“Nothing! I told them nothing!”
Kronk took a few steps back but the elemental pursued him.
“How dare you even ask me that!” Sessa spat angrily. “I may be young and stupid, but I would never betray the one who summoned me. Never! If the wizard had not called me back in time, I would have died rather than betray him.”
“I...yes of course, I see,” Kronk said contritely. “Forgive me. My only concern is for my master's welfare.”
Sessa seemed to deflate and shook his head.
“No, it is I who should ask your pardon. That was...unseemly. But death would have been preferable to the shame I would have had to live with if I had betrayed a master.” He looked up at Simon. “And I think I can confidently say that if my fellow scouts have been destroyed, they too went to their dooms without telling those creatures anything.”
Simon looked at Brethia who was watching with an expression of pride on her face. She caught his look and smiled bitterly.
“He is correct, my lord. None of my people would betray you. That is one of the reasons the ancient wizards trusted us as scouts; our loyalty is unquestioned and unshakable.”
The wizard nodded.
“I know that,” he said, to both air elementals. “I've learned all about that from Aeris. Kronk knows too but, as you might have noticed, he's a bit of a worrywart.”
“I would not use that expression, master,” the earthen said a bit defensively.
“I know that, my friend, but it's true all the same.”
Simon read through the list of names and found the last scout's name.
“So far, you and Brethia are the only ones to answer my summons,” he told Sessa. “I want to try the last name on the list before we go any further, so could you all clear the center of the desk please?”
The three elementals moved back to give Simon room and he glanced at the name again and took a deep breath.
“Verissa, I need you!” he called out.
They all waited as the silence stretched out for several minutes and then both Brethia and Sessa bowed their heads.
“Two of us,” Brethia said in a voice heavy with sadness. “All that is left of our party. Our realm has not lost three of our people for millennia. Our lord with be furious.”
“I don't blame him,” Simon said tightly. “I share his fury. These goblins are a horror.” He ran his fingers through his hair and pushed it off of his face.
“And to think that they were once human. The lords of Chaos have a lot to answer for.”
After a long moment, Brethia approached the wizard and hovered in front of him.
“My lord, if you have no further need of us, Sessa and I should return home. We must report what has happened to our leaders, who will in turn break the news to our ruler.”
“I suspect he already knows,” Sessa said as he floated over to join her.
“Yes, I suspect so. Do we have your permission to withdraw, sir wizard?”
“Yes, of course you do.”
Simon looked from one small, translucent face to the other.
“But before you go, please know how sorry I am for your loss. If I had, even for a moment, suspected that there was danger in the mission I gave you, I never would have sent any of you in the first place.”
“My lord,” Sessa said with a sad smile. “If you had known of the danger, you would not have needed us at all.”
“We were doing what we do best, sir wizard,” Brethia added. “What we were trained for. Do not reproach yourself for the outcome. Rather, if I may be so bold as to suggest this, prepare yourself. One day, if these goblins continue to expand their territory, you will have to face them. Now you at least know that they exist. Be ready.”
“Oh I will be, believe me,” Simon told her grimly. “They killed people who were doing me a service. I won't forget that, and I certainly won't forgive it.”
“Did you hear that?” Sessa whispered to Brethia. “He called us people!”
Simon looked away, pretending not to hear the comment, and put a hand over his mouth to hide his smile.
Both of the elementals bowed to the wizard and nodded to Kronk, who smiled and gave them a little wave. Then as one, they disappeared with two little pops of imploding air.
Simon carefully picked up a pencil and scratched off the names of the three dead elementals from his list. Then he opened a drawer and slipped the paper inside.
He sat back and rubbed his eyes wearily.
“So now what do we do?” he asked Kronk as he leaned back in his chair.
“Now master? I do not know. Wait for Aeris to return, I suppose. And I think it would be wise to get as much information on these goblins as you can. Forewarned is forearmed, isn't it?”
“True, but where do I get info on what, until a few minutes ago, I thought were mythical monsters?”
He waved at the shelves lining the walls of the study, stuffed with books.
“I don't know that I'll learn many real facts in the fantasy books I have in my collection.”
Simon picked up his teacup, took a sip and grimaced. It was cold.
“Come on, let's go back downstairs. I want to make some fresh tea.”
Before he could stand up, Kronk picked up the mirror and offered it to him.
“And why do I need this?”
“Because, master, you need information. And who better to ask about a subject like goblins than your friend Daniel? If he does not know more than you do, the elves will.”
Simon took the mirror and smiled down at the little guy.
“Brilliant idea,” he told him as he got up. He took the mirror and his cup and left the room, Kronk tip-tapping along behind him.
“Not really, master. Just sensible, I suppose.”
Down on the main level, Simon made his tea. He waited for the kettle to boil and watched the light begin to fade through the windows as the deep winter night approached.
“I will double-check the gates and do a perimeter sweep while you call your friend, master,” Kronk told him as he skittered across to the front door.
“Nervous?” Simon asked him. He tried to sound like he was joking and failed.
“Cautious, master. And I want to speak with my fellow elementals. I have an idea on how we can strengthen the wards on the gates. They are the one weak spot in our tower's defenses.”
