Chapter Twenty-five
Ruffin regained his consciousness for a brief moment. He was being dragged behind a huge war horse, with his hands and ankles bound by a coarse rope. The parts of his body that were not already numb from the pain, ached uncontrollably. He barely cared any longer what happened to him, as he was so thoroughly exhausted that thinking itself was difficult. He closed his eyes once again, and faded into the oblivion that he preferred to the reality that he had earlier embraced.
As the rider and her captive approached the black, granite walls of Sedahar, they appeared to expand and grow in stature, and the city’s hideous beauty made it seem alive and aware. The ground was perfectly smooth, defying nature, and it sloped precariously upward to the massive gates. The doors lay open and exposed. Colton had no fear that anyone would trespass upon his premises unbidden.
Flocks of large, raven beasts flew in wide circles in the dreary sky, and they pierced the air with their vociferous shrieks. The soil itself was bereft of all growth. It was parched and hard, forbidding and treacherous. The air was heavy and rancid. Breathing was difficult, and each inhale caused the throat to constrict in response. The smell of death was rampant everywhere. Steam shot out in bursts from great rifts in the earth, accompanied by loud explosions that seemed to propel it high into the still and caustic atmosphere.
Adrianna pulled hard upon the reins of her mount. When he finally came to a standstill, she jumped from the saddle and quickly untied the rope that she had attached to it. Winding it carefully around her arm, she approached her captive and pulled sharply up on it. His head jerked off of the ground in a spastic lurch. She pulled again. This time, Ruffin opened his eyes.
“Stand up, you fool,” she hissed at him. “We are finally here. You cannot greet the master this way,” she said, pulling him to his feet.
The elf was filthy, bruised and bleeding. Adrianna waved her right hand over him quickly and a sphere of greenish light appeared just over his head. She moved her hand down and the light followed it, bathing him in its glow. Ruffin cringed at the touch initially, but soon he relaxed and allowed it to lap over him.
When it reached the ground it dissipated, and then it was gone completely in an instant. He felt refreshed, and he immediately noticed that he was clean again and that most of his injuries seemed not to hurt as much.
“Make no mistake about it, elf. I did not do this out of concern for you. You should know for now and evermore that your troubles are meaningless to anyone here.”
She loosened the ropes and slipped them from his hands and feet, releasing him once again. “Do not even think about running. There is no place to hide. The sooner you accept your position, the easier it will be for you,” she said, while she walked back to her horse. “Or perhaps I am mistaken. It will never be easy for you again, but you will love him and you will be grateful to him for all that he does,” she laughed. “But, have no fear. Colton needs you now. He will allow you to live in some form or other, at least until he gets from you what he requires. He can be gracious, in his own way.”
Ruffin was still in a daze. He could not determine how much time had really passed since he left Lormarion, but the bitterness of Aramela’s betrayal was fresh upon his memory. He hated everything he had ever cared about in the past. Aramela was just another example of how badly he was treated by his own people. In a strange way, he was anxious to reach his new destination, despite the warnings and admonitions Adrianna kept providing. He could tell that she was in love with Colton herself, and he envied him for it. She spoke badly to him, but in his twisted mind, he believed that she cared for him. She was his refuge in this storm of emotion that overwhelmed him.
“What does Colton want with me?” he asked, choking on the name he had always dreaded.
“Everything you have and everything you are,” she whispered.
Ruffin’s entire body tingled at her response, but whether out of fear or anticipation, he could not determine. The Dark Lord’s influence was already making itself apparent unbeknownst to him.
“You have given yourself willingly to him. Get used to this, boy; you belong to him. You will love him with all of your heart and all of your soul. Everything he does to you, you will be grateful for, and everything you do for him will never be enough. Your one purpose left in life is to please him, to aid him in any manner that you can,” she said, her eyes blazing with fire as she spoke.
