The Four Sentinors
“Where do you know Soren from?” Ailia broke the silence that had been hovering uncomfortably in the air since they had left Hannah’s cabin.
“We have known each other since I was a child,” Silya said, looking at Ailia, sitting on the horse. “We met right after I had been sold into slavery by my uncle. Southerners would come to my hometown, Alta, and pay handsomely for strong, young thralls—thralls like me.”
“How horrible,” Ailia said, stunned by Silya’s tragic story.
“After I was sold to a traveling company, who claimed they represented the Southlandic Empress, Mumtaz, Soren bought me with sixteen pieces of silver and set me free. I was able to return to my family and I have lived as a free woman ever since.”
“It’s amazing how someone can come into one’s life at exactly the right time and perform miracles like that,” Ailia said, thinking about Soren and how he had rescued her from the wolves. “Was that who Soren was going to see, Empress Mumtaz?” Ailia couldn’t wait to find out.
“Yes,” Silya answered.
Ailia smiled a little, relief settling in her chest.
“Oh, did you think he was going to see Eiess?” Silya asked and laughed sarcastically. “No, not Soren. He has been working with Empress Mumtaz on a plan to overthrow Eiess. The Southlandic Kingdom is also suffering tremendously because the seasons have stopped. Except, in their case, they have the opposite problem.”
“Yes, Soren told me. It’s horrible that one person’s actions can have such a drastic effect on so many innocent lives,” Ailia said troubled. How had Eiess become so powerful? Perhaps Silya knew. “Why is she so powerful compared to anyone else?”
“There are many reasons, but what most people don’t know is that Eiess also used to be a Sentinor just like Iluxia, Lucia and Soren.”
“Truly?” Ailia asked shocked, still not understanding wholly what a Sentinor was, but never expecting that Eiess would be one.
“Eiess was created in the beginning with the three others, thousands and thousands of years ago. What happened then was never told to anyone in Midgard, except for the Tundra people or, as you call them, the Samis.”
“You are Sami, right?” Ailia wanted to clarify just to be sure, even though Silya’s dress had Sami written all over it. “Silly question,” she said under her breath, knowing what the answer would be.
“Yes, I am a Sami,” Silya answered without a hint of condescension in her tone. “Many generations ago, our Noaida, Geidun, our mediator between Midgard and the spirit realm, was granted a vision by Iluxia. The realms opened to him and he was shown in a fantastic revelation what transpired before the creation of the Aesira bloodline. Four beings were created to be Midgard’s protecting Sentinors: Iluxia, the Sentinor of progress and keeper of the key of the Aesira Jewel; Eiess, the Sentinor of darkness, who grants life rest, peace and sleep; Soren, the Sentinor of spiritual and physical healing; and finally, Lucia, the Sentinor of physical and spiritual light.”
Ailia was starting to see a much larger picture of Soren’s deep love and devotion for Lucia. How inappropriate it had been that she found him attractive, that her eyes had lingered where they shouldn’t have. “What about the Sun Queens, the keepers of the Aesira Jewel?” Ailia wondered.
“First, let me tell you about what happened to Eiess,” Silya said. “Eiess and Iluxia were charged to work in perfect harmony, one ruling the sun, the day, growth, energy, light and anything pertaining to progress, increase and development, while the other would rule the night and anything pertaining to rest, slumber, tranquility, harmony, serenity, repose and stillness. As Midgard drew nearer and nearer to the sun, Iluxia’s powers would strengthen; likewise, as Midgard drew further and further away from the sun, Eiess’ powers would increase. Not only that, but as time went on, their powers would increase with each passing solstice. So Iluxia’s powers were strongest at summer solstice eve. Eiess’—”
“Powers were strongest on winter solstice eve,” Ailia said. “That’s why she chose to strike on winter solstice eve, so her powers would be the strongest, not only on that day, but for as long as the dark season prevailed.”
“And how many winter solstice days have we had?” Silya asked sarcastically.
