II

Wander's soft, shaky voice woke her up.

"Syl, Syl, can you hear me? Are you hurt?"

She groaned, stretched, and opened her eyes. "My whole body feels sore, and I have a bit of a headache, but other than that I'm fine."

Wander sat back and sighed in relief. The look on his face tugged at Sylvia's heart. "I thought you might be…I'm sorry I wanted to go through the wormhole."

Sylvia got to her feet and surveyed the crater of dirt around them. "It's okay…I'm just glad both of us are still in one piece. Where are we, anyways? You think you've ever been here before?"

Wander glanced around and shook his head. "Never seen trees like these before."

By some miracle they had landed in a small clearing. Around them loomed a forest of incredibly tall trees with thick, gnarled trunks. Most were a golden brown, but some were blue, orange, gray, yellow-tan, and even black. The leaves were all a normal green, however.

"I wonder who lives here," Wander said. "I know the quickest way to find out."

Sylvia's head jerked up. "Wait, Wander-

"Haalloooooooo!" Wander shouted, cupping his hands around his mouth. "Anyone there?"

"Wander, wait next time," Sylvia huffed. "I wanted to get a good look at our surroundings first and see what we might be up against before we outright announce ourselves. There's danger out there, you know."

"Aw, what dangers could lurk in such a beautiful forest?"

"You'd be surprised where you can find evil."

"Well, you'd be surprised where you can find good."

For a long moment they stood there, listening to the whispering of the wind in the leaves and the twittering birds.

"I don't think anyone heard me that time." Wander drew in a deep breath.

Sylvia grabbed him with her tail and pulled him close, clapping a hand over his mouth. "Not now! I think we're being watched!" she hissed, edging into the lowest part of the crater and scanning the trees. "And I don't know if they're friendly…why would they be hiding from us?"

She squinted at a figure as it slid out of the shadows, followed by two more.

"Who might you two be? Travelers?" the leader asked, slowly approaching them. His body was a dark chestnut color and his skin had countless rivets running through it, giving his skin a wood-like appearance. He had a slightly elongated body that looked thin but strong. His hair was made up of long, dark green strands that he had tied back. The other two looked similar in appearance except one's skin was more of a burnt orange than a brown, and his hair was a much lighter green. All three of them were wearing black ninja uniforms, and the back two were armed with bows, while the leader had one sword at his side. His black eyes, devoid of any white, bored into Sylvia's own eyeballs.

She released Wander, who was staring at the three with fascination, and stood as tall as she could manage. "We are, indeed, travelers," she started nervously. "I'm Sylvia, and this is Wander. We used a wormhole not far from here, and sort of crash-landed on your planet. I hope we're not intruding in any way."

The leader kept his eyes fixed on Sylvia while the other two studied the crater and the disrupted earth around their feet. Then he smiled.

"It is so wonderful to have some new visitors. We don't have many on Yyleiia, as we are close to the very edge of the galaxy, and quite a distance to reach, even by moras."

"What do you mean by wormhole?" the orange-brown one asked. "Is that the name of your mora?"

Sylvia frowned. "I'm sorry, what? Mora?"

"Do you not know what that means?" the leader asked slowly. "Moras are the creatures we use to travel from planet to planet. They are the only beasts of burden in the galaxy capable of carrying a traveler through Space and providing them with oxygen."

Sylvia and Wander looked at each other. Sylvia's mind was spinning.

"Sylvia! That wormhole didn't just take us to another sector of the galaxy – we're in a whole new one!" Wander declared. "This is amazing!"

Sylvia scratched her head. "Yeah, like my buddy's saying, we're not from around here. In our galaxy, we use ships and orbals to get around. A wormhole is our term for a weird pocket in space that acts sort of like a transporter. It looks like a ball of stars movin' around."

The orange-brown one took a step back. "Are you speaking of the Other Space Orb?"

She hesitated. "Yeah…I think that's right."

They stared at her.

"Our chief will want to talk to you," the leader said finally. "I am Ryn, patrol master of the Northwestern Border Guard Wyrls." He held out a hand and smiled courteously.

