Role

Chapter 9

It was a strange place that she now found herself in. A pair of metal
statues came to life and opened a massive pair of gates for her as she
approached and, sensing no hostility from them, she passed through. Again,
lifeless but animated attendants helped her passage through a series of
gates and portals, until at last she came into a spotlessly clean set of
chambers. Wraiths of various descriptions swept about the largest room,
pausing briefly to gaze soullessly upon her before passing on without
interference. Baendra marvelled at the sense of power and magic around her,
and resolved that she must determine how these creatures were fashioned and
controlled.

Her resolution faltered though, as after some exploration she discovered
that there was no way out from this place, save to cast herself from the
room with the telescope. Indeed, there were restless spirits in the holding
cells that she had found to the east, and she feared that she might be about
to join them. Desparate, she ransacked the rooms for a clue of how to leave,
but found nothing. With no fruitfull option left available to her, Baendra
climbed to the Observatory, wishing only to feel the wind on her face and to
see the sun once more before she died. When the time came, dehydration and
hunger had left her ready to accept the end. She clambered slowly onto the
stone sill of the tower, and swayed erratically. As she gathered herself for
the final leap, she almost slipped on in surprise when a voice spoke from
just behind her. "My dear! I have no idea of how you found yourself in this
lifeless place, but I have come to take you home." The man explained that
he flew the skies as a bird, and the casual way he imparted this morsel of
information stunned Baendra, who realised that she was in the presence of a
mage of great power. Strangely, this mage seemed to bear her no ill-will,
and as he explained how he had mistaken her from someone investigating the
site over the last few days, before he'd seen her collapsed on the floor,
she felt herself crying with relief. Only two small questions troubled her.
Why did he not despise her, for he was human, and she dark-elf? "My Dear,
your wits have become addled from exposure, for you are as human as I." Only
then did Baendra realise that, despite her sense of identity as a dark-elf,
and despite her being called "sister" by the male, she was not able to see
in the dark, and had needed to rely on the torch to reach the laboratory.

But a human could not have survived amongst the dark-elves as she had.
Perhaps something had happened to change her?