These zealots were the source which inspired random acts of destruction throughout the colony. Breaking the colony's near perfect record of orderly conduct of citizens, security officials were unprepared to deal with the problem. But worse than the physical destruction, the chaos symbolized the utter defeat of the Aelo-Lorinthians. Their absolute hopeless situation. The chaos was their hopeless cry of failure. By the time stars filled the sky it had ended, the Aelo-Lorinthians finished their cries and passed into a peaceful phase of acceptance.

Even some of the Grell had become passive to the situation. Each had their own way of dealing with the crisis. Kelemak observed the latest phase of the colony from high atop the Observatory, where the Grell of Astronomy felt most at peace. Comforting herself by recording celestial rotation as she had done every night before. Pondering the phenomenon of the Moon up above that shown a deep red tonight. A common mystery of the winter season. With no answer expressing the Grell left for the unscheduled Gibbus meeting called for tonight.

"A weakness perhaps," Bulmer began, "but I do not see how it could be utilized to our advantage against the horde as a whole."

"That is the topic of discussion, Bulmer," Hamaer said to the Grell of Finances.

"I do not understand the point of any of this myself," the Grell of Foreign Affairs folded his hands, "even if we were able to annihilate the race, which is beyond any doubt impossible, what good will that accomplish for the survival of our race? Without the Hibernation Apparatus we are death minus few days."

"Gildur is right. We should be concentrating on survival rather than what seems like revenge," Ismet nearly pleaded to the Grell.

Hamaer shifted in his seat while Kelemak focused her attention on the infinite stars of the night sky from a window. Old Tideme was enigmatic.

"So that is it?" Galeb R'ef, the young Aelo-Lorinthian, had been asked to stay for the meeting by the Galome. He had not intended on commenting to the older, wiser Grell, but this was something he could not stand for. "You, the Grell of the Aelo-Lorinthians, are giving up after one defeat?"

None of the Grell spoke as Galeb continued, "You still have no idea with what we are dealing with. These monsters, they have us all figured out. They do not think we might retreat, they are planning on it. Expecting and anticipating us to do just that. We have been toyed by them since the beginning. How much longer do you want this to continue?"

There was another long pause as the Grell considered the wise words of the young Aelo.

"...what do they want from us, Galeb?" asked Ismet who had slipped into a passively frantic state because of a crisis that was bigger than he was. "What can we do?"

"We have nowhere to go. The path to Malgaria is directly through the Tashmine forest, enemy territory. The only option would be to flee to Tuskagua, but we can be sure the beasts have realized this and are expecting it! Only the Galome's small group might get to Tuskagua."

"And once there, the Tuskageries would aid us with a war conflict with a common threat to both civilizations," Hamaer Ka'bal rubbed his C'dowe in acknowledgement.

"But only a war conflict would be aided. Not a cowardly retreat," Galeb pointed out, "But besides that, I cannot speak for the rest, but I for one, will not abandon my home."

Hamaer Ka'bal nearly jumped out of his seat, "Nor will I! Fighting against them might bring about the extinction of the Aelo-Lorinthian race, but a retreat would absolutely bring about the extinction of the Aelo-Lorinthian way of life. I will not make that sacrifice, I would rather us all be doomed!"

Gildur Etrask squirmed uncomfortabley in his seat, "Then you are alone in that touching sentiment Ka'bal! The Aelo-Lorinthians put survival above revenge on their priorities."

"We'll see," the Grell of Security glared at Gildur, "I request a Grell round table vote on the options, Isba Galome."

"Your request is granted, Hamaer," the Galome spoke softly.

Bulmer began, "If the enemy can predict our strategy then a plan of attack is wreckless enough to be unexpected by the enemy. Besides, retreat is impossible. I know that, all of you know that, the Aelo-Lorinthian citizens have realized that. Attack is the closest thing to a logical course available."

Old Tideme shared his thoughts, "It seems we have tried everything except actually having a discussion on how we might be able to fight against the Dread Whispers. In my time I have seen the Grell of this colony overcome many harsh situations simply by working together to form a plan of action. That is how the Hibernation Apparatus was built in the first place. Still, we have yet to try this. All we have done is bicker with each other and look at the most obvious options. We should at least have a discussion about attacking and perhaps we will come up with something."

All heads turned to Kelemak, "When we were ambushed in the Tashmine we were unprepared for the attack and thus did not fare too well. But even Galeb was able to fight off a Dread Whisper on even terms. From these accounts I can conclude that we are overestimating the physical power of the enemy. And we are not required to totally wipe out the enemy, we simply have to hold our ground against them until the Tuskagerie soldiers can aid us."