The elf soon found himself longing for the opportunity to help his new master. Her words swathed him in desire, titillated his soul and set fire to his ardor. He embraced the idea fully in so short a while, and the thought of helping Colton began to possess him and appeal to him like nothing else ever had. The stone that had become his heart, pumped with the blood of passion and yearning.
“Colton,” he whispered to himself. “I will make him glad I am here,” he vowed. “If only he will look upon me, gaze at me for a moment,” he began to think. “I barely had a life before, and whatever it was is now gone forever. Here I can create a place for myself. For some reason, he needs me.”
Ruffin had completely lost his senses by this time. He was able to convince himself that he could be an ally to Colton, a friend even. He had no idea what the Dark Lord was going to do with him, nor even why he wanted him in Sedahar, but he plotted and planned in his small mind with his limited and certainly stultified powers of reason.
They finally reached the monumental gates which had changed in appearance, or so it seemed to him, many times as they came closer. Their color and their shape shifted. Now as they stood before them, they beckoned to him, seemed to call his name, and he gladly and willingly passed across the threshold of Colton’s home. His wounds were healed, and his clothing was clean and no longer ragged and worn.
“Follow me,” Adrianna ordered without looking back at him. “Keep your eyes forward, and do not say a word,”
Ruffin obeyed her without question, so anxious now to be in Colton’s presence. He could not explain the yearning that dominated his thoughts. He felt like a child, waiting for the person he admired most to acknowledge him and to bestow meaning upon his life once again. Just being inside the castle filled him with the sense of power and a hunger for more. He was as excited as he had ever been before, his memory swept clean of fear for the moment, while his entire body pulsed with anticipation.
The hallway was incredibly long and wide. It defied reality in its appearance.
No building could be this enormous, he thought.
The floor was as black as night, and he could see his own reflection in it. He appeared to himself to be handsome and strong, just as he felt. The walls, when he dared to glance at them, were as white as white could be, and they stood in stark contrast to the darkness beneath his feet.
They walked for quite some time, never seeming to near the end of the hall. Door after door marked their progress, yet each one appeared exactly the same as the last one they had just passed. Adrianna never hesitated or broke her stride, and the elf followed obediently behind.
Suddenly as if out of nowhere, a stairway appeared before them. Ruffin could have sworn that it was not there a moment ago. All he did was blink and there it stood no more than ten yards ahead. At the top of the broad steps stood a figure that looked to him to be larger than life, impossibly tall. His heart beat faster as he followed Adrianna up the long stairway. The figure loomed in the distance, and the young elf felt chills run up and down his arms.
Could this be Caeltin? he thought to himself. He was so handsome, so regal, Ruffin was mesmerized by the image before him.
“You have done well,” an incredibly soothing voice boomed from ahead. “I see that you have brought me what I asked for,” it continued.
Colton descended a few of the steps, and Ruffin immediately thanked him in his heart for being so gracious as to walk toward him. Everything that he did was wonderful and awesome. His speech was melodious and seductive. He loved him at once and completely—
“Go to your cham
ber, Adrianna. I will call for you later,” he said with such kindness that Ruffin wanted to cry.
Adrianna backed away, down the stairs, unwilling to show her disappointment at being dismissed before she had even spoken to her master. She did not allow the regret to show, though it pained her so.
He will summon me tonight, she reassured herself. I have pleased him. If only now the elf gives him the information that he desires, I will be his favorite.
When she reached the last step, she turned and began the long walk back, though the hallway had shifted and changed once more. All she could do was begin to walk and follow the movements of the building. It would lead her to her rooms. She dared to look backward once more, but when she turned, her master and the elf were no longer in sight. A solid wall of white stone stood directly behind her where the hallway ended and the steps had previously begun. She turned in dismay and allowed herself to be led by the shifting walls and changing pathways.
“Come closer,” Colton urged the frightened elf. “I have not had one of your race here in many tiels,” he said, and he stretched out his right hand and curled his index finger, urging Ruffin forward. The young man obeyed, inching toward the stairs atop which Colton majestically stood. “It has been a long and arduous journey for you, I am sure,” he said softly. “You have lost so much.”
