A dull blurring around the edges of his vision gave way to full darkness as Erolith’s fingers left the surface of the amberglass, a sensation of falling for a moment before he found himself in a small circle of grass surrounded by darkness. A small, moss covered log sat on the ground near the far edge of the circle, about seven or so feet from Erolith. On the log sat a tall elven man adorned with jade armor with a matching jade mask that seemed to hide much of his features. Kybur sat and watched Erolith, or appeared to be watching him as the mask trained on his figure, faint white streams of mist trailing from where the mouth would be. It was cool, cool enough to freeze your breath at least, and Erolith gave pause for a moment before speaking up to the entity that stood before him. Silence was cut like a knife when Erolith moved closer towards the Jade Fist, trying to understand what all of this really meant, what the reason for his being summoned to the academy was, and why the sages were entombed in the entranceway of this esteemed school.

 [color=forestgreen][b]“Kybur...The Jade Fist… Am I to believe that I am to succeed you as the Sage of Earth? Is this why I was brought here? ”[/b][/color] Erolith’s voice spoke out from the darkness and seemed to echo as if they were in a small chamber and the surrounding darkness was only a wall of sorts to contain this dream-like trance that the elf had found himself in. The darkness, however, only served to make Erolith uneasy as he felt the feeling of the darkness press against him with each step he took towards Kybur.

There was silence for some time as Jade Fist watched the Elf attempt to approach him, wondering how long it would take before the newly appointed Sage would realize he would never be reached. “Why are you here?” the male demanded, the voice holding an air of authority that would cause one to assume that he had been one of the main leaders of the old group.

The sudden boom of the commanding voice struck Erolith as awkward, since he was not accustomed to being spoke to in such a way, but nevertheless, he stopped in place and stared at the elf in armor. Erolith shook his head before answering the question in a similar fashion to how it was asked, with confidence and resolve. [color=forestgreen][b]You wish to know why I’m here? You wish to understand someone from your homeland and understand what it is that brought another of your kind to this place. You should know already, Fist. I am here to obtain the power to protect not only my homeland, but the homes of so many others around me. The power that Farrenthal had bestowed upon you… the power to seal away the darkness and protect the beauty of the world. I am here to gain the strength to protect the world around me and guard it from the evil that seeks to grip the land again.”[/b][/color]

Erolith spoke as he narrowed his eyes at Kybur, wondering what it was that the Sage of Earth was after, if Erolith himself was truly worthy of becoming a sage. He wondered this to himself as he waited for a response from the stoic, jade-covered elf.

Though one could not see it, one could almost certainly feel the glare that the elf had directed at the Sage. “And here I thought my social skills were bad when I first met my sages,” he stated, though he did not say anything negative about Erolith’s response. “Now, what is it you hope to accomplish while you are here?” At this point, the elf crossed his arms and simply stared towards the elf druid, though the glare was still in place.

It was almost paralyzing, the glare, striking Erolith as a sort of offense. As if Kybur was annoyed or maybe even unamused by the strange elven druid, but Erolith did not falter and responded in kind.  [color=forestgreen][b]“I hope to gain a stronger bond with the spirit of earth and commune with him as no one had done before. To become one with the spirit of earth and channel his power in a way that brings good to the land and defend my home of Tellus. I want to gain the strength to face down the darkness that threatens the world and quite honestly, the same darkness that terrifies me beyond any meaning of the word. I do not want these nightmares of seeing Tellus swallowed by fire and darkness anymore.”[/b][/color] A shiver ran down Erolith’s spine as he spoke his last sentence, praying that he may one day be rid of the nightmares that plagued him.

“You will not be the first to commune with the spirit of Earth, but I do hope you will be the last as I do not want this world to have to deal with the Dark Lord once again after the six of you take care of him.” Jade frowned behind his mask, though it was not something that could be seen. He did not dislike the male’s responses, but at the same time he felt they were almost generic, like he was being told what the Elf thought he wanted to hear. “What do you hold closest to your heart?”

 [color=forestgreen][b] “Close to my heart… What is close to my heart… I… The untamed wilds of Tellus of course. The beauty of the trees and flowers and plants. The nature of the land and it’s wondrous formations. The beautiful waterfalls and streams that run through the forests and the various animals that live within it’s borders. I hold dear the unbridled fury of earth, the maw of stone that devours and destroys. I love Tellus, the earth and stone and everything about it. The ferocity and fury of the earth, but also it’s more gentle and peaceful nature. You wish to know what I hold dear and close to my heart, it is these things, and not much else. I am a man with few friends and a family that is not much longer for this world. I gave my life to the forest and to Farrenthal, and that is what I hold dear.”[/b][/color] Erolith spoke softly as he could sense a shift in tone in Kybur’s voice, an inflexion that suggested that he was frowning, possibly because his answers were not adequate, but also possibly because his answers may have been rehearsed or had been what the Jade Fist had wanted to hear, but not what he wanted Erolith to say. It was strange, Erolith spoke from his heart and that was all he could do, but to feel as though he was a disappointment to the former Sage of Earth was unsettling.

