A very special story about a special mother for mother's day. Enjoy!


-Diaden will be waiting for me,- Araelia realized as she snuck through the lower halls of Smoulderflame Keep. -I need to at least reach him before they know what I’ve done.-

Her father had lied to her, of that Araelia was certain. The tomes he gave her to read from on Pnumadesi’s history since the second war of elements were all written with favorable views of her people, painting them in a light she had personally never experienced in her ninety plus years on the plane.

She turned a corner and almost ran over one of the guards who patrolled this part of her father’s home.

“What are…?” Araelia didn’t give the fieran a chance to finish his question. Removing the duskwood dagger her wizard companion gave her from the dead soldier’s chest, she quickly spread some salt around him and spoke the words that would deliver his physical form to an abandoned cellar within the keep.

-If elementals are so benevolent, father, why does the rest of Pnumadesi see us as their enemies? Why do we see ourselves as enemies?-

She took off again down the hall, careful to avoid another collision. The more guards she killed, the more likely she was to get caught when her father started looking around for them all.

From what little the woman gathered out of the biased information, at the end of the war, her father, Fire General Ragnar, gave the Gems of Power to the races of Pnumadesi as a peace offering. The humans, the dwarves, the dragonkin of the north, and the annodam each possessed one of the five magical artifacts. The last was kept by Ragnar, who deemed it too dangerous to trust with any other.

One last corner and she stood facing the door which led into the dragon’s den. The beast inside was an ally of her father’s, so she had to very carefully choose her words when it questioned her presence there.
From her own experience, Araelia knew that the fire general had used the gem in the room beyond to raise the undead creatures that now guarded Smoulderflame Keep alongside lesser elementals and elementborn like herself. Horrible, nightmare creatures such as the syn were created almost at a whim and bound to the soldier by whom they stayed at all times. Eventually, these bonds corrupted the guard as well, turning them into something that existed between the Underrealm and her reality. She was appalled to hear of such abominations, but her father was satisfied to know that he now had a means of protecting himself even within the realm of shadow.

-I hope you’re ready to work your magic, Diaden.- She briefly considered turning away from her task. Nobody would question three missing guards. Ragnar frequently killed his subordinates and never bothered to question who they were in the first place. It would be assumed he had done away with them or they left to avoid such punishment.

-No, I can’t give up. Not after learning what he is capable of doing.-

Doing some of her own research outside of the Elemental Plateau, Araelia read what she felt was closer to the truth. After taking the gauntlets from the xendauni, the elemental army hunted down much of the race on its way to wipe them from Pnumadesi. Those deemed worthy weren’t killed, but rather brought back to the Elemental Plateau, where the fire general’s brightest and most diabolical mages experimented on them.


One entire group had been set aside to test the effects of the gloves on them. Their own, lesser gauntlets were sewn to their arms so they couldn’t remove them without extreme pain and they were sent out in ones and twos for testing.

One extreme case detailed several days spent where water elementals slowly tortured a xendauni man or woman by wearing the Gauntlets of Brister and using the link between them to twist and warp the prisoner’s mind until nothing was left of who that xendauni was but a quivering, always fearful creature.

Steeling her resolve, Araelia strode to the doorway and walked through it. The spells on the door were meant to guard against any but Ragnar. Because she was of his lineage, Araelia passed through the wards without fear. Her father was well aware of this flaw in the magic, which was why she now faced the guardian of the gem.

-Answer as honestly as possible, or the dragon will kill you outright,- the woman reminded herself as the creature, a black-scaled monster both cunning and intelligent stared at her. Its head alone was easily large enough to smash her had it room to do so. Dragons of this breed particularly enjoyed their riddles and puzzles, she knew, so it only stood to reason that her father would ask one to be the first barrier to the onyx.

In a dry, parched voice, the dragon asked, “What are you doing here, Araelia, daughter of Ragnar?”

