They were home. But it did not feel like home. Ellesméra felt so empty; so many elves had already left in the past several days, full of hope or desperation that they could defeat Galbatorix and his traitorous Riders. Or to save their brethren abroad.

Just four days ago, when they reached the boundaries of the city, Gilderien the Wise had tested them far beyond normal before granting entrance. Rather than appearing as an apparition, he ordered them to his abode to test them in the flesh. Few Riders were allowed into the city, the ancient elf had explained, because it was difficult to determine who was an ally and who was not. Lavel and Vasem had to detail their entire experiences from the past weeks just to show they were innocent in every way.

Even his Alagaësian ancestral home, the humble tree-dwelling of House Flianí, stood empty of life, a single piece of parchment left as a note to anyone entering that the elf Thel, and Thel's father Ardwen, had marched beyond the pine forest with many others to avenge the loss of the Riders. Lavel held the note in his hand, reading it yet again.

It was abundantly clear through the hastily inked glyphs and tone of the letter that Thel and Ardwen thought both he and Nierya died in Doru Araeba. No one here could have discovered he and Vasem had survived, as their first teachers cast complex wards against others scrying them or determining their location. It was a matter of not allowing others to eavesdrop on the secrets of the Riders, but it seems to have misled his father and grandfather. As they had not taken their scrying mirror, and also had wards, Lavel could not contact them.

He and Vasem were alone in this rapidly changing world. They had not even been granted an audience with elders Oromis and Glaedr yet. The older pair had other matters to attend to, including, he had heard, a trip to Vroengard to survey the damage, leaving the younger pair to wait alone in a ghost of their former home.

"Father and Grandfather are going to be happy when they return and see we survived," Lavel thought glumly, putting the note back on the desk it was left on.

"They will, but Thel still lost his mate. It is sure to hurt him deeply still."

"I know."

Assuming the two elves even returned. No news had reached him over the fate of those leaving the forest, or if any conflict had even arisen yet. It may take months for Lavel to hear any words from what is left of his family. Months where he would only have their new teachers and a few old friends to confide with.

A low thud shook the tree, startling Lavel. Smoothing out his clothes, he hurried to the entrance.

Standing proud just outside the house was a large golden dragon nearly as big as Sharjarth. It stood with such authority even with a leg missing, that it had to be none other than the elder dragon Glaedr.

Vasem cautiously rose from the pine needle-filled depression that served as a dragon bed and stood by Lavel. All performed their greetings, then Glaedr spoke. "Oromis awaits the two of you at the Crags of Tel'naeír. Follow me when you are ready."

Unwilling to make the old dragon wait, Lavel hurried to grab Vasem's saddle and secure it. Oromis and Glaedr were to be their new teachers and he wanted to make a good first impression. He did not know how much Nierya told Oromis about them. Lavel also knew Vasem wanted to stretch his wings for a proper flight, not just a hunt, and Vasem's eagerness helped to encourage him.

All the while, the massive dragon's eyes watched them, eyes that spoke of wisdom and something else, something that Lavel could not quite identify, yet felt familiar.

Lavel tightened the last strap securing himself, and Vasem indicated they were ready. Glaedr nodded, then took to the sky. They flew above the primeval forest, above elaborate dwellings sung into tall pine sentinels, above lush gardens of rare and unusual flowers.

Beyond the boundaries of Ellesméra proper, the forest became untamed, wild, and too thick for a dragon to walk through easily. The dense green canopy was rarely broken by small clearings, forming a near impenetrable carpet of exotic green below.

Just when it seemed the forest would never end, when it seemed the Crags would never appear, they spotted their destination, the clearing fit for more than the two dragons, a small table and a small hut near the edge of the trees. A silver-haired elf sat on one stool near the table.

Glaedr allowed Vasem to land first, but Vasem had to get out of the way quickly, lest he be knocked over by the wind from the older dragon's wings. When both dragons were situated, Lavel dared to climb down and greet Oromis.

Upon the exchange of pleasantries, Oromis offered him a seat on the other side of the table and pointed to a half-full bowl of nuts and fruit pieces. Lavel sat on the stool, back resting against Vasem's side, who sat directly behind. It occurred to him that the seat was warmer than it should have been given the weather.

"I must welcome you, Lavel-vodhr and Vasem Blackstripe, to my humble home here outside of Ellesméra," said Oromis. "You must forgive our lapse in the past few days; we were aware of your presence in the city, yet we had other matters to attend to. But know we are glad to see you here and alive."

Lavel nodded. "I am aware of the responsibilities of the elders, ebrithil. It is not my or Vasem's place to question your actions. We waited patiently, and shall continue to do so if necessary."

