Do the Gods Give Us Hope?

by Jeff Henrikson

  “That still doesn’t mean they want to start a war. When Captain Sheval slammed the door in their faces they seemed angry, but not insane.”

  Rafa looked as though he were talking to a child. “Oh, I see. So two days after the elves left, a pair of giants attacked Endwood. That is certainly convenient. During that attack, a stray arrow of a color not used by Kentar soldiers just happened to kill Captain Sheval. That is convenient. Then a ghost calling himself the Protector of the Forest began appearing and eventually forced everyone to abandon their posts and run for their lives into the woods.”

  Rafa paused to let Jon catch up. Jon had known the facts of what happened, but he had never thought about it in that way. He had been so busy defending the town and then trekking his refugees across the countryside that he hadn’t seen the big picture.

  Rafa must have sensed his realization. “You are a captain in the Kentarian Army, and you are intelligent enough to see the obvious. The elves destroyed Endwood. We may not have absolute proof, but that is what happened.”

  Jon could see the logic in Rafa’s argument. “What would you have me do?”

  “The evidence was enough to convince King Benjin that his citizens were wrongfully attacked and killed. He has decided to march all of Kentar’s strength to the east in order to confront this enemy. He will have their explanation or he will have their blood. But his one stipulation is that he will not act without you. He knows the army is marching into enemy territory. It is their forest after all. Humans have avoided Glenmyr Forest for more than five hundred years. You are the only officer who was at Endwood when it was attacked, and you are the only one with experience against the elves. The King and General Donell have both asked for your support. Will you stand with your countrymen to avenge this injustice?”

  Rafa made a good deal of sense, but Jon was not entirely convinced. He knew Rafa was holding something back. He didn’t know how he knew, and he had doubts in himself, but he trusted his instincts. He chose a soldier’s life in part because he wasn’t smart enough to apprentice as a tradesman, nor confident enough to start his own business. However, his instincts almost always led him true. Sure, his intuition was wrong on occasion, but more often than not, the way he felt about a situation proved accurate once the facts were known. And what he felt on this occasion was that Rafa was playing him false. Still, everything he said was true, and what he said was enough to ask the mythical elves, who had remained hidden from history for more than three hundred years, some tough questions.

  “Yes, I will travel with the army to the frontier in order to confront the elves and ask them what happened at Endwood,” Jon responded, “but if it is found that they had nothing to do with the town’s destruction, then I expect we will leave them in peace.”

  “Excellent. The army is leaving in two days. I will tell the King and General Donell that they can expect your support. Thank you, Captain Campbell. Your people need you. I promise this is a decision you will not regret.”

  Jon said nothing, but rather thought to himself, I hope you are right. Rafa moved to the door and made his quiet exit into the hallway. After the door shut behind him, Jon sat quietly for a long time before he recovered the paper from the floor and finished the letter to his wife and son.

  Chapter 89: On the Road Again

  How many days had it been since they had slept, Mestel had difficulty remembering. All they did day in and day out was ride their horses down the endless dirt road to Kentar, trying to catch up with Faye before her captor made it to Locus and disappeared forever. The companions barely stopped to eat, let alone sleep. At first, the constant riding hadn’t bothered anyone, Mestel especially, since he had the iron will of Martel to draw on, but that indifference was changing rapidly.

  The companions were all exhausted and it was starting to show. Tempers were getting short, nerves frayed, and most of the companions were starting to nod off in their saddles. All, that is, except for Nero. The special agent sent by the Armenien Crown was impressive; there was no denying that. While everyone else’s faculties grew dull with sleep deprivation, Nero’s mind remained sharp. While everyone else fell asleep in his or her saddle, Nero rode beside each companion in turn and offered words of encouragement. When Evisar needed advice or seemed uncertain about where to go next, Nero was always there with a fresh idea. Mestel had to admit that it bothered him somewhat to see Nero usurp, in part, his role as counselor to his brother, but then he remembered he was above such things now and that he answered a higher calling. In the end, weary to the bone though they were, there was nothing else they could do but press on.

  The companions, along with Ellen, had ridden out of Wessex and passed through the town of Dowden before the end of the first day. They had left Austen behind to manage the open portal and try to return Wessex to some semblance of normalcy. From there, they had continued west for two more days until they reached the end of the Dragon Spine Mountains and entered the Undying Swamp. The road began curving to the northwest when the Long Drop Mountains came into view. Shortly thereafter, Evisar led the companions off the road and headed southwest. It was unfortunate that the dirt road did not continue all the way to Locus, but hopefully there would be another road once they crossed the river.

  They had just left the road that morning, heading southwest in grassland that grew increasingly wet and marshy. It would be less than a day now before they came upon the northern fork of the Ice River, which was virtually impassable down by Dowden and Wessex without a boat. Once they crossed the north fork of the river they were then going to have to trek through the Unyielding Marsh, probably up to their knees or waists in murky, still water. On the far side of the marsh, they would have to cross the south fork of the Ice River before finally passing into the Kingdom of Kentar. Mestel often wondered how the Kingdom of Kentar could have remained ignorant of the existence of elves for over three hundred years, but after making part of this journey the answer became clear. The distances between Armena and Kentar were vast. Even more than that, the current border of Armena was well inside Glenmyr Forest. If a traveler wanted to go around the forest, there was no road, but there were two fast rivers, the largest mountain range on the continent of Tellus, and a large expanse of marshland to block his path.

