The Hand of Thyle

Episode 3

Evelina sat in her tower lit only by a stone above her desk that glowed with bright, arcane light. She wore elegant winter furs against the castle chill as she stared down at an open tome. The latest subjects to catch her interest were the histories and cultures of the world. The Five Kingdoms of Thyle may have made up only a small part of Suleia's mainland, but the peoples within it were still many and fascinatingly varied.

A knock sounded at the door, to which Evelina turned. Pointing a finger toward the sound, she moved her fingers in a learned pattern while speaking an incantation. An invisible, magical being appeared by the door, and Evelina instructed it, "Answer the door please."

As the door swung inward, Evelina did not wait to see who was on the other side before turning back to her book enthusiastically. "You've left the post to accumulate again, Evelina." The familiar voice of Thexidor finally broke through her focus. The Green Wizard entered unbidden as he had done for several decades. Despite belonging to the race of Sky-Elves, who were thought to be the most proper and uptight of people, the childhood best friends were long past formalities with one another.

After a slight pause to gather her thoughts, Evelina responded, "Have I? Well, it's probably nothing important, anyway. It seldom is." Her slim fingers, adorned with rings of many beautiful stones and precious metals, thrummed against the edge of her book absently.

"What would you consider to be important?" Thexidor asked with a smile. He strode over to place the stack of letters on the desk beside her as he began sorting through them. "Another marriage proposal from the king's cousin? An invitation to... no, three invitations to weddings. Oh, this one's an invitation to a feast that's sure to turn into a proposal from the esteemed governor of Sutaria."

Evelina made a disinterested sound. "Eh. I'm more interested in how you know what each letter contains without opening them than I am in the letters themselves."

Thexidor flipped through the stack as he responded, "It's simple. I recognize the seals of the noble houses and I've kept up on enough gossip to deduce the rest."

"Ah, see?' Evelina spoke as though she had triumphed in some way. "I have no time for gossip. Or for marriage and events. I've a mind for learning, and until there's a satisfactory reason to leave my library, I'll keep learning right here. Although...." She ran her fingers down the page lovingly, "it would be wonderful to experience some of these cultures for myself."

Turning to smile up at Thexidor, she asked, "Did you know that there aren't just Wood Elves and Sky Elves? There are Stone Elves as well, who live under the ground. With gray, blue, or even purple skin! Can you imagine?"

"No Stone Elf has been seen in Thyle for generations," Thexidor said as he sorted the letters into piles.

"Still," Evelina said whimsically, "I should like to have an adventure someday, where I might discover peoples and realms for myself. I would write a book, instead of just reading them." With a hand on her chin thoughtfully, she continued, "I did tell you I would leave home and be more independent."

Thexidor laughed. "You said that twenty years ago."

"Has it been that long? No matter. I'm nearly a hundred now..."

"You're a hundred and two."

"So I'm an adult, even by Elven standards. And I've learned much in that time, I'm sure. I'm probably more ready than ever before, only...."

Thexidor raised an eyebrow. "Only what?"

"Well, there's so much more to learn here before going who knows where in search of who knows what. Maybe I'd be better off sticking to books until something else at least catches my interest."