Okay, so this is my first EQ fanfic and I'm really nervous about it. It involves Original Characters (only two) and I haven't read all of the EQ series (mostly the stuff having to do with Ember's tribe after Wild Hunt and Dart's people), so big apologies if the time line seems a little off. The story is supposed to take place after Searcher and the Sword, and Mender's Tale is technically included, though excuse me if some details aren't mentioned/included because I really haven't found a summary of that story to properly understand and use it.

Chapter One

Ember was stunned the day she woke from the den she shared with her lifemate to find the Palace waiting just outside. It'd been awhile since she'd last communicated with her twin brother, but surely he would have sent to her if he'd planned on bringing the Palace to her remote part of the world. Yes, humans had abandoned the plains for quite some time, but still her first reaction was to demand that the Palace change into a more concealing shape. As if it could read her thoughts, the Palace shaped itself to look like a great lump of rock like the ones that could sometimes for found in the wild plains. The very presence of the Palace woken the others of Ember's Wild Hunt and bleary-eyed from sleep, the Wolfriders and Go-Backs approached the opening door.

"What's going on?" Pike yawned sleepily, rubbing his eyes. Beside him Krim looked very rumpled and grumpy for being awaken up so soon after she'd gotten to sleep.

"Father!" Ember cried without directly answering Pike's question.

From the Palace, Cutter Blood of Ten Chiefs stepped out and he smiled to see his daughter before him, looking every bit of a Wolfrider Chief and the mature leader she'd allowed her experiences to shape her into. Smiling right back at him, Ember embraced her father, letting him tell by her hug how much she'd missed him. It was strange to see Cutter without her mother, Leetah. Since they'd conquered the evil Djun, Cutter hadn't allowed his lifemate out of his sight. Yet here he was, standing all by himself. A sudden feeling of dread and worry struck Ember as thousands of bad possibilities that could have caused her father to appear without her mother filled her head.

Father, what…?

"We've had a bit of a problem," he answered cryptically.

"Problem?" Pool asked with a trace of eagerness. Even with his magic feeling tuned to Winnowill's magic, things had been very boring for him and Sust lately. Both youths relished the idea of an adventure perked both boys.

"What's the big problem?" Sust chimed in immediately, already picking up on Pool's own hopes for fun.

"Nothing so big," Cutter laughed at the cubs. Moving himself and Ember to the side, he gestured for two figures inside the Palace to step forward.

They were a male and a female that looked enough alike that it could be assumed that they were siblings. The male was taller than Cutter, lightly muscled from most likely farm work in the Sun Village. Thick black hair fell from the top of his head all the way passed his waist and, as a strong wind picked up and threw the bunch hair out, Ember could see that the Sun Villager's hair was cut into three different section by red hair ties. It gave the affect that his hair was much shorter than it really was, at least when someone was looking at him straightforwardly without wind. Held at his waist by a bright yellow cloth belt, the newcomer wore a brown loincloth that fell to his ankles in the front and back and a pair of dark leather sandals that were the same color brown. On his ankles he wore gold bans, which matched the gold head ban he wore that held a ruby in the center just like his triangular earrings. His neck was decorated with a multicolored collar of beads that were all the bright colors that the Sun Villagers could make, except for the row closest to his throat which, for some reason, had been made with brown beads. His jewelry chimed quietly with practically every turn of his head as he surveyed the land around them before bowing his head respectfully.

The female was bouncing slightly as he also looked at the open plains curiously. Her thick black hair was pulled into a high ponytail on the back of her head and, if she wore any head bans like the other, it wasn't possible to tell with the swoop of bangs that covered her forehead. Around her throat was a gold necklace bearing a large sun, which was the traditional symbol of the Sun Folk, and on her ears hung a pair of earrings that were just like the ones the male wore. The odd thing about her was her clothing; she was dressed in a style that looked as if it were trying to mimic the style of the Wild Hunt, yet had been created without a reference. The soft looking cloth was a dark green with fringes on the bottom and arms of the vest that was tied closed with brown laces, along with the bottom of her knee length skirt. There was a brown leather belt on her hips where a dagger was sheathed, which was the only weapon that Ember could see between the two.

"Chieftess Ember?" the girl inquired shyly, trying to keep her smile more pleasant than nervous.

"Yes," Ember answered cautiously, glancing over at her father who was staying completely neutral faced.

Sharing a violet-eyed look, the two elves dropped to their knees before Ember. "Chieftess Ember," the male began softly, then seemed to loose his nerve, so the girl looked up at Ember by rolling her eyes upwards without lifting her head.

"I am Kini, and this is my brother Merlo. We have spoken to the Sun-Toucher and Chief Cutter, and they have both agreed to allow us to petition you to join your tribe."

"What?" Krim shouted in surprise. Since the return of the Palace, which had brought Yun and Mender to the plains, the Howling Rock Tribe hadn't had any new elves show any interest in joining them. The fact that their first requests were coming from two Sun Villagers that none of them recognized even from the time all of the elves had gathered in the Palace was stunning in itself.