“That's true.”
Simon sat down with his tea and watched the little guy curiously.
“What's your idea?”
“I would rather not say until I get the others' opinions, master. It may not be practical.”
The earthen smiled, jumped up to open the door and slammed it shut behind him, leaving Simon alone, wondering.
How could the little guy make the perimeter any more secure than it already was? The gates were the only part of the wall that could be opened, so the wards, which had to remain in a permanent position, had to be placed on the wall on both sides of the opening, which weakened them. Simon couldn't think of a way to strengthen the magic any more than he had.
Maybe bury the ward stones under the gates, he thought. But no, they'd tried that. The ground absorbed the magic and dissipated it, making it useless.
He ended up shaking his head and leaving it to Kronk to work out. He had a call to make.
Simon cast the Magic Mirror spell and drank tea while he waited for the surface of the glass to clear. He kept an image of Daniel's face firmly in his mind and wondered with a stab of guilt if his oldest friend was okay. With all that had happened that day, the war between the elves and the brown dragons had slipped from his mind completely.
The image in the mirror solidified and the figure of Daniel appeared. He was sitting at a large round table. It was covered with an ornate cloth stitched with beautiful patterns of green leaves and colorful flowers. There were cups and plates of silver set out and, on either side of his friend was an elf, both of whom were speaking earnestly to Daniel.
His friend had rested an elbow on
the arm of his chair and cupped his chin in his hand as he listened to one of the elves. He was nodding every few seconds and his expression was one of intense interest.
Simon waited for a few minutes. He did not want to interrupt what was obviously a very important meeting and so he listened to the conversation, feeling a bit like a peeping tom, but curious about what was being said.
“We cannot attempt a frontal assault, Daniel, so please stop suggesting it,” the elf to Daniel's left said with obvious exasperation. He was dressed in ornate robes of blue and silver, long black hair flowing down to his collar.
“Ellar, I'm not suggesting a suicidal attack,” his friend replied, sounding equally tense. “But these guerrilla tactics are doing nothing. You are fleas attacking a herd of elephants. An attack on a lone dragon, killing it, and I'm not speaking of the primal brown now, would send a message to the rest of its kind and, possibly, slow down their advance.”
“It is equally possible, my friend, that it would enrage them and make them redouble their attacks,” the second elf said.
Simon looked at her closely. The woman was the oldest looking elf that he'd ever seen. They were an immortal species, but this female's face was crisscrossed with fine lines and wrinkles and her skin was so thin that he could see the network of veins beneath it.
Her hair was pure white but very fine and pulled back from her aged face in a long braid. She wore a simple dress of fine green material, buttoned up to her neck.
“At the moment, the draconic horde is at least somewhat predictable,” she continued in a strong voice at odds with her appearance.
“We know how far they expand in a day and we adjust our tactics to compensate for that expansion.”
“But you are constantly pulling back, Willia,” Daniel replied heavily. “You can only run so far before you will be forced to turn and fight. Is it not better to do so at a time and place of your own choosing rather than of the dragons?”
The male elf stood up slowly and smiled gently down at Daniel.
“We shall cross that bridge if and when we reach it, my friend. Until then, the 'guerrilla tactics', as you call them, shall continue. We are doing some damage, after all. We have destroyed many drakes and lost very few of our own people.”
“You're just swatting flies,” Daniel said bitterly.
Ellar shook head and walked away.
“Why do you persist in baiting him?” the old woman asked him and Simon watched his friend shrug. He looked tired again.
“Because I must. And I'm not baiting him; I'm advising him. Not that he listens very often. Willia, if there is one thing my people know, it is war. The gods know we spent thousands of years slaughtering each other to perfect our technique. And I will tell you this: wars are not fought and won from the shadows. Wars are won by sound tactics and by being aggressive. The elves are, I'm afraid, much too passive, and the dragons know it.”
The woman stood up carefully and Daniel jumped to his feet to assist her.
“Thank you,” Willia said with a smile. “Now cheer up. We elves are ancient. It takes time for an old civilization to learn new things. If you feel that your way is the better path, then don't give up in trying to persuade the others. They are not fools. They are simply set in their ways.”
“Yes, I know. The council members are wise, but if Ellar can't be convinced, the head council member, then I have little hope that the others will listen either.”
She patted his arm gently and her smile widened.
“Well now, you did convince an old woman like me, and I've been told I'm intractable. So there is hope.”
Daniel laughed, pressed her hand gently and watched as Willia walked slowly away. Then he sat down again, took a drink from a silver goblet and sat back with a bitter sigh.
“They're gone. You can speak now,” he said as he closed his eyes and rested his head against the back of the chair.
“You knew I was watching?” Simon asked, startled.
“Of course. So did they, I'm sure, but since I raised no alarm, I'm guessing that they assumed it was you. The council knows that we've been in contact. The magic infused in an elven habitation gives a person a, well, I guess a sensitivity to power would be the best way to describe it.”
“Ah, I see. Interesting. Oh and I'm sorry about that, by the way. I wasn't spying, you know. I just didn't want to interrupt.”
