Or so they say, but I hear some new school of thought is emerging, that the advocates for a new movement

are emerging, calling themselves The Lunar School. You want to know what I think? whispered Rozhin, intent upon capturing his audience. He allowed the silence for only a moment, before commencing with his monologue, obviously pleased the entire circle of listeners was so captivated in his speech, I think that this new cult, and trust me, I truly believe they are that, is an attempt to shift a new paradigm in the echelons of this society, to uproot the workings of thousands of years of foundation, to create something radical, and if you follow my notion, then you will understand that I will not bow to their new head, Consul Leov, and any one of you who shares any simulacrum of that notion, I not only frown upon; I find you an enemy, and when it comes down to blows, I will not fear striking you down! finished the Elf with vehemence. Oh dear my Rozhin, I fear you have gotten too ingrained into this idea. You sound as if they were a group of revolutionaries intent on chaos, about to overthrow the things we as a society have worked for over the course of the past millennia, responded another Elf, her face was inscrutable, but the conviction behind her voice changed the atmosphere of the room. It was clear now that the spectators around the room, each in their finest attire, were confused by the sudden announcement of this tacit thought. It was Olieas soiree, and prominent members of various parties were invited, each sent invitations of the most characteristically idiosyncratic; at around four oclock the afternoon of the day before, penciled notes stating the identical message were sent to various Elves throughout the city: I should think not that this is too much to ask, but I have nothing better to do than to entertain myself with your company. Some of my friends will be there. The note was terse, and without a signature or time. But gradually, word had dispersed; that Oliea Giandor planned to throw a soiree tomorrow evening at seven oclock. Where the word had begun to spread, no one knew, as it is oftentimes difficult to trace the source of a rumor, but nevertheless, the information was reliable, and each person with an invitation soon received the message. Oliea herself was the gracious hostess, as always, dressed in a fair white gown, with a beautiful tiara upon her hair. Many who gazed at her fell in love with her immediately, with her innocence and kind face. It was a simple face, one that was actually quite plain with the exception of a single redeeming feature, the shape of her face was still that of a child, and the way each of her features was distributed across her face made her truly beautiful. She wore a single ring on the ring finger of her right hand, but that was not because she was engaged, or anything of the like. It was a ring actually made out of three woven golden bands that interlocked, and atop of that, a crescent shaped trunk of a tree, branches swaying to the left, with the trunk curved right, and the roots swaying left again. Today, the ring was just as conspicuous

on her finger as she gently clasped hands with each of the lords, and exchanged kisses on the cheeks with each of the ladies. The soiree was in full swing. All the prominent Elves gathered had just begun greeting one another with topics of petty mention, only for the sake of conversation, and appearing sociable in the gathering in hopes of not appearing as some oddity in the group. Then some Lord of the Ansiriel Estate, Ennulleus, had begun commenting on the intellectual ideas of the day, how the trend had shifted from the conventional ideas of the Consortium to new ideas, ideas that, if permitted to continue their existence within the populace as a tolerable notion, would endanger the people, the base foundations of magic by which people had lived for several thousand years within the great nation of Ganthoriniel. Over the course of the past couple years, rumors had spread throughout the upper echelons of society in Ainthniel of how Leov Eilunnear had used the power of the moon and stars to perform extraordinary feats. The Elves of the lower Castes had naturally become fascinated with the idea of some new node of energy that could be concentrated, utilizing the power of the moon and stars to give new life to the forest. Yet, it was only among the upper echelons, among the Consortium Court, that the true implications of that power were discussed. Elves are fascinating creatures. The general perception from Men and Dwarves and other creatures is generally that Elves were the perfect race, a magical race, infallible, incorruptible. But there is something common with all living things is the understanding that no single species is perfect, that each established society will fall a certain tendency, that each member is just as imperfect as the respective members of other species. Though there are certain tendencies in cultures to strive for certain core beliefs that define the culture. The Elves follow the Consortium Court, which serves as an institution of governance of political as well as spiritual affairs. Much of the ideology is a gradual compendium of histories and genealogies of the Engels, the descendents of Eiur race. They adopt little in religion, but there are governances and regulations on how to use magic within the realm of propriety. The Consortium Court governs the entire region of the Ganthor Valley, which is almost entirely forest. Within the Ganthor Valley, the great Elven nation of Ganthoriniel lived on, though not as a solid nation, but a collection of secret cities hidden within the deeps of the forest. Why the Elves had chosen the deeps of the forest, oftentimes too treacherous to be called forest, to formulate the basis for their great nation, no one apart from the Elves knew why. Elves love the earth, and all that have to do with nature. It is said that they were the ones who gave life to the first trees, in hopes of conversing with them. They give names to ideas, which are intangible, but they do not follow the manner of idols and gods. However, all Elves have common names for the spiritual energy which they believe flows through all living things, and different forms of energy, the three humors of the earth, xhi, psi, and re. Xhi is the name for the energy that Elves believe are the initiators of life, of spirit entering and leaving the tangible world. It was believed that Elrannus, among the first of the Ara, was the Engel who discovered the consistent interactions between the present world. Psi is the energy of the mind, the tangible power that the mind could generate on the tangible world. This is one of the meanest arts, as

