The instant Kali fell to the floor, Rayann was beside her. As the voice filled the room, Rayann felt a chill unlike any she’d felt before. When the shadow serpents slithered around Kali, Rayann gasped. With Kali trying to fight off the pain, Rayann reached out for the girl. As quickly as it had begun it had ended leaving Kali sobbing and Rayann shaken to the very core. She knew that voice. Knew who it belonged to and knew it would be a long, winding, and difficult road ahead of them but Rayann was determined not to let anything happen to Kali now. No matter what. No matter how frightened this revelation made her. Rayann would have to find the courage to face the Dark Queen herself in order to free her daughter completely from the life her brother had made her a part of.

As Kali sobbed, Rayann cradled the girl in her arms close to her and rocked gently. As she rocked Kali, she began to hum a song her own mother used to hum to her when she had a bad dream or had fallen and scraped her knee. A fire came to life in both fireplaces of the room and began to take the chill from the air.

Exhaustion seemed to settle over the two mages like a wet, woolen blanket in the middle of a summer heat wave. Before long, Kali was resting, but how peacefully had yet to be determined. Rayann settled the girl into the middle of the soft bed and kneeled beside the bed as she prayed to the Gods and thanked them for the gift of Kali as well as the other gifts she had been granted.

Fearful to leave the girl alone just yet, Rayann sat down in the easy chair near the fire and turned it so she could have a clear view of Kali as she rested in the bed. Finally, in the wee hours of the morning, Rayann drifted off to sleep as well.


--------

As Kali laid in the bed she felt a rumbling sound as her bed shook and the sound of Rayann’s voice.

”OW! What in the name of the Gods….

When Kali awoke she would see the room was bathed in warm sunlight and Rayann was no where in sight but she could feel the flow of the magic around her, flowing toward the opposite side of the castle. If she followed the magic current she would reach the place the magic seemed to be concentrated, she saw Rayann standing there holding her hand.

Rayann hesitantly reached out for the door handle to the tower’s door again and a low growl could be heard rumbling through the entire castle. The metal of the door handle actually looked as though it were snarling at Rayann. A nasty red welt could clearly be seen on the back of Rayann’s hand showing the physical markings of the doors defense.

”Oh now this is just too…..insane. Let me in, you ungrateful…..thing.”

The tower seemed to growl even more as though Rayann’s words agitated it. Blinking, Rayann stomped her foot in frustration.

”I’m going to make fire wood out of you if you don’t let me in.”

She’d heard of Wizards facing trials to enter another wizard’s tower but she thought she wouldn’t have to since she was Lachlan’s daughter. However, as she was discovering, a wizard’s tower belonged to them and no matter the blood ties to the former owner, the new owner would need to gain possession of the tower as though they were strangers.

Kali woke and looked directly into the sun. Her eyes flickered, immune to the blinding light and she watched as the star burned brightly, illuminating the landscape outside. She watched the curtains waving gently in the mid-morning breeze and inhaled deeply as she sat up. The knot on the front of her head was slightly smaller, but the new one on the back of her head throbbed and seemed to have grown overnight. She reached up and gingerly poked at it, she could feel the congealed blood and grimaced slightly.

She swung her feet out of bed and went to the closet, searching through the clothing within. There was a brown linen, ankle length nightshirt that caught her eye. She took it and went out into the hall, looking for a bathing room. She found one down the hall and entered in, expecting to find it void of water since there were no servants in this castle that she knew of. Oddly, there was a copper pipe with a valve sticking out of the wall sitting over a large tub. With curiosity she turned the valve and ice cold water began to poor into the tub. She looked down and plugged the drain and let the water fill the tub. How delightful to have water that flowed into the home. Looking outside she could see a stream on the hillside, someone had figured out to pipe that water into this room, simply amazing. The water however, was ice cold, and she furrowed her brow. She hissed words of magic and placed her hands in the water, casting ‘burning touch’, and spell that made the wizards hands as hot as a branding iron, typically used to inflict incredible pain on a victim, she cleverly used the spell to warm her bath.

She undressed and got into the water, feeling the warmth and comfort of the steam. She washed and got all the blood out of her hair, groaning every time she went over the gash in the back of her head. She unplugged the tub and got dressed, drying her hair as best she could and then wrapping it in a towel. She walked out into the hall and heard Rayann’s voice. She followed the magic signature she felt and as she got closer and closer she felt an eerie feeling, one that got worse with every step. She began to feel cold and shivered, her mind screaming at her to leave. She fought the sensation and kept pressing forward and turned a corner, seeing Rayann arguing with… a door. Her body quaked with cold and her teeth chattered, the door literally seemed to be sneering at her, she focused, her head throbbed, and she screamed, turning and running down the hall, the sensation of what she felt fading with each meter she put between her and the door until she was back in her room.

