Elves- the Book of Daniel

by R Brent Powell

  “I am here to learn, my love, what would you have me do?”

  “I need iron, coals, and some lard would probably be best.” He said trying to push on through.

  “I think this science of yours in merely weird alchemy,” she said thoughtfully, “but I might try anything you suggest once - or twice.” Her lascivious tone had taken complete control of the conversation.

  “You are having way too much fun while I am trying desperately to be serious and find some solutions. You know I like your ideas a lot better than mine and you are taking advantage,” he replied with several kinds of frustration in his voice.

  “Are you pouting,” she asked skipping in front of him so she could see his face better, “and blushing. I may have to be easier on Alan, Aldon and Durbin, this is fun.”

  Daniel grabbed her then and kissed her long and hard. When they separated, even ever so slightly, she said in a hoarse whisper, “let us get these materials together and be done quickly. You have promises to keep.”

  The materials were rummaged together quickly and they built a small fire behind the house, where Daniel hoped they would not be easily seen.

  The fire was for warmth because the night was cool and Daniel didn’t want any more distractions, but he also wondered if he could draw energy from it. He had taught Lissette the song he wanted to use and hoped that what he was trying would go faster with her added energy. What he planned was by far the most complex thing he had tried. He sat before the fire with a pile of metal scraps, old coals and some kind of animal grease and shook his head at how crazy this would have seemed a week ago. Medieval mayhem, magic and a mate - one helluva coma, he thought. Being with her is starting to feel so normal, I am have trouble imagining life before or without her. He tried to think all the changes through logically, but logic didn’t seem to apply. He realized the idea of the coma was becoming more of an internal joke to him as this reality and its rules took firmer hold.

  He needed to ask Lissette if there was some ritual for marriage here. Doesn’t sound like the elves have much of ritual, he thought, but I probably ought to be sure. He looked at her profile as she sat next to him patiently. She must have felt is eyes because she looked away from the fire and smiled at him.

  He smiled back and said, “I am never really sure how the music sounds because I get kind of lost in it. So if it gets too… too… strange, just let me go on my own.”

  Lissette nodded and squeezed his hand and he marveled again at how she moved from condescension to commitment so fast and completely. He sighed again, and, clearing his head, started his transmutation song. The materials weren’t that hard, just a little more complex in an alloy. But it wasn’t the materials he was concerned about or the shape, it was the precision. Because it had to be exact, he had worked the calculus in his head beforehand. He had always been able to visualize the 3-D graphs in his head… something that had pissed off more than one of his classmates and a girlfriend. He focused his attention to get the carbon and iron to combine properly and assemble along the curves he had laid out.

  When it seemed done, he opened his eyes and there it was - at least part one. He looked at Lissette and she looked at him with both curiosity and admiration. She had no idea what she was looking at but she was amazed at what she saw.

  “Did you join in?” He asked.

  “Yes, shortly after you started. The fact that you couldn’t tell means we are working together smoothly.” She gave him one of her radiant smiles and he knew that had been important to her though she had said nothing about it. One of those female pass-fail things, he thought, like first kisses and holding doors at least on formal occasions or in front of parents – parents, he thought and some questions popped into his head that he had to file for later.

  “We have a few more pieces,” he said with a smile and began to clear his head.

  It took less than an hour to make the rest. Other than the music, Lissette had remained quiet the entire time, staying serious and focused, but he could tell she was bursting with curiosity. “Daniel,” her tone was friendly but the way she dragged out his name was also a warning of patience being overwhelmed, “What is all of this?”

  “He was gathering everything up and putting it into the leather satchel he’d brought just for that purpose. He stood and offered his hand to help her up. “I can try and explain this,” he said straight faced, “but it will probably take a couple of more hours. If you can wait till morning I can show you what it does and we can find better ways to spend our time tonight.”

  She smiled and grabbed his arm, then, reaching up on tip toes, put a warm kiss on his neck and whispered, “Morning is a much better idea.”

  Next morning when Daniel awoke, Lissette was in the same semi-sprawled position on his right side. Yep, I could get used to this, he thought. The knock this time was light and polite. So much so that he was surprised to hear Alan’s voice announce breakfast.

  This time he got to wake Lissette, with light fingers dragged slowly across her pale skin, and to watch her try and snuggle in closer rather than waking up. When she did lift her head she smiled and kissed him and mumbled good morning.

  “Alan knocked and announced breakfast,” he said softly.

  That seemed to bring her to wakefulness with an expression of amused surprise. “If he knocked so lightly that I didn’t rouse, then Eliana must have made an impression indeed.” She kissed him again and then rolled so she was sitting on the side of the bed and did one of her catlike stretches.

  I am never getting tired of that, he thought.

