The creature blurred again, and the black wolf re-appeared before Tairnean. It turned and vanished into the forest, pausing at the shadow's edge.

::We will ne'er be far Brother. You and the Land are one.::
And the great black wolf vanished into the thick of the forest. Tairnean stood silently watching the place where the wolf vanished. He turned and strode upon the path to Taelmache. Several steps in, he found himself pondering what the wolf-creature had told him. 'Four legs are faster than two.' Indeed. Just what he needed, more cryptic. As if these last few days haven't been peculiar enough. He struck off at a jog toward the Elven city.
As Tairnean jogged, he retreated into himself; and found himself thinking about the black wolf. The First Wolf? He didn't remember any tales of the first guardians, but up until now, he'd dismissed most of the tales he'd heard as folklore, and whimsical tales to entertain cubs. Cubs? Where did he pull that from? Suddenly, being upright was painful, uncomfortable. He lowered himself to all fours. Much better. He began to lope along the forest trail, when his eye caught a glance at his hand. He stumbled and yelped. His hand..both his hands were gone. In their place were paws, like a wolf..
'A gift....Four legs are faster than two..' Indeed. Faster he ran.

Back at the Valley of Song, the Black Wolf approached the place where the circle of leaves had fallen, and sniffed at the ground. With a wolfish grin, he spied a tiny sapling just peeking out of the ground where every leaf had fallen. He threw his head back and howled, a long, joyous howl. The Guardian had begun to awaken...

::Ye and the Land are One, Brother:: came the gruff voice once more.
The wolf's amber eyes blinked, and it's body slowly faded from view, leaving only the eyes. The eyes blinked once more and starlight rained down from the place the wolf had stood. The amber eyes faded, and vanished from view.

The tree-spirit's eyes were tightly closed as she drew off the dire poison from Tairnean's blood. Tears, streaked with tiny rivulets of amber spilled from the corners of her eyes and fell onto the Ranger's wounds, sparkling there. One leaf upon her head turned from green, to burnished brown then fell away. Several others followed. The bark covering on her body turned from brown to grey. Tairnean's heart beat once. More leaves turned brown and fell, forming a loose circle around the tree-spirit and her charge. His heart beat again, more tears fell upon his wounds. The wounds began to close themselves. The dryad's 'hands' fell away, and she leaned down and kissed his pale lips. His heartbeat came strong and true.
::Welcome Home Faicill.:: the dryad's words echoed in Tairnean's mind.::We..must..rest now..::

The dryad's form faded from view and sank into the ground. The Oak near the edge of the valley, now stood leaf-less and grey, oak leaves pooled at its roots.

Back in Taelmache...

Kaimayne Renn lifted his head at the sound of a far-distant howl. His violet eyes looked toward the sky, and he stood quickly. He gracefully crossed the room of his study. The balcony doors flung wide of their own volition, and he stepped through the doorway into the night air. A gentle breeze tugged at his waist-length platimum silver hair. The top and sides were pulled back over his head, the rest spilled over his shoulders like a cascading waterfall. A single, long braid of rich amber ran down the center. A single, dried and brown oak-leaf swirled in the breeze and landed at his feet. He stooped to pick it up, arching a silver brow. He cast his eyes to the Grove, and they grew wide at what they saw there. All the oak-leaves had turned, to their rich, autumn hues. It was far too early in the season for such a change. What had wrought such a change? Good or ill, it was not an omen to be taken lightly.
SKREE!
Kaimayne turned his eyes to the sound. A lone hawk perched in the eaves of the limestone and amber citadel. He thrust out his arm, and the hawk swooped down to perch on the ancient Elf's arm.
"Have ye news, Wind-Sister?" he said quietly in Elvish.
Squok!
"Indeed. Pray, tell my friend.."

Suddenly his back and face ached terribly, the Rage left him and he felt weak. He'd spent all his energy in the preceeding battle, and it had only slowed the effects of the poison, not cured them. With a quiet groan he slumped over on his his gear, pale and wan. The Great Black Wolf made a short, urgent call and the pack closed around the prone Ranger, while Faol an Dubh stood over Tairnean. When the rest of the pack had closed, the black wolf stepped aside. Another, grey wolf took his place standing over the fallen Ranger while the black wolf lay down next to Tairnean, and began licking his wounds.

Several hours passed, and the Sun began to sink below the horizon. Dusk, the 'tween time, had risen, and still the Ranger had not stirred. The Black Wolf sunk to his belly with a whimper, and the rest of the pack huddled around to keep Tairnean warm for the coming night.

Tairnean stood slowly, looking around. It was night, but there was something peculiar about it. The stars and moon shone bright, but the trees and hills were translucent, and there was a coldness in the air unbecoming of a summer night. A wolf's howl split the chill air, and sent a shiver through Tairnean's body. The howl was cut of the cloth of both the physical world and the Spirit world, and seemed neither one nor the other but both.

When the moon rose high in the night sky, Tairnean still had not stirred. The Ranger's heart beat once; twice, three times more and fell silent. Faol an Dubh rose to his haunches and lifted his head. A long, sorrowful and keening howl carried through the night air. One by one the pack joined in the Song. The wind rustled in the tree-tops, and in the distance, another pack took up the Song and another. Once more the entire Wood came alive with WolfSong.

