The Fall of the Elves

by J. J. Thompson

“I will Gate us directly to the keeper's grove near Imrathstal,” the woman told them. “It is barely past noon there, so we won't be waking Fiad from a sound sleep.”

  “I doubt that he is sleeping very soundly these days anyway,” Malfiess said dryly.

  Diane chuckled and raised her right hand. For the first time, the elves noticed a silver ring on her middle finger. A blue stone, perhaps a sapphire, glittered on the ring and as Diane invoked her magic, it flashed with a blinding light.

  There was a moment of darkness and disorientation and then the group found themselves standing several yards away from a small house that was set in the middle of a meadow.

  “And we are here,” Diane told the elves. “Fortunately I observed this area before, using a Magic Mirror spell. I was curious about the portals and their keepers and Imrathstal was one of the locations I studied. I never dreamed that I would be Gating here. Interesting coincidence.”

  “I don't believe in coincidences,” Ethmira said. “Perhaps there are forces that are trying to aid us in subtle ways.”

  “Perhaps. I prefer depending on my own skills though, rather than hope for divine intervention,” Diane said with a smile.

  “Oh, how I wish I could Gate like that,” Chase said with a sigh as she looked around the clearing.

  Ethmira chuckled at her.

  “I think we all do. But I am sure that the magic is more difficult to use than it appears to be. Diane has had many years to hone her skills and so she makes it look easy.”

  “And many failures as well,” Diane assured Chase. “I've come close to death several times, and I've been injured severely as well, as I learned to harness the wild ley energies. Simon told me that it was much easier to shape and channel the normal magical energy that he uses than it has been for me. But on the other hand, the power of the ley is much wilder and more intense. Maybe that's because I am the only human who can tap into it. I really don't know.”

  She looked over at the small house. There was no sound or movement to indicate that anyone was home and Diane turned to speak with Ethmira.

  “Would you do the honors?” she asked her with a wave at the house. “Fiad knows you, after all. I wouldn't want to spook him. I think that if he sees you first, before he sees a strange human, he might be more approachable.”

  “I doubt that,” Ethmira replied wryly. “Fiad's social skills are, shall we say, limited at best. Please don't be offended if he seems rather...harsh when you meet him.”

  “I am not easily offended,” Diane assured her. “Remember, I have an entire lifetime of experience to draw on. You build up a rather thick skin in that amount of time. I'll be fine.”

  “Then let's do this.”

  Ethmira led the group toward the house and knocked sharply on the door. They waited a moment for a response before Ethmira rolled her eyes.

  “Again?” she muttered. “The last time we were here, he took a long time to answer his door as well. Is he simply stubborn? Or is he deaf? Hmm, that's something that hadn't occurred to me.”

  “I am most certainly not deaf, Commander!”

  The offended voice came from behind them and all of the group turned at once to see the keeper standing several feet away. Fiad was glaring at all of them, his pale skin and hair even more colorless in the bright sunshine. The elf was wearing a mousy brown robe and his long wispy hair looked rather unkempt and wild. He had dark shadows under his eyes and appeared to be very tired.

  “Ah, Fiad,” Ethmira exclaimed. “I apologize. I didn't realize that you were outside.”

  “Obviously,” the keeper said with a disdainful sniff. “I've been out here since the dawn, trying to coax the ley lines into working again.”

  “Any luck?”

  “None.”

  Fiad sighed and walked toward the house. The group moved aside and he opened the front door. Apparently he hadn't even noticed Diane's presence and as he turned to speak with them, the keeper grabbed the door frame and gasped as he saw her.

  “Who is this?” he asked weakly. “A human? Here, on Trillfarness? How has this happened?”

  “Keeper Fiad, may I introduce Diane Hastings?” Ethmira said politely. “As you have noticed, Diane is a human. Diane, this is Keeper Fiad.”

  “I am very pleased to meet you, Keeper,” Diane told the elf with a smile. “I have heard many amazing things about you and your brethren and I was eager to meet you in person.”

