Part I
The Fight For Protection

A very long time ago when the first humans romed the earth, there was a young girl named Sage Shimmertree. She lived alone in a small grove of trees that sheltered her and protected her from any danger. She was aware of very little going on in the world around her because she had no intention of leaving the trees. They were her home and the animals, her family. She lived on the ground with the tall trees above her, happily for the entire length of her childhood. Soon, though she grew wiser. She realized the dangers of living on the ground; the dangers of human civilization. Men started coming with sharp axes and tools and slowely began cutting away at the forest. Sage would not allow this cruelness to happen to the forest that had protected her for so long. She was stronger now, at the age of 15, and began to climb the trees' branches where she would be hidden. She was now safe but she still would need a plan to save the trees. She spent several days leaping from branch to branch, tree to tree until she came to the heart of the forest. It was a large tree in diameter and height with many branches reaching out great lengths and had countless vibrant green leaves. She climbed the tree to its highest point and could see the entire forest below her. At this sight, inspiration struck her. She had an idea to save the forest she loved. A branch stuck up from the tree just a bit higher than the rest with a single extra large leaf hanging from it. Sage snapped the branch off and began to carve it until it had a satisfying shape. Then she gently plucked the leaf off and pulled a long thin string from its center. This string was suprisingly strong and could stretch when pulled. She connected the two into what may have been the first bow. She climbed down the tree, making several arrows as she went. She sat on the low branches of the tree waiting for men to come. When at last a cluster of men with axes came, she began shooting arrows at them with her newly made weapon. Those who didn't run or fall, she would fight empty handed with fighting skills she eventually gained over time. As time passed, it was rare that anyone would enter the forest and she found that she rarely touched the ground at all. She now lived completely in the trees and she planted more and more trees so the forest could grow even bigger.

Part II
The Village in the Sky

Over the years, rumors spread of the mysterious girl in the trees. Men told their wives and children who told friends and distant family of her. Sage, though she didn't know for certian, assumed her tactics were no longer a secret but her identity still was. She had learned many great skills living off the land and had built a small hut up in the branches of the great old tree in the heart of the forest. She had no reason to be unhappy and she wasn't, but a small part of her heart longed for human company. She had tried to ignore it but it kept growing until she could hardly stand it. She realized that her skill was something people needed if she wanted the forest to live after her time was over. She climbed down the tree near the ground and waited. She knew that few people entered the forest but something inside her told her to wait, so she did. Her waiting paid off because after waiting a short time, she spotted a small boy around the age of twelve walking through the forest. Thinking quickely, she grabbed the nearest hanging vine and pulled it until it touched the ground at the boys feet. The boy climbed the vine just as Sage had hoped and he lived in the trees happily just as Sage did. Soon more and more children came, out of curiousity or to escape their troubled lives, but whatever the reason was, they never regretted their decision. Several houses were built for them and Sage, now 25 years old, was happy. Then one evening, something that Sage had never dreamed of happening, happened. She fell in love. A vine was lowered for a man called Aldareth Lizeron who shared her passion for protecting the forest. They had a simple wedding in the trees and eventually two children. Sage's life was perfect until illness spread. When Sage was nearly 40, her husband died and many of the children from an unknown illness. The vine would no longer be lowered. The village was silent and mournful. Sage lived the rest of her days peacefully but mournfully with her two children at her side. She decided the village should be called the Tree Tops of Lizeron after her beloved husband. When she passed away the remaining children, now entering adulthood, and her own children made sure that the village in the sky lived on and it did.

Hundreds of generations later, the vine is once again being lowered to all who will climb it. The Secrets will once again be revealed, the wonder of the trees' magnificent beauty will once again be seen. Are you willing to climb the vine?