Chaapter 3

Well, I’ve taken my own advice and have started meditating. It has proved to be very useful. It seems when Galta and her sisters finally captured me I put my thoughts in a series of nested well-locked boxes, meditating has begun to open them up. With that the kitchen and a sitting room are now open as well. It is nice to have a kitchen in my home. I now understand how to the read divination stones and sticks that had been left in the bedside table.

The sitting room is where I used to, and will again, answer the questions that people would have. I would guide them on which path would be most beneficial to them. People would come in with questions, yet they usually already knew what the answer would be, all they really wanted was some guidance and reassurance. This room is bright and cheerful, filled with chairs and small tables, large windows, and lots of plants. Aleatha and I have been using this room for meditation and our lessons. She is learning very quickly. Her abilities are strong in the healing arts, the same as her mother and all the women in her family, past and present.
Though the kitchen is quite large cooking meals isn’t its only purpose. There is an area that has a large assortment of jars and bottles containing dried herbs, teas, and all kinds of liquids. Aleatha recognizes some of these as ones that she uses to heal the villagers, or to help keep illness from spreading. I am sure, in time, that I will remember what all of them are used for. Until then I am left to ponder their uses, even Aleatha is unsure what most are used for.

I have been able to mentally reach out and feel the temperament of everyone in this valley. It seems they don’t trust what is going on here in my house. It seems that the thought is that I’ve traded one cave for another. I will need to go down to the village and make myself available to all that live there. If I’m going to be of service to them, they need to know that I am available to them. I may even try to find the cave I had been imprisoned for so long. Maybe then I will learn more about what has happened to this valley and me.

"Aleatha, tell me who the elders of the village are, it’s about time that I met them."

"Everyone is wondering if you had traded one form of captivity for another. The cave where you were held prisoner is on the opposite end of the valley. First there is Meelos, he is the one that everyone goes to in order to settle disputes and ask when planting season starts. The second is Trina; she is the one that the women go to for help with the family, whether it’s for trying to conceive to how to solve other family problems. Then there is Cyril, the most cynical of the three, certifies who shall an apprentice to whom and who is ready to graduate to the next level. Before any outside trader can do business here in the valley they have to have the approval of all three elders. Cyril is the first one that they have to talk to and he hears all the news of the world outside the valley first, because of this he mistrusts anyone that is not from the village. Even though you came to this valley before there was a village, he still sees you as an outsider and so mistrusts that you are who the legends say you are. All three will have to decide that you are who you say you are. The fact that my mother and I have taken care of you for so long helps."

"Thank you Aleatha for being so honest. It is time for me to meet them and the rest of the village, they are waiting for us."

I stop at the steps of the porch; the valley isn’t as fruitful and teeming with life, as it had been when I first built my home here. There were plants and animals, both domestic and wild, running through this valley. Now there were a couple of small herds of domestic animals, and a few fields of crops struggling to grow in the worn out land. After taking a few steps off the porch and away from my house I look back to see that all the plants around my home are green and lush with birds, butterflies and other small animals. No wonder the people of the village are so mistrustful of me and who I am. This is why Aleatha has been so quiet these last few days, the entire village had been happy that I was still alive then when my memory started to return so did the life in and around my house. Yet this renewal of life had not extended past my porch. I still cannot remember how to effect the growth of plants or how to get rain into this little valley.

As we walk down the path to the village I see blackness on the other side of the valley, high up on the upper edge. "What is up there that has blighted that whole area?"

"We believe that is the cave where you were held prisoner. According to the legends and the elders at one time that blighted area was so small you could only see it when you were close to it. Now it has spread farther into the valley. We all fear that it will consume the whole valley eventually. The rest should be discussed with the elders."

I turn to look at my house to see how large it looks from a distance, trying to think of how I can turn the blight around or at least get the crops to grow a little better. As I look up, expecting that the only green that I would see would be my home, I am surprised to see that the path and hill behind me are turning green. A stream has also formed to begin flowing to what is now a dried up lake. If I keep walking towards the village will the growth continue? The reading of the stones said that today would be very prosperous, now I see that is true in more ways than one. How will this affect the people in the village? I have noticed that Aleatha is even healthier since the first day that I awoke. Will I affect others the same way? I hope only for the best outcome. Even the stream increases as we get closer to the village; it will fill the lake within a month or two at this rate. There also seems to be canals, which are now filling to water the crops. I hope the meeting with the elders’ goes as well as this new growth.

We are now close enough to the village to be able to see the villagers clearly, they looked stunned, and the emotion I feel is that of shock. Shock at the growth that is following me.

We have reached the bridge at the edge of the village; the bridge is now needed to cross over the stream that now runs through the valley. The elders are waiting on the other side. Aleatha must make introductions before I can cross this bridge, unless they ask me into the village, I cannot enter into the village. I cannot go where I am not wanted, the villagers are of mixed feelings, some want to welcome me, some are afraid of me.
Aleatha walks to the center of the bridge; she starts the introductions in a loud, clear voice. "Meelos, Trina, and Cyril, I would like to introduce the one that is told of in legends, the one that is called The Oracle. She has come of her own free will and seeks council with you. She has much to teach and much to learn. Please allow her entrance into our humble village."

"She may enter" intones Meelos. "We have much to discuss."

As I cross the bridge and walk towards the center of the village I notice that the growth and renewal follow me. If I stand in the middle of the village will the growth continue throughout the entire village or will it stop behind me? I guess we will all find out as the day progresses. Our meeting will take place in a small round building at the edge of the Village Square.

Meelos, being the eldest of the elders, starts our discussion. "When Aleatha told us that you had awakened, all of us were glad that you were healing. The legends told us that you would heal our valley. As days past the only thing that was growing was the area around your home. Many of the villagers were angry that you would not bring growth farther into the valley. We, the elders, counciled patience, no one knew how strong your powers were or if you would even be able to do what the legends said. It seems that patience is just what was needed. On behalf of the village, we thank you for bringing new life into the valley."

"You are very welcome. The growth that you saw around my home is actually my home. As my mind clears and my memory returns, rooms in my home open up. So far, only a small portion of my home is available to me. It seems that even though I have not progressed any farther into the village, the rest of the village has been renewed. Unfortunately, the growth and renewal will not make the blighted area recede. Now that I am closer to it, hatred and anger have brought that blight. I will have to get closer to it to learn how to heal that whole area. That can wait until tomorrow, we still have a lot to talk about today." Our talks go on for the rest of the day. The noon meal is brought into us, by evening even Cyril is beginning to believe that I am the one that the legends speak of. For that matter, I am begining to understand what the legends say. The turmoil outside this valley grows slowly every day. "It is getting late, may I stay in the village tonight? I plan on going up to the blighted area tomorrow."

"You may stay at Marta’s house," offers Trina. "The homes and lands are handed down from mother to daughter, instead of from father to son."

"Thank you again for welcoming me into your village. I am glad to hear that the homes are kept on the women’s’ side of family, it keeps the homes happy." Aleatha takes me to the home she shares with her mother and father. It has been a very long day, I am glad for the simple meal and the warm bed. Again I fell the tingle of a past memory, or is it? There is still much I must learn about my own powers. Tomorrow I must be careful, the blighted area will hold many dangers. I can feel my home; another room has opened up. Perhaps it is a music room. The tingle has eluded me yet again.