She caught her breath and calmed herself, clearly that was an area of the house to avoid, or explore closer later, depending on how brave she was feeling. After a while, she looked over at her robes, the robes she had earned and wore with such pride. She was confused, she did not want to put them on again, she did not serve the one who gave them to her, and she felt it was a betrayal of the true god of dark magic to wear them. She stared at the robes, slumped lazily over the big chair in the corner, sighing deeply she felt alone and scared, all the purpose seemed to be sucked from her life and she was unsure what or how to move forward.

Hearing Kali’s scream, Rayann quickly snapped her head in that direction then quickly followed after the girl. The blasted tower would have to wait. Hopefully Rayann would have the patience needed to gain access to it before too long. It was going to take some doing, though.

When Rayann found Kali in the room, she just stood in the door watching her for a long moment. The swirl of emotions she was feeling from her daughter made her want to move to her and draw her into her embrace once more and reassure her everything would be alright. But she couldn’t do that. Kali was no ordinary child born of ordinary parents. While it would sound nice to hear it would be OK, everyone knew nothing would be alright until balance was restored in the magic of Krynn.

Rayann noticed Kali had chosen a plain brown nightshirt and her hair was still damp. But Rayann also noticed how she was looking at the robes that lay lifeless over the chair. Rayann herself was void of the robes she normally wore and was dressed in a simple tunic, belted at the waist and a pair of dark brown leggings and of course the soft, high boots Myth had gotten for her.

Sighing softly, she walked into the room and sat down on the foot of the bed and looked over at the robes as well. She was about to use her empathetic communication but decided to use her voice instead.

”So what do we do now?”

When Kali looked over at Rayann she would see her mother looking at the robes as well.

”Everything was crystal clear yesterday when we woke up. But things have changed. So where do we go from here?”

Rayann blinked then looked over at Kali and gave a small smile.

”I don’t know, Kali. At least, not entirely. Let me share with you what I experienced yesterday. After I cast the severance spell on you and Rorie, I was knocked back like you were. As I regained my bearings, I saw what was happening around me. I stood in the middle between you, Myth, and Rorie and I literally felt the world of Krynn crying out for help. The magic that flows so naturally in this world was crying out for someone to hear it. And I did. Not so much as in here…”

Rayann pointed to her head then moved her hand to cover her heart.

”….but here. I realized then there was only one true way to help bring the balance back to the magical essence of this world. To be truly neutral. It’s not one side or the other that will maintain the delicate balance. If the white robes gain too much, the scales will be tipped in their favor. If the black robes gain too much, the scales will be tipped in the opposite favor. It’s only by those who stand in the middle, able to see both sides equally and can wield the magic of both, can true balance be maintained.”

Rayann paused as she let this news settle. Her voice was quiet as she spoke now.

”Rorie and I were no ordinary children, Kali. We are mortal children of the Gods. Born of mortal parents but the Gods were responsible for our creation. They just needed the vessels to help produce us. And they found them in our parents. You are a child born of a union of a child of the Gods and a child of the Elves. You have been blessed with the natural ability to wield the magic of Krynn as though it were a part of you just as myself and Rorie can but you were also blessed with the natural ability to become one with the world. The magic of Krynn is a living, breathing thing. If you let yourself feel it, you will see for yourself how alive it truly is.”

Again Rayann paused before she went on.

”You and I, Kali. Now that Rorie is with the Dark Queen, we are the ones that have been chosen to restore and maintain the balance of the magic of Krynn. Exactly how we go about doing that, I don’t know, yet. But I’m confident we’ll find a way. There will be hurdles we’ll have to clear and it won’t be easy, but I know, in my heart, we will be the ones to right the wrongs and bring the scales back to equal levels.”

The room was dead silent until Rayann’s voice pierced the quiet. Kali had been so deep in thought she never even felt her mother approach. She turned and looked at Rayann; she appeared so different when she wasn’t in her white robes. Her mother’s hair was even whiter than it appeared when surrounded by the fine white silk of traditional wizards clothing. Kali listened to Rayann’s story with all her attention. She began to cry as Rayann talked about the destruction of magic, her eyes welling and the tears streaking down her pale cheeks. After Rayann finished Kali responded.

“That is the goal. That is what Tahkisis is working towards. She has stolen magic from her son Nuitari. It’s been happening for centuries but recently she has been channeling more and more to her wizards. Nuitari is furious with her, but we didn’t care, it was a means to an end. Interlacing the ambient with the arcane allowed us to destroy the arcane and create spells beyond imagination through the shattering of its power. Rorie is… he is the most powerful of her ambient wizards. It makes sense; she took the tool of the gods and is using it against them toward her own end, which is the destruction of Krynn. There is a whole other world Rayann, a world on the Celestial Plane that we were to return to once this deed is done, and on that world our new power would make us the instrument of the one god, Tahkisis.”

