"We can't just murder them now that they're our prisoners!" Raven objected with a shocked expression. "There must be something else that we can do!"
"Such as?" Brody asked helplessly. "They are blood elves! They do not deserve mercy, and they would certainly show none if the roles were reversed!"
"That may be true, but we are not murderers." Raven told him firmly. "We will not slaughter these elves when they are already helpless. It wouldn't be right."
"Was it right when these murderers tried to kill us?" The elven ambassador demanded angrily. "Or when their brethren slaughtered countless innocents in the name of their foul god?"
"No, it wasn't," The young woman told him fearlessly. "but what makes you any different from them if you go around slaughtering the helpless? You would be just as bad as the blood elves!"
Brody opened his mouth to reply, but suddenly stopped, his expression growing troubled. "I-I hadn't thought of it in that way before." He admitted, glancing over at the blood elves with a frown.
"We can always bring them with us to Oakenvale." Shirk suggested blandly, still hovering over the prisoners with his hand firmly on his dagger. "We can just tie them to the horses and make them jog along behind."
"What if one of them falls?" Raven asked doubtfully.
"Then we just drag him along until he finds his feet again." The old bandit said with a shrug.
Everyone turned to look at Brody.
"I guess it could work." The elven ambassador said after a moment. "We shall need to find a suitable prison for them, and make certain that they cannot injure one another, but I'm sure that the city elders will have such a place that we can use."
"That's what we'll do then." Damion decided, walking back towards their prisoners. "We'll take them to Oakenvale and lock them up until they can be questioned further. They may know other details that may come in useful later."
They quickly secured the prisoners to a tree at the edge of the clearing using a thick, heavy rope, then, after removing the remaining corpses from the clearing, they settled back down around the fire to finish their meal.
After everyone had finished eating, they settled down to rest, save for Brody, who volunteered to stay awake and keep watch over their prisoners.
"Wake me when you start to get tired." Damion told him as he settled down on his bedroll next to Raven. "I'll take over keeping watch over the prisoners while you get some rest."
"I will." Brody promised, settling down across the fire from the prisoners, his expression still troubled.
Damion watched him for a long moment, then glanced over to Snowfeather, who had retrieved the rabbit that he had caught earlier that evening. "Keep an eye on Brody and the prisoners tonight." He told the huge owl. "Something about all of this doesn't feel quite right." He settled into his bedroll, and found himself face to face with his young wife.
"What do you think?" She asked in a whisper. "Do you really believe that Brody thought you were a blood elf when he tried to kill you?"
"I'm not sure," The huge warrior murmured cautiously. "but I do know that those blood elves were interested in more than just killing us."
"What do you mean?"
"I heard a pair of them talking as they made their way towards the grove." He murmured, glancing over to Brody, who was still sitting next to the fire. "One of them said that they should just sit back and fill us full of arrows, and then collect the sword after we were all dead."
"They wanted the Dragon Sword?" Raven's expression grew grim.
"It appears that way." Damion frowned. "I'm beginning to suspect that our coming here had very little to do with helping to combat the blood elves, and more to do with bringing the Dragon Sword to the island."
"But that would mean this whole struggle between the blood elves and Petra's followers is a ruse." The young woman said in a troubled tone.
"Not necessarily," Damion murmured, his eyes lost in thought. "Someone could just be using this conflict, and our arrival on the island, to their advantage. Besides, too many elves have died for it all to be a hoax."
"Why didn't you question the prisoners about their plans for the sword?"
"Because I didn't wish to alert them to the fact that we're aware that the sword is their true target." He explained quietly. "We don't have any idea who all is in on the plot, and we don't want the prisoners to alert any of their co-conspirators that we've discovered their plan."
"What about Brody?" Raven asked hesitantly. "Are you going to tell him what you overheard?"
"I think it would be best to keep him in the dark for now. His recent actions have brought his motives into question, and I think it would be prudent to avoid revealing our discovery to him until we know for sure whose side he's really on."
