Endapano was one of the places that had been hit hardest during the war with the insects. Just by looking at the damaged homes and broken glass, one could see the tragedy that had befallen them. Wherever there was tragedy there were orphans. Sweet pitiful children who had no one to turn to. Well, nobody but Mariah and her companions. At the moment she was alone. The majority of her companions were off searching for these abandoned little children. There was so much work to be done before they would all be ready.

Mariah herself was resting on a boulder in the middle of one of the torn up parks. A tree on her left had scratches from one of the insectoids' claws. Sunlight dripped on her hair and illuminated her lovely amber eyes. Light blue silk hung from her body in the form of a dress. This specific park was small and merely in the middle of a complex of homes. It had a couple of trees dotted around and many colorful flowers. A small smile remained on Mariah’s face as she looked to the sky. The sun shone brightly. The sky was blue.

“What a lovely day.” She said in a gentle voice.

The sound of flapping wings caught her attention. A small blue bird had landed on the grass right next to where she was sitting.

“Hello little one.” Mariah spoke ever so sweetly, “What might you be up to today?”

The bird looked up to her then flew into the air, landing on her finger. It then began to tweet about as if it was discussing something.

“I see. Well you certainly deserve a some seeds for that little bit. Would you mind coming back later so I can give you some? Thank you.” Mariah said.

With that, the bird flew off into one of the trees. Her eyes glanced to one of the homes in the distance. In the alleyway there was one of her companions. Lander, a mage and one of her children. He was an adult now but he still obeyed every word and command that Mariah gave out. A good child. Even now Lander was loyally watching her to ensure that she was out of harm's way. Pretending not to notice him, the elf instead continued sunning herself and observing the sky. It was a wonderful day. She wondered how many children they would be able to gather up today. 

The war was over and the kingdom of Endapano was again united, however tensions from the discord wrought by the King of Nightfall and the Siren were still running high. Fractured trust was hard to mend, and it would be something that would take time and effort. But even so, it would never be the same. There were still rogue bands of elves who distrusted anyone other than their kin, and many highwaymen who preyed on those who had set aside differences to reform the kingdom. With the soldiers of the deities now gone the lawless at last dared to move. Mira was left behind when Angela and the Arriese military returned to Sularia. The child had no way to find herself a ride off the island, and no money to bargain. The streets were dangerous and soon she became a target when someone noticed her precious treasure. 

The girl ran, several men and boys on the chase. Holding the large crystal sphere to her chest she looked over her shoulder with worried eyes. As small as she was, Mira tripped and dropped the orb. Quickly she got up and grabbed it before running again. The treasure hunters were closer now, and some split off to come after her from different streets. Dashing into a corner, she saw some abandoned boxes left in a pile and climbed into one. Pulling the lid closed, she hid while boots rushed on by. Voices shouted, one of them said 'the girl' probably ran into one of the empty homes. Mira held her breath hugging the orb tight, and waited. When she couldn't hear anything, she carefully opened the lid. None of the scary people were outside, so she climbed up and ran back the way she came. 

With no idea of how the streets and alleys connected, she found herself near a large patch of grass and trees with no houses. Maybe if she climbed high enough, she could hide from the people a little longer. From where Mariah was sunning herself, a small child with dark curls and a dirtied dress emerged from an alley to crouch down against the wall. It looked as if she was trying to hide, and there was something round in her arms. She couldn't have looked any older than five years of age and she was all alone.

Just as the bird described, a small child with a dirtied dress emerged from an alley and seemed to be trying to hide. Mariah reached to a beautiful purple flower and plucked it from the vine growing around the boulder. It was a morning glory. Her eyes met with Lander. This time he was paying attention to her. Mariah gave him a small nod then stood up. With her left hand, she made a small motion for him. Now that he was on duty, this little problem that had appeared would be simpler to take care of. Mariah’s amber eyes locked onto the little girl. Her expression was kindly and sweet with a soft smile. Approaching the child she held out the beautiful purple flower towards Mira.

“Are you alright my dear?” Mariah asked.

