1

A large hand-carved wooden sign read Town of Domara. Finally! Elwin thought. After more than a month of travel, they had reached the destination and all he wanted to do is collapse into a comfortable bed and sleep from a thousand years!

He looked at his friends who were all exhausted from the road. It was late afternoon and they had been walking since sunrise knowing that this would be the last day of travel, that they would reach their destination before sunset. A mile or more behind them the road had gone over a large moraine.

Climbing the uphill side had worn them out. They would have had a good view of the town from the top of the ridge, but there were so many trees and brush that they could not see much. Just some smoke rising from distance chimneys and cook fires. The town was close and as much as they felt joy at being so near, the exhaustion they felt was all encompassing.

“Finally!” Emerson huffed loudly letting out a huge sigh of relief. It was a funny parallel of what Elwin had just thought.

They all felt that the simple wooden sign seemed sent by the Gods as if it was a message to relax for a moment. There was collective sigh that was let out by the whole group.

It was the first day of summer, a traditional time of festival, but it was unbearably hot that day. The high level of humidity made the air damp and sticky. The atmosphere was thick, breathing was laborious. They all had sweated through their clothing, even after taking off their cloaks and packed them away before noon. The large backpacks that each person carried seemed to weight tons, pulling them down a little closer to the ground as the weight grew with every step.

“I should have brought a cart for the pony!” Rowdy grumbled to himself. “It could have carried more.”

Elwin agreed it would have been a good idea. Still the pony was able to carry all of the tent, camping equipment and other supplies they needed including their food and cooking equipment. Still the pony had still proven itself useful, if a bit slow.

What they really needed were horses. Horses could be expensive to buy as well as to maintain. But they could carry more. If each person had their own horse, they would not have to carry anything. They could cover more ground each day and shorten up these long trips they had been undertaking.

They were all unaccustomed to these long marches everyday. His feet ached and his head hurt. The little Gnome was not in a good mood, Elwin thought, assuming he was even capable of such a thing! But Elwin also sympathized with him.

Using a cloth, Elwin wiped the sweat from the back of his neck and forehead.

Rith threw his pack down on the ground declaring. “I’m resting! Even if it’s just a few minutes, I don’t care. I will not take another step without catching my breath!”

“Maybe we should find some water for the pony,” Elwin suggested.

Emerson searched the area and found a nearby pond. He took the pony there.

Everyone dropped their packs and sat down on a grassy embankment on the side of the road. The sign cast a long shadow across them. They drank liberally from their canteens and contemplated their surroundings. The countryside was mostly forested. The signpost stood at a curve in the road. No one spoke for a few minutes. Only the sound of the wind rustling the leaves could be heard.

Elwin watched them all carefully, looking for signs of overexertion. He noticed that Anna dampened a cloth using her canteen and held it to her forehead. Her pale face had become red from the heat and marching all day. Elwin worried about her the most being both female and the youngest of the group. She struggled greatly with the endlessly long days of marching, but she refused to complain about it. Elwin figured she was simply too stubborn and proud to admit how hard this was for her. He supposed that she did not want the others to think that she was too weak, adventurers were not supposed to show weakness. They were brave in the face of danger and hardship. Anna wanted to show that she was as tough as the rest of them.

After a decent break, Elwin made them gather up their things and continue. The town was really close now and he told them they could rest for real when they got there.

“Tonight, we rest. Tomorrow, Rowdy can start the survey,” Elwin stated.

They all nodded.

Before long they reached the sprawling community of Domara. In terms of space, the town did not seem that large, but they had heard that the population was around twenty thousand. The buildings were packed tightly together around a high wall. There was a river nearby that was the western tributary of the Verant River, but even this far north the river was wide enough for small cargo ships to come in and out of town. The town was known for two things; lumber, since the town was surrounded by forests and mining near the foot of the mountain range nearby. A lot of iron ore came from open pit mines in the foot hills. From the town, the mountains with their high snowy peaks could be seen clearly cutting into the sky like jagged shards of glass.

Right away it was clear that the town had suffered significantly in recent months. There was a sprawling tent village that spread out along the southern walls in a crescent shape.