“I come to retrieve that which you guard,” she explained without looking it in the eye. She was reciting the words she and Diaden had practiced several times before she left Desmond to return home and recover the gem.

“The gauntlets or the stone?”

Before she realized what she was saying, Araelia asked, “The gauntlets?”

When she inquired about the fate of the Gauntlets of Brister, Ragnar told her that all she needed know was they were in a safe place. Asking some of the mages she could trust, the elementborn woman learned that he had at least attempted to destroy them, but the mystical gloves proved indestructible. None of her contacts within the keep could tell her where they were hidden, but it seemed now she had found out purely by coincidence.

The dragon shuffled to its left, “Then pass. The fire general has granted you permission to view the Gauntlets of Brister. Do not try to pass me, or I shall kill you. Do not try to take the gauntlets or I shall kill you.”

Part of her wanted to scream that she’d already ruined the plan. Another part of her, though, was glad at least to have this opportunity. Watching the black dragon, Araelia carefully walked down the left-hand path.

-Why store both the gauntlets and the gem down here, though?- She suspected trickery, her father was always up to something after all, but the woman couldn’t think of what.

Reaching into her faint, blue robes, Araelia pulled out the box Diaden had given her. Now that she was inside the dragon’s den, she could finally open it as instructed.

Pressing the sides of the lid, Araelia lifted it to reveal a pair of gloves that looked exactly like the Gauntlets of Brister, -He knew I would end up going after the gauntlets. Damnit Diaden, I wish you would have at least warned me first.-

Thinking about it, she realized that he may have saved her life. If she had known the gauntlets were down here as well, she would have been forced to make a choice. That was why Ragnar had placed both items within the den. He expected her to come down here at some point and try to take them. By placing the dragon here on guard, he would have assured her death when she couldn’t decide on a suitable answer to the beast’s request.

-Diaden, old friend, you never cease to amaze me.- She knew the mage had encountered Ragnar before and was the only person in the world to ever outwit the fire general, but his depth of consideration and counter-intuition almost scared her.

An almost indistinct popping sound, like a gas bubble in one of the swamps that dotted her homeland, indicated that Diaden’s stored spell had finished casting itself. Looking back at the gloves in the box, it seemed as though nothing had changed, but the magic that now emanated from the gloves inside told Araelia otherwise.

Shutting the lid, she turned and walked back to the dragon, who watched passively as she left back through the door and away from its den.

*****

Diaden held his arms out to embrace her as she stepped off the trail at the top of the Elemental Plateau, “Araelia, you made it. I was worried you might have gotten into trouble.”

She didn’t share in his joy and, rather than hug the man, handed him the box, “I got through fine, no thanks to you.”

He frowned, “Why’s that? Was I not there when we came up with the plan to retrieve the gauntlets? Did I not give you this very box with the fakes that would magically switch places with the authentic gloves?”

She looked at him with a measure of her father’s heritage burning in her eyes, “Our plan was to get the Gem of Power, not the Gauntlets of Brister.”

Diaden shook his head, “You must be confused, Araelia. Or maybe I am. Could just be my age getting to me. It’s getting time to cast my ritual again. Was the plan to get the onyx?”

She sighed, knowing all too well that he was likely telling the truth. Diaden had explained when they decided to start the resistance that this time of year was often when the ritual that stopped his natural aging wore off. During times like these, he would start to feel and act his age. Because he was technically still human, being close to seven-hundred and six years of age meant his mind and body deteriorated quickly when it wasn’t strengthened by the council’s ritual.

“Let’s get you home so you can do exactly that, then we’ll finish our conversation. As it turns out, it’s a good thing. My father set a trap that would have surely killed me if I knew about the gauntlets being there.”

“That’s nice, dear,” the mage said, patting her hand as she helped him to a horse he must have borrowed in case this happened. They had been close friends for going on sixty years, and he always planned ahead, even for when his power would wane again. “You remind me a lot of my sweet Jennie.”