  Sometime after the Undying Swamp, but before the Long Drop Mountains came into view, Nero had peeled off to the north and returned with the cache of gold and weapons he had promised back in Darkwood Forest. No one asked where Nero had obtained the weapons and Nero did not offer an explanation. He simply rode back into the companion’s formation and distributed what he thought would be helpful. Some new armor, a few rings, and most importantly, new blades. Everyone received a new weapon, including Ellen. The weapons were not just new. Mestel could tell that all of them had at least minor magical properties. Mestel accepted a compound bow from Nero that was flawless in its construction and could shoot arrows at a farther distance with more power. Nero offered a new two-handed sword to Evisar, but his brother respectfully declined, choosing instead to keep Neverlost as his primary weapon. Nero understood Evisar’s reluctance to give up his father’s blade, saying that he had never seen the equal of Neverlost, both in beauty and in magical power.

  As the sun rose for the sixth day on the road to Kentar, Mestel rode ahead of the companions with Ellen at his side. Mestel fooled himself into thinking he was riding to the front of the column because he was driven by his god’s decree to rescue a wrongly imprisoned child and wanted to push everyone else along, but when he was honest with himself, Mestel just wanted to stay as far away from Xander as possible. Xander always seemed to second guess and argue with him about every single suggestion he made. Mestel didn’t understand Xander’s need to single him out in particular, but he didn’t let Xander’s idiocy bother him. He was above that now. He had more important things to consider.

  In another honest moment, Mestel also realized he traveled ahead of everyone else because Evisar didn’t seem to want him around as much. His bro
ther never said anything out loud, and he never would, but the change in attitude was obvious to Mestel. He was a little more formal when he talked directly with Mestel, and he often seemed to wait until Ellen was not riding next to him. Evisar also seemed to be relying on Nero’s advice more and more and asking for Mestel’s opinion less often than he had in the past. Unlike Xander’s idiotic irritations, Evisar’s chilling attitude was hurtful. Mestel hated the fact that he didn’t see eye to eye with his brother these days, but then he reminded himself that he had chosen this path. He had chosen, above all else, to be Martel’s voice on Tellus. Serving his master in whole rather than in part was far more important than any brotherly relationship.

  Mestel also knew that his feelings for Ellen were of great concern to his brother. His brother saw her as a liability, an unwanted burden and stress on their relationship. In this, he was not alone. Mestel had mixed feelings about this human woman he loved. Ellen should have been undesirable because of her humanity, yet Mestel found her beauty totally enthralling. Not only that, but Ellen was nearly elf-like in her ability to appreciate humor, look at a situation long term, and remain rational under great stress. Even when her daughter was taken from her, possibly forever, Ellen did not shut down. Instead, she thought rationally about how to solve a difficult problem, going so far as to leave the only town she had ever known and put her own life in danger.

  It was now mid-morning as Mestel and Ellen led the companions southwest through the grassland toward the northern fork of the Ice River. The sun was shining brightly on what promised to be a cloudless day. Mestel took a moment to look behind him to make sure the rest of the companions were keeping up, when he noticed something that should not have been there. He stopped his horse and turned around while he waited for the rest of the companions to approach.

  Mestel looked at Evisar and said, “I think Valihorn’s ring has attracted another strange creature.”

  Everyone turned around and looked toward the east. Evisar said, “What do you mean? I don’t see anything.”

  Mestel smiled slightly and thought it was amusing how you could often hide something in plain sight. “There are two suns in the sky where there should only be one.”

  Everyone turned around and looked again, staring in awe at the unbelievable sight. Far to the east, just above the horizon, there were clearly two suns in the sky. The first one was orange, as the sun often was so close to the horizon, and the second one was nearly pure white. The white sun was significantly smaller than the orange one.

  Evisar spoke for everyone. “What is happening?”

  Mestel said, “I don’t know, but if you look closer at the white star, you will see that it is growing larger, which means whatever it is, is coming toward us.”

  _______________________________________

  Nero was once again riding a gods-damned horse down some muddy rat run of a road. It reminded him of when he and Gaston had chased after Xander and the companions in order to recover the gem. He and Gaston had spent a full turn of the moon riding horses day in and day out, trying to chase Xander down, but the rogue had always stayed just out of reach. Of course, Nero hadn’t known at the time that Xander was traveling with other elves.

  But now things were different. Nero was actually traveling with the companions. He was on the inside, biding his time, waiting for the right moment. Through his brilliance and cunning, he had managed to join Evisar’s little band of travelers under the pretense of helping them find the First Heir and return him to the throne.

