by Jeff Sabean
He took a moment to steady himself as he saw his guards rushing to the wall, sending black arrows raining down on the attackers, then ripped the arrow from the side of his throat. He swooned immediately, the pain wracking his body and causing it to spasm uncontrollably as he fought to remain conscious. The shadows emitted by his skin intensified, blurring the outline of his body the more he bled out: a natural defense for wounded shadow elves, making it difficult for an attacker to target him.
I need to put a bandage on that or I will be dead before I can reach a healer.
As his vision faded and his body began to feel cold, he suddenly saw a blue light shining around his body and felt waves of healing covering him. He reached a hand to the wound on his neck, and felt the flesh closing itself and the blood flow ceasing. He gritted his teeth and jerked the second arrow from his right shoulder, and immediately felt relief.
Shaking his head as he sat up, he looked to his left and saw his brother, Vathio, standing behind the cover of the wall and sending healing his direction. He grinned and waved at his brother, his white teeth showing a stark contrast with his jet-black face as the curtain of shadows around his body dissipated a bit.
“It took you long enough, little brother,” he laughed, finally regaining his footing and looking for his dropped sword.
“It went over the wall,” Vathio called back, slowing the healing stream that was rejuvenating his brother. “I got here as quickly as I could, but none were surprised to see the mighty Fion rushing ahead of his support team. One of these days I will not make it to you in time...”
“Nonsense,” Fion replied, swinging a leg over the edge of the wall and looking for a place to land underneath. “I just like to give you a challenge, cleric!”
With that, he dropped over the wall, landing on top of a surface elven archer and slamming his remaining sword through the top of her skull. He glanced above and was relieved to see Vathio dropping down in a similar manner further down, using his shield to slide down the wall and crushing his flail into the face of a surface elf invader, then rolling to his feet.
Not seeing his sword’s twin, he snatched the blade from the surface elf he had just dispatched, its blade flaring briefly with a white light and blinding those around him. He stared intently at the light and caused shadows to slide from his skin around the handle and up the blade, masking the light momentarily before permanently blackening it. Nodding his approval, he waded into the remaining attackers, dispatching them with abandon while he searched futilely for his lost sword.
◆◆◆
After defeating the attackers, Fion returned to his room, furiously throwing his gear around as he removed it.
How could I be so stupid? Not only did I almost allow that filth to kill me, but I lost my blade. These attacks must stop, and soon, or it might spell the doom of my family and eventually all our people.
He cleaned up quickly, not wanting his mother to see the blood on his clothing and armor, then stomped down the hall to the dining room where he knew he would find the rest of the royal family. He kicked the doors open, bursting through and cracking the stone wall on the right as the door slammed into it.
His father, standing at the head of the table with his battle gear still on, whipped his sword from its sheath at the tumultuous entrance, the light glinting from the solid gold edge of the jet-black blade. His glare intense, his look daring the young noble to continue his hissy fit, he simply pointed at his son as his red eyes glowed intensely through the shadows swirling around his body.
“My apologies, father,” Fion stated through clenched teeth as he took a knee and bowed his head before the lord of the family. “I allowed my emotions to control me again.”
“You will have the wall repaired with your own gold,” Xy’rvyre Raenvree declared, sliding the massive two-handed sword back into its sheath on his back. “Now come explain to your mother why you felt the need to bathe before reporting in. Is it because you stupidly charged the enemy and almost made her the mother of one today?”
“I did not wish to worry the lady, my lord,” Fion replied, still in a subservient posture on one knee with his head bowed.
“You thought to fool her!” his father bellowed, causing all in the room to retreat a step. “I said come here and explain to her that you believed her stupid.”
Fion slowly rose and approached his mother, who sat in her seat to the right of his father, still in her armor and with her prized longbow propped against the table beside her. He bowed his head, but before he could attempt an apology, she slapped the top of his head with an open palm.
“Stand up straight, Fion, you are a noble. You were stupid, but never forget it is better to act wrongly than to not act at all. Next time,” she stated, barely able to control her grin, “just come straight here covered in your own blood if necessary. Your younger brother will not let you die, be glad for that.”
“AS I WAS SAYING,” Xy’rvyre interjected, clearly exasperated by the antics of his first-born son, “these attacks are becoming more and more regular. We can no longer hope to stay within our walls and simply defend against these invaders. It is time to plan a counter strike.”
“Allow me to plan the strike, father,” Fion replied, a wicked grin spreading across his face. “The surface elves tell the other races that we are cruel, evil, and should be eradicated when found. Allow me to show them how cruel we can be by destroying them wherever they hide.”
“No,” his father replied pensively. “While you are a gifted fighter, and your abilities grow daily, your temper will make it impossible for the mission I have in mind. You will stay here with me and continue to train and defend our home, while Vathio will make the trip to the surface world to set my plan in motion.”
“Vathio?” Fion sniffed derisively. “He is barely a century old and will get himself killed on the surface world. Wait, what mission?”
Vathio approached from his father’s left, standing quietly and staring into his brother’s eyes.
