Why?|Acoia

[Darastrix]

Conrad sat on an outdoor bench, staring listlessly across the garden near Efil's temple, his cloak wrapped tightly around his shoulders. Spring was very near, and the garden was already beginning to show subtle signs of life, but there was still a sharp chill in the air.

It was hard for the man to believe that it had been more than half a year since the events that drove him from Ilyamen had occurred--he could still picture everything with disturbing clarity.

"Efil, why?" he murmured for what seemed to be the millionth time, wrapping his arms around himself. "Th-they were ch-ch-children...."

[Kender Bard]

Vespiria was taking a stroll around the grounds, her mind heavy with thoughts and concerns. She held her hands clapsed and held close to her body, forcing her wings to rest streamline with her figure, giving the illusion she wore a cloak of feathers over her her priestly vestments. Spotting Conrad, she wandered over to the man, hesitating near him. "May I sit with you?" she asked gently.

[Darastrix]

Conrad flinched at the sound of her voice and looked up quickly, seeming almost frightened. He noted her robes and relaxed marginally, nodding. "Aye."

[Kender Bard]

Sitting down gently next to Conrad, she put her troubles aside and studied the man. "Is something amiss, sir? It is not often we get one who seems so frightened about something. Would you like to unburden yourself?"

[Darastrix]

"Y-you just st-startled me," he murmured quietly, adjusting his glasses. "I'm n-not afraid; I just have no p-p-peace anymore. N-not even in Efil's home."

[Kender Bard]

"This is a sad thing," Vespiria cooed, and indeed her voice took on just a hint of some sort of bird-like warble as she took on consoling tones. "What has troubled your soul so much that you must be haunted so?"

[Darastrix]

"I was head of Ilyamen's b-bard guild. Last year, a young Storm that I'd exp-p-pelled attacked the hall. S-some of my s-students were outside. J-j-just children." He paused to remove his glasses and wiped at his eyes. "T-two of them were...were k-k-killed and a third l-lost the use of her right arm and l-leg. The man, L-leon, was b-b-buried alive there on the street b-by another b-b-bard." Conrad shuddered at the memory.

"Officially, I'm on s-sabbatical. But I d-don't know if I c-can ever return after everything. Even m-music has l-lost its appeal."

[Kender Bard]

"It sounds horrible," Vesperia agreed, thinking a little on those she had lost in her foolish crusade a year or so back. "But take solace, my child. Though the world is filled with horrible moments, it is also filled with the good, the sweet. Those who have died live on in the warm glow of Efil's love in the realm of the spirits. They will never know again pain, hunger, sorrow. For them, it is an eternity of happiness."

She paused, then continued, "For the living, we must live on. Life is too precious to spend dwelling on the sorrows. Efil wants us to go and enjoy every second of our lives until we, too, pass on and join her beyond the veil."

[Darastrix]

Conrad was silent for a long while after she spoke, trying to make himself believe her words. Finally he shook his head and sighed.

"I wish I c-could. I want-t-to put this b-behind me, and I hear what you say, b-but my heart st-t-till won't listen."

[Kender Bard]

"Well," Vesperia murmured, paused, and then said, "That's only to understand. I am but a mortal and you wish to question the Force herself. I wish I could help you, and guide you to her in a way that your heart would be appeased... but if I cannot, then I shall pray for some sort of guidance on your behalf." She rose and extended a hand towards him. "I am Vesperia, by the way."

[Darastrix]

"C-c-conrad," he replied, gently taking her hand to shake. "And I at l-least st-till have hope that it will heal. It's j-just so hard t-t-to hold onto that hope the closer to the heart the p-pain is."

[Kender Bard]

"All pain fades with time," she assured him. "Hold that hope close and it will see you through to the end, I promise." She squeezed his hand warmly, resting the other on top of it. "And if you have ever need of guidance in prayer, I would be happy to assist you." Letting go, she flashed him another sweet smile before walking away.