After she had stopped taking so many assassination contracts, Dalanesca found herself with much more free time.  She still travelled well armed, as the enemies that one made while killing for coin did not just disappear when one stopped taking jobs.  She had, however, been having quite a peaceful day, and had wandered just outside of Adeluna for a leisurely stroll.  The sun shone brightly in the sky, and she found herself feeling completely peaceful.  She had always loved the outdoors – that was something she knew was true before she had lost all sense of who she had once been.

She hadn’t always been a contract killer, and now she had chosen to stop the heinous act – at least for now.  For now she was enjoying the existence of life rather than the act of taking it.  As she walked, she made the mistake of paying little attention to her surroundings.  As she walked, the toe of her boot caught on the top of a rock sticking out of the ground.  For a split second she caught a glimpse of cracked marble on the ground.  She let out a yell, bracing for the painful impact of hitting the earth… but she felt nothing.

For a few moments, there was nothing.  She tried to twist around to see above her but there was nothing.  She tried to look beneath her but there was nothing… but soon, there was everything.  She was falling from the sky in some unknown place, the ground rushing at her more quickly than she was comfortable with. ”Oh no… no, no, no!” she cried out, closing her eyes tightly as the ground continued to rush towards her.  She was terrified and confused all at once, nonsensical noises escaping from her lips… but suddenly she had halted, high above the ground.

From somewhere unknown, vines and twigs were grasping her body and wrapping around her stopping her from falling.  At first, she was grateful, but then came the pain.  The vines wrapped tighter and tighter, and soon she could feel the bruising pressure against her skin.  The grip of the plants seemed relentless, and she was sure they were going to crush her to death.

”Someone… anyone… help!” she cried out.  She had no clue where she was, and no idea if there was even anyone around to hear her cries, let alone help her.

Hopping along with Winston in toe the little red head was humming to herself. Things had changed for the better since Drae came along. Her mother seemed happy and things seemed a lot more lively. It's like the man understood both of them. Iva had never really had a father figure before. Then there was Sir Winston. He was a marvelous bear with his black fur. She squeezed him close to her.

Her long red curls were going wild. She had earlier gotten into an argument with her nanny while brushing her hair. Her brown eyes had that determined look as she got farther away from the man temple. She was near the wheat fields when she heard a scream. Looking up she shielded her eyes a bit as she watched a body fall from the sky.

"Time to investigate Winston!" She yelled as she ran towards the hazardous patches. Once she got there she stared up at the mass of vines and plants. Setting Winston by a tree she got a branch and starting hitting the vines. "Let her go now before I tell Momma." She stomped her food. "Then you will die." 

She was the little mistress of the area and the vines let the woman down as they found out she wasn't an intruder. They let her hit the ground on her butt and Iva came up to her checking her out. "Oh that looks pointy." She reached out towards her weapons but stopped herself. "Are you okay? You fell a long way. You shouldn't be doing that. People die that way." She brushed her long red hair back and gave her a cheeky smile.

"Do you need to get help?"

Out of nowhere, a small child had appeared.  Her hair, for a moment, reminded Dalanesca of fire, but that thought was only fleeting as the little girl had retrieved a branch from a nearby tree and began to beat on the vines.  She yelled something about telling her mother, which only furthered Dalanesca’s confusion. 

 Was that a bear with the girl?  

She was completely sure that she had hit her head when she had tripped over the rock and that all of this was a hallucination, but when the branches and vines had landed her on her rear on the ground, which did not feel nearly as hard as it looked, she realized that there was a definite chance that this was not a dream or a hallucination.

The little girl approached her and Dalanesca watched her with careful eyes.  She had seen children be privy to sensitive information and training that made them a valuable asset to those with the intent to hurt someone – but the more she studied this little one it did not seem that was the case.  

Though she had never had children of her own, she recoiled instinctively to shield the child from her weapons, thankful when she seemed to realize that touching them would not be in her best interest.  ”I’m alright, I think.” she answered, looking around.  ”I… I honestly don’t know how I came to be falling from the sky, here,” she answered, and it was apparent that she was entirely truthful.  

She watched the girl for a moment before answering her question of help.  Rather than answer, she phrased a question of her own.  ”Can you tell me where I am?” she asked, hoping that the child was smarter than her age gave way – something about her told her that would be the case.

