Monk

In the morning of the tenth day, one of the Rep’s many stewards came to his door. But this was no simple servant: He brought fine robes, oils, and a gold necklace for Hyran to wear. He dressed Hyran ritualistically, mumbling words in old Elvish. The ex-monk understood them, of course, but the ritual was a bit baffling. It seemed as if he had jumped back to an earlier era, when such elaborate rituals were the norm.
And then the servant spoke a direction, in the old tongue: “You have been granted an audience with the Most High Elf, the Representative of the Great Master. He will speak to you now, cleansed and purified. Follow me, and I will show you to him.”
Hyran bowed his head, intending only to nod, but the steward flipped a hood over Hyran’s head. Then, the two went out, walking the quiet streets to the Rep’s own cathedral.
Here, the floor sloped steeply up as they walked toward the other end. Though certainly not the oldest structure in Kezantopil, it certainly was the grandest. It was as long as the tree was in diameter, and the windows toward which they walked caught the rising sun through a wide gap in the trees known nowhere else in the known world. The sun was nearly blinding, in fact, but on they walked. Every surface was festooned with intricate carvings, which were on the most incredibly long and spindly extrusions Hyran had ever seen. Finally, at the altar, a wide, ornate ladder reached down to the sloped floor.
The steward stopped. “At the top of the ladder, you will find the answer you seek.”
Hyran decided that saying ‘Well, I sure hope so’ was not appropriate, so he merely nodded and began to climb.
The room he entered was just as ornate as the expanse below, and just as bright. But here, the light was diffused around the room, glowing from the walls themselves. The detail that created was simply fantastic.
“Ah, Hyran. I am so glad to have this chance to meet you.”
Huh? The Rep was glad to see him? “Oh, Father Supreme, it is I who should be so glad.”
“Good, Son, I am glad the feeling is mutual. You see, your ramblings about this or that facet of our faith have fascinated me from the first one I read. I confess I cannot always agree, of course, but they certainly are food for thought. I was quite saddened to hear of your leaving.”
“I am flattered.”
“Now, I believe I have an answer for you. What is your question?”
Hyran took a breath, hoping that his angle would be the right one. It mustn’t look, until too late, that he was advocating poilitcal interference. Finally, he began. “It has often been said that the Great Master has the power to guide us in our lives when he so chooses.”
“Yes, he does. However, he never makes it obvious. Only those who know him well would know for sure.”
“When does he guide us? Are there specific times, or simply at random?”
“Oh, at specific times, according to his plan, of course. He likes to help us in our lives, so he will either guide us to a lesson, or out of trouble, or he will use us to help someone else.”
“Well, this is something I’ve been struggling with. The Great Master certainly can not be involved with the imprisonment of the light Vle, can he?”
“Oh, most certainly not.”
“Still, he did not prevent it.”
The Rep nodded. “I myself have been praying hard for an answer. It grieves me so, but I cannot find an answer to why.”
“Especially since this violates his Mandate of Personal Freedom.”
“Most certainly. It is times like these that test your faith, isn’t it?”
“Yes, but that would not be an acceptable reason for violating his own Mandate.”
“Certainly not. His Mandates are more important to him than the soul of a mere Vle.”
“It is interesting that you should say that. I find myself wondering: If the Great Master is not preventing the violation of his Mandate, might it be that we are to take a part in the prevention?”
The Rep’s eyes widened, and he stood as he spoke. “You should know better than to ask for interference in politics! It violates everything I know and stand for! Guards! GUARDS!”
Two large Vle in smaller, tighter robes burst up the ladder, and took hold of Hyran. More calmly, the Rep continued. “As of this moment, I and the Great Master renounce any claim to your soul as a member of His Holy Church, never again to be accepted within the halls of any sacred or sanctified place. You are tainted in his sight. Go from the gates of this city, and never return.”
Hyran sighed. “It makes no sense. If his Mandates are more important than your soul or mine, what should it matter if we violate his vows?”
“Silence! I will not hear such blasphemy! Take him away!” And with that Hyran got a rather bumpy trip to his quarters. There, he gathered his stuff, and was relieved of his robe in favor of the shirt and breeches the general populace wore. Finally, he got another bumpy escort to the gate through which he had entered. The guards were not rough— simply determined.