Tears welled up in the boy’s eyes as Colton spoke. He could not control his feelings at all, he was so overcome with gratitude for the Dark Lord whose sympathy he overtly felt. It was as if he had entered his mind and assuaged his pain instantly. He was prepared to tell him anything, to do anything he asked. Those he left behind were merely images and memories now; images of hate and criticism, painful memories of betrayal and asperity. Seramour was no more than a prison and the obvious cause of all of his troubles. He despised the tree-top city and all of its inhabitants, particularly the feeble, young human who precipitated everything.
“What is it that torments you, boy? Your rancor is almost tangible. Come, let me share your burden and lessen the load,” Colton enticed him forward.
Ruffin took the few remaining steps freely, anxious to give himself over to Colton’s vast power. The man before him was beautiful, the most beautiful person he had ever seen. His qualities were almost elfin now, and he embodied all the characteristics that Ruffin ever imagined a perfect being to have. His eyes were shining black orbs. They radiated strength, powerful and focused, yet they were immensely kind and tantalizingly magnetic. His arms were graceful and muscular, the fingers long and flawlessly shaped. The sheen upon his dark hair rivaled the sun’s light streaking in from somewhere above, and he appeared impossibly tall and princely, the image of excellence and perfection. His clothing was luxurious, draping his vigorous body like a glove and making it appear as if it was his second skin. A long cape of ebony and scarlet flapped gracefully behind him, although no wind stirred the chamber.
Colton wrapped his arm over Ruffin’s shoulder and a scintillating chill coursed through his entire body immediately upon the contact. It spread from the first point of touch, as if through his veins, straight to his heart where it burst within him into a searing heat. The contradictions were rampant inside of him. The pain was excruciating, but it engulfed him with pleasure as well. He felt incredibly powerful and totally helpless all at once. He loved Colton with all his heart and all his soul, yet he was more frightened than he had ever imagined he could be in his entire lifetime.
Colton entered his mind and entered his body. He ravaged him from within, leaving no tiny space untouched. Ruffin felt him everywhere and he gave himself totally and willingly, relinquishing all control, all sense of independence and of self. There was nothing he would not do for Colton. He would never be the same again.
“So the boy is in Seramour after all,” Colton said, as he withdrew his arm from around the elf’s trembling back. “He has probably been there all along. And to think that I wasted an entire army in Pardatha, all because some incompetent old witch believed the heir was there.”
The Dark Lord laughed, and the laughter grew in intensity, echoing off of the stone walls, building and building until it seemed like there were hundreds of others sharing the joke and laughing along with the master of Sedahar. Ruffin had to cover his ears with the palms of his hands in order to protect his eardrums from bursting from the sound, it was so loud.
“You should be very proud of yourself, young man. You have provided me with the news that no others have been able to.”
He turned away and walked up the steep steps, leaving the elf alone at the bottom. When he reached the top, looming over Ruffin like a giant, he smiled again. The boy’s entire world lit up from that smile, and he felt complete and whole instantly.
“I will not forget you,” he said, and his words echoed in Ruffin’s mind repeatedly. No one could ever have said anything more inspiring or more wonderful. His elation was overwhelming.
The Dark Lord then turned his back on the elf, rose a few inches off the black, stone floor and gracefully moved down the vast hallway until he disappeared into the distance.
Ruffin stood alone. At first, ecstasy dominated his very breath. Then, fear slowly began to creep into his heart once again, and he perceived it on the fringe of his consciousness. Though he fought to keep it at bay, he could not. He felt suddenly so terribly alone. He felt abandoned and isolated, as if a part of him had been withdrawn. Once Colton had entered his soul, it would always feel empty without his presence. He would eternally suffer from loneliness and longing, from disappointment and lack of fulfillment. He would always be afraid and insecure in his absence. The ties that bound him to the Dark Lord were incredibly strong, and his physical yearning was an addiction. He loved him with all his heart and all his soul, and he would do anything required of him, from now until forever, to please him.
