Kirias Avlanti - By Correlon's Grace

[Velaris]

The Sending

"Kirias? It is nearly time. Are you prepared?"

Kneeling in Correlon's Grove, the young sun elf slowly opens his eyes at the sound of the calm voice, letting his eyes adjust to the bright sunlight. Immediately his golden eyes rest upon Ereveste, an elderly elf with perfect manners, and chamberlain of his House here on Evermeet. For as long as he could remember, Ereveste had held this position, and was as loyal to House Avlanti as any blood member.

Not that there are many of us left, Kirias muses to himself, shaking his mane of golden hair out of his eyes and rising to his feet smoothly.
A few distant cousins, some thin-blooded arms men, and the House Speaker, who for the last century had been thought lost, the same elf who was responsible for the situation young Kirias was now experiencing.

He gratefully nods and takes the robe offered by the chamberlain, and leads the way out of the grove into the open countryside. Though safer here than most places in the known world, an honour guard awaits him, comprised mainly of the blood guards of his own House.

A moment of remorse for his earlier thoughts slows his steps, and he pauses to salute the remaining members of his family, all of which would gladly give their lives to protect him. As one, the assembled guard; comprised of soldiers, bladesingers, as well as priests and minor mages, comes to attention and returns the salute with the respect due the scion and heir of the House.

He mounts his pegasus, followed by the rest of his House, and begins the flight to his home on the peninsula east of Leuthilspar, the capital. His mount knows the way as well as he, having flown this same route countless times, allowing Kirias to drift into Reverie once again. He is reminded of the sending, and the purpose behind it. The sending spell was used by mages and priests to communicate over great distance by magical means.

Had so much time passed already?

In his mind he can remember only vague images of his uncle Velaris, dressed in the shining mithril armor of a Spellarcher, surrounded by the burning ruins of the fortress and village which he had dedicated his life to protecting.
Elves were running everywhere, trying to prevent the spread of the flames. Occasionally the roaring sound of some great beast could be heard in the distance.
His uncle's sad face, stained with dried blood and dirt, stared down at a much younger version of Kirias. A rough bandage covered the elf's left eye, where the dried blood was the thickest. The acrid smell of blood and ash overwhelmed the boy's senses, making him dizzy, and his eyes filled with tears. His uncle was speaking to him.

"You have to leave nephew, there is no safe place for you here." His uncle's face, which had never before shown the wear of his centuries of life, now was lined with sadness and loss, the burden of weeks of constant conflict and the destruction of not only their home but their way of life.

"I want to stay here Uncle, with you and mother and father…" The boy elf's voice trails off, seeing the look in his uncle's remaining emerald eye, and dreading the words that followed.
"They are gone now young Kirias, to Arvandor, where they will be with Correlon for all time. I am now Speaker of our House and you are Heir. I would have you at my side, but I cannot protect you as I am and so we must separate for a time, to each make ourselves what we can be, yet more than we are."

The boy begins to interrupt, but his uncle holds up his hand for silence.
"I am sending you with what remains of our House here, to the old family estate in Evermeet, along with the handful of blood guards and mages that survive. You will be trained in Correlon's Grove. Like your father before you, there is much potential in you for the divine arts."

Here his uncle pauses for a moment, making up his mind on something, "You must train hard, and learn the ways of the elven pantheon of gods, the Seldarine, so that you will be ready to guide our House when I need you most. I will call for you, do not let fear take the heart from you. The rest of us will stay to give our people as much time as we can. Go now, before the beast returns."

With nothing more to add, his uncle takes his bow in hand, and the boy is passed into the care of a middle aged elf, who would be later known to Kirias as Ereveste, chamberlain of House Avlanti, once friend to both his father and uncle. A horrible torrent of images, ending with a vague memory of taking passage on a ship, are all that remain of that night. It was the last he saw or heard of his uncle, who in the past century had all but passed from memory, thought lost to the beast that came that night.

A slight drop in the air by the pegasus brings the young priest out of Reverie, just on time for him to absorb the vista below. The remains of House Avlanti spread out before him, a small house that produced an fair number of mages and clerics, and a few elves skilled in both domains. No matter that there were fewer than sixty sun elves under his command here in Evermeet. As the only Heir to his House, his rights as a noble of a sun elf house were sacrosanct. If there was anything elves respected, sun elves especially, it was tradition.

His eyes drift over the small estate, training grounds and shrine of his late father's lands until his gaze comes to rest on the small dock. A single elven ship, sails furled against the coastal breeze, waits patiently at anchor for its passenger.

Kirias dismounts a moment after his mount lands near the docks, and walks alongside Ereveste, who will maintain the House and estate until his return.

At the landing to the ship, Kirias hands Ereveste a small scroll, granting the chamberlain a minor title and deed to an estate within the holdings of Avlanti lands, and thus the power needed to hold the House indefinitely. The younger elf meets the gaze of the chamberlain, seeing only compassion and understanding within. They both know this voyage could be the last time Kirias sets foot on the island of elves. This much was known the moment the sending came from his uncle.

Velaris, after being forced to leave the High Forest where they had lived, was now a powerful warmage, and had become a member of an elven community in the Misty Forest. After many long years, he had finally made contact with his nephew, requesting Kirias make the voyage by ship from Evermeet to a human city known as "Baldur's Gate". The magical sending also indicated another elven settlement in the area, Doron Amar, and stressed the need for a return of the elven faith to its people.

Despite his misgivings of a long ocean voyage, the young Correlite dared not make a request to the council for the use of a portal for his own personal business. That could take weeks. Besides, he was travelling with much of his personal wealth and possessions.

The fear of never returning here to his home, or seeing his friends and family again, momentarily struck him with uncertainty. However, something else stirred his elven blood as well, that being the possibility of bringing hope back to the elves of the mainland, creating unity from dissention. The elven people needed to be reminded there was unity and strength to be found through their renewed faith in the Seldarine.

All thoughts of home set aside, the young sun elf boards the ship with a purposeful stride and takes his place on the quarterdeck, where he can watch the voyage while staying out of the way of ship's business.

Looking out over the ocean toward a distant shore and unknown future, he grips the rail and silently makes a vow to Correlon and all the gods of the Seldarine. He will devote his life to the sole purpose of the unity of the elves, to bring peace and faith to the elven communities now divided, and lend his strength in the fight against the enemies of the elves.
He will not let fear take the heart from him, or his people.