“Way too many,” Ailia replied facetiously.
Silya looked up at her and laughed heartily. “A person after my own heart!” Silya turned serious again. “Now this part of Midgard stands frozen on the darkest day of the year and will forever, until someone destroys Eiess. Some people believe this is the eternal winter that will ring in Ragnarok. Others believe winter is here to stay and that the gods have cursed us. Either way, Eiess’ powers are growing exponentially every day since the days are in her favor and Iluxia’s powers are remaining constant. Unfortunately, in comparison to Eiess’ powers, Iluxia’s powers are decreasing.”
“Why can’t the other three Sentinors work together and destroy her?” Something was not making sense, Ailia thought.
“Let me backtrack a bit. First, none of the Sentinors were supposed to come to Midgard’s realm. When Eiess defiantly descended to Midgard, breaking her pact with the other Sentinors, Lucia and Soren were sent to Midgard to bring her back or defeat her if they could not. The difference was that Soren and Lucia had to be born into Midgard by mortal parents and needed to relearn who they were. That is how they became demi-mortals. Eiess found a way to come to Midgard without having to be born and she remembers everything from before mortality.”
“Demi-mortal?” Ailia asked confused.
“A demi-mortal is someone who is half-human, half-Sentinor. When a Sentinor is born into Midgard, he or she becomes more than just mortal. They retain some of their divine powers that mere mortals like you and I do not have. One of their divine powers is that they cannot be easily killed. They also possess special endowments. Take Soren, for example, he is a healer. Lucia has three lives. The difficult part of becoming a demi-mortal is that they have to be born as infants into Midgard and leave behind all knowledge and power until they rediscover them and redevelop them here again,” Silya said.
“So, they don’t remember who they are?”
“No. They need to learn in time, through life’s experiences and they do not remember the pre-mortal spheres, or what they learned there, as the Empress does. Empress was a title she gave herself by the way.” Silya shook her head as if disgusted. “She is a self-serving witch. Whatever she is, Eiess unfortunately remembers the pre-mortal sphere and now she is more powerful than anyone.”
“Do demi-mortals live longer than an average human?” Ailia wondered.
“No, but Soren was given a potion that Iluxia had procured from the tree of souls to extend his life, so that he could remain in Midgard until Lucia succeeded in destroying Eiess. They knew it would be a nearly impossible thing to accomplish, so she was granted three lives.”
“How long will Eiess live?” Ailia asked.
“Eiess will live forever if she wishes. She is not a mortal, or even a demi-mortal, so physical laws do not pertain to her. If Soren and Lucia do not find a way to destroy Eiess this time, which is Lucia’s third and final life, their spirits will dissolve. He does not take it lightly. Now, if they succeed and both live, they will age and die together, returning to Alvheim to continue to live as Sentinors. Their goal now is to gather as many allies as they can.”
“What about Eiess? She is here and if she is destroyed, who will be the Sentinor over rest, peace and sleep? Does not there need to be one?” Ailia asked.
“Now, that I do not know,” Silya answered.
* * *
Silya made good time. She was a clever traveler, seeming to know exactly where to go to find the less-encumbered path. They reached the edge of the Small Mountains and entered the Woodland Forest. The forest floor was flat and easy to travel on. Silya could even pick up a trail here and there, which made walking for both Silya and Miika much more manageable. The Woodland Forest trees were shorter and further apart than in the Northland Forest, most of them lifeless, frozen grey-colored Aspen trees.
After long, they reached the base of a tall mountain.
“This is the Vesten River,” she said, stopping. The wide river was partially frozen over, making it impossible to cross. “If we head further east, we can cross the river at a more narrow point. I do not want to risk crossing here with you, injured and all.”
Ailia thanked her for the consideration. She didn’t want to experience any more injuries or near-drowning incidents. “I have been here with my Uncle Brander and yes, I do remember there’s a narrowing of the river just a little east of here,” she confirmed as she pointed eastward.
