by C. J. Krüger
“People of Arteria,” she says calmly, but her voice is amplified by magic to fill the clearing as if she were right next to everyone.
All fall silent. Some look pleased with what is about to happen but most are clearly showing their contempt.
They can’t stand the idea of a half-breed ruler, I think.
“A king has not been crowned in Arteria since the dawn of our great city. His Majesty, Diarmuid Silverblade, ruled over us with a gentle hand since the beginning of the Elves. After praying long and hard to our Holy Lights, and witnessing the renaming of the world in Their name, the choice for our next king is obvious.” She keeps her voice even and firm, making it clear that all protest will be ignored. After all, her choice is something that comes from our Gods. “Duncan Wolfe is the grandson of our beloved king, and like our world, has been renamed by our Heavenly Parents. I crown you, Duncan Lightheart, as ruler over all Arteria. The Lights bless you as Their Champion and our King! Hail!”
She bows and, with magic, summons the royal crown of Arteria into her hand. It’s made of moonsteel, a silvery metal that I’luna and Sol-theron gifted to the Elves long ago, and it shines brightly in my presence. A hushed gasp rolls throughout the crowd. It seems many of the elders were hoping the crown would be dull near me.
With a smile of satisfaction, Ayda places the crown on my head and there is a rush of energy that passes over all who are watching.
Done! The Lights say, their voice like the pure striking of a bell. Hail Lightheart.
It seems everyone was able to hear them this time, for all who are here bow down deeply. “Long live the King! Hail Lightheart!” they say and start to chant.
A rush of power courses through me and, unable to help myself, I lift my hand up high into the air. A golden light appears in my hand and a moment later materializes into a solid greatsword. The blade is broad and nearly as long as me. It shimmers with Holy Light and has an almost ethereal presence… as if it is part of this world but also outside of it.
“That is Diarmuid’s sword,” Ayda whispers, her face pale with shock. “Solraxion, the Highblade.”
Chapter Six
Solraxion pulses to the beat of my own heart. Though it’s nearly as long as myself and as thick as a tree trunk, the blade feels feather light. In my ears, I can hear it hunger for battle.
I poured my will into this blade and gifted it to Diarmuid, the voice of Sol-theron echoes in my mind. Now it is yours, My son. Use it to guard your people and dispense retribution.
Another surge of power courses though my body and I feel myself lifted into the sky. Heavy, gold-colored armor appears on my body, gleaming brightly in the remaining sunlight. It is covered in ornate patterns and in the center of the chest plate is an “L”, though the rune is nothing I’ve ever seen before.
And this is My gift to you, My Son, I’luna says to me. Armor crafted with a Mother’s love and patience. It will protect you, even in the darkest of places. My Light always goes with you.
My feet touch the ground again and I try to catch my breath. I look down at myself and feel strange, garbed in such fine armaments. Ayda looks at me with awe and also bows.
“No,” I tell her softly and shake my head. “You do not bow to me, my love.” I gently pick her up and lean forward, placing a kiss on her brow. “A wife does not bow to her husband. She stands at his side.”
“We haven’t gotten married yet,” she whispers. “And besides, Elves don’t get married.”
“My mother did,” I say, my lips forming a smile. “Before the Lights and all peoples of the world, will you be my wife, Aydamaris Sunleaf?” I take a knee in front of her and craft a ring with my will. There is a whisper of energy as the silvery metal band forms in my hand and a small blue gemstone sets itself in the middle.
I realize now that we are still standing in front of everyone, but I put that out of my mind. As King, it’s my privilege to act a little insane if I wish… especially for love. She also seems to realize that we’re in public, because her face flushes a deep red.
“Of course, Duncan,” she says softly and reaches out, allowing me to slip the ring on her finger. “I will be your wife and mate for life.”
I stand up and hold out my finger. A similar surge of power emanates from her and she crafts a matching silver band, without a stone but with incredible etchings, similar to the ones on my armor. We hold our hands together and I lean forward to kiss her deeply.