The elf sat down next to Mira. A zap and a scream could be heard in the distance. Her eyes were alert and ready for whatever would come next. She took off her own cloak and placed it around Mira’s shoulders, covering her ball thing.. Mariah stood up just as the treasure hunters came out of the alleyways. They spotted Mira and Mariah.

“Where is that blasted sphere?” One of the men said.

“As if I would tell you. I’ve already had enough trouble with you chasing my baby around.” Mariah retorted.

“Give it to us.” The man said raising up a bow and arrow, “Or else.”

Mariah seemed to hesitate for a moment. She pointed to the boulder in the middle of the park that she had been sitting on earlier.

“It’s in there.” She explained.

“How did you-”

“Ever hear of magic? It’s quite useful.”

The men began to walk towards the boulder. One of them had a large hammer and looked strong. He could probably break it apart if he liked. “How do we get it out?” The man called back to Mariah.

“It’s very simple.” Mariah said holding up her hands.

A bright glow wrapped around her hands. All the hunters were circled around the boulder. In one easy spot.

“You don’t.” She stated. 

Suddenly a bright glow of magic appeared under the treasure hunter’s feet. Then a shining portal opened up and they all fell through. Mariah walked up to the portal and could see that one guy had managed to hold on to the edge of the ground. With a strong kick to his hand, she was able to make him fall into the portal. The portal closed. Mariah turned back to Mira and squatted near her.

“My name is Mariah.” The elf said. 

The girl looked up at the woman with the purple flower. Her large eyes were almost the same color, falling on the morning glory for a moment before returning back to the lady. "Are you alright my dear?" Her voice was soft and sweet, and it didn't make her scared. The child smiled, then quickly looked over at the corner where she had come from and put a finger to her lips as if to say 'Shh'. She was still worried those scary men would find her here. A familiar yell made Mira jump, then a warm cloth was wrapped around her. It was so smooth, and even shiny! The smiles didn't last long when a man with a mean scar down his face caught up at last. Her little heart pounded and she shrunk under the cloak trying not to be seen. One of the other angry men took out a bow and arrow and pointed it at the lady. Mira's eyes were wide as she remembered seeing that weapon before. The big bugs that chased after her before had those too.

The lady told them Mira's orb was inside the big rock on the grass. The angry men went there, and one took a big thing to hit the rock. They asked her how they could get it out, then the lady told them something strange. Suddenly, the scary people fell through the ground! There was a big hole that she didn't see there before, and they were gone! The lady walked over to see and moved her leg like she was kicking, then the hole disappeared. Mira didn't understand–where did they go? Where did the hole go? The smiling lady came back and squatted so she was closer to the girl. "My name is Mariah." The child poked her head out of the cloak, holding her orb tightly. "Mari-ah?" She parroted, asking.

Pointing at where the treasure hunters were, she asked: "¿A dónde fueron? ¿Hombres enojados?" It seemed that she didn't speak Adelunian common, but she could at least understand it. The language the child spoke wasn't anything in the local dialects. That might explain why she was all by herself. Where did this child come from and how did she end up in Endapano?

Her eyes noticed the orb in the child’s hands. It was clearly a mystical item but Mariah found little interest in it. Mystical objects did not have minds nor hearts. There would always be some magical item that had great power. However finding the right people to use that power was far more important than the actual item itself. After inspecting the girl for any injuries, she listened to what the child said.

The little girl parroted Mariah’s name then spoke in a language unfamiliar to Mariah. Yet, the elf could understand what the child was asking. Mira was pointing at where the treasure hunters were and had a confused expression on her face. Mariah raised her hands towards herself. A bright glow came from them and bits of magic poured over her throat. It lasted for only a few seconds. Her mouth opened and instead of Adelunian, a different language came out.

“No te preocupe.” Mariah spoke gently, “Fueron enviados a una isla. Pueden tener unas vacaciones. Muy lejos.”