“I am going to set up fire, so we can eat here. Then, we can worry about crossing the river later.” Silya started to pull supplies off of Miika and set them down onto the snow. She then reached for Ailia and pulled her off the horse. “Sit on this,” she said, guiding her to the bundle of string-tied reindeer furs.
Ailia took a wobbly step over to the furs and sat down. Right away, Silya started digging at the snow, removing it with her mitten-covered hands. A campfire was soon lit and water was placed in a small kettle to boil.
“I am making reindeer meat stew. It is my specialty,” Silya bragged. She grabbed a small leather packet and started opening it.
“Sounds delicious,” Ailia said enthusiastically. Her stomach had been rumbling for a while.
“My grandmother showed me how to make it. She was very particular about the order to put the ingredients in. I presume it was some type of superstition on her part. May I share with you a story?”
“Certainly,” Ailia said.
“One time, actually the first time I made the stew on my own, I put the reindeer meat in after the carrots and my grandmother threw the whole stew out. Said it was bad luck if we did not do it exactly like she had taught us. She was a great woman, strong willed and obstinate,” Silya said and laughed. “She just held many superstitions.” After she had unwrapped the package, she started meticulously pulling apart the dried meat that was in it, tossing it into the kettle of hot water. She then added some spices, leaves and some old gnarly looking potatoes.
Ailia wondered if they were safe to eat, but she didn’t say anything.
“One day, Grandmother left the house to go to the market, which was about a third of a day’s travel away. When she was almost to the market, she remembered she had not had anyone throw a cup of water after her when she left. She believed if someone did not do this, it would mean bad luck for her journey. She turned around immediately and traveled all the way back home. When she arrived, she opened the tent door and announced, “See, it was bad luck that no one threw water after me in my direction. I had to travel all the way home and missed the market!”” Silya said in a nasally, angry voice.
Ailia laughed. “My Aunt Unni is also somewhat superstitious. When I was younger, she would never allow me to whistle inside the house. She said if I did, someone would die somewhere in Midgard.” They both laughed.
When they had finished eating their humble meal, Silya gathered up the dirty dishes.
“Let me help you clean them,” Ailia insisted, as she took a plate and started rinsing it in the snow.
Silya loaded the horse and put out the fire by stomping on it.
As Ailia was finishing up with the dishes, she started thinking about some of the things Silya had mentioned earlier. “What role does the Sun Queen play in all of this?”
“Oh, yes, I nearly forgot. The Sun Queen is the only person who can initiate the Aesira Jewel with Iluxia. Iluxia holds the key to the Jewel. To be a Sun Queen, you have to be a direct descendant of the Aesira bloodline. Princess Lucia is the only one who has that blood running through her veins.”
“Soren told me a little about it,” Ailia said.
“It is the pure bloodline from the beginning of Midgard and the only bloodline directly tied to Iluxia, but that is a whole other story I do not know much about,” Silya admitted. She paused, gazing toward the Trollstein Mountains. “We are just about one and a half day’s journey from Bergendal.” She removed her hat and revealed her thick waist-length black hair. She pulled a comb out of the purse and ran it through the knots a dozen or so times. She twirled a tan piece of leather string around her hair to make a perfect ponytail and put her red and white wool hat back on. Silya was more beautiful to look at than Ailia had initially thought. Her costume aged her, making her look ten years older than she was. Her smooth olive-colored skin was flawless and her almond eyes tilted slightly up at the edges.
“It looks like it is snowing in Bergendal. The clouds are not heading in this direction, more east.” She nodded in agreement with herself and then looked at Ailia who had finished the dishes. “Ready?”
“Yes,” Ailia replied. She was more than ready to be home again. Will my family still be there? She hardly dared think the thought, afraid something could have happened to them.
Silya gathered the clean dishes, put them in her leather bag and tied the bag onto Miika. “Let me help you get onto the horse again,” she said.