As if the Gods were sending a sign, the ground trembled slightly as the group stepped into the camp. It was minor tremor, only an aftershock, but to a group of adventurers that had never experience such an event, it unnerved them. No one else milling about the camp even seemed to notice it.

Elwin spotted a solider patrolling the area talking to a few people as he walked. “Excuse me sir,” Elwin said to him. The solider stopped and looked him over carefully. “We’re looking for the mayor, where can we find him?”

“Who wants to know?” The solider replied stiffly.

“We brought an engineer, by imperial requested. We need to see the mayor right away,” Elwin explained.

“You have documentation, I assume?” The solider requested.

Elwin gave him the document to look over. The solider glanced at it briefly. He relaxed his posture and attitude. He nodded to Elwin. “Alright, follow me.”

The solider walked down a couple of rows of tents until they came to a much larger tent that could house dozens of people. It appeared to be some sort of field hospital where the sick and wounded were being attended. Many people were milling about the area.

There was large, short man with a balding head crowned with frizzy grey hair standing outside the tent. His face was beet red. He padded his brow with a damp cloth. He was talking to what appeared to be a young Elvin woman.

Elwin was stunned. He had never seen an Elf in the flesh before. He was even more intrigued than when he saw a Gnomish village for the first time nearly a month before. Where was the look of evil, like the Verantian stories told? She looked almost human. Not barbaric like a Wild Elf who were often covered in tattoos and body piercings. She looked very similar to a human female around his age, only a little smaller and with pointed ears that poked out from her hair giving her race away.

She had the fairest alabaster skin he had ever seen. Free of freckles and blemishes. It was like a marble statue of the purest white had come to life. She had high delicate cheek bones and she was staring at him with the most beautiful dark blue eyes. Her long blonde hair had been wound into dozens of fine braids, from her scalp all the way down her back. The ends were beaded with precious stones, gold and silver.

Upon seeing him, the Elf stared intently with a piecing gaze. Elwin, suddenly aware he was being watched, caught her gaze. Something about her stare made him feel a bit uncomfortable and he looked away.

The soldier introduced the fat man as the mayor and then left.

“By the Gods!” The Mayor said frowning. “This heat is sweltering!” He dampened the cloth from a picture of cold water on the table next to him. He continued to press it to his forehead. “Where are you young ones hailing from?”

“Verant City,” Elwin responded in his best formal voice.

“Ah, that’s a very long journey! You must be awfully tired! You’re here on official business? Yes, of course! Please, let’s all relax in the tent, its large enough,” The Mayor said with a grand sweeping gesture of his sagging arm. Even his short stubby fingers dripped with sweat.

Once inside, they all took a seat in a group on the grassy ground. Indeed, it was a bit cooler inside the large airy tent. The flaps at both ends were open allowing a gentle breeze to sweep through and cooled them further. There were two rooms divided by a flap which was left open. The one room was larger with half a dozen beds, all occupied. The smaller room was used for meetings.

The Elf looked confused like she wanted to flee, but the Mayor grabbed her forcefully with one hand on her arm and dragged her to meet the new people. “This delightful little creature is Myra-Lynn! She’s a Forest Elf although you have already guessed that! Her healing abilities have been indispensable to this town. Her care and help knows no bounds!”

“Ah… W-Well met,” she stammered before finally dropping her gaze to the ground.

Elwin thought she looked very nervous. Were all Elves like this? Did they all look tense and shifty? Maybe that was the evil look he had read about?

Elwin did not know what to make of this woman who seemed so anxious. He decided to try and get to know her. He had know idea when he would ever meet an Elf again. “I’m Elwin. I must confess, I’ve never met an Elf before. Where do you hail from?”

Now it was Myra-Lynn’s turn to squirm anxiously. “I come from the east coast… where my homeland is found.”

“Well, these are my companions,” He introduced each one. “This little guy here is Rowdy Pinkerton. He’s the engineer.”

Rowdy thumped his chest proudly.

“Ah, the Empire sent a Gnomish engineer! Precisely what I was hoping for! This is very good news, very good indeed! I’m very pleased to meet you!” The mayor pumped Rowdy’s hand vigorously.