  Fiad seemed to be struggling to reply. Finally he drew himself up and bowed slightly to her.

  “I am honored, Diane Hastings,” he said stiffly. “I have never met a human before and I would like to know how you came to be here. Please, all of you, come in and make yourselves comfortable.”

  He stepped inside the house and gestured for the group to enter. Then he closed the door and walked across the room to take the only seat that was there. He looked exhausted even in the dim light.

  “Forgive me for not being a better host,” he told them. “I never have visitors and so I've never had the need to have more chairs in my home.”

  “That's fine, Fiad,” Malfiess told him. “We don't mind standing for now. Diane wanted to meet with you and ask you a few questions, but I imagine that it shouldn't take too long.”

  “You wanted to meet me?” Fiad asked Diane with surprise. “Now why would you want to do that? I am a simple keeper, no different than any of my kind.” He paused a moment before adding bitterly, “And now I am not even that. The ley has failed me. It has failed us all and now the world is defenseless. Evil may even now be moving against us and we will never even know until it strikes.”

  “Maybe. Maybe not,” Ethmira said. “That is part of the reason that we are here.”

  Fiad frowned at her.

  “What do you mean?” he asked irritably. “I cannot reach the ley lines. I cannot speak to my brothers and sisters who are scattered around the planet. We are blind and deaf to each other now. I am alone and isolated and of no use to anyone.”

  “You may be of use to me, Keeper,” Diane told him with a gentle smile. “I need information that you might have. And if I learn enough about why the ley lines have been disrupted, perhaps I can do something to repair them.”

  “A human?” Fiad said disdainfully. “No offense to you, young woman, but humans do not use ley energy. Nor do most elves. It takes a certain talent and many years of training to...”

  Diane's smile widened as she raised her right hand. A sudden bright flash illuminated the small room and a ball of blue energy appeared above her palm, sparking and snapping loudly.

  Fiad gaped at the fiery ball and then he pushed himself to his feet and took a step forward.

  “Ley energy!” he exclaimed. “Harnessed and controlled by a human? How is this possible?”

  “I am different from other mages, Keeper Fiad,” Diane told him with a shrug. “Unlike normal magic-users, I do not use the ordinary magical energy that is available all around us. I tap into the planet's raw energy itself. You elves call it the ley, which is as good a name as any, I suppose.”

  “But the power is cut off from us,” Fiad objected, sounding almost angry. “Even if what you say is true, you should not be able to reach it now.”

  “Cut off from you, Keeper. Not from me. Which is fortunate because my continued connection to it will, hopefully, help us track down the disruption at its source and correct it, if possible.”

  Fiad took a deep breath and made a visible effort to calm himself. He slowly reached out toward the ball of energy as if he couldn't control himself.

  “That would be very unwise,” Diane warned him. “This ley energy is not in the form that you are used to, Keeper. It is raw and shaped by my will alone and I would not want to see you harmed by it.”

  The keeper pulled back his hand with a jerk and then winced as the globe of power vanished with a loud pop. He stared at Diane and the others were surprised to see tears standing in his eyes.

  “What can I do to help you?” he asked Diane
plaintively. “You really can use ley energy, that much is obvious. It may be hard for me to accept, but it means that you may be my people's only hope. If there is anything that I can do to assist you, you need only ask.”

  Chapter 12

  “Thank you, sir,” Diane told Fiad with a grateful smile. “I can understand your initial doubt. It is only natural for you to feel that way about me. Let us also hope that our foes will not believe that a human can use the ley either. That would make my work a little easier.”

  Fiad sat down again as if he was suddenly too weary to stand. He smiled weakly up at Diane.

  “That is a very good point, Lady. Whoever they are, the enemy would hardly suspect that a human magic-user would be able to touch the ley lines. In fact, I doubt that they even know that you are on Trillfarness at this time. You must try to keep it that way.”

  Malfiess and the rangers had silently watched the interaction between Fiad and Diane. Now that the keeper had apparently accepted the mage's abilities, the councilor cleared his throat and stepped forward.

