by Terry Spear
Darkland Elf
The World of Elf, Book 2
Terry Spear
Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Acknowledgments
Afterword
About the Author
Also by Terry Spear
PUBLISHED BY:
Terry Spear
* * *
Darkland Elf
Copyright © 2018 by Terry Spear
* * *
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from the author, except for the inclusion of brief quotations in a review.
* * *
Discover more about Terry Spear at:
http://www.terryspear.com/
Synopsis
Synopsis
* * *
As a motivational inspirer, Eloria's mission is to convince her friend Persephonice to leave the elf world behind. She knows that if she can't, she will be stuck in their world herself. But what she finds in the primitive elf world is magic and a connection she never thought possible.
Viator is a prince of the darkland elves and captures one of those extraordinary creatures like Persephonice to turn over to his father, but his people worry about the prophecy where a girl from another world would take over their kingdom. He's not giving her up as he realizes he needs her to help fulfill his mission to make his wings transparent. And she has to see where his dangerous quests will take them both…if they can survive the trials.
To all my Shadow Elf fans who have been waiting patiently for the second book in the series!
1
As soon as Eloria Cresthaven heard the rumors of what her next mission would entail, she was hopeful it was all true. She was reservedly thrilled—because she couldn't wait to see her best friend, Persephonice, and ensure she was all right and living happily on the elves' planet. But Eloria was also very much concerned she would find that her friend was not okay. Even so, Eloria’s job was to return her to the ship, no matter what. Persephonice might not want to be rescued. This could be one mission where no one won.
Then her wristband communicator beeped, and she glanced at the message: You’re to report to the commander’s office immediately.
She hoped this could only be good news and the rumors that she would seek out Persephonice were true. She straightened and walked at a fast pace down the corridor to the elevator, took it to the fourth floor, and exited.
When she reached the command passage, she inclined her head in the direction of every person she passed in greeting. All of them outranked her by several ranks. She reached the office of the commander and pushed a button. “Sir, Lieutenant Eloria Cresthaven reporting as ordered.”
“Enter,” the commander said gruffly.
She was trying to keep her excitement contained and look as serious—and professional—as she could. She was a top academy graduate, and she had to prove she had earned the accolades for professionalism and distinguished service—always. It wasn’t enough to just graduate with the distinction.
Eloria was known as a motivational inspirer, and her occupation meant she wasn't assigned a lifemate—as one was not required for her job. It also meant that personality-wise, she was always over-the-top enthusiastic about her missions and inspiring others in the same way. It was part of who she was. Sometimes she annoyed her fellow shipmates who didn’t want to be…inspired.
“Your mission, Lieutenant, is to locate my daughter, Persephonice, and return her to the ship—at once. I want you to see this tape.” He pushed a button and the image flashed across a screen on one of the walls.
Eloria observed the tape that showed Persephonice defying her father after he transported her to their spaceship and she sent herself right back to the elves' world. Only certain important people had been allowed to see the tape—on a need-to-know basis, she knew. She figured he believed she needed to know the frame of mind Persephonice had been in when she disobeyed her father, or he would never have shown a junior officer the tape.
She noticed then a woman standing off to the side, observing her. She was Dr. Becca Truce, the ship's psychologist, blond hair swept up in a bun, blue-eyed, cagey. “Why don’t you have a seat?” She motioned to a leather chair in front of the commander’s desk.
Eloria took a seat, knowing the ploy. Make her comfortable so that the good doctor could set her at ease before she wanted something from her—usually something Eloria didn’t want to give her. Eloria was an inspirational motivator who helped people find a way to feel good about themselves. She wasn’t about to be used to inspire others to do what went against everything they believed in.
“Persephonice has been brainwashed into believing she had to return to the planet,” the doctor said, folding her arms.
Which was a defensive posture, as if Dr. Truce believed Eloria wouldn’t buy into her statement. Which she didn’t. Not exactly. Not that if she learned more of the situation, Eloria might see that what the doctor said was true. But she would determine this on her own.
“By the elves?” Eloria asked, but she didn't see any indication of that on the tape. Persephonice had been frantic to make her escape from the ship before they pulled away from the elves' airspace.
Not only that, but Persephonice had immediately ditched the transporter bracelet as well, so her father couldn't return her in that manner. He'd tried several times, making several passes over the planet where she’d disappeared. The ship’s crew hadn’t had this much excitement since they’d first dropped Persephonice off on the planet so they could repair the ship, and she could deter anyone from seeing it. But many believed her father hadn’t planned to return for her once he’d left her there. So why did he want her back so badly now? To save face? Rumors abounded that many felt he was wrong in leaving her there in the first place, as punishment for losing her lifemate before they were mated.