Ismet shivered at his turn to speak, "If there were any chance of retreat I would agree with Gildur and take it. Still, there is one thing I cannot run away from. Old Tideme's expedition in the Tashmine found out that these monsters are reproducing at an alarming rate. If we could run away than these creatures would only become more powerful. Perhaps powerful enough to conquer other colonies, or cities, or kingdoms and empires throughout the Lands. We need to stop them here, not only for the good of our race alone, but for the good of this World under the Moon. For I, the Grell of Aelo- Religion, have envisioned this in lunar meditation. It is my prophetic prediction. Stop them here or other civilizations will suffer the same fate."

The Grell of the Aelo-Lorinthian colony looked back at Gildur, "Well, I am only after the best interests of the colony. And I agree that Tuskagua will help us in a war only. So I now believe that at least a discussion of attack is necessary. But whatever we decide we had better decide on it quickly, time is not something we can take for granted."

So the Grell, the leaders of the Aelo-Lorinthian colony of the Diamond Falls, discussed military action against their undeniable foes. They spent that evening bitterly debating possible tactics and continued into the night. Even then the debate went on all night, and into the next morning. But all the Grell's bitter debating was worth it, for they had devised plans for an ingenius weapon against the Dread Whispers. By working together the Grell molded something truly brilliant like their ancestors had done to save the colony in previous generations.

It was a foggy morning in the Diamond Mountain range. A Chilling cold blew silently through the peaks and into the colony of Aelo-Lorinthians. The clouds spent the night engulfing the sun, so that by morning it was dark enough to pass as early evening. Once again the colony was dreadedly silent, only the whisper of wind echoed around the homes of Aelo-Lorinthians. The colony seemed as if it were silently fearfull of the ominous sky. From a view the home of the Aelo-Lorinthians appeared hastily abandoned. But in reality, the Aelo-Lorinthian citizens gathered at Armhaj Tiervo, the central temple of the colony.

It was a massive structure compared to the other buildings of the colony. Built at the base of the Diamond Falls it manipulated the flowing water to produce beautiful designs as it cascaded down the sides. Long pillars supported gigantic globes at the entrance. The outside of the central hall spiraled up stabbing at the sky. All features of architecture capable by only Aelo-Lorinthians. The Aelo-Lorinthians had gathered here for both physical comfort and spiritual comfort.

The citizens of the Diamond Falls patiently awaited news from the Grell as to what the plan of action was. Roaming the enormous halls of Armhaj Tiervo all night expecting the Galome to burst through the tall iron doors with a gospel at any moment. Or at least the Grell of Aelo-Religion to arrive with words of wisdom to follow. When morning finally rose they received neither. Hamaer Ka'bal, Grell of Security, nearly brought down the door as he ran from the entrance of the temple to the alter at the end.

Still, despite the imperfect visitor, the Aelo-Lorinthians gathered around to listen for answers to their despair. Again the bewildered residents received what they had not anticipated. A plan of attack? Could this be right? What are the Grell thinking? Not rebellion but confusion arose from the crowd as the Grell of Security explained their next move. But as he proposed the drawn out tactics the Grell decided upon the night before the confusion of the crowd waned into confidence and pride. As Hamaer Ka'bal spoke the dread subsided in the citizens of the colony eagerness filled their spirits. The Grell's plan indeed made sense and was a good one.

To carry out the complexity of this plan required the assistance of every Aelo- Lorinthian in the colony. Hamaer explained the various details and assigned jobs and committees to each Aelo-Lorinthian while stressing the absence of the luxury of time. Some would help with the construction and some would enter a basic training program for combat, but most would do a little of both. The Aelo-Lorinthians forgot about the tragedies and began working together like the Aelo-Lorinthians were meant to.

The Galome would have liked to see his people at their Aelo-Lorinthian best but he had other duties required of him. It was essential that his flight to Tuskagua be as hasty as possible. There was not even time for him to wish farewell upon his people as they may never encounter again. Several hours earlier the Galome and Grell of Foreign affaris departed the colony, Galeb R'ef went with them. He was asked to go because he knew more about the Dread Whispers than any other Lorinthian. Gildur and the Galome would need his help.

The three immediately left the colony, no goodbies or farewells. They brought nothing with them that they were not already carrying, there was no time nor need to pack anything. Their departure was quick and silent. As the morning sunrise came into veiw from behind the tall peaks of the Diamond Mountains the weary wanderers slipped passed the village by the falls. With the awakening of the residents of Armhaj Tierve the last hope of the Aelo-Lorinthians disappeared from the safe haven of the colony. Bound for Tuskagua, the closest neighboring civilization after Malgaria. Despite the threatening clouds in the sky it was a peaceful morning, the last they would ever see.

