“Ah, that's better,” the stranger exclaimed cheerfully. “It was so cramped down there. It's good to smell fresh air again.”
The group stared at the newcomer in surprise. He appeared to be a normal elf. He was wearing leathers very similar to the clothing that Ethmira and Diane wore. His hair was golden in color and rippled down over his shoulders. His pointed ears were decorated with many silver hoops and his face was almost pretty, with perfect features and large amber eyes that gazed on the group sardonically.
“So, here you all are,” the stranger said. His voice was very pleasant, but there was an edge to it that sounded strangely feral.
“The heroes of Trillfarness,” he continued cheerfully. “You have saved the elven race, it seems, from my best efforts to destroy it. How disappointing.”
Ethmira growled under her breath as she aimed her bow at the elf.
He grinned widely at her.
“What's wrong, oh great ranger? Are you upset that my masters and I tried to exterminate your sad little species? Come now, Ethmira, you know as well as I do that the elves have had their day. So have the humans, no matter how hard you may try to defend them, Diane.”
The mage raised an eyebrow as she stared at the stranger and he chuckled in amusement.
“Oh yes, I know who you are. I know all of you.”
He pointed at Simon, who stood immobile and silent.
“Except for that one,” the stranger said. He tilted his head to one side as he stared at the mage. “You are a mystery to me. Who are you? I can see that you are powerful. That much is obvious. And you are using magic that has not been invoked since the elves were young. How have you rediscovered such spells, hmm? And just in time to save your people. Most odd.”
He doesn't know that Simon is a human, Chase thought excitedly. He thinks that he's an elf! No wonder Simon has kept his face hidden. I hope that he can continue to hide his identity from whoever this person is.
“Who are you?” Diane asked the stranger. “And by what right do you attack this world and its people?”
“Who am I?” the stranger replied mockingly. “Oh, how rude of me. Allow me to introduce myself. My name, for what it is worth, is Aldric. Well, that is the name I use when speaking with mortals. How do you do?”
He bowed elaborately, his mane of hair rippling like liquid gold and whipping around his face as he did so.
“Speaking with mortals?” Malfiess repeated. “What do you mean?”
Aldric sighed and shook his head, his expression pitying as he stared at the councilor.
“Why oh why have your people followed your so-called Council of Elders for so long? You would have been wiser to let a king like Lord Serris lead you. At least he had a grand vision, even if he was insane. You, Malfiess, and the other members of the Council allowed your people to diminish and weaken over the centuries. Your squabbles and petty scheming failed the elves. And your obvious lack of vision is proof of that.”
“You aren't an elf, that much is obvious,” Diane spoke up as Malfiess spluttered indignantly. “Which means that you aren't mortal. So what are you?”
The stranger smiled again and raised his arms. All around the edges of the town square the vines and tendrils writhed and grasped at the air, sending gobbets of sticky slime flying in all directions.
“I? I am but a lowly servant,” Aldric replied humbly as he dropped his arms. The tendrils became quiescent once again, barely twitching but still pulsating with unnatural life.
“My masters, the old gods as you mortals call them, sent me to Trillfarness quite some time ago. I was tasked with carefully planting the seeds of your destruction deep inside of this world. Like a loving gardener, I fed and watered them with exquisite poisons, giving them a hunger for life that was, in my humble opinion, perfectly balanced. And when they were mature and strong, I set them loose.”
He grinned at his horrified audience.
“Oh, come now. Why the long faces? Can you not see the lovely irony in all of this? The elves spent their time on Trillfarness protecting nature, nurturing the plants and animals that thrived here and forgetting their own history. 'Getting back to the land' is the human expression, I believe. If they had kept in touch with their distant past, they would have remembered that their skill in the use of magic could have protected the planet when my masters exerted their powers once more. This one,” he gestured at Simon, “seems to have rediscovered those skills. Too late, obviously, but you can see how powerful he is. But no, Ethmira. Instead of preparing for an inevitable future conflict, your people languished in their extreme arrogance, certain that the pathetic lords of Light had given them a safe haven. And now you see the results of such trust.”