The last echoes of the howl faded into the night, and the moon began to shimmer. The starlight scattered down from the moon forming a starlit stairway. By the Druegan! The Not-Land... Tairnean thought Is it my time then? The stairway to the fabled Tir Na Nog, Elfkind's final resting place among the stars, had been lit. Perhaps it was time for his Spirit Walk. He lifted a foot and placed it upon the first glittering step. Moondust and glitter rose up from the place his foot tred, and he looked to the heavens.

::Not yet Brother.:: the familiar growling, brawly voice formed in the Ranger's mind.

The WolfSong faded, at the edge of the tree-line a single, ancient oak became bathed in a golden-green light. A single root pulled itself free from the bark. Coalescing into the form of a dainty foot, it set itself upon the ground, and the rest of the swirling light came free of the oak, shimmering and swirling into the form of a tall, lithe woman with pale-green skin, and glowing amber eyes. Her hair was that of tiny, spring-green oak leaves, and her body was covered in bark. Wordlessly she nodded to the great Black Wolf, who lowered his eyes and sank down once more to his belly. With footfalls as soft as gentle breeze she closed the distance to the fallen Ranger, her long, graceful fingers gently stroking the black wolf's head as she passed. The other wolves stepped aside and left her room to pass.

Before him upon the stairs a pair of disembodied, amber eyes appeared. Once more the starlight rained down, pooling and forming the outline of wolf. As if it were shaking off water droplets, the creature shook with a glittering spray. Fully formed, yet slightly transparent now, the Black Wolf stood before the Ranger. He turned his head to the top of the stairs.

::Look::

At the top of the stairs, a light like that of an opening curtain appeared. The curtain were thrown wide, and golden light spilled through. Then in the light, the silhouette of a female form appeared. She stepped through the doorway, and the curtains fell closed behind her. She stepped down the stairs and approached Tairnean. She stopped before him, alongside Faol an Dubh, and fully materialized one step above Tairnean.

She was beautiful, with long auburn hair, and bright emerald green eyes. She was clothed in a toga-like outfit of bright green 'Faethrim'; an Elven fabric made of leaves, that secret proceses turned into an incredibly durable silk-like material. Tairnean watched slack-jawed as she brushed a lock of auburn hair behind a gracefully pointed ear, with a brilliant smile.
"Don't recognize me, lad?" she said quietly.
Tairnean shook his head.
"I understand." she reached out and touched his cheek. "You were very young when I...left..Ye look like me. As your brother resembled yer Da.."
"M-mother?" Tairnean stammered

The tree-spirit stooped next to Tairnean, her brow knotted in worry. This was no normal Orcish poison that flowed in the Grove-Guard's veins. If it were, the Rage would have purged it entirely. It was a magickal poison, wrought of the ancient and forbidden magicks. Coupled with the acid-claws of Cold Iron, a lesser Elf-kin would not have survived this long. What had delivered it? As if in answer, one of the wolves padded to her side with the broken scimitar in its jaws and laid it at her feet. Her amber eyes grew wide. BloodBane! The foulest of all weapons wrought in the Dark Times. Forged and borne by the Destroyer himself, no blade was its equal. If this thing had surfaced, than times were soon to be dire indeed. That it had been in the posession of a dimwitted orc was more disturbing still. That it was broken offered a facet of hope, and that this Grove-Guard had been the one to break it confirmed what she and the Wood already knew. Only the Ancient Magicks could destroy such an artifact. There was more to this Grove-Guard than anyone knew. She closed her eyes and pressed her hands to the Ranger's wounds. Slowly they extended, no longer fingers but a myriad of roots, spreading and reaching into the wounds. Her eyes glowed red, then bright amber as she began to draw off the posion..

The Herald.
Tairnean turned and stalked toward the tent's exit; pausing at the centerpole. He eyed it up and down, placed his hands on it and planted his feet. With a grunt and bulging muscles, he shoved with all his might causing the pole to list, then stalked out of the tent. The tent collapsed behind him as he stepped into the late afternoon sun. He found his own pack amidst his pile of gear and fished through it, pulling out a hunk of dried meat, then stood. Shielding his eyes against the sun he looked to the treetops. He spied movement in the treetops and made a shrill whistle. A grey hawk burst from the trees and and circled. Tairnean thrust out his forearm and the hawk descended with a shrill cry of it's own and perched on the Ranger's brawny forearm; wings outstretched.
"'Ello friend." he said softly, reaching slowly to stroke the bird's breast feathers.
As if in greeting, the hawk made a short call, lowering it's head to the Ranger's fingers. Tairnean obliged with a gentle scratch behind the bird's head, then offered the bit of meat to the hawk's questing beak. The hawk hungrily gobbled up the treat with a shake of it's body.
"I be needin' a boon from ye lass.." He uttered softly in Elvish catching the hawk's gaze.
Squok!
"Taing." he uttered. "It's nae just for me. The Lands are in danger. I need ye t'carry a message West. T'the Elven Homes."
Skree!
"There speak with Garendil, or Kaimayne. None other. Savvy?"
He focused his mind and sent the image of Garendil and Kaimayne to the bird's. His thought was met with understanding.
Squok!
"Tell them we are betrayed, and the Dark Song has risen." he sent the image of the maps and the Amhran Fuachd-Dubh to the bird. "Tell them I will join them in as long as it takes me to travel there. Tell them to speak of it to no one, for the Betrayer is unknown."
Squok!
"Taing, Lass. Now take wing Wind-Sister, make speed to Taelmache."
SKREEEEEEEEEEE!
The hawk spread her wings and took to the sky. Once high in the air she turned West toward Taelmache, with another cry. Tairnean's emerald eyes followed until she dropped beyond the horizon.