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"What do you mean, this whole thing?" Alena blinked, surprised by the question. "We were surprised at first that they would attack us so vehemently, but since then nothing has been a surprise. Everything has been constant."

She didn't quite understand what Lin was talking about ...

Alena nodded slowly, then tilted her head slightly. "Perhaps we're looking at it backwards," she pointed out. "Perhaps this is where they were created, and they migrated to the continent. We know for certain that they weren't created on the continent, this island is as good as any."

Though that would also explain why the gnomes were so violent towards them, because if that were the case, then the elves were essentially intruding on their land - though she was still certain that even if that were the case, they wouldn't realize it. The gnomes simply didn't have that kind of knowledge or culture.

"It's all speculation," Alena reminded Lin. "We do not know their origins, nor their history. So."

"Alena," Rhea spoke up, "would it be all right if we stepped out for a bit of fresh air? It's been a terribly long time since we've been indoors, and I'm afraid I'm not used to it anymore."

It was a half-truth: in reality, she wanted to check out the exterior of the tower and see for certain if it was the one that she and Lin had entered the night before. Not to mention, now that it was daylight, it would give them a better idea of what the rest of the castle was like from the outside, rather than just a dark silhouette.

"We have," Rhea nodded.

Alena smiled a bit sheepishly. "Of course ... and I had forgotten how the smell of scrolls can be a bit overpowering after a while, especially in this room ... yes, let us step outside. There is a walk around the tower. From here, you can see the entire island."

She opened the door for them again and motioned for them all to step outside.

Rhea stood right at the edge of the walkway and leaned against one of the stone crenals that served as a wall and a defense. There was a slight breeze, but not so much that it made it unpleasantly cold out. On the contrary, the crisp air felt good after being in the stuffy archives for so long.

She looked out into the distance. From this side, the ocean was what was predominant, and when she looked down she could see the ship far below them.

"Can we see the other side of the island from up here?" Earendil asked, stepping forward and looking around.

"From the other side, yes," Alena answered. "Come. It's this way."

And she led them around the tower, to the other side.

From so high up, the three tiers of the elven part of the island - less than a quarter of the island - was clear. The first wall, the city, the second wall, and then the third wall ... and along each wall, and along the cliffs, were watch towers, tall and majestic. The ground on the elven half was wooded in many areas, though the ground was grassy and pleasing to the eye.

Past the outermost wall, however, the land seemed to change: instead of the lush grass, the ground was mud and weeds; what trees there were were choked and twisted; and most of the rest of the island was made up of mountains, tall and foreboding.

"Doesn't look very pleasant," Earendil quipped.

"It was never like this when we first came," Alena murmured softly. "When we arrived on this island, it seemed like a paradise ... the war has changed it into what it is now. Our only hope is to get rid of the gnomes somehow, or change them so that they no longer desire our destruction ... and then we can fulfill our calling and heal the land to what it ought to be ..."

Her eyes were filled with sadness as she looked upon the wasteland that the elves of the island called their home.