The Lost Gifts - 3 Kings
The groggy
"Hwuh?" was not very well-suited to the beautiful grace of the Kings. A moment later, the voice cleared its throat; a brief and distant argument (
"What is th--not AGAIN with this," "It's a gesture of kindness," was interrupted by another call.
"Here. This way!"
Three gifts--one very small indeed--lay packaged in hues of white, gold, red and green. These were tagged, both physically and with that same magical designation that the lost gift had been. And beside them stood a puzzled-looking bird, one that swirled like an galaxy of violet shot through with gleaming stars.
"I think these are for--you," the bird said, looking to the Gembounds.
"-And is that for me?" Their voice, unified, was almost hopeful. They'd been here in the quiet dark for so long they'd almost forgotten what
company was like.
They tugged open their gift, after a quiet thank you to the Gembounds for its delivery. Within was a large, red, snuggly cloak, of sorts: the kind one would stick their head through a hole in the top and then just... go to sleep on the couch. It looked
exceedingly comfortable, and came with a hood lined in white faux fur.
Strangely enough, each of the Gembounds got their own: all matched dark red, all very soft and warm and fitted to their bodies, with a hole for their head and a gap for their legs. Sair's looked rather like a big horse blanket; October's, like a little bird coat. And Eleanora's, like a snuggly hooded blanket. Each gift also came with a single candy cane--though October might find its a little... large.
The Three Kings considered.
"I can offer another gift, too," they decided.
"Maybe two. The first... a little touch of magic; the second, a story. If you wish it." Then they settled in, pushing their way into the hooded cloak (which looked rather out of place on the ethereal bird, but it did look
very comfy) to tell their tale to those who wanted to hear it...
This is one of
six Lost Gifts threads in the
Holiday 2023 event! Characters who posted in the
original Three Kings' lost gift thread may post here to react, and then post in Update Me to claim their rewards!
Gembounds may learn one of the following spells, best-suited to their moral alignment:
Eternal Wing
Low Intensity Transformation. Gain ethereal golden feathered wings that shimmer with the gleam of wisdom. While they cannot grant the ability of flight, there is promise in their beauty; stay loyal to that which blessed this power unto you, and they may grow yet.
This spell is suited for those who are Good or Selfless in nature.
Spectral Wing
Low Intensity Transformation. Gain ethereal blue-white wispy wings that glow with the ambiance of balance. While they cannot grant the ability of flight, there is promise in their grace; stay loyal to that which bestowed this power unto you, and they may grow yet.
This spell is suited for those who are more Neutral in nature.
Haunted Wing
Low Intensity Transformation. Gain ethereal red bat-like wings that swirl with the black aura of chaos. While they cannot grant the ability of flight, there is promise in their finesse; stay loyal to that which granted this power unto you, and they may grow yet.
This spell is suited to those who are Selfish or Chaotic in nature.
"The story I will tell you... is one that takes place far from here. In many worlds, there is no roof overhead of rock and stone: but an open sky, air that goes on forever. There is a sun, a ball of light and fire that is like your orbs, but huge and warm and bright. And when it goes away at night, you can see into the black of nothing, with a thousand thousand distant suns shining like little white spots: the stars. Sometimes there is the glow of an aurora, like my wings now: green or pink or purple, ribbons of energy high in this air.
But this world had no stars: at night, the sky was only black. It was said that many centuries ago, a man had stolen the stars from the sky, and hoarded them for his family. Another family had sworn to hunt them down, and retrieve the stolen stars to return them to the sky.
This story is of two enemies. A hunter, who had pursued his prey as his family had before him, for generations: and the father of the final, hunted family, always struggling to protect his kin. The hunted were always on the move: one running, hiding, covering their tracks each day. And the hunter pursuing, following and tracking. The hunted man did not know where his ancestors had put the stars: only that their sin, their crime, had left him hunted forever.
The father and his youngest child, barely newly born, were the last of the star-thief's family line. His mate had died to illness, and he himself was growing sick, and he knew there would be no one left to care for the child. He had not the strength to run anymore. So one cold morning, he gathered his child and he set out to meet his hunter.
He found him on the plains to the west, frozen over with frost, and he fell to his knees before the hunter. 'It has been so long since your blood began to hunt my kind, that we no longer remember the theft of the stars, or what was done with them. But I am the last: myself, and my child, and I am dying. Take me if you must but I beg you, spare the child. Save them.'
The hunter cocked his head. '...It has been so long that I do not remember the stars' theft, either. My people have been following you, but we have killed none of you for many years, because we... I no longer know the purpose of this cruelty. Whatever your people did, and why they did it... They must have long since paid the price. But your child will be a burden. The winter is cold, and we are lost on this tundra in the dark.' He thought about this for a very long time, and finally said, 'Never mind. I will help you. My camp is this way. Come.'
The father shook his head. 'I am too weak to travel. But if you promise you will care for the child... I will show you the way, so that you may escape the tundra, and your people--and my child--will all survive.'
The hunter bundled up the child, and set out for his camp: but with the stars long stolen, the night was too dark to find his way. Yet as he trudged onward, a light ignited in the heavens high above: a single star to light his way. And then another, and another, until the sky was filled with them. They shone and twinkled, returned to the sky to light the hunter's way. Whatever the father's family had once stolen--whatever selfishness they had embraced--he released it now, each shining star proof of his love for his child.
The hunter was true to his word: the child was saved, and adopted, and loved. And they were told, when they came of age, that their father had been a hero: that he had found, in the depths of his love, the very stars in the sky and given them back to the sky to save his child's life."
"I like the part with the hunters." [An exasperated sigh...] "Alnitak..."
Eternal Wing 
Spectral Wing 
Haunted Wing