In Wind-Cycle 343 of The Age of Utter-Light, as I was fishing on the shores of my homeland of Thra Athar, home of the sea-elves, I, Yuedhra Ever-Wind, saw a floating and brilliant lightning wheel of fire in the sky. The wheel turned violently, surrounded in a furious whirlwind. Within the wheel, I saw another lightning wheel of fire next to it, spinning and moving together as if one. I ran in terror, fleeing towards the caves from where I came, but then the wheels surrounded me. One wheel flew over the crown of my head and the other landed at the soles of my feet. Unable to move, I was lifted far above the land of my people, ascending into the clouds above.
I screamed but a strong female voice spoke from the clouds, “Yuedhra, Son of Yuethrul. You have been chosen to see. Write down what I will show you, so that what is unseen will now be seen, and what is unheard will now be heard. Your words will be a testament to the future generations that will come after you. They will not believe you, therefore do not lose heart. You shall be The Tale-Keeper, a watcher of the secret things, a grand steward of the mysteries of the universe.”
“You’ve mistaken me for someone else,” I said to the voice. “I’m not a great sea-elf of renown. I’m simply a fisher looking to feed my family.”
“You will feed many with your words, spirit, and courage. Your exploits will be food to the weak and weakness to the strong. Your deeds and tales will rival the stars of the sky and the gems of the deep. Many worlds, galaxies, and universes will know the name of Yuedhra Ever-Wind, Tale-Keeper of All Tale-Keepers.”
I was about to laugh but even as I thought it, the voice knew what I would say, “I see what you cannot see, and I know what you do not know. You shall be a thorn to the darkness, a champion of the forgotten, and a prophet of all that was, is, and will soon happen.”
“Who are you?” I asked. “And what is this power that holds me hostage?”
“I am The Wind,” she said. “And the power that I now give you is The Wheel of The Wind. With it, you will see the end from the beginning and the beginning from the end. See to it that you are not offended, Tale-Keeper, for the burden of a watcher is great, and the price of seeing what others cannot see will make you a fool to the blind. I have much to say to you but for now, I must first show you the beginning of The Tale of All Tales, the legend of the Eternal Scar.
At once this Wheel of The Wind took me to a time that was no time and to a place that was no place.
This is my account of what I saw…
VISION OF CREATION
Before the beginning there existed only one… Aethern, The Ancient. He was uncreated. Immovable. All in all. The life-force of everything. The great father of eternity. Long ago, in a vision, Aethern saw a white shining crystal seed falling on a plot of dark soil. The enchanted seed was terrible in both beauty and power. Sinking into the soil, it disappeared. Sadness filled Aethern’s heart for the first time. He mourned for the seed. Out of the heat of his great fiery sorrow came a thundercloud.
As he wept bitterly, rain fell from the cloud. He heard a great shaking from the depths of the black soil. He could see the crystal seed deep in the darkness. It had died but when it did, its shell cracked open, and out of it came a great light. As the lightning roots spread in the gross darkness, cracks formed in the black soil, until the roots of the tree broke ground.
Shooting upward, the trunk grew strong and high, filling the darkness with a great light. Three branches, baptized in fire, reached far beyond the thundercloud. Their light dispersed the darkness of the high places, triumphant, and dripping with the celestial power of the arcane.
Joy filled Aethern’s heart once again. The vision ended. When he awoke, he saw a great star before him, wreathed in ineffable lightning glory. He sang a song and out of that music the star waxed greater in power, light, and magic. The song, lyrics, and music coming out of his heart became one with the music flowing from the star. He called the new song that both he and the star created, “love,” and as their love grew, he desired to know her more intimately, for she knew the music of his heart. He called this great star, Anutherlyoth (which translated from star-tongue means, “Mother-Light.”)
“With your beautiful light, I will separate eternity from darkness,” said Aethern.
As the light of Anutherlyoth grew stronger, The Void was formed… The Black Beyond that is now called space and time. Aethern was pleased with his creation, speaking a blessing over Anutherlyoth, “You shall be the Star of All Verses! The Mother of Time! The Cradle of The Universe! The Womb of Life! Heart of my soul and soul of my heart!”
Overcome with the fire of passion and the might of her magic, Aethern The Ancient spoke a great galactic whirlwind into existence, calling it Eloria (which in the ancient star-tongue means, Mother-Wind or The Wind). Amidst the heat of the passion of Aethern and Anutherlyoth, as their songs united once again, the whirlwind of Eloria and the light of Mother-Light’s fire collided, creating a singular crystal seed of light. As the whirlwind mixed anew with the fire of his newfound love Anutherlyoth, a storm cloud formed. The powerful galactic thunderstorm released rain, nourishing the seed of the two lovers.
Out of the darkness, The Tree of The Flame was born.
THE WHEEL OF THE WIND