I assume that Helikon sent you here for a reason.”
Taleen took a slow sip of the warm brew before answering. “He did, but I do not know the exact reason. I can assume it was to help Jonas against the demon, but I cannot know for sure.”
“What does Helikon ask of you now?” Kiln asked.
“I’m not sure. A cavalier’s travels are not always clear. Our gods give us information when they think we need it. I will travel with Jonas to Annure until I am called elsewhere.”
“Do you talk with your god?” Jonas asked.
“No, cavalier’s do not actually converse with their gods. Usually messages or intent is sent through their steeds or passed to the cavalier with mental pictures, like waking dreams, some of which can be unclear at times,” Taleen explained. “I do not even think that priests or clerics actually converse with their gods.”
“I have met Shyann,” Jonas said.
Taleen paused for a moment and looked at the young warrior. “You mean you have seen her, talked with her in person?” she asked skeptically.
“Yes, well not exactly. I have spoken to her in my dreams. But it is real, as if she were standing right in front of me. It is like a waking dream,” Jonas said, trying to explain the few times he had spoken with Shyann while he was asleep.
Taleen looked into the fire for a few moments before speaking. “That is something, Jonas. I will admit that I envy your personal connection with Shyann. I have never heard of that happening before. I would very much like the opportunity to speak with Helikon, as you have with Shyann.”
“The games gods play,” Kiln muttered.
“Indeed, at times it seems so. The truth be told we know very little of the gods we worship. All I know is that there is good and evil in the world, and if Helikon fights against that evil, then he is worthy of worship,” Taleen said.
“Why ask to be worshipped to begin with?” Kiln asked no one in particular. “Isn’t that a sign of arrogance? It seems that even the good gods want power, which to me is the root of greed, the very foundation of despots and evil. Is the line between the benevolent gods and evil ones so defined, or is it sometimes blurred? I often wonder if the world would be a better place if no one believed in either.”
No one spoke for a while as they digested the warrior’s words. Finally Taleen spoke up.
“Whether people believe or not has no bearing on whether the gods exist. They either do or they do not. We get our power from somewhere, be it gods or something else, and as long as I believe, and feel, that my power is being used to make the world better, then I will continue to believe in something. Your disbelief, or repudiation, whatever you will call it, does not confirm or deny their existence,” Taleen argued.
“I disagree. If no one believed, or worshipped the gods, they would have no power over us; therefore their very presence in our world would slowly disappear. Do you think that the people before us believed in the same gods as we do now?” Kiln asked.
“I do not know, no one knows,” Taleen said.
“Exactly. One thing is certain though. Our presence is but a blink in the life of our world. Therefore it is highly probable that the people before, and after us, have had, and will have, other beliefs. They will believe in other gods, in other religions, and they will be no more right or wrong than you and your beliefs. To me, these contradictions confirm that to worship gods is to believe in something that is just an idea, an emotion, and nothing more. I think the elves have it right, that there are no gods, that the magic of the universe comes from the Ru’Ach and these so called gods are just beings of great power that somehow have found a direct connection to this energy,” Kiln said.
“Love is an emotion,” Jonas said, deep in thought. “It seems to me that some ideas are worth living for, and fighting for.”
Kiln looked at Jonas but said nothing, clearly thinking about the simplicity of his words.
“Always a difficult conversation,” Taleen said. “I suggest we move on to more pressing matters.”
“Agreed,” Kiln confirmed.
“Taleen,” Jonas said. “Can you help me understand the powers of a cavalier? I have never had the chance to actually talk to a cavalier in depth.