by RG Long
Felicia kept her eyes open long enough to see white magic pouring out of the spear Holve was wielding. It formed like tendrils in the air and then settled down on the wings of the dragon like a tapestry. Puffs of smoke left its nostrils as it began to breathe heavily.
Felicia had never been healed by magic before, but she had heard it was a painful experience. Like cutting off a limb that has been infected for the sake of saving the rest of the body.
The dragon’s teeth showed as the white magic around its wing grew in brightness and width. He snarled once and even chopped down his large jaws as the light became too bright for Felicia to look at it any longer.
She shut her eyes against the heat and the magic. Even with her eyelids closed shut, she could feel the magic billowing around her and see the brightness threatening to engulf her even though she lay several paces away from the dragon. With one final rush like a wind, she felt it all dissipate and go away.
After a few breaths, she opened up her eyes to see the trees above her waving in the breeze and Holve standing over the dragon breathing heavily.
Firag was now breathing out streams of smoke into the air and gently growling. Or maybe it was purring. Felicia didn’t know if dragons could make such a sound.
Firag got to its feet and cautiously opened up its wings. It looked like it was testing them out for a moment before it gave them two large flaps and jumped into the air again.
“Ah! It feels better than it did before those blasted airship riders burned me! Ha ha!”
He leapt into the air, on to a tree and then from there it flew into the sky. Felecia watched the stars in the night sky be blotted out as the dragon rose to fly circles around the island.
“Not even a thank you,” Holve said as he returned to the fire he had made for them. He settled himself down with a groan and reached into a pile that was beside him.
“I don’t suppose you’d be interested in eating?”
Now that he mentioned it, Felicia felt like there was a hollow in her stomach that was in desperate need of filling up.
“Yes please,” she said. “Whatever you’ve got wrangled up.”
“Some wild game,” Holve said. “Don’t ask what it is. I’m not sure. It’s tough, but it’ll feed you. I’ve been living off these little creatures the last two days.”
Felicia didn’t think about what it was she was putting into her mouth, and she didn’t care. Thirst and hunger had overtaken her in the last few moments. She took another strip of meat that Holve offered her and a drink from a broken piece of hollowed out wood. There must be water somewhere close by that wasn’t the sea, because it was cool and refreshing. It was nice to eat among friends.
That’s when it hit her. Holve was her friend. He had known her for most of her life. They had sailed together, fought together, planned together and sought to right the wrongs of hatred and injustice together. As friends.
What had Holve said? It was wise not to reveal oneself to his enemies?
Felicia was one of his oldest friends, as far as she could tell.
She took another bite of the meat but this time, chewed it a little more slowly.
If she had never known Holve Bravestead to be capable of magic, what did that make her?
28: Threats
Blume shook as the airship approached the Gift of Laurels. She wasn’t sure why the place discouraged her so greatly. Then again, she remembered all the running for their lives and magical beasts who tried to kill them.
Their experience, even though it was short, was not good. She hated to think that she was returning to the Court after only a few short weeks in Rerial. She had felt like she had found a respite. A place to rest and recover.
Even, perhaps, a place to learn and grow. But she had been denied her chance when they were made to retreat from the library without the book of runes.
Still her thoughts turned to that book.
What would she be able to learn if she can look into its pages? Would she find more answers? Perhaps about the demons who had been following them wherever they went?
The only one who had ever been able to decipher any of the runes in Jurgon’s book have been Holve. Even he had been stumped by most of them, saying that it was a language he had not seen in many, many years and was unable to decipher all of it.
Blume swore that the runes she saw in Jurgens book matched the runes on the cover of the one in the library.
With just a page of that book, they had been able to find the Everring tree. Whatever secrets would the rest of the book reveal to them? There are so many drawings and markings that Blume felt lost at times flipping through its contents.
What magical mysteries could she unlock if she could only see that book of runes?
It was these thoughts that kept her mind off of going back to the Court of Three. She wanted to find out what secrets were in Jurgon’s book. She definitely wanted to keep that one out of Dangler’s reach. Also, she wanted to have that book that Headmistress Cactus now kept in her own position.
The wind swept her hair she saw the Gift of Laurels approaching ahead of them. What made her gasp, however, was not the sight of the ancient temple they had almost destroyed on their way into Rerial. It was that so much of the Gift of Laurels was surrounded by enemy forces.
No less than a thousand-armed soldiers of the Court of Three greeted them as they flew down low to the temple. Blume could hear Lord Evan shouting orders from the top of the ship.
“Do not land far away!” he shouted “I will not be separated from my king! Put it right next to the temple and armies be damned! Ready the crossbows on the stern and be prepared to shoot at a moment’s notice! If they’re going to fight us then I want them to earn every single kill!”
Blume tensed at this last exclamation. Did Lord Evan really think there would be cause to kill?
She had been under the impression that this was supposed to be a simple meeting between two powers to recommit to peace. One of them would be returning a captive kept in good faith.
