The Watchtower

[Maira and Apiallo]

The trees swayed silently in the summer breeze. Time was watching away, ticking with the ocean's tide. The forest was asleep, except for those few who roam the land at night. The stars hung in the sky like a banner celebrating the coming of winter. It was the harvest season now, when farmers from many cities took in their crops for the cold, hard winter. It was going to be a long time until spring.

The moon watched down on her children, dissapointed at their ways of solving problems. Their solutions contained blood and violence, something that Maira Mountainweaver despised. Young and wise, Maira was confident in her smoke signs, but Kahiria, her Moon Cat, thought otherwise. No matter how amny times Maira tried to convince Kahiria that the people of Alagaesia would solve their own problems, Kahiria thought that they would end up destroying each other.

And so the quarrelsome pair waited for a visitor. They were expecting one about now. But as Kahiria and Maira looked fromt eh eyes of the moon, they became distracted by the battle between Urgals and Men in the Beor Mountain Range. They would not notice if someone stepped in the door.

Even though their Watchtower was high in the Oak Tree, Maira and Kahiria were well concealed inside it. Their visitor was already late. Would he come at all?

[Artemis Silverbow]

Artemis made her way stealthily along the overgrown forest path towards the house she had been told was the residence of the person that knew where to find the green dragon. She still was not happy at all about having to leave her men on the eve of battle, but when the queen requested that you do something, it is only in your best interest to follow through.

Her mission had started about a month earlier. She and her men had just arrived in the capital city, and Artemis had been summoned to the Queen. When she got there, the Queen decided to send her on a mission to find and retrieve the hidden Dragon egg and bring it back to Ellesméra by any means possible. "You must not let it fall into the hands of the Empire" the young elf had been told, "for that would only spell doom for all of us." She had then been given directions to the home of the mysterious 'Lady of the North' and one night's rest, then sent on her way.

Suddenly, the thick growth of Du Weldenvaden gave way to a clearing bathed in moonlight. And in the middle of that clearing, just as she had been told there would be, stood a small cottage. Artemis looked around for any signs of a trap. Many legends had sprung up about the Lady of the North in the past years, and Artemis just wanted to be ready for anything. But when nothing out of the ordinary presented itself, the young elf cautiously made her way to the house, hoping that the legends were wrong.

[Maira and Apiallo]

Kahiria gave a cat-like sigh and turned away.
Humans are so unpredictable
She muttered in her feline tongue.

Maira gave her a dissatisfied look, and turned to the window. The moonlight peered in with a warning shine to it, and Maira looked out onto the forest floor. Her elegant auburn hair blew in her face as the wind stretched out, and she pushed it away silently. An elf was down on the ground, looking up at the Watchtower. What would she do if she was discovered by an elf? More would come, seeking Apiallo’s hiding spot. Known as the Green Dragon to them, Maira knew that they had heard hints from travelers on its whereabouts.

But Maira had a plan, as she always did. Grabbing a sky-blue shawl, Maira gazed into her fire. Kahiria was already there, peering into the other side. Maira Mountainweaver threw a bundle of thyme into the flames, and a whiff of smoke rose into the air.

It was a dark shade of grey, and it resembled a badger holding an acorn.
This was the exact symbol Maira was hoping for. Consulting Kahiria, Maira asked the Moon Cat on her decision.

Well?
She inquired.

Do as you must. But I don’t trust anyone of your type. Barely you.
The Moon Cat responded.

Maira slumped over in sorrow, but then looking at Kahiria, she saw a playful gleam in her eyes. Joking around was Kahiria’s way of showing affection. She should have known that by now.

And so, Maira followed the smoke sign. The Badger representing wind, and the Acorn representing Entrance. The smoke signs are cleverly disguised so that no one but their commander and his/her Moon/Sun Cat could read them.

And so, Maira created a large gust of wind using her shawl and a few Majyk words, a cyclone-like wind came over the forest, knocking down the entrance ladder, and then disappearing.
The Lady of the North smiled.