Sylvia released a laugh. "That's…uh…quite a title. Hey, nice to know you people understand handshakes here." She grasped his hand and shook it. When she glanced at Wander, she realized her friend was being studied by the guards just as intently as he was studying them. They snapped to attention, though, as soon as Ryn spoke.

"Troop, assume formation! We're taking these two visitors back to the fortage to speak with the chief."

The two archer guards moved to flank them and four more guards slipped out the forest, moving to guard their sides.

As Sylvia moved to follow the leader, who was now striding towards the trees, she let out a yelp.

"What's wrong, Syl?"

"Must've twisted or bruised my ankle when we landed," Sylvia said. "I'll be fine, we'll just have to move slow."

Wander put a hand comfortingly on her side and walked with her as they moved into the trees.

"Just wondering," Sylvia said after some time, "What exactly are you "Wyrls" guarding, and what are you guarding it from?"

"We are guarding our Wyrl country-land from the Dhraks, who are rock creatures that came out of the earth a century ago and plague the surface," Ryn said darkly.

Sylvia hesitated. "So…are you considered…wood creatures?" she asked, hoping the question was not offensive.

"We are," Ryn replied.

"Huh. That's cool." Sylvia winced as her ankle bumped a fallen branch. She was running out of things to say. Usually at this point Wander's running his mouth and I don't have to say a thing. She glanced over at her buddy and realized he was captivated by the guard walking next to him.

For the first time Sylvia noticed that one guard, this guard, was a different species than the others. She was half the height of the other guards and not much taller than Wander. Her fur was a soft, dark, peachy pink. Her hair was pulled back in a ponytail bun, and instead of having a bow and quiver there were two katanas strapped to her back. The most striking part of her appearance was probably her eyes, which were large and beautiful. They looked uncannily similar to Wander's.

Wander was watching her with a friendly smile, but the girl's brows were lowered as she looked over at him. Sylvia couldn't see her mouth under the ninja mask, but she had a feeling she wouldn't find a smile if she could.

Is she…one of Wander's species? I've never met another creature like Wander before. Heck, I don't even know what they're called. I've never asked, and Wander's never told me. Just like he didn't mention he was flarpin' over one thousand years old!

Eventually they reached a road in the forest, and not long after that, a wall. It was made up of logs with the bark still on them nailed sideways into trees and stacking up to a height of over thirty feet. Closer to the top of the wall were small openings, presumably for arrows to be shot through.

"Is this to keep out the Dhraks?" Sylvia asked, impressed.

Ryn nodded.

"I will say, though…it seems a bit unwise to build it from wood. Couldn't they just burn it down?"

He shook his head. "The bark on these trees, Tetra trees, is very fire-resistant."

"Neat."

They were allowed through the gate by a sentry. Not far from the gate the road split off in multiple directions, and a few buildings were visible.

"Is this the fortage?" Sylvia asked, since Wander was still focused on the pink guard and didn't seem ready to talk anytime soon.

"Yes," Ryn replied. "But down here there isn't much…this is mostly just the fort section. The village is up there."

Sylvia looked upwards. "Whoa, Wander, check that out." She nudged his shoulder and he looked at her, then up to where she was pointing.

High up in the massive trees were buildings and stairways and bridges, all made from mostly wood and twine.

"Wow! That's incredible!" Wander piped up. "Why's it so high up there, instead of on or near the ground?"

Ryn looked at him solemnly. "Our main job is to guard the border of our country-land, Fieryon, but we also take care of a community of Wyrls that are family members and workers. The higher they are, the safer they are from any Dhrak attacks. Also, it is our way to live in trees; we were created for their lofts."

"Alright, cool enough, but how do you get up there?"

"You shall see." Ryn led them to one of the biggest trees and ushered them onto a platform of wood that circled around it. When he adjusted a few ropes attached to it, the entire platform started to rise. For a moment Wander returned to his normal senses, running around the platform and oohing and aahing at each new marvel that he saw. Once they'd reached the top, Ryn led them along some wide rope bridges to the largest treehouse Sylvia had ever seen. It had been built completely around the trunk of a tree and branches sprang out of it in all different directions.