“I know that. So what can I do for my oldest friend, hmm?” Daniel asked. His eyes were still closed and Simon couldn't help thinking that his friend looked more worn out every time he saw him.
Stress, that's all it is, he told himself uneasily as if seeking reassurance. It wasn't a very convincing thought.
“I'm sorry to heap more on your plate, Daniel, but I was wondering what you could tell me about...goblins.”
His friend opened his eyes in surprise and sat up.
“Goblins? What an odd question. I suppose that I know about as much as you do. After all, the two of us killed our fair share when we played role-playing games together back in the old days. Why?”
“Because, contrary to what you and I both obviously thought, goblins are actually real.”
Simon proceeded to tell his friend about what the air elementals had gone through. As he spoke, Daniel grabbed a wide, golden bowl and poured clear water into it from a tall pitcher. And then, instantly, they were staring at each other.
The wizard held his friend's gaze as he told the story and he could tell exactly when Daniel began to believe him. When he was finished, Simon picked up his cup, sipped some tea and waited for a response.
“If I didn't know any better, I'd say that you were pulling my leg,” his friend said after a moment of silence. “But with everything that's been going on, I'm quite sure that you aren't. My God, goblins. Who would have believed it?”
“Not me, that's for sure,” Simon told him. “And now I've got three more deaths on my conscience. I'm really racking them up, aren't I?”
“Stop that,” Daniel snapped at him. “Self pity is the most useless of emotions and neither of us has time for it. If your scouts don't blame you, then don't you blame yourself. Right?”
Simon nodded reluctantly.
“Yeah, I guess. Anyway, Kronk suggested that maybe the elves would know more about these creatures than you or I. Do you think you could ask someone about them?”
“He's a smart one, your little helper,” Daniel told him and Simon smiled in agreement. “Yes, actually I think I can. The archivist, Theldamor, is a guardian of much elven knowledge. She has access to thousands of books and scrolls of ancient lore. I've spoken with her several times about the dragons, in fact, and she's been very helpful. I'll contact her at once and see what she knows.”
Daniel paused and then raised his eyebrows.
“Have you recalled the other scouts? The ones in Florida?”
“Nope. I spoke with Aeris this morning and he said that everything was fine. Why, do you think I should?”
“Don't you?” Daniel asked him with a frown. “You've just lost three elementals, Simon. Air elementals. They are damnably hard to kill but these goblins seemed to have no problem doing so. You should at least call Aeris and the others and warn them, don't you think?”
“Yeah, maybe you're right.”
Daniel leaned forward until his face filled the mirror. He peered out at Simon with narrowed eyes for a minute and then nodded.
“You're in shock, old friend,” he said with conviction.
“What? What are you talking about?”
“This guilt of yours has hit you harder than you think. You are frozen in the moment, afraid to act. You aren't thinking clearly.”
Simon pinched the bridge of his nose and then rubbed his eyes.
“I doubt that,” he said with an indifferent shrug.
“Damn it, Simon, get in the game!” his friend yelled and the wizard almost dropped the mirror. “Pull your head out of your ass and contact those scouts. Right now!”
The
wizard blinked rapidly. The fog that was clouding his brain, that he hadn't even been aware of, lifted suddenly and he gaped at Daniel.
“Oh my God,” he whispered. “It never even occurred to me to call Aeris!”
“I can see that,” Daniel replied, his voice gentle again. He smiled sadly. “Like I said; shock. Now, let me get on that research and you call those scouts. Contact me again in, let's say, three days. That should give me enough time, my time of course, to see Theldamor and get whatever information she has on goblins. Okay?”
“Okay. And thanks, Daniel. Thanks for waking me up.”
“Hey, what are friends for if not to scream at you once in a while?” his friend said with a broad smile.
Simon laughed and shook the mirror, canceling the spell. He emptied his cup and immediately recast the Magic Mirror spell.
“Aeris, can you hear me?” he asked loudly. While he waited for a reply, Simon lit the candles on the table and on the mantel above the fireplace with a flick of his power. The night had fallen quickly and heavily, as it would all winter, and the tower had become dark.
A smell of lavender filled the room and he looked around in confusion until he noticed that one of the candles burning on the mantel was a rosy color.
Hmm, must be a new candle from storage, he thought absently. I didn't know that we had scented ones. Nice.
“Yes, my dear wizard,” Aeris' voice rose from the mirror as the fog cleared from its surface. “As usual, I can hear you. You must be getting impatient in your old age, to be calling me back so soon.”
Simon looked down at his smooth, young hands and chuckled.
“Yeah, that's me. The old man. So how goes the scout? Any problems?” he asked in what he hoped was a natural tone of voice.
“Problems?”
Aeris came into view and, as before, he was traveling along the shore next to the ocean. The sky was darkening but it was still bright enough for Simon to see the beautiful waves crashing on the beach.
“Yes, there is a problem. It's that I'll have to leave here soon and rejoin you in your wintry tower. Not something that I'm looking forward to, to be honest.”
“Heh, I don't blame you. But no sign of trouble? No unexplained structures or odd-looking creatures around?”
Tales from the New Earth: Volume One Page 134