The rigid peaks of the Diamond Mountains disappeared over a shield of fog in the sky. The range shot spikes from the earth that ran from one end of the continent to the other. Towering spikes that grew at impassable, steep angles, which argued passage between them. The tops of gaunt peaks hung over the valleys like grim spectators trying to catch a glimpse of the events that will occur among the mortals below. All while ominous clouds frowned upon the lands by casting their shadows. It was a gloomy and heartless atmosphere as cold as the ice that armored the mountains or the snow that clothed them.

As the noon hours rolled around, noticable progress could already be seen of the Aelo-Lorinthians. All were busily working on their assigned projects. The Aelo-Lorinthian citizens had reluctantly evacuated the city and relocated on a hill a half mile away. Serenity Hill was a clearing in the Tashmine forest that was formerly used for hunting by the Aelo- hunters, now the game was unarguabley more serious. The site was chosen for its closeness to the colony, where hundreds of errands were being ran back and forth between the two locations. The weapon's construction was unhindered and was going as well as could be planned. The most arduous step to its completion was the design, which was already manifested by the Grell during the hours past midnight. Hamaer Ka'bal, Grell of Security, oversaw the project from start to finish.

"Is this the last transport of the pipelines from the colony?" Hamaer asked a weary Aelo who approached him carrying several bundles.

"Yes. Well, all that were undamaged," he responded.

"Hmm, I'm afraid this is not going to be enough. Go back and scavenge some more. I don't care what you have to rip apart to get these, we'll worry about that later."

The Aelo-Lorinthian sighed, "Yes sir."

Hamaer called out to him as the other Aelo turned to run his errand, "And tell Kelemak to get here as soon as possible. I need her help with the militia training."

Meanwhile, Old Tideme and Bulmer were heading the carpentry committee at the top of the hill. Aelo-carpenters were shuffling around them busily sawing, measuring, cutting, fitting, transporting, and constructing a framework. Old Tideme was "chosen" by Hamaer to head this committee and Bulmer was to "assist" him. In reality Hamaer assigned Old Tideme the futile post because he still believed he, if anyone, was the traitor Grell, and this would keep him from sabotaging any of the plan. Bulmer's "assistance" was actually to keep an eye on the old Lorinthian, but he, himself did not share the Grell of Security's accusation.

Old Tideme was wandering between two rows of busy carpenters trying to find something needed of him. Bulmer sat a few feet away, leaning his C'dowe on a vertical log.

"What's on your mind, old Grell?" Bulmer asked rubbing his eyes, still sleepy from the all night meeting.

"I feel like a useless old Lorinthian who just gets in the way," Old Tideme said not appearing too distraught about it. "I know Ka'bal put me here to keep me out of trouble, Bulmer. I know he thinks that I am the one betraying the colony. And I know that you are here to watch over me. I won't ever be so old that I cannot realize something this obvious."

Bulmer smiled and stood up, "Heh, apparently not. Sorry, Isba. If it makes any difference I do not share his beliefs."

"I don't blame him either. He is just trying to protect the colony," Old Tideme paced around a few seconds. "Now that I think about it, I wish I were the traitor. Because if I was then at least the traitor would be in a place where he could not cause any more harm to the colony."

Bulmer thought about this and Old Tideme said, "Then the real traitor would not be out there somewhere still."

"Who do you think it is?" Bulmer asked out of nowhere.

"The Galome was right to decide it was best not to discuss it. Without any proof it will only lead to our corruption."

"The Galome," Bulmer paused, "What about the Galome? As wrong as it sounds, no one has ever questioned him. But we must admit to ourselves that such a possibility may exist.

"Bulmer, we must admit to ourselves that it could be anyone, even ourselves. But it is indeed someone. Someone is relaying information to the enemy. That's how they ambushed Hamaer in the Tashmine That's how they knew to attack during this dreadful season That's how they knew to remove the Hibernation Apparatus from us while our only security was away. But regretfully, we do not possess enough proof to know who this is. Make all the accusations you wish, but they will only damage us. We won't know for sure until it is too late."

Something natural yet unexpected occured as the afternoon hours arrived. The ominous, cruel, threatening clouds that had invaded the sky finally released their onslaught. But what their rage amounted to was nothing more than a gentle snowfall. Not even enough to distract the three Aelo-Lorinthians moving through the treacherous terrains of the Diamond Mountains.