He smiled at the twisted growths that surrounded the group.
“Your rescue of the remnants of the elven race was merely a setback. But that setback is actually an opportunity. What you have done is herd all of the mortal races into one place, one little planet that will soon fall to us.”
“Your own arrogance will be your undoing, Aldric,” Diane told him coldly. “You killed many innocents, that is true, but my people are holding out against the forces of evil and, with the elves back on Earth, they now have new allies. And you seem to be forgetting the dwarves. Their race is still strong. They have repelled the attacks upon them and crushed all corruption within their realm. Your victory is far from assured against the mortal races now. You have not herded all of us into a trap. What you have actually done is strengthen us. Well done.”
Her sarcastic tone seemed to irritate Aldric and his smile slipped from his perfect features to be replaced by a scowl.
“Have a care, little human,” he hissed at Diane. “Have a care. Do not rouse my ire. I have blocked your escape from Trillfarness because your defiance of my masters cannot go unpunished. I was eager to get this over with and begin planning our renewed assault on Earth. But if you make me angry, your deaths will be slow and exquisitely painful. I am not one who revels in agony, unlike some of my betters, but I am not averse to using it to teach you a lesson either.”
Ethmira laughed mockingly at him.
“You expose your true self with every word,” she told Aldric. “I know what you truly are. You are a demon. A twisted servant of corrupt beings. You call us arrogant? Your masters are the arrogant ones, monster. The mortal realms are not theirs to rule and they never will be. The lords of Light have the upper hand in their battle against evil and your so-called gods are in a panic. They know that this is their last chance to break through the veil keeping them trapped in the Void and escape their ultimate fate. My guess is that they used much of their limited power to slip you through a crack in that veil so that you could destroy my people. Well, you failed in that and you will also fail when you attack us on Earth. Your pretty face and eloquent speech hides a deep fear, demon, and we can all see it.”
Aldric's eyes widened and he gaped at the ranger. For a moment he seemed to be speechless, a choking fury preventing him from responding.
“You see?” Ethmira continued, her voice dripping with contempt. “The beast is caught out. It may look like an elf, but it is simply a tool, and not a very clever tool at that.”
“What are you doing?” Malfiess whispered incredulously. “You are provoking him!”
“Of course she is,” Diane murmured as she watched Aldric. “If we can get him to lose control, he may expose some weakness that we can exploit. Stay strong, Malfiess.”
The councilor swallowed nervously, but nodded his head.
“How dare you!” Aldric finally exclaimed, his voice thick with rage. “You call me a demon? Me?”
He glared at the mortals and then slowly began to grow taller. Aldric's features changed as he grew, flowing like wet mud as he morphed into something monstrous.
“I am the son of a god, fools!” the thing roared as it towered over the horrified onlookers. “I have existed since time immemorial, before any of your pathetic races even existed. You should be groveli
ng before me and instead you offer me insults? Oh, what fools you all are.”
No one answered him. They were all staring in horror at what the handsome elf had become.
Aldric was now a nightmarish combination of slimy flesh and rotting vegetation. He stood at least ten feet tall and his thick limbs were wrapped in thousands of tiny green tendrils that rippled and moved constantly. His face still bore faint traces of his former features, but his mouth was a gaping pit of blackness and from it dribbled thick green ropes of saliva. His nose was a misshapen hole, but it was his eyes that really horrified the group. They were now burning red and lidless, sunken in deep folds of flesh.
The creature glared directly at Ethmira as his body continued to twist and writhe.
“The son of a god?” she replied loudly with a mocking laugh. “You are a monster, Aldric. If this is what the offspring of one of the old gods looks like, they must truly be revolting and pathetic.”
