Princess of Faerl
21. The Sleeping Corpse Man

*Elentari*

Unlike the other times I had fallen asleep, this time I was in what looked like a snowglobe, but there was no snow. The ground was a grass covered meadow littered with flowers. A small cottage was meters away. It was picturesque like it belonged in a children’s book about fairy godmothers. I could tell this scene was an illusion created by another person’s mind. A tall man walked out of the building, looking directly at me. He seemed confused by my presence.

“You do not look like her, but you have her hair and essence. Who are you, child?” His question took me by surprise. I felt oddly at ease with him and it was easy to trust him with my identity.

“I am Elentari, the Lunar Guardian and reincarnation of Selene.” It felt strange to utter these words to another person. “Who are you?”

He chuckled with a voice that reminded me of Santa Clause. “My Dearest brought you here in your slumber but did not tell you of me. How typical.” I clicked my tongue in annoyance, recognizing the feeling and action as a habit of Selene when she didn’t like what she was hearing. “I am Endymion. A mortal of ancient times, at that point known as the consort of the Goddess. Nowadays you would probably refer to me as her lover or husband.” A happy expression filled with contentment filled his eyes. I assumed he was thinking fondly of Selene.

“You said you’re a mortal of ancient times, how are you still here? Are you in the spirit world?” My curiosity was now heightened. I wanted to know everything there was to know.

“I am a mortal. Before I died, Selene offered me an endless sleep where we could enjoy one another’s company for all time when the dark consumed the skies.” A hint of sadness replaced the contentment that was felt moments ago. “This was the only way without encouraging the wrath of the God of Gods who wished to possess my Selene and steal her heart from me. He knew as long as I was alive, this would never happen. He ignored her pleas to extend my life to that of a God so I could be by her side. So she placed me in this sleep. If he had claimed her heart, by whatever means, both of our souls would shatter and we would be no more, lost forever.”

A tear leaked from my eye as I listened. I was upset by this story, but it was amplified by Selene’s own feeling of helplessness. “So your body is asleep for all eternity?”

He nodded somberly even though hints of a smile started to appear. “There is a way,” Hope started to creep into him, “to wake me and allow me to be the Father of the Moon as my love is the Mother of the moon. The key is you. I know you have a lot on your shoulders, but if you could try, this old man would be eternally in your debt.”

I was shook to the core, bewildered. I was the key? How would I be able to free him of his sleep? I didn’t even know where he was. How does anyone wake a man that is comatose for centuries? He was essentially a breathing corpse.

“Who is the God of Gods? Why would he want Selene?” I had so many questions but I knew I had to carefully pick which ones I asked. I never knew when I would be removed from this place.

“Do you know anything about ancient Greece or their Gods?” Endymion posed the question as if he expected me to know. Maybe the other Lunar Guardians had known, but I wasn’t really interested in religion growing up, so that was a big fat no from me. My blank expression gave him the answer he needed. “Oh child, so much to learn and very little time. Chaos was the first being, known as the universe. He created Gaia, and in turn, Gaia created Uranus. The two of them gave birth to the Titans while Uranus had a child born of the sea, or some say just from his own genitals, named Aphrodite.” He took a bit to pause as he saw I was mentally trying to keep up.

“There were 12 Titans, Oceanus, Coeus, Crius, Hyperion, Iapetus and Cronus were the boys. Thea, Rhea, Themis, Mnemosyne, Phoebe, and Tethys were the girls. The part that concerns you, is Thea and Hyperion. They married and had three children. Helios, of the sun, Selene, of the moon, and Eos, of the dawn. Yes, Ancient Greeks were some incestuous people. Now, Chaos being the first primordial is animalistic in nature. Selene, being the Mother of the Moon rules over the night and creatures of the night. Can you see no reason why he would lust for her and want her for himself?” Endymion’s eyes turned sad and distant. “This is why I must be awakened. Chaos will be here eventually to kill my sleeping body. Selene won’t be able to stop him. Only if I am awake can I continue to live. Zeus rules the Titans still. Within the fold of the Titans is the only place I will be safe and by extension, Selene will be safe.”

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. I mean I knew the Greek and Roman cultures were a good bit raunchy and debaucherous, but we’re in the 21st century now! “So the primordial creator of all beings wants to take Selene as his bride for… what exactly? I mean, what you’ve told me doesn’t label him as anyone even having genitalia, he’s able to reproduce on his own so no need for a counterpart, and she’s his direct descendant! Like, his great grandchild… that’s perverted!” I’m so grossed out it’s unbelievable. I couldn’t fathom someone’s grandpa being their partner nonetheless great-grandpa.

“These beings are older than time itself. You can’t put your morals on them or make them think the way you do. That is a very new concept to them and they don’t necessarily accept it. Hyperion and Thea are still married. I have no idea if they are still producing offspring, but they are still brother and sister, and still married. Just try not to think too hard about that part. Selene and I bound ourselves together with a soulbind. We can never betray one another. Before that can ever happen our souls will disintegrate never to exist again. We would rather that than be forced to be apart.”

I started to ask questions when I realized I wasn’t there any more. Selene had taken us from that place without so much as a goodbye and we were in the zone of our souls where all sat meditating. I knew better than to start questions now. I joined them to contemplate everything I had learned. I needed to be stronger. So much stronger.