The river above the clouds

Far away, in a land untouched by the steady march of time, a solitary mountain stood proud, uncaring of the world around it. Painted with numerous forests of pine trees around its base and a mighty life-breathing river that flowed down to its roots from its summit high above the clouds, it was a place many creatures called home, and these inhabitants took pride in upholding the peace. In one of these many forests, near the river, a grove lay hid from the rest of the mountain, and in this grove of flowers and voices that sung under the warm sunlight, a lonely rock remained.

One day, after millennia, the rock began to crack under the shade of the trees, and a human drew rapid breaths, unearthing himself and breaking free. Puzzled and weakened from his long slumber, he instinctively moved towards the river bank to drink some of its crystal clear water. He tried to remember where he was and how he ended up there, but to no avail, and so he hesitantly decided to wander around in hopes of reaching an answer. As he walked about, admiring the tranquility and pure essence of this unknown place, he came by a soaring oak tree. "Curious" he thought, "this is the first oak tree I've seen so far." His focus was interrupted by an inquisitive voice of significant presence: "I've never seen you around here before. Who are you, human?"

"Forgive my trespassing, if this is your home, but I am lost, and trying to find my way" the human politely replied.

"Your way huh? Oh, I know… You must be the one entombed in rock, tucked away in that grove" the voice remarked, echoing wisdom, duty and arrogance.

"How do you know? Who are you!?" the human asked nervously. Swiftly, wings that cuddled the wind in secret flocked, and an elegant white owl with a grey neck and eyes as clear blue as the river flew down from the top of the tree, presenting herself to the man. "I am Elyina. I am the guardian of the mountain beneath the clouds. I remember when you were brought here. Indeed, it was a time long, long ago. Do you remember?"

"No, I am afraid I remember nothing, not even my name."

"I see. How fitting that you awoke now, when the roses at the summit garden have finally begun to bloom. Rest assured, young one, for I remember you as well as your story. I can tell you about it, if you so wish." Reluctantly, the man replied: "Ηow can I trust you won't lead me astray?"

"You cannot" the owl stoically replied.

"Then lead me on my way, and when I remember, you will be there to confirm."

"Fascinating!” Elyina exclaimed in laughter. “Your path takes you up toward the summit, but you must seek an audience with the prince of the forest to venture above the clouds" she illuminated.

"And how do I find this prince?"

The owl chuckled: "follow the river, silly. I will be keeping an eye on you. I can't let you bring ill to my domain. I will not assist you though, not unless you truly need me, for you are cloaked in a grand fate that I do not wish to tamper with. Remember this: not even the prince may attempt to change this fate that binds us all" she added with a hint of heartbreak.

The man thanked Elyina, and went on his way. The river he followed wound round in merry a way, and his soul was imbued with evermore peace of mind as he admired the picturesque vistas of the mountain’s forests. Although his path was uphill, his body felt no fatigue and so he pressed on, eventually reaching the underside of a cliff, from which the river created a serene waterfall. No voices sung in this part of the forest, allowing the waterfall to take the spotlight, and no plants and flowers flourished here. He looked to scale the cliff, but the stone was sharp as a blade and treacherous like the sea, and he decided to rest until he figured out a way. Suddenly, a sinister and commandeering voice erupted, merging with the waterfall’s noise: "Who is it, that dares disturb the tranquility of this place?"

"Greetings, I am a traveler seeking an audience with the prince!"

"The prince!? You have a human’s scent.” The voice spoke eerily, pausing briefly. “And what would a human require from the prince? Your kind is evil hearted and lies fall frequently from your tongue, like this river above my home." Before he could reply, the bearer of the voice decided to present itself to him. From a cave within the cliff under the waterfall, a mighty and enormous serpent, with emerald eyes and a slender horn extending backward from the top of its head slithered out, bathing itself in the water, before encircling the man.

"I am no liar! I will not allow you to name me as you please." He exhaled proudly, standing his ground.

"I could end you effortlessly, but I have a better use for you. I can lead you atop the cliff and no further, but you must do something for me” the serpent uttered through its forked tongue. It lowered its head to the human and presented him with a ring, embellishing its horn. “Take this ring. Look for the Selenroot Plant in the summit garden, and insert it into its heart.”

“Selenroot?” The human inquired.

“Yes, a soothing little plant. It glows under the starlight. It sings in the night.”

“And what will happen, should I do as you say?”

