Tales from the New Earth: Volume One

by Thompson, J. J.

  Simon sighed and slumped wearily on the cot, wiping his forehead on his sleeve. The heat in the tent was giving him a headache.

  “Exactly right,” he told the little guy. “Pick your version of the truth, I suppose.”

  “But why?” Aeris asked, baffled. “Why would an elf side with dragons? Each loathes the other, that much we do know.”

  “I can't answer that. I do know that now that the elder council is destroyed, Ethmira has been appointed to the new council. Perhaps she is simply seeking power.”

  “At the price of her entire world? No, I doubt that. I think there is a simpler explanation,” Aeris said with a scowl.

  “And that is?”

  “That she is simply evil. Elves aren't saints, my dear wizard. There are many tales of rogue elves who turned bad. If Ethmira is involved with the dragons, then she is involved with the gods of Chaos themselves. Remember Heather? She was lured into evil by promises of power. Who's to say that Ethmira's case is any different?”

  Simon stood up and put down his empty glass.

  “Whatever the reasons are, I don't trust her. And that is why I lied to Daniel earlier when I said I was at full strength. I wanted Ethmira to think that I'm more formidable than I am at the moment. And that's why I wouldn't tell Daniel my plans for defeating the primal brown. She was listening.”

  “Then you do have a plan? Aeris asked.

  “Of course I do. It's mad, sad and probably impossible, but hey, you know me. That's my favorite kind.”

  “No argument here,” Aeris muttered and Simon chuckled.

  “Okay, let's get back. I'm melting in here.”

  He turned before he left the tent and shook at finger at both elementals.

  “Not a word of this to anyone. Clear?”

  “You shouldn't even have to ask,” Aeris said stiffly while Kronk nodded, looking sad at this lack of trust.

  Simon glared at them both and then grinned widely.

  “Ha! Just kidding!” he said and laughed at Aeris' offended look.

  It passed quickly and the air elemental smiled tentatively.

  Kronk, on the other hand, laughed out loud.

  “You got us that time, master,” he chortled with a sideways glance at Aeris.

  “Sorry guys, I couldn't resist. Things are dark and gloomy, I know, but we can't let ourselves wallow in depression, right?”

  “Yes, agreed,” Aeris said firmly as they followed Simon from the tent. “We must be optimistic, I suppose.”

  “Good. Kronk, if you want to get your friends from where they're walking the perimeter, why don't you start your construction now?”

  “Ah, good idea, master. There is so much to do!”

  He saluted and disappeared underground.

  “Come on,” the wizard said to Aeris. “Let's see if the others have made a decision yet.”

  “Right.”

  Chapter 26

  The group of four, as Simon thought of them, had returned while he was talking to the elementals and were waiting for him, drinking juice and eating sandwiches while they waited.

  Simon smiled at them all, grabbed something to eat and drink and sat down, Aeris hovering over his left shoulder.

  He didn't speak, just ate hungrily and waited for someone else to open the conversation. Truthfully, even after what he'd said to Aeris and Kronk, he was depressed at the thought of Ethmira's treachery. He had believed they were friends, comrades in arms and now...now he feared that they might meet in battle, on opposite sides. It was a bleak thought.

  Virginia cleared her throat and Simon focused her as she sat up, glanced at her friends and began to speak.

  “We've talked it out,” she told him gravely. “There are some general concerns about leaving our friends here without our support, but if we take the long view, eliminating the brown dragons will ensure their safety in the future.”

  She hesitated and Simon nodded encouragingly.

  “The red dragons remain, but apparently you are going to ward the town hall before heading to the elvish realm, so at least the townspeople will have a refuge in case of an attack.”

  “I'll be doing that, yes. So I take it you've decided to come along?”

  “Was there ever any doubt?” Gerard said with a grin. “How can we sit on the sidelines and let you have all of the fun and glory?”

  “You have a weird definition of fun,” Liliana said as she joined the group, but she was smiling as she said it. She sat down and swung her sword out of the way.