With the armies gathered outside, Blume felt like this was more of a negotiation on how to begin a war than to keep peace.
“Where are men from the fortress? Lord SkySword or whatever his name was!” Lord Evan was shouting. “Signal them immediately. Tell them we need them here and they should have informed us of this army!”
“You will do no such thing,” King Belfast said.
Blume looked around and saw that the king had stepped onto the deck. She saw his penetrating gaze stare out over the sandy landscape. She knew he was counting soldiers, thinking in his mind about strategies and wars. About assassination attempts.
“I will not start a war,” he said. “I will give my last breath trying to prevent one if necessary.”
“But your majesty,” Lord Evan said. “Surely you can’t mean that you’re going to sacrifice yourself? Send me instead! There’s no reason to give into this madness! The Court of Three has...”
“The Court of Three will answer for itself,” King Belfast said.
“I said that I would speak to Commander Sefen. I intend to do just that. You will be by my side. Instruct your pilot that if we are killed, he is to return as quickly as he can back to Rerial and prepare for war. If and only if, however, we meet our defeat here.
“He’ll never make it back,” Lord Evan replied grimly. “They’ll send those wretched birds after him and I know we did not prepare enough crossbow bolts to fend them off, nor did we bring enough speakers to repel such an attack.”
“Then inform the fort. Perhaps they have enough to send scouts back to Rerial in time. If we do not come back alive, someone will need to inform the other nations of the aggression that the Court showed here today and that they were the ones who instigated such a conflict.”
Blume didn’t like the sound of King Belfast’s voice. It was like he had already given up the fight before they had gotten to it. She wouldn’t let that stand. She was a capable speaker. She would defend this king.
/> She had done so for others who had done far less for her.
“Let me come down with you,” she said. Even though she didn’t mean to, she ignited the magic in her hands that glowed with a colorful green energy.
King Belfast came to the railing and looked down at Blume as the ship came to rest next to the Gift of Laurels. He smiled at her.
“I’ve seen that look in many of my own speakers’ eyes before,” he said. “I’ll not have you throw your life away for my sake.”
“I’d like to see them try to take my life,” Blume said. “Or yours.”
Jurrin chuckled next to her.
“You haven’t seen Miss Blume worked up yet,” he said. “I haven’t met a speaker she couldn’t match. Miss Cactus back in Rerial is still around because Miss Blume didn’t want to hurt her. These ones, however...”
He pointed over his shoulder to the army that had gathered just outside the Gift of Laurels.
“I wouldn’t put my money on anyone else.”
Blume was grateful for his words; thought she wasn’t sure if they would convince the king to let her come down with him. After all, this was supposed to be a small formality, not a grand opening battle.
“Stay behind me, then,” King Belfast said. “The both of you. I don’t want you to put yourselves in front of me or shield me. But if you are so determined to come, I will not deny you the opportunity to prove your mettle. Remember, we do not want war or violence. All I have spent my life doing is fighting for peace. Don’t throw that away today.”
Blume nodded, as did Jurrin.
“If it pleases your majesty,” Dangler said from the door of the deck. “I’ll stay on board and inspect the ship to ensure a safe departure.”
Blume snorted in his direction. She looked up at the king and was sure she saw a faint grin reach his eyes.
“A most excellent suggestion, Speaker Dangler,” he said. “We may need to leave at a moment’s notice. Have your student, Jeremy assist you.”
“Yes, your majesty,” Dangler said quickly before disappearing again behind the door.
“Some speakers,” King Belfast said as they walked over to where the platform had been lowered to the ground. “Are all bark and no bite.”
Blume chuckled as she followed the king. She liked him.
As she stepped off the royal airship, Blume saw that even though the armies of the Court of Three were standing just outside the Gift of Laurels, there were only a few who were underneath the temple’s roof and standing by the fire within it.
One of them she recognized.
“Galp!” she said, waving as she saw the small Skrilx standing next to Commander Sefen. She was sad to see that he didn’t return her enthusiastic wave. Instead he looked in her direction, as it coming out of some type of daze.
It hit her that Galp’s time in the Court of Three had very likely been less enjoyable and their time in Rerial.
“I have come to discuss terms as well as to reunite this prisoner with his friends,” King Belfast said as he approached the fire and the delegation from the Court.
General Sefen nodded as he motioned for Galp. He slowly stepped forward and joined them on their side of the fire. He nodded at Blume before standing next to her and the rest of the group. He was the definition of somber and unattached.
“Are you alright Mister Galp?” Jurrin asked softly.
The Skrilx did not answer. This worried Blume as she looked him up and down. He seemed alright; save for the glassy way he was looking straight ahead.
King Belfast cleared his throat.
“We are here to negotiate peace,” he said. “It would seem to some that the Court is here to begin a war. Why have you brought so many troops?”
Commander Sefen look down his rather long nose at King Belfast.
“I was wondering why you have brought so few men yourself.”
He looked behind them all as if he expecting to see more airships flying out of the sky and towards them at the moment.
