The elementalist waved as Serna and Caliaphy were lead to the gardens with Arlhenwe and her mother. She sensed they were in good hands especially taking notice to the wizard's staff that Arlhenwe slung over her shoulder. The kurori's expression suddenly hit Alyson as her eyes widen in disbelief and muttered silently, ~ Caliaphy is 'peeping' again. Where did this fascination start?~

"I can't wait to meet these kids," Serna told Caliaphy, "You know, you might be able to teach them some of the games that you taught me back in Asylum. What do you think?"

"Anything is possible but lets wait and see first, Serna." The kurori smirked as they made their way to the gardens.

"Okay!" Serna chirped once more as they continued on their way.

The elementalist walked out of the room she was in and rejoined Irzen and Lazheros.

********

Irzen opened his eyes and extended his hand in friendship to Lazheros, "What do you say? Truce?"

"Very well, swordsman," Lazheros extended his hand, "I accept."

"Good!" The Swordsman shook the Cleric's hand, "Now that we have that out of the way. Are you hungry? I know I am."

"I am but we should wait for the ranger to return and give us an update. Two, the royal guardsman said he would return in a few minutes." The bronze man walked over to his backpack and took inventory on his belongings.

"Do you think you're missing something?" Irzen took note of Lazheros' actions, "These Elves may be many things but they do not strike me as thieves."

"Missing, no but thieves are thieves regardless of who they are and and where they come from. Old habits die hard and should some of the items go missing, the individual will be in for a shock of their life so to speak." Lazheros closed up the backpack again and set it aside. He looked around again wondering, "Hmm, what has become of Prince Willow?"

"If I was a betting man, then I would say that he is spending some quality time with his sister-in-law," Irzen walked over to a chair near his bed and sat down, "He's been gone for at least fifty years and I suspect that they have a lot of catching up to do."

The Swordsman held up his hands, "Don't get me wrong, I don't think he desires his brother's wife or anything like that. But I do think he likes her and respects her and enjoys her company. That's all."

"I agree with you in that regard. They do favor each other's company with the ranger having been in exile and traveling the Realm, and with the princess being a scholar and keeper of Elven lore in general. I am curious about something though, how did you and the ranger meet?" The bronze man inquired again.

"Wait a minute!" The Swordsman interjected, "It's my turn to ask the questions. You've interrogated me about my love life--or lack thereof--long enough. So how about you? How does if feel to be a Dragon? To live as long as you do? And was there someone special in your life before Alyson? A wife perhaps?

"I merely wished to hear your side of the story, of your story, Swordsman nothing more but if you insist," Lazheros reached into a sleeve of his traveling robe and pulled out a canteen and drank from it. "That I am a legendary creature of magic, that I once had a mate who was slain by a young man she had wronged and it took me a very long time to move on until I heard the calling from Bahamut. I was once a lover of women and learned many ways to love and to understand how the 'lesser' races lived within the northern domain of The Fire Sea that I choose to protect."

"Who was she? This woman that you loved?" The Swordsman asked, "And what wrong did she commit that would have compelled someone to kill her?"

"She was a female bronze dragon and she did not take any other form that I was aware of. She always prided herself on being pure but tended to over do it. The young man swore vengeance when he realized she had swindled him out of a valuable family heirloom and claimed it for herself. At the time I believed her to be the one of whom I would be mated to for life, to raise our own wyrmlings and allow our breed to grow more but it was not meant to be. Dragons are not perfect creatures when it comes to treasure of any kind, the need to possess treasure is a part of our nature. Something that the 'lesser' races simply do not understand fully unless, you find someone who has studied dragons for many years." The bronze man said quietly.

Irzen scratched his head, "And here is another question that has long vexed me. Why do you protect Asylum? True, Bahamut charges his followers with protecting the weak. But protecting an entire city for centuries is quite a feat of loyalty and dedication. What is so special about Asylum that it needs such a stalwart protector? Why not offer the same protection to Cormyr? Or Stormhaven? Or any other city in the Realm?"

"Asylum is a place that exists outside of normal time even in the Realm. It was created by both the Sidhe and draconic magic. It is a place that some would call between the worlds when the worlds align allowing travel from one world to another. A Juxtaposition. The temple of Bahamut is one place where a portal to Earth can opened from either side which made it easy for Madeous and his family to come and go at certain times of the year. Cormyr is in the Forgotten Realms of Toril. Stormhaven is too modern for my liking and is easily found by anyone with enough coin or magic to get to. Asylum, can only be found by those who seek a safe haven for those who want a fresh start in life." Lazheros looked at him.

"So let me get this straight," Irzen concluded, "You're protecting Asylum because its really one giant portal to multiple realms? And because you relish your privacy? Forgive me, but considering the god you serve, I was expecting a more grandiose answer than that one. And why be a Cleric of Bahamut? God knows you have a plethora of deities to choose from to serve. Why him of all of the draconic and non-draconic gods?"

"Bahamut is very stern and disapproving of evil. He accepts no excuses for foul deeds. On the other hand, he is very compassionate, and has boundless empathy for the weak and downtrodden. He urges his followers to promote good, but to let people fight their own battles when they can, providing healing, information, or temporary safe refuge rather than fighting alongside those who can fight for themselves.
Bahamut's own greatest priority is his endless war with his sister Tiamat. He opposes all her schemes, answering them move for move. He values wisdom, knowledge, prophecies, and song. For a dragon, he is neither vain nor greedy. That is the general dogma of those who serve him." The bronze man stated clearly.

"Bahamut is also exacting of his followers as well," Irzen also added, "He has high standards and expects those who follow him to emulate those standards to the best of their ability. Bahamut is compassionate but he is also exacting as well."

"As for the other pantheons, my knowledge of them is limited but I do know of a few here and there during my travels. And whom do you serve, or choose to follow?" Lazheros stood up and walked over to the balcony taking in the night air.

"I am proud to say that I serve no god," Irzen smiled, "My fellow nobles and I fought a civil war to vanquish the Servitors of Lloth who held a stranglehold over our land. While it was a short conflict, it was a very bloody one that pit brother against brother, neighbor against neighbor, friend against friend and house against house. In the end, the Council of Houses emerged victorious and decreed that any and all gods--even a belief in none of them--would be acceptable in Naermon Nithren. Except for one! The worship of Lloth was outlawed on penalty of death."

The Drow grew serious, "Sterling, on the other hand, is a different story. He believes in the One, True God. A god of creation and love who preceded all of the other gods and who is greater than all of them as well. He also believes in the merger of three gods into one--the Creater God, his Son a Prophet also called The Messiah and a Holy Spirit who acts as his conscience. Sterling calls this divine arrangement the Trinity. Personally, I call it confusing. What do you think? Could such a deity exist as this one?"

"Earth is very different from the Realm in some aspects but each to their own," The bronze man turned back to the door way to see Alyson coming in, "Where's Serna?"

Alyson glanced at the swordsman and then to the bronze man, "She and Caliaphy are headed to the gardens to play with the elven children while we negotiate and find out what we can to help Willow's people. Also, one of the elf maidens is a wizard, so Serna and Caliaphy will have help if something happens. How are you two doing? It's nice to see the both of you actually not trying to kill each other."

Lazheros extended his hand to Alyson and showed her the full view of the Mallorn Palace, "We've settled our differences after a bit of Q & A as you call it."

"It's like Serna said," The Swordsman added with a smile, "We're trying to understand each other. I think if Serna were here, she would be proud of her handiwork."