Mariah did not recognize what she was saying. In fact she was speaking Adelunian to anybody else who heard her. But to Mira, it would sound like what Mira was speaking. For Mariah, it would sound like Mira was speaking Adelunian. That was the power of the Commune with Beasts spell. It apparently qualified most living creatures as beasts. Although the limit for non-beasts stopped at communication.

As for the treasure hunters, technically they were sent to Apoy Island. What Mariah neglected to mention was the fact that they were dropped into the volcano of that island. At this very moment, they were all being burned by lava. The child might have been hungry. Mariah stood up and held out her hand to Mira.

“¿Quieres algo de comer?” She asked, “Podemos cenar juntos.”

Lander would know to keep himself at a distance until the trust of the child had been completely earned. Besides, he had a few tasks to finish up with anyway. There might have been more treasure hunters around to deal with. After watching this event, Lander would know who their enemies were and quickly deal with them.

People really needed to invest more into the idea of a magical assassin. They were very useful. For now, Mariah focused all her attentions on this sweet little girl. A little girl who had a very delicate and impressionable mind. 

Mira was surprised and happy that someone was speaking to her in familiar words. Not completely comprehending the words within Mariah's words, she tilted her head to the side as her chin rested on her orb. "¿A qué distancia está la isla? ¿Puedo verlo?" She stood up and shifted the orb into the crook of one arm. Standing on the tips of her toes the little girl shaded her eyes with her other hand as if trying to see. Hunger wasn't something she understood, but the child nodded. Looking up at the lady with big, purple-blue eyes she asked. "¿Vives tú aquí? 
¿De dónde eres?
Vengo del mar, vengo de muy, muy lejos." Mira pointed in the distance, in the direction of the sea. However they were too far away for it to be visible, so it was a child's way of explaining to somebody else. She was eager to keep talking now that she found somebody who spoke the same words as she did.  

"¿Mariah tiene amigos? ¿Dónde están?" The young girl hadn't noticed Mariah was not entirely by herself. Since the woman's assistant was far enough away and out of sight, Mira had no idea. She thought Mariah was very pretty and a nice lady, so maybe she had many friends. "
¿Por qué está Mariah aquí sola? ¿Tienes familia?" The word 'family' was something she had recently learned. It was a concept she was still trying to understand, watching other people talk and walk with people who were like them. Sometimes they looked very alike, sometimes they did not. A family had a lot of people according to what Mira saw. To her, friends and family didn't seem very different. Why were there so many names for groups of people? 

Mariah could understand the child. The child certainly enjoyed to talk. Patience was always needed but in this case, she didn’t mind listening to the little girl. Every word the child said was another piece of information that the girl gave Mariah. Information was more valuable than most realized.

“La isla está lejos. Es peligroso.” The elf explained, “Los hombres que te persiguieron están ahí.”

The little girl seemed to agree to food, so Mariah attempted to gently grab the girl’s hand and lead her down the street. Lander would be keeping an eye on the both of them from a distance unseen. Mariah knew that he was always there. Doing his job. She had trained him well.

“No, no vivo aquí. Estoy de visita.” Her voice was sweet and warm, “Soy del continente.¿Vienes de las aguas del mar? ¿O vienes de una tierra al otro lado del mar?”

A child that literally came from the sea might either be a mermaid or some sort of shapeshifter. A child that came from a land across the sea would be a landwalker. The difference was very important. Mariah’s amber eyes scanned the area for any sign of danger as they walked. They were heading through an alleyway back to the main street.

“Tengo a mi hijo conmigo. Está vagando por ahí. Yo también lo considero un amigo.” She took a pause to look at the little girl, “¿Tienes amigos aquí? ¿Tienes familia?”

The woman would not be surprised if this girl didn’t have any family. Mira was wondering the city alone with nobody defending her. A good parent or sibling or even cousin would ensure that the child was protected. Especially since she had that glowing orb with her. Perhaps it was cruel, but the less family this girl had, the better. No family would allow a spot for Mariah to come in and take over as the mother. And, a family that didn’t take care of Mira had a higher chance of turning out to be abusive. Having no family was better for both the child and Mariah.