me hope
To carry on
You light up my days
and fill my nights with song...
"So, in faith, I will turn to the light and that light will also grow in me. I believe now that I will be alright. I look forward to my future, whatever may come."
"Yes, young one, it is good that you finally see this. But it is not enough simply to have your own light. Before I leave, there is one more thing for you to learn. You must be a beacon for others. You must never let the darkness take others while your words and deeds might remind them of what they may find beyond the shadows. You cannot help others if they cannot see you as a beacon to guide them to safer waters, and..." ...you can't be a beacon if your light don't shine...
...so, let your love shine...
"But I am just beginning to see my own light, my friend. Where will I turn to find sufficient light to shine so brightly for others?"
"You must let your light combine with the light of others. Even if it is to just one at a time, like you and I. Together, your light will grow and join with the light that permeates all things beneath the Eternal Blue Heaven. In the light you will see eye to eye and become one and the same, as we are in this moment, and as we and everyone are, now and at every moment. Once you realize this, your light will grow and it will only know the boundaries you set for it in your own mind. You must refuse to be less than a brilliant, shining beacon..."
"so, the way our light grows together now, so it will grow beyond this?"
"absolutely. I have seen it in all the moments of my life where loneliness, despair, and hopelessness lost out to hope, love, faith and light. It is true for those whom I know, it is true for me and it is true for all people. You should try it out. Let's see... Aha! See that orphan there? And the tired old man? Go and share your light with them and see what may come of it. Through this, you shall see the truth of my words, I am most certain..." ...You shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free... "to gather light, love, happiness, joy, and all that which will fill your soul. What are you waiting for? Get to it. I will come back to this place as soon as I can."
- - - - - - -
...this little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine...
"Excuse me, sir, may I help you with that? There you go. I could not help but notice that you seem saddened by something. How may I help? A son lost at war may indeed never be returned to you, as my brother to me, but you may find joy from others by bringing joy to them. I was told this by a wise friend and share it with you now. See this orphan, here? Perhaps we could invite him in and brighten all of our days? I will bring some lunch and my friend there will bring some music. You let us use your courtyard and we will rejoice in the light of the afternoon..."
- - - - - - -
"What news from distant lands. It has been a little while since I have entertained a wanderer such as yourself. Tell me, ancient traveler, do you know a man such as yourself who goes about spreading light? Oh, I hardly recognized you! The years have added so much of their character to you and the light now reflects much better from your head. I am thrilled to see you! I would like you to meet someone. Do you see that young storyteller there in marketplace, surrounded by..." ...shiny happy people, holding hands... "eager to receive his words? He is none other than the little orphan boy you pointed out to me so many years ago. Though the sadness in his eyes certainly informs you his old adopted father has died recently, he is yet full of hope for all souls and loves them better than even I ever have. I am proud to claim him as the son I never had. Come, join us this night as he weds my eldest daughter, have dinner with my husband and family, and sleep in the room we keep ever available for those who have no place of their own. How long will you grace us with your presence this time?We certainly hope it will be more than a few hours. My husband has long desired to meet the man who made me sparkle. You simply must see the new temple, the artist's guild, and the view from the lighthouse."
- - - - - - -
"I am glad you came here with us. From here, when the day permits, we can even see the distant shore with a farseer. The bright sun of day brings us joy and makes this bright tower visible for many miles. At night, we raise our 'flaming sword' into the night sky and shine for all around to see. You see, Old Father, thanks to you, we refuse to be less than a beacon, these days..."
"I am glad to be here and even more happy that you see clearly at last, my dear lass..."
Even in the deepest darkest night
(the flaming sword) is raised to the sky
There are hands that hold it high
You were born to keep it burning bright
You were made to fly you were meant to shine...
"you are most certainly children of light"
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