At the gate, the robed guard who had let him in some weeks earlier shook his head. “Tsk, tsk. One does not annoy the Rep when one is his guest.”
“Thanks. I’ll remember that next time.”
“Ta, ta,” replied the guard with a smile. Hyran could have been annoyed, but he decided not to be. The guard was at least being polite...
But now he had a new challenge to face: where to go, and how? He had no meal-grain left, and he had not been allowed to partake one last time of the church’s hospitality. Nor would any other church he passed, now that he was no longer a ‘believer.’
True, there was no reason he couldn’t get in anyway. After all, though most knew his name from his writings, few knew his face. If necessary, he didn’t even have to give his real name.
But that would be cheating. The Great Master’s Representative had just expelled him from the world-wide club of the Forgiven, and to enter a church on false pretenses was to violate the trust Hyran still held in the Great Master.
Oh, dear, a conundrum.
Hyran mulled his problem and his options (that is, his lack of them) without moving for a while. It was quite a few minutes before he realized some Vle were looking at him strangely.
He looked back at them and said, “Excuse me,” before heading off. Even so, he didn’t really know where he was going. He simply wandered, looked at the town, tried to think of his problem, and also tried to put it out of his mind. And then, all of a sudden, he met Valph.
“Well, Hyran! I see you’ve gotten rid of your robe.”
“Not by choice. The Rep expelled me.”
“You’re kidding!”
“No. Apparently, his vows are very, very sacred to him.”
“Well, ears, tell me about it.”
So Hyran did. He didn’t consider it an exciting story, but the young man seemed keenly interested. And in return, Valph told Hyran a little bit about the events that had meanwhile occurred in the squatters camp. That was boring, since it was mostly a story of meeting Vle and how great and loving they were and how many converts he had made and so on.
“So, like, what now, ears?”
Hyran sighed. “I dunno. I was trying to figure that out when we ran into each other. I guess I could just go home. I came, I saw, I lost.”
“Oh, ears, don’t give up! Just because you can’t convince the Rep doesn’t mean you can’t convince the Vle themselves.”
“But what am I supposed to convince them to do? I hardly think they’re going to rise up and challenge the army.”
“Why not? And what have you got to lose by trying?”
“Well, weight, for starters. I can’t sleep and eat in churches anymore.”
“Well, hey, you’re welcome to travel with us. We’ve got a group going up to Dronac to try to picket the palace, and collect as many followers along the way as we can. If we get enough, we might even blockade the camp.”
“Oh, I’m sure I would be welcome. As long as I join your cult?”
“Cult? Oh, excuse me? Is that what you think we are? No, ears, we’re just followin’ what we believe. And no, we’re not gonna make you join. I’m just saying that, since we have a common goal, you can come with us.”
“I suppose it’s another hunger walk.”
“No, not anymore. I’ve done that my one required time. See, what we do is make stuff— like bracelets and necklaces and pretty things like that— and sell them for meal-grain and meat. And we can always pick fruit off the trees.”
The more Hyran thought about it, the more it made sense. After all, he could leave them anytime he wanted. “Well, let me think about it tonight,” was his eventual answer.
“Okay, no pressure. But just so you know, we leave tomorrow. And, where are you gonna sleep tonight?”
!! Hyran hadn’t thought of that yet. He shrugged, and tried to think of the options. Of course, there still weren’t any, except—
“Ha, I thought so. Come one, I’ve got a space in my tent. No obligation, either.”
“Of course.”
“Of course.”
Valph then proceeded to make a big deal out of their visitor, and everyone Hyran met went out of their way to welcome him. It was a little too much— no, it was way too much— but he put up with it and responded kindly. After all, they were providing him with a roof over his head and food for his stomach. How could he complain about what was obviously genuine interest in just being friendly?
The tent wasn’t large, but it was decent. It kept out the bugs, and it kept the rain off his head, two very important things that night. He wasn’t sure if he’d have been able to sleep as soundly outside.
That’s not to say he slept very soundly. It took a while for his thoughts about the day had died down before he could fall asleep.