As Galeb R'ef, the Galome, and Gildur Etrask hiked up a narrow path spiraling up a peak, they encountered the white precipitation. It seemed as if it was a gesture to reveal the presence of a higher power observing over them. They paused only moments to notice before continuing.

"Let us pray that this is the worst the weather has to offer," the Galome spoke after hours of silence among the three.

"We could afford worse luck," Gildur said, "But let us not cast a jinx."

"Most certainly not, Gildur. It will be dark soon and..." the Galome was discontinued by a hushing from Galeb R'ef.

"Shhh, I hear something," Galeb whispered. The three Aelo-Lorinthians looked around from their mountain peak suspiciously. Frozen by fear, they listened so closely they could nearly hear the snow fall and collect on the ground.

"Oh, there it is. Up there." Galeb broke the silence and pointed to an area a few dozen feet above them.

It was a single Rotanga that had caused so much commotion among the Lorinthians. A Rotanga was a lizardlike animal that inhabited the Diamond Mountains. Rotangas could be very dangerous but fortunately they did not use Lorinthians for food. Usually, during this time of year, Rotangas were in hibernation, but then again, so were Aelo-Lorinthians.

The Rotanga was quickly swinging across the steep mountain slopes. It scurried up icey rocks nearly slipping into a chasm below. It was moving very fast and carelessly. The Lorinthians watched and wondered what could make the creature move so fast.

"Strange, it seems in quite a hurry to get somewhere," the Galome said.

"It is not going anywhere," Galeb pointed out, "It is being chased."

"By what we could only guess correctly," Gildur said, "Let us make haste and follow in its example."

But the Tuskagua-bound Aelo-Lorinthians were too late. Two Dread Whispers climbed their way up from below them, and three more arrived from directly behind. The Lorinthians froze in horror. They were spotted immediately. At the very least, the Rotanga now had an opportunity to escape.

The snarling vermin slowly approached their prey from all sides. It was not necessary for them to be quick about it, there was no chance for their escape. Curiously, they examined the three for what seemed like hours. Pacing around them while the Lorinthians could only stand still and speculate what would happen next. The Dread Whispers moved closer to the Aelo-Lorinthians and stared directly into their eyes. The three Lorinthians could see the blue scaley eyes of the Dread Whispers clearly. They had no pupils, just large blue ovals. They seemed truly soulless and empty. The Dread Whispers were close enough so that the three Lorinthians could hear their raspy breath exhale through their sharp fangs. In all the history of Lorinthians, from Tideme or Basanthar to Aelo-Lorinthian, never before had any one of them endured something so terrifying as staring death in the face.

Suddenly, one of the Dread Whispers moved back and emmitted a small screeching sound. The others responded with screeches of their own. Out of nowhere they all moved back from the terrified Lorinthians. Then they continued to watch the Lorinthians. But the horrified Lorinthians remianed still as ice for much longer.

"What are they doing?" the Galome whispered still unmoving.

"I don't know, but they aren't attacking." Galeb whispered back.

"Who cares! Let's just get out of here!"Gildur yelled and started tugging on the other two. They all ran away as fast as they could. The Dread Whispers watched them go unmoving.

Time had its effect on the weather. As afternoon waned into evening the light snowfall grew heavier and the element of wind was added. The sun crept over the edge of the earth as if to escape from the threatening weather, leaving the remaining victims in the dark.

The new residents of Serenity Hill had nearly completed their elusive construction by this time. Of course building a settlement on the enemy's grounds caused a stir among the surrounding Dread Whispers. Occasionally, one of the vile beasts would wander onto the hill, unaware that anything unusual was occuring. A single creature was not a threat to the dozens of Aelo-Lorinthians gathered at Sernity Hill and was quickly disposed of. This happened several times throughout the day. Each time the batch would be more numerous. Eventually, the Dread Whispers would launch a full-scale assault against Serenity Hill. And that was exactly what the Aelo-Lorinthians were counting on.

After the completion of the project Hamaer Ka'bal began combat training for the Aelo-Lorinthians. He conducted several seminars of basic training for them. Lorinthians were trained how to use weapons and apply first aid. Hamaer would have continued the training as long as possible but Kelemak suggested the Lorinthians deserved a break before the final battle.

"It is night now, perhaps the last they will ever see," she convinced him.

"Yes, you are right. We've done all we could today and we should be proud. What happens now can only be determined by the success of the Galomes flight to Tuskagua."

"Hamaer, sometimes you are too serious," Kelemak sighed and started to walk away.

"I am? Well, what did I do?" Hamaer followed her.