Welcome to Gaia! ::

Alena followed Lin's gaze to the roc that was flying by.

"When we first came to the island, we set about making them our friends," she replied. "Otherwise they were liable to eat us. It has happened before, and still happens occasionally - though it is very rare, admittedly. After a few generations, we were able to ride them, and then we created harnesses for them to make it safer ... falling was also a hazard, one that still occurs quite frequently when people do not properly take care of their equipment."

"So you ride them like horses?" Earendil asked, looking over at Alena.

She nodded. "They are quite similar. Treat them with respect, and they will work for you. Abuse them, and they will rebel against you."

"Not to mention, we didn't have to bring them," Alena added dryly. "We were tempted, but the idea of bringing horses on a ship when we didn't know how long we were going to be at sea, or where we were going to be ..."

She shook her head. "No, horses were not an option for us, not back then. And now we have no wish for them, no need. The rocs serve us well."

A faint smile crossed Alena's face as she gazed out over the island.

"Do you know," she murmured softly, "that it has been so long since I have seen a horse ... I had actually forgotten what they were like? I remember ... feeding them by hand ... the oats that grew in the field ... that is one thing that you cannot do for the rocs, there is no way that you can feed them by hand. They are quite liable to take your whole hand ..."

Earendil was growing more and more curious by the second, and he couldn't hold it back any longer. "Alena," he said softly, "please excuse my curiosity ... but may I ask, how old are you exactly? You appear so young, even by elven standards, and yet you speak as if you remember all the way back ... to the beginning of our history ..."

Alena smiled at Earendil. "I am. I am ... quite old. Even by elven standards, yes, I am old. I am old enough to remember when our people, the Light Elves, segregated themselves from your people ... I am old enough to remember the days when we were just beginning to recover from the times when evil walked the earth ..."

She turned towards the island once more, her gaze growing distant. "How the world has changed since then," she murmured softly.

Alena nodded slowly, her eyes narrowing slightly as she looked at Lin. "You speak as if you know of others who also are of the First Age," she murmured softly. "Who else is left, can you tell me?"

There were no others here who were as old as she. She had lived for so long by not flying on the rocs, and by avoiding the fighting - and she had never been asked to do either. Between caring for the royal family, and keeping the records, she was too valuable to risk her life. But the others who had been from her generation, they were all gone ... killed by the gnomes, or by accidents ...

Alena turned her face away from the others to hide the tears that sprang to her eyes.

"I know them," she murmured. "Or rather ... I knew them. I knew them quite well. Elros ... I asked him to join us, but he said that he could not, that separating ourselves from the rest of our people was not the answer. He sought to reunite the Light and Dark elves ..."

She smiled to herself. "It sounds as if he has succeeded."

Alena turned back to Lin, her eyes misty. "I would like very much if you would bring him a message for me," she said, her tone almost pleading. "If it would not be too much trouble ..."

Earendil watched the woman thoughtfully. It was interesting how nothing in the present or recent history seemed to make any difference to her, but bringing up ancient history ...

"Hold on a second," Rhea interrupted as Alena thanked Lin, "if you're that old, then you know more than just Common Elvish - you probably wouldn't know the Common Tongue, but you would know the Ancient Tongue, I'm sure ... do you?"

Alena smiled. "I do," she said, switching to the ancient tongue as if to prove her point, "though no one else here speaks it."

Kelirahc stared at Alena in amazement. "You do speak a language that I can understand!" he cried gleefully. "That's wonderful!"

Leyenda giggled. She had been translating for him - since he didn't know Common Elvish, and Alena didn't speak the common tongue.

Alena sighed. "I told Aethos-sola that he should have let me speak with the woman who was captured yesterday," she murmured. "I wish I had been more insistent ... I assume that she also speaks this language, and this language alone?"

Kelirahc nodded. "Haldia does not even speak the common tongue, only the ancient tongue, which is the only language that our people know," he replied solemnly. "We live on the island of Nauros ... we have no strong buildings like this, we have only small huts ... we live for the open air, for the world around us ... even just passing through your building, I have to admit that I felt caged ... but Haldia would feel even more so, being put into one of your cages with the animals."

"Gnomes," Rhea corrected him with a laugh.

"They're very close to being animals," Alena admitted ruefully.