A travelers tale~Silversnake~

It was mid-December, I was unsure of where I was or what I was doing. I found myself on a dirt path that was surrounded by trees. I walked slowly looking around in confusion. I don’t remember even getting up to walk, I thought to myself. I walked along the path to the top of a hill. Below laid a city of stone unlike anything I had ever seen before. Walking down the hill slowly I located a sign saying, “Welcome to Talus.”

I entered the city to see people who didn’t quite look like me. They had pointed ears; I think they were elves. My eyes wandered around as I entered the city. It wasn’t your typical city. There were no buildings that towered up into the sky, only small silver colored stone buildings no bigger then a regular house. I walked down the dirt roads slowly as those around me watched. They knew I was a stranger around these parts. They could tell by my curiosity that I had never been here along. The city was completely built in the surrounding of trees. It wasn’t overly populated but there were enough people to have some walking through the streets. As I walked toward the center of the city a tall man with blonde hair stopped me.

“Hello,” he said. “And welcome to Talus. I am guessing you are a stranger here. My name is Gimbus.” He shook my hand with a gentle smile. “I know you are wondering about us. You have a lot to learn but first let me give you the basic tour of our city.”

He pointed to the south as we started to walk. The city was beautiful and peaceful. Trees outlaid the southern grounds near the city hall, as well as, the eastern and western grounds.

“This city has been around for hundreds of years,” he explained as we walked up silver steps into the city hall building. “We are elves if that is what you were wondering. Not many people know about us, however, some do and tales of us travel far and wide.”

He stopped me in front of a red door that stood about twenty feet high, and knocked three times. The door slowly opened to a room of incredible beauty. There was someone seated in a chair in the center, then four chairs surrounding. One side of the room had a small pond like creation with fish swimming in it, on the other side some trees.

The person sitting in the center stood up and smiled. “Welcome to Talus. I am Losterin. I am sure you have already realized by now that we are of Elfish decent.”

“Yes,” I said smiling. “I have realized this. My name is Regina. It is a pleasure to meet you all.”

“As it is ours,” Losterin said waving his hand to a woman standing next to him. “This is my daughter Nevavar.”

She was a tall slender woman with long blonde hair. She stood up and walked over toward me. “It is a pleasure to meet you. My father will be busy, but maybe I may assist you around the city.”

“That would be wonderful,” I said stepping forward. “This looks like an amazing place I would love to learn more about it.”

“Of course,” her father said waving them to depart.

Outside of the city hall we reentered the city. To the far side of the building there were men with bows and arrows, swords, and horses. I figured they were the “army” for this city. They had spectacular aim. I stood watching for a moment as one person took a shot and hit the target perfectly with his eyes closed. The site had me wowed.

Farther along we reached the inner city. She stopped near a tavern that held the cities name.

“You may find this place of comfort if you plan to stay,” she said pointing at the tavern.

We walked inside and sat down at one of several tables available. “I would like to know more about you,” Nevavar said as I sat across from her.

“What would you like to know,” I asked as a bar tender brought us over two drinks.

“Where are you from? What do you do?” she asked in curiosity. “I want to know whatever it is you are willing to tell.”

A slight chuckle came to me but I held it back. “As I said earlier my name is Regina. I am from New York, but I am unsure of where that is in comparison to here.”

“How did you come to find us here?”

“I am not sure. I’m not even sure on how I came to traveling here,” I said wishing I had some clue to the situation.

“I’ve never heard of this place New York. Can you tell me about it?” she asked me.

“If you don’t mind I would like to learn more about your city here first,” I replied hoping to gain farther knowledge on this place I have reached.

“Talus is a small city, the only one of our kind. We have been here for centuries and worked slowly to improve our city. The buildings here are made of a material close to stone but of our own creation. It is stronger then stone, we call it Lageret. It’s a material that can withstand the most powerful ways of destruction.”

“That’s very interesting. What can you tell me about the city?” I wondered what more there was.

“The city is located in the county of Miquel. I’m not sure where that is in comparison to this place you call New York. The county is a wild life county minus our city. However, our city does not damage nature. It is against all our believes to destroy natures,” she said pausing. “You will see a lot here on your journey.”

Her reassurance was helpful, however I didn’t need it. I was sure this would be something amazing. I departed the Tavern alone walking the streets. Farther down the path I could see a dirt path, the same one I had entered the city from. I walked toward it but there was something different. There was a bridge going over a stream. Maybe this wasn’t the direction I came from, I thought to myself. Walking back toward the tavern I was more observant of where I was going.

At a moment like this I wished I had a camera on me. This city seemed like a site I wouldn’t see everyday. The stone buildings were unusual compared to what I was use to in New York. I also found it interesting that trees were everywhere; unlike in New York, where the city had few to no trees. My thoughts wondered off into the city. Into it’s beauty and the wonder that struck my by the buildings.

As I walked, I noticed patterns on the buildings I never noticed before. They were symbols, every one exactly the same. I walked over to one of the buildings and ran my fingers over the stone. The stone was cold, like ice. This I found strange, due to the fact the weather here seemed to be in the 80’s, which would normally make the stone warm. I shrugged and walked off notice a store. I walked into the store wondering what I would find.. Inside the store was decorated with greenery. On the shelves lied bottles, books, and weapons. Around to the far end of the store a man stood at the counter.

“Regina, I have been expecting you,” he said walking around to meet me. “I know exactly what you are looking for.”

The man struck me in confusion. I wasn’t looking for a thing. I wasn’t even sure where I was or what was going on. How would he know what I needed or wanted? He walked over to a shelf and took down a book titled, “Talus the Unknown.”

“You were probably looking for this,” he explained handed me to the book. I ran my hands along the cover. The cover was made of leather and had a picture of the city on it. “Why would I be looking for this?” I asked him.

“Because you are looking for the reason to where you are and how you got here,” he explained walking away from me. “You will find out Regina.” I walked out of the store and sat down on a bench I didn’t notice before.

Opening the book I sat down and started to read. As I opened the book the first words shocked me. “It’s time to wake up Regina.”

It was all a dream; I woke up in my bed feeling overly weird. The dream felt like such a reality. The dream was a tale of the unknown, which I had experienced. A tale that I feel is necessary to share.

** I WROTE THIS FOR THE CLASS I AM TAKING WRITE NOW**

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