Now, Eloria turned her attention to Persephonice’s father, Horatio Whitethorn, commander of the Starship Calligraph, a science exploratory vessel. His blue eyes were narrowed, wary, his red hair streaked with gray.
Eloria was unsure if she was supposed to retrieve her friend by force or choice. She suspected nothing less than force would do. Eloria had been trained as a warrior special class with the additional talent of being a gifted motivational inspirer. Which was a fancy way of saying she could persuade some beings on other planets to do things her way without causing any bloodshed.
Not that she could control beings’ minds or anything, but she could often use her wit to convince them. But she never used it to promote violence.
For the first time since she’d joined the crew, she had an audience with Persephonice’s imperious father when—even though Eloria had been her best friend—he had never spoken once to her in the three years Eloria had been onboard the ship. She’d seen the doctor numerous times, who had quizzed her i
n depth about her missions and their outcomes. She’d had two really bad cases with two really bad outcomes that had haunted her for all this time, but no way would she have discussed those with the doc. If she had, they would have grounded Eloria on their home world. She had nowhere else to go. Nothing else she could do, but to serve on this ship. She couldn’t mess that up, no matter what.
Her room was soundproof like all sleeping quarters were, which meant she could wake up screaming and not scare anyone into thinking they were under alien attack. And she had woken herself while screaming at the top of her lungs. Numerous times.
She held her head high, like a warrior would, and gazed into Colonel Whitethorn’s cold blue eyes.
“Eloria Cresthaven, you have been trained in many different forms of warfare, can handle several types of weapons, but most of all, you are able to motivate others when the majority of our kind cannot. Not only that, but you are Persephonice’s best friend.”
Eloria gave a stiff nod, acknowledging everything he said was true.
“I understand you have some talent for magic."
She felt a wave of cold chills slither up her spine.
"You know it is forbidden for anyone to sign onto a ship who has a natural ability to use magic," he said, yet she thought he hoped she might be able to use them in this instance. Why bring them up, otherwise?
"Yes, Commander."
"Good, because if I learn that you do have those abilities, you will be put off at the first inhabitable, civilized planet."
Which meant she would be on her own to find work or a way to return to her planet on her own. Not that she had anyone there anyway.
How did he know about her abilities? Or maybe he was just guessing. He had said something similar to another crew member a few months ago, and she swore the girl didn't have any abilities at all. Or maybe, he was hoping Eloria did have some abilities and could use them to force Persephonice to leave the planet. She wouldn’t put it past him to threaten Eloria just so she’d be forced to do the job, or else…
"You will remain behind on Cador, the primitive elf planet, until you have located Persephonice. You will then alert me at once and bring her back to the ship. She has lost her transporter bracelet and has no way to return to us without your help.”
Eloria tried to keep her expression neutral, knowing very well, like everyone else on the ship, that Persephonice had ditched the bracelet after escaping the vessel, with no intention of ever returning. Which intrigued Eloria and the other girls her age, who fantasized about the kind of creatures that existed on the planet. Were they handsome? Kindly? Courteous? So intriguing that they had enticed Persephonice to remain there with them forever?
But then, there was Eloria’s magic. Which could get her into a lot of trouble anywhere she went so she’d kept it under wraps. What would a primitive being think of that?
A crewman came in and spoke to the commander in private.
Eloria recalled reading the ancient writings of the human world of courtly romance, which of course was all a fantasy, and wondered if in the elf world they had any kind of romance like that. The real kind. Not just in books. She’d also read how in the human world in ancient times the women were forced to wed men for power or wealth, which, unless they were lucky, had nothing to do with love.
Not that the langolar’s mates were chosen for love either. A computer decided their fate, depending upon skills and personality tests. Would she have been pleased if one had been picked for her? She didn’t believe so. Her skills were such that she was deemed unmateable. A male warrior would not need a female warrior to protect his back and would resent it, truth be told. Any other male might feel intimidated to mate a warrior female. She certainly didn’t need a man who felt intimidated by her, or one who thought he was superior.
