Darin’s smile got wider as she took Ridahne’s hand and tugged the Elf across the simple line of stones. Darin didn’t let go as she walked backwards. She smiled as she led the warrior closer and closer to The Tree. Surprisingly the naturally clumsy girl didn’t trip once. Instead she practically glided. Whether Darin knew it or not this was where The Seed Bearer belonged; on sacred ground that meant more to just about everyone in Astra than any other piece of ground. As they walked a cacophony of voices filled the air.

[i]Darin!Darin!Darin!Darin![/i]

[i]Ridaahnee! Ridahne! Riiidaahnee! Ridahne![/i]

[i]Darin!Darin!Darin!Darin! DARIN! Darin!Darin![/i]

[i]Ridahne! Ridaahnee! Ridahne!Ridahne! Riiidaahnee![/i]

[i]Darin!Ridahne! Ridahne!Darin![/i]

The voices were not loud. They were not quiet. They were almost deafening. They were whispers so silent they could not be heard. They were not male or female. They were only male. They were only female. Each one could be heard as an induvial. They all overlapped so they couldn’t be distinguished. They were designed to be confusing. They made perfect sense. This was The Tree; speaking to and for all of Astra. This was overwhelming. It was far from enough. The only emotions that could be detected were unfiltered pride and boundless joy. The Tree was so glad to have The Seed Bearer and The first Seed-Chained here at last. The number of “Darins” decreased as the number of “Ridahnes” increased. Darin place the hand in hers on the trunk of The Tree.

As that happened a single echoing voice rang out, “Ridahne Torzinei Seed-Chained. You come to see me at last. I am so proud of you Daughter of the Night Sky. You have done very well; very well indeed.”

The voice came from Darin, but it wasn’t Darin speaking. Her mouth was moving, but it wasn’t her voice. It almost sound like how the human would sound if she was truly male but not quite. It was The Tree. The Tree could not speak to others the same why it spoke to The Gardener or The Seed Bearer. The Tree needed to speak though someone to speak to someone not part of its family. Luckily The Seed Bearer didn’t seem to mind. Of course, despite all of their differences, the young human liked the Elven warrior very much. That made it easier. The smile on Darin’s face was still there. There was something odd about it. It was very clear that this was not Darin.

The Tree gave the Elf a warning, “Do not take your hand from My Trunk. I would hate to end this conversation far too early. We have much to discuss my young warrior.” The smile became slightly mischievous, “Let us start with you thoughts on the first task I assigned to you. You accepted the assignment. What did you think of it.”

Darin was not aware of the conversation The Tree and Ridahne were having. The Tree had told Darin that It would need to borrow her body to talk to Ridahne and that the conversation would need to be a private one. Darin was alright with that. It made perfect sense to her. So, as The Tree had taken Darin’s body Darin had taken The Tree’s body. It was more than overwhelming. Darin felt the world as she had never felt it before. She felt all of Astra as wind, and soil, and water. The wind blew though The Leaves creating a music Darin had also loved to hear and was now finally playing. The Roots plunged though soil and water to map out Astra in a way that would never be possible to copy. Darin saw mines, rivers, roads, and lakes from below. She tasted the sea and the salt as she never would again. It was magnificent. Yet in her core, in the core of The Tree, she felt the sickness that had set in. She felt Ravi’s lifeforce as it fought to hold off the sickness. As she felt incalculable joy, she felt the deepest sorrow. In that brief moment Darin knew what life was and how it should be. She knew what it was that she was trying to protect and she would protect it as best she could.