She turned and looked out the window, watching the landscape as it stretched out in front of her. She continued to speak knowing Rayann was listening behind her. “We knew we were destroying arcane magic, but that was the point, that was what we were trying to do. You are right; the living breath of magic is being suffocated by the dark wizards of Tahkisis. At the rate they are going, the deed will be accomplished in 24 months. Nim’Sul was a target because of his strength, he was capable of bringing a significant threat to the plans, and the stealthy infiltration was designed to snuff out that threat. Silvanus is more a symbolic victory than a strategic one. The Elves are the first of the created; they are the ultimate symbol of the gods’ creations on Krynn. To destroy them first would create a psychological blow to the rest of creation. Yes, we have been marching and creating chaos in our wake, but Silvanost was to be the beginning of the genocide of all the Silvanesti Elves.”

She turned and looked at Rayann, her eyes were puffy and red, her cheeks soaked with her own tears. “I now know why Rorie was so bent on destroying you, Tahkisis never saw you as a threat, but Rorie insisted that we destroy you, claiming that you were the lynch pin to putting disharmony in the magic, especially after Nim’Sul was dead. I doubt that Tahkisis has killed him, at best he will be punished, but he is too strong, too powerful to remove from her service, she’s not foolish in the least, she will keep him around.”

She looked at her robes, the iridescent sleeves shimmering in the sunlight; the inky black folding on itself seemed infinite. Her lower lip quivered and she spoke, starring at the robes, almost as if she was daring them to move on their own and make a move against her. “These robes are all I have ever known, magic channeled by Tahkisis is all I have ever felt, but some god is still allowing me to cast.” She turned and looked at Rayann, lifting her hand up and hissing words of magic, a small flame appeared about an inch above her palm and danced like a fairy. “You see? I am still a Wizard, I am still able to use magic, and not ambient magic, this is a gift of the arcane, the kind of magic that can only come from allegiance with a moon god. So to answer your question, I think we both know what is next; it is time for the purpose of Rayann to be fulfilled, but not with her twin, with her daughter.”

Rayann couldn’t help but cry with Kali. To hear what the Dark Queen was doing so plainly made Rayann feel as though she was going to heave. It was far worse than what she had suspected. And to hear that they were going to destroy the Elves in an effort to win the psychological side of the war was even harder to hear. The Dark Queen simply had no thought but of her own gain and that gain was the world of Krynn.

Rayann felt as though her heart were breaking as the thought of this beautiful world being ripped apart by something so devastating as this was more than she could comprehend. It was all just too much to fathom. Yet here she was, sitting with her daughter, crying over the way the world was being thrown into utter despair.

But as Kali told Rayann what was next for them, and heard her say the words she said brought more tears to her eyes, but not ones of sadness. They were tears of pride. Tears of joy. Tears of bonding. Reaching out her hand towards Kali, Rayann nodded slightly. Swallowing several times, she finally found her voice to speak.

”It’s not just A God, Kali. It’s all of them. They know in order to defeat the Dark Queen, they have to join together in us. They are showing you what you’ve been able to do all along. It was Rorie’s actions that prevented you from realizing the truth.”

With another nod and swallowing hard again, Rayann let Kali know it that while one door had closed, another had opened wide for her.

”We’ll work together on this, Kali. It’s the only way to we can do it and succeed. And the first thing we need to work on is the one thing Rorie used to keep the truth from you. Our empathetic and mental connection. I know you’re scared of that but we won’t do anything you don’t want to do. In fact, I won’t place myself in your mind unless you invite me to. But on the flip side of that….I will leave myself open to you at all times. Nothing will be off limits to you. With the exception of some things that have to deal with Myth. That is not mine to divulge.”

There was a pause.

”What do you say?”

Kali looked at Rayann and as her hand came up Kali looked at it a moment. She was unsure of what to do. It was obvious to her that Rayann wanted a moment of bonding, to touch and connect, but Kali simply couldn’t just dive into something she wasn’t ready for. Her calculating nature fought her thoughts, and she did oblige the gesture by reaching forward and gently touching the back of Rayann’s hand, but she withdrew after only a second or two and stood again, walking to the window and looking outside again. There was something out there that was fascinating her, the land that surrounded this place. She could almost hear the laughter of Rayann and Rorie as children; running across the emerald grass of the hillside she was staring at. She listened to Rayann talk about the gods of magic, and their plans. She couldn’t help but feel that Rayann was a pawn, just as she was, simply caught in the chess game between the beings of ‘divinity’. It angered her, but she subdued her anger and turned to face Rayann.

“Neutrality.” The word was strange coming off her tongue, she let it linger in the air, waiting to see if the cool morning breeze would carry it out the window. “I have never known what that means, I have always been focused on the will of a divine power bent on a purpose and a set of absolutes.”