"The gathering building is here. Fortunately, the chief is already here to settle several matters, so you will not have to wait."

Sylvia carefully followed him across the last bridge, her stomach lurching as it swung slightly to the side. She'd never been a fan of trees, or treehouses, or anything high up that wasn't secure. Wander, on the other hand, was loving every minute of it.

When she looked back to check on him, Sylvia noticed a growing crowd of Wyrls following them. They looked curious and friendly, but also shy. To Sylvia's interest, the children's green hair were the lightest of all the Wyrls – it appeared that the older the Wyrls got, the darker their hair became.

The gathering room was large and rather intimidating on the inside. At its center was the thick trunk of the tree, various-sized branches growing out of it and into the ceiling in a beautiful display.

The chief himself had honey colored skin and hair so dark green it looked almost black. Countless colorful objects were woven into the strands. His throne was carved with unique, aesthetic symbols and designs, and on both sides of the room were chairs with numerous Wyrls sitting in them.

"Chieftain Nasaki, we have found two visitors not far from the walls who have come from the Other Space Orb." Ryn gestured to them, and Sylvia quickly spoke up.

"My name is Sylvia, and I am a Zbornak from a distant galaxy." She bowed respectfully.

"My name is Wander, and I am a wanderer from the same galaxy." Wander dipped an adorable little bow.

The chief smiled brightly, causing a dozen new crevices to form on his face. "It is so wonderful to have visitors, especially as we have so few, being on the edge of the galaxy." He slid from his chair and glided towards them. "How did you come from the Other Space Orb?"

Sylvia attempted to explain. "Well, it's a strange pocket of space that works sort of like a transporter. It can take you from one area of Space to another area far, far away in a short amount of time."

"Incredible. No traveler that we know of has ever braved its mysterious depths."

His eyes moved to the pink guard and they filled with affection. "Have you been formally introduced to my adopted daughter?" He reached out a hand and took hers gently, pulling her closer to him. The girl's face blushed a darker pink and she looked away from the many eyes that now rested upon her.

"This is my beloved Kaz, a very rare creature known as a Star-born. They are created in the depths of a star by some mysterious force and propelled onto a planet, where they awaken and begin their lives. Star-borns live very long, much longer than even us Wyrls, and they have incredible power deep inside them from the star they came from."

As Nasaki gushed on about Kaz, Sylvia glanced at Wander and realized he was quivering with excitement, a wide grin on his face. "What is it, buddy?" she whispered, already suspecting the answer.

"I was born from a star too," he whispered in reply. He turned back to Nasaki and Kaz. "I was born from a star too!"

They both stared at him, though neither looked very surprised.

"I was hoping you were, but I was afraid to ask," Nasaki said. "How wonderful! You're only the third Star-born we've had the pleasure of making the acquaintance of."

"You're the first Star-born I've ever had the pleasure of making the acquaintance of," Wander said softly, bouncing on his toes and gazing at Kaz with glowing eyes. She looked at him and gave a stiff smile.

By this point Sylvia couldn't help but break in. "Wander, you're telling me you were born from a star?"

He looked up at her and nodded. "It's been over a thousand years, but I still remember the day."

Sylvia ran a hand over her light pink comb. "Buddy, you never cease to surprise me. What am I going to learn next – you can shoot lasers out of your fingers?"

Wander laughed. "No, silly dilly."

The murmurs of the other Wyrls had gradually grown louder until now they were a buzz that muffled normal conversation. They died down as soon as Nasaki raised his voice.

"Everyone! Let us celebrate the arrival of our two visitors, especially the new Star-born!"

Wander grabbed Sylvia's arm and nestled close to her, still bouncing with excitement.

"Sylvia! Aren't you glad we came through the wormhole now?"

She looked down at him and couldn't hold back a smile. He looked like a child that had just been taken on a surprise trip to the country fair.

"Yeah, I guess so, buddy."

I want to mention here that it is a little strange that Sylvia and Wander speak the same language as the Wyrls, but since the show itself seems to have all the aliens almost universally speaking English, no matter where they're from, I don't think it's that much of a stretch. *Puts on sunglasses* So DEAL with it. B)