by MJ Schutte
‘Here,’ he said to Tolan as he held the sword out to the elf.
Brighton lifted his hands and shot pure energy bolts at the elves around them. Most of them turned and fled, only to be chased down by the energy bolts. In the blink of an eye, all the elves that had captured them were reduced to small piles of ash.
Brighton’s walking stick and bow was lying next to one of the ash piles. He ran into the palace, grabbing the cane on his way past. A pure energy bolt or a heavy blow to the head greeted any elf that opposed him as he made his way through the palace.
Reaching the balcony, he rushed over to Lilian and dropped down to his knees next to her. He pulled the crossbow bolt from Thomas’s back, placed his hands over the wound and let a huge amount of healing energy flow into the little boy.
Thomas did not move.
‘No!’ Brighton shouted as he tried again.
Still Thomas did not move.
He is gone a faint voice came from the sky.
‘No! Give him back, Evangeline!’ Brighton screamed into the air.
He is gone the voice said again.
Brighton looked up to the sky and shouted, ‘Evangeline, if you do not give him back, I will go to the spirit world and…and…’
He is gone.
Brighton burst into tears. He and Lilian clung to each other as they cried for their little boy.
Gently Robyn touched Brighton’s back and said, ‘We have to go. I’m sure Jaclyn is gathering troops as we speak.’
Brighton nodded, got up and helped Lilian to her feet.
‘We have to take him with us,’ Lilian croaked.
Brighton picked up Thomas’s lifeless body and clutched him to his chest. Quickly they made their way out of the palace. Tolan was waiting in the road for them. He had Brighton’s bow and quiver.
‘Brac and Adri are almost at the edge of the forest and they have four horses. Judging by the manner in which the horses are tied together, it seems they also have a wagon. We should be able to reach them in less than a day,’ Brighton said.
Brighton stopped and looked back. They had been travelling for half a day.
‘Jaclyn and her troops are on their way. Keep following this road, it will take you to the edge of the forest where Adri and Brac are,’ Brighton said to the others.
‘What are you going to do?’ Lilian asked.
‘I am going back to delay Jaclyn’s troops. I might be able to hold them up for long enough so that you can get away,’ Brighton answered.
‘NO! I’ve already lost Thomas today. I’m not losing you too,’ Lilian replied.
‘We have no other choice. The elves will catch up with us shortly. Please do as I ask,’ Brighton said softly.
‘Can’t we outrun them?’ Lilian asked hopefully.
‘No, they are on horses,’ Brighton replied.
Turning to Tolan, he said, ‘Please see them safely to the edge of the forest.’
The elf placed his hand over his heart, giving his solemn oath to do as Brighton asked. Brighton gave Lilian and Clarissa each a quick kiss before walking back the way they came. Mischief appeared out of the woods and joined Brighton.
‘It seems we have another fight on our hands, boy,’ Brighton said to the cat.
Brighton stood in the middle of the road, Mischief by his side. More than a thousand elves raced towards him, swords and spears ready. Brighton waited until the last moment before he erected a white energy wall in front of himself and Mischief. The first waved crashed into the barrier.
The second wave saw this and veered off to avoid the obstacle. They quickly surrounded Brighton and Mischief. Scores of elves and horses lay injured in the road.
The panther’s tail was flicking through the air, a menacing sound coming from his throat making the horses and elves very nervous.
He leapt forward but Brighton quickly said, ‘No, Mischief.’
The cat retreated and stood next to Brighton again. A flurry of hand movements, to quick for Brighton to follow, was exchanged between the elves closest to him.
Jaclyn, on top of a beautiful white horse, made her way to the front.
‘Brighton, I wish you no harm. Come back to the palace with me and we can talk about this,’ she said.
‘You killed my son. Now, I’m going to take revenge,’ Brighton growled.
‘I did not, Asdargh did,’ Jaclyn defended.
‘He was working under your orders. It might as well have been you who shot Thomas,’ Brighton hissed at her.
