As the trio approached the elves, they parted to make way. Some of them reached out to touch Lana as she passed, thanking her and blessing her on her travels. It was absurd and she was extraordinarily uncomfortable with such attention. Lana had been closeted her whole life, kept away from any adoring crowds and this made her very nervous.
Eventually they were able to break free of the village and continue on the road toward Thelsamel. Lana breathed a sigh of relief as the little gathering finally stopped following the trio and shrunk in the distance until she could no longer see them.
“What in the world was that all about?” she asked Ilann. “Are you from that village? Do you know why they behaved that way?”
Ilann shrugged, and glanced behind him before replying.
“No, I was merely traveling and happened to be there when you arrived. I have never seen elves act in such a manner. Normally we are not a fawning sort of people.” He frowned. “But if you did heal those children, then there is something special about you. Healing is something no elf has seen since the days of the high priestess.”
“Well, of course not,” Nym told him sharply. “No elf has had a reason to need healing. We heal from the land. The land provides.”
Bowing his head to Nym, Ilann relented. “Indeed, the land provides. But I get a sense that it’s not providing as it once did. If those children went deaf to the sound of the mother…” He trailed off. Clearly, the idea of no longer being able to commune with nature was something no elf could bear the thought of.
“What does it mean?” Lana said aloud, not intending to address either of the elves but simply speaking her thoughts.
“The land weakens,” Nym said sadly, reaching out to clasp hands with Ilann. “There will be a time of war again soon. I can feel it in my bones.” The two elves gazed at each other silently, sharing a moment of mutual heartache.
Lana shuddered. She wanted to come to Eva to find peace but it seemed like perhaps it would be short lived.
Kindermer
As Lana, Nym and Ilann continued traveling toward Thelsamel, they happened upon a number of other elven villages where children were mysteriously falling ill and dying. It was the same every single time. They would be in pain and then feverish, eventually cooling and falling into a state of deep slumber. Then, death.
As they passed through the tiny villages, Lana would spend the night with the children, reaching out and touching each of them to feel their spirit, knowing what she would find. They were sad and lost, something was missing within them and it was killing their soul as well as their bodies. The next morning, the children would wake and recognize Lana from their dreams. The people would fawn over her as if she had performed some miracle.
Eventually, Lana was tempted to avoid villages altogether but she realized that doing so would be selfish and unforgivable. If there was some way she could be of help, she had to do it. Eventually, word had traveled ahead of them somehow and the elves knew her on sight from descriptions passed along. She had become something of a legend to these people and she didn’t like that one bit.
She had gathered a following, as well. Every time they stopped, a few elves would decide that they wished to travel with her to Thelsamel and she felt she had no right to send them away. This wasn’t her land, not in the same way it was their land. She had no power over these people and wouldn’t try to order them around. There were now twenty elves following the three of them, men, women and children.
It was a clear, crisp morning the day Lana saw her first elven city. Kindermer was grand compared to the little villages they had come upon before now. It was one of the oldest cities in Eva and the buildings were actually trees twisted around each other in such a way that, with the aid of awnings, elves could live and work within them, protected from the elements. The trees didn’t create rooms exactly, but they were situated in such a way that one could walk along the trunk to get from level to level and the branches grew close enough together to provide stable flooring. It was a breathtaking sight.
The elves in Lana’s group dispersed once they reached the city, most likely to spread word of her coming. She sighed wearily, knowing that she could do nothing to stop them.
“Is there an inn here so we can rest?” she asked Nym and Ilann. “Do elves even have inns?”
Ilann laughed and took her by the arm, steering her toward the largest tree.
“Yes, we do have inns. It’s not quite the same as in the human lands but you should be comfortable,” he said as they walked.
The roof of the inn was a bright red cloth that had been fastened cleverly to various branches, casting everything in a rosy glow. A lovely elf woman with silver hair and dark brown eyes bowed low to Lana, a look of awe on her face.
Oh, dear, Lana thought. Here we go again.
“Welcome to you travelers, welcome to you Halfling. It’s such a pleasure to host you for the night,” the woman said, not daring to meet Lana’s eyes. “I’m called Talia.”
“Please,” Lana said softly, reaching out to put a hand on the woman’s arm. “I’m just another traveler looking for a place to rest. You don’t have to do that.”
“I will see you to a room straight away, ma’am,” Talia said, straightening. “How many will you need?”
Lana looked at Nym with a raised eyebrow. Nym grinned and winked at her.
“One for Lana and one for the two of us,” she
