In today’s episode we read the chapter 24 – Time, in which Farfalla learns to navigate her new surroundings.This week's podcast partner is Something (Rather Than Nothing): https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/something-rather-than-nothing/id1473313040Contact: [email protected] Skylark Bell official website - http://www.theskylarkbell.comThe Skylark Bell on Instagram: @theskylarkbellAuthor/Producer: Melissa Oliveri - http://www.melissaoliveri.comJoin Melissa's Patreon for early access to podcast episodes, music downloads, and more: http://www.patreon.com/melissaoliveriThe Skylark Bell on Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/theskylarkbellMelissa on Mastodon: https://mastodon.social/@melissaoliveriAll music by Cannelle: http://www.cannellemusic.comCannelle on Instagram: @cannelle.musicOfficial Merch Shops: http://www.melissaoliveri.com/storeThe Skylark Bell is brought to you by: Phaeton Starling Publishing and Things with Wings Productions.FULL TRANSCRIPT:Things with Wings Productions presents: Chapter 24 of The Skylark Bell, Skyedive. I am your host, Melissa Oliveri.  In last week’s episode Farfalla found herself rescued by an ancient, mystical group of people and brought to their secret forest hideaway.In today’s episode we read the chapter 24 – Time, in which Farfalla learns to navigate her new surroundings.Today’s podcast partner is Something, Rather Than Nothing. Host Ken Volante does a phenomenal job of bringing art philosophy to the forefront and finding unique perspectives through his roster of guests. You can find an interview with me on the Something Rather Than Nothing podcast on my website, just check the link in the shownotes. Now, it’s time to settle in… grab a blanket, and a warm drink… and let’s get started.I don’t know what year it is. My best guess is that I have been here for over a year, as I recall two solstice celebrations, but I have no idea what today’s date is.When I asked Cailleach she let out a small laugh and told me that dates don’t matter. Though they do measure daylight and seasons, they don’t track the minutes, hours, days, and years like we did in my time. They cohabitate with nature in a way I’ve never seen before, it is strikingly beautiful.Cailleach explained to me that her people inhabited the mainland for many years, but eventually strangers came, and her people were chased away, hunted down, converted, or... worse. I felt this betrayal deep in my bones as I remembered the people of Pocket, and more recently, Mayor Sandpiper completely disregarding my existence. Cailleach’s tribe, the last of its kind, escaped to the island. They settled deep in the woods, and spent many years learning from the land. There was something special in the forest here, a wisdom that their people had been seeking for generations. They had been slowly unpeeling the layers of this knowledge through education, exploration, and sometimes simple luck, but here in the forest Cailleach’s tribe felt they had arrived at the source of this wisdom. The ground itself tingled under their feet as they made their way between the trees. They happened upon the clearing one day and have been settled here ever since. Cailleach’s people learned how to manipulate their surroundings, first by willing food to grow in barren soil, or with very little sunlight.  Then they discovered they could control some of the animals around them and get them to help their tribe survive by warning them of approaching strangers or showing them where to find food. When she told me this part my heart started pounding as I recalled the sea bird by the cliff with Nurse Betsey. She told me they had even devised a way of making their encampment invisible to outsiders, who would just walk by as if they weren’t there.I was eventually let in on their most closely guarded secrets. Cailleach didn’t tell me right away. I spent months learning her healing techniques, medicines, salves, and tinctures made from the bounty of the forest. Then she taught me to communicate with the animals. We started out with small forest animals, first mice then martens. Then we moved onto birds, she saved the owl for last. Finally, we moved onto the red deer, which was evasive most of the time, but would come to her if she called a certain way. By the time we were finished, my abilities in controlling the animals surpassed hers. I would take walks through the forest with the red deer by my side, and we would share our secrets.Finally, one morning, Cailleach woke me just before sunrise, and walked me to the edge of the forest. She told me her people had unlocked the most important, and dangerous, ability of all. Very few tribe members were taught how to practice it, but she said I had a special calling, and that she would teach it to me. How to control distance… and time.~~~~~~ “For many years our people inhabited the mainland” says Cailleach, her gaze scanning the horizon, “but many of us were hunted down as we escaped and tried to settle elsewhere. Our little tribe is the last of our kind, hidden deep in the woods. We spent many years living in fear, until one day someone came to us who could ensure our teachings would continue forever. A person who would exist throughout time, the time before us, and the time after us. A person who could insert our teachings into every living, breathing thing in the world, from a blackbird to an acorn,” she says plainly, as if her words make perfect sense. Farfalla stands beside her in confused silence. “When you were pulled out of the water, your heart was filled with anger and a thirst for vengeance,” she says, “I trust that you have now healed, so I may teach you this final lesson. If my teachings were to fall into the wrong hands it could have… disastrous consequences.” With that, the woman turns on her heel and heads back into the forest. Farfalla lingers for a moment, her fingers scanning the horizon for any sign of life outside the forest, but she sees nothing. She turns and hastens her step to catch up with Cailleach.They wander through the thick mass of trees on a winding path that Farfalla has never seen before. She is surprised by this because she has spent countless hours exploring the forest and prides herself in her keen sense of direction, but the more they walk, the more she feels like they’ve been travelling in a winding circle. At last, they come around a bend and Farfalla sees a tall arch made of branches and vines stretching across the path. The arch is high enough for a tall person on a large horse to comfortably pass under. “Where are we? What is this place?” she asks.Cailleach smiles at her, “We’re at the encampment,” she says, an air of mystery hovering around her. Farfalla furrows her brow and looks around. There is no clearing to be seen, no tents, no fire, no women dancing or men in long white robes, only the two of them and this arch. “This is our encampment in a different form, a different time, long after I, and the rest of our tribe, have returned to the earth to feed the trees. This is a gateway, and only those who are chosen can see it, and pass through.”Farfalla is thoroughly confused at this point. What is this old woman on about? An invisible gateway made of sticks that allows time travel?! For the first time since her arrival here she begins to doubt everything. Farfalla begins to think perhaps she, herself, has lost her mind. “I don’t understand…” she begins.