Not that she was looking for one, or wanted one, but she couldn’t help being swept up by the dreams of the other girls on board the ship, who delighted in talking about having the perfectly matched lifemate. She tried to tell herself they were silly when her job was most important. And it was. She’d been on five rescue missions before. Five. Instead of serving as part of a combat force, she always acted alone. That’s what made her successful. Blending in, developing rapport with the native people, sometimes fighting her way out of a situation, hostage in tow, or talking the hostage takers into releasing their hostage, convincing them it was for their own good, or even sneaking the individual out like a thief in the night. Each of the ways had worked for her in the past.
This time, she wasn’t so sure. In the past, the hostages wanted to be freed. In her friend’s case?
The commander said, "We will be close enough to the planet to transport you there within the hour."
Eloria had never once had this much of a lofty mission to complete before, and she was both excited and wary. If Persephonice truly didn’t want to return to the ship, how could Eloria convince her to do so? Would Eloria even want to convince her if her friend was happy where she was? Yet, Eloria was born for these kinds of operations. She thrived on them, the more of a challenge, the better. She didn’t decide which ones she would commit to and which ones she wished to forgo. Though she was aware that should she fail at finding or returning Persephonice, she could very well be stuck forever on the primitive planet too.
Why had the commander truly chosen her? Surely someone else on the ship could force the issue better than she could. Someone who wasn’t close to her friend. Someone who did it solely as a job. Like she was supposed to do. No emotions. No muss. No fuss. Just retrieve the fellow langolar.
Maybe the commander thought because she had been close to Persephonice, she might be able to convince her to come home when someone else would have to use force to do it. Convincing the person that it was her choice was always the preferred way.
“The primitive planet is populated mostly by elves, isn’t it?” she asked. They had very little real information about the inhabitants as they were deemed too primitive to observe.
“As far as we are aware, yes. None of our scientists have studied their world, but they seem to be the top of the food chain there. You will leave as soon as you have your gear packed.”
So, he wasn’t giving her any time to plan or prepare or chicken out?
Not that she thought of herself as a chicken in any way, but she never went on a mission before learning all she could about the people and the land she was to traverse. Though she really didn’t have a choice.
The doctor finally spoke. “You are friends with Persephonice. Best friends, from what I understand. Can you be objective and do as your commander bids?”
Eloria assumed they’d send someone else who wouldn’t be concerned with Persephonice’s feelings. “Of course I can do this.” Not that she truly thought she could convince Persephonice to return. She could be just as stubborn as Eloria at times.
“You have your orders.”
“What if she doesn’t want to return?” Eloria asked, biting her tongue afterward. She knew she shouldn’t have voiced the question as soon as she let the words slip out. She knew the commander didn’t mean to give his daughter any choice. Eloria wondered if he truly did care about her and worried for her safety. Or he believed that she belonged with her own people. Or, was it more a case of his controlling nature and saving face in front of his crew when Persephonice had so boldly defied him?
Eloria never believed Persephonice would do such a thing. She'd been so brokenhearted over losing the lifemate matched to her that Eloria thought it had… broken her.
“She has no choice,” the commander said.
Just as Eloria surmised.
“The planet is unobservable. The people are so primitive, no amount of studying them will benefit our archives. She can’t remain there and must be returned at once. You are trained in tracking and are well-suited to fighting the elves, if need be. You cannot take any advanced weapons though, so as not to upset the order of their primitive lives.”
Great. A stun gun w
as her favorite weapon. It knocked a being on its butt, if the creature threatened her with bodily violence. The weapon set on another setting could put the creature to sleep. Much more civilized and easier to manage than other methods she’d have to employ, if she couldn’t convince them through conversation. And using her magic skills was sure to baffle them.
“If you need anything else that may aid you in your quest, ask the quartermaster. He will outfit you.”
Eloria wanted to ask if she couldn’t leave Persephonice behind if she truly was happy and wanted to remain on the planet. But the commander motioned for her to leave with a quick flick of his wrist.
She bowed her head, then executed a proper military turn and headed out of his office.
What if she couldn’t find Persephonice? Then what?
What if she lied and said Persephonice was dead? One of the truth-seekers would be able to pull the truth out of her. So nope, that wasn’t an option. She realized she didn’t have a whole lot of choices this time.
But she was taking her stun gun anyway. And when no one could see her wearing it, she was taking her focusing crystal.
2
With trepidation and excitement filling her veins, Eloria exited the commander’s office and the door whooshed shut. She considered that, if the outcome wasn’t good when she attempted to conduct her mission, she may never see the commander, or the ship for that matter, again.