***

We reached the gate by the time the sun began to peak through the maple leaves of the glade surrounding us. I looked back. The last time we had been beyond the gate was as ambassadors to the present empire when they first arrived. If the Capital is our destination it must be in that occupation we go again. Unfortunately, this time we did not move with an honor guard. There was no ship waiting at the gate to take us away.

In each of their 400 years on this planet Jailen and Neilara had gone beyond the gate but once before. There was no need. Their civilization was small, but old. The Valorth was an ancient race that had existed long before the other species on this planet. It had been the elders who had raised the great trees of the center-city. They were perfectly comfortable being self-contained. In the center of the capital the great library stood as their prize gem. Hours upon hours each was spent studying. Even in a Valorth lifetime, it was a great feat to read the entire library. Jailen was one of the few in the race that could say he accomplished such. He was the youngest in their race; he lay down the scroll of the forbidden before his 378th birthday. Neilara was much more one for nature. She spent her hours training among the trees.

The gate, mostly hidden by the trees, which over the years had grown around it, was a spectacular work of craftsmanship. The base was a white granite which seemed to rise effortlessly out of the ground. The remainder of the gate was constructed of white crystal that grew as the branches of the trees around us did out of the base to create a sparkling crown above that caught the light as you passed. At the crest there was an emerald, the stone of stones. This was the source of the gate's ability to guard against harm. The glyphs encompassing were for protection and regeneration. If the gate was ever damaged, that emerald held the power to re-grow the gate. To all but the invited the gate was impenetrable.

"Sigh."

"Are you ready?" She asked looking me up and down.

Neilara had kept the cloths she had on before but added a few accessories. Of all the things the Valorth knew how to do, the ability to materialize energy still eluded them, and it took too long to take primary defensive weapons out of storage in battle. I grinned. She had strapped a pair of blades to the sides of her thighs. If I was right she also had one or two daggers in her shoes. She wore a light traveling cloak the same black as the rest of her outfit but this one was clasped with a bright ruby. It seemed she expected conflict; too bad, I was hoping this was a peaceful visit to the Capital.

I wore a similar outfit, my cloak being a paler blue than the rest. In lieu of the rather numerous smaller blades my companion carried, I preferred to carry a single sword across my back. My blade, Gelantair, looked a little like the gate we passed. The hilt was white marble and the blade a clear crystal. I found a few years ago that steel can be sharper than stone, so I outfitted the edge of the sword with steel that was as clear as the crystal of the blade. If you didn't know it was there you wouldn't be able to tell the difference. The hilt was fitted with a single diamond lending its strength and sharpness to the blade. I had woven the blade with a spell for lightness since I found it rather hard to use in battle being made of stone. It was now easier to swing and carry than in all likelihood Neilara's blades were.

"Let's go."

We walked through the gate and instantly it seemed the world became a darker place. I sighed. Leaving the gate behind was not my idea of a fun time. Well, here we go.