He stopped walking, and she watched as tears fell from his eyes suddenly, “Oh how I miss her. It’s been almost thirty-four years you know, this next spring. You would have liked her, Araelia, and she you. I loved her so much.”

Trying to keep her own emotions in check, Araelia cleared her throat, “I know you did, my friend. Come now, let’s get home.”

*****

“What’s the plan?” With Diaden back to himself, Araelia wasted no time getting down to business, “If they find out the gloves I left are imitations, not even my status as Ragnar’s daughter will spare me his wrath.”

“Then we must act quickly,” Diaden replied. With his ritual cast, the color had returned to his cheeks and he had power in his voice once again. “Before Brister left, he gave me the instructions I needed to use the weakened powers of the gauntlets. They’ve got three charges in them to do what I’m planning.”

Araelia tilted her head the way she always did when the mage started to get ahead of himself, “And what, exactly, are you planning?”

“We should use the gloves to pass into the Black Forest at the Obsidian Wastes,” he started, then paused to gauge her reaction. Being of air heritage, she was proud to know she could sometimes baffle even him. This happened to be one of those times, so he continued.

“Once there, you…”

She stopped him, “Me!?”

He held up his hand, “Yes, you. You will go to the xendauni as proof of your dedication and give them the Gauntlets of Brister.”

“Two questions,” Araelia asked when her friend finally let her talk, “Why aren’t you going in, with me or alone, and what makes you think they won’t kill me as soon as I set foot in the forest?”

He shook his head, “I would go if I could, but, and you must carry this secret to your grave, the magic that holds the forest away from our dimension would cancel out my ritual’s power. As for your second question, I am not entirely powerless to help you. I will give you protection from the forest’s inherent power that would otherwise drain you to nothingness. The spell will also work as a sign the xendauni will recognize. They will be honor-bound to allow you to explain yourself before they decide whether or not to kill you.”

She coughed a little bit at his proposal, “That’s reassuring, I guess. So I’m just supposed to win them over with my charm?”

“And the gauntlets,” he reminded her, “those are tantamount to your success. Make sure you ask for Elder Segomo. By this time he should be the head of the council, so his decision will hold the most sway. I trust you’ll find him amicable.”

The mage smiled about something that he didn’t share with her, and though she couldn’t help but wonder what he wasn’t saying, Araelia let the man’s gesture go for the moment, “Alright, Diaden, when do we leave to start this grand scheme of yours?”

“Tomorrow morning. Tonight, I must consult with a colleague and help him with his own ritual. He’s not been using it as long as I, so there are still some things he needs assistance with.

She assumed he meant the white-haired man who sometimes visited the Desmond Capital home Diaden borrowed from Brister. Brister’s manor was specifically warded against elementals of any kind, and her companion didn’t want to destroy the carefully woven spells without good reason, so he always went alone to see the man he called Cheldaz.

-I wonder if he doesn’t break the wards in case I end up being a threat to him.- She wouldn’t be surprised if that were the case. Diaden always seemed prepared for every eventuality. Though he swore to never get himself in trouble by reading the Book of the Forgotten Bard in excess, she knew he did sometimes refer to the tome the other mage carried with him at all times, so he probably watched for changes in the text that would indicate she was backing out or changing allegiance.

Still thinking about Diaden’s many ulterior motives, Araelia bid her friend goodnight and went to her room to rest.

*****

Without a horse willing to let her ride it, Araelia and Diaden were made to walk the four months to the Obsidian Wastes. They traveled mostly at night to avoid having to explain her presence outside of the Elemental Plateau, let alone why she was traveling with a druid.

They made it to their destination without any trouble and prepared for her to use one of the gauntlets’ charges to get in.

“Remember, they will need to let you out using the second charge, then the xendauni will hold onto the gauntlets for the next fifteen years while you and I collect the Gems of Power. They will then send their champion to get the gems from us and call the forest back into reality.”

