As a gift from the faerie, her name was now Gesha. She did not speak of her name as she thought this would upset the elders. The faerie would visit from time to time, and told Gesha of her adventures — mostly about meeting birds or spiders — but eventually the faerie failed to return, and Gesha wondered why.
One day when the sun was setting and the moon could already be seen in the deep blue sky, Gesha was taken up higher into the mountains where steps were carved. Identical monuments crowded the steps on both sides through the length of the path. When Gesha had asked about the monuments previously, she was told that they were the ones who came before, that there would be one made for her one day. At the top of the carved stairs was a small opening. She went in with the others through a long, narrow tunnel, which eventually opened out into a large cave.
Within the cave were a few long steps carved in stone. At the end there was a simple way-gate made of petrified wood leading to nowhere except the other side of the cave, with two pillars on either side, and a top which curved downward. The elders took out incense to burn, and laid a mat down in front of the gate, where Gesha was made to sit. They each bowed to her, thanked her and then closed the way out as they left.
Gesha waited. There was no light except for the ember of the incense. The scented smoke wafted around her, smelling musky and sweet, like the rain of spring. Gesha waited longer, sitting, not knowing what would happen.
There was a ringing sound. Gesha looked around but didn’t see where it came from. It rang again and she noticed that it was coming from the way-gate. It was vibrating, ringing in pulses. The gate bled dimly-glowing fog from all sides, and eventually overflowed until it had formed a portal to a place beyond this world. Then something beyond the fog burst with light, and the cave became bright with rays of illumination, just like her own room had so often been. Gesha almost expected a faerie to come through the portal, but instead a girl in all-white light stepped through the fog and came to stand before Gesha.
“Hello, young one,” the girl said. She had an other-worldly quality to her. She looked as young as Gesha, but also seemed old, as if she had rapport with time. “Please, come with me.” The girl in all white held Gesha’s hand, and together they walked through the fog gate. It rang again for none to hear, and the fog evaporated to leave the cave in perfect stillness for another ten years.
Echo of Gesha I • Echo of Gesha II • Echo of Gesha III
Originally published in Faerie Solitaire Harvest