The night sky brightened faintly in the east with the approach of dawn as the Chosen entered the Gardens of Life. Without, the Elven city of Tialdari Hall lay sleeping, it's people still wrapped in the warmth and solitude of their beds. But for the Chosen, the day had already begun. There trailing white robes billowing slightly with a rush of summer wind, they passed between the sentries of the Black Watch, who stood rigid and aloof as such sentries had stood for centuries gone before the arched, wrought- iron gateway inlaid with silver scrolls and ivory chips. They passed quickly, and only their soft voices and the crunch of their sandaled feel on the gravel pathway disturbed the silence of the new day as they slipped into the pine shadowed dark beyond.

The Chosen were the caretakers of the Tree of Life, the strange and wondrous tree that stood at the center of the Gardens- the tree, as the legends told, that served as protector against a primordial evil that had very nearly destroyed the Elves centuries ago, an evil that had been shut away from the earth since before the dawn of the old race of Men. In all the time that had followed, there had been Chosen to care for the Tree of Life. Theirs was a tradition of service that the Elves regarded as both a coveted honor and a solemn duty. Yet there was little evidence of solemnity in the procession that passed through the Gardens this morning. Two hundred and thirty days of the year of their service had gone by, and youthful spirits could no longer be easily subdued.

The first sense of awe at the responsibility given them had long since passed, and the Chosen of the Elves were now six young men on their way to perform a task they had performed each day since the time of their choosing, a task grown old and familiar- the greeting of the tree at the first touch of sunrise.

Only Lauren, youngest of this year's Chosen, was silent. He lagged a bit behind the other's as they walked, taking no part in their idle chatter. His red head was bent in concentration, and there was a deep frown on his face. So wrapped up in his thoughts was he that he was not aware when the noise ahead ceased, nor of the steps that fell back beside him, until a hand touched his arm. Then his troubled face jerked up abruptly to find Jase regarding him.