Yerell

Darkness...darkness...darkness. Time was irrelevant. Dreams upon dreams, but nothing lasted before being swept into the darkness. Yerell was vaguely aware that things were moving, changing, but he could not see it. He could not feel it. As soon as his mind grasped at something it was swallowed up again by the ever engulfing darkness.

He did not fear the darkness, it just simply was. It felt more like a deep grey, but one that consumed everything, leaving Yerell trapped. He didn't know how or why he was trapped. His thoughts faded into the grey darkness, just like everything else. Even his emotions felt far away, giving him little more than to just wait. But...what was he waiting for? He didn't know, and he didn't have long to wonder before that too faded.

Elohim stepped lightly across the stone floor of the ruins. Broken columns and rubble lay everywhere and the remains of what had once been a ceiling had crumbled countless years. Ordos walked up ahead finding the safest route while leaving as much as he could undisturbed.

"Tell me again why you brought me to these remote ruins?" Elohim gave a small grunt. Ordos had pleaded with Azuria to take Elohim for a discovery. He had insisted that only Elohim could help him. After some adjustments to the Skydancer's already busy schedule, she agreed. Ordos was a reliable explorer and trusted he knew what he was doing. Elohim on the other hand, dreaded the thought of the returning to the lair with a mess of things he would have to catch up on.

Ordos didn't give a straight answer. "Tell me, what do you think of these ruins? What do you think they used to be?" Though he kept himself cool and composed, there was a hint of excitement in his voice.

Elohim sighed, his tail swaying across the floor behind him kicking up some dirt. He couldn't really stay miffed at the Mirror. He looked about himself. The ruins where very old indeed, but the Skydancer knew a thing or two of the ancient society. "It can be difficult to say. Much of the architecture is destroyed so it's hard to place what era its from. The color of the stone and the foliage that has claimed most of this seems to suggest this place is ancient. Even older than myself."

Ordos couldn't help but give a small leap. "Right?! But that's not even the most interesting part. Come! I'll show you." Picking up the pace, the mirror lead the way as if he had been here a dozen times. The Skydancer tilted his head slightly and followed quietly.

"You see," Ordos kept talking, "This place is very interesting. I've never seen ruins quite like it, and believe you me, I've seen maaaany ruins."

"Huh," Elohim replied, somewhat interested. "And how is this place different?"

"Well, have you noticed there's been no traps?"

The Skydancer thought about it. He had never actually explored places like this, but he knew that if there was something valuable that they should have at least met with some resistance. "I suppose that is odd."

"Yeah," Ordos nodded without even looking back, "But that's not all. I haven't seen any writing or artworks that you would normally find. In fact, there has been no treasure or loot anywhere. And I don't mean that everything has been taken. There's no indication anything was ever here."

That did strike Elohim as odd. Who would go through all the trouble to make such a large place, but put nothing in it? He looked at a nearby wall that still stood. Something else seemed strange. "We haven't made many turns or found diverging paths. This place seems very straight forward."

"Yes!" The mirror hopped and turned around, walking backwards as he spoke to his companion. "This place doesn't make any sense!"

Elohim frown and tilted his head. "Then why are we here?"

"I want to uncover the mystery, and you are the oldest dragon I know. With your knowledge we should be able to figure this out!"

"So you brought me here to inspect some weird ruins?" The Skydancer raised an eyebrow. Surely there was more than just that.

"Not exactly. Come! There's something really interesting further in." Ordos flipped around and bounded away, turning around a column wall. Elohim simply walked behind, not bothering to chase after his energetic companion.

It didn't take long to come to the center of the ruins. Some of the ceiling was still intact around a small raised platform. Elohim gaped at what he saw in the small enclosure. There, with small steps leading up the platform, sat a statue of a Pearlcatcher.

Something about this statue captivated the Skydancer. The statue was so lifelike down to the smallest detail. It was made of some stone that Elohim had never seen before. The Pearlcatcher sat on its haunches, holding it's pearl in both claws as though it was cupping water. It's head was bowed and eyes were closed in a meditative state with the wings outstretched and curing in a half circle, as though protective. The pearl that it held gingerly in its claws gleamed in the sunlight. It was obviously made of a different material then the rest of the statue, giving an appearance of a real Pearlcatcher's pearl.

"This is what I wanted to show you." Even the mirror seemed in awe of it, his excitement now dulled down to respectful intrigue. He walked up to the platform, but didn't proceed further. "There is nothing else here. I searched the whole ruins, but this statue is the only thing here."

Elohim stared at it in disbelief. It was so captivating, though he didn't know why. The Skydancer slowly approached the statue. The closer he got the more real it seemed and the more strange it became. There wasn't a single crack or blemish on it, despite the ruins crumbling around it. Ivy, vines, flowers and other foliage had claimed much of what was left, but not a single leaf disturbed the statue.

"What is it?" Elohim whispered under his breath.

Ordos glanced at him. "I'm not entirely sure. That's why I wanted to ask you. What do you think it is?"

The old dragon looked it up and down. Whatever it was it was much more ancient than, him. Upon closer inspection he could feel it. A sort of magic emanating from the statue. Elohim narrowed his eyes. If he just concentrated on that...

This magic...Elohim had sensed it before, but from where. "This..." He inspected the statue more carefully. He walked up to it, his breath falling on the statue. He could almost taste the magic coming from it. "..wait...is this...?" Elohim's swayed in disbelief. "This is a sealing spell. This isn't a statue, its an actual dragon!"

Even Ordos seemed surprised. "Are you sure?" Looking at the statue, he could almost believe it.

Elohim closed his eyes and concentrated, breathing deeply. After a moment he spoke. "Yes, I'm certain of it. It's old, but there's no denying it."

