Image in the Necklace by Fred van der Wal

(3 ratings) Rate this Story (5 best) 1 2 3 4 5   2 comments /

Image in the Necklace,

It is sometimes said that between truth and...well half-truth lies is a glass room filled with fog, where a candle or two flickers, barely visible to the naked eye.
It is often said that when you dare to wonder in such a hall, voices can be heard, some even receive visions. Tales of the past.... restless ghosts whom stories can not laid to rest before told.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

That morning as the first warmth of the sun filtered through the trees a swan floated softly on the mirror like waters of this small inner water.
A small lake, folk whispered was a bridge to an other world if you dove deep enough, that is.
Confident of her surroundings, the Lady-Swan, stretched out her forceful wings, cleansing each feather till she was satisfied.

As always she laid aside a necklace for she carried the large red ruby, the stone of life. With that she changed from a gracious bird to a maiden of equal beauty.

Loki said to be a God of the middle- world often entered the word of man to be entertained by mankind, only to add boost his cleverness, found thus the swan-maiden there upon the waters while foraging the woods.
As he watched the swan from the shadow of the trees, his heart and loins filled with lust and desire. Yet he knew this swan well only with deceit, she could be his, if only for a moment.

With great stealth Loki moved closer, to wards the edge of the water. Yet the Lady-swan didn't see nor heard him for she was too indulged in her beauty, too was the sight hindered by large growing grass.
So than he found the "stone of life", careless hung on a low hanging branch of a willow. This Loki knew that with the stone he could
change her shape back into a maiden in naked flesh for him to relish.

So he called out for her, holding the necklace high for her to see and called out with a clear voice his demands.
Shock and rage filled the swan's dark eyes as she heard him, taking hold of her heart as she heard his demand for shape change.
Already she turned into a maiden of great beauty, as his words ended the magical words Covering her upper body, she started to shiver from the cooled water.

"Come to me": he called out to her and lay with me, and you shall have your ruby back.
"In time you shall cherish your reward" he continued with a mocking voice.
Yet she knew that, if she answered to his demand, she would be cast from the heavens. For she too roamed under protection from a God in middle-earth, if she would remain a virgin.
Yet the situation became more hopeless as the sun made its way through the sky. And while Locky was warmly dressed she became hungry and cold.
She knew than that there was no escape for her, but to become one with the stone, if she found a change to hold the Ruby for a moment, it would become her prison, until..........

Hoping to deceive the deceiver, she walked from the waters of the pool, smiling up to him. Spellbound he realized almost too late that the Swan-maiden was only inches away from him.
Desperate she lurched for the stone as he pulled it away from her reach.