The Awakening...

Talanithus turned over lazily, his limbs still languid from the evening's exertions. He reached out to one of the lovely lasses scattered around his bower. His fingers slid into her honey caramel hair, caressing their soft silky strands until... nothing. Slowly, Tal opened his eyes to see the delightful smile of his absolute favorite lass (for that moment, at least) dissipate into a smoky white fog. Turning his head, he watched as his bedchambers melted into the cloudy abyss, swallowing everything in its embrace. He was lost, floating in a shadowed realm of nothingness.

Then a light appeared, dimly at first, like a torch seen from great distance, but growing stronger with each heartbeat. With a mental effort, he felt himself move closer... his body passing through the fog though his limbs did not move. As his body passed through it's wispy wall, he felt a warmth spread out from his core, leaving his skin and mind tingling with the sort of deep warmth that came only from contact with his lord, Eru.

"This is a dream," thought Tal, "although perhaps more than that..."

Banishing all thought of his past... encounters... Tal ordered his thoughts and set his mind and heart to acceptance and understanding of what was to come. The light, as if in unison with his mental state, flared to a blinding brightness, till all he could see was the light... everywhere. Had he physical eyes in this place, he was certain he would have been blinded... yet here it seemed natural, almost welcome.

Color appeared on the horizon, then quickly swallowed up Tal's perceptions as it spread out like a tidal wave. Green-golden tree tops sprang into view, Mallorn from some sacred Elven place... then a sky, set dim in the embrace of night... and then, Selune! Selune, the moon of Toril, once home of Tel'Mithrim so many years ago. With the moon came recognition and understanding, for Talanithus found himself hovering over what was once the Sacred Grove of his guild and family. Far off in the distance, over the peaks of Neverwinter Wood, he saw the lights of the city... and with it, a pang of longing filled his soul to weeping.

Tal felt his gaze drawn once more to the Grove beneath him, a ring of trees grown huge with the passage of time, and in its center a tree pulsing with the power of his people. The ancient tree seemed to recognize him, and he felt its power reach out to caress his form, the touch of Eru sending ripples of delight across him.

Again, the world swirled into color, nightmarish hues of black and red crossing over the sky and morphing Tal's sight. When things had settled Tal found himself unmoved from his position over the Grove, yet all the world turned upside down about him. In the distance the fires of Neverwinter City left a column of smoke as thick as a mountain, and the forest was quickly joining it. Below him, in the grove where he had spent so many contemplative nights, a gathering of Elves was performing a ritual. He recognized many of them, Tizer, Thrand, Cori, Brisid, Glade, Riklaun, Laer... all of their faces painted with a grief mirrored on Tal's own. It was the Cataclysm, and Toril was dying.

A gate appeared before the Elves, feeding off the power of the Sacred Grove, sending them across the planes to a world where safety might be found. As they passed through, he watched Tizer lay a hand upon the core of the Grove, the ancient tree that had guided and observed the passage of tel'Quessir in this land for millennia. A glow appeared about his hand, and when he stepped through the gate he cradled a tiny piece of hope into the unknown.

A seed of what was, to build what would come.

Once more Tal's vision swirled into motion, resettling into the welcome vision of Tel'Ruid and the Temple. His gaze drew itself to a small chest, warded by spells both arcane and divine, where inside dwelt a simple seed. A seed with a single green sprout, peeking from its core.

Light exploded once again, and Tal felt himself thrown back into...
...
..
.
..
...

Shuddering, Talanithus sat straight up in his bed, sweat plastering his hair to his skin as he snapped into wakefulness.

"Can it be?" he thought, "Is it finally time?"

Throwing his bed-covers off he jumped from his bed, glad that he did not have company this evening to startle with his behavior, and began muttering an incantation of travel. With a flash of blue light, he was standing before the Temple, his senses barely having time to register the new environment before he was springing up the stairs. With the cool night breeze drying his sweat soaked skin, he found the chest from his dreams, and slowly laid a hand upon it.

"Yes!" he exclaimed to himself, "I can feel it awakening! The time has finally come!"

In exultation of the moment, he let out a whoop of joy, dancing about the Temple roof in mad glee. It was only after a polite cough from Tir, standing atop the Fae Tower battlements and watching his antics, that he came to the realization that he had left his home without a stitch of clothing.

With a wry grin, Tal winked up to Tir and said, "This is just the beginning, Love. It's finally time!"

Out of Character Explanation:
The Grey Company started in NWN on AOL over a decade ago. When AOL closed down NWN (1996 or so) we moved to Ultima Online (eventually), so pieces of this story are about our past on the land of Toril. In NWN (Toril) we had a Sacred Grove, which we had to leave behind with the destruction of NWN. At one time, the Seers had planned to bless us with our own Grove here in UO, but that never came into being... so we are taking matters into our own hands.

In specific, we'll be using a seed from the old Grove to replant a new Grove in Tel'Ruid. All of this will come about during a ritual in our next Festival, about 3 weeks from now. This is a point of major interest for Elves, since the Grove is literally the heart of every Elven community... a living symbol of their purpose and calling as caretakers of the lands, and Eru's blessings for our service.

OOCly, Elves take a period of attunement to become "naturalized" to a new world, roughly 50 years, according to the AD&D 2nd Edition Book of Elves. Since it has been a bit more then that, we Elves of Tel'Mithrim are just now growing fully in tune with the lands of Sosaria. Effectively, we are now "naturals". I therefore assumed, for the purpose of this plotline, that the seed from our old tree also took a period of attunement, and is now beginning to sprout and show signs of life.

Throughout the Festival we will be holding rituals at the end of the night, to welcome and plant the seed and encourage its growth. These are very important rituals, and a slip up here could cause complications, so we'll need everyone's help.

To all the Elves of Tel'Ruid... as we get closer to the festival, you should literally begin FEELING the effects of the seed. Feel free to post stories on how it has effected your dreams, or other small things. No huge magics yet, please... think of the seed as a new born baby with incredible potential, but just now starting to spread its wings.

Some potential examples:

When using tracking to locate the Drow, say that you felt a presence guiding you.

RP little nudges of inspiration if you are a crafter, perhaps inspiring you to make a piece of artwork.

Drow, RP out a definite feeling of a new presence in the Grove, and your dislike of it. Very slight at first, but growing stronger each day (especially around the Festival)

Mages, RP a feeling of being watched... and perhaps even helped in your pursuits.

Bards, try to keep your repitoire for the next few weeks centered on Love, birth, rebirth, spring, and other related topics if you are performing publically.

Feel free to post other suggestions OOCly, and as I said, and perhaps even your experiences as you grow "aware" of the seed, either literally or on a mental level.

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