  She turned and smiled at his expression, “I noticed that you liked that stretch yesterday on the porch and thought you might like it even more here.”

  He sat there wondering how he was going to get his leggings on and asked, “How is it there aren’t more elves - a lot more elves.”

  She laughed delightedly at his comment and said, “I don’t know about the other elves but in our case it won’t be for lack of trying.” She looked at his lap and laughed, “I will try to remember not to be provocative after breakfast is announced.” Dressing quickly she gave him a peck on the cheek and stopped just before opening the door. “Maybe.”

  Daniel was a bit late for breakfast and Alan had the good sense to keep quiet. He wondered what Eliana had said to Alan, and hoped he never had to find out first hand.

  Lissette helped Eliana in the kitchen while Daniel returned to their room and retrieved the satchel. With the bag over his shoulder he walked into the common room in search of Alan.

  “Do you know of a clearing, at least a couple miles from here that is a hundred paces long?”

  “Like the clearing here?” Alan asked.

  “It doesn’t have to be a circle like this one, just an area with no trees for about a hundred steps and it can be narrow if that helps.”

  “I may know of a place,” Alan said slowly, “What is it for?”

  “Testing,” Daniel replied cryptically.

  “You will need help with the testing,” Alan said flatly, and before Daniel could push back added, “and the way there is much too hard to describe.”

  Daniel looked at Alan and then with a deep sigh agreed to let him come along if he retrieved what Daniel asked for.

  By the time Lissette was ready, Alan was back with a heavy wrapped bundle across his shoulder. Daniel told him to lead on and they did their best to sneak out of the house and into the woods. They hiked for an hour in single file and, where the path allowed, with Lissette by Daniel’s side. As they walked, she asked question after question about his life before and he did his best to tell her the truth, steering away from subjects like wars, and plagues, and his previous girlfriends. Anything he thought might be too hard to explain. He didn’t expect to get away with that forever but he was happy with what delay he could get or she would allow.

  Finally, they reached a clearing that matched what Alan described. It wasn’t very wide but it was clear of trees and
brush for about a hundred yards - or strides he reminded himself.

  “Alan, set that up about fifty steps away, please.” Alan carried his bundle off into the clearing and Daniel sat down and opened his satchel. Lissette sat beside him and watched him take the oddly shaped pieces and fit them together. There were clicks and snaps and something he called screws that looked familiar but never so small. “Lissette, I need to find two small logs and a stick the size of your wrist with a ‘Y’ at the top.”

  She popped up and began helping him search. The logs were easy, but the stick took some time until they found one stout enough for him. With logs positioned Daniel set his device with the wooden end propped against the logs and the other end crooked into the ‘Y’ of the stick which Daniel had forced into the soft earth. He then tied a long piece of sturdy twine to the device and began to walk back into the woods.

  “OK, now, both of you behind me and cover your ears. This may be really loud.”

  Daniel stepped behind a tree and waited for them to get in place. He took a deep breath and pulled the string. The noise made them all jump after the quiet of the forest. The rifle lay on its side knocked off the stick by the recoil. “Well it didn’t explode,” he said more to himself than the others. He walked to the rifle and picked it up examining the barrel and chamber. Everything looked good.

  “Now we have to test it for accuracy.” The others stood and watched, too dumbfounded by the noise to even ask a question. This time Daniel stood facing the target Alan had set up for him. The knight’s chest plate had a round circle painted on it in red. “This is going to be loud again, cover your ears.” Daniel sighted in on the chest plate that Alan had been carrying and set up at the far end of the clearing. Daniel took in a half breath, let some out, and squeezed the trigger.

  The 308 kicked like he remembered and the bullet hit high right. He fired two more rounds and got a pattern before adjusting the sight. The next three were in a circle with a one inch spread. He turned to Lissette and Alan with a big smile that faded quickly. They were clearly terrified of the noise. “Alan… Alan, can you please move the chest plate to the far end of the clearing?”

  It took Alan a second to come around, but he trotted toward the target and began to move it back. Once at the target Alan was fascinated by the small clean holes in the plate. They were the size of his small finger and the back of the hole was sharp and jagged where the tiny pieces of lead had ripped through the plate.

  Waiting on Alan to move the target, Daniel reached out and took Lissette’s hand and asked in a quiet voice, “Are you alright?”

  She looked into his eyes and nodded slowly as if in a trance. Then getting some of her wits back she said, “That is one of the terrible weapons you told us about.” He nodded still holding her hand. “It put holes through the knight’s armor and could not even be seen.”

  “Yes,” he answered simply.

  She looked at him long and hard, her expression softening only a little. “Teach me to use it.”

  “Are you sure?” He asked.

  “Yes,” she answered, “I want to never to be powerless against armed men again.”

