Ellen Neve Noele

Elynn Neve Noele lived a life filled with stories — her own and those she had collected from the pages and artifacts of history. As a social anthropologist and archivist, she moved between worlds, studying people, rediscovering ancient wisdom, and appreciating the enduring beauty of cultures long passed. But beneath her scholarly exterior lay something far older and more mysterious.

Elynn had always been told that fate had granted a unique gift. Through her parents, she was connected to cultures on almost every continent. Her heritage was woven through generations of women who had guarded the sacred knowledge of the world’s most ancient civilizations. She had been gifted with the intellect of the scholars at Timbuktu, the devotion of the Tewahado Church in Ethiopia, the mysticism of the nunneries in Lhasa, the wisdom of the al-Qarawiyyin Library in Fez, the celestial knowledge of Mayan priestesses, and the strength of the Medjay warriors of Nubia, She was a vessel for all these stories, a living archive of time.  And although she was a child of the modern era. Elynn had always felt displaced in time as if her soul had slipped into the wrong era.

The Meeting in Paris

It was at an international symposium on ancient civilizations in Paris that Elynn’s life changed forever.

Amid the crowd of academics and intellectuals, Elynn stood apart, lost in thought, when her eyes locked with Alaric MacAille, a scholar and historian from the Isle of Skye. Alaric had a rugged, timeless quality — his eyes a striking shade of green with hints of the sea, like a storm rolling over the northern waters. His presence was magnetic, drawing her in with an intensity that left her breathless.

The moment their eyes met, something deep within them stirred. It wasn’t recognition of a face, but a recognition of the soul — an ancient memory resurfacing from the depths of time.

“Have we met before?” Alaric said, his voice low and steady, tinged with the soft lilt of the Hebrides.

“I don’t think so” Elynn replied. “I’m sure that I would recall if we had.”

What began as academic conversations about ancient cultures soon evolved into something else entirely. They spoke late into the evening, touching each other’s souls in a verbal dance — two people who found themselves in the most romantic city in the world.

In Alaric, Elynn saw the windswept beauty of the northern isles, a man connected to the ancient waters of his homeland. Elynn knew she was risking everything. The warnings of her ancestors echoed in her heart, but with Alaric, she felt invincible. For the first time, she allowed herself to believe she could defy fate

A Love That Defied Time

They walked through the streets of Paris like dreamers caught between worlds, sharing their deepest secrets and desires. For seven perfect months, they existed in a time all their own, as if the world outside had paused to give them this fleeting moment.

Yet, deep down, Elynn knew it couldn’t last. She had spent her life studying ancient warnings and prophecies passed down through generations of her ancestors — stories that always ended with a curse for those who dared to reach beyond the boundaries of time and love.

The Curse Revealed

One night, as Elynn lay awake in their shared apartment, the shadows of her ancestors came to her in a dream. “You were warned,” the voices said. “Your life is not your own. If you give your heart, you will lose it. You will lose all that we have entrusted to you.”

A few nights later, Elynn awoke from a dream filled with shadows and whispers. The air was heavy, the forest of her childhood calling her back. “If you stay,” the voices warned, “the curse will consume him. You must leave or doom will follow.”

The Sudden Departure

Two nights later, Elynn made the hardest decision of her life. Without a word of explanation, she left Paris at dawn. She packed her belongings quietly, taking only her journals and her memories. The hardest part was walking away from Alaric as he lay sleeping, leaving him with questions, memories, and a longing he would never shake. Elynn returned to Quebec; her heart shattered. She had no other choice.

A New Life in the Boreal Forest

Elynn couldn’t stay in Quebec and return to life as usual. So, she decided to go west into the wilds of Manitoba, retreating deep into the boreal forest, where towering pines and silent lakes offered sanctuary.

Though she had left Alaric behind, Elynn carried a part of him with her. Months after her arrival in the forest, she gave birth to their son, Kaelen Noele MacAille. He was a child of fire and magic, with his father’s green-hinted eyes and her quiet strength.

The Indigenous Cree women of the region welcomed Elynn as one of their own. They helped her deliver Kaelen and guided her in raising him, teaching him the ways of the land and the stories of the sky. Kaelen grew up wild and free, running barefoot through the forest, learning the ancient knowledge passed down through generations.

Alaric’s Search

In Paris, Alaric had searched for Elynn for a month, combing every street and asking anyone who might have seen her. But Elynn had vanished without a trace, as if she had never existed.

Heartbroken, he returned to Scotland, to the rugged shores of the Isle of Skye. For years he hated her, a hatred which he took out on other women. But as time passed, he mellowed. Elynn Neve Noele became a distant memory   His life moved forward, yet he felt an emptiness that he couldn’t explain—a feeling that a part of him had been left behind in Paris.

What he didn’t know was that his son would one day stand in front of him, carrying a pendant that would reveal the truth.

The Gryphonowl Chronicles

In Manitoba, Elynn found refuge in her writing. She poured her love for Alaric, Alaric’s stories, the ancient legends of her ancestors, and the stories she learned from the Cree, into The Gryphonowl Chronicles, a series of tales about portals, mythical creatures, and the eternal beauty of nature. Many of the tales became secret love letters to Alaric, immortalizing their love, stories about worlds where they would always find each other, no matter the boundaries of time and space.

Kaelen’s Departure

As Kaelen grew older, the world beyond the forest called to him. On his 19th birthday, standing at the edge of their cabin, he turned to Elynn with determined eyes.

“Mother,” he said, “I need to leave. There’s a world out there that I need to see, not just hear about.”

Elynn had always known this day would come. Her son was an adult – a man who had to pursue his destiny. She handed him a silver pendant shaped like a gryphon’s feather which had belonged to Alaric and which he had given to her.

“This will guide you when you’re lost,” she said. “And it will be recognized by only one person in the world—your father.” Kaelen kissed her cheek and walked into the forest, disappearing into the mist like a shadow. Elynn stood watching until the trees swallowed him whole, the wind carrying him away

The Future Awaits

Back in the forest, Elynn watched the seasons change. The owls, her faithful messengers, brought her news of distant places, sometimes whispering of Kaelen’s travels, other times hinting at Alaric’s life in Scotland.

On cold winter nights, as the fire crackled and the snow fell silently outside, she felt a shift in the air. The wind carried the scent of the northern seas, and the owls watched her with knowing eyes.

Somewhere in the world, her son was drawing closer to his destiny. Somewhere, Alaric was waiting, though he did not yet know it.

The past and the future were circling one another, waiting for the perfect moment to meet.