Welcome to Gaia! ::

"Hana and Garrick don't pull on my wings anymore," Kaito pointed out. "And these children are older and should know better!"

Earendil put one hand on his feline cousin's shoulder. "Calm down," he murmured. "They are just children, and they have never seen any but their own kind. Even the adults, I'm sure. It wouldn't surprise me if many of them had never even seen the gnomes."

"They didn't fear Kelirahc," Leyenda agreed thoughtfully. "So maybe ..."

Earendil couldn't help but laugh at that. "Lin, you were always more curious than anyone I've ever met," he grinned at her. "And believe it or not, most children in our world at least keep a respectful distance from strangers. Not that I can blame them," he added quickly, "but still."

Rhea turned to Alena. "Do the people here even know about other races?" she asked curiously. "Other elves, or of the humans, or the dwarfs, or ... anything?"

Alena shook her head negatively. "Humans were not brought into this world until after we had left the old land, and there are none here who are old enough to remember the Dark Elves, save myself. Some may have heard legends of dwarfs, but really we had nothing to do with them before we left, so even that is gone. All they know if is we ourselves, the Sky Elves, and the gnomes with whom we wage war."

"Have they ever seen the gnomes before?" Earendil asked. "I know they have the same skin and hair as Kelirahc, but no one batted an eye at him."

"The last time any gnomes made it this far up the hill," the historian replied, "was over four hundred years ago, the night the second sola was killed. Now, they only make it this far as prisoners, and they are taken to the castle on rocs, so the people never see them."

She shrugged. "I do find it doubtful that any of the people in the city remember the appearance of the gnomes, though they do watch out for them."

Alena looked down at Lin thoughtfully. "I think before you leave for your mapping," she said slowly, "someone should give you a tour of our side of the island." She looked over at Aurin. "Captain?"

The captain was eager to please.

"After that last infiltration," he explained, "the city walls were built. Not only the walls that surround the city itself, they were there beforehand - at least, the innermost wall was - but the other walls as well. The first wall, at the base of the hill, which now serves as our first defense. The second wall, that protects the city in case the first wall is breached. The second and third walls around the city. The third wall between the city and the castle. Watchtowers at every wall. A constant roc patrol over no-man's land."

He looked towards the lower part of the hill and nodded. "Since these measures have been put into place, our people have thrived, and not a single gnome has made it past."

Aurin followed Lin's gaze. "Nothing is more important than the safety of our people," he murmured, his voice suddenly tender. "We have already lost far too many ..."

Earendil watched the soldier, his eyes filled with pity. He couldn't help but wonder how long the man had been a soldier, how much death and bloodshed he had seen ... surely any was too much, but ... it seemed ... personal to him, somehow.

And suddenly, they were through the residential area, and into the commerce part of the city. The street opened up and became much wider, and was lined with shops on each side. Many of the shops had tables outside to show off their wares, and the streets were alive with people, young and old, milling about and going about their business.

Kaito's yellow eyes gleamed eagerly. "Is there a candy shop?" he asked. "I bet Storm and Starr would love some candy! Storm especially has a sweet tooth!"

Alena laughed softly. "We'll get there, Master Kaito, don't you worry." She looked around at the others. "Is there any place in particular that you want to visit?" she asked them, motioning at the shops around them.

"Perhaps a wood smith?" Earendil suggested with a smile. "I would be interested in seeing what kind of craftsmanship they have here."

Rhea was watching Aurin curiously. "What is your favourite store?" she asked him.

The soldier was taken by surprise by the question, and he flushed slightly. "Well, I ... I like the tannery, myself. That is where I get my leather for Skyel's harnesses and the like. It's quite a skill to have, being able to treat leather the way it is done there ..."

Alena smiled at Lin. "Would you like to go there first then?" she asked. "If we had a whole day, I would say we could go to every shop, but since we have less than half a day now ... "

They could perhaps each choose a shop to look into, but they would not have much more time than that.