The beat of hooves echoed throughout the forest for the first time in many years. The path they rode had last been ridden down by the young man's father, three years ago. Just behind the diminutive rider sat a young woman, who could not help but reach out for the Ranseur strapped to the side of their steed. No others rode with the two, but as the gentle lapping lake peaked out from the treeline, their steed came a sudden stop. In seconds, the young woman was off the steed and tying it up to a tree, as the rider struggled to steadily get off the horse.
The sounds of the forest surrounded the two as they dismounted. Croweagles screeched from overhead, while crickets and small mammals buzzed and chittered from somewhere in the distance. The atmosphere of the forest was not lightly broken, but she could not resist a teasing tone as the young man nearly fell off the steed. "You know, we can get you a ladder if you but ask". The Turall did not respond verbally, as he glanced through the treeline. He shook his head after a time, before making for a path through the edge of the treeline. The two of them walked side by side for a long while, before the young man glanced down at a scrap of paper, and turned sharply away towards the lake. And as they do so, the craggy ground gave way to an eerily smooth pathway, and then to a break in the trees.
It was a picturesque grove. A single, sturdy pine tree sat alone at the edge of the Ritzenfeld Lake. The Sun shone brightly and reflected off the lake, and around the great pine. And among the roots, there it was. A mossy rock, with inscriptions, that neither commented on aloud, but both understood. Finally, the Turall would turn away from the grove, and stare out across the lake, at the other side of the Calemwald. It was the woman who would break the silence. "I don't think he took any of us here. Not that I can remember, anyway. But it's very beautiful, isn't it?". The young man responded after a long moment, raising a hand to inspect the beard that was starting to get wild in length. "It is. I can't say I've seen a more ... I suppose peaceful, place in my travels. But doesn't it almost feel... stuffy? I mean, look at this lake, and the shoreline in the distance. I'm more tempted to strip the trees down and make a vessel, to get across the waters."
A small pause, as the young woman knelt briefly by the mossy stone, glancing up at the great pine, and then back to the young Turall by the water. "Would you tear down this tree, to make that journey?" There was a hesitance, as the young man finally looked back, taking the sight of it in fully. It stood tall, the leaves gently swaying in the March-time winds, as it had three years ago. A similar set of eyes looked upon the tree before they were ripped away, turning not to the mossy stone, but out to the lake. The young man smiled, as he said, "You wouldn't let me, nor would your brothers. That's what I'm counting on." There was another long stretch of silence, but in this place, it was the polar opposite of uncomfortable, and the young woman seemed to relax, lowering herself to sit by the grassy shore and stare out at the lake. The Turall added, in a more somber tone "I won't tear down what came before us, Lydia. But we've come this far by never looking back, only forward. But it's a dangerous path I'd be setting us on, and... I don't know if..." he trailed off, before she a bit harshly interrupted him, speaking calmly, but with a voice that radiated out across the water of the lake. "Stop worrying. We have the Spirit with us, and the Family to protect us. The dangerous path is not ours to walk, Elros, but our enemies."
Silence, before he turned, smiling again, and more fully. "Alright, where shall we start?". The two talked for some time, and more back in the Capital. But the peaceful grove by Ritzenfield Lake remained in both their thoughts, an eternal source of strength when either doubted what they stood upon, or what they fought for.
[[This is a follow up of sorts on a Lore Story posted in 2017 by @TyrolleanEagle , and more may follow. The link is here. @pixYcandi ]]