She leaned back against the window sill and stared at Rayann, her dragon slit eyes were ominous and cold, there was no emotion in them, simply darkness. It was why she had them, the Dark Queen intended for them to strike fear into all that gazed into them. The intent was for the last thing Shulamites victims to see was a vision of hopelessness. Kali fixed her gaze on Rayann for a long while, simply letting the silence move between them, and finally she spoke after contemplating Rayann’s words. “I am not going to be able to let you into my mind. There is too much pain and uncertainty right now. I’m sorry.” She could see by the expression on Rayann’s face that this was not the answer she was hoping for, but it was the only one she could give. Her mind had been brutally assaulted for as long as she could remember, and she was not about to let someone else in, no matter who it was. Though she now knew the truth Rayann was still a stranger, a person she had only really begun to get to know in the last 16 hours.

Rayann could tell that all the pleasant emotions had been driven out of Kali, she was constantly stone faces and every gesture of her face was one of sizing things up, breaking them down, calculating the odds and knowing every angle. It made sense, she had been forged into a machine of destruction, and it wasn’t the sort of thing that was going to simply disappear overnight. It might take her whole life of relearning her world, and even then, that might not be enough. Kali turned again and looked at the morning red moon. It was full, beaming through the blue sky of day. She could feel it’s pull, and she became lost in contemplative thought, almost forgetting that her mother was sitting behind her.

Rayann merely nodded when Kali answered her question. As she studied the girl she realized there was a large chasm separating them and it would take a long time before that bridge was constructed to close that gap. If ever. That possible realization hurt Rayann more than she would ever admit and as Kali stood, staring out at the land around her, Rayann stood up. Her voice was sanctuary quiet as she spoke.

”The castle and grounds are beautiful. Explore them as you wish. If you need me, say my name.”

Silently slipping from the room, Rayann made her way back down the corridor and through the castle to where the tower came into view. Like before, she felt a strange nauseating sensation as she grew closer and she felt as though she should be deathly afraid of…something, but she gritted her teeth and moved closer only to feel the protection of the tower grow even stronger.

This was her father’s tower. Not hers. If she were going to gain entrance, she would have to earn her right to enter it now. She’d never done anything like this before so this was new territory for her but she did have one thing on her side; her father’s stubborn determination.

Bowing her head and saying a quick prayer, she pushed up her sleeves and furrowed her brows as she clenched her jaw and began casting. Almost immediately the tower retaliated and Rayann felt as though her head were going to explode. Stumbling back, Rayann quickly cast defensive spells. This was not going to be as easy as it appeared. Already she could feel the tower pushing her back further and to make matters worse, she had the most frightening sensation about her. She wanted to run away screaming but she stood her ground and kept working to find a way through the defenses and into the tower. She HAD to. Her and Kali’s safety depended on it.


(lame, I know, but it's the best I can do right now. sorry)

Kali could feel her mother’s sadness, and she closed her eyes as her mother offered free movement about the grounds, barely nodding. She cursed her eyes under her breath, this curse disguised as a blessing. She was ashamed to look Rayann in the face, the dragon slit eyes would be a constant reminder of her past allegiance, and she felt deep sadness knowing this was how her mother would always see her. She suddenly felt the presence of Rayann leave, and she turned sharply, opening her mouth, but nothing came out, not even breath. She was so confused and conflicted… she wanted to love her mother, she knew what and how a daughter should be, but she felt nothing, there was only emptiness.

Rayann was a wizard Kali had been taught to hate, she loathed the woman up until yesterday, it wasn’t as easy as simply flicking a switch, at least not for her. Obviously it was for Rayann, the woman had reached out several times just this morning and what Kali regretted more than anything was she felt she was letting Rayann down.


She knew the physical distance between herself and Rayann was growing by the second and she felt a single tear roll down her cheek, her voice came out as the slightest moan. She physically reached up towards the door, “mom…”


Her skull felt like it was splitting along the seam as she fell forward, her body hit the ground with a dull smack as Tahkisis entered her mind again. The silky voice came, there was no magic signature, no traceable source, this was a goddess, doing as she pleased, playing with her mouse. Shulamite thought her brain was literally being scrambled and the silky voice slide through her ears, “Well hello my little toy, did you miss me? Now that mommy’s not here we can get down to business. She’s too busy concerning herself with uncle, and don’t worry, that will conclude soon enough. She thinks Kells can keep Rorie out of this castle, but this is his home too. Does she not think we have already been here dozens of times to unlock the secrets Lachlan kept within the tower walls? She is a fool to believe otherwise, how do you think Rorie was able to relearn to cast magic so quickly after she destroyed him the first time?”


