#llengrath

“To the esteemed Watcher of Caed Nua,”

Llengrath’s quill lightly brushed against her chin as she lifted it from the parchment, deep in thought.

‘Is this too formal?’ The question was only met with the light groans of the two dragons resting beside the archmage.

A moment passed, then another, the soft cacophony of the critters of Mowrghek Îen slowly grew louder to Llengrath’s ear. The rock she was sitting on felt strangely cold, the clearing was gradually overtaken by penumbra, the breeze sweeping over the wetlands brought an unexpected – if gentle – chill. Did a cloud cover the sun? Or did time pass unnoticed? Llengrath sighed heavily through her nose.

‘Pathetic,’ she said under her breath as she dipped the quill in the bottle hovering over her knees. Being Llengrath was always about connections. This should not be as daunting of a challenge as it appeared in her mind. She was an archmage of the Circle, a dragonrider, a letter to a… an acquaintance should not demand this much of her attention. And yet, if sitting on that rock in the middle of the clearing brought any realizations, it was that Llengrath was not very skilled in the art of making friends. Definitely not as skilled as the Watcher, or so it would seem.

Being Llengrath was always about connections. It was about understanding someone as one would understand oneself – so that one day, one might become part of them and in doing so, become them. Did the Watcher learn something from the pact they formed? Did she see value in Llengrath's perspective? Or was she merely glad to leave the bog alive? Llengrath shook her head. So sentimental. So very unlike her.

“I’m sure, you’ll be glad to hear that even the smallest bit of news seem to reach Mowrghek Îen these days. Deservedly so, you have managed to do what no one could in fifteen years. You have made quite the name for yourself, Lady Gaura.”

‘Would it be rude to imply that our encounter helped?’ Llengrath voiced a thought.

‘I miss the days you were this concerned about her being alive,’ Turisulfus grumbled.

Llengrath laughed softly. She stared at the parchment in front of her. To think she once wanted her dead for what she knew…

‘She’s a bad influence, I suppose.’

Definitely a soft-hearted one, at least, she thought. But she shouldn’t be surprised by it, after all a chanter’s power lies in connecting to the memories of the past, to appeal to them through art and bend them to one’s will. As a wizard, Llengrath couldn’t help but see it as unnecessary additional effort. Why do all that, when one can exert the same power and control with the right runes?

But then again, being Llengrath was about connections…

“Gafonercos has gotten better at singing since we met. As for myself, my brief glance at the world through your eyes granted me a perspective on metaphysics that has already been proven to be quite valuable.”

Being Llengrath was about understanding another the way one understands oneself… and who knows souls better than a Watcher? To see them, and be seen by them, to see secrets buried under several turns of the Wheel. What a boon. What a threat.

“I would welcome the chance to continue our cooperation. If you were inclined to share what you’ve learned during your research into Waidwen’s Legacy, I’m sure we could find applications of your expertise that could be beneficial to many.”

‘Do you honestly believe that?’ Gafonercos’ voice boomed over the archmage’s shoulder. It was a fair question. If there was one thing that Llengrath and Gaura agreed on, it was that knowledge was power. But how it was meant to be used… that was a different question entirely as was their answers to it.

‘I’m not sure, but she does, and that could lead her down a dangerous path,’ she nodded with determination as she wrote her closing lines.

“Looking forward to your response, Llengrath of the Circle of Archmagi”

With a single breath on the parchment, Llengrath dried the ink. She folded the parchment with swift and resolute movements. With a flick of her wrist she pulled a drop of wax from the nearest tree and stamped it on the letter with a shed dragon scale.

‘Tomorrow, we shall find a means to get this to Caed Nua,’ Llengrath declared as she stood up. Her tools floated away from her as if they were servants dismissed.

‘Can’t we just deliver it ourselves?’ Gafonercos asked with an eager gleam in his eye.

‘That would defeat the purpose of a correspondence, wouldn’t it.’

‘Too bad, I’d like to see Caed Nua,’ the dragon whined.