“Have you ever met a Viking?” Ailia asked after she had settled back onto Miika. “I’ve decided I never want to meet one.”
“Yes, I will never forget the day I did. It changed my life forever.”
“What happened?” Ailia wondered.
She paused for a long while. “It is a long, gruesome story; are you sure you want to hear?”
“Yes, please. If you don’t mind, of course,” Ailia said, not deterred by Silya’s warning.
Silya walked on for a while in silence before she spoke. “Our people had been driven from their land by the barbarians of the south, left without homes, lands, or rights. It was a time before the Vikings had a name, a time when such plundering, murders and rapes were uncommon, especially among the peaceable Sami people. The unnamed savages came upon us one winter. The first thing they did was amass the youngest of the young, piling them as logs one on top of another, crying, screaming with their aching voices, freezing, naked on the snow. They grabbed each infant by the ankles, flinging the poor newborn into the air, running to impale the child on the tips of their swords.” She sucked in a sharp breath before continuing. “I have never been able to erase the images from my memory, or the feelings of fear, rage and compassion from my heart—rage and fear for the Vikings and compassion for the babies. The horror of such a thing ever happening to one of my own children frightened me into never birthing any.”
Ailia had never heard of such horridness. “That’s awful!” she said.
“Among the children—” Silya continued. “—was my newborn baby brother, Hansa. He was the most beautiful child you could imagine, with black coarse hair and steel blue eyes. His olive complexion looked golden in the sunlight on the autumn day he came to be birthed. My mother, so proud for having produced a son after three daughters, treasured him beyond compare. His first tooth had just appeared the winter the word arrived that cruel raiders were heading in our direction. How could we have known what cruel meant, being a nonviolent people, living simply in our tents, with our reindeer, desiring nothing more of life?
“Living secure from the schemes of men, protected against their maliciousness by the gods, we had cultivated a thing of immeasurable challenge: that nothing remained ever to be wanted. After the destruction of our land, I had prayed to the guardian of children and asked the only questions my young mind could: Why and how? Why did this happen to us? Why did they do it? How could the gods let this happen to us, to my baby brother? When I approached the Noaidi, our spiritual guide, his response had been clear. He said,
‘It is easy to blame the person responsible for the crime, to hate them and despise them, but when we sit idly by and watch evil happen right before our very eyes and become bound to the person by hate, we become co-conspirators of the wrong. It is a weighty responsibility within each of us to stand up at our time of appointment and fight the battle, so the guilty does not wrongfully and unaware by us, become the power and reigning force and rulers of our lives.
‘Sometimes to have peace, Silya—’ he had said. ‘—We must fight and even be willing to sacrifice our own lives to stand for what we know in our very soul is right and just. And when we choose to fight that battle and not hate, but rather have faith in truth, in love and in right, we align with our Creator. We become our true selves, the complete form our Maker intended and purposefully created us to be.’”
“That’s so true, but so difficult,” Ailia said.
“At first, I rejected his answer, of course. How could I have done anything other than watch idly by?” Silya said. “I was a victim, bound and bruised, forced to watch while they destroyed precious lives with their gruesome games. Now, years later, I have had a change of heart and understand what he meant. Each day I live, I will fight exactly that battle, choosing faith and not turning to the cunning pulls and calls of fear, hate and revenge. I desire to be free from these demons, which incessantly hound my peace.” She paused and a tear rolled down her cheek. “I can still not stop mourning my brother’s death. I hope one day, when I die, I can meet him again and let him know that his life mattered—that I loved him and that he had a positive influence in my life because he lived.”
Ailia felt honored to be in such a wise woman’s presence. How had Silya been able to forgive such a horrible act as this one? Ailia would have shrunk, she knew, unable to be so strong.
“You are a strong woman, Silya, with a heart of light,” Ailia said.
Silya looked up. “One day, it will all be set right by the Great Sentinor.”
Ailia definitely didn’t envy the Great Sentinor’s immense responsibility.