[Artemis Silverbow]

Suddenly, a wind whipped out of nowhere, startling Artemis. Unfortunately, this was just the sort of thing she had expected from the Lady of the North. When she straightened after being knocked around by the sudden burst of magical wind, she found the entrance to the watchtower had been knocked down. Artemis decided she had two choices: right the ladder and go up uninvited - probably to the Lady's great displeasure -, or try to gain an invitation. She knew she was not leaving until she got a chance to speak - she had promised her Queen as much - but she also did not want to anger someone such as the Lady. So she decided on option B.

Artemis strode up to the base of the tower. "I know I am not welcome here" she began, stating the obvious, "But I would still like a chance to speak with you. My name is Artemis Silverbow, and I have been sent by the Queen to speak with you. All I ask is a few minutes of your time - nothing more." The elf stood patiently, biding her time. She was going to speak with the Lady, it was just a matter of having the patience to wait. And she had that patience.

[Maira and Apiallo]

"Come."

Maira said in a 'grown up tone'. She smirked to Kahiria, who had given her a faint smile. The two of them had practiced this act often by themselves, but seldom with an unsuspecting guest.

And so, she sprinkled an essence of thyme onto the floor, giving the moment an eerie sheen.

(not done)

[Artemis Silverbow]

Artemis hesitantly picked up the ladder and started to climb. She had no idea what lay at the top, but she mentally prepared herself for just about anything.

[Maira and Apiallo]

((Sorry I forgot that I hadn't finished that... Oo))

Maira sat in her chair in the shadows, Kahiria purring in her lap. She glared as Artemis climbed up the ladder, acting quite well. The moonlight light up the floor of the watchtower where the trap door was. Just beside the window in a panel of darkness sat two pairs of eyes, boring holes into the soul of whoever dared to enter.

Maira knew that in order to keep her position as the feared lady of the north, she would have to seem unique and alienate everything in the room, and so she had worked very hard last summer making the Watchtower unique.

The ceiling was adorned with constellations that by magic, moved with the sky. But this magic showed through the clouds, and so the stars always shone. The floor was an old wood, bent like the elves do to their trees, but flattened. Her house was one with the tree, yes, but it didn't have all of the knotholes that elven houses have. It was flat, as if somone had chopped the wood. The walls were flat as well, but contained detailed graphics of the moon in different phases, universal patterns, and intricate designs of paisley and stars. It was almost like an astronomy tower, but the overall use of magic was so powerful here, that it would send a chill down any elf's spine.

[Artemis Silverbow]

Artemis reached the top of the ladder and knocked quietly on the small trapdoor that served as the entrance to the tower. Even though she had been invited up, she didn't want to press her luck by barging in. Yet as she touched the door, she sensed so much magic swirling around that she pulled her hand away a bit. This was an interesting place, no doubt, and one she hoped she didn't regret visiting.

Her duty rested strongly on her mind. Retrieving the Dragon's egg was vital to the survival of the Varden and elves in general. If she failed here, the fate of the lands rested in the hands of a young human boy and his dragon - both capable, yet still very alone in the battle. Another Rider would even the odds a bit. Artemis's deepest dream was to present the sword of the Green Dragon rider to its rightful owner right before they ended this war. If this was a step toward that goal, then she was more than happy to make any sacrifices needed - even if it meant going into the house of the Lady of the North.

Little time had passed while she had these thoughts, yet they were disrupted with the sound of a door squeaking open. Artemis took a deep breath right before she entered.

[Maira and Apiallo]

((Ok, lets get a move on with this.. xD))

"You dare to enter. Your decision is brave."
Maira's words were her own thoughts pouring out, but as she blinked, her eyes glazed over in a mystic haze of silver fog. Another blink, and they were snake-like slits, black as an ebony summer night. The iris took up the rest of her eyes, an amber fire, glowing like twilight. She then spoke again in a mysterious, feathery voice.
"If you solve the riddle correctly within three guesses, I will give you axcess to the green dragon's egg."
Maira whispered. Anyone paying enough attention to the spell would notice that it was Kahiria speaking thorugh Maira.
"Only One Color
But Not One Size
Stuck At The Bottom
Yet Easily Flies
Present In Sun
But Not In Rain
Doing No Harm
Feeling No Pain."

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