‘What do you think you’re going to accomplish with this? You are outnumbered a thousand to one. Your only option is to put down your weapons and come with me,’ Jaclyn argued.
‘I will kill you, even if I have to kill every one of these elves first,’ Brighton replied.
He lifted his hand, sending a thick white energy link towards Jaclyn. He was hoping to catch her off guard, but she was ready. She blocked his white energy link with her own.
A big ball of blue and white energy shot from her other hand, racing straight for Brighton. The energy ball hit Brighton’s barrier and exploded in a shower of sparks.
Repeatedly Jaclyn tried to break through the barrier, but to no avail. Brighton needed energy to maintain the barrier, so he connected to the forest again. Thick lightning bolts jumped from the trees into his body. Upon seeing this, the elves retreated slowly.
‘Where are you going? Attack him!’ Jaclyn screamed.
An elderly elf, who seemed to be the leader of the troops, shook his head and said, ‘No fight Erostagnos.’
Jaclyn kept throwing energy bolts at Brighton, trying her best to break through his defences. She searched for a source of energy, but the forest rejected her. Brighton’s white energy link raced forward again and this time Jaclyn could not block it.
Slowly Brighton started draining her energy. She fell from the horse, wriggling in pain on the ground.
Suddenly, Brighton retracted his gift.
‘I’ve killed enough people,’ he said.
Slowly, he turned and walked away, Mischief following closely.
The elves opened a path for them.
The leader shouted, ‘Erostagnos.’
As Brighton walked away from the elves, more shouts of ‘Erostagnos,’ reached his ears.
He did not know what it meant and did not care.
Brighton jogged up to the wagon.
‘I’m glad you waited. I was not looking forward to crossing this desert on foot.’ he said thankfully to the others.
Adri came closer and put her arms around Brighton.
‘I’m sorry about Thomas,’ she choked out past the lump in her throat.
‘Thank you,’ Brighton replied.
Slowly Lilian came forward, wringing her hands together.
‘Bri, I’m sorry I couldn’t protect our son,’ she said softly, tears streaming freely down her cheeks.
‘Lily, I was going to say the same to you,’ Brighton said as he tenderly put his arms around her.
She grabbed onto him and buried her face in his chest, sobbing uncontrollably.
Brac stepped closer and softly said, ‘We’re going to Tolan’s house for provisions. Catch up when you’re ready,’
Brighton nodded to his friend in appreciation.
For a long time, Brighton and Lilian stood comforting each other. It was almost dark before they started walking towards Tolan’s house.
Chapter 11
‘TRAVEL,’ TOLAN SAID to Brighton as he made the hand gesture meaning “tomorrow.”
‘Yes, I think that’s a good idea,’ Brighton agreed.
‘Good. Talk’ Tolan said.
‘We can talk if you want, but I don’t have much to say,’ Brighton sighed.
Tolan pointed to himself and said, ‘Talk,’ then pointed to Brighton and said, ‘Listen.’
Brighton simply nodded. Tolan’s hands were a blur of movements with only a few words coming from him. Brighton concentrated hard to follow what the elf was telling him. After a long
time, Tolan finally stopped and looked at Brighton expectantly. Brighton shook his head.
Tolan nodded and said ‘True.’
Again Brighton shook his head.
Brac threw his arms up in the air and said, ‘I don’t understand how they can call that “talking”.’
‘Sorry,’ Brighton mumbled.
He started telling everybody what Tolan had said to him.
Many years ago, long before the elves even knew humans existed, a bloody war erupted between the three clans. During this time, a man from a far away land came to the elf forest and joined the Tylia clan. A black wolf was usually at his side. When he spoke to the wolf, it seemed that the animal understood and obeyed him.
His name was Erostagnos and he was the first human the elves had ever seen. After years of fighting, the Imugio and Dashra joined forces and it was clear that the Tylia clan, smallest of the three, would be crushed in a matter of days. In desperation, the leader of the Tylia clan decided to leave Livia Farasnei, as it was called back then, in search of a new beginning for his clan. Five hundred soldiers were left behind to delay the enemy long enough so that the rest of the clan could get away.
