Welcome to Gaia! ::

Friday is here, my scientific chums! Can you believe how quickly this month is going by? Of course you can! Because I just told you it was! And you should believe everything I tell you, no matter how bizarre or potentially incriminating. And let me tell you this: we've got an amazing report lined up for you today! Wandering Maestro has evolved once more, and we've got a brand new Evolving Item to look at called Tale of Clarion! Let's dive right in, shall we?

Wandering Maestro: The Bard had never expected to arrive at his home in such a state. No longer full of warmth and music, the cottage now smelled of old wood and earth, yet nothing had changed. He knew his way around very naturally, having navigated through it in the dead of night countless times in the past with ease. Everything was just where he had left it. The kitchen with its rusting pots and pans, his bedroom full of her silken clothes he hadn't the heart to throw away, and a painting of a talented songwriter and her beloved husband hanging next to an antique piano over by the window, where she used to play and enjoy the sun together with their young daughter.

The Bard carefully touched the surface of the polished wooden instrument, finding the piano covered in a layer of dust that had settled in his absence. He seated himself on the bench as his hands carefully arranged themselves on the keyboard. Despite its age and lack of care, the first note he struck sounded as pure and clear as when his wife had last played it. His eyes closed as his fingers drifted lightly over the keys, remembering their cool ivory touch, and instinctively he began to play. His wife had always enjoyed playing the joyful songs: the rousing marches, the heroic ballads with their happily ever afters. But the Bard knew, when she thought no one else was in the cottage, that the music she chose to play was soft and sad; a quiet serenade of loss. Sitting at this piano, surrounded by memories decaying into nothing, he understood why.

Hours later and the Bard was standing on the hill that his cottage overlooked, the breeze rippling the grass and flowers around his feet. Out here the air smelled of honey and vanilla; sweet and familiar. It smelled like her.

Tale of Clarion: Once upon a time, two young heroes discovered a mysterious magical artifact while they were out exploring: the Clarion. The Clarion was a bell prophesied to lead those who found it to an unknown land full of adventure and wonder. The two heroes had heard of this prophecy, and upon finding the Clarion knew at once that their lives were forever changed.

That's all for today, but be sure to tune in next week for more science-y goodness! You can check out this great items at La Victoire, where I'm sure Jet and Cygnus are taking very good care of them. Oh, and don't forget to vote in this week's EI Poll! See you next Friday!