  “So what comes next, sir wizard?” she asked calmly.

  “Next? Next I call my friend Daniel and arrange for an elf to take us through to their world. As I understand it, there are places around the Earth where the two worlds coexist or overlap or something and the elves can step from one plane to the other. I don't know how they do it, but I do know that without their help, we can't cross over.”

  He finished his juice, set the glass down on a table and leaned forward.

  “But as to when we leave, I'll leave that up to you all. Today? Tomorrow? Considering the time differential, it doesn't really make much of a difference.”

  “Speaking for myself, I am ready whenever you are,” the paladin said and then looked at the others curiously.

  “The same,” Virginia said. Anna nodded while Eric and Gerard simply sat quietly. “We have no real preparations to make. Just tell us when we leave and we'll be ready.”

  “Excellent,” Simon said and stood up. “I'll call Daniel and make the arrangements. Personally, I'd prefer to get another night's sleep and start off fresh tomorrow, considering the energy I'll be expending on warding the town hall. But I'll let you know what my friend wants to do shortly.”

  He left again with Aeris trailing along behind him, went back to his tent and grabbed the mirror. Then Simon walked outside and made his way to the main gate. He greeted the guard on duty and heading out of the town to the grassy fields beyond.

  “Why are we all the way out here?” Aeris asked when Simon had found a comfortable spot and sat down in the long, waving grass.

  The breeze was warm and comforting and he leaned back on his elbows for a moment, gazing down the slope at the distant ocean waves.

  “No reason, really. I just want to enjoy the weather while I can. Beside, that tent has turned into a sauna and I'd rather not sit in there for any length of time.”

  “Ah, I see.”

  Aeris hovered just above the top of the grass and looked around, seeming to find the view as restful as Simon did.

  “You like it here?” the wizard asked him.

  “Like it? Yes, I suppose I do. I'm as tired of winter as you are, my dear wizard. It would be nice to spend the season down here with the others. And yet, it isn't home, is it? Something about that tower of yours makes me miss it when I'm away too long.”

  Simon had to smile at the elemental's wistful tone.

  “I know what you mean. This place,” he waved at the area around them, “is lovely and certainly I won't mind visiting often, if things go our way. But it isn't home and never will be. I think I've put down roots up north. They're deep and strong and will always draw me back. I suppose that's as good a definition of home as any.”

  He held up the mirror, chanted the communication spell and waited. The reflective surface fogged up and cleared again almost immediately and Simon watched as the image of Daniel swam into view.

  He wasn't certain how much time had passed since they'd last spoken, but it couldn't have been long in the elven realm, as he saw his friend and Ethmira standing in a forest clearing and waving upward. He guessed that they'd just dismounted from the back of the giant swan, Pharra.

  He waited and watched curiously as Ethmira said something to Daniel and led the way out of the clearing and into the surrounding forest. The pair walked under huge trees with pale trunks as big around as giant redwoods. The ground was almost bare with only a few scattered saplings growing here and there.

  Aeris watched over his sho
ulder with interest but remained silent.

  After a few minutes, the forest stopped abruptly at the base of a wall of stone that jutted up and out of sight. The foot of a mountain perhaps, Simon thought. It was like a wall of rock and at the bottom there was a gap, an opening that led into darkness.

  “A cave,” he whispered. Aeris nodded in agreement.

  The mirror went dark as Daniel and Ethmira entered the cave and Simon watched nervously, waiting for them to emerge into the light again.

  Eventually, the image brightened and the wizard drew in a sharp breath.

  His friend had walked into massive cavern. Sunlight was blazing down from many small holes in the ceiling and, as Simon watched, Ethmira picked up a torch from a bundle near the tunnel entrance, lit it and proceeded to light torches that were placed all around the walls.

  The floor was covered in fine sand and there were many piles of bags and boxes, supplies obviously. The cave itself was the size of a cathedral and the ceiling soared overhead, at least fifty feet above them.