Rowdy scowled and turned red in the face, but did not protest. “I will make a fair and reliable assessment Mr. Mayor,” Rowdy managed to say massaging his hand after the tight grip was released.

“Please, call me Ashborn! I must apologize. Normally for the first day of summer there would be a large festival, but with recent event…” The Mayor, Ashborn sort of trailed off. Once again, he was wiping sweat from his brow. But there was no explanation needed.

“It’s alright Ashborn. We didn’t expect anything lavish,” Elwin was going to leave it at that, but then he added. “A good meal would be greatly appreciated, if you feel you must do something.”

“Ah, tonight we shall feast then! We can do that at least!” Mayor Ashborn said. “I shall see to it personally!”

“Thank you Ashborn, but you don’t have to go to that much trouble,” Elwin said waving off the idea. They would have been happy with a hot stew and some beer to wash it down. Elwin did not want them to go to too much trouble. After seeing the tent city, he thought they might be desperate to feed their own people, let alone guests.

“Nonsense, it will lift everyone’s spirits! We can make a large fire pit here by the camp. I hope you don’t mind, but the inns have no rooms available. Too many people are homeless and a lot of the buildings in town aren’t to be trusted until our dear Rowdy here says it’s safe to use them again,” Ashborn said dismissing Elwin’s fears.

“Not to worry Ashborn, we’re hardened adventurers, accustomed to sleeping in tents,” Which was true enough, except for the hardened part maybe.

2

“I love what you have done with your hair!” Anna said to Myra-Lynn as she examined the Elf’s braids closely.

It was later that evening. A large pit had been dug near the main tent containing a blazing fire. They had feasted on roast chickens, slabs of the finest beef slathered with local herbs and spices. Fresh mushrooms and berries were served along with it. The adventurers were famished and delighted to have such fare. Myra wondered if this was the best meal they had eaten since they left Verant City.

Myra-Lynn pointed out the beads at the ends. “This used to be a necklace that my brother gave me when I left for Verant. When it broke, I saved the beads and used them for my braids.”

“They look so beautiful. Are these little red ones rubies!?” Anna asked.

Myra was excited that they had a woman with them that she could talk to. The people of Domara were very exciting and knowledgeable. But most people had never left the town in their lives. Most of the women seemed plain and frumpy. A stark contrast to Anna who was bubbly and more world travelled.

“Yes. Ah, my brother is wealthy,” she was fearful to say any more about her brother, if they asked for his name, she could not give it. They would know who he was immediately from their recent history and they would not be pleased about it. She was still too frightened to reveal her family name to anyone in Verant. If Anna asks, I’ll say his name is Dorras, her other brothers name and someone unknown in Verant.

Elwin was seated next to Anna. It was why Myra-Lynn had sat there really. She had put on her best pale blue dress hoping that he might notice her. She wanted to be close to him. She longed to smell him, touch his skin, to be caressed by him.

By the Gods, where were these feelings were coming from? She kept stealing glances as often as she could, fearful of being caught.

Mayor Ashborn sat close to them talking intently to Rowdy and laughing at all of the little anecdotes and stories about the Gnomish town of Nina. It was a deep boisterous laugh from far down in his large belly.

Anna excused herself for a minute and left. Myra-Lynn was left sitting next to Elwin trying not to look as awkward as she was feeling, but she felt like she was failing miserably at it. She tried to start a conversation, but she was not sure what to say. In her best airy feminine voice, she said. “That is the most I have heard the Mayor laugh in the month that I have been here!”

This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

“He hasn’t heard all of those stories a dozen times!” Elwin joked. He flashed a broad smile at her.

Myra-Lynn melted inside and chuckled. “Are all Gnomes like that?”

“You’ve never met one before?” Elwin questioned with a bit of surprise. “I thought you were a traveller?”

He stared at her, She was lost in those eyes, those dark eyes. She shook her head.

“Really? I thought being an Elf and coming from so far away… you know, that you met a lot of different races.”

“I’m new to exploring the world. Gnomes are secretive, they keep to themselves mainly. I think I may have seen a few in Karnak,” She replied with a shrug and a tilt of her head that she hoped looked cute and innocent.

