Kelski took a little bell and chimed it as she climbed up onto the stage. The Kelvic in her costume was something of a commanding presence, only that her pale skin and striking eyes illuminated her now-white hair and caused her body to gleam. She looked fully Konti in the costume, though in truth she was darker as a Kelvic, less lit from within. But it was a night for such things and she was taking her cues from Maurice who himself had an enormous on-stage presence. She pulled something from her pocket, a gleaming ring with a red jewel, and slipped it on her finger kissing it. And for a moment – the remainder of that day - she transferred her Mastery of Jewelcrafting into a Mastery of Storytelling for that moment and for that purpose of honoring the God she’d made such promises too.
“I thought it would be a good time for a break for everyone. I have made a promise to tell a story, and to spread awareness. My story won’t drag on, but you’ll want to hear it. It’s one of those that once you know the tale, it will stick with you and effect you in ways you will only begin to understand.” She said in a voice pitched to project out across the audience. She didn’t know most of the people here, but relying on those she did know, Kelski let her eyes rest on some of her fellow Kelvics and even Gilthas for courage. The rainbow man in the building also gave her comfort, so she let her gaze and smile rest on him. Finally taking courage, letting the confidence that her story would be heard fill her, she stepped forward and began telling it.
Her voice pitched for the crowd and rang out perfect, its inflections pleasant and alluring.
“The story starts two thousand years before the Valterrian when The Gods of today were not exactly like the Gods of those days. There were more Gods then, less killing, less betrayal, and the world gates worked easing travel and making the world more connected. People were not aware of their mortality and were softer due to their comforts. The world then felt smaller, more crowded, when one could step through a stone structure and be in the deserts of Eyktol in less than a chime. In those days, there was a God that even in those days was considered old. His name was Xhyves, and they called him Farseer for he looked far off into the distance and could see the possibilities. Neither good nor bad, many worshiped Xhyves and looked to him for guidance in decisions. Certainly, the leaders of The Suvan Empire and Kalea used his power as they could, for he could see the possibilities of their actions and anticipate the outcome based on those possibilities.” She said, taking a breath.
“The Farseer looked into the future one day and saw The Valterrian. He saw too that he would not survive it. It is a hard thing, I think, staring into your mortality and knowing your end was coming. Especially, perhaps, for a God. But he was not deterred. Most Gods aren’t. And so, he started combing the possibilities of how he could survive it if he were not alive as a God is known to be alive for such a thing. And in the way of Gods he fell upon a solution in the hearts and stubbornness of man. He found a bloodline, a prolific one, that was full of creative strong-willed stubborn intellects that had such spirits that would not quit, ensuring that they would more than likely as a family survive the Valterrian. Once he identified this bloodline, this family, he started to watch them and plan.” Kelski said, moving back and forth across the stage. Her voice was luminous, her eyes fierce, and she glanced out over the audience and suddenly saw a familiar form in the back – a tall man with dark hair and bright green eyes. She only saw a glimpse of him before the milling crowd pressed closer. Was it? She wasn’t sure, couldn’t be sure, but she hoped he somehow knew…
“Xhyves also rules Transcendence. That is, the ability to rise above your circumstances… to go above or beyond the known normal or expected. He would not give up. And so he found a way to transfer his power, his very essence, into that bloodline knowing it was a chance and a slim one at that – that his power and indeed who he was as a God would survive hiding within the bloodline of this family and make it through the Valterrian to where he could re-manifest and come back to himself to progress further through the world and rebuild his strength in his realm of influence.” Kelski intoned, throwing her voice wide.
“And it worked. He performed the miracle and transferred himself into a bloodline. And then he left his creatures, the Gasvik, who were immortal winged bat creatures that start out as small as your hand and grow slowly over time… he left them as the guardians of this bloodline. Two thousand years passed, the Valterrian happened, and his bloodline survived. The plan was the Gasvik would awaken his power and free his essence from the bloodline when the Valterrian was over. But they lost track of the bloodline…. The Valterrian was a terrible time. People died. The world erupted in fire and changed drastically. And so the Gasvik lost their charges and have been searching ever since.” Kelski said loudly, her voice sweeping across the crowd Masterfully. Then she lifted her hands, brought them down, and swished them out dramatically.
“Seven years ago, a Miracle happened. The last surviving member of Xhyves’ chosen line was rediscovered by the Gasvik. Powerful, determined, but the absolute last of his kind…. The Gasvik freed their God and Xhyvas broke out into the world; whole and healthy. And now… he walks among us, showing us the possibilities of the world. Recently… very recently… I met him. And he aided me to see what was possible. Our future is not set in stone. We can make our own fates. Every little action has a reaction… a consequence. He showed me that. And if you weigh your steps carefully, you’ll open yourself up to the Possibilities the future can hold. Just look at us here… we are from all over the world, from all walks of life, from all different corners of Sunberth. Most of us were strangers before tonight. But we came together… peacefully… and we celebrate the future we can have. That’s a precious thing, here in Sunberth, to even remotely think we can have a future. He showed me that. And in return, he only asked me one thing.” She said dramatically, drawing out the word, pausing…. giving people a chance to wonder what he had asked of the hostess.
“He asked me to tell as many people as I could that he has returned… about who he is… and what he stands for. Because Xhyvas is back in the world, walking among us… we can have hope that struggles and difficulties can be overcome… that we can Transcend. His name is Xhyvas. And I give thanks he walks among us again... thanks to Him, The Bloodline One, and his Gasvik that caretook them.”
She said that last part quietly, reverently, as if it were more of a prayer than a fluid ending to a speech, and with that she turned the stage back over to the musicians who seemingly enjoyed the break and the pause in their playing. Most of them were busy drinking ale and cider, and grabbing quick bites from the buffet.