These five hundred men fought like demons, knowing that the survival of their clan depended on it, but they were outnumbered two hundred to one. Just when it seemed that their last defensive position was about to be overrun, thick lighting bolts struck the battle ground driving the Imugio and Dashra warriors back.
At first, the elves thought that spirits from the afterlife had intervened in the battle, but they then realised that the lightning was coming from Erostagnos. He was standing in the middle of the battleground, the black wolf by his side. He demanded to speak to the leaders of Imugia and Dashra.
Erostagnos spoke to the two leaders, asking if there could be peace again, but they did not listen. They ordered their troops to attack again. Erostagnos waved his hand and scores of warriors dropped stone dead. Two lighting bolts shot from his outstretched hands and slammed into the two leaders’ heads. It seemed as if Erostagnos was draining the very life force from them. The two elf leaders begged for mercy.
Erostagnos stopped and said, ‘I have killed enough people.’
The elf leaders promised to stop the war immediately and ever since then, peace has reigned between the three clans. Trackers were sent to call the fleeing Tylia clan back but they were never seen again. Of the five hundred Tylia warriors, less than one hundred remained alive. These men and women are the ancestors of the Tylia clan that live in the forest today.
Erostagnos vanished shortly after this and was never seen again. Many years later, the elf leaders realised that he did them a great service by stopping the war. The forest was renamed Erostagnos Livia Farasnei in honour of the great wizard who saved the elf nation from themselves. Most elves believe that, one day, Erostagnos will return.
When Brighton finished telling the others what Tolan had said, the elf pointed to him and said, ‘Erostagnos.’
Brighton shook his head. An argument that no one else could follow, ensued between Tolan and Brighton.
Tolan slammed his hand on the table and said, ‘Great wizard!’
Brighton threw his hands up in the air and said, ‘Believe what you want.’
‘I take it he thinks you are this Erostagnos person,’ Brac commented dryly.
‘Yes, and it is not just him,’ Brighton replied.
He told the others what had happened between him and Jaclyn earlier and that the elves refused to fight.
‘They called me Erostagnos as I walked away,’ Brighton finished.
Tolan smiled and nodded enthusiastically. He made some more hand signals to Brighton.
‘Tolan says it must be true since I can command wild animals,’ Brighton said looking down at a sleeping Mischief.
‘He also says that I have come to save the elves again, just like Erostagnos did. Apparently, there is talk of war again. Most of the Tylia clan oppose Jaclyn, saying that she is an impostor and wants to enslave the elf people,’ Brighton continued.
‘I think she has lost most of her support, after what happened today,’ Brac commented.
‘I don’t care. I want to take Lilian and Clarissa back to Mendin and live a peaceful live,’ Brighton said heatedly.
‘Mendin?’ Lilian asked.
‘That’s what the Dark Land is called now,’ Brighton explained.
Lilian put her tiny hand in Brighton’s and said, ‘That is what I want too, my love.’
‘Tomorrow morning, we will bury Thomas and then leave this place,’ Brighton said.
The trip across the desert was uneventful. Brac knew what it felt like to lose a child, but also knew that time would heal the pain. As the group started encountering plant life again, Mischief jumped off the wagon and ran a few steps away. He turned and growled at Brighton.
‘You can go, Mischief,’ Brighton called to the cat.
Mischief walked back to the wagon and growled again.
‘Go, boy,’ Brighton encouraged him.
Mischief ran away a few steps again, turned and fixed his white eyes on Brighton. Another low growl came from his throat.
‘I think he wants to show you something,’ Lilian speculated.
Brighton untied one of the horses from the back of the wagon and mounted it.
‘I’ll follow you,’ he said to the cat.
Mischief immediately set of towards the southeast.
‘I’ll catch up later,’ Brighton called over his shoulder as he dug his heels into the horse’s flanks.