“I heard a rumor that Elves live a very long time. Is that true?” Elwin asked.

Myra thought his gaze was scrutinizing. Was he intrigued by me? She wondered. She hoped so.

“Hundreds of years, actually. I’m eighty-six, which I’m sure sounds like a lot. But compared to a human, that would be about eighteen to twenty,” Myra-Lynn replied. “That’s why I look like I’m your age.”

“Are all the women as beautiful as you back home?” Elwin asked her. He had this mischievous little smile on his face.

“A-ah, I-I don’t know how to answer that!” She was flush red with hot emotions. “I guess I’m typical.” He thought she was beautiful. Did he just say that! My, she thought. This human was bold! She covered her face instinctively, embarrassed by her reaction. She started to feel hot and sweaty. She needed a fan.

Anna suddenly reappeared saving Myra-Lynn from further embarrassment.

“It’s a bit warm in here. I must get some cool air!” Myra-Lynn immediately got up and walked away from the gathering. She was burning with desire, but left without any way of expressing it. She walked briskly fanning herself with her one hand and loosening her shirt with the other. Well, she thought. He thinks I’m beautiful. So that’s good, right?

3

“What was that all about?” Anna questioned Elwin. She looked a bit angry with him.

“She’s an Elf, who knows?” He replied with a shrug.

“Did you say something embarrassing to her?” Anna thought it would be just like him to do something like that. Elwin had no manners when it came to talking to women. He had no idea what he was doing. Or even what effect he was having on them.

Anna may have been young, but she understood it. Elwin was handsome, there was no question. Even she felt a bit of an attraction to him. He took charge, made you feel safe. That was very appealing to may women. She saw how Levka had looked at him, how they interacted. That night at the big tavern, how easily that rich girl slung her arms around him. He had an affect on women and Anna was well aware of it. But she was pretty sure that Elwin did not realize what he was doing.

“What me? Never!” Elwin said defensively.

“You did, didn’t you?” Anna swatted him with her hand. Just when she was getting to know Myra-Lynn he had to come around and embarrass her.

“What did I do!” Elwin protested.

“I don’t know, but you’ve said something wrong! That much I’m sure of it! That’s for scaring her off. Just when I was starting to make a new friend too!” She swatted him again. “And that because you have to learn how to talk to women properly!”

“How do you know? She Elvin, not human!” Elwin tried to explain.

“She’s still a woman,” Anna scolded. “And I know women better than you do! Do you know the affect you have on them?”

“Affect? What are you talking about?” Elwin said, he was puzzled by what she was saying.

“See! Exactly!” Anna pointed at him accusingly. “You maybe a natural leader and good with a sword. But you need to learn about women.”

4

The next day, Mayor Ashborn took them all on a tour of the town. It was much smaller than Verant City. In fact, the whole town could fit inside the public quarter. It had many narrow streets and alleyways. Most buildings were huddled together. There were a few main roads that lead into the center of town where the town square dominated the area. It was surrounded by the city hall, a few businesses and taverns. They were the largest buildings in town. The damage could be seen even on the outside. One building, the Icy Peaks Inn, had shifted right off of its foundation. Still others had large cracks running down the outside walls, zigzagging like lightning as it followed the mortar lines.

Rowdy looked at it all gravely. He said little, but he shook his head a lot at what he saw. The Mayor had a scribe copy the layout of the town onto blank parchment. Rowdy used the parchment to mark the various building they saw. An O meant the building was habitable, a slash meant there was damage, but it was repairable and an X meant that the building would have to be levelled and rebuilt with better engineering. It was evident right from the beginning that there would be many more Xs and slashes that Os.

“This is going to take a few days before I can see every building,” Rowdy said.

Mayor Ashborn looked very worried. His red face and puffy cheeks swelled with fear. “Take whatever time you need!”

Suddenly another powerful tremor hit. The ground shook beneath them and they could hear splintering nearby. It lasted less than a minute.

Rowdy held his stomach as if the sensation had made him queasy. “I don’t know how accurate I can be if these tremors keep happening. This whole town could collapse if they persist!”

