"The Sorrow of Elpuce"

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From "The Cadalas Master's Fables"

The Sorrow of Elpuce, illus. Morechand

Long ago, when the heavens and the earth were filled with light, and the world was at peace, ruled by the God of Light, Lyphos. It was during this time that Elpuce, the Goddess of Spinning came before Lyphos, seeking his counsel. With hair of gold seemingly spun from threads of moonlight, and a dazzling radiance like that of the sun, Elpuce was a beautiful goddess. Able to use her spinning wheel to see the future and provide hope to those seeking it, she was also the older sister of Lyphos.

"My brother, you are the foundation of the gods of this world, and so I come with a grave concern. This thread that I've spun recently is something I've never seen before, disorderly and full of chaos. I fear for what the future holds." Elpuce pulls out her spinning wheel with these words, showing Lyphos a thread tangled between the spokes of the wheel, the entire spinning wheel unable to be used in the current state.

While concerned, Lyphos smiled at his sister. "This is indeed terrible, no doubt, and we should try and untangle these threads together. Come to think of it, I've always helped you out, dear sister, and this is just one more time that we can spend together."

That smile, though, concerned Elpuce, and she realized that she was misunderstood. Lyphos believes that she tangled the thread deliberately, in order to spend time together again like they had used to, and was happy to be doing so. While she appreciated that her brother missed her, and wanted to casually spend time together again, she knew she must correct him.

"Lyphos." Her seriousness took him by surprise. "As your sister, you know that I love you from the bottom of my heart. That's why, when you returned with the sword Lumiere after ascending to godhood, that I pledged myself you help serve you in any way that I could. However, I'm not so foolish to see you that I would need to make up a false excuse in order to come see you."

Lyphos heard the concern in her words, but kept his smile. "Dear sister, it is natural to be concerned about our family and friends, and wish to help in any way that we can. And no one is saying that it is foolish to keep in contact with those family members that we don't see often. I understand that losing our parents put a lot of undue hardship on you to take care of me when we were younger, and now that I've been chosen by Lumiere I hope to repay you for all those years. Please let me help you untangle these threads."

Elpuce let out a sigh at her brother's words. "I appreciate your kind words, more than you know. However, my concern is not that the threads were tangled, but why they were tangled in the first place."

"Well, you are the spinner, sister. What would have disturbed your mind enough to cause such disarray in your spinning?"

"What do you mean? I'm not disturbed at all."

Lyphos shook his head at Elpuce's words. "Oh, so you're not worried about him then?"

Elpuce blushed hard, and turned away from her brother. Even without saying his name, with that statement she knew he'd heard the rumors that had been going around. "...He's not important right now."

"He's not important? I don't believe that for a second. If he's not important, when why do you turn away from me so?"

Elpuce could not answer. Lyphos continues, "I do regret not letting you know when he left. When he left, why shouldn't you have known, so you could have followed him?"

"...It was my choice not to follow him, brother. It is not for you to have any regrets."

"But you yourself said that there was an ominous shadow haunting him in his future. If you could, you would have gone with him, wouldn't you?"

"......It's too late to bother with such thoughts now." Elpuce closes her eyes, as the events of that day replay in her head once again, the memories still fresh. Those thoughts quickly faded, and she opened her eyes and turned back to Lyphos.

"No matter how much we talk about the past, there is no returning spilled wine back to the cup. Rather, we must discuss the future I hold in my hands. O Lyphos, founder of the world, please listen to my pleas with an open mind. Look upon this for what it is, a warning from the goddess who weaves destiny and the future."

Sadness in his eyes, he looks at his sister and nods. "Go ahead. What is this warning that you speak of? What fate has been woven by the hands of my dearest sister?"

"A great upheaval of all that we know."

"Upheaval?"

"Yes, dear brother. The world will be plunged into chaos. Lyphos, you stand as the pillar of light, guardian of the law and order that has spread in the world. It is your duty to be mindful of even the smallest spark of conflict, the most minor of disagreements, that will ignite a war on the largest scale this world will have yet seen."

Lyphos looked at his sister, her expression stern and full of concern and worry. He was bewildered at first by her seriousness, then burst into a fit of laughter. "As usual, my sister worries for no reason."

Elpuce looks at her brother's mirthful outburst with disdain. "I am not worrying for nothing."