Araelia looked at the mage for a moment, “Why don’t we just get the gems first?”

“Because,” he answered immediately, “if the worst happens and we can’t continue on, the Gauntlets will still provide one of them a chance to continue the search. Without them, the xendauni will remain stuck as they are.”

She hadn’t thought of that. With a shrug, the pale blue, practically transparent woman allowed Diaden to cast his enchantments on her. When he was done, the man cut some of her hair and held it to the light. The strands turned blonde once they were separated from her, and her friend smiled as he placed them in one of his pouches, “You’ll be fine.”

Thoroughly protected, she took the Gauntlets of Brister from their box and walked to the edge of the Obsidian Wastes. Holding the gloves up, she watched as the roots of the trees that stood there almost five-hundred years before began to glow.

All at once, the air in front of her opened up, and through the tear Araelia could see dark trees that glowed purple as she neared them. With one last brave look to Diaden, she stepped through the opening and into the Black Forest.

*****

The xendauni captured Araelia moments after she was on their side of the tear between worlds. When the mage that traveled with them saw the wards placed upon her, he suggested they bring her to the capital for interrogation, and she told them she had come to speak only with Briac Segomo, elder of the xendauni.

They laughed at her bold nature until she showed them the Gauntlets of Brister. One of the soldiers suggested they kill her and take the gauntlets themselves, but the mage warned that the magic protecting her would surely destroy them all if they tried to do such a thing; so they resolved to follow the elementborn’s request and brought her to Elder Segomo.

In her time away from the Elemental Plateau, Araelia had heard many bards’ tales about love at first sight. Being elementborn, she was capable of such emotion, but never believed such a thing would ever happen.

After meeting the head elder of the xendauni, she believed. It was like a weight that was at once lifted from her shoulders and placed on her heart. Had she the power, she might have faded away into wisps of air like a true air elemental.

She could tell the man felt the same from the pale shade of blue his eyes turned and how he stammered over his introduction. For being almost two-hundred himself, Briac still acted quite young.

They negotiated for a while. She explained who she was and from where she came. She told the xendauni of Diaden’s help in recovering the artifacts from her father and their plan to retrieve the Gems of Power over the next fifteen years.

When all was said and done, Briac invited Araelia to stay and learn about his people. She was given a room in his home and treated like the ally she was. There were several members of the race that, for good reason, didn’t trust her. Most of the xendauni that remained in the forest had lost family in the second war of elements, and now their elder council was taking sides with the daughter of their most hated enemy. Araelia understood the hatred and took the glares and occasional jibes in her direction with a grain of salt.

After almost two weeks in the Black Forest Araelia had to leave. The gloves had worked their next charge back up, and the xendauni knew all that she could tell them until she returned with the Gems of Power. Briac told her that his son, Arawn, would be the one to collect the stones from her when the time came. She was excited to meet the sentinel prince, as he’d been away on his first mission during her stay.

Now that she stared back through the rift into Pnumadesi, almost six months had passed and the spring season was coming to an end. Before leaving the Black Forest, she gave Briac one final, heartfelt kiss and looked into his glowing, blue eyes, “I will see you soon.”

“It will be the longest fifteen years I have spent in the forest,” the xendauni elder told her. They hugged and she stepped through. It was the tearful goodbye she’d never had with anybody from her own race, least of all her parents.

The tear closed behind her again, and the elementborn looked around to see if her companion had returned for her as planned.

“I trust everything went well,” Diaden commented from his vantage point several yards away. It was as if he hadn’t moved from that spot since the day she left.

“Very well, actually,” Araelia responded with a coy smile. She took a moment to think back fondly on her time spent with the race that was supposed to be her mortal enemy, then walked to the green-robed man and gave him a hug, “I missed you, old friend.”

“And I you,” he replied, matching her embrace. “Come, much has happened these past months that I will explain as we make our way back to Desmond.”