  “So this is your refuge?” Daniel asked Ethmira, his voice echoing around the cavern.

  “It is,” she replied as she walked the perimeter, lighting torches. “And this is simply the first chamber. The cave goes deep into the mountain and has room for as many of my people as wish to join us.”

  She put her torch in a bracket on the wall and crossed the cavern to rejoin Daniel. She pointed at the piles of supplies.

  “I've been stocking this place with essentials for a long time now, just in case we needed to retreat here. No dragon can squeeze through that entry tunnel and the light up there,” she pointed over their heads, “is funneled down through dozens of feet of solid rock. Not even a primal dragon could force its way in here.”

  Daniel nodded in approval.

  “Wonderful,” he said. “I can't conceive of a better place of safety. When are you going to contact your new council and have them join us?”

  “Right away. There is an aviary further in with small tunnels that allow our birds access to the caves. I've moved several here over the past month or two to get them used to their new home. I'll head in now and send off a few to get in touch with my fellow councilors. Make yourself at home, my friend. There are bedrolls stacked over there and food there.”

  She pointed at a small alcove that Simon had missed as he'd watched her light the torches in the cave.

  “There is a well with clean water in the nook there, if you are thirsty. I won't be long.”

  “Thank you. Take your time. I'm a bit tired actually so I just want to sit down and recover my strength.”

  She grasped his shoulder and gave him a warm squeeze and a smile before turning away and walking off. Daniel smiled after her but Simon felt a flash of anger as he watched her performance.

  “She's quite convincing, isn't she?” Aeris whispered.

  Simon had to agree.

  Daniel walked across the cavern, picked up a bedroll and found a spot along the wall to open it. He sat down on it and leaned back against the rocky wall with a sigh.

  “You can talk now,” he said in a weary voice. “We're alone.”

  “So you can still feel it when I'm trying to communicate?” Simon asked, not very surprised.

  “Of course. Strangely enough, I don't believe Ethmira can. At any rate, you've called back quickly, so I assume that you and your friends have made a decision?”

  “We have and, as you might expect, they've all elected to join me in the coming battle. What I need to know is where and when you want me and my friends to be so that an elf can escort us across to the elven world.”

  Daniel remained silent for so long that Simon thought that he might have dozed off. But the man finally stood up, slowly, and walked across the cavern to the nook where Ethmira had said there was a well. As the wizard and Aeris watched, the man drew up a bucket of water from the shallow well, poured some into a cup that he'd grabbed from a low shelf nearby and then re-entered the main cave.

  There was a click inside of Simon's head and then he was staring directly at Daniel's face.

  “There you are,” his old friend said. “Hang on and let me sit down again. I'm quite tired.”

  “Of course.”

  Once he was comfortable, Daniel glanced around the cave and then met Simon's eyes again.

  “Now, before we make any arrangements, why don't you tell me what's going on?”

  “Going on? What do you mean?”

  “Don't look at me with those big innocent mismatched eyes and try to con me. I've known you too long, old friend. It's obvious that you don't want to speak in front of Ethmira and I'd like to know why.”

  He might have been tired, but there was steel in Daniel's voice and Simon knew better than to prevaricate.

  “Okay then, since you've asked. But first, answer me this. Did Ethmira or another 'elder' cast a glamor on you two before you left for your recent scouting mission?”

  “A glamor?”

  Daniel stared at him blankly for a moment and then smiled.

  “Oh right. Didn't I mention something like that to you once? If I did, it must have been an idea that I drew from old legends. I mean, come on, Simon, you know better than that. Elves can't cast spells.”

  “Damn it,” the wizard muttered. He looked away from the mirror toward the ocean again, trying to remain calm.

  “So why ask me about a glamor? What's this all about?”

  “Are you sure you're alone?” Simon asked in a low voice.

  His friend turned his head in the direction that Ethmira had left and nodded.