A sadistic laugh penetrated Shulamites mind and just when she thought the pain couldn’t increase, her whole body felt the agony of Tahkisis wrath. She grit her teeth, withdrawing into a fetal position and not even able to bring so much as a whimper to her lips, much less call Rayann, not that she thought it would have matter, but at least someone would have been here to hold her as she died.


Tahkisis smiled and she spoke again as she felt Kali’s heart flutter, the body was dying, she would never get the message to Rayann to stay away from the tower, that it wasn’t resisting her, it was defending her from what lied within if she opened the door. “Now little pretty, you get to die, and if you think this hurts wait until I get you in the Abyss.”


The red moon flared that day, for the briefest of seconds. Anyone who was unaware might have simply thought something glinted in the distance and shaken it off as a matter of bad timing. Kali however felt power enter her in that second like she had never felt before. Her body rocked as she leapt to her feet involuntarily and threw her arms out from her body. The bellowing of a silky dark voice screaming curses to Kali’s name boomed off the walls of the castle. The power overtook Kali and she felt the warmth of magic’s absolute potency as the report of a massive explosion shattered the exterior wall of Rayann’s childhood bedroom. The red moon visible from any place in the room now, beaming its outwardly subdued light onto Kali, but the power transferred in that moment was unprecidented.


Kali burst out in a blood curdling scream, the sound echoed off the walls and reverberated out the window across the countryside. Her ancestral home shuttered as Kali’s voice resonated over the emerald grass, flowing up the hillside and across the Lochs. She hissed words into the air, her voice was full of venom and hatred. “You might be able to destroy this body, and you might destroy this soul in the Abyss, but you will NEVER crush my spirit! I will not yield to you! You only enter through your servants because you can’t enter this world yourself, you are flawed in this world, YOU…. ARE…. LIMITED!” With that last word, Tahkisis hissed, her voice flowing through the air, “SHULAMITE!” and then a flash of crimson light burst forth from Kali’s body, the dark silky voice went silent.


She collapsed, her body buckling under the strain of such power. She felt a warm feminine voice in her head, a voice that was almost as soothing as her mothers. “Fear not Kali os Padraig Thel'Radin, she can torment you no longer…” Kali looked up, there was nothing there except the pale pink of a subdued red light, obscured by the suns powerful rays, but present all the same.

She felt a tingling sensation in her eyes and she looked into the mirror on the wall, her shimmering blue eyes looking back at her, restored. They were nearly identical to her uncles, swirling slightly around the pupil, but a slightly darker shade of blue. She felt her lip curl to a smile and she began to cry tears of joy. She then turned and looked as the pink light moved across the floor and barely made contact with the hem of her beloved robes, as if someone was pouring ink on them, the black fabric changed from black to blood red, taking over a minute to move through the folds and alter the entire garb.

She could hear Rayann running through the halls of the castle, screaming her name, the pounding of her footsteps getting closer and closer. She spoke to the wind as her mother had told her to do the instant Rayann burst into the room, “Mom……”

The instant the wall of the castle exploded, Rayann was knocked down. Disoriented for only a moment, she quickly got to her feet and started running, screaming Kali’s name through out the castle as she ran. She was petrified something had happened to her daughter when she ran as fast as she could up the stairs and down the corridor that led to her old room.

She could see the pink light emanating from the bedroom door and when Rayann ran into the door jam, trying to stop herself and ready for what may be on the other side, she heard Kali say the one word she thought she’d never hear from her daughter, “Mom…”

Rayann was only able to see her daughter for a second before that pink light quickly engulfed her. She felt a warmth and peace fill her that she had never felt before. Closing her eyes, Rayann gasped softly and closed her eyes. The soft, feminine voice that filled her head was the same that had filled Kali’s just a few moments ago.

“Rayann Padraig, your oath has been accepted. You duty to us, to Krynn, is to learn what I can teach you. What your daughter can teach you and what you can teach your daughter. By learning together you will become a powerful team. But do not become complacent. Use what you have learned already to insure your success. All of Krynn will depend on you.”[/i]

”But first, you must leave here. You are not safe. The tower is protecting you from itself. It knows you. Knows who you are. Who your father was. And who your brother is now. Rorie has been here and has laid traps. You and Kali must go to a place where can healed a broken bridge. I will make sure Myth’alas can still reach you. But you must go and go now. I will insure your safety until you can put the wards in place to protect yourself.”

To Rayann’s right a portal opened up and as the pink light began to fade, she blinked her eyes open and saw Kali standing next to her holding the Staff of Winds. When Rayann saw Kali again, she saw the red robes and the color of her eyes. Lifting her hand to touch Kali’s cheek gently, she smiled as tears of joy slid down her face and that’s when she noticed her she was now wearing robes.

Of Red.

As the pink light faded entirely, the voice in her head did so as well.

“Go. Teach. And learn. Both of you. And know you are never alone.”