*****

On the trip back south, Diaden brought Araelia up to speed on current affairs. The lord of Desmond passed away and was replaced by a dwarf heritage northern born man named Anthony. They would need to do their research on him, now that he would be the one in possession of the humans’ Gem of Power.

“Speaking of northern born,” the mage commented as they left Bristan one morning, “some fighting in the area of Frostwhelm between the elementborn and the dragonkin has made it hard to keep tabs on the pearl. I’ll see what I can do before we get there. Do you know anybody in that area who may be of some help?”

She frowned, “No. Alder and his mesh of elementborn are no allies to my father, but neither are they to be trusted. If we had to ask anybody, the earthen would be our best bet, but even they answer to him for the most part.”

Diaden’s brow furrowed, “Hmm, I’ll see what I can do to work that angle. Anyway, I have Cheldaz on his way to Annodam Territory to check on the emerald. We likely won’t see him for a couple years, and without his copy of the Book of the Forgotten Bard to aid us during that time, we’ll need to be careful.”

“Any word on the dwarves and the ruby?” It was the only gem not accounted for before Araelia left, and she was curious if Diaden’s search had panned out.

He shook his head, “Unfortunately not. Lord Helmhad refuses to say whether or not the gem is still in his possession, and he’s kept the secret of its whereabouts even from his son, Jeremiah.”

She wasn’t surprised to find that the mage had tried to subvert the dwarven ruler’s authority through his kin, but it did surprise her that the dwarf had seemingly guessed at such a possibility, thus blocking that path as well.

As if reading her mind, Diaden smiled, “I have no doubt that David somehow divined my attempts to learn where he kept the ruby. He and his son both have the faith, after all.”

“Is their whole family so blessed?” Araelia asked, half-jokingly.

The mage chuckled, “No, Lord Helmhad’s other son is becoming quite the mastersmith, though.”

Araelia was about to say something else when she suddenly doubled over and lost most of her breakfast on the path.

****

“Since you were only in the Black Forest for a little while, your body never acclimated,” Diaden explained to the suddenly very pregnant Araelia. “When you left, it raced to catch back up to the normal flow of time. Judging by your progress in the last week, I’d say you’re almost seven months along.”

Araelia was excited, scared, angry, and overjoyed all at once. She lay with Briac while they were together, but it never occurred to her that they might spawn a child together. Now she worried that she had jeopardized the mission before it even really started.

Diaden admonished the elementborn when she made her fears known, “Nonsense, my dear. This is a miraculous thing. There has never, even to my knowledge, been a child born to a xendauni and an elemental. Your son or daughter will be very unique indeed.” He helped her back onto the horse they bought because of her condition. The mage admitted that he hated doing it, but he charmed the beast so it would let her ride on it without trouble.

She realized something terrible and grabbed her friend’s shoulders, “I have to get back to the Elemental Plateau, now.”

Her friend was confused, “Why is that?”

“If the child is born more elemental than xendauni, it won’t be able to survive outside of the Elemental Plateau’s atmosphere for at least a year.”

That got his attention, “Then we must hurry to the plateau. Are you able to travel longer on less rest so we can?”

Araelia gave him a shaky smile, “I already can’t sleep, so we may as well travel.”

Diaden rubbed her knee in sympathy, “That will do.” He slapped the horse on its flank and mounted his own so they could finish their trip to Desmond Capital and the Elemental Plateau beyond.

*****

For the next month and a half, Araelia suffered as she and Diaden pushed to reach her homeland before she gave birth. Finally, as the sun rose on the fifteenth day of the fall season, the two friends climbed to the top of the plateau, where the fire general stood waiting for them.

Diaden was the first to spy Ragnar as his head rose above the mountainside on which he and Araelia climbed. Ducking, he very quickly blew a handful of dust in her direction, disguising her to look normal.

“I’ve already seen you, mage. If you run, I will kill you both as you try to climb back down the path,” her father’s voice rumbled like a kiln as a bellows was blown through it.