"Even so. And yet it was not our duties as elders that caused us to neglect your instruction." The older elf casually grabbed a slice of apple, studied it, and slowly ate it. As calm as he acted, there was much sadness in his voice. "The Order as we know it has fallen apart. It matters not what we are meant to do as elders. Glaedr and I have little to do but mourn those we lost and guide those that are left.

"Our most recent student sat where you are now only moments before Glaedr fetched you. In the battle you escaped from, this Rider lost his dragon, and has vowed vengeance. Despite my cautioning, he has left to follow the rest of the elves leaving the forest."

Looking down at the bowl, Lavel nodded at those words. Nothing that he or Vasem had learned indicated that losing a dragon or Rider was any less painful for the surviving member than the agony Lavel felt when Vasem died in Dosjorya. The only difference was that every dragon and Rider could face this, while only certain Innena, like them in their previous life, could.

"If you meet this Rider again, or any in his situation, please send my condolences. Such pain is a heavy burden to live with," Lavel said.

"May he and the others similarly affected by that battle find peace," Vasem murmured.

"We shall. But our duty lies here, not elsewhere. We do not know the depth of your understanding of us, but Glaedr and I have suffered wounds of our own. We are vulnerable outside the safety of the forest. Thus it is prudent that we honor our commitment to training the two of you rather than fly abroad to comfort those who are heartbroken."

The older elf's eyes held a great sadness, and Lavel guessed that Oromis yearned to help where he could. He knew only a little, that Glaedr lost a leg and Oromis now suffers some deep ailment, but neither he nor Vasem believed the elders could fly abroad and fight the traitors with or without help. It would be certain doom even at the height of a Rider's strength. "We understand, ebrithil."

"Such is the shape of the world and we must adapt as we can. And that starts by formally becoming your new teachers. We must determine the extent of your education thus far and build a curriculum around that," the larger dragon said. "This is complicated by your youth and your… unique history."

Glaedr brought his snout to Vasem's and sniffed. Lavel felt the golden dragon's breath wash over them both, a wave of hot, humid air reminiscent of the climate of his birthplace in southern Dosjorya. Thick and oppressive, yet oddly comforting.

"We have, of course, heard of your supposed origins from both of your mothers." Glaedr finally said. "I can see that Vasem does not look like a normal dragon, and you Lavel do not have the mind of a normal elf. Yet you must forgive us for not fully accepting or understanding the idea you two are reincarnated from entirely different species. Seeing you in the flesh has not enlightened us."

"Most do not accept this, ebrithil. But what would you have me to explain if you wish to believe us?" Lavel asked.

A sparrow landed on the edge of the Crags, chirping at the Riders and the dragons without a single worry. Vasem began to growl at the disturbance, his thoughts of food reaching everyone's thoughts. The older elf scowled at Vasem, while Lavel did his best to hide his smile and his thoughts.

Finally, the bird flew off, possibly perturbed by all of the attention on it.

"Some of the reports I have heard of you, Vasem, indicate you are of an immature disposition like you just demonstrated. However, is this how you would have been in your previous life? Impatient and thinking with your stomach?"

"I agree with thinking with my stomach. It helped with survival to hunt even when not hungry to guard against food scarcity. Dosjorya is not the easiest place to hunt in. Not like Du Weldenvarden."

"As for what you identify as impatience," Lavel added. "Oundats, which Vasem was in Dosjorya and is the origin for his different scales and stripes, are typically impatient and aggressive with those they do not agree with. I see the same trait in some of the dragons I have met."

Oromis nodded. "I see this same thinking with young dragons as well, which Vasem still is. That does not prove you two are reincarnated from a different life at all. I am not saying this is some elaborate lie; on the contrary, I know such an explanation, if proven, would go far in explaining why the two of you are very different from any elf or dragon Glaedr and I have ever met. And the idea of reincarnation can have far-reaching impacts for everyone in Alagaësia."

"Would you rather we recount our memories from the past? Show that we had an entire first life before being born here? Show you what an Oundat looks like so you can compare?" Vasem said, staying civil and calm.

"Only if you two are okay with that and swear to us that none of the memories you show us are fabricated. Know that we are open to the possibility that what you say is indeed the truth and is a fact of existence that the elves and Riders have failed to discover yet. That Nierya and Sharjarth fully believed you show that your oath shall not affect what you show us."

"If you are open to the idea, and trust her judgment, why do you challenge us so?" Vasem asked.

"Because we still need proof. That is how we make discoveries. And because we do not understand such a thing, even if we accept reincarnation as a fact," said Glaedr.