Such were the ways of Colton’s corruption.
Chapter Twenty-six
Filaree stared in wonder as the lifts rose high into the enormous trees overhead. She fought back a brief feeling of vertigo as she watched the ground fall away beneath her. Cairn laughed quietly to himself, clearly mesmerized by the scene unfolding around them. Calyx sat back upon his haunches, his fur shimmering and shining, and he closed his big eyes while the lift ascended into the Heights. Robyn remained steadfast, neither looking at the scenery, nor conversing with any of the elves who greeted them here in Seramour. As was his way, he remained withdrawn and deliberative, so very much like a Chosen.
As soon as the platform rose above the tree line, a small but powerful hand reached out to grasp Filaree’s. She gladly accepted the help, and with it she stepped over the railing of the wooden scaffold onto the solid surface that beckoned to her. The first thing she saw was the piercing blue eyes of Treestar staring deeply at her, worry dominating his stately features.
“Where is my son? Where is Elion?” he asked immediately.
Robyn turned his head toward them and responded without any hesitation, prepared to provide him with the disappointing news.
“I am sorry to tell you, your Highness, but he is not here with us. I wish I could offer you more information as to his exact whereabouts, but alas, I cannot. He and two others, Tomas, the young man Baladar informed you of, and Preston Daggerfall, a dwarf from the Thorndars, separated from us at the onset of our journey. They did not inform us as to where they were going, or why they chose to leave,” Robyn said in a calm, mesmerizing voice, seeking not to alarm Elion’s father any more than he already was.
Treestar raised his lordly head and gazed out over the treetops northward, far into the distance as if he were searching for his son. Before speaking, he glanced at the tower of the castle, which rose conspicuously in the distance. After a long moment of silence, he looked at the group that had just arrived with an expression of stoic acceptance.
“My wife, the Queen, shall be sorely let down,” he said.
It was unnecessary for him to express in words his own regret, as it was obvious to all. His
eyes were half closed, his thoughts elsewhere, as the King of the southern elves assisted his newly arrived guests out of the lift and onto the solid ground of Seramour.
Robyn, Filaree and Cairn assembled next to one another slightly behind the pensive elf. Calyx kept his distance from the throng of soldiers, as they did likewise from him. He turned his broad head left and right and stretched his forepaws, fully extending his enormous claws for them all to see, though acting as if he was merely relaxing. Finally he yawned, and in so doing he exposed the rows of saber sharp teeth to the elfin guards. Cairn glanced backward at his friend and silently admonished him, though he smiled inwardly at Calyx’s actions. The Moulant was merely making his presence known in Seramour in his own fashion.
Treestar noticed his guests behind him, and he motioned for them to join him and walk by his side toward the center of the city and the castle, where they would be residing during their time here. Cairn was the first to step forward, so aware of the sadness in the old elf’s eyes. He placed his hand firmly upon his shoulder and signaled to him his understanding. Treestar looked upon him deeply, and wordlessly acknowledged his support. Robyn and Filaree soon inched forward as well, and the four began the long walk down the colorful street into the heart of Seramour.
Treestar pounded Robyn on the back. “We shall speak no further of my son until you are settled in my home. I wish to hear the news with my wife at my side. In the meanwhile, tell me of your own journey.”
They walked and walked, and each of the three admired the city in his or her own way. Filaree was amazed at the way the avenues were constructed, clearly designed to thwart any enemy who could ever breach the formidable defenses to begin with. She recognized immediately the ingenious way in which the city was laid out, divided as it was into sections devoted to different uses and different trades. She appreciated the system of lifts for its defensive qualities, and she saw in the distance what was unmistakably the garrison and munitions areas. They were so perfectly aligned and so meticulously kept, that even from this far away she knew that she was going to learn a lot from these formidable warriors.
The Awakening Page 22