The little girl decided she liked this woman from the moment she tried to protect her. "A few people do a year at least that's what momma says." She smiled a bit and before she answered her question Iva turned around and grabbed Winston. "You are in my momma's realm. She is a goddess you know. Normally the big evil people that smite tiny villagers in stories. Momma isn't bad though she does really good things."

Looking around she stared out over to the windmill then to the fields. "Everyone must be doing a prayer or something. They are really boring. At least I find the clergy life boring. Their children are all 'I want to be like my mom and dad when I get bigger.' and I can't say that cause my momma is a goddess." She was sad for a moment as she rambled. Then she got chipper and hopped about. "I can take you to her. It might be the only way for you to get out of here!"

Without thought Iva grabbed Dalanesca and smiled. "My name is Iva. Momma says my daddy named me it cause it means life." It was her favorite thing about her name. "We just have to go a short way though up to the temple. You might be able to stay here until Momma can take you. She leaves every few days to go bless pregnant bellies and fields. Sometimes she even goes out to this place called the Winking Mermaid and comes home really drunk. Something about my sisters are like screeching cats in her ears and she needs a drink." 

Giggling Iva tugged at her. "Oh and this is Winston." She held up her bear. "He is a royal knight and he protects me. He would have protected you but he is very shy. We match!" She showed off her pretty yellow dress and then the matching bow that Winston had. "My momma's friend taught me how to tie his bow but I'm still learning." She tugged again.

She listened intently as the little girl explained that she was not the first person to fall through the sky, and went on to explain who her mother was – a goddess, and Dalanesca was now in her realm.  Apparently, according to the small child, this goddess was not one of the ‘big evil people,’ but rather she was one that did ‘really good things.’  She offered the child a smile, and let her continue speaking.

She was quiet for a moment, her eyes staring off into the direction of a windmill accompanied with vast fields.  She spoke of people praying, and Dalanesca couldn’t help but chuckle at the nonchalant tone to her voice, though the laughter ceased when she sensed a note of sadness in the girl’s words that she could never be like her mother, due to the fact that her mother was apparently a divine being.  Thankfully, the girl perked up once more and seemed plenty happy.  ”That would be lovely,” she responded, when she offered to bring her to her mother.

She jumped slightly when the girl suddenly grabbed her, not expecting that sudden of a motion from such a small thing.  The girl’s name was beautiful and brought a smile to her lips.  ”That’s a lovely name, Iva,” she said.  ”My name is Dalanesca,” she added as an afterthought, realizing that it would be quite rude of her to not introduce herself.  She was a bit surprised at the girl’s explanation of the her mother, but found herself wincing at the mention of the Winking Mermaid… it was an establishment in Adeluna that Dalanesca had made some horrible decisions at as of late… though she was unsure as to how horrible they actually were. ”Thank you for the help,” she said to the girl.

She couldn’t help but smile again as the girl introduced her to the bear, which she now realized was naught but a child’s toy (she had viewed it as an actual animal in her initial confusion).  ”It’s a pleasure to meet you, Sir Winston,” she said, offering a polite bow to the bear.  ”Yellow is a lovely color,” she said, commenting on both Iva and the bear’s attire.  

”So what does a little one such as yourself do for fun around here?” she asked, attempting to make idle conversation as the two made their way to see Iva’s mother – the goddess of the realm that Dalanesca had somehow found herself in.

Iva quite liked this new person though she tended to like anyone who gave her the time of day. "Dalanesca is a nice name to." She found herself stumbling on her name but came through like a champion. She smiled large up at the woman and nodded. "It's something my momma would do." Her momma was her hero.

She got really excited towards her actions towards Winston. "He is pleased to meet you too." She looked back down to her dress and giggled. "Momma said it came from Endapano and that the bow she had to make herself. I ruin a lot of dresses so she always has new ones for me."

As they climbed up the stairs she stopped them short of the canopy of trees. "I play with other children of the clergy, have lessons, prank my siblings, and play in mud.. Mostly though recently Winston and I have been adventuring! I don't like lessons though but Momma says she is not raising a bunch of morons. There are over a hundred of us so she doesn't want a bunch of idiots running around." 

Iva giggled and took her farther. "This next part might be a bit odd for you." She smiled as the darkness consumed them. "Keep hold of my hand." She smiled more even though Dalanesca couldn't see it. "This is the Mother's Footpath." As they traveled farther down the path light began to pour in slowly. Plants and nature filled the air and she could even hear her mother singing a lullaby. "Momma says this place represents what it's like being born."