Frightened beyond all reason, Araelia started to cry while clutching her belly. The contractions had just gotten to a point where she knew her child would be with them any time now.

Undaunted, Diaden leaned down to her and whispered, “No matter what, act normal. If you want to get your child out of this safely, you must.”

She nodded and held her head high while they both stepped up onto the top of the range that separated her world from the one she had adopted.

“We have no reason to run, general,” Diaden told her father. “I am merely helping your daughter back into the plateau because I’d rather not give you a reason to take your hostility out on my people if something were to happen to her.”

Ragnar never took his fiery gaze off of Diaden as he addressed his daughter, “You stole the gauntlets from me. Where are they?”

“Safe,” Araelia said, trying to sound brave, “from you.”

Her father laughed, still watching Diaden, who hadn’t moved since speaking before. The sound reminded Araelia of a gnomish turbine she’d seen back in Helmdar as it started to spin.

“Nothing is safe from me, precious Araelia. Do you realize, mage, that you have broken the treaty by stealing the Gauntlets of Brister?”

With speed unexpected for a being his size, Ragnar reached the eight feet out to Diaden and slammed him hard enough to bowl him over.

But the mage did not move. In fact, her father’s fist passed right through him as a voice to Araelia’s right said, “I did nothing of the sort, general. An elemental ambassador brought the Gauntlets of Brister from the Elemental Plateau and bestowed them upon one of the races of Pnumadesi as a peace offering.”

Araelia and Ragnar both looked to where Diaden had moved. Seeing the man unharmed, the elemental roared in anger and turned as he drew his axe, “You’ve played your games for the last time, mage. Tell me, what name shall I burn into your tombstone?”

It was Diaden’s turn to laugh, “You’ll not learn my name this day. When at last you hear my name, general, it will be your last day on this plane of existence.” He dove back to avoid a slash from Ragnar’s axe. The weapon carved into the ground without meeting resistance and came back up just as easily.

Araelia knew Diaden was stalling. He didn’t have the magic to fight her father alone, so he was doing his best to tire the fire general out. Taking a step forward to try and help her friend, Araelia practically fell over as the contractions hit her once more. Bowing on one knee, she locked eyes with Diaden, hoping he could see that she was giving birth.

Diaden and Ragnar both looked away from where they faced off and the mage teleported to her side so he could help her lay down, but had to roll away to avoid being cleaved by her father’s axe.

“What is it you are hiding, Araelia?” Ragnar closed the distance with his daughter in two steps and picked her up by the throat. His flames wrapped around her like a blanket, stifling her and making it impossible to breathe.

“Let her go, general,” Diaden threatened weakly. “She is still your daughter. Don’t do anything rash.”

Ragnar laughed once more as he stepped to the edge of the plateau overlooking Desmond Capital, “Like this?” With a casual toss that sent the elementborn woman a dozen feet clear of the mountain, the elemental released his daughter to fall, screaming toward the ground below. Had she been healthy and not with child, the fall would do little to Araelia, but in her condition, it could prove fatal.

As her voice failed and silence reigned, Araelia saw several bright flashes of light back up top. One of the flashes hit just as she was having another contraction, and Araelia found herself having a vision. Diaden had told her that sometimes, when something in the world was about to change, those involved would have a vision.

She was watching a young boy with gray, nearly transparent skin and bright, monochrome blue eyes. He was doing something while Diaden coached him. Before her eyes, Araelia watched as the child’s body transformed. It became solid and a pale, flesh color. Thick, blonde hair grew from his head into a short crop styled like the Desmondi men and women she’d been around for decades.

When his transformation was complete, he quickly checked himself in the mirror given to him by her friend, “Did I do it, Diaden? Am I human?”

“You certainly are, Zen,” the man said as he embraced the boy in a hug. “Your mother would be proud.”

“I am,” Araelia said with a smile as her body struck the ground.