A great cheer roars from those around us. Our kiss goes on for perhaps a moment or two longer than it should, and when I pull away my face is very, very red.
All the Dwarves begin to laugh and the Chief King shouts, “We’ll break out our finest ale, if you Elves think you can hold your liquor!”
I face the crowd with Ayda at my side. I look down at her and can’t help but smile. Grandfather would be happy, I think.
I know he would, she replies.
“People of the world,” I say, my voice thundering. “Though this is unconventional and perhaps a little strange… especially to my Elven kin… in the name of the Lights, I pronounce this woman to be my holy wife and I her husband. As They decreed upon the creation of the universe, we all have a soulmate we must search for until we find. She is mine and I am hers… and this public confession of that is a sacrament in Their name.”
Ayda squeezes my hand and smiles up at me. “I speak for myself when I say that I think this is a part of Human culture we Elves should adopt.”
“Hear, hear!” my mother shouts and the crowd laughs.
“For my first royal command: disperse!” I say, chuckling loudly. “My new wife and I are going on a walk while the great feast celebrating the coronation—and now also our marriage—is being prepared. Talk among yourselves and be merry. This is a joyful day. Even in times of darkness, the Lights are always with us.”
* * *
“That was unexpected, Duncan,” Ayda says as we walk through the tranquil forest.
I don’t respond right away. I take in the moment of just being next to her and my arm being linked with hers. “It seemed like the right thing to do.”
She leans on me as we walk. “What happened to your armor, by the way?” she asks curiously. “One moment you were wearing it and then it was gone.”
“Pocket Magic,” I tell her. “It’s a trick I learned in school.”
She furrows her brows. “Pocket Magic?” she asks, sounding confused. “What is that?”
“You use Arkana to create a pocket world for storing items,” I explain. “It’s something Headmaster Zedamidus discovered. I’ve never used it before because it takes so much energy, but just now it felt strangely easy to do. I think it’s because the armor and sword are so magical themselves.”
“I do recall Zed being very crafty with magic,” she tells me, sounding impressed. “It’s nice to see Humans being so innovative. We have something similar, but we transport the item from far away instead.”
A smile forms on my lips. “That takes even more effort,” I say softly. “Men like to find ways to exploit magic, I think, because we are inherently lazy. The first few spells the Magi invented were to make brooms sweep on their own.”
She chuckles. “That just about scared me out of my skin when I first saw it. We would just make the dust clear itself. No need for sweeping at all.”
“I suppose that’s useful.” I chuckle. “In any case, the sword is still here and so is the armor. It’s just in its own world, waiting to be called on.”
She takes my hand and gives it a squeeze. “Good,” she says firmly. “You’re going to need them.”
The subject of war isn’t one I wish to discuss right now. Not when I have something to be so happy about. Catching the scent of water I say, “I think there is a pool around here somewhere. Let’s stop there and talk for a while.”
She nods. “It really amazes me how much you have changed, Duncan. It’s difficult to explain and I can’t quite get over it.”
“We have a long time to figure this ou
t,” I tell her assuringly. “A long, long time.”
We walk for a time in silence until we catch sight of the pools. I take off my boots and sit down by the water’s edge. Slowly, I place my feet into the cool water and wince because it feels like little knives are stabbing my toes.
“What do your parents think?” she asks, sitting next to me. “Eldatha has always been like a sister to me and it’s difficult to think of her as a ‘mother-in-law,’ as Humans call it.”
“Was she?” I ask, furrowing my brows. “I didn’t know that.” I hold her hand and say, “To be honest, I don’t know how they feel. I would think they are happy for me, but it all happened so fast and I never had a chance to talk with them.”
She squeezes my hand and looks out at the water quietly. I can see that she’s thinking about something and it’s troubling her. Reaching out, I gently trace the curve of her face with my free hand.
“What’s on your mind, my love?” I ask gently.