They settled down to get a little rest, leaving Brody to watch over their prisoners, and Snowfeather to watch over Brody.
Damion awoke an hour or so before dawn, and found Brody still sitting near the fire, an expression of sadness and misery on his face.
"Why didn't you wake me to take over the watch?" The huge warrior asked with a frown.
"I wasn't tired." Brody grumbled, glancing at Damion with a troubled expression. "I decided to just let you sleep."
"Did the prisoners give you any problems?" The huge warrior glanced over to the elves, who were all still secured tightly to the tree, their chins tucked close to their chests as they slept.
The elven ambassador shook his head. "They asked for some water a couple of hours ago, but they have been quiet ever since."
After giving Raven and Shirk an other hour or so to rest, Damion roused them from their bedrolls, and they set about breaking down their camp while Raven prepared their breakfast.
"Make sure that you prepare enough food for our prisoners as well." Damion reminded his wife, glancing over to the elves, who were all still sleeping.
"Why waste the food on them?" Brody asked in a harsh tone. "They may be helpless, but they are still our enemy."
"Perhaps if we show them a bit of kindness, they'll tell us what that they know." Shirk suggested, going over to shake the elves awake.
"It would do us no good." Brody shook his head. "They would be more likely to lie and send us on a wild goose chase, than actually tell us something of value."
"It's still another day's ride to Oakenvale," Damion reminded the elf with a frown. "and they're going to need their energy if they're going to keep up with the horses."
"I'm afraid that there isn't enough food on the island to help these fellows." Shirk told him, leaning down and examining one of the elves with a grim expression. "They're all dead."
"What?" Damion asked in surprise, then he turned to look at Brody, who was staring at the dead elves in confusion. "I thought that you said that there wasn't any problems!"
"There wasn't!" Brody walked over and checked the pulse on one of the elves, then cursed. "I swear to Petra, nothing happened! The only time that they even spoke was to ask for water!"
"That's true." Snowfeather hooted from his nearby perch. "Brody didn't even go near them until they asked him for some water. He gave them each a drink from the canteen, and then returned to his place near the fire. He couldn't have killed them."
"Brody is telling the truth." Damion told Raven and Shirk, who were both staring at the elven ambassador with suspicious gazes. "Snowfeather says that he only approached them to give them a bit of water."
"Maybe the water was poisoned." Shirk suggested, still staring at Brody warily.
"The water is not poisoned." Brody told him absently, still staring at the dead elves in confusion. "If it were poisoned, we'd all be dead. We've all been drinking from the same canteen." He leaned in and sniffed one of the elves. "This one smells like almonds." He move to the next elf, and then the next, until he had sniffed each of the dead elves. "They all smell like almonds."
"Is that significant?" Raven asked curiously.
"It is when there aren't any almond trees anywhere on the island." Brody
informed them grimly. "But there is a powerful poison that is well known on the island which smells exactly like almonds. It's called the Widow's Kiss. It's virtually tasteless, and causes those who ingest it to become very sleepy. They usually die within an hour of taking it." He searched the ground around the dead elves and located several tiny vials, which he held up for the others to see. "They must have had vials of the poison hidden in their clothes, and somehow managed to drink it while I was looking elsewhere." He snorted in disgust. "That explains why they wanted the water. The poison is supposed to be quite bitter."
"Well, we're not going to be getting any more answers out of them, that's for certain." Shirk shook his head in resignation. "I guess we're back to where we started."
"Not necessarily," Damion told him. "We managed to learn about the manor house in Oakenvale."
"That may be a trap." Shirk pointed out shrewdly. "That story could have been prearranged in case one of them happened to get captured."
"That's possible, I suppose," The huge warrior conceded. "but it's the only lead that we have." He looked to Brody, who was still staring at the dead elves with a disgusted expression. "Do you know anyone in Oakenvale who may be able to help us? Someone who knows the city and its people?"
