[Violet De Camp]

Ring... Ring...

"A... church bell? But the service scheduled to be in session for a few moons still..."

Ring... Ring... Ring...

I looked around every which way, trying to discern where the sound was coming from. It seems so close, but yet...

Ring... Ring... Ring... BAM!

A crashing sound, just a few feet away... I instinctively grabbed hold of my bow and notched an arrow, ready for whatever surprise attack an unknown assailant could launch. I had figured that I would come under threat assassination sooner or later, yet to have it happen so close to our cities walls...

Ring... Ring...

I could have sworn that the crash couldn't have occurred more than a few feet away from me... And even now, that ringing sounds ever closer.

Ring...

It was after the final ring that I saw it... A dark iron bell, neatly placed on the ground not more than 5 meters away from me. How the bell got there, I was unsure, but I was certain that there was nobody on this stretch of road but myself and the guards at the gate just a short ways behind me. I turned around the stone pillar I was next to and observed them, for even though the bell had run many times now, the guards hadn't moved an inch.

I cautiously moved towards the bell and picked it up. On the surface, it seemed to be a normal bell. It had no special symbols, runes or wording, or any artistic design that it would set itself apart from others. And yet...

"... Cele..."

I perked my ears up and listened. It was faint, but I could have sworn I heard someone call for me. I looked back at the guards again, but I was surprised to see that none ofthem had moved yet. I looked the other way... Still nobody. I was all alone here, for better or worse, with this precarious bell. "I must be hearing things." I told myself.

"... Cele..."

It was at this point I finally recognized where it was coming from: the bell. I tilted the bell up so that the hollow end faced me. "Celebrithrade... Celebrithrade..." The bell continued to emanate my name in a magical voice. I could sense no malice or any ill intent, and so I brought it up to my ear and listened closer...

"Celebrithrade... Place this bell on you head... If you wish to hear us..."

"Aha, put the bell on my head? I would look quite the fool, I'm sure." Though as I considered the words more, I realized that there was no jesting intent in its words. My curiosity was piqued... I couldn't just leave a mysterious artifact like this un-investigated, could I?

So, with only the most minor of hesitations, I slid the bell gently on my head... And as soon as I could feel the top of my head touch the top of the bell...

"WHY? WHY DID YOU LEAVE US? YOU FAILED US, CELEBRITHRADE!"
"PLEASE, HELP ME! IT... IT HURTS! PLEASE GODS MAKE IT STOP! PLEASE!"
"YOU ARE A DISGRACE TO THE TEL-QUESSIR! WE ARE NOW DOOMED FOR YOUR SINS!"
"AIIIIIIIIIIIK!"
"HOW DID YOU EXPECT TO SAVE US WHEN YOU COULDN'T SAVE YOURSELF?"
"I'LL GIVE YOU ANYTHING, PLEASE JUST DON'T - *sound of flesh being gnawed and bitten * NOOOOO!"
"I KNEW YOU DIDN'T BELONG ON THE COUNCIL! THIS NEVER WOULD HAVE HAPPENED WITHOUT YOU!"
"PLEASE NO, NOT MY BABY, PLEASE! PLEASE I'LL DO ANYTHING! *sword cutting through flesh, followed by hysterical sobbing*
"CORELLON SHOULD HAVE LET YOU DIE AS A BABE! HIS BLESSINGS TO SAVE YOU WERE WASTED! HE SHOULD BANISH YOU TO THE WALL OF FAITHLESS!"

It felt as though my chest collapsed as the countless screams of Elven women reverberated in my mind. I tried to resist them, but after the initial penetration of my mind, I was near helpless...

"... so many wails... All from countless voices... Elven women... Do I know them? The sound so familiar, but..."

"YOU FAILED US!"
"YOU'RE FAILING US!"
"YOU WILL FAIL US!"

I struggled to shut them out but again I failed. I sat there for I know not how long as they berated me, recounted the tale of their demise, and many other sad, terrible things. It got to a point where I couldn't take it anymore... And so with all the will and strength I could muster, I threw the bell off of my head. I just wanted the voices to stop...

But they don't stop. They got quieter, yes, but I can still hear them... feel their sadness, hate, torture...

My eyes were filled with tears as I looked back at the cursed bell. It was then that a certain laugh rang through my ears... The laugh of a certain corrupted and cruel Baron of Blackwood. “Dear, Sweet Elven maiden... thank you once again for your riveting performance at the feast. I have wished to hear your voice and see your beautiful face once again... And though I could have sworn you could not be any more lovely, I find that your cries and your tears only enhance you! Muahaha!”

Though I felt anger of my own well up inside my chest, it was far overcome by my despair. I cried for what felt like hours as I sat there helpless behind that stone pillar. Nobody was close by, but I was not alone... for now, likely until the day I die, I will always have the voices with me in the back of my mind.