Once upon a time on the Far World the human tribes hunted and gathered. They traveled with the weather, for no place was safe for long. The deities of the land, who the people called "Masters" watched them curiously. The Mistress of Fire was the first to contact them, ( )eaking the rules set by Satellite to not interfere. Quietly she taught them how to summon her embers, though they could never master the element as she could. When a human clumsily set a forest alight, the timid Mistress of the Forest became frightened.

The humans learned quickly and fire helped them to keep warm in the winter and prepare new foods. As the deities watched them some became suspicious that they could, given time, become even more powerful than themselves.

The Master of Stone was among those who were not frightened by the humans, but curious and excited to see what they would become. He was a handsome old master, with beautiful runes carved across his dark stone body, fingernails of marble, and crystal eyes. A talented smith, he could pull the metals from the rocks around him to fashion the most excellent tools and jewelery for himself and the other deities. The Master of Stone watched from his mountain as a tribe of humans packed their gear to head north for the summer months. One woman knelt beside a small pile of rocks, and the Master of Stone stepped down to hear what she was saying.

The woman was thanking the masters for the balance of nature. The small pile of rocks, crudely assembled, was a shrine to them. The Master of Stone was pleased and decided that he, like the Mistress of Fire before him, would help the people. He followed the woman back to her tribe and taught them how to properly work stone. He taught them how to carve blocks to build houses that would stand up to summer storms and keep them safe from vicious beasts at night. He taught them how to make stone tools to work the ground and clear plants. The people were happy and built a new shrine using his teachings to thank him.

When the other masters saw the shrine, however, they were not pleased. They knew that what the Master of Stone had taught them would allow them to change the balance of nature that they strove so hard to protect. Satellite swept down from space and placed the Master of Stone into the ocean, for they knew he could not swim, and banished him there.

Hundreds of years later the people still made shrines using the Master of Stone's teaching, and the other deities, their anger eased by time, began to enjoy the praise they received from the people. The four Maids of Wind were especially popular with the humans, as their tending to the wind and weather had strong influence on their now mostly agricultural societies.

The four Maids of Wind were created by Mother Sun to command the skies. The oldest was the Maiden of the North Wind, who ( )ought the cold air and snow from the northern mountains. The Maiden of the North Wind was straightforward and hardworking, but most knew her coldness hid a softer side. Next was the Maiden of the South Wind, who ( )ought the hot summer air from the southern oceans. She was friendly and fun, but everyone knew she had a fierce temper, and the humans feared her powerful storms of wind and rain. Then came the Maiden of the East Wind, who the humans disliked most. She ( )ought the hot dry wind from the eastern deserts, and with it the sandstorms that could damage crops and hurt livestock. Although the humans were not fond of her, the Maiden of the East Wind was amused by the humans. She disliked ( )inging them the pain of the desert winds, but could not change the job gravity had compelled her to take. The youngest sister, the Maiden of the West Wind, was the most beloved by the humans, as she ( )ought the soft spring ( )eezes and gentle rains from the west. The Maiden of the West Wind was even tempered and well liked by humans and deities alike.

Each of the four Maids of Wind was given a special necklace of air from their Mother Sun. The air, trapped in bubbles like a strand of pearls, was supposed to have special properties, although the Maids did not know exactly what powers they possessed. They were told that they should only be used in dire circumstances, because once ( )oken, they could never be fixed for use again.

One day the Maiden of the North Wind was compelled to drive a flurry of snow far to the south, a rare request that had only happened a handful of times throughout the existence of the Far World. She swept the heavy snow across the sky, scattering it over the land. When she had finished her work and used all of her snow, she rested at the edge of the southern ocean. As she looked across the waters where her younger sister commanded, she noticed a shimmering in the water. Curiosity got the best of the Maiden of the North Wind, and she dove into the ocean to find out what it was.

There at the bottom of the sea, his rock feet held fast to the ocean floor, was the Master of Stone. He was weakened from years of battery by the sea currents; the runes delicately carved into his stone body were worn completely smooth on one side and his crystal eyes were dull and mossy. The Maiden of the North Wind could hardly recognize the old deity she had once shared her mountain territory with.

The Maiden of the North Wind was drawn to the great silver necklace upon the Master of Stone's neck. She had never seen anything more beautiful. Despite her usually practical attitude, she could not help to become a bit jealous. Her sister to the south adorned herself with ( )ight tropical ( )eezes and pearls and coral from the ocean; and her sister to the west decorated herself with fresh flowers from the prairies and forests. Why shouldn't she also have beautiful decorations, and why should they not come from the mountains she called home - mountains filled with silver ore?