“I know this looks bad, but what else can we do? This is our home, we don’t want to leave,” The fat man was patting his forehead even thought it was not quite as hot as it had been the day before.

“I understand, but nature’s fury can’t be contained,” Rowdy told him. He did not like the look of this place. Damage was serious. It would cost a small fortune to rebuild. Only the Imperial Council would know for sure if it was worth it. He was sure they used some formula or other nonsense to determine what to do.

Rowdy did not like to be dodgy and told Mayor Ashborn that it would probably be a lot of money. There was no telling what the Imperial Council might say, if they even cared to respond to the situation. The Empire did just pull itself out of a civil war. There were many other places in the Empire that needed money and this town might not be a priority.

Mayor Ashborn looked grim-faced when he was told this, but he had no response. It was the truth. Ugly as it was, Rowdy did not want to lie to him.

5

Over the next three days Rowdy systematically, and with Gnomish-like precision, recorded his finds everywhere he went. He did not need the escort for this part. He travelled about town with the Mayor and his armed guards. He was very important to them.

The rest of the party were not really needed at all, so they all had some time to relax before they had to make the long agonizing journey back to Verant City to file the report.

Elwin and Emerson spent most of their time training lightly, mostly sword play and defensive moves. Selby wandered around the town talking to people. Sometimes he would accompany Rowdy for a while, just to reassure himself that the Gnome was safe. Rith spent most of the time napping in the tents. Much like Anna, he was young and not as fit as Elwin and Emerson. The trip had taken a lot out of him.

Anna spent her time with Myra-Lynn, fascinated by the Elf’s ability to heal the sick and injured. She watched, over a few days, how Myra-Lynn could heal broken bones, deep cuts, and a whole variety of illnesses. She used both magic and herbal remedies often mixing both in the same treatment. Sometimes Anna could not tell the difference between the two treatments until Myra started a quick chant, a few magical words or took her wand out and waved above the wound. Anna found it incredible how magic came so easy to the Elves when it was so hard to obtain for humans.

“We Elves are just born like that,” Myra explained one day while she was treating a broken leg. “It’s our heritage, all Elves can perform minor spells, but we still have to train if we want higher, more powerful magic, same as humans.”

“I have no experience with magic at all. When I was a child, we would have bards at summer festivals who did trick magic,” Anna confessed. And then there was Levka and that Ogre she thought, but she did not tell Myra anything of that. Nor did she mention Vask Fillius and the boy who was killed. Although she could not help thinking about that situation.

“For me it just comes naturally. I studied a bit of healing magic before I left home. I am so glad I did. It has been a blessing!” Myra told her.

“How long have you been traveling?” Anna asked. Her own words sounded hollow and melancholy to her ears.

“Oh, about two years now,” She was too absorbed in her work to notice the hint of emotion in Anna’s voice. To the man whose leg she was healing she said. “Now you can’t get up and walk around for at least a few days so the bone can set properly.”

The pale and gaunt man swallowed hard and nodded. It was obvious he was still in much pain.

“I’ve only been gone about three months,” Anna commented.

Myra finished treating the man’s leg. They went into the next room of the tent where Myra could mix up some more herbs. She noticed Anna’s sad face. “Are you alright Anna,” she said and reached out and grabbed her hand. Anna’s tears started to flow. “Oh, don’t fret so dear! I’ve had great fun on my journey. I’m sure you will too!”

“It’s not that… I mean my feet hurt and my legs are in pain,” Myra handed her a handkerchief so she could wipe her tears away. “I saw horrible things… people were killed… First Levka, then this boy Markus, was struck down…”

“Oh, you poor dear! Were these friends of yours?” Myra-Lynn asked her very concerned. She reached over and gave Anna a hug.

“We didn’t really know them that well,” Anna explained. “It’s just that they didn’t desert to die like that. It was our fault. We made mistakes!”

“No, no, no,” Myra said. She led Anna outside where they knelt on the flattened grass. Myra held both of her hands. “You must not think like that Anna. You will tear yourself up inside forever. It will never end. You must learn for your mistakes and move on. There’s nothing more we can do in this world.”