“Your brother will work as an agent for our people, while determining the strength of the surface elves,” his father replied. “He will pose as one who has turned his back on his people, accepting the abuse that is thrown his direction due to the lies of the surface elves, and will report back his findings. When he determines enough information has been gathered to attack, we will unleash on these so-called ‘high elves’ an attack more savage than anything they claim possible of our people.”
“And you accept this responsibility, little brother?” Fion asked, unable to remove the shock from his voice.
“I will follow our father to my grave, if it means breaking the oppression of our people,” Vathio replied, bowing his head in deference to his father.
“You should not use our family name,” Fion responded after pondering the situation for a moment. As Vathio jerked his head up to stare at his brother, he continued: “If you were turning your back on your people, you would be ashamed of your heritage. You should use an alias if you wish your ruse to be believable.”
“An excellent point, my son,” his father replied, nodding his approval. “From the gleam in your eye, I assume you have a suggestion?”
“Well, father, he always tells me that his job is to make me die slower,” Fion replied, turning to smirk at his younger brother. “Why not change your name to Di’eslo?”
Chapter 2 – On to Harmonui
Today
The small vessel cut through the waves like a knife, edging along the coastline and carrying the companions North to Harmonui. Aki breathed in the salt air as he leaned against the railing, watching the waves lap against the side of the ship. Silently, Zatus walked up beside his friend and stared at the ocean, enjoying the warmth of the sun on his face and the peaceful trip.
Ahead, smoke rose from the harbor where Eskanda still burned. From the amount of smoke on the horizon, it appeared the whole city had burst into flame.
“Hope that means the zombies are all getting barbequed,” Zatu
s muttered from Aki’s right elbow.
Aki looked down at his gnome friend and smiled appreciatively. “You didn’t want to go back and see if you could become lunch for a misunderstood zombie? Zombies were people too, you know...”
The conversation was interrupted before Zatus could retort as each of their wrist communicators began to beep, indicating an incoming call.
Aki responded first, and a small holographic image of Shenroc appeared floating above his wrist. The half-orc leader of Terminus was clearly enraged by something, as the tusks protruding from his lower jaw were working back and forth as he gritted his teeth.
“Did you miss us already, my friend?” Aki quipped, causing his friend’s jaw to grind even more in the hologram.
“Hardly,” Shenroc replied, trying to force a small smile to his face. “You bring trouble with you everywhere you go, human.”
“I take it more trouble has arisen, then?” Zatus interjected, joining the call from his communicator.
“Aye, you pint sized ball of trouble,” Yutri interjected, joining the conference call, the holographic image switching to the seven-foot-tall half-dwarf/half-giant warrior, who couldn’t help but smile as Zatus bristled at the reference to his stature.
“What happened, Shenroc?” Aki asked, interrupting the two before the conversation was permanently derailed.
“Shadow elves happened,” Shenroc replied, waving his arms in frustration. “As if Jim was not enough trouble, as if the orc army we heard above us in the tunnels under the mountain was not enough trouble, now I have a shadow elf appearing in my dining hall to add to the list!”
“A shadow elf, like this Di’eslo who is with Heishi? Aren’t they the definition of evil?” Zatus interjected, still clearly agitated by Yutri’s crack at his height.
“Yes, that is the stigma assigned to their race,” Ja’ade responded, her image appearing in the call from her room below deck. The beautiful red head smiled disarmingly, then continued, “But we also know that all orcs are evil as well, or am I wrong, Master Shenroc?”
“Aye, that is what this ‘Fion’ is claiming, Lady Ja’ade. He says the elves of Harmonui are evil, that they are oppressing the people who live in the city, and that they have been killing or jailing any who attempt to live in the city who do not fit the elvish perception of harmony. But worse than that,” he spat as he attempted to regain control of his emotions, “he claims that Heishi and his group are most likely already detained or killed for disrupting the harmony of the city. He says being associated with a shadow elf would be enough, and that if the truth of where your team comes from is discovered that the leaders of the city would jail you all for that as well.”
“And what does this ‘Fion’ propose,” Mialin asked, also joining the call from the room below deck where she was with her sister, her golden eyes flashing with anger.
“He says to raise an army to replace the Chondri we scattered, as he was planning to use them as fodder for his war against the elves. He is requesting we assist him after we discover what he says is true,” Shenroc replied through gritted teeth.
“And do you believe him?” Aki asked, attempting to calm his friend.
“At first I did not,” Shenroc admitted. “However, he was able to somehow freeze the oaf and me in place, unable to move a muscle when he entered the room. If he was as evil as the stories of shadow elves say, he would have slaughtered the two of us where we stood, helpless as newborn babes. Instead, he released us from the hold, said his peace, and disappeared.”
“We will proceed with caution when we arrive in Harmonui,” Aki replied pensively. “Luckily three of us will blend right in with the ‘respectable’ population, and Zatus can disguise himself, so we will discern whether what this ‘Fion’ character says is true or not. Then we’ll see where to go from there.”
“Where are you now, my friends?” Shenroc asked, calming visibly.