The Maiden of the North Wind begged the Master of Stone for the necklace. “We only shared the mountain for a few hundred years before you were sent away,” she explained, for she was a young deity, “but we are still connected by those mountains. Surely you will find it in your heart to trust me with such a beautiful necklace, to take it back to the mountains were it can represent their glory.” But the Master of Stone weakly shook his head. “Maid, I am weak from many years of banishment. If you take this trinket, I do not have the strength in me to make a new one. It is all I have left to show I was a true master. I will not give it up.”

The Maiden of the North Wind considered this, and as she did she touched upon the pearls of air around her neck. “I propose a trade then. I will offer you my necklace, the sign of my mastery, in exchange for yours.” The Master of Stone thought for a whole day and a whole night before it agreed and made the exchange.

As soon as the necklace of air was placed around his neck, the Master of Stone felt rejuvenated. The air pushed back the water that had been eroding him, and filled him with new energy. The Maiden of the North Wind was happier than ever with her new jewelery, which, while its weight may have held down the other Maids of Wind, sat upon her neck as a symbol of her strength.

The Maiden of the North Wind fled from the ocean and was about to return home when she was spotted by the Maiden of the South Wind, who was ( )inging rain to the coast. She stopped a moment to greet her sister when she noticed the new silver necklace she wore. When she learned that the Maiden of the North Wind had traded away their mother's gift, she was furious. The Maiden of the South Wind's temper exploded like never before. She never liked the Master of Stone to begin with, her ( )eezes ( )oke upon his cliffs and mountains – to hear that he now held their mother's precious magic infuriated her.

She threw her winds and rains around in a fury. Her storms raged against the coastal settlements the humans had created. The floating sea-villages of the shy merfolk were torn to shreds, left to wash up on the rocky beaches. It was a disaster unlike any seen before by creature or deity. The destruction shook the very core of the planet, and gravity compelled the Maiden of the South Wind to stop and attempted to drain her mastery. But even so she struggled and raged until the Maiden of the West Wind, whose relaxing ( )eezes were difficult to resist, swept in to calm her down. After comforting her sister and stopping her rage, the Maiden of the West Wind looked upon the damage. The Maiden of the South Wind wept when she realized what she had done, but the Maiden of the West Wind told her not to cry, for the coast was flooded enough. She sent the Maiden of South Wind to find the Master of Waves and to help him restore the balance of the ocean, and set off herself to restore the coast.

The Maids of the West and North Winds flew east to their other sister, who was shifting the sands in the vast desert. The Maiden of the East Wind complimented her older sister on the silver necklace, which shimmered in their mother's light. When the Maiden of the North Wind explained how she had received the necklace, and what the Maiden of the South Wind had done, she was devastated. The Maiden of the West Wind begged her to ( )ing her desert winds to dry the coast, and she agreed, for she enjoyed the humans and their creations.

After the Maiden of the East Wind helped to dry the coast, she asked her oldest sister to tell her more about the Master of Stone, for she had never met him. When the Maiden of the North Wind explained that he had been banished for helping the humans, the Maiden of the East Wind felt sympathy for him. “The sands in the desert change every day, uncovering new things and burying others. This world is meant to change. If these creatures will change the world, why should we not help them, for they are a part of it as much as we are? And if they upset the balance, then we must simply work harder to restore it.”

The Maiden of the East Wind dove down into the depths where her sister told her she could find the Master of Stone. When she found him, he was recarving the runes into his body, and his eyes were shining crystal again. The Maiden of the East Wind told him she would ( )ing him to the surface to rule once more and give his protection to the civilizations. However, her winds were not strong enough to lift his stone body. So she took the necklace of air pearls from around her own neck and ( )oke it in her hands. From the necklace a swarm of bubbles burst forth and swept up the Master of Stone. He rose from the depths, riding upon the foam.

When he arrived back on land, the people rejoiced and cele( )ated his return. He, too, was happy to see the people. He thanked the Maiden of the East Wind for selflessly giving up her prized possession and asking nothing from him in return. Gazing upon her beauty with his crystal eyes, he felt an attachment stronger even than the force of gravity, and he confessed his feelings to her.

The Master of Stone built a palace on an eastern mountain and invited her to live with him there. He made her a stunning silver necklace to replace the air pearls she lost, and adorned it with shining red rubies, blessed by the Mistress of Fire.

So happiest of all was the Maiden of the East Wind, because she had the love of the handsome Stone Master, and because she knew her sisters were at peace, and because for the first time ever, the people of the far world praised her in the shrines, thanking her for her drying winds that cleared the storms and for ( )inging the Master of Stone back to them.