Learning Eclipsed Tempest BG - Chalice

Chalice stood at the door of the library where she met Vega and Fearghas. They were saying their goodbyes when Vega wandered where Chalice was headed next. After they discovered the bandage recipe, they got to know each other and Vega became familiar with Chalice’s distaste of cold weather in Roeden. So Vega wondered if Chalice was going to head home. Fearghas stood close to Vega’s furred legs to stay as warm as possible as the two adults conversed. 

“Are you heading home now?” Vega asked. 

“No,” Chalice sighed and then her face transformed with a grimace as she said, “The storm slowed my schedule, but I still have two places to visit.”

“Oh, where abouts?”

Chalice thought for a moment, “Uh, it's a place where ruins are nestled in the mountains.”

Vega stared at the younger female, “You don’t know what it's called?”

Chalice shook her head and noticed Fearghas was enraptured with the conversation. His head ping ponged between the two adults as they spoke. 

“I can help,” Vega said, “I’ll escort you to the ruins closest to here and hopefully they are what you’re looking for.”

Chalice brightened, “That would be fantastic.”

Vega nodded and then gestured for the Thedale native to follow her away from the library. Chalice carefully followed behind Vega and Fearghas as she made sure to step exactly where Vega left prints. She wasn’t told to do this, it was just something she started to do to keep the snow off of her feet. She wondered about herself, her desire to find and record new places overrode her desire to return to the warmth of Thedale and her bonded. 

It was long before the trio reached the ruins Vega had in mind. The group stepped up to the edge of a cliff as the wind blew snow around their feet. Chalice took in the rubble buried under the snow and at first she was underwhelmed. It wasn’t as it was described to her, she was expecting something more magical. Vega could see Chalice’s expression and the gears turning inside her companion’s head. Fearghas was jumping from broken pillars into the snow, completely oblivious to the adults and their concerns. 

“This can’t be the place,” Chalice huffed as she continued to look around hoping that one angle would make the dreary greys more magical. 

“These ruins were discovered during a certain time of day,” Vega explained, “We should wait a few hours for when the moons start to rise.”

Chalice looked at Vega with doubt in her expression, but she couldn’t rush this adventure no matter how much she wanted to. So, Chalice nodded and turned her attention to the energetic pup leaping through the snow. Fearghas weaved through rows of fallen pillars and if he was older he might have understood what the place looked like in its completion, but for now all he cared about was the excitement of exploring the fallen pieces of marble. Vega watched Fearghas too, but her mind worried that one chunk of marble could fall on him or near him. Her motherly ways pulled her to keep Fearghas close. 

Eventually, the sun started to set and soft clouds turned orange and pink as the orb of fire sank behind the mountains. The colours in the sky were reflected in the snow, turning the greys into a beautiful fiery landscape. The shifting colours drew Chalice’s attention to ruins once again and she had to admit that during this shift in lighting made a world of difference. The once dreary ruins now looked breathtaking with the white marble looking warm with oranges and pinks. 

“This isn’t what the cliff is known for,” Vega said as she stepped closer to Chalice, pulling Fearghas with her. 

“It’s already beautiful, what else could there be?” Chalice asked, surprised. 

“It’s an unusual phenomenon. An optical illusion that looks like an eclipse,” Vega explained, “It’s only brief but look opposite the sun and you’ll see it.”

Chalice looked away from the sun, it was still mostly exposed, not completely hidden by the mountains. Before Vega mentioned an eclipse, Chalice thought this was all the environment offered, but when Chalice turned around she saw a second sun. Startled, Chalice gasped while Vega laughed. Fearghas laughed too, but his childish giggle didn’t understand why his mother figure was laughing. 

“Keep watching, it’s all part of the magic,” Vega insisted and then she urged Fearghas to watch too. 

Chalice kept her gaze on the illusion of the sun and then she noticed that the moons were rising. The longer they watched the closer the moons moved to meet the illusion of the sun. After a few seconds, the moons moved over the sun and the effect was definitely something Chalice and Fearghas had never seen before. The edges of the moons looked like they were glowing with white halos. Bright white eclipses hung in the air, Chalice and Fearghas stared in wonder at the phenomenon. However, just like Vega mentioned, another second passed and the illusion vanished. The sun sank too far beneath the mountains and the moons rose higher away from the horizon. 

“That was incredible,” Chalice breathed. 

Vega smiled at both Chalice’s and Fearghas’ expressions. The pair was still staring where the eclipses once were. Another few moments passed, and like everyone else that experienced the magic of this cliff, their expressions fell. 

“It was over too quickly,” Chalice murmured. 

Vega barked out a laugh, “You and everyone else say the same thing. But it’s here whenever you want to experience it again.”

Chalice rolled her eyes, but didn’t reply. The two older vayrons stayed silent as they wandered around the ruins while there was still light. Fearghas on the other hand was still trying to find the eclipses. He would race around the adults only to peak into the sky to see if they were still there, but they never were. The trio stayed at the ruins throughout the night because the broken walls still provided better protection from the elements than they would find on their way back towards the library. 

[1018]