“I’ve been receiving reports of airship attacks on Taystone as well as more reports of other grievances against Greed and Vanity as well. I thought this meeting to be a little more than declaration of war from Rerial.”
Blume looked up at King Belfast. He looked shocked. He turned the Lord Evan who shook his head vigorously.
“We have sent out no we are ships to Taystone to attack them or to fly over the Court. That was the agreement we had made with you.”
“And yet airships fly over our borders,” came a voice from behind Commander Sefen.
Blume turned to see a man walking up to their group. She was surprised to see him look even more severe than Commander Sefen. He was not an elf, but he was still a lanky man. He wore golden robes and a white wig.
“You instigate attacks on our nation and then claim ignorance to them,” he said. “Such foolishness will not stand.”
King Belfast inclined his head.
“High Judge Aerert. I was wondering how long you would send Commander Sefen to speak for you.”
Commander Sefen sniffed at this. As far as Blume could tell, the high judge did not seem to be affected by the comment. He ignored it and continued to speak as if Belfast had said nothing.
“You claim that you do not want war,” he said. “And yet the only nation with airships says that the flying vessels who attack us and other countries do not belong to him. How strange.”
Lord Evan stepped forward.
“It’s come to our attention recently that several of our earlier models we thought had been destroyed were actually stolen. Perhaps we are not the only nation with airships. Perhaps there are others at fault.
“A convenient discovery,” the high judge replied.
“He speaks truly,” King Belfast said defiantly.
“That will be determined at this meeting,” the high judge replied.
Blume saw the banners of the Court and Rerial float in the wind as a breeze picked up around them. The smell of men in armor surrounded her.
“If by the end of our meeting, I am not satisfied,” the high judge said as he stepped closer to the ceremonial that was lit in the middle of the Gift of Laurels. Our two nations will be at war once again.”
29: What Is Known
Silverwolf grumbled as she walked along behind the Skrilx who had apprehended her. She really did not like being snuck upon by these creatures. She fancied herself an artist when it came to being undetected.
These Skrilx, however, could move without turning a blade of grass.
The path they walked on was not discernible from the rest of the forest floor. She could hardly see tracks on the ground except for where the trees did not grow. She wanted to think that she could have found this path on her own and made her way to the encampment without their guidance, but someone who was an expert in their field new skill when she saw it.
These creatures did not speak to one another as they moved through the forest. Every now and then they would put up their hands in a signal to communicate instead. Though she tried to study it, so far, she had not yet discerned the signals. She had taught Blume a series of these of her own invention once, but the different hand of a Skrilx made it very hard to discern between signs.
There was only one thing left to do.
“Is this where your kind of came from?” She asked.
The silence has been so complete around them that the Skrilx in front of her bristled the hair on his back at the sound of her voice.
“Are your kind always so loud?” he said with a gravely.
“Surely you’ve seen humans before?” Silverwolf asked.
The brown furred cat in front of her shook his head and continued forward.
“The wars were before my time. The only home I’ve ever known is this island exile.”
“What’s with you all in this exile business?” Silverwolf asked again. “The other cats we met to the north were exiled to another island. Did you kick them out or did they kick you out?”
“Silence,” a gray haired Skrilx at the front of the group said without turning to face them.
Silverwolf shrugged her shoulders. If there was nothing else she could do, she would at least try to annoy her captors. It brought her a subtle satisfaction.
The Skrilx all began to walk with more purpose and less stealth as they went deeper into the jungle forest. Silverwolf decided that she had long ago given up trying to keep track of where they were. They had taken so many twists and turns that she was unable to gauge which way was north in such dense foliage. The suns were lost to her above the leaves.
Even the moss around the base of the trees seem to grow in all different directions, not helping her determine where she was.
It wasn’t long before she saw familiar looking structures poking out from the trees. The same kind of houses that the other Skrilx had lived in were dotting the trees now. The only difference was the amount of them.
While there had been only a handful at the previous island, these dwellings seem to go on for as long as she could see. They were beginning to pass other Skrilx who were not a part of this scouting party. These cats were going about normal business it seemed: tending crops and animals, making things out of skins and tree leaves, weaving rugs and clothes from fibers of the forest. Each time they came upon a new group of Skrilx, they stopped what they were doing long enough to stare at Silverwolf as she passed. She stared right back at them. She had thought that the last gathering of Skrilx had been plenty. There were hundreds here that she could see. Possibly more beyond what was immediately within her vision.
She had been thinking that only a handful of the creatures remained. She was wrong. They were thriving here and multiplying. Every so often, she passed a group who were training as soldiers. They swung swords that resembled Ealrin’s blade.
With a smirk, she wondered if any of them could talk as Ealrin’s did.
Just as on the island they crash landed on before, they came to a central meeting place. Unlike that island, this central area was huge. It would take several minutes to traverse from one side of it to the other. Many of the Skrilx were meeting in groups around the edges. Though what appeared to be the most important place was in the middle.