Prophecy And Potential...

The vigil passes slowly for both of the betrothed. Their minds wander along the paths of memory and worry about the future, each for their own reasons. Kurvannug finds herself beset by visions of her lost sisters, when suddenly she feels their presence, as though they were in the room...

"Walkanvag, Josnakshah, what message have you to relay to me in this dark hour?" Kurvannug asks into the dark room, and a small glow appears behind her.

"You know us well sister, and our tidings are mostly glad ones. Fear not reprisal from your husband when your powers awake, he is not like our grandfather. Fear not the reaction of your escort either, they fear Warvannax far more than your ability, and he would flay the flesh from their bones if they botched this diplomatic event. However, there is something you must fear. The Neffal will hunt you and your children, for they believe that your husband is of the Inquisitor Joseph of Calderon's get, and as such your union could lead to the prophecy of Naggashzar's Curse reaching fulfillment. You will need to scour the archives of these three monasteries to prove them wrong and render your children safe: The Abby of Saint Clare in Heriford Shire, The United Brotherhood of Saint Ascobar in Cartos, and the Fortress of Minilah the Self Martyred in The Glibly Forests. Each will be perilous, but none more so than the last." And with that utterance, the light vanished...

Meanwhile, about a mile away, Sir Harold Voltaic stood his own vigil, and he was no less troubled by visions than his wife-to-be...

None could see it but him, however, as the sun first crested the horizon in the east, a flare of light came rising up in a column of fire from the sun, and a seraph of the gods of light raced to him from the horizon in the space of a few seconds.

She was beautiful, with skin like sky on a cloudy night, yet hair like gold and wings of silver; but also terrible, her presence forcing him to remember every sin he had ever committed, no matter how minor or long ago, and her majesty such that it took all Sir Harold's will to not flee in panic for he knew himself unworthy!

"Fear not Sir Harold, every being that has ever lived is unworthy of the summit of Celestia ere they die and are purified. However thou art closer than most to apotheosis. Thou hast walked a hard road, and there is more yet to come, but in this moment the pinnacle of light has sent me to speak with thee. Thou have much yet to do ere thou starts thy journey towards Heavens peak, and I am here to set thee on thy road forward." The angel said, and Sir Harold was comforted.

"What is it You would have me do, oh messenger of Heaven?" Sir Harold asked, forcing himself to confront the seraph's gaze, no matter how much his eyes watered with pain and shame.

"Thou are to wed soon, and I offer you a blessing for that event. Love can grow in the ashes of a love lost, but when two loves, one denied and one new, both seek to grow in the same heart they poison each other. Fate decreed when you first entered the Rose Garden Academy that there were only two moments were thee and Dame Margaretha McAlister could truly become lovers and start a path to wedded bliss together, and you each let thy moment pass thee by...

Without warning Dame, Margaretha McAlister stood beside him and they each turned to each other, faces graven deep with grief and shock. Each knew in their heart when there one moment had been now and saw the other knew...

"When Sir Harold?" Dame Margaretha asked and his eyes filled with tears.

"That shallow cave where we sheltered from the blizzard in the mountains when we had just left the academy seven years ago; when you suggested we share a sleeping bag to conserve fuel but instead I bespelled us against the cold: and you?" Sir Harold choked.

"Two years later, when we had enough money for only two rooms at the inn on the edge of the swamp. I almost asked you to share my room instead of Shylavan, but I decided that would be improper... I was right, it would have been; beautifully and blessedly..." she said, then both allowed their pain to pour forth in great wracking sobs.

When they had both cried for what felt like hours and shed all the tears they had in them the seraph touched their cheeks and whispered a word in celestial, which left them both clear-headed and calm.

"You have missed your appointments with destiny, and could not find happiness with each other now, circumstances would destroy you if you tried, but you are not to be bereft of the joys of marriage. I must speak to you separately, for your paths diverge on the morrow, but know this each of you, your last chance to become lovers passed years ago, but lovers you shall have, not only in the physical sense but spiritually and emotionally as well." And with those words, Dame Margaretha McAlister vanished.

Sir Harold turned again to the seraph and faced squarely his mistakes and failures.

"So serious, so grim!" The seraph laughed. "This is no mood for a bridegroom at the dawning of the day of his wedding! You are about to be married Sir Harold, does not thy wife-to-be deserve thy love and affection?" The seraph asked chidingly.

"Yes, of course," Sir Harold allowed, feeling conflicted.

"But...?" The seraph prompted...

"I know nothing about her, nor she about me!" Sir Harold exclaimed. "This is the ultimate arranged marriage: yesterday we met and spoke for less than an hour, today we are to be married! How can I give my love to someone I don't know?!" Sir Harold cried out, letting his pain burst forth.

"Arranged marriages are nothing new Sir Harold. Yes, some prove incompatible, but so do some started with love as the two drift apart. Thee at least have the advantage that there are no secrets or lies between you, mysteries a-plenty but no deliberate falsehoods. Thou art an adventurer, treat Kurvannug's past as a puzzle to discover and unlock. She knows no more about thee than thou does her, discover each other together." The seraphim stated, and Sir Harold 'Hummm'-ed deep in his throat.

"However, let it be known unto thee that she suffers under a divine curse: it is thy duty to help her keep to the righteous path in the face of its temptations." The seraph continued, looking sternly at The Paladin. "You will have to brave many perils together, and the temptations you face will be many, but if you cleave to each other and heed each other's needs, you can triumph..." The seraphim finished, and before Sir Harold could ask what she meant, she was gone...

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