Anna thanked her for the comforting words, but words were not going to be enough. Myra told Anna to go and relax for the day. She spent the rest of the afternoon brewing up a few potions that would reenergize Anna and help her to feel better again.

6

That night Myra-Lynn sat around the same fire as the rest of the group. This had become a regular thing as she and Anna had become fast friends. She gave one of the potions to her new friend. Myra loved the fact that their friendship was also bringing her closer to her object of desire, Elwin. Selby and Emerson were indifferent to her being there, probably because she was an Elf. Rowdy had nothing in common with her, although he did let the group know that Elves were considerably smarter than humans and therefore he did not mind her company. Rith was a bit curious, but Elwin was deeply intrigued. Of course, Anna was delighted to have another woman around the camp who could sympathize with her.

The two girls liked to talk about clothing, fashion and other girlish subjects. Anna boasted to Myra-Lynn that she saw all the latest clothing styles in Verant City and described as many of them as she could remember in great detail. During these involved conversation the men would gather together and smoke pipes. A few times Mayor Ashborn even stopped by and smoked his own pipe with them. They would poke at the fire and discuss the situation the town was in.

That evening, Rowdy had assured them that he only needed one more day to finish this assessment for the Empire and then they could pack up and leave the day after. Not that everyone was in a hurry to leave, it was more that they wanted to get back to the city and get paid, then take on the next mission. Hopefully something much more exciting and maybe something where they did not have to walk so far.

It was another warm night. The small fire was burning low. One by one they began to retire for the night. Myra-Lynn waited very patiently as they all left until just her and Elwin were left.

“I have a bottle of wine…” Myra said with a raised eyebrow.

“Well now Myra-Lynn, are you suggesting something?” Elwin replied with a sly look.

“I’d be willing to share it with you, but I don’t have glasses,” she replied. “And just call me Myra.”

“Alright Myra, not to be crude, but we can drink from the bottle,” he suggested.

Without hesitation, Myra went to her tent and got the bottle. Elwin uncorked it with his strong fingers. He took the first drink and then passed it back to Myra. She sat down cross-legged in front of him. She drank heavily from the bottle. Her head was swirling. She was so excited to have some time to spend alone with this human that made her soul burn so much. She had butterflies, but the wine helped to calm them.

“How well do you know magic?” Elwin stated speaking first.

She nodded. “Not much, just basics,” she shrugged.

“Still more than a human?” He questioned.

“Sure,” she said.

“Can you read magic than?” Elwin enquired.

“Of course,” Myra replied with a shrug. It was common knowledge that most Elves could read and write in the magical language. She was not sure where this going. But she really wanted to spend time with him, so she went along.

“I have something I want to show you,” Elwin told her. From inside a deep pocket hidden in his cloak, he produced the map that was nearly stolen by the wizard.

He unrolled it delicately on the soft grass. The threads were old and stained, worn from hundreds of years of age. Who know what adventures it had been through before ending up in his hands?

“Oh my, what’s this?” Myra asked in a soft voice.

“That’s what I was hoping you could tell me?”

Myra gave him a strange look. “I don’t follow?”

“I found this map on a pair of goblins out in the bush near my home village. I’ve been told that this language is magical, but I can’t read it. I thought if you knew something about magic…” Elwin explained.

Myra looked closely at the document that had been careful preserved in thread and cloth. It looked very old, maybe hundreds of years or more. It was very hard to tell. She looked closer at the lettering that was written in the margins, but she could not tell what they said. They did look magical, but it was a very old script. She did not know everything about magic, only the more modern script. She was not a wizard after all. She saw some other writing at various points on the cloth, but could not read any of them either. Finally, she looked at the title and recognized the lettering right away.

“This is a very old magical language,” she said with a furrowed brow. “Enki I think, but a very old form of it.”

“What’s Enki?” Elwin questioned.

“It’s a very old and dead language, but the modern magical language is related to it. I can read a bit of it. See the title here? It says Location of the Ariela Stones. I can read it clearly, but the rest of it this is all coded. See these notations in the margins? They’re probably some key connected to points on the map,” Myra spoke carefully when reading the title hoping that she was pronouncing it correctly.