“We are on a small ship, just passing Eskanda again. We dropped off the other four just South of the city, and they are headed back your way to warn you about the city...” Aki replied, but was cut off before he could finish his sentence.
“Warn us about what city? Eskanda? What happened there?” Yutri interjected, the miniature hologram showing him lifting his war hammer and swinging it in frustration.
“Overrun by zombies,” Zatus replied. “But you would have nothing to worry about, large one, as they crave the taste of brains, so would not waste their time on the likes of you.”
Howling laughter came through the communicator as Shenroc appeared, all traces of his anger replaced with his appreciation for the joke at his companion’s expense.
“I have a brain,” Yutri replied, confused by the joke. “Am I too tall for a zombie to eat my brain?”
“I’ll explain it to him after the call,” Shenroc promised, wiping the tears from his eyes as he attempted to regain his composure.
“Roger that,” Aki replied, hoping Yutri wouldn’t get the joke until they disconnected. “We will contact you from Harmonui when we know more. I would suggest you begin putting together an army, if you can spare it, because if this is true, I think we’re going to war.”
“Wait, what did that little...” Yutri began to shout.
“Be careful,” Shenroc said to his friends, cutting off the dwarf, then disconnected the call.
“What do you think, Doc?” Zatus asked his friend as they both continued to stare at their now-dark communicators.
“I think we had better be ready for a fight,” Aki replied grimly.
◆◆◆
The following day, the ship came into view of Harmonui, causing Aki and Zatus to gawk breathlessly as the sprawling city slid past.
“That place is massive,” Aki muttered, staring at the city set between two mountains. “How will we ever find our lost family in such a place?”
Pointing to the harbor, Ja’ade turned to Aki from his left side: “That is the ship Master Shenroc told us your friends were on, the Slip Away. We can be sure they have at least made it this far.”
“How can you know that?” Zatus asked, staring in the direction of the harbor.
“I read the name on the ship,” she replied, smiling. “Let us just say I have excellent vision.”
“We should continue to follow the coast to the West, and when we are out of sight of the city we can set fire to this ship and allow the Captain and cook to rest in peace,” Mialin interjected, watching the city pass by over the railing.
“That is an excellent plan,” agreed Zatus, his jaw hanging slightly open as he took in the splendor of the city of high elves. “We just need to ensure the smoke will not be visible from the city, there is no need to announce our arrival...”
◆◆◆
Circling slowly from high above, Fion and Dracorex watched the small vessel continue along the coast. If any below saw the dragon, they would assume it was a bird flying much lower, so the two were not concerned as long as they did not approach the city too closely.
“Watch out for the city’s defenders,” Fion reminded the dragon, although there was no need to do so. “It would appear the other-worlders are taking my warning seriously. That is good. I would not want to have to rescue them as well.”
“This would be handled much easier if you would let me eat them,” Dracorex rumbled, his teeth showing as he looked at his rider in what might be considered a grin.
“We need them to rally the army of Terminus,” Fion replied, exasperated at having to repeat himself.
“Dragons have a longer memory than the lesser races,” his mount replied with a snarl. “I know what your plan is, but it does not mean I agree.”
“You will, my friend, you will. When my plan comes to fruition, you will have all the destruction you desire. But in the meantime, we must continue to gather our forces to ensure victory. Without the Chondri, we will need more foot soldiers to make the attack successful.”
Snorting in derision, the dragon turned his head forward and continu
ed gliding along the coast.
“When they stop, I will approach the leader of the band before he enters the city,” Fion informed the dragon. “Will you be joining me?”
“I have no interest in talking to humans,” Dracorex retorted, not bothering to turn his head. “You may speak to anyone you wish, as long as this war begins soon. I grow tired of your games.”
“Soon, my friend, very soon it will begin. My people are traveling to this place as we speak, as are the orcs. We simply need one more army to bring down the middle and the attack will be ready.”
A sly look crossed the elf’s face as he paused for a moment, then continued, “Your eyesight is better than mine, are you to pretend that Ja’ade and Mialin have not joined this group?”
“I have seen them, Master,” snarled the dragon, this time turning his head to glare at his rider. “What is your point?”
“Only that perhaps you should accompany me to speak with them,” intoned Fion, his grin turning more devious as he spoke. “I am sure the ladies will be ecstatic to see you...”
Chapter 3 – A Surprise Meeting
Several miles past Harmonui, the companions dropped the ship’s anchor off the coast. When they ship was secure, lamp oil from below decks was dumped in the rooms containing the dead zombies, with a trail leading from the rooms up to the deck, where the remainder of the oil was used to coat the deck.
The four had decided not to use the dinghy so as to not leave any evidence of their arrival on the beach, so before climbing off the deck Mialin waived her hand at each member of the group, covering them in a green shimmering light that would allow them to walk across the water for a time. Halfway between the ship and the shore Ja’ade sent a fireball flying onto the deck, igniting it immediately. As they watched, the flames caught the mast and rigging, sending a brilliant blaze into the morning sky.