"So you say. Yet, your fears are unfounded. with you and Tidan at my side, we have spread law and order throughout the world, and any who would try to cause trouble are swiftly taken care of. There isn't even a shadow of this evil that you fear is stirring." Lyphos' confident words, spoken with divine authority, often bring peace to those who hear them. However, Elpuce is not swayed by this confidence, and continues her warning.

"My brother, I know that your majesty has been brought to every corner of heaven and earth by you and your agents. However, it would be foolish to say that there is no shadow of evil. I fear that it has not been found just yet."

"So, you believe that Tidan and the others are neglecting their duties?" Lyphos looked puzzled. His best friends, the Sun God Tidan, the Blazing Emperor Grendal, and the Goddess of Fairies Asteria, as well as all of those who follow them, are supposed to be upholding his law and order throughout the realm.

Elpuce knew that Lyphos trusted his friends with all his heart, and shook her head. "No," she continued, "I'm not saying that at all. I am well aware of the kind of people they are, and know that they would not betray your trust." Despite her words, Elpuce is uneasy to fully trust her brother's friends.

Tidan is Lyphos's right-hand man, and is actually even considered to be the better of the two in martial prowess. It is through his hand that some of the fiercest areas in the world have been made aware of Lyphos' majesty. However, there has been a quarrel recently between his wife Sien and Asteria, who is madly in love with Tidan, and he has been in hiding from both sides in hopes the quarrel would work itself out one way or another. Despite his power, Tidan is not in the position to find a shadow of evil, no matter the size.

Grendal, on the other hand, is eccentric and a bit of a bigot, and is only really concerned with blacksmithing, weapon forging and training other artisans, and not much else. Never really was one who would have been able to go out and find evil, let alone snuff it out before it could take root.

Elpuce continues, her internal unease hidden. "However, the future holds infinite possibilities, including some unwelcome futures that contain fates that are unthinkable to us now. It would be an understatement to say that the peace of the world now rests on our shoulders, and that is why we must prepare in the event such futures may come to pass."

Lyphos pondered these words, words not from his sister but the goddess who spins the suture on her wheel, for a few moments. Then, he nodded his head in agreement. "Your words ring true, sister. I do wish to keep the peace of the world as it is, along with the well-being of the people that reside on it. However, it is not only enough that we should be prepared for conflicts, as there are other calamites that may arise as well. We should be prepared for floods, famines, pestilence, and wild animal attacks as well. I will inform Tidan and the others, but such preparation is important, and so I will go and aid them in this preparation."

Lyphos turned on his heel in order to go tell the others, but Elpuce quickly stopped him before he could take a step. "Lyphos, wait! No matter how powerful you are, you cannot be prepared for all of the calamites of the world. No matter how large the hand, one cannot grasp all of the grains of sand on the beach without some slipping out. We should focus our efforts on preparing for conflict."

"Then what should we do in the case of a pestilence sweeping through the people? Or when a famine strikes? Do we just sit back and put many lives in danger?"

"I understand your concern, but the duty of a ruler is to choose. You may not like to hear these words, but heavy is the head that wears a crown. Famine, pestilence, and wild animals will run their course and be done, while strife will cause an irreparable scar upon the land. Strife and discord will be sown like seeds, taking root in the darkness of men's hearts." Elpuce grabbed at the sleeve of Lyphos' robe, and pleaded.

Lyphos looked upon his sister with sadness clearly on his face. "...Sister, I cannot in good conscience leave the people to wallow in misery through famine, disease and attacks from wild beasts, dismissing their concerns with the thought of 'once it's over, it's over.' The grief of those left behind will tear at my heart, and I cannot abide."

Elpuce was taken aback at these words. Lyphos loves everyone in the world as though they were his family and close friends, that much was always known. His innocence and kindness were always the most endearing charms about him, and of anyone in his life Elpuce would know this intimately. However, she misjudged the strength and conviction of her brother's feelings, and the concern he had for his followers would be his danger as well. Stunned from her mistake, Elpuce could only watch as Lyphos removed her hand from his robe, and departed.

Thus, Elpuce failed to adequately prepare Lyphos for the coming dangers. Shortly after this, a mortal found the Second Sword, Ignis, and rose to power as the God of War, Dalkhrem, and began what would be known to historians as the War of the Gods.

Elpuce is said to eternally regret not being more forceful in her discussion with Lyphos, not being able to prevent the war with her foresight, and would often be seen on the front line of the war in order to atone for this perceived failure.

Thousands of years later, long after the War of the Gods, the seeds of strife and discord prophesized by Elpuce are still being found in hearts throughout the world, provoking conflicts with no end in sight.