Rayann looked through the portal and blinked again then looked to Kali. She had no idea where they were being sent, but she trusted Lunitari to send them someplace safe. Taking Kali’s hand in hers, Rayann stepped through the portal

Tanjee and Kwinn were still out in the forest when the attack started on Silvanost. At fist, Tanjee was uncertain what was really going on, but she could smell the magic in the air and knew it wasn’t good. But when the different armies of the Dark Queen started invading the area, Tanjee almost screamed in terror. If it hadn’t been for Kwinn clamping his hand over her mouth and tackling her to the ground Tanjee would have given away their location. Thanks to Kwinn’s quick thinking and his knowledge of the forest he guided Tanjee to a safe place where they could hide.

Tanjee trembled as she saw the different creatures pass by attacking her kin. More than once she yelped in terror and curled into Kwinn for comfort. In all her years she’d never seen anything like this and knew she was helpless to do anything about it. Her talents were for healing not combating.

But things began to change and the tables were turned. Tanjee started seeing her Elven brethren chasing the creatures and killing them. By the time it seemed everything was done, Tanjee and Kwinn made their way back to the gates of Silvanost, Tanjee and Kwinn saw the utter destruction of the gates, the dead bodies littered the ground, the cries and moans of the injured and the chaos that was slowly starting resemble order under Myth’s guidance.

Tanjee and Kwinn just jumped in and started helping how ever they could. The bad thing about it was that they had to each go their separate ways. It wasn’t until the middle of the next day before they saw each other again. Tanjee was exhausted from working in the healing center and Kwinn was exhausted from helping the Elves clean up the mess.

When Tanjee saw Kwinn walk through the door to her home, she let out a small gasp then quickly closed the gap between them. Wrapping her arms around his back, she laid her head on his shoulder for a moment before lifting her dirt smudged face (that matched his own) to look up into his face and smile tiredly.

”I never thanked you for saving my life. Thank you, Kwinn. For saving my life and keeping me safe. I am forever in y our debt.”

Tanjee had yet to hear about her brother or what he had done. Truth be told, people had been so busy that he was all but forgotten. He was still in his cell but the sleep spell had worn off. He was sitting in the far corner brooding like a child who didn’t get his way.

Kali walked through the portal with her mother and instantly felt the safety of where they were. She looked around in awe and turned to Rayann, a grin on her face, “The Misty Isle!”

It was a place of mystery, part of the chain Dragon Isles inhabited by the Silver and Gold chromatic dragons of good. It was nearly impossible to get to due to the charms and incantations set all around it, but obviously Lunitari being a dragon herself had the necessary means to get people there. Kali turned to Rayann with a smile on her face; it was obvious the wonder of where they were at was breaking down the stone walls around the young woman.

“Mother! Can you believe it? The Misty Isle!! Never in my days would I have thought I would be standing here, at least not peacefully.” She walked, her blood red robes showing in sharp contrast to the colors of nature all around them. She let her eyes trace the high, snow cap mountains, several times trying to use her dragon sight to zoom in on features before realizing that her eyes were purely half-Elven again. As she walked with Rayann they came up over a small rise and before them stood the grand capital of the Dragon Isles, the city of Aurialastican. Kali gasped softly and reached towards her mother, grabbing Rayann’s robe sleeve and tugging gently. “Look at it! It is the most magnificent thing I have ever seen!”

This was the Isle of the gold and silver chromatic dragons, as such, they were everywhere. Many of them in their human form, but several were in their native form, the light reflecting off their scales and shimmering like thousands of waves on an ocean concentrated into small areas. She watched as dragons came and went from the city, going about their business in such a casual way, like any other creatures on Krynn. Kali was simply speechless and simply stood, watching from a distance.

There appeared off the main gated wall a being, watching Rayann and Kali. The humanoid leapt off the wall and morphed into a Silver Dragon, and crossed the great distance between the two Wizards and the city. The dragon came in quickly, soaring over their heads and circling before landing in front of them, morphing and touching down on human feet. He regarded the two red robes magi a moment and then spoke, his voice was smooth and full of kindness, “Greetings ladies, I am Nol’Lore Silentclaw, but you may simply call me Nol.” He bowed low, his long silver hair scrapping the ground before he snapped back up and regarded them with soft eyes. “Lunitari messaged me that two of her followers would be joining us for a while. She asked that I be your host and guide until you get acquainted.”

The kindness in his face was over whelming. It was long known that the silver dragons adored humanity, typically choosing to spend their time with the mortals of Krynn rather than with their own kind. It was obvious in his face that Nol was beside himself with excitement to have been given this assignment. “Would you care to come into Aurialastican and have some refreshments? Or would you like to see your quarters and rest? It is of course, entirely up to you.”

