Whispers

The little boy seemed to float, he was so sure footed as he climbed the dangerous riverbank. He was slight and narrow, small for his thirteen years. His white blonde hair glinted in the dappled sunlight. The early evening summer air smelled like honeysuckle and wet earth. He combed the river beds daily, hunting for shiny treasures and interesting stones. He was about to end his hunt for the evening, when he caught a shiny glint from the corner of his slanted, silver blue eyes. The boy picked up the trinket. He used a corner of his green shirt to rub the dirt away. It was a pendant of some sort , silver and heart shaped. He slid it deep in his pocket for protection. Perhaps it would be worth a meal or two in the village up north. His family certainly had no need of such things.

The boy walked the long distance home. He lived in the trees with his family. The hollowed out trunks were connected with wooden bridges, lit with solar lights, and shaded with green leaves. He walked into a warm chamber, and stood before his mother and father.

“I have found a whisper from the past, mother”, the boy said excitedly, as he held out his find.

His mother reached out her slender, veined hand and grasped it.

“Why, it is a locket!” The beautiful lady exclaimed. “I have not seen a pendant such as this in now on a thousand years”.

She tenderly opened the locket. Inside was a young woman, clearly human and very young. To the horror of the entire room, it contained a name.

“These careless humans. No wonder they are extinct, “the fae maiden shuddered. “ Can you imagine being so careless as to leave your name for anyone to find and know”. Names were power. All the fae knew this. Milenia ago, humans had put all their names in technology for all to see, and it had ultimately brought their downfall. Technology was sorcery in disguise, and it was quite easy for greedy fae to steal the power from ordinary mortals. All it took was the giving of a name to give a fae your power. Now the fae ruled the world, and humans had all but vanished.

“I wonder who the girl was? “, the boy whispered in horror. “Who was she before her essence was stolen?

“It matters not, my son. “. The world was full of foolish humans, and they destroyed all they touched. It was inevitable for them to become so arrogant they gave it all away. Every once in awhile you hear a whisper, a memory of what they were. But the world has healed, and is better for their absence “

The boy nodded, and left to hunt for more treasure