there never was such evidence, though great legends were passed down from the Eiur civilizations of how the Ara could perform extraordinary feats. Present Elves of society have consistently downplayed the influence of psi, when discussing energy flow. Discussion of psi had always continued in somewhat similar patterns. In fact, one of our present characters in Olieas soiree, the Elven diplomat Tyrre Innuis in conversation about it, found himself at the center of a circle of Elves, discussing the idea of psi, and whether it was a dead discipline or not. So, the past Symposium of the Court, I heard, was about whether or not to lessen the idea of psi, in the new publications. It was that one figure, I cannot seem to recall, I believe it was Consul Calaheuss who was the primary head behind those thoughts, about how irrelevant it now is, with practical affairs being performed by hand. The Dwarves in their mountains, they say, spend centuries carving out mountains, and building fortresses across that mountain range to our east, near Andar, for they are at war with that nation of fell beasts. They do not consult some manual of cycles, of bifurcations of thought and mental interactions to perform their rites. They are creatures who know nothing of such things, yet perform such monumental feats. Do you think the Elven nation needs progress so much on some obsolete notion as that we must follow some sort of mysticism? The last word was emphasized with such antipathy that immediately, the diplomat, noting the reaction of the Elves, knew he had invoked the right word with the proper amount of feeling. Now, dont misunderstand me, one of the powers that makes our nation so great, and distinguishes it from our neighboring nations is our discovery of ways to wield magic. Magic is controlling flows of energy, but psi and re are different. The idea that we can touch upon the minds of others, that we can control what is not ours, the faculties of those around us, is a violation of the four essential laws of magic. Magic was gifted to us by the thousands of years of knowledge from which we have developed and molded it. The audience was awed with the depth of the thought, yet, rushed forward a few of the Elves of more youthful energy, as many of youth are, not only with energy, but also intent and eager to express their ideas, especially in the age of intellect. Allow me then, in lieu of psi What do you expect then? The idea in itself, Oliea later recalled, was rather radical, as were many points. She being the hostess, was assigned the sole purpose that each member enjoyed himself at her graciousness. Oftentimes, more ignorant people would be under the impression that being the hostess, one would be given much power to govern the trajectory of how the soiree being thrown would travel. They often failed to perceive that Lady Oliea was not just present at the right place at the right time out of fortuitousness. She was present because she, like any good general, oversees a battle in a single panorama, and supplements weakening fronts with reinforcements, going about keeping vigilant for threats, reaching each point of greatest need at the right timing to settle discussions on the cusp of turning tense, enlivening conversations which have stifled by bringing

some topic of mention which gratifies all within the circle, and leaves the members chattering happily while graciously excusing herself to check up on another circle. Performing her duties as a hostess, she had fought on many fronts, but what she did most of all was listen as people expressed their intellectual interests and skill, feigning ignorance in topics she was actually quite well-versed with patience in order to allow the speaker to continue partway before excusing herself again, making some seemingly self-patronizing comment before leaving the circle of attentive listeners to quell the next battle. Many of the conversations had much to do with laces, imports and exports of ore, metals, weapons, and other affairs with neighboring nations, but today, she noted there was a much more subdued crowd. Many spoke in tense whispers of the seeming revolutionaries of the Lunar School, how the proliferation of the ideas had caused tension, and threatened stirrings, uprisings, and the prospect of revolt. Some action of drastic measure must be taken, she thought, or else this will have only been a gathering of society, culture, and politics, rather than a pleasant evening in which each of the guests enjoyed his or her share of gossip, conversation, liveliness, and energy. Lady Oliea failed to note the grandeur and beauty of her room and focused on becoming amicable, giving off the proper balance of appearance, laughing enthusiastically at the witticisms of certain gentle-elves, but not overdoing it. The dcor and splendid grandeur of the hall was derived solely for the benefit of the guests present, and as each of the guests and members arrived. Many an Elf marveled at the great hall, which was not especially large, but was magnificent all the same. The city of Ainthniel oversaw the great Lake Lornithe, perched on the sloping western coast of the lake, facing the island of Niarast. Hence, it was the benefit of this positioning that offered some of its attributes to the grand hall, which offered a sweeping vista overlooking the lake and the island. Six pillars stood on the western side, supporting the ceiling on the left, while six pillars on the right served as a kind of boundary or a buffer in which more private appointments that maintained the appearance of public ones were taken behind the pillars. It was not a formal rule, but a tacit one, that discussions from such matters as business or government or even love were taken beyond a bound of intellectual stimulation infringing on personal affairs were taken beyond that invisible line. It was simply because the general voice of courtesy was ingrained into the minds of all the Elves that any conversation behind the pillars was not to be entered or disturbed. On the other side, the six pillars stood bare, as there were no windows, allowing a cool night breeze into the grand hall. The descriptions of the great hall of Oliea Giandor was austerely beautiful, so much that to describe it into words would not do it justice. The pillars were laced by intricate carvings which wound around them, speaking phrases of poetry, incantations, esoteric, almost mystic spells that the Elves of Old, in their lore would probably know by heart. So delicate were these, that someone would have to begin examining the pillars to note the markings on the pillars. The pillars soared up several couple yards supporting five arches, which, in their delicate finery, supported the ceiling, which was adorned with carvings of animals and people and stars, dragons and mythical beasts that had been heard of since the history of the Engels and Eiur. The carvings