Rayann was as shocked and surprised as Kali was. As the girl’s excited exuberance filled the air, Rayann couldn’t help but laugh softly. But like Kali, Rayann was just as much in awe as the red robed girl next to her. It was like watching the well constructed gates of Silvanost crumble before her as Kali emerged from this transformation like a butterfly from a thick cocoon. While Rayann was fully prepared to accept a respectful but distant relationship with her daughter, to see Kali get excited and jubilant at being where she was made Rayann stand back and watch with awe.

But it was when Kali called her ‘mother’ without even realizing it that Rayann saw the last of the walls around her daughters heart crumble as though they were sand in a dust storm. Rayann couldn’t help but gasp softly. Even as they started walking up small rise Rayann saw her daughter outshine the sun this day and she couldn’t help but wish that Myth were there to see this as well.

When they crested the small hill and saw the beautiful city of Aurialastican, Rayann also felt the same awe Kali did. As they stood on that hll overlooking the magnificent city, watched the dragons coming and going, glittering in the sunlight like beautiful jewels, Rayann didn’t realize she was clutching Kali’s hand.

As the one dragon quickly approached, Rayann couldn’t help but duck at the last minute. So taken by the graceful form and large size of the dragon that she forgot she could be in danger of being attacked, although she highly doubted it. After all, these dragon were known to see man as a friend and not something to eat or torture. But when the dragon transformed and landed with human feet then bowed as he introduced himself, Rayann blinked, closed her gaping mouth then smiled in kind.

Already she could sense the magical current on this isle as it flowed over her and she wondered if Kali could feel it as well. It was much stronger here than it had been back in Glen Durel and she wondered if it was because of the dragons or something else. What ever it was, she didn’t want anyone else to know about it for fear they would some how find a way to this place and exploit it as they had the rest of Krynn.

As Rayann studied the kind face before her and looked into the even kinder eyes, she quickly recovered from her awe and put her arm across the back of Kali’s shoulders then bowed humbly herself. When she righted herself once more, Rayann looked to Kali then looked out over the land once more and her smile grew.

”Well, Nol, we are honored to have you as our host. And it would be our esteemed pleasure if we could venture to Aurialastican for some refreshments. I am Rayann Padraig of Glen Durel, and this is my Daughter….Kali os Padraig Thel’Raden. We are the newest follower of Lunitari. And we appreciate your help in getting acquainted.”

Kali felt her mother’s hand clutching her own. It was not comfortable, and yet, she didn’t want to let go, and she didn’t. She wasn’t used to this sort of affection, the physical contact, the emotions, but she didn’t feel as if it was wrong, and she held on. As the dragon approached she watched in amazement as he whooshed overhead and when Rayann ducked she could not help but giggle.

The Dragon shifted shape and the handsomest man she had ever seen appeared before them. He was muscular and shirtless. His Elven-like features were sharp and distinct, proportional and perfect in all aspects. The two glowing blades that hung from his belt were etched with ancient runes and the blades glowed a smooth sky blue. She also noticed the chains that adorned the ends of the hilts, dangling in brilliant silver and each had a figurine of a silver dragon hanging off the end. She felt her cheeks flush as he gazed at her, and she was convinced that her face was as red as her new robes. As Rayann introduced them she smiled and nodded her head respectfully to the immortal silver dragon before her, and she responded, her voice slightly shaky.

“As my mother stated, we are honored to have you host us Nol. Your kindness to mortals is beyond expectation, especially considering how we have treated your kind over history.”



Nol’s expression changed and he was amused as Kali spoke to him. His eyes traced her features and he responded to her. “It is our pleasure to honor servants of the red goddess. It is not as much a burden as you might think.” Smiling he turned and gestured for them to walk with him. He walked beside Rayann on her left, on the far side of Kali. Kali could not help but feel regret that he had chosen to put Rayann between them, or maybe he didn’t… she wasn’t sure what this feeling was inside her, she felt like a child, what the hell was wrong with her. She shoke the webs from her head and admired the city before them. It was unlike anything she had ever seen. She had memories of Tahkisis’ castle, it was the grandest structure she had ever seen, but it paled in comparison to this place. Where the Dark Queen’s domain was set as a place to intimidate and strike fear into those who gazed upon it, this place gave off nothing less than feelings of safety and peace. She had heard of the Chromatic Dragons, the dragons of Paladine. Tahkisis would scoff about them any chance she got, that they would dare to align themselves to serving lesser creatures. Kali had always believed them to be simple and stupid, but it was obvious to her now that all her pre-conceptions and the teaching instilled into her as a child couldn’t be further from the truth. She was in awe at the sight of them.

Rayann was still unsure as to how to treat Kali and respond to her but as she held her daughter’s hand she noticed Kali wasn’t trying to let go either. The hold Rayann now had on Kali’s hand wasn’t near as tight and she knew when Kali was ready to let go, she would of her own accord. She was, after all, not a little girl but a half grown woman who could handle herself very well.