  “Completely,” he replied, but Daniel also dropped his voice almost to a whisper. “So what is happening?”

  “I believe,” Simon hesitated and then rushed on. “I believe that Ethmira is a traitor. And I think that she's been one for a very long time.”

  Daniel stared at him with wide eyes and then looked back toward the far side of the cave, checking to make sure the elf hadn't returned.

  “So you think that an elf, an elder of her people, would side with dragons?” he hissed.

  The wizard only nodded silently and then his friend sighed and closed his eyes.

  “How did you know?” he asked simply.

  Simon's mouth dropped open.

  “Wait a second,” he gasped. “You believe me? I mean, you know too?”

  Daniel opened his eyes and glared at his friend.

  “I may be many things, Simon, but stupid isn't one of them. The elves could never conceive of one of their own betraying them and siding with the dragons, but we humans have a long history of betrayal behind us, don't we? And of course there was the turning of your herb witch neighbor, Heather, against us to teach us a lesson. Yes, I know. Or at least I've suspected. Little things betrayed her, but it was the attack of the brown dragons directly on the elves that sealed my belief.”

  “I don't understand. What about the attack?”

  Daniel sighed.

  “Simon, not even a dragon could enter this world without elvish aid. The primal brown and its servants were allowed to cross over with the compliance of an elf. Ethmira, I would assume.”

  He turned his head sharply, staring across the cave for a tense moment, and then relaxed again.

  “Nothing. But look, this is neither the time nor the place to discuss this. Let's do so face to face. I will arrange for an elf to meet you there in Florida tomorrow, your time. They will bring you all across and then transport you here.”

  “Who are you speaking to, Daniel?” a voice called from across the cavern and Simon felt a swooping feeling in the pit of his stomach. It was Ethmira.

  His friend simply glanced up from looking into the cup and waved her over.

  “Simon's called back,” he said calmly. “He and his friends have decided to join in the fight.”

  He shifted slightly and then Ethmira was looking out of the mirror at Simon.

  “Ah, hello, my friend,” she said warmly and the wizard forced a
smile on to his face.

  “Hi Ethmira. Sorry if I'm calling at a bad time but...”

  “Not at all. As you may have noticed, we've moved to a new location. It's much more secure and I'd say we could hold off a dragon attack for quite some time.”

  “That's great news. Anyway, I'm late for another meeting here, so I'll leave you and Daniel to make plans for our trip to your world. It was good to talk to you again.”

  “And you. Simon. Hopefully we'll be speaking face to face soon.”

  “Hopefully. Take care, Daniel,” he said with a significant look at his old friend, who smiled neutrally in return.

  “You too. See you soon.”

  Simon broke the connection and put the mirror into his lap. It was only then that he realized that he was shaking like a leaf from head to toe.

  “Are you okay?” Aeris asked him as he noticed the wizard trembling.

  “No. No, I don't think so. Betraying your friends, your family? It's just about the worst thing that I can think of, especially if it can lead to their deaths. And yet, there's Ethmira all sweetness and light as she secretly twists a knife in the back of her own people. Frankly, it's sickening.”

  “It will only get worse,” the elemental told him ominously. “How will you react when you meet her in person?”

  Simon stood up with a grunt and slipped the mirror into a pocket of his robe. He brushed some loose grass from the material and turned toward the town.

  “I have no idea. Play it by ear, I suppose. A more pressing question is, should I tell Liliana and the others about my suspicions?”

  Aeris floated to the wizard's left as they walked back.

  “What possible good would that do?” he asked practically. “They will only be distracted at a time when they should be focused totally on the mission to come. If and when it becomes necessary, you can tell them then.”

  Simon rubbed his eyes, waved to the guard as they entered the town and nodded.

  “Yeah, I guess that's so. Okay, I'll hold off for now. Let's go ahead to the hall and start casting the wards. That way I'll have a chance to rest longer before tomorrow.”

  “And whatever that may bring,” Aeris added bleakly.