“My parents,” she says sadly. She tries to smile, but it’s weak and forced. “They both died during the second war. Sivandar and I were only newborns at the time.”
I frown and look down. “I’m sorry,” I tell her, though the words feel stupid and inadequate.
“We grew up loved,” she tells me. “Diarmuid took us in and raised us. I think he liked having little ones underfoot. Your mother was just a little younger than us, and he enjoyed the trouble we got into.”
Recalling something from school, I frown deeply. “But didn’t Sivandar teach her how to use the blade?” I ask, trying to work out the details.
Ayda smiles and leans on my shoulder. “We all took our different paths when we grew. I went into the study of the Lights, while Sivandar had incredible talent with the sword and eventually rivaled Diarmuid’s skill. Your mother went into the healing arts for a few thousand years, and then Sivandar taught her the sword.”
“It amazes me sometimes to think how old everyone is compared to me,” I say, frowning deeply. “I made up a number in my head, calling Grandfather twenty thousand years old. But that’s actually nothing compared to his real age, is it?”
She nods and hugs me tightly. “I don’t think numbers had any meaning for him. He was ancient when this world was still young.” Her face spreads into a grin and then she suddenly laughs, a silvery laugh. “But he was forever young. Even when I was a child, I never really felt like he was an adult. I didn’t even know he was the King until I was nearly fully grown.”
“I know the feeling,” I say, recalling the days when I was a small boy. He and I used to run in the forest, pretending to be the great cats of Arteria. “But he was a lot tougher on me as soon as I was older. There was no mistaking who he was then.”
She chuckles. “No,” she agrees. “Shall we swim?”
“We don’t have swimming clothes,” I point out.
Shrugging, she starts to slip out of her dress. “That doesn’t matter.”
I gulp and feel heat rushing to my face. “You’re serious?”
She nods and slides the dress down her chest and past her hips. She’s not wearing anything underneath. With a laugh, she jumps into the water and begins to swim around.
“It’s cold, but don’t worry, your Majesty, I’ll keep you warm,” she says playfully and splashes me with water.
The cold strikes me in the face and soaks the front of my tunic. “Well, I guess I’m wet already,” I say, taking off my clothes. “But we can’t swim too long. We’ll catch cold.”
She rolls her eyes. “We’ll be fine. Now get in here.”
I sigh and resign myself to the fate of being cold and shriveled. Once the rest of my clothes are gone I jump into the water after her. The cold knocks the air out of me but once I start swimming it becomes easier to breathe.
“See, it’s not so bad,” she says as she wraps her arms around my neck and kisses me.
I kiss her back and slide my hands against her skin. Cold or not, there is no place I’d rather be, and nothing I would rather be doing than feeling her body pressed against mine.
“Duncan,” she says shyly, pulling away from the kiss. “I know… I know—”
I silence her with another kiss and start running my fingers through her soaked, silver hair. Her smell fills my nose and I breathe in her scent deeply. The fear I once had of getting close to people vanishes as I kiss her more and more. I don’t even know what my body is doing—I’m just acting on instinct. There is only one thing I want right now, and that is to be as close as possible to my wife.
Pulling away from the kiss, I tell her in a thick voice, “I’m ready to become one with you, Ayda. I love you.”
“I love you, too.” Running her hands over my back, she pulls me closer and kisses me with all the passion she possesses.
Chapter Seven
Aydamaris Lightheart
(Year 3761)
I rest my head on Duncan’s shoulder, trying to catch my breath. The soft grass under us makes my wet skin itch, but I can mostly ignore it. “That was…”
“A little…”
“We’ll work on it,” I assure him, feeling heat rush to my face. “It was better than any book, but…”
“We have no idea what we’re doing,” he finishes my sentence, causing us both to laugh.
I snuggle closer to him and sigh in contentment. The sun is setting and the warmth it brings is also fading. I am snuggling with him partly because I can’t bear even an inch of myself to be separated from him, and partly because I’m cold.