The Mirror shuffled in place. He looked at the Pearlcatcher. "Do you think there is a way to break the seal?" Magic was not Ordos's forte.

"Hmm...perhaps." Elohim shuffled his wings and his tail swayed from side to side. He knew a little, but wasn't confident. "This is a Pearlcatcher. At the very least I should be able to communicate with him."

Elohim tentatively stretched out his right claw and gently placed it on the pearl. Digging deep through his vast knowledge, he closed his eyes and whispered soft, soothing words.
Something disturbed the grey darkness. It seemed to cut through the endless nothing. Yerell vaguely recognized it was there. It too would fade into the darkness. But it was persistent and strong, stiring something with Yerell. What was this? For a moment, he thought he heard something. A voice? He strained to listen. What was it saying?

Why are you here? Yerell was mystified. There was a voice, a thought, other than his own? He was intrigued. What was this?

Why are you here? The question came again, like a small light through the grey. Yerell felt compelled to answer. "I do not know." He spoke, though he knew not how. His voice was foreign to him, yet somewhat comforting.

Why are you here? It was the same question. This time, it was more insistent on Yerell's mind. Why was he here? What was here? It was important...but....what was it? "I..." He spoke again. "I don't remember..." All he knew was the endless grey darkness.

Only silence greeted him. Yerell waited. He waited for what seemed a long time. "H-hello?" He was confused, but he didn't want the light to leave. Not yet. Not now that he has seen something beyond the nothing.

...Do you want to stay? He paused. Did he want to stay? A faint memory came to his mind. It was important. He had to stay here. But why? The memory was gone before he could remember.

Do you want to stay? The voice asked one more time. He had to stay. He had to stay. But now...Yerell hesitated, not sure what to stay.

The voice spoke again. There is nothing here. There is no need for you to stay. Yerell looked to the voice. Was that true? Could he really leave? Desire filled him. A desire to leave the grey nothing. "I want to leave." He spoke loudly and confidently.

The light cut by the voice faded as the grey swirled to engulf it. "I want to leave." Yerell spoke again just as loud. The light continued to fade. "I want to leave!" Yerell growled at the greying mist.

...Then come with me. Then the voice and the light was gone.

Yerell knew what he had to do. He could never go back to the grey darkness. He could feel something surge within him. He closed his eyes, pushing away the nothing from his mind. "It is time."


Elohim stepped away from the statue. Ordos quickly walked up to him. "Did it work?" His claws clicked rhythmically on the stone floor. It was hard for him to contain his excitement.

The old dragon looked at him unsure. "Honestly, I really don't know."

Ordos looked unfazed. "That's alright. I think we have a better idea of what's going on now. Maybe someone else in the clan can help."

Elohim nodded, but he seemed somewhat distracted. As the two turned to leave a sound came from the statue. They both turned, giving it their immediate attention. Cracks formed along the wings and body. Small shifts in movement ever so small caused the stone to slowly give way. A loud crack sounded as two fuchsia eyes opened. The Pearcatcher had awakened.





Yerell gave a loud yawn as he left the lair. The morning sunlight gleamed like twilight through the shadowy trees. The old Pearlcatcher stretched his still stone encrusted body, breathing in the musky scent of the Tangled Wood. It had been a while since he allowed himself to sleep so long, but the sight of the dim morning light was a pleasant relief.

It had been a week since he awoke from stone, but he still couldn't remember much. Everything was so new, so different. Time had moved on without him. Everything had change, yet he couldn't remember how things were before.

He scarcely slept, afraid to dream. His mind often wandered to the dull grey, but now it was different. It wasn't all encompassing as it once was, but rather was a void in his mind where his memory used to be. Sometimes a flash of memory would surface. A smell of food he liked, pieces of magic or lines in a spell, sometimes just shapes and colors that would remind him of something long ago. Despite this, he still couldn't remember names, faces, or even who he was. The only thing he could distinctly remember was his own name and little else.

"Good morning, Yerell." Came a familiar voice from behind. The Pearlcatcher turned to see Elohim approaching.

"Good morning." Yerell nodded politely.

"How are you adjusting?"

Yerell shuffled his paws, unsure how to answer. When he had awoken, Elohim and Oridos helped him and taken him back to their lair. The clan leader was quite welcoming and almost seemed to expect him to arrive. Yerell was incredibly grateful so he didn't want to seem rude. Many things still bothered him and he was unsure about everything.

Elohim grinned. "It's quite alright." Yerell looked at him surprised. Was he reading his mind? He had heard Elohim's voice in his mind before, but not since the grey. "Take your time. You are welcome to stay as long as you need."

The Pearlcatcher let out a soft approving rumble. "I do like it here, and I can't thank you all enough for letting me stay, but..." A solemn expression fell across his face. "There's so much I don't know. About who I was. Where I am from. Who did I know." He looked up into the sky. From what he could tell, he was ancient. There was little chance that anyone who knew him was still around. And something else still worried him. Why was he trapped as a statue? What had happened. Everyday seemed to only give him more mysteries about himself.

The Skydancer sighed sympathetically. "Oridos is still searching the ruins we found you in. He's hoping to find a clue that might shed some light on what happened. In the meantime, there is no need to hurry. The past will come with time. For now, maybe you should think about who you want to be."

Yerell gave a slow nod. "You're right. Thank you." He smiled to himself. This was a good place to start over and learn about himself, who he is, who he was, and who he wants to be.

But still, something was nagging. Like a twist of grey still shifted in the back of his mind. He didn't know what his past was, but something told him it was important. Something told him that they would all need to know....

***To be continued***

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