Aldric responded by slamming his huge fists into the ground with a furious roar. Bits of flesh flew in all directions and the mortals staggered as the earth under their feet heaved and buckled.
“He has lost control,” Diane told the others as she watched the raging creature. “Now is the time to strike!”
“Wait,” Simon whispered. “He is not as angry as he's pretending to be. He's baiting us, trying to make us act precipitously.”
“Then what do we do?” Ethmira replied as she kept her eyes on Aldric.
“I am going to do something that might actually enrage him,” Simon told her. “When I do, if you see an opening, take your shot.”
“Understood.”
Ethmira glanced at Chase, who nodded her understanding and raised her bow, waiting for the right moment.
Simon grasped his staff in both hands and set in firmly on the ground in front of him. He murmured within his hood, a string of old elvish words that no one listening understood. His staff pulsed with silver light like his shield and, as he stopped chanting his spell, an explosion of power shot out from the base of his staff in all directions.
It knocked Aldric back several steps and then it engulfed the circle of thick vines and tendrils. All of the sticky forest suddenly burst into flames and a shrill screaming rose from the writhing, burning plants.
Aldric grabbed his head in both hands and screamed as well, as if the damage done to his corrupted growths was hurting him as well.
“Now,” Simon said as he held his staff firmly against the ground.
Ethmira and Chase let their arrows fly, the enchantment on the missiles leaving a trail of cobalt flames in the air as they streaked toward their target.
The arrows plunged into Aldric's large, rheumy eyes at almost the same instant. If the onlookers thought that he had screamed loudly before, they were stunned at the agonized cry that split the air as he was blinded.
“My eyes!” he cried. “My eyes!”
He fell to his knees, his heavy body shaking the ground as he collapsed.
Simon twisted his staff and the lines of power that were burning the unnatural growths around the town square drew back and then shot across the open space to engulf Aldric.
He screamed even louder, but remained on his knees as he gripped his head.
Diane raised her own staff and pointed at the monster. A beam of pure ley energy hit him and blue flames merged with silver as Aldric began to burn.
Thick black smoke was rolling across the town square from the unnatural forest of vines and more smoke rose from Aldric's body to merge with it.
But despite the magical attacks and the arrows that Ethmira and Chase were still firing into his misshapen form, the former elf was not beaten. As Malfiess watched in disgusted horror, Aldric plucked the arrows from his head and thick green liquid splattered from his eyes and dribbled down his face. He lurched to his feet and swayed like a drunkard. He swung around to face the group, his empty sockets staring blindly as if he knew exactly where they were.
“You have sealed your fates, worms!” he roared thickly as the magical fires continued to burn his monstrous body. “I cannot be slain by the likes of you. I am immortal! This body is merely a shell to house my essence. Even if you destroyed it utterly, I would simply return to the Void. But you? You are nothing! And when I tear you all limb from limb, I...”
“Ah, so that is what you are,” Callius said softly. “Simply a construct. Not even a real person. Now I see.”
He raised his slim arms and clenched his fists in front of his chest.
“Thank you,” he added, even thought there was no way that the raving creature could have heard him. “I wouldn't want to hurt a living being.”
The same burst of blue energy that engulfed the Mad King in his throne room shot out of the ground at Aldric's feet and froze him in mid-rant. Like a fly caught in amber, he was locked inside of the intense radiance, his drooling mouth agape as he floated off of the ground. The flames flickering across his body from Simon and Diane's spells blazed with new life and the demi-god, if that is what he was, flared for a moment like a giant ember and then dissolved into ashes. A distant wail of pain and fury followed his dissolution and then nothing could be heard but the sounds of the burning vines and tendrils that collapsed lifelessly all around the square.
Simon and Diane canceled their spells and turned to stare at the young elf in amazement.
“Well done,” Simon said as he pushed back his hood.
His face was shiny with sweat and his skin had a grayish tinge to it, but he was smiling.
