“This is Eloria.” There was pride and nostalgia in his voice.

“That’s impossible.” My chest felt tight from the sheer weight of what he was saying. It wasn’t possible. Was it?

“Is it possible for a human to fall from the sky, or die and morph into a crow? What about bending reality through an Ora? There is nothing like this where you call home.” Keiran leaned in closer, his body relaxed. “It’s confusing, I understand that. You will need time to ruminate on this.”

“Okay, let’s just say you’re right. Where exactly in Eloria are we?”

“We’re at Possen Fort. An island east of the mainland. We will soon depart to the north for the city of Ien and remain there temporarily.”

“Why is it only a temporary stay?”

“We intend to head back to Incus City. It is the capital of our country, and my hometown.”

I struggled to make sense of it all. “Why didn’t Ilta just have us teleported to Incus or Ien in the first place?”

“It doesn’t work that way. An Ora map isn’t a teleportation device that can be used on a whim. We can’t fully dictate the exact location of where we wish to go—even with the help of someone like Ilta. We can only somewhat manipulate our final destination if we have bases on the other side.”

“Does that mean you had a base on Earth?”

“No.” Keiran took a deep breath, as if to prepare me for a long explanation. “Earth has only one Ora point. For years, you were untraceable. It was only after five years when faint remnants of you were detectable by the combination of Elossai’s link to you and Ilta’s knowledge of tracking through the Ora that we determined you were there. We had hoped that you wouldn’t travel too far from it, but even so, it took many months in Hemley for us to track you. It was a calculated risk on our part, but it was necessary. The only reason we are here in Possen is because it is the closest safe zone that we could get to through the Ora.” He shifted a little. “There was no time for us to coordinate completely while we had the Ras to handle.”

“What exactly do you mean by safe zone?” I asked.

“We consider safe zones to be any place which has been cleared of enemies and is conquered by Ankins or one of our Allies. The Ankins are a group of peoples from Ankinia. We are Ankins; Ilta, Jarek and I.”

“So, are you an alien?” I realized after saying it out loud that it sounded much less tactful than it did when I just thought about it in my head.

“I am human just like you, Ellis.” He raised an eyebrow. “That is just the tribe name of what we call ourselves here.”

“What about Elossai? She isn’t human?”

“That’s right—she’s an Elos.”

“A what?”

“An Elos.”

“And why don’t you consider her human?”

“There are many reasons why she isn’t human, but the main one is that a human is a person created from a man and woman. An Elos is not. An Elos does not have the genetic composition of a human. They are born of the Elosra Tree.”

“Born of a tree? You mean like a fruit?”

“Just like a fruit,” he said with a chuckle.

“You have a race of people, the Elos, who are born from trees?”

“No. They aren’t born from all trees, just the one Elosra Tree.”

“Why aren’t there any other Elosra trees?”

“It is one of a kind. Before Elorians had kept historical logs, the Elosra Tree existed. It has kept everything in balance. It doesn’t bear fruit all the time.”

“How often does it bear fruit, then?”

“Once every seven years. It takes three years before the Elos is ripe—that is, before it can walk or talk.”

“Kind of like human babies.”

“Not at all like the offspring of humans.” He shifted, straightening his back. “The Elos remain in their protective shell for three years during the bud stage. When they do emerge, they are bound to their masters for life and they adopt the form of a human child seven or eight years of age. From that point they won’t age.” He paused, then added, “Usually.”

“They don’t age? But…” I shook my head. “In my vision, Elossai was a child, and now she’s a preteen.”

“Elossai aged because she was no longer near you. This was proof for us that you were still alive.”

“You knew I was alive because Elossai was alive?” I paused. I couldn’t imagine my life’s trajectory taking that same path. “It’s kind of depressing that her life revolves around another person.”

“It is only if you equate their lives to ours. What about pets? Don’t their lives revolve around their owners?” he asked.

I suppose he was somewhat right, but I still didn’t like it.

“What happens to them when their master dies? Are they freed?”

“No. Elos cease to exist once their master passes.”

“You mean they die?”

“Yes, they die. They no longer have a purpose.”

“That’s horrible!” I swallowed hard. I started, after I had a moment to allow it to all sink in. “You’re telling me that in Eloria, you have other intelligent, non-human beings that coexist with humans?”

“Correct,” he answered.

I massaged my temples. I felt a headache coming on. “How many intelligent, non-human life forms are on this planet?”

“Many.” He smiled before getting up. “This is probably a lot for you to digest in one sitting. You should rest for a while until Elossai returns with a new plate of fruit.”

“I’ll rest, but I need to know where Martin is.”

“Perhaps later I can arrange for us to pay Martin a visit.” His expression was inviting. “After you’ve had some breakfast, we have new clothes on the table for you to change into. Elossai should be waiting by the door shortly.”

“How do you know Elossai will be there?” I asked.

“When you’re around, she is always nearby.”