“You will,” Cailleach cuts her off, “come.” The old woman grabs her hand and takes her under the arch. The wind picks up, making the branches of the surrounding trees bend and stretch, their leaves creating a sound like the ocean. Farfalla closes her eyes as the wind creates a cloud of dust with dirt from the path. On the wind he can faintly hear a melody, it only takes her a few notes to recognize the song of the Oak Tree. Gradually, the song gets louder. It sounds surreal, mystical almost, not quite human. Farfalla feels a wave of dizziness wash over her, like her mind and body are separating. She feels a sense of peace wash over her as everything goes dark, just like when she was under water, and she lets herself float away on the sound waves, mesmerized. The wind slowly fades away, taking the song with it. Farfalla remains perfectly still, eyes closed, while she regains her senses. Out of nowhere she hears a flurry of sound and activity; people speaking, beating drums, feet stomping on the ground. She can feel the heat of a fire nearby, its acrid smoke filling her lungs with every breath mixed with the now-familiar smell of burning sage. Farfalla opens her eyes, and her jaw drops in shock. They are standing in the middle of the encampment under the ancient oak tree. “How… what… how did we get here?” she asks, incredulous.“We were always here, the place never changed. We did not travel any distance,” Cailleach turns to look Farfalla squarely in the face, giving Farfalla a moment to draw her own conclusion.“We didn’t travel any distance, but we did travel through time,” says Farfalla. Cailleach nods, her gaze never leaving Farfalla’s face. “I’ve done this before, twice now,” says Farfalla, “but I didn’t really have control over it, and I thought… the bell, I thought I needed the bell. Then the song, the song of the Oak Tree,” she stammers, working through the pieces of the puzzle and trying to fit them together.“Oh, my dear, you will not find all the answers today. But suffice it to say that the song of the Oak Tree as you call it, originated right here, in a much earlier time. We all heard it that day when our tribe found this clearing,” she says, slowly stretching her arm out to point at the towering, ancient oak in the center of the clearing. “As for the bell, I believe that was a collaborative effort between the two of you,” she says, still pointing at the tree. Farfalla stares at the Ancient Oak, confused, then looks back to Cailleach, who nods in the direction of the tree.Farfalla walks a few steps closer to the tree’s trunk. She lays her palm flat against it and feels the deep grooves of its bark, much deeper than the Oak Tree at Meadow Lane. She can feel throbbing beneath her hand, like the tree has a pulse. She grasps the lowest branch and pulls herself up, then looks down at Cailleach, who is standing below, a small crowd of tribe members gathering around her. Farfalla looks back up through the infinite branches of the ancient oak. She pulls herself up the next branch, and the next. Finally, she chooses the perfect place to sit, closes her eyes and leans her head against the tree’s trunk. She hears a faint heartbeat and the song of the oak tree emanating from it, ever so softly, like a lullaby. She stays perfectly still for a long moment, basking in the familiarity of the sounds. Eventually, she opens her eyes to look around. From this vantage point she can see above the canopy of the forest, and the view stretches to the ocean on almost every side. As if looking through translucent layers of time, she can see Carnifex House in a field nearby, wavering as if looking through a wall of steam on a hot day. Her heart aches for the way her time there ended. How she had loved being the Skye Lark Belle, Ms. Skye, as Felix and Frannie had lovingly named her. She blinks and the house is gone, replaced by vast, empty fields. “I need something from you,” the voice comes to her, unbidden, like a whisper directly into the inside of her ear. Farfalla startles and nearly loses her balance on the tree branch. She lays a hand against the tree trunk and hears the words again, “I need something from you”. From the ground below, Cailleach watches as Farfalla begins her first conversation with the Ancient Oak. A first of many. Cailleach turns and walks back to her tent. It is out of her hands now.Thank you so much for listening.  Join me next week for Chapter 25 – A Chaotic Swirl of a Dream, in which Farfalla dreams a kaleidoscope of images from her paste, present, and future.The Skylark Bell is brought to you by Phaeton Starling Publishing and features original music by Cannelle. Leaving a rating or a review on your preferred podcast platform is incredibly helpful in helping the podcast gain visibility so others can find and enjoy the story of The Skylark Bell, it’s a quick, easy, and free way to support my work. If you’d like to support me further,  you can also subscribe to Patreon, where you’ll get early access to ad-free episodes as well as digital downloads of my music, artwork, behind the scenes videos and more! And be sure to follow me on social media for updates, I love to connect with listeners... Just check the show notes for all necessary links.Once again, thank you for listening – I’m Melissa Oliveri, writer, host and producer of The Skylark Bell Podcast. Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/theskylarkbell/exclusive-contentAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Ver todos los episodios