Star Pieces, hm....

Rowan wished he could feel as happy and upbeat as Alecis looked. Why did he have to let curiosity get the best of him like that? Oh well, he though as they entered the tavern he had just left not long ago. Nothing ventured nothing gained.

"Alright," he sighed, taking a seat while Nym laid at his feet. "Where shall we start?"

"I guess we could start by telling where and when we found our star pieces," Alecis began. "I found mine just a few minutes before I left to go to the meeting. See, I was in my cloud, getting ready, when all of a sudden I heard clio shouting on the ground. I was startled, of course. I thought there had been an invasion or something. But when I came down, I saw them all standing around, in a big circle. I could see something glowing in the middle, so my mind went to Iluhra, you know, Solas. But the coloration was wrong, this light was a bluish color, and the closer I got the more nervous I got. It was strange. I mean, I had nothing to worry about really, all it looked like was, I dunno, a rock? But something about it told me it was important. So, I told the clio to move aside, Rheis ran ahead you see. Had to show off by touching it, that's when I knew for certain it wasn't an ordinary stone. It was something much, much bigger. Not bigger in the sense of size, bigger in the sense of... Well, you understand." Alecis stopped. She sat pensive for a moment, wondering what she should say next.

"Anyways, I pocketed it and actually placed it up in my cloud. I had Tija, keep it safe for me while I was away, see he usually watches the children anyways. I was surprised to find out at the meeting that other Overloridians had found things like mine, even more surprised that each one was a different color. And when I found out that the colors corresponded with our Eilemaiden I knew something was up. Let me guess, yours was gray?"

Rowan listened intently to the story. When Alecis finished, he answered her question ("Yes, it was gray") and began to recount his own tale.

"Not even a minute after I entered the Domain," he said, "I noticed a large crowd of clio standing around something, talking amongst each other excitedly. It was the stone...uh, star piece.The clio who had witnessed it all said the same thing; it had fallen from the sky. No one had touched it, they were all just looking at it. I was the first one. When I touched it, it felt..." Rowan thought back to the intense energy that had surged through him when he had touched the piece. "It felt powerful. It had a great energy. I confirmed that it wasn't any type of metal, and then had it taken to a safe place to be observed. Zlatan, my top adviser, and I ran a few tests, all of which were inconclusive. We're not entirely sure what to test for, you see." He looked up at Alecis. "Like you, I find it unlikely that it's a coincidence that the pieces correspond to our Eilemaiden. There's something...bigger going on here."

Alecis sighed.

"At least you feel the same way I do." She was relived. "My clio also told me it fell from the sky, one of them described it as 'a falling star' which is why I've decided to call them star pieces. To me it fits much closer than calling them stones or rocks or anything. Have you talked to any of the other Overloridians about this? You're the first I've talked to about this outside of the meeting. Well, other than Goruhana but she didn't seem to keen on talking to me at all. I just hope that at the next meeting everyone feels more open to talking about this. I want to get this sorted out, and quickly. While I don't think these star pieces pose a threat right now, there's no telling about the future."

"Well, yes, actually," Rowan said, looking away. "I talked to Charlie Preston- you know, the new Overloridian of Adhbhar- and she basically told the same story. While she herself has no idea whatsoever what she's doing, her bodyguard gave me some useful information. You're right, the star pieces aren't rocks, Adhbhar confirmed that."

He rested his head on his hand, his brow furrowed in thought. "No Eilemaiden could be responsible for this, as far as I know. It's beyond clio capability. But what other explanation is there...?"

Rowan had been asking himself that very question since he found the star piece. He had to admit, Alecis was right, two heads were better than one...But although they had both shared their stories, the mystery seemed no closer to being solved than it had before.

Alecis had a thought.

The more she thought about it, the more scared she became. She, too, had felt the surge of power when she had touched the star piece. And what if... Should she tell Rowan what had just come to her mind? Oh no, it was a bad idea.

She needed to get those star pieces. They had to be thrown away, as far as possible... At least, if this thought of hers was correct... But who in their right mind would throw it away? But they would need to... This could throw off the balance of Amelia. It could shatter their world forever...

The only thing to do, Alecis finally decided, was to tell him. He at least couldn't get to the clouds. No clio could that didn't have the ability to float.

"Rowan... I think the pieces give us our Eilemaiden. I think some kind of power has been broken... And Rowan... I think this could be very... very bad..."

Rowan's head snapped up in alarm. He jumped to his feet. "Broken?!" he exclaimed. "What do you mean? How can a power be broken?"

"Shhh..." Nym said quietly, as Rowan's voice had gotten much louder.

Rowan slowly sat back down. He thought carefully about what Alecis had said. Yes, it made sense, it was very possible that the pieces gave them their power over the Eilemaiden. But she was being too vague.

Very quietly, he repeated, "What do you mean by 'a power has been broken?'"

"Being completely honest Rowan, I haven't a clue."

Alecis was shocked. What had just come out of her mouth was news to her too, and yet, it all made perfect sense. She felt tingly, and not in the good way.

"Listen, I think it's a very good idea to not mention these star pieces to anyone. I'm sure many of your clio know about it already, but if at all possible, try to play it off that it was just a stone. Tell them anything. Rowan, I think they could be dangerous if they get in the hands of the wrong clio..."

Under the table, Rheis was shaking.

Dangerous in the hands of the wrong clio...That much seemed true. But what about in the hands of the right clio? The star piece had power, immense power. Dangerous in the wrong hands, Rowan thought. But in the right hands...In his hands...

Rowan looked to Alecis. "Alecis, you're absolutely right," he said promptly. "Our top priority should be keeping the star pieces safe. We should tell the other Overloridian to do the same at the meeting." He stood up. "It's getting late, and I have a lot to think about now," he said. "I'm going to head back. I'll keep the situation updated."

He and Nym headed for the exit. Talking with Alecis had eased his worries, but his mind was still swimming with thoughts of the star piece...

Alecis could all but read his mind. She too was thinking about what she could do with the star piece. The power she could have... The power they undoubtedly all had, just under their noses... And the other Overloridians had no idea... But it was wrong to think of this power in this way... Terribly wrong...

Alecis agreed with Rowan about going home, she too had a lot to think about.

"Well, goodnight Rowan. Thanks for talking with me, do remember what I said about not saying anything."

She wanted to add in that she thought it best not to tell the other Overloridians what they had discovered tonight, but thought it unwise. She didn't want him to see any reason not to trust her...

Alecis picked up Rheis, and silently they flew home.