“You ask too much I see. Perhaps you do not need my assistance” the serpent coyly whispered as it began withdrawing its head.

“Wait! I will do as you ask” the man hesitantly agreed, unable to detect deceit.

“Excellent!” The serpent cried out. “Then climb on my head and grab my horn. These rocks are meager against my scales.”

And so, the man and the serpent ascended the deadly cliff and reached the edge of the waterfall and continued along the river bank. The man removed the ring from the serpent’s horn and wore it on his right hand. “What is your name, human?” the serpent asked, breaking the silence.

“I don’t know. I’m expecting to find out.” The man answered.

“Intriguing… Nary a human forlorn of his ego and fate has set foot on this mountain. Not once, in my long life.” The serpent contemplated, catching the presence of fated events taking place. “Regardless, the prince’s court is close, resting next to this river. You should reach it by nightfall” it added, as it lowered its head to the ground for the man to hop off, and parting their ways.

           After being exposed to the breath of the mountain, the man began discerning the voices behind the many songs, a chant that magically embraced the land in bliss. Before long, and indeed before nightfall, he reached a place that was unmistakably the prince’s court, for its beauty under the clouds, with the sunset’s orange and mesmerizing aura was unlike anything he had experienced during his venture. Many inhabitants, beasts of all kind and woodland creatures, approached and stood behind the human, cutting his path backwards. As he turned his gaze towards them, the prince himself emerged, and beckoned them all to kneel. A stag, radiant as the sun, with silver eyes and golden antlers majestically intertwining to form a crown upon his head, putting to shame the beauty of his court, called out stoutly: “So, my vassal’s voices have been singing truthfully; A human walks our land.”

The man, not wanting to make a scene, cordially dropped to one knee: “Greetings, noble prince of the mountain. I awoke with the sunrise in a grove near this river, but within my memories lies darkness; I do not remember who I am, but the owl, Elyina, told me to meet you and request passage to reach the summit.”

“Elyina!?” The prince exclaimed sharply, his words echoing a familiar heartbreak, taking notice of the ring on the man’s hand. “And what has that indifferent owl instructed you do? Her words are soft as silk, but her heart is as dark as the starless sky. Only her schemes are important to her, even more than the land she watches over.”

The man stood baffled, unable to think of a response.

“And I see you met Rubinos, the horned serpent who lives in that desolate place where this river falls over sharp rocks, banished ages ago, along with that cursed ring you wear. I was but a fawn then, prince under a human King like yourself, and a fairy Queen.” The prince illuminated, his voice softening as memories of an bygone world flooded him.

“Rubinos… He gave me this ring, and in exchange he helped me reach your court, your majesty. He asked me to insert it in the heart of the Selenroot Plant.” The man replied earnestly.

“Indeed, he asked you to poison the life of our mountain. Should you do this, our river will bleed, and most of us will perish.” He paused. “I only uphold the peace, a wish my King and Queen left with me, and I desire no more. You may cross above the clouds, but in that garden, only you will have jurisdiction upon the fate that binds us all. I trust you will act upon what you set out to do.”

           As the sun began to set on the horizon and the stars presented themselves, the man warmly thanked the prince, and as a cumbersome weight set in his mind, he set off to cross the clouds. Within the blinding mist he faltered, and his steps became more and more unsure. To add to his enigma, a small ball of light, a spirit of the forest, approached him tenderly, and he felt affection in his heart, a gift that granted him the will to push through the unknown. The spirit illuminated his path and with each new step he took his darkened past began to brighten with ghostly flashes. Eventually, as the thickness of the clouds dwindled, the spirit moved ahead and vanished, and finally, he could see the starry night sky and the summit garden. However, as soon as he basked in the starlight and witnessed the rose garden and the Plant at its heart, the memories awoke!

           First, he remembered the fairy Queen Astralina, whose beauty and tenderness reminded him of the songs he heard throughout his journey among the many forests. She fashioned the water at the summit, which became the river of the mountain, to be crowned by the Selenroot Plant, a legacy passed down by creature small and great alike, for three millennia.

           Then, he remembered a young prince, Orian, who shed a tear through dazzling silver eyes thrice in his life; Once, when his home was threatened by an evil hearted horned serpent with emerald eyes and a poisonous forked tongue, who stole his ring gifted by his parents and twisted its benevolence for his plan to usurp and destroy. Once more, when his love, a caring and dutiful owl with an aptitude for arrogance, abandoned him for his weakness to prevent the befalling evils. And one last time, when his father and mother vanished, turning themselves into stone and into rose.