They got to the archway and made it through until they stood on a very large bridge. Looking at the temple didn't give her a feel of awe like it might Dalanesca. "That's my home right there!" The mansion was one with the giant tree and seemed like they had grown together as one. "Do you like my home? My favorite part is the water that is falling from the sky." She pointed as it cascaded down onto the giant tree and off the large leaves. "The leaves are bigger than you are! Momma says that the World Tree is even larger."

She found herself feeling warmed as the little girl complimented her name as well. She could not help but find the child’s effort endearing as she stumbled through the multi-syllabled name, but gave her a lot of credit when she said it properly the first time. It sounded like the child thought quite highly of her mother. The thought made Dalanesca sad… she could not remember her mother.

The sadness was short lived as she could see how jubilant the child was about the attention that she paid to her stuffed animal. The girl went on to explain where her clothing had come from – the words meant nothing to Dalanesca, but she nodded all the same. She had never been entirely comfortable around small children, but this girl was an exception and she did not feel uncomfortable in the slightest. She chalked it up to the fact that the girl’s mother was a goddess, of course, whether or not that was actually the case.

She listened as Iva explained her day to day activities. It was cute. ”What sorts of adventures do you and Sir Winston go on?” she asked, encouraging her to regale the events in the most epic fashion possible. ”Surely there have been some great ones!” she added, with excitement in her voice. Her eyes widened at the mention of how many children the goddess had. Over a hundred? That was completely insane, in Dalanesca’s eyes, but she was glad to hear that the deity was insistent on them all being well educated.

With Iva’s tiny hand clutched in her own, she followed her through the darkness. As they moved further, she could see what the child mean by it being like being born… it was as though she was experiencing her senses for the first time after the sensory deprivation that the darkness had brought on. ”She’s right,” she said, offering a smile to her once they were in the light again.

When she could make out the temple, she definitely had a look of awe about her face. She paid much attention to the details that Iva pointed out to her – the place was gorgeous. One thing the girl said to her struck quite the chord with her – the World Tree. She was unsure why, or how, but those words meant something to her.

”The leaves are quite large,” she said, bringing herself back to reality. ”It’s very beautiful here, Iva,” she said, smiling. ”Do you know where your mother is? I need to know if she can help me get back to my home,” she asked, in the most polite manner she could think of.

Iva led her on and thought about it. "We go looking for things. We like to go get books in the library and read them by my daddy. He died so sometimes when I get lonely I go and sit by where momma had his grave. I might have a lot of siblings but our age gap is large from them to me.. At least I think so." She mused lightly.

"He isn't allowed to get dirty though. Drae would be upset if he got dirty. So we don't get in the mud much anymore." She gave the woman another smile. Taking her through the Mother's Footpath was easy enough. Thought she enjoyed the look on the woman's face she nodded a bit more and understood what she meant. "I don't know where she is but I know where she might be. If not she will find us. This entire place is linked to her."

Iva thought for a moment and giggled. "She probably thought I needed a friend and that's why she didn't stop to come get you." The little red head took her across the large bridge and the doors opened for her. She was greeted by some clergy members. "Do you know where my momma is?" They shook their heads as Iva took Dalanesca inside.

Taking her down a few corridors eventually they got to a pair of twin stain glass doors. "This is Momma's throne room." She opened it up and brought the woman inside. It was a garden more than a throne room really. "Momma?" She asked gently. The throne where her mother usually was, was empty. Though the room reacted and another door appeared.

"This way! ADVENTURE!" She tugged Dalanesca to the door and opened it. They were taken to what looked like an outdoor arena of sorts. "Ohh, that's why she didn't want to stop." She let go and ran down to the ledge looking over it. There was her mother and a boy about fifteen. Iva looked up at Dalanesca. "Dally that's my brother."

Angela had a book in one hand and she was reading it. The boy lunged her with a sword but she easily parried it. "Stop being so predictable. You need to not move so heavy! Be fluid." The boy tried again and this time it looked like he used magic. Vines came up and grabbed him throwing him towards Dalanesca and Iva. Wincing as he hit the wall Iva looked at her mother. "That was cheating. If you are going to cheat do it without me noticing."