  The thing he hated most about traveling with the companions was pretending to be cheerful and helpful all the time. After traveling with the companions for more than a few days, he still wasn’t terribly impressed with the elf brothers, so having to be subservient to them was somewhat trying. One of the brothers was a good bowman and the other was a good swordsman, and that was about as far as their skills went. How they had managed to survive up to this point was a mystery that continued to confound him. It was true Nero had lived a double life for the last forty years between the Talon Thieves Guild and the elves of Armena, but at least he respected his Philosopher superiors. If his true allegiance wasn’t with the Talon Guild, he would have served the Philosophers with distinction because he respected their leadership. He couldn’t say the same of the brothers with whom he now traveled.

  He knew he would have no trouble acting out a double life for the companions while remaining loyal to the Guild, since it was exactly what he had been doing up to now. As they traveled the road to Kentar, Nero offered advice to Evisar when it was called for, and rode among the companions offering words of encouragement and keeping them in their saddles as fatigue began to set in.

  Nero never forgot even for a moment that his real purpose for traveling with the companions was to recover the gem from Xander. A difficult task, even for a thief. The two of them were rarely alone, and even when they were, it is difficult to steal someone’s prized possession when they keep it near them at all times. Nero had hopes of slicing the pouch holding the gem open while Xander slept, but the companions always slept close together and set a watch. Even when Nero was given the watch, and hence the only one awake, Xander slept with his hand around the pouch.

  As much as Nero hated traveling with the companions, he could afford to be patient. His time was approaching; he could feel it. As Nero rode up alongside Xander, he realized that time could be now. The companions had been on the road for five days without a wink of sleep, and he could see Xander nodding off in his saddle.

  Nero pulled up directly alongside Xander and saw that his eyes were shut and his head was bobbing back and forth with each step of his horse. Nero looked quickly behind him and saw that he and Xander were at the back of the caravan, meaning Nero could afford to be a little riskier. In a few moments, Xander’s body began to tilt toward Nero; slowly at first and then all of a sudden. Nero reached out one hand to catch Xander by the shoulder and reached out his other hand toward Xander’s waist. Nero let Xander fall into him, cradling his fall, as his other hand darted from one pouch to the next in search of something hard that would fit in the palm of his hand. It took a few moments for Xander to wake up, and only then did Nero push him back up onto his horse. Xander looked at him in sleepy appreciation, knowing it would have been both bruising to his body and his ego if he had fallen off his horse.

  Nero smiled back and cursed under his breath. During the fall he had managed to search two of the pouches around Xander’s waist but had not found anything the size of the gem. Nero continued to ride next to Xander in the hopes that he would have another opportunity. It did not take long before Xander closed his heavy eyelids and his head slumped forward once again. Like before, Nero reached out one hand to catch Xander, while his other hand darted for his waist. Nero’s hand moved from one pouch to the next as Xander fell toward him, but it was the hand catching Xander that found the surprise. This time, Nero’s off hand pushed against Xander’s chest, where he felt something hard. Nero brought his other hand up quick as lightning to continue the search. The item was underneath Xander’s leather armor and shirt and would be very difficult to get at. Nero had to give Xander credit – he was certainly no fool. He brought one hand up to Xander’s neck and found a leather strap, meaning he kept his most precious items in a small pouch around his neck.

  Unfortunately, that was all Nero was able to learn as Xander woke up. Nero pushed him back into his saddle once again. Xander shook his head in an effort to wake his exhausted body. He seemed to come to full alertness, grabbing the reins of his horse and readjusting himself in the saddle.

  Xander turned to Nero and said, “Thanks for the help.”

  Nero was forced to smile cheerfully and said, “Glad I was here.”

  Then the two looked ahead and rode on. Nero was slightly irritated that he hadn’t been able to grab the gem, but at least he had a good idea where it was. All he needed to do was cut the leather strap with his dagger and pull the pouch out from around Xander’s
neck. Seven hells, he might be able to do it the next time the companions stopped to sleep, whenever that might be. Nero rode alongside Xander for a while longer, hoping the gods would give him a third chance to grab the gem from Xander, but just as Xander’s eyelids started to close once again he heard Mestel’s voice off in the distance.

  “I think Valihorn’s ring has attracted another strange creature.”

  Nero turned around with everyone else and looked east. Evisar said, “What do you mean? I don’t see anything.”

  Nero immediately saw the problem but did not say anything.

  Mestel responded matter of factly, saying, “There are two suns in the sky where there should only be one.”

  ____________________________________________

  Mestel couldn’t believe what he was seeing, but it was there. Next to the rising sun was a smaller, secondary star that did not belong. The sun Mestel was used to seeing was fully above the horizon as mid-morning approached. It was a yellowish orange and slightly larger than normal, just as one would expect. Directly to the right was a second, much smaller, white sun.

  Valihorn asked, “Could it be a star that escaped the night to shine during the day?”

  “No. Definitely not. It’s white like a star, but it’s larger and it doesn’t twinkle the way a star should. Even if it is a star that escaped the night, there’s no way it could be visible when it’s so close to the sun,” Mestel responded.

  “Could it be a comet or a meteor, then?” Valihorn asked.

  Mestel said, “No. Comets and meteors move across the sky, but this second sun is just hanging there, unmoving.”

  Next to Mestel, Ellen said, “So what do we do?”

  “I think we need to keep moving,” Evisar said. “We don’t know what that is, or even if it has anything to do with us.”