Mischief ran so fast that Brighton had to give the horse energy to keep up. Finally, after running for almost a full day, Mischief slowed down. Slowly he stepped through the undergrowth. Brighton dismounted and followed the cat. They stepped into a small clearing.
A smallish, female panther was lying on her side, arrows sticking out of her lifeless body. Her head was missing. Mischief just stood looking at his dead mate, head hanging low.
‘Oh Mischief, I am so sorry,’ Brighton exclaimed.
He knelt next to the panther and stroked the thick, soft fur. Mischief slowly walked closer to his mate’s corpse and started licking it. He looked up and Brighton thought he saw a pleading expression in those white eyes.
‘There is nothing I can do, boy,’ Brighton said sympathetically.
He sat with Mischief for a while and then decided to go back to the others. He walked back to the horse and, as he mounted, Mischief came out of the thick undergrowth.
‘Are you coming with me?’ Brighton asked.
He laughed a little at himself.
‘Maybe I am this great wizard the elves believe in. I’m talking to an animal and expecting an answer!’
With Mischief at his side, Brighton set off to where he sensed the others. After travelling for a short while, they neared a group of hunters. Brighton thought of going around, but Mischief headed straight for the hunters. Brighton spurred the horse on, following his friend.
As the hunters came into view, Brighton noticed one man dancing around a fire, holding a black panther’s head high.
There was no stopping Mischief.
He raced forward and crashed into the man, clawing at his face. The other hunters jumped up and reached for their spears. Brighton sent a ball of energy towards them, making it strike the ground just in front of their feet. It exploded in a shower of sparks.
‘Stay back, or I will kill you all,’ Brighton screamed as he let another energy ball dance above his hand.
Mischief and the hunter both regained their feet and squared off against each other. The hunter pulled a knife from his belt.
Without taking his eyes off the big cat, he shouted, ‘Is this your pet?’
‘No, he is my friend. You killed his mate and he is here for revenge,’ Brighton shouted back.
‘Call him off before I kill him too,’ the man shouted.
One of the others stepped forward, but Brighton wagged a finger at him.
‘This
is not your fight, stay out of it,’ he said.
Mischief leapt.
The hunter tried to bring the knife up but he was far too late. His life ended instantly as Mischief’s big jaws closed around his throat. The cat did not stop; he continued mauling the corpse.
‘Mischief! Enough!’ Brighton called.
Immediately the cat stopped and returned to Brighton’s side.
‘We will hunt you down,’ one of the hunters yelled.
‘You can try, but you will end up like your friend over there,’ Brighton replied.
Keeping an eye on the hunters, he slowly rode off, Mischief following closely.
Nicky stormed out of the house.
She grabbed Lilian and Adri both, and hugged them tightly.
‘I thought we would never see you again,’ she sobbed.
Peter also came out to greet everyone. He looked at the three crying women and shook his head. The three men greeted each other in a much calmer way, exchanging handshakes only.
‘Good to have you back,’ Peter said to them.
Nicky scooped Clarissa up and said, ‘Where is Thomas?’
Brac quickly said, ‘Asdargh killed him.’
Both Brighton and Lilian looked at him gratefully, not knowing whether they could trust their own voices.
Peter put his arm around Brighton shoulders and said, ‘I’m so sorry my friend.’
Nicky took Lilian’s hand and said, ‘Let’s go inside.’
‘We should unpack this wagon,’ Peter said as he walked closer.
When he was close to the wagon, Mischief popped his head over the side and gave a long, sleepy yawn. Peter staggered back, feeling for any kind of weapon in his belt. Mischief lazily got up, stretched out and jumped off the wagon. Peter looked at Brac and Brighton, panic clearly showing on his face. They did not notice as they started packing things off the wagon.
‘Mischief, go lie on the porch, you are in the way,’ Brighton scolded the cat.
Peter’s fear was replaced by amazement as the cat lazily walked to the porch, flopped down and closed his eyes.