"You shouldn't be a cheater. Cheater McCheaty Pants." Iva yelled down to the boy who was pulling himself up and dusting himself off. He glared up at the little girl who just stuck her tongue out. "Here comes Momma.. You should ask her when she gets here!"

”It sounds like the two of you have an awful lot of fun!” she said with a bit of a chuckle.  Iva seemed proud to tell her about what Sir Winston and she did, and Dalanesca was more than happy to oblige her with listening.  She frowned when the girl told her the bear wasn’t allowed to get dirty – what fun was there in being a child if you could not play in the mud?  ”Well that’s too bad,” she said with a bit of a frown.  

She nodded in acknowledgment when Iva said she wasn’t sure where her mother would actually be, but that she had faith she would find the two of them.  If she truly was a goddess (and thus far nothing in this realm had proven otherwise to Dalanesca), then she would indeed be connected to the realm in a deep way and be able to find them regardless of if she could actually see them or not.

Eventually the two of them had reached a pair of stained glass doors.  The designs were quite intricate and Dalanesca looked them over for a moment, taking in their beauty.  Iva told her that this was her mother’s throne room, and she could feel a knot in her stomach.  The deities she had run into in this land had all been quite different thus far, so she was not quite sure what to expect from this one.  Her daughter made her sound like a wonderful person, and weren’t children always to be trusted.  When Iva opened the door she could see a throne briefly in the room, but there was no one in it.

At once, she pulled Dalanesca to the door that had just appeared (out of nowhere, seemingly), shouting about adventure.  Dalanesca laughed and followed after her.  They came to a room that resembled a garden with a woman and a young man who seemed to be sparring.  As Iva explained that it was her brother, she realized that the other must have been the mother that Iva had been talking up.  

She watched as the goddess parried the boy, and inevitably punished him for his attempt at cheating.  She couldn’t help but chuckle.  Tough love, she thought to herself, and she held admirable respect for the goddess.  It was soothing to see a deity acting just as another mother would, teaching her son the ways of the world.  The boy landed a few feet away from Dalanesca and Iva and Dalanesca just looked down at him for a smile.  

She let out a laugh at Iva’s snarky remarks to her brother, sticking her tongue out at him.  At once, she straightened up as she could see that the woman was coming over to them.  She stood stock still out of respect, unsure how the goddess would want her to react, and hoping that her behavior would not be seen as disrespectful.  She readied herself for any questions the goddess would ask, and prepared to ask for help should it be allowed.

Angela had a rough time with her girls over her boys. Her sons were always honorable and respectful. It came with being heirs to the Red Court. While they were desirable in every way Angela had not raised them any differently. It was the courts that shaped them. She was proud of them. The way they learned but every now and again they would reach that age where they thought they could get away with everything and anything.

It was then that her job really began. After throwing the boy Angela had her obsidian blade transform into a staff. She was dressed in the finest white silk. It dipped low with her cleavage. Her red hair was as bright as star fire and those green eyes were like ivy creeping up an old building. She studied Dalanesca for a moment before bending over to her small daughter.

"What have I told you about trampling on my strawberry patches?" It was the oddest thing and Iva gave her a smile. "You know better than that little soldier. Try not to next time okay? Those strawberries have feelings you know. They shout and they yell almost as much as your older sisters." She bopped the girl on the nose and Iva let out laughter. 

A table sprung up with three chairs. "Please have a seat Iva and.." She looked down at Iva.

"Dalanesca but I like Dally."

"Well I will call her Dalanesca because that is proper." She took a seat and sighed a bit. "In over a hundred years you think children would change tactics when trying to buy their parent's affections."

"They don't?" Iva hopped up on a chair as another one sprung up for Winston. Angela told Iva she was sorry before getting them tea.

"No, they don't. It is all expressed in the same early adulthood rage. I've raised enough of you to know it and know when to expect it. It comes in all forms but it all stems from one thing or another." She looked up to Dalanesca and smiled. "Have a seat my dear. The tea is very lovely I made it myself from different blossoms in my gardens." She poured a hot cup and gave it to her. "It's hot so make sure not to burn yourself." She even poured one for Winston.

"Do you take sugar with yours?" She asked Dalanesca as she poured a cup for her.  "I am sorry about how you showed up. I cannot help how idiots treat my poor archways. So some end up broken and malfunction." She laughed a bit. "Magic is so fickle."