"A few, yes," The elven ambassador replied in a reluctant tone. "but only one that I would trust enough to help us. His name is Marken, and he is an old friend that I have known since childhood. Nobody knows the city or its people better."
"I think we need to pay this Marken a visit then." Damion decided with a sigh. "I'd like to know what we'll be facing before we investigate this manor house."
They quickly finished breakfast, then they set off towards the road, leaving the dead elves back in the clearing to rot.
It was almost dusk when the cobblestone road that they were following ended at the edge of an ancient forest. A handful of stone buildings had been constructed on either side of the dead end road, and were attended by a number of elves who watched the new arrivals with suspicious gazes.
"Welcome the forest of Oakenvale." Brody told them, leading them towards the livery, where several young elves hurried out to see to their horses. "This is Edge of the Oaks, the gateway to the city in the trees. It is where the city's livery and blacksmith shops are located."
"I guess that would make sense." Raven commented, glancing around at the locals, who continued to watch them with wary gazes. "It probably wouldn't be a great idea to have a forge up in the treetops."
"How are we supposed to get up to the city?" Shirk asked curiously, staring up at the forest canopy above.
"Follow me." The elven ambassador led them along a well traveled cobblestone path which disappeared into the forest.
"These trees are enormous!" Raven marveled, running up to one of the ancient oaks and placing a fond hand against its rough bark. "It's almost like being back home in Deiria!"
"The trees of this forest are all thousands of years old." Brody told her with an amused smile. "When Ramon the Elder decided to construct Oakenvale in the branches above, he made it a crime to destroy any of the ancients oaks. They only used the deadfall that they gathered throughout the forest to construct the city, and made certain that everything in the forest below remained as unspoiled as possible."
They continued to follow the cobblestone path deeper into the forest, until they finally reached a large raised platform which had been constructed against the trunk of another ancient oak tree.
"I hope that none of you are afraid of heights." Brody commented, climbing the steps to the platform. "The view from Oakenvale is breathtaking, but the ride up can be a bit dizzying." He hurried over to a thick rope which disappeared up into the canopy high above, then took a firm grip and pulled down. The distant ring of a large bell suddenly echoed from above, causing everyone to look up curiously. After several moments, a large platform slowly began to descend towards the ground, until it finally came to a rest before them. The platform had been constructed from heavy oak, and had an elaborately wrought brass railing which had been polished until it had a mirror-like finish.
"Impressive, is it not?" Brody smiled proudly. "Ramon the Elder designed it so our people could conceal themselves from any enemies who may have followed us to the island. There's nothing like it anyplace in the world."
"That's not exactly true," Damion commented as they stepped onto the platform. "There is a similar lift in the Deolan city of Mercedia. I've used it numerous times when visiting the Deolan Council."
The smug expression on the elven ambassador's face instantly turned into a frown. "Well, I guess it's about time some of the lesser races began to catch up with the elves," He murmured, attempting to sound nonchalant. "even if it is copying elven designs. I guess they have to start somewhere."
He waited until they had all gathered on the platform, then he pulled a lever that had been built into the polished wooden floor. The platform shuddered, then slowly began to rise into the air.
"How far up is the city?" Raven asked curiously.
"About three hundred feet or so." Brody answered absently. "High enough in the canopy to avoid being seen from the forest floor below. You forget that you are so high up in trees after a while, though."
The platform continued its slow ascent up into the canopy, until they finally reached another, much larger platform which had been constructed atop the massive branches of the ancient oak tree.
Before they could even step from the platform, a dozen heavily armed elves hurried up to block their way.
"Hold it right there." One of the elves ordered in a hard tone. "State your business."
"What is this?" Brody demanded with a scowl. "Since when are visitors to Oakenvale greeted in such a manner?"
"Since the attacks by blood elves drove us to look upon every person with suspicion." The elf replied shortly. "Now state your business, or be gone. We have no use for outsiders here." He glanced towards Damion and the others meaningfully.