Lavel swore that his and Vasem's memories are true, but did not show them to the elders yet. "Ebrithil, we do not know how we are reincarnated, nor why our memories, and in Vasem's case his appearance, are intact to some degree. In this, we are just as much in the dark as you."

"We are just glad we got another chance to be together, after everything that happened to us in Dosjorya," Vasem said.

"But you can perhaps give us a direction to look to," said the older elf.

Lavel grabbed a small handful of nuts and munched on them one at a time. As he always was, he was nervous about showing his memories to others and welcomed any distraction, even one as mundane as food. Oromis and Glaedr appear more accepting of the idea than most, but even they were reluctant to believe them.

"You only swore that our memories are truthful, not that we would share them. Do not open yourself to them if you are not comfortable yet," Vasem said to him alone.

"There will always be the question of what makes us different if we do not, Vasem. I have to one day show them these memories, as I did with my parents and our previous teachers. So will you."

Taking a deep breath, Lavel and Vasem fully opened their minds to Oromis and Glaedr, recounting the major memories they had from when they were younglings to their last moments. They skipped over many unimportant moments and did not show some of their most personal experiences, but otherwise recounted everything.

Victories and sorrows, good times and bad, things they did together as an Innen, and the things Lavel was forced to do alone after Vasem's death. Emotions, from the highest of highs to the lowest of lows. They showed memories of the wonders of Dosjorya that they had the fortune to see, the people and Gendirlo they met, and features that made Dosjorya different from Alagaësia. They hesitated when their showing came to the time when Vasem met his end in a landslide, but they pushed on. Vasem briefly explained how in Dosjorya, the dead move on to another world until they fade, a world closely attached to Dosjorya. Lavel explained the meanings of some of the titles he once had, Innen, fallen Innen, and Halcan. Their emotions turned into pleasant feelings as Lavel finished with some memories of his later years, times without Vasem but which were filled with happiness as he watched his three children grow and make their way into the world, watched until sickness took him from Dosjorya.

Oromis and Glaedr said nothing for many long moments. Lavel let himself cry a little during the silence. Vasem kept his snout on his head, sending thoughts of comfort and peace. Lavel knew Vasem was just as affected. They both treasured their happy memories, but tried to forget the painful ones. Both were prominent in his recounting, and as such his tears were of both sorrow and joy.

"Can you allow us to think upon what you showed us during the night?" Oromis asked when the sun was fully below the horizon.

"Yes, ebrithil."

"I have little doubt that if you endured the same pain as our student and managed to emerge from it no worse than before, then you are a remarkable person. Vasem too, if he had to endure the same pain but with no one to lean on. This is sure to shape the Rider and Dragon you are and we must adapt accordingly to serve as the best teachers we can."

"And I can see the sadness and grief you both still hold in your heart is genuine. It is still at the moment beyond my comprehension that you could have lived a previous life. However, I believe you have provided enough evidence for us to consider not only that this may be a fact of the world, but give us a starting point as to how and why this happened."

"Thank you for considering this," Lavel said.

"You are very welcome. As the sun has set, we will determine the extent of your training tomorrow. Glaedr will send for you when we are ready to begin."

Lavel was standing and stretching when Vasem spoke. "Ebrithilar, you had asked your newest students to escort us. Brom and Saphira. Is Brom the man you referenced earlier?"

"Unfortunately yes," said Glaedr sadly. "Morzan was his idol, but it came to pass that Morzan's sword found its way into Saphira's neck and Igor made the final blow as they fell from the sky. Brom has sworn vengeance against Galbatorix and the Wyrdfell, and to Morzan specifically, in his own madness. It is not a path we recommended for him, but as we have not experienced his pain, we cannot guide him as you could. He is determined, but his path may very well lead to nothing but ruin."

"If I must, I will try to help him and any others who experience the same tragedy. But I do not know how much I can do," Lavel said.

"Every little bit is better than nothing, Lavel-vodhr. Brom has already left, and I am not aware of any other dragon-less Riders here in Ellesméra at the moment," Oromis said, eyes facing the grass. "Unfathomable is the tragedy that befell our order, and especially the dragons. I hope that you two can bring light to even one individual."

Neither Oromis nor Glaedr made to speak anymore. Lavel took that as a sign that they were dismissed. While climbing onto Vasem, his mind thought about how some of the recent events could mirror happenings in Dosjorya. Galbatorix and his Wyrdfell Riders mirrored Azen and his group seeking to destroy the Innena who had wronged them, and in some ways, Brom mirrored Lavel's Dosjoryan self, seeking vengeance against a group that had destroyed their life.

He hoped these were the only parallels. He did not want to fight in a new war. He did not want to risk losing Vasem or more of his family again. Once was one time too many.