Ember felt just as confused as Krim, though she was better at hiding it. Cutter's neutrality had faded into a rather smirking smile and he lifted a brow as if to indicate that he was waiting for Ember to take charge of the situation. Cutter was just as glad to hand over the situation with these two to his daughter. Kini and Merlo had never been rambunctious children; the pair was always kept sheltered by their parents who were always a little afraid of the Wolfriders. The first time he'd actually met the pair was when they'd brought forth their petition to leave the Palace and the holt. There'd never been anything noticeable about the two Sun Villagers that would have suggested that they longed for life outside the Palace. But when they'd asked, the Wolfrider Chief hadn't had the heart to deny them the chance to see the world if they were willing to face the challenges and take the risks. He and Suntoucher had had a hard time dealing with the pair's parents (who'd none too secretly blamed the Wolfrider's influence for their children's uncharacteristic behavior), but they'd finally worked out an agreement that would keep Cutter from having to be the bad guy.

Quietly clearing her throat, Ember asked the two Sun Villagers to stand and gave them a more thorough look over. Both elves were slightly taller than her, which wasn't too odd amongst the Sun Folk, and held themselves like they were perfectly aware that she was sizing them up.

"Do you have kin among the Wolfriders?"

"No," Kini admitted sounding slightly ashamed.

"What about the Jack Wolfriders?"

"No."

"Were you---"

"Kini was born only a year before we retreated into the caverns, Chieftess, and my parents Recognized a second time one eights afterwards," Merlo suddenly broke in, cheeks burning bright red. As if suddenly realizing that he'd just interrupted Ember's questioning, he cleared his throat nervously, eyes shifting to focus on anything except Ember as he finished off his thought. "I was born in the Palace. We never had the chance to know of the Jack Wolfriders, let alone join them."

"Our father fought against the Go-Backs," Kini threw in like she was trying to make up for their own lack of personal fighting experience by showing that they had some connection to a warrior. "He told us many stories of Dart's Tribe, and of your father's. Merlo and I both agreed that we wanted to become Wolfriders since we were able to walk. But our father and mother wouldn't allow us. They wished for us to stay in the safety of the Palace with them, at least until we were older."

Scouter, who'd been hanging in the back with Dewshine, Tyleet, and Pool, couldn't help but scowl at the pair. "Have you even stayed outside of the Palace longer than a night visit?" he asked sardonically.

"No," Kini answered honestly, looking down at the ground.

Merlo met Scouter straight in the eyes, something that would have been considered a challenge if another Wolfrider had done it, as he said, "But we've always wanted to. We never quite liked living in the Palace. It was too much like being in the caves, confined and sheltered to the point of being stifling. We wanted to be able to breathe for once."

"Mother and Father have Recognized again and will soon have another kitling to fawn over," Kini added with a twist of longing, as if she envied her parents' luck. Merlo had been the production of the last Recognition the Sun Folk had been blessed with; no one had expected it to happen again for her mother and father of all people. The thought of seeing and caring for a real baby appealed to Kini greatly, but the pull for adventure was stronger. "It seemed the best time for us to take our leave of the Palace."

"But if we were to live outside with Cutter's tribe, they would always be checking up on us, trying to convince us to return to them."

"So we believed that our only option was to join the Wild Hunt, where it would take moving the Palace to find us."

Ember looked over to Teir and the Plains elf came over to stay beside his lifemate. Beloved?

Their desire to be a part of our tribe is quite clear, Teir sent back, a bemused smile curling his lips as he looked the pair over. It just may be a good idea to take them up on their offer to join.

Really? They've no experience living as we do. All they know really know is the soft-living of the Palace. Her eyes narrowed at Merlo and Kini, a quiet sour taste developing on the tip of her tongue as the pair continued glancing around like they were afraid that some unknown monster was going to pop out of thin air and attack them. Ember knew that her silence unsettled them and it worried her. Untried cubs can be a burden on a tribe as small as ours, especially when they aren't cubs.

Ember, our tribe has not changed for eights of eights. Pool and Sust have reached full growth without Recognition, just as your father said happened with Tyleet during the disappearance of the Palace. Perhaps what we need is some new blood, to beat back the threatening stagnation.

Like all elves who still remembered Blue Mountain, Ember shuddered at that word, a fear rising in her as she realized how true her lifemate's words were. Perhaps. The Wolfrider Chieftess studied the two Sun Villagers, trying to push out what her head told her about them and to listen to what her heart told her about them.

"Merlo. Kini."

The Sun Villagers snapped to attention, all fear leaving them as they faced the Wolfrider Chieftess. "Yes."

"Will you follow our rules? Obey any order given to you by your leader? And do your best to handle whatever task may be presented to you?"

"Yes," the pair replied in heartfelt unison.

Ember walked over to the Sun Villagers and placed a hand on each of their shoulders. "Then you are welcomed into our tribe."

to be continued...