Call of the Silverveil - Prologue

Instructions

Prologue Evermere, a quiet lakeside town nestled in a valley shrouded by morning mist. The lake itself–called Lake Seren–is said to be enchanted. The locals speak of old spirits, forgotten gods, and voices that speak only to those who are chosen. Long ago, before Evermere was founded, it’s said the land was a battlefield between two powerful forces–one of starlight, one of shadow. In the final clash, a celestial being descended from the stars, singing a lullaby that lulled the shadows into eternal sleep. That being, called Selune, gave her life to seal the darkness beneath the earth, and where her tears fell, the lake formed. It’s said the lake still remembers her song. Legends of the lake are exchanged around the campfire, the most common being “The Legend of the Mirror Bride.” They say long ago, there was a girl who lived alone in the woods beyond the lake. Her name was lost–some say the lake took it–but she was beautiful and kind, known for weaving ribbons from moonlight and singing lullabies to the wind. One day, a prince from a kingdom far away rode into the valley. He saw the girl and fell in love at first glance, forever. He promised to marry her and take her away to his kingdom, where the stars were closer. She agreed, but only under one circumstance. He was never to look into the lake. Not once, not even to see her reflection. The lovesick prince agreed, promising he’d do anything for her. But on the morning of the wedding, barefoot and crowned in wildflowers, he glanced into the water. He saw her reflection there, but it was not smiling. Her face in the lake was weeping. Her eyes dark. She whispered something he could not hear. THe moment he looked, the wind stopped. The mist swallowed the trees. And the girl–the real one–was gone. Some say the lake took her, others say she was the lake, and the promise was merely a test. The lake holds a balance between the quiet forces of the world. Peace and storm. Day and night. Life and death. If the balance is disrupted in any way, the water turns dark. The mist creeps too far inland, bending reality. Once every couple generations, the lake calls to someone. The legends call them the Lake’s Chosen. Most who visit Evermere brush it off as a myth, but one young woman–the ancestor of the town’s founders–Named Aurelia Evermere, would sit by the lake and listen to it every day. As a young girl, Aurelia would sit by the lake, sometimes even talking to it. Her peers, as young as they were, called her weird, and she never made any friends. Aurelia didn’t mind, though. She had the lake. Her parents kept telling her to stop going out there and make some real friends, but she never listened. Late one evening, just before her tenth birthday, as the moon started to reflect off the lake, the lake finally answered her. “Awaken.” From that night on, her dreams began to shift. She started to see glimpses of ancient ruins hidden beneath the water, a silvery-haired woman–who she thinks may be the girl from the campfire legend–and a deer with antlers made of starlight. She even saw the lake itself–awake.