were colored in to the finest detail, so that in their warped but ornate artistry, some kind of visceral feeling was evoked by many an Elf, who pondered the grandeur of the ceiling art almost as much as Elves ponder the skies. However, as if some optical illusion, a staircase stood at the back of the hall, and, like a waterfall breaking on a rock that is some bastion against the weight of the water falling against it, split as it flowed downwards over a hallway which cut between it. It was through this hallway that the Elves entered the grand hall, and entering the building was like entering into some splendid cavern after travelling through some claustrophobic passage. Perhaps because it was almost exactly that. Word had spread far too quickly of Eilunnear and his Lunar School, which, to Oliea Giandor, was one of the primary conversations of the times. This was not just some acknowledgement of how things were, but some movement leading to the cusp of a disaster for any hostess. Fortunately, the hall was full of energy and life as Elves gathered around tables chatting. Yet, many an Elf understood that beneath all this liveliness, courtesy, and court, there was a tacit motive shared by all the Elves. It was what defined each Elf in his own way, and motivated each Elf in attending this gathering that Oliea Giandor had organized. The understanding is universal among any collection of living beings, that in the midst of a crowd of powerful and influential people, aspiring beings will tend to gravitate towards beings with more influence and power, like any celestial body with greater mass will exert a stronger influence of gravity. The difference between the two analogies is the explicability of the phenomena; while people will gravitate to the people with more influence with at least a simulacrum of understanding of psychology and personal motives, gravity is an understood yet wholly inexplicable phenomenon as to why pieces of matter attract each other. The law applied heavily to the soiree, as circles were gathered, alliances and relations forged with the announcement of certain ideologies in a very circumspect way. Each Elf of high position was careful, as they did not know who would be an enemy or ally in the oncoming storm. Why was it a storm? Oliea had always wondered her fellow Elves expected a storm. The general understanding was that over the course of the past several thousand years, Elves had established their nation Ganthoriniel as the greatest power of all the lands of Aelithare. It was powerful in many different ways, from their refined aptitude in battle to their study of powerful forms of magic that were esoteric to the other peoples of Aelithare. Their institutions of higher learning were the greatest, training in many different fields. Geographically, the Ganthor Valley was massive, but in reality, was sparsely occupied by vast leagues of forest. However, it was said that the magic of the forest was unassailable, because of complicated nets of magic woven onto certain paths. For all Elves, the Forest was life, and everything about the forest revolved about the energy and life of the Forest. It was the source of power from which Elves spelled, cast, and

waged warfare. It was not that Elves could not live without the forest, but it was their bastion of strength that left them invincible. During the Trollic Wars against the blackened lands of Mithoria, trolls and goblins poured into the Ganthor Valley from the deeps of the black hills, attempting to cut down trees from Ganthor Valley Forest along the entire Western front to fuel the industries of war. The Elves struck back with vengeance and ferocity never before attributed to the fairest of beings, their primal rage was invoked, and the Elves, as a single race, began planning the single largest invasion in the history of the lands of Aelithare. Elves are not known for cold-bloodedly killing, of wreaking destruction, for they are creatures of life. The general records of the history of the time from surviving Mithorian goblins indicated a terror that spread throughout the entire region after, and it was by no surprise that the imperial ranks of legion after legion of Elves overran the entire nation, until the goblins and trolls had fled into the deepest crevices of the mountains. Either way, to the Consortium Court as well as the Conclave of Judicators, the concept of magic through life had always been an ever present factor in the affairs of power. It was through the power of the forest and the life in it that the Elves had always been powerful. Now, the sudden revelation of Elven magic being derived from something apart from fertility and the forest shook the foundations of the ideologies that the Consortium Court had been teaching for years. It was not that the Elves had failed to embrace the idea of magic coming from the moon and stars. Many an Elf would wander by the moonlight, feeling its surreal touch on his fair skin. In fact, approaches towards the idea of the stars and moon had been made countless times. Many spells were cast according to certain cycles of the moon and stars, according to the particular position of planets in hopes of enhancing the power of the intent. Consul Forsvauriel Mannielm attempted to invoke the power of a Livening Cast, during the days of the Engels, which would have been able to freeze patterns in certain diseases or growths. He was performing this Cast on thielm, a lethal fungus which consumed any biological tissues it set its roots in, and found that not only was he able to freeze it, he found invoking the Cast under the ideal lunar and stellar conditions he was able to completely undo the damage of the thielm on one of the guardian trees. It was the simple fact that this new development in the history of Elven magic would have the potential to create an imbalance of magical regulation established by the Consortium Court, the custodians of magic. With the introduction to the influence of lunar power, the basis of magic was still established within the bounds regulated by the Consortium. Now that a spell had been cast completely independent of the magic regulated by the Consortium, this had the potential to upset the order of things. So its really that simple? That some idea, established within the mind of any individual, has the power to override