  “I have been thinking about our first step,” he told the group. “I certainly don't know much about magic and ley energy, but I do know a thing or two about tactics and strategies. And before we can really begin, we must have a plan. We can't just start Gating all around the planet hoping to track down our enemies.”

  “Quite right,” Ethmira agreed. “We must be systematic about this. Keeper Fiad, you know the ley lines better than any of us, including Diane. Do you have any suggestions?”

  Fiad nodded thoughtfully.

  “Perhaps. Each portal location was established where a nexus of ley lines converge just below the surface of the planet. Lady Diane, can you sense that intersection below us?”

  Diane's eyes became unfocused and she frowned as she reached out with her powers.

  “Yes I can, but their power is very faint now. Why that has happened is a mystery to me, but the lines are still there, barely pulsing with energy.”

  “That is good to know,” the keeper said with relief. “It means that the reason I cannot use the ley energy is because it is too weak. I was afraid that something had affected my ability to manipulate the power itself.”

  He stood up again and crossed the room to a bookcase. He searched through a pile of rolled-up scrolls for a moment and finally pulled a long roll of parchment out of the stack and turned back to look at the others.

  “This is a map of Trillfarness,” he told them as he offered the scroll to Diane. “We keepers are constantly updating it to show the current mesh of ley lines across the planet. They have always altered over time, subtly flexing and shifting as the world itself changes.”

  Diane stared in amazement at the map as Ethmira, Malfiess and Chase looked over her shoulders.

  “This is wonderful,” she exclaimed with delight. “I had no idea that such a map existed. Look at how dense the channels of ley energy are. They are even more complex than the lines on Earth. Such power. It's not surprising that the enemy moved to cut off that power from the keepers and the scryers. It is a basic tactic: divide and conquer. Block your opponent's ability to communicate and travel and you have weakened them considerably.”

  “I agree,” Malfiess said as he scanned the map. “Even I did not know how extensive the ley lines were. Amazing.”

  “Look here,” Fiad told them as he tapped a point on the map. “Do you see the convergence of the lines at this spot? That is Othallis, a small town that sits on the equator on the far side of the planet. More ley lines intersect at that point than anywhere else on Trillfarness. If an enemy wanted to disrupt them in some way, that would probably be the best place to start.”

  Dozens of lines crisscrossed at the spot on the map that Fiad was pointing at. Ethmira stared at it narrowly and then glanced at Fiad.

  “Who is the keeper in Othallis?” she asked him. “I visited there once, long ago, but I cannot recall.”

  “Kallistra. She is one of our most senior keepers. If my kind did have a leader, Kallistra would be it. Her ability to manipulate the ley lines is legendary. When the power became unstable, I attempted to reach her to ask for her aid, but it was too late. I was cut off and received no response.”

  “Was it because you were cut off or was it because something happened to her?” Chase asked him.

  Fiad looked at her in horror.

  “That...thought hadn't occurred to me,” he whispered. “Surely not. Who would want to harm someone like Kallistra?”

  “The dark gods, of course,” Ethmira told him. “They want us all dead, Fiad. Surely you must understand that by now?”

  “I do, but...”

  He ran his long fingers through his fine white hair and then tucked it behind his small, pointed ears. He locked eyes with Diane as he tapped the map.

  “Keep this,” he told her. “And go to Othallis. Please. If she is still...alive, Kallistra may have the answers you seek. And if she is not, well then, you will also have some answers, won't you?”

  Diane nodded, her expression touched with compassion.

  “We will go there,” she assured him. “Thank you, Keeper Fiad, for your aid. I hope that Kallistra is well.”

  “As do I. And please, come back when you can and tell me what happened, won't you? Until the ley lines are restored, I am simply a lonely old elf waiting for the hammer of fate to fall upon him.”

  Ethmira smiled her understanding and gently touched the keeper's arm.