When she heard Kali’s slightly shaky voice, she let her smile fade slightly then looked to her daughter. Noting the color on her cheeks and the look in her eyes, she let her gaze swing to Nol then and she saw the way the dragon in humanoid form was looking at Kali. Rayann loved Myth with all her heart but she was not immune to noticing certain…..things about the opposite sex. And right now, Nol was looking like a fine specimen of a male. And Kali was quite the beautiful young woman. It suddenly dawned on Rayann what was happening here and she suddenly felt very awkward. But not in a bad way.

As they started walking, Rayann noticed where Nol had decided to walk and glanced at Kali. She could see the disappointment in the girls face and made a mental note of it. As they walked along, Rayann looked around and couldn’t help but strike up conversation with the friendly host.

”It seems as though Lunitari has picked the perfect place for Kali and I to study. I will be sure to thank her this evening. I can’t think of any better place right now in all of Krynn. Can you, Kali?”

Rayann felt as though she were emerging from a long dream as she walked the Misty Isle. So this is what a new beginning feels like, she kept thinking. To Rayann, this is exactly the place Kali needed to come to learn how to be human. It was clear that the girl had been trained to study magic in such a way that there was no time for anything else. No nurturing. No time for talking about incidental things. No time to learn what it was like to be hugged. No time to learn what it is to be truly loved.

A hurtful sadness filled Rayann then as she thought about this. to think of the childhood Kali went through made her close her eyes for a moment and block those thoughts from her mind. That was in the past. Kali had her whole future ahead of her now. And Rayann was prepared to spend the time and practice the patience needed to help her daughter see life was not about torment and fear. It was about living…and loving.

Taking a deep breath, Rayann let it out slowly and walked along with Kali and Nol letting the sun warm her, the soft breeze bring her the many different scents to her and feel the magical current was over her.

Myth watched the flash of magic as his lovce and daughter disappeared from the field of battle. He felt a heavy weight upon his heart for not being able to join them at that moment but there was still a great deal of work to do. Defenses needed to be shored up and there was still rabble to disperse.

Myth orchestrated the remainder of the battle till every mage and draconian that had made it through were destroyed. Emerald eyes scanned the ruins of the gates and the elf let out a heavy sigh. There was no doubt about the girl's lineage as Myth looked upon the destruction she was capable of. Turning his attention from the gates Myth made his way into the city proper. He could feel the eyes of Sylvanost upon him as he entered the square.

Elves parted ways watching him intently his eyes settled upon one of the gate soldiers who was no standing upon the silver stump.

"Citizens of Silvenost the evil that assaulted our gates has been driven back to the dark recesses from whence it came. We have lost several and many have been injured but teh walls of Syvanost still stand."

The speaking commander's eyes settled on Myth and he gave a wink that made Myth cringe.

"All praise to Lord Myth for he and his companions went forth leading the counter against our enemy and triumphed."

The people cheered loudly and Myth frowned inwardly keeping a proud look on his face. He knew the reason the attack had been averted was because of his daughter's actions. The battle would have lasted far longer and the elves may very well have lost their homes, but he was not about to sour the crowds mood witht hese facts. He simply nodded and waved to the crowd before he began to make his way towards the barraks. Myth had not seen Aeolis upon the walls and he was going to find out where the damned elf had been.

The crowd continued to cheer as the speaker did his best to paint them a pretty picture and Myth exited fromt he crowd only to be met by another soldier. The elf bowed as Myth approached "Pardon prince but there was an incident I think needs to be brought to your attention."

Myth raised an eyebrow slightly looking at the man's homeguard uniform a moment. "I would think that all incidents should be brought to the attention of the Homeguard Commander." Myth crossed his arms.

The soldier sighed slightly stepping closer to Myth "The commander is the problem. Aeolis freaked out and assaulted the white robe Ceridwyn upon the defensive walls as she tried to help repell the black robed woman. The white lady has been taken to the infirmary and Aeolis has been placed under heavy guard. A sleep spell was cast upon him and appears to be holding for now."

Myth surmised the second in command was the one giving the grand speech and with Nim'Sul gone there were a limited number of people that could handle this matter. Myth sighed shaking his head. "I assume that you have not reported this to the Speaker."

The elf shook his head and Myth nodded. "Very well I will report this to the speaker of the stars. When the second in command is free tell him I want alert guards on that wall and scouts in the woods. Tell him I wanted them there yesterday. The enemy was driven back but we do not know how far away they were being teleported in from. I will report the situation to the Speaker of the Stars."

The elf saluted and disappeared from sight. Myth's eyes staired at teh barracks for several moments before he turned on his heel and began walking towards the last place in all Sylvanost he wanted to visit, home.