Rucesion Bells

Where the sound of bells once regularly rang, and where the sound of children playing while being hushed by their mothers once filled the air, silence now remained throughout the halls of the Rucesion Church. It had grown quieter than it had ever been before.

There was a time when the bells would ring throughout the entire city. You could not miss them, even if you were standing in the bank surrounded by Aislings loudly discussing what they were buying, selling, or trading. Back then, everyone would pause their exchanges to cheer and express excitement for the newlywed couples.

From the bank to the docks, citizens would smile to one another every time they heard the bells begin, knowing that once again another happy couple had been joined in marriage.

Father Ereno remembers those days better than most, as he has stood within the church and personally rang the bells every single time since it was first built.

Even now, despite how few weddings still take place, the church remains carefully maintained. The pews remain perfectly aligned. Freshly picked flowers still rest beside the altar. The aisle runner remains freshly cleaned, without a footprint in sight.

He still dusts and polishes the bells, even though they have only rung a handful of times over the last several deochs. There was once a time when they rang so often that there was never any dust left to wipe away.

Maybe love is not what it once was.

As the deochs have passed, it would seem that our ability to truly love one another has weakened. Aisling bonds of marriage are no longer a common occurrence, but a rarity.

Yet every morning, Father Ereno still climbs the bell tower with cloth in hand and a small bucket of Rucesion's finest water, just in case one day soon the bells may once again ring through the streets and fill the city with joy, happiness, and hope.

And every morning, he still adjusts the flowers near the altar just to make sure everything is right for when love returns to Temuair.