Stars sparkled in the sky above Erendell; twinkling like tiny jewels embedded in the satin of the High King's cloak. Nalaqua lay on the soft, sweet spring grass and watched the stars move by over head, a gentle smile on her youthful face. Her mother, Megilial, sat on her right while her father, Araregwen, sat on the left.

"Tomorrow, Nalaqua," her mother spoke softly, "is your Day of Passing." Nalaqua sat up and looked at her mother. Her blue eyes sparkled like the stars in the sky. Megilial laughed at the look of excitement in her little girl's eyes and placed the wreath of golden iris' she'd been making atop the girl's chestnut hair.

"My little girl is growing up," Araregwen said, a hint of sadness lacing his words.

"Oh papa!" Nalaqua cried. She threw her arms around him and promptly buried her head in his neck. "I never want to grow up if it means having to leave you and mama!"

Araregwen laughed, but Megilial just watched the two sadly. She too, wished that Nalaqua never had to grow up. It wasn't her first child, it wouldn't be her last, but it was her first girl. Her first two children had been boys. Both of them were slender, well built lads. The eldest had a family of his own.

"It is Elven custom, my love." Araregwen said, stroking her forehead. "On an Elven child's seventh spring, during the renewal of the earth, they should conduct their passing from childhood to maiden hood."

"I don't want to be a maiden!" Nalaqua protested. "Gwen and Egenwian didn't have to become maidens!" It was Megilial's turn to laugh.

"Nalaqua, Gwen and Egenwian are young men, young men do not become maidens," she exclaimed. She drew Nalaqua into her arms. "I love you, Nalaqua, and no matter how many springs and winters pass, you will always be my little girl."

"I love you, mama," Nalaqua exclaimed. "You too, papa!" She hugged them both fiercely. After a few more minutes sitting beneath the stars, the three of them stood and walked down the winding path towards their Elven home.

Nalaqua stood nervously in a small gazebo. Here she waited for the signal that her journey down the Path of Passing was to begin. Beside her stood her mother, who looked just as nervous as Nalaqua felt.

"Mama?" Nalaqua questioned.

"Shhh," Megilial whispered as the faint Elven flutes reached her slender ears. "Come along, Nalaqua, it's time." Nalaqua took a firm hold of her mother's hand and followed her from the gazebo. The youth was clad in the ceremonial garb of passing: a flowing gown of white, woven from the finest silken threads by the nimblest Elven hands. The crown of golden iris' her mother had wove together the previous evening sat amidst her hair which was a picture all its own. It was braided, twisted and looped while still more fell free over her small shoulders. The smallest strands of pearls were woven with delicate care into the braids while the tips ended in soft, white down feathers.

"I'm scared," Nalaqua whispered as they made their way down the path. It was a sacred road traveled only by those passing from child hood to the second stage of life, maiden hood, or in the case of a male, man hood. The third and final stage was into adult hood and was signified by marriage.

"Don't fret, Nalaqua," Megilial whispered. As the path went on it converged with many smaller paths upon which other Elven children, who also celebrated their seventh summer, joined Nalaqua and her mother on their way to the temple where the ceremony would take place.

Boys and girls alike gathered, and walked, but silence was prevalent. None of them dared break the magical moment of silence that would be their last as children. Nalaqua, on the other hand, could not keep in the questions that plagued her.

"Why do we have to be quiet, mama?" Nalaqua asked. "Why can't we have fun on our last day as a child? How did the Passing come to pass?" Nalaqua giggled at her joke.

"Nalaqua! Shhh!" Megilial whispered, a smile tugging at her lips. Her dear child, curious and full of questions to the last. She'd argue with Death herself if she had the chance. Nalaqua had opened her mouth to speak again but her words never came out. They had entered the clearing were the ceremony would be held.

The Silverstar Temple, a place all young elves longed to explore but were forbidden to step foot into, lay before them now. Nalaqua stood there, staring in awe. Shimmering silver pillars, which reminded Nalaqua of frozen moonbeams, supported the arching ceiling. The ceiling was gracefully crafted from white stone and laced with green ivy and crimson flowers. The floor, however, was the most captivating thing in the whole room. It was made of Graystone, a rock quarried from the Liaillen en Koorijo- Lake of Rainbows. At first glance the stone looked gray and thus the origin of it's name, but after closer examination, the explorer would be delighted to discover that with every step the floor changed colors until a rainbow of vibrant hues danced about him. When many people walked the long hall, the floor would explode in a brilliant kaleidoscope of hues. There were no walls, save the lush green of the forest that surrounded the room.

Despite the gloriousness of the room the main attraction rested in the center. A small pool of shimmering starlit water spread out before them, it's placid waters waiting for the first Passer to enter it's shallow depths. The Pool of Passage was the main part of Passing. One stood in the pool and walked to the glowing center. There they saw a preview of their future, good or bad. They did not tell anyone what they saw lest it did not come true, or in the case of a bad future...it did come to pass. Nalaqua stepped forward with the others.

There were eleven of them, seven boys and four girls, all of whom looked panicked and fearful of what may lay ahead. Eindoen, the head elf of their community, stepped forward.

"My people," he said, raising his hands. The murmuring died down. "We gather here, in this sacred place, to witness the Passing of these young ones." He walked by the children, examining them slowly, speaking, now, to them. "Are you ready for the knowledge you will take with you as you enter the Middle Age? It can be a great burden to know what the future holds." His eyes fixed for a moment on Nalaqua. She sensed a strange power behind them and tugged nervously on a long braid.

"We have all gone through the Passing or we would not be in this room today," Eindoen continued, turning his attention back to the crowd. Nalaqua let out her pent up breath. "We have all seen the growth, or destruction, of our futures. We have all gained the knowledge that the future we see in the pool is but one path our lives can take. We must either work for or against the future we see." The elves nodded in agreement.

"1039 summer's ago," Eindoen said. "I had my own passing and saw my future. In it I saw this day, I saw these Elven children. I saw that one of them was going to face a future none of us have experienced, one of sorrow and death. A future our ancestors fought three thousand generations ago to eliminate. I beg of the one who faces this future to fight hard to change it. Fight so that your ancestors would not have died in vain." Eindoen's eyes fell on her again, but they moved on to each other face as well, as though searching for some kind of answer.

Nalaqua gaped at him. What did Eindoen mean sorrow and death? What horrible thing was going to happen? Would the elves be wiped out? The whole world? Nalaqua tried to count the races that inhabited her world. They were far to numerous to count. She was pulled from her thoughts as Eindoen spoke again.

"Young ones," Eindoen said, motioning towards the pool. To Nalaqua the waters no longer looked calm and welcoming, but dark and foreboding. "Step forward and receive you fate."