“I had no idea that you were so powerful,” he continued as he mopped off his face on his sleeve.
“I am not, sir mage,” Callius replied wearily. “Sadly, I had to gather and channel all of the remaining pure ley energy at the center of Trillfarness to destroy that thing. I saw no other solution. But our world is dead now. Only corruption remains at its heart. Those dead vines around us must have been summoned by Aldric and they died with him. But all around the world, the infestation is almost complete. We will be overwhelmed very shortly if we remain here.”
Diane impatiently pushed her damp bangs off of her forehead and caught Simon's eye.
“He's right,” she told him. “I cannot feel any uncorrupted ley energy anywhere below us. I can siphon some energy from my connection with the Void, but not enough to be able to Gate anyone back to Earth.”
Simon nodded thoughtfully.
“I understand. I will send everyone to New Zealand momentarily. Before I do though, allow me to congratulate our elven friends for their efforts this day.”
He smiled at Ethmira and extended his hand to her. She grinned back and slipped her bow over her shoulder before clasping hands with him.
“It was good to watch your back again, my friend,” she said warmly. “Just like old times.”
“Yes, it was. And I doubt that it will be the last time. Our future looks bleak, Ethmira, and your people will need your help going forward. And I may as well.”
The ranger laughed lightly.
“I'll be ready,” she told him. “All you need to do is ask.”
Simon chuckled and looked at Chase.
“Once again you have stepped up and fought the good fight,” he said as they shook hands. “This is becoming a habit.”
Chase looked amused.
“I suppose so. But defending others is all I know how to do. It was part of my training. I look forward to continuing to do so when we get to Earth.”
“I know you will. Your people are lucky to have you.”
She smiled at the compliment and stepped back.
Simon turned to the councilor.
“Malfiess, you...”
“Did nothing,” the elf stated flatly. “All I could do in this fight was to stay out of everyone's way. I have no skills in war or in magic. I served no purpose whatsoever. I was useless.”
“You are wrong, my friend,” Diane exclaimed with a scowl. “Without your presence when we visited those settlements today, I would n
ot have convinced many of your people to come with me to safety. Your reputation as a leader, as a member of the Council, swayed a lot of them. Why would they have trusted some strange human with their lives, or the lives of their children? Believe me, they wouldn't have. So I don't want to hear about how useless you are, understand?”
Malfiess stepped back in surprise and then his lips curled reluctantly into a smile.
“Yes, Diane. I understand. And thank you.”
“Good,” the mage snapped. “And you're welcome,” she added with a grin. “Don't sell yourself short, Malfiess. Your people will need leaders now more than ever. They will need their Council of Elders to reassure themselves that their society will continue. That will be your role. I hope that you are up to it.”
The councilor stood up straighter and nodded.
“I am. You can be sure that I will do whatever I can for them.”
Simon had watched the exchange in silent amusement, and now offered his hand to Malfiess.
“I couldn't have put it better. Do what you do best, my friend, and lead. Your people will be the better for it.”
Malfiess bowed formally and moved back to stand next to Chase.
Finally Simon looked at Callius. The young elf had watched the others quietly, his hands clasped tightly in front of him. When the mage turned to him, he blushed.
“Are you all right?” Simon asked.
“Yes, sir mage. I am,” Callius assured him. “I grieve for my world and for the elves that we have lost, but I am hopeful that we can make a new beginning on Earth.”
“I'm pleased to hear it. You will need to practice your new powers, Callius. I recommend taking it slowly, step by step. You are a natural, that's clear enough, but a gentle touch when it comes to using power is the best way to learn to control it.”
“Thank you,” Callius replied with a grateful smile. “I will do that.”
“Excellent. Now, if you would all stand close together, I'll send you to join your people.”
The elves moved closer to each other and Malfiess looked at Diane curiously.
“Did you want a moment to say goodbye to your mentor?” he asked her.
The Fall of the Elves Page 35