Jade simply nodded his head, taking in what had been said and mulling it over for a moment as he studied Erolith’s body language. It was clear he unsettled the sage in some ways, but that is what he was meant to do, he who had lived through things no one would ever dream of. He who had fought his way out of slavery and had devoted his life to freeing his people within Lucerna. “What are you willing to sacrifice?” he demanded.

Erolith gritted his teeth as he stared at the elf, his eyes slowly closing shut as he went over thoughts in his head, leaving them shut while he gave his response.  [color=forestgreen][b]“I know what you want to hear, it is because it is what you would do isn’t it? You want be to say something like ‘Sacrifice myself’ because that’s who you are, what history painted you as… a selfless hero… But you and I seem to be very much so in common. I would die to see the world remain in peace. Die to see Tellus live on and live strong. I would give up my life in order to keep the darkness at bay and if it comes to it, I would die if it meant killing this Dark Lord for good. I cannot stand idly by while the world suffers, while the beauty of each of the continents is destroyed and consumed in flame. I cannot let the world die.Not while I draw breath.”[/b][/color] Upon finishing his statement, Erolith opened his eyes to reveal a soft green glow replacing his pupils and the rest of his eyes, as if the natural energy and lifeforce of the planet was being channeled through him. A flash of light as the darkness around the pair crumbled to reveal a forest surrounding them. The dreamstate brightened as Erolith let out a soft sigh before adding a final word to his statement.  [color=forestgreen][b]“I will not let the hand of any foul monster...some usurper… taint the very earth upon which I tread. I cannot abide by the darkness and cannot sit and let the world turn to ash. I desire the power to stop it and if need be die doing so.”[/b][/color]

“You fight for earth, I fought for my people, for those who were both free and enslaved… I fought for people like Summer,” Jade replied, his words were slow, almost deliberate, “You need to learn what it is to have people to want to fight for, not just plants or a continent. You, who chose to live in the forest and away from your kind… you need to learn what it is to have a purpose past such things. You cannot live for the Earth alone, you need to live for its people as well.”


 [color=forestgreen][b]“I do not feel like the world of sentient beings has much to offer me anymore. I learned what I could but now I feel as though I have more to gain from the wilds than I do from people. When my father passed, I did not feel a connection to the rest of my people anymore, I was too different, too powerful. I never understood why I was born like this, born with this talent, but I think now I am beginning to understand it. Perhaps these other sages here will teach me what I need to know as far as finding a greater purpose to fight for,but as it stands, I do not have a desire to protect the people, though they deserve it, they are not my priority. We can rise from the ashes, but nature would be crushed under the boot of darkness and it will be no more.”[/b][/color]

Erolith spoke this as he thought about what he needed to do, there was no inclination in his mind as to who Summer was and had no clue as to who he could possibly gain enough feeling for to fight for them. He felt nothing of value towards any other living person he had met thus far, outside of his friend Ignolis, but that was a relationship built by the ranger and not the druid. He sat confused for a few moments before Erolith finally shrugged and resolved to understand what it meant to live for the people of the earth. Perhaps he would never know.

“Try,” was all the former sage said before the darkness melted away and left Erolith back in the courtyard with the other sages.His eyes blinked for a moment or two before focusing on the body of Kybur laying therein the amberglass, entombed in the oak tree. A brown leather [color=gold]cuff[/color] lay on a small wooden shelf that seemed to have materialized while Erolith was in his dreamstate with the Earth Sage. The cuff had two vine like string wrapped around edges of the cuff where the leather was frayed and the frayed end was framed by these strings of vine. Tiny leaves grew on the vines, only they weren’t made plants, they were made of molded leather. The cuff itself looked like it had taken a painstakingly long amount of time to craft, that was until Erolith noticed the gemstones adorning the top of the cuff. An Emerald in the center with six other gemstones surrounding it; Ruby, Aquamarine, Topaz, Black Diamond, Diamond then Opal to finally rest at the left side of the Ruby. This cuff was truly the work of a master craftsman, but not only that, it seemed to emanate a ridiculous amount of power, like a magical focus of sorts to aid Erolith in a way. With a curious stare, he lifted the cuff and slid it onto his right wrist before turning to look at the rest of the sages that joined him in the courtyard, who all seemed to be awakening from their own dreamstates.