  Daniel nodded, and wondered how much more there was to his match that he had yet to learn. A lot, he thought, a lot.

  They spent the next hour firing at the target. He showed them all the tips he had been taught and went over and over the dangers and the safety training he had received until they could recite it. He was fairly sure they would heed him if for no other reason than they were as terrified of the rifle as they were fascinated by it. A good mix, he hoped.

  Lissette turned out to be the better shot. He should not have been surprised, he thought, but the speed at which she took to things and accepted his guidance on alien concepts and devices was beyond impressive. She took to it like everything else: fierce focus and determination. He was only beginning to get a glimmer of what ‘match’ meant and the trust that went with it. It’s not that she operates without questioning me, he thought while wearing a wry smile, she questions everything until it comes time to learn something important. Then it’s like she knows there is no context for her outside of my instruction and she absorbs it to mastery. She wants to know everything I think is important. He began to see how ignoring her instruction about the elders at the meeting and all the history that went with them was him not holding up the other end of this unspoken bargain. As they headed back to the enclave he knew he was glad she was on his side - team indeed.

  Alan had covered the armor so they could use it again but it was starting to look like a fisherman’s net. He was determined to get better at the rifle and was a little irritated that Lissette had taken to it faster. Daniel saw the look on his face and laughed. “Alan, in my world women are often the best shots.” Alan’s look of disbelief only made Daniel laugh again. “Seriously, it is about patience and following the steps and rules. Lissette is much better than I was on my first day. Be patient, it will come. You are hitting the target every time at the first distance and most of the time at the further distance. You will do well.” Alan appeared a little mollified but his determination to improve was not a bad thing, Daniel decided.

  When they reached Eliana’s there were messages. “I don’t know what you three have been up to all day but there are reports of thunder with clear skies from deep in the wood and everyone suspects Daniel to be at the root of it. A bigger concern is a gathering crowd needing your attention, but if it were me, Daniel, I would seek my grandfather first.”

  Daniel nodded and reminded Alan to keep quiet before he and Lissette went in search of Beylvar. They found him at what Daniel was beginning to think of as grandpa’s bench. He nodded in greeting and they took their places in the grass before him.

  “Should I assume you have something to do with the reported thunder?” The tone was more of a statement than a real question.

  “Yes,” Daniel stated, “but it wasn’t thunder.”

  “I wonder if I will wish it was thunder when I learn what you have been up to,” Beylvar replied.

  “Grandfather, I made a weapon from my world and taught Lissette and Alan how to use it.” Daniel was trying to watch the old elf’s face for any signs of his thinking.

  Beylvar turned to Lissette and asked,” Tell me about it.”

  Lissette wasn’t sure where to begin. “It is long like a long sword. One end is held tightly against your shoulder, but instead of a blade there is a long tube and by pulling a trigger, a small lever for this finger,” she held up her index finger, “a terrible noise is made and a small lead projectile comes out of the tube and it is too fast to see. The rifle pushes back against your shoulder like being shoved, but, the most incredible thing is that the small piece of lead goes right through a knight’s steel breast plate even a hundred paces away.” Her description almost tumbled out of her mouth driven by awe, excitement and a little fear.

  Beylvar listened intently with no particular expression until she was finished spewing forth her description. “And Alan has learned to use this rifle as well?”

  “Yes,” she said and nodded simultaneously.

  “Daniel, do you intend to make more of these?” Beylvar asked in a quiet voice.

  “I have not decided yet, grandfather… what do you advise?”

  The quiet hung in the air for a long minute before he replied. “The sound of this frightens me but the idea that Lissette could bring down a knight at a hundred paces gives me hope. Have you considered how you will control this weapon?”

  “Control?” Daniel asked surprised by the question.

  “How will you keep it out of the wrong hands?” Beylvar restated patiently.

  Daniel had to think about that. What if the Baron, or even Basil managed to get control of one. “I think,” he hesitated while the plan evolved in his head, “since I am the only one who can make them, I will make only a small number. And the ammunition for it will be kept in small numbers. Even if someone captures one, the use i
s very limited without the ammo.”

  “A risk that will have to be taken if this is the path you choose,” Beylvar stated.

  The path I choose, Daniel thought to himself repeating the words over in his head. I am understanding ‘the lesser of the evils’ at a whole new level. He looked at Lissette and made the choice so many had made before: Protecting her was a simple and understandable goal.

  “Grandfather, Eliana said something about a crowd gathering but I needed to speak to you first. Do you know what she was talking about?” Daniel asked.

  “I suggest,” He replied, “that you find Calden and Barton for the best answer.”

  Daniel was beginning to adjust to not getting the information he wanted immediately but he wished for a cell phone more than once as he trotted from place to place.