           At this point, he was walking unconsciously toward the garden, his heart ignited with sorrow that manifested itself through a stream of tears down his cheeks. And at last, he remembered himself. Selenastros is his name, the King of the mountain in a realm humans are rarely permitted to enter, lest their souls are unworthy. He has cared and watched over every creature to exist here for time eternal. He fashioned the Selenroot Plant to fill the river stream with vitality and breath of life. And he upheld his duty to the very end, through a necessary curse that prohibited the serpent from reaching the domain near the clouds, and commanded the owl to watch over the lower lands, until the time was right and she could finally return to her love, and instructed his son to uphold his duty and allow the strings of fate to remain to those who hold jurisdiction over them.

           He now stood in the summit garden, filled with countless roses of different color and unique personalities, under the marvelous starlight, the only sound and glow soothingly coming from the Selenroot Plant that infused the river beginning around its roots, a crown for which he gave a promise to an nameless adversary. A dilemma weighed on him; a King who does not uphold his promise is unfit to rule. As he stood there, frozen in the moment, a familiar, eerie voice slithered behind him, bringing foul to this gentle place. “The curse that you bound us, the fate that you veiled us, they stand undone since you left your prison, and so, I leave mine to watch you, to revel in you fulfilling my own” Rubinos boastfully but calmly whispered behind the King, who instantly began searching for a way to prevent this fate from settling.

           Flaps of quiet wings interrupted the two, and in arrogance, Elyina shrieked: “Vile and abhorrent, still you dare demean my King!?” Rapidly, owl and serpent began to clash, and the King would not waste such an opportunity. He began searching maniacally, he had to find the Queen and set her free, for she was the one he could always count on, and they both were made from the same spirit. Suddenly, a warm light caught his eye once more, and as he turned his gaze, it vanished near one rose, light blue, thorn-less and long-stemmed. He knew. He ran and delicately picked it, with enough soil to cover all of its roots. “No!” Rubinos roared, and dashed to attack him. Selenastros barely dodges as Elyina grabs Rubinos’ horn and throws him off balance briefly, allowing the King one crucial moment to place the rose within the water and wash away the soil. A spark, so luminous it made the stars quiver, emerged and blinded the serpent. Elyina took this chance and with her talons, she plucked his emerald eyes, making his blindness permanent. The light gently subsided and Astralina assumed her beautiful form. With her right hand she caressed her lover’s head and removed the ring from his hand, and then quickly fluttered her wings to reach Rubinos, whose hollow eye sockets could produce no tears. “You’ve brought us enough grief and agony. Begone!” Astralina stoutly proclaimed with the serpent at her feet, unable and unwilling to react. They spared the serpent, abandoning him to a meager fate worse than death.

           Together, Selenastros and Astralina, King and Queen, returned to the court. Murmurs of joy and new songs flourished again, and the prince of the mountain, Orian, greeted his parents lovingly. “My son” said the Queen, “you have done so well! We are so proud of you. This ring is yours, no longer tainted, to give as you please and reign.”

“But first” said the King, “we all owe this owl our gratitude. Any reward she desires, I shall grant!”

“My King, I only wish to be forgiven by Orian, whom I love, and have loved since before you tasked me with my duty.” Said Elyina humbly, abandoning her arrogance.

Silence in the court. The stag approached the owl and bowed his head: “Forgive me back, Elyina. My heart cried out for you, but remained ever yearning. Will you take this ring? Will you be mine, under the stars, sun and moon?”

The owl’s heart fluttered like her wings, and she decidedly landed upon his golden antlers, accepting his offer.

“Rejoice!!!” The King shouted proudly, extending his arms outward, with the Queen’s heartwarming smile accompanying him, as the court burst in delight and celebration. “The Prince and Princess under the clouds! May their lives be long and true, as this river that embraces our homeland!”

           And so, Selenastros and Astralina grew their family, and continued to reign. They moved in at the summit garden, which sprung to life, to watch over the mountain, as a new era of peace commenced, until the day they should be required by fate to intervene again. New songs were sung and they passed into legend, and until this day, no one knows where they are. Only the stag and the owl may convene with them, in that garden, but no other woodland creature is permitted. It is said they shall remain there until a time of great need, a time when the river shall dry and the world shall be filled with sorrow, a time that shall not arrive for millennia to come.

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