  “We will do what we can to change that, Fiad,” she told him. “Stay strong, Keeper. We will see you again very soon, I'm sure.”

  “I hope that is true,” Fiad replied. “Good luck, Lady Diane. And good fortune to all of you. Save us if you can.”

  “We'll try.”

  “Farewell, Fiad,” Malfiess said, bowing slightly to the keeper.

  “Farewell.”

  Back out in the bright sunlight, the group walked away from the keeper's house. They stopped just before they reached the edge of the forest and Diane unrolled the map that Fiad had given them.

  “I can't just Gate to a point on a map,” she told the elves. “There is a risk that we could materialize inside of a solid object or below the ground. I will shield us before we leave, of course, but I'd rather not take any more chances than I need to.”

  “Please take your time,” Malfiess told her nervously. “I'd rather arrive in Othallis safely, thank you.”

  Diane chuckled and sat down on the grass with a sigh.

  “Ah, that's nice,” she said as the others removed their packs and sat down as well. “I'm not used to standing for long periods. Getting soft, I suppose.”

  “Simon was always rather delicate,” Ethmira told her with a smile. “He said that magic-users spend too much time studying and not enough time out of doors. Choosing mind over matter, I believe that was the expression he used.”

  “That sounds like him,” Diane said, laughing lightly. “And he does have a point. I spend most of my days researching, working on my abilities and creating new spells. Unfortunately we have very few ancient books of knowledge to learn from, when magic was commonplace. Simon was able to dig up a few tomes, but they are mostly incomplete. So we've all had to discover our own talents as best we can.”

  Diane put the map down on the grass, flattening it out. She stared at the point on the parchment marked 'Othallis' and then began moving her hands together in graceful gestures.

  “One thing that I have learned is how to cast a Magic Mirror spell without needing to use an actual mirror,” she said as she worked. “That saves me the trouble of searching for one when I need to use the spell. A handy shortcut.”

  The elves watched in fascination as Diane conjured up another ball of blue energy. This one floated from her fingertips to hang in the air in front of her about a foot off of the ground. It grew quickly until it was about three feet in circumference and then it began to swirl and spin. It crackled and shook as it spun faster and faster and Malfiess and the others look
ed at each other nervously as the ley magic seemed to become wilder and more uncontrollable.

  “Don't worry, it's safe enough,” Diane assured them as she kept her focus on the sphere. “Ley energy is much more dangerous and aggressive than ordinary magic, but once you learn to control it, its vast power is quite malleable. And almost limitless.”

  “If you say so,” Chase said tensely as she pushed herself back a few feet over the grass. “It looks...vicious, if that makes sense.”

  Diane glanced at her with an amused smile.

  “It makes perfect sense,” she replied. “I never take ley energy for granted. I am mindful that it can easily destroy those who use it if they are not careful. The strain on the keepers whenever they tap into the ley lines is what drains the color from their eyes and hair.”

  “You seem untouched by that effect though,” Malfiess observed.

  “I am a natural conduit, apparently,” Diane said with a shrug. “As I said before, I'm an aberration, just as Simon is. My talents are unique among my people. But the ley threatens me as much as it does the keepers. I just understand it better.”

  With a final loud snap that startled the elves, the ball of energy stabilized, becoming smooth and reflective like a large globe of blue glass.

  “That is remarkable,” Ethmira said softly. “One moment angry and dangerous and the next placid and calm.”

  Diane looked down at the map in front of her and made a gesture. The reflective surface of the large ball began to flicker as scenes of forests, lakes and grasslands flashed across it.

  “I feel like a bird flying high over the world,” Chase said in wonder. “But the view is moving so fast that I cannot focus on any details.”

  “The magic is following my direction to show us the area around Othallis,” Diane told her as she watched the globe. “But it takes a moment to cross an entire planet.”

  “Fascinating,” Malfiess said, his eyes glued to the orb.

  He was sitting with his legs crossed on the grass and he slowly drew them up and rest his elbows on his knees as he stared at the flashing surface of the magic globe.