His heartbeat matches mine and so does his breath. Before making love I knew I was his, but now that feeling is amplified a hundredfold. I can feel the Lights and their blessing on us as I take in every breath.
“What are you thinking about?” he asks me gently.
“You,” I reply and lift my head to kiss his jaw. “Just you.”
He smiles and pulls me closer. “Holding you now is one of the best feelings I’ve had in my life,” he says, taking a deep breath. “And a part of me wishes I could just hold onto you forever.”
“I wish that, too. Maybe once all of this is over we can take a thousand year honeymoon where we just cuddle in the forest,” I suggest lightly.
“That sounds lovely,” he agrees and kisses me on the forehead. “For now, let’s just lie here a moment longer before we head back for the feast. I want you for myself as long as possible.”
I nod in agreement and throw my leg over him and hug him with all of my body. We don’t say anything while we cuddle. We just take in each other’s scent and the sound of one another’s breathing. It’s unfair that the world around us is under threat from Darkness while we are so blissfully happy in the Light.
“You said we had to believe in order to win this war,” I say softly. “What did you mean?”
I can sense his reluctance to broach the subject and I feel sorry for asking him while we are so relaxed and calm. I just can’t shake the horrible feeling in my heart.
“I’ve been thinking about Kal-Gora’s Tome of Light,” he says simply. “It was copied from Elven works a long time ago, but it’s been so butchered over the years. Even when I read our writings about the Lights, it focuses mostly on the creation of the world and the rules we have to follow.”
“Meaning?” I ask, lifting my brow quizzically.
“Meaning that the writings don’t focus on a relationship with them,” he says softly. “The relationship I have with them, and that Grandfather had with them, should not be so rare. So, what I have been thinking is that a lot of writing needs to be known for the lie that it is and cast away, and new writing needs to be added. Something to bridge the gap between us and Them. It’s what I feel They want.”
“And how will this happen?” I ask, my voice sharper than I intend. “You have people to lead in war.”
“I’ll find the scribes,” he says firmly. “No matter where they are or who they are. Dwarves, Men, Elves, it doesn’t matter… The Lights will show them to me and I will
show them Their great love for us, so that the scribes can show it to the world.”
“I…” I am stunned by his words but I find myself nodding. To even suggest that the Holy Writings need to change is bordering on blasphemous, but after all I have seen of Duncan in the past few weeks, who am I to doubt him now? Who am I to doubt Them? “I believe.” It seems the only appropriate thing to say.
He holds me close and I can sense the thoughts racing through his mind. Finally, he kisses me firmly and then he pulls away. The sun has set and the moon is rising high in the sky. It must have gotten quite late.
“Unfortunately, it’s time to get back,” he says solemnly. “We need to face the people and my parents.”
“I thought you said they would be fine with it,” I say, raising my brow. I do enjoy teasing him.
“They will be. Once the shock wears off, of course,” he says, chuckling. “We’ll need clothes for that, of course.”
“But why?” I ask playfully.
He rolls his eyes and starts to get up. I feel the surge of his Arkana, though it feels different. There is a faint golden hue when he releases the magic and then a dress starts forming around my body. It’s made from some kind of golden fabric that feels like silk. It shines in the moon and starlight and reveals a pattern of silver traced throughout the gown.
“It’s beautiful, Duncan,” I whisper, running my hands along the dress. “And perfect.”
He grins and I feel another surge of will and then something heavy on my head. “A queen needs a proper crown,” he says softly.
I lift it off my head and take a long look at it. It’s made of moonsteel just like his, but it’s thinner and in the front hangs a single gemstone that rests on my forehead. Flowers seem to be growing out of the sides but they are actually fashioned from crystals.
“Is this…” I begin to ask, my voice trembling.
“My grandmother’s,” he says softly. “They showed me where Grandfather kept it and I summoned it for you. You are still High Priestess of Arteria, but tonight you are my Queen.”