“Are you sure of the title?” Elwin said with a bewildering look. Myra figured it was the first time he had understood this thing he had been carrying around for months.

“Pretty sure. The word Ariela is a little confusing, I’ve never seen it before, but I recognize the letters. The rest is magic, but I fear my knowledge is too limited and I don’t know the Enki language at all, most people don’t. It’s been gone along time.”

“You have still told me more than anyone else has been able to, so thank you!” Elwin said before the bottle of wine was passed back and forth again, now half empty.

“You’re welcome, I just wish I was more help,” Myra’s cheeks were flush from the wine. She could feel the heat rising. Elves were not affected as much as humans were. She could drink another bottle or more before finally getting drunk. Elves had their own Elvin Wine which was much stronger and mixed with herbs giving it mild hallucinatory effects in humans. But the alcohol in this wine was giving her body a warm feeling just the same.

“This map is very curious,” she told him.

“The thing is, about a month ago it was nearly stolen by a wizard in Verant City!” Elwin admitted. Myra-Lynn was delighted to find that Elwin was opening and trusting her with his story about an old and powerful wizard who used a boy to try and steal the map. He even told her about how the wizard killed the boy Markus with magic. She realized that it was the same boy Anna had described to her earlier that day when she broke down.

“That’s amazing!” Myra replied and it was absolutely true. She did think his story was amazing.

“We were stupid to take him on. I didn’t understand what he was capable of…”

“No, no! You’re very brave and noble Elwin!” Although secretly she agreed that it did seem foolhardy to say the least. However, she was not about to tell her first love that. Damn it! Was he her first love? Was that how she viewed it now? She was in over her head with this whole love thing!

Elwin just smirked. After a time, he asked. “Well at least I know for sure that it is a map.”

“How old do you think it is?” Myra questioned him.

“I was told by a map expert that it was at least two hundred years,” Elwin replied, “but don’t put much confidence in that date.”

“I would wager more,” Myra stated. She thought about it. Where had she seen such a thing before? “I think it’s part of a tapestry. Something large that would hang in a great hall of a castle or fort.”

“Really?” Elwin moved in closer.

Myra held the cloth in the light of the fire so they could both examine it. “See this stitching? I’ve sewn a few things in my day and this is clearly from a loom. This is not homespun. This is weaved with heavy thread by someone who knew what they were doing. See how it’s torn here at the top? This is a bottom piece from a much larger work. Someone cut this out with a knife most likely. You should make a copy of this on paper, just to be safe.”

“We have,” Elwin stated.

Myra-Lynn nodded. “Good.”

“Are all women as smart as you are where you come from?” Elwin asked giving her a sly glance.

“Dear, you haven’t seen anything yet. I’ve already lived longer that the average human. You should meet a six-hundred-year-old Elvin elder! They could tell you things you simply wouldn’t believe possible!”

She wanted him to kiss her more than she had ever wanted anything in her whole and this new feeling scared her sensibilities. She stared at him even though he was turned to the side looking at the fire. It was driving her mazy. She could not understand why she felt such a deep love for him. He had roguish good looks, but this was not about appearance. There was a deeper connection beneath. Something that was driving her to spend as much time with him as she could.

Even by Elvin standards she was young and inexperienced. She did not know what to do with these new feelings and instead brooded over them. Should she take a chance and reach out and touch him? Dare to even kiss him? Would that be too forward?

In Elvin society where love is expressed openly, it would be almost expected. Where she came from, love and sexuality were expressed along with all the other emotions that one might have. But humans were very different. From what she had seen, they had trouble expressing love, they did not like being naked and sex was a commodity that could be bought, sold, used for personal pleasure or to manipulate people. Elves saw sex and love as directly connected. Each one made the other far better than they could ever be alone.

Normally Myra-Lynn considered herself to be brave, but tonight she could not do it. The wine had little effect on her. She wanted to kiss him, but she was just too scared and nervous to move first.

When the wine was finished, they retired to their own tents. Myra-Lynn spent another sleepless night tossing and turning wondering why she could not just say what she felt inside.