"These outsiders happen to be guests of Queen Serena herself!" Brody snapped, stepping right up into the guard's face fearlessly. "They have journeyed here to aid us in rooting out the blood elves! Now stand aside so we may continue with our quest!"
"Why would the queen ask outsiders for aid?" The elf asked skeptically, still staring at Damion with distrust.
"That is none of your concern," Brody growled in a dangerous tone. "Now you and your men stand aside so we may continue on our way!"
"I'm afraid it is my concern." The elf growled back unflinchingly. "The city elders have charged me and my men with protecting Oakenvale from any who would cause harm, whether they be blood elves or outsiders."
Brody and the elf stood nose to nose with one another, neither willing to back down, while the rest of the heavily armed elves watched the tense exchange with their hands firmly on their weapons.
"Etha Brody?" A rusty sounding voice called, causing everyone to look around in confusion. "Get out of the way, you bastard spawn of dwarves!" The same voice demanded irritably, causing several of the heavily armed elves to hastily step aside, revealing another, much older elf, who was easily a foot shorter than the others around him. He wore a plain brown robe and soft looking sandals, and carried a thin, delicate looking cane lightly in one hand. Though his head was completely bald, the surprising amount of white hair which sprouted from his pointy ears, and his outrageously bushy eyebrows, more than made up for what was missing. "Etha Brody!" The old elf laughed a cackling laugh. "That is you! It's been quite some time since your last visit! You didn't go and forget about me, now did you?"
"How could I forget about my oldest and dearest friend, Marken?" Brody broke out into a broad grin. "I've just been away on business." He embraced the old elf fondly.
"Business, you say?" The old elf laughed again. "From what I've heard, you and Ava Delilah left the island to go off in search of the Dragon Lord," He gave Damion an appraising look. "and if I had to guess, I'd say that you found him."
"The Dragon
Lord?" The elven guard turned to stare at Damion with wide eyes.
"Aye, that's the Dragon Lord, alright." The old elf nodded, tottering up to the huge warrior and looking him over with appraising eyes. "The stories all describe him quite specifically."
"How in the world did you find out about our trip to find the Dragon Lord?" Brody demanded in amused exasperation.
"I hear things." The old elf replied vaguely, still staring at Damion with interest.
"This man is really the Dragon Lord?" The elven guard asked again in an awed tone.
The others elves immediately retreated several steps, their eyes frightened, and their hands still on their weapons.
"He is," The old elf told him in a impatient tone. "and this is Etha Brody, Head Ambassador, and one of the queen's most trusted advisers."
The elven guard glanced back to Brody, his expression suddenly uncertain.
"If I were you, I would allow them to continue about their business before you waste any more of their time." The old elf suggested pointedly. "If you continue delaying them, they may decide to take their frustrations out on you and your men."
The elf stared at Damion and Brody indecisively.
"We really are here to help." Raven told him earnestly. "We want to stop the blood elves just as badly as you do, but you have to let us continue on our way. Please, have your men stand aside, and let us do what your queen brought us here to do."
The elf stared at Raven for a long second, then gestured for his men to allow them to pass. "If there is anything that I can do to assist you in your quest, all you need to do is ask. My men and I will be at your disposal."
"Yes, yes, Fabian," The old elf waved him off impatiently. "I'm sure they'll run straight to you if they need any help."
The elf nodded to Damion once, then he and his fellow guards turned and hurried away.
"Fabian is a good lad," The old elf murmured as he watched the elves leave. "but he can be a tad overzealous when it comes to guarding Oakenvale." He shook his head. "Those damned blood elves have caused complete chaos in the last few months. There have been several attacks here in the city, including one that involved a young elf maiden who murdered her entire family, and then began attacking random elves who happened by. Things have been very tense here ever since."
Omensent: Princess Of Dragons (Book 5) Page 27