by MJ Schutte
‘Why did you not tell him where to find the evil that is poisoning the forest?’ Ameri asked.
‘They must first learn how the forest works if they are going to succeed. The lost tribe has to be found,’ Evangeline answered.
‘What if he does not find the evil and decides to come back here? If we were not ready for him, he may have actually succeeded in destroying us,’ Lizia said slowly.
‘Brighton might be arrogant and quick to act, but he always keeps an oath. He made an agreement with you and he will honour that,’ Evangeline assured her.
‘I hope you are right about them. If they cannot destroy this evil, the forest will die along with the entire elf nation. This is our last hope,’ Soltar sighed.
‘It’s risky and a lot of things have to fall into place properly otherwise both Brighton and Lilian will be lost forever,’ Evangeline whispered.
Brighton made sure Lilian was resting comfortably on a bed. They were in Tolan’s old house. He checked to see that she was breathing normally then went outside.
‘Pappa, does Mamma not need to touch the walking stick anymore?’ Clarissa asked.
‘No, my darling, she does not,’ Brighton replied.
‘What are we going to do now?’ Adri asked.
‘You stay here with Lilian and Clarissa. I’m going to the northern part of Livia Farasnei to talk to Lance,’ Brighton answered.
Kesh and Carlia indicated that they wanted to go with him.
‘Kesh, please stay here and protect the women. I will tell Mischief to stay here too. Carlia, I would appreciate the company,’ Brighton replied.
Kesh bowed his head in agreement and the two travellers set off to the north.
After travelling for some time, Brighton said to Carlia, ‘Look at the plants. Do you notice anything unusual?’
Carlia looked closely at the undergrowth.
‘Alive,’ she said.
‘Yes, they seem more alive than back at the palace. It seems that the further north we go, the better the forest looks,’ Brighton frowned.
A few days later, they crossed the Gario river. Brighton used his sense to find some people. He berated himself for not making a mental note of what Lance’s energy felt like.
‘There are some people not far from here. Hopefully they can tell us where Lance is,’ he said to Carlia.
While they had been travelling, Brighton hadn’t spoken much. He was uncertain how to ask the old Tylia clan to leave the forest again just to save one human life. It seemed unfair to drive thousands of people away, no matter how much he loved Lilian.
A soldier stepped out of the bushes in front of them.
‘Come no further. You are trespassing on Tylia land,’ he said, levelling a sword at them.
‘I need to find General Lance,’ Brighton replied.
‘We cannot allow you to pass beyond this point. I will send a messenger to the General that someone is here to see him,’ the soldier replied.
‘How long will that take,’ Brighton enquired.
‘The General is building a home four days north of here,’ the soldier replied.
‘That will take too long. Tell me where I can find him,’ Brighton said.
Eleven more soldiers appeared out of the woods.
‘We are under orders not to let anyone pass, especially elves,’ the soldier said, pointing to Carlia.
Brighton dismounted, took the walking stick and walked closer to the soldiers, indicating for Carlia to stay behind.
‘Soldier, I don’t have time to argue. Let us pass and save yourself a great deal of trouble,’ Brighton said to the man.
The soldier took a step forward and put the sword against Brighton’s chest.
‘Leave now, or die,’ he growled.
Brighton moved like lighting. Before any of the soldiers could move, their leader was on the ground with a cane pressing down on his throat.
‘I do not want to harm you. Let us pass,’ Brighton said.
The other soldiers all drew their swords.
As they carefully advanced, one man asked, ‘Did the wizard not have a cane like that?’
‘I don’t know, I never saw him,’ another man answered.
Brighton stepped back. He held the cane out towards the soldiers and then let it go. The cane hung in mid air. The soldiers stopped dead in their tracks.
‘Please forgive us, great wizard,’ one man started pleading as he dropped to his knees.
Brighton stuck his hand out to the man on the ground, still concentrating on the floating cane. The man scrambled backwards, fear clearly evident in his face.
‘I am not here to harm you. I simply need to speak to Lance urgently,’ he said.
‘Great wizard, of course you may pass, but we cannot allow the elf to pass,’ the soldier said as he got up.
‘Carlia is with me,’ Brighton said as he plucked the cane from the air and walked back to his horse.
‘But…’ the soldier started arguing, but one of his companions quickly interjected.
‘You and the elf are welcome in Tylia, great wizard,’ he said.
Brighton nodded his thanks at the man and they continued their journey.
As they rode away, he heard a soldier say, ‘Have you lost your mind. One thought from the wizard and this entire forest will crash down on us.’
It took Brighton and Carlia six days to find Lance. They were stopped a number of times by Tylian soldiers. Some recognised him and made no effort to stop them, but a few times he had to use the little cane trick to discourage trouble.
Lance was hard at work cutting wood for his house. He was wearing only trousers, his shirt hanging in a tree nearby. He did not see the two travellers until Brighton called out to him.
A nervous look passed across his face.
‘Great wizard, welcome to Tylia,’ he greeted Brighton.
Brighton and Carlia dismounted and walked closer.
‘Lance, it’s good to see you again,’ Brighton answered.
Carlia touched her cheek and said, ‘Carlia.’
Lance mimicked the action and said, ‘Lance.’
He struggled to tear his eyes away from the beautiful elf woman. Carlia smiled shyly and bowed her head, but not before her gaze had travelled across his muscular upper body.
‘Lance, we need to talk, please,’ Brighton said.
He did not notice the look that passed between Carlia and the general.
‘Great wizard…’
‘Please call me Brighton.’
Lance nodded and started again, ‘Brighton, would you and the lady like some water?’
‘Yes, thank you,’ Brighton replied.
Lance quickly fetched a water skin. Apologising for the lack of cups, he held it out to Carlia. She accepted with a smile.
‘Great wi….uh…Brighton, what can I do for you?’ Lance asked.
Brighton was still struggling with the idea that thousands of people should give up their new home to save one life. He was also not certain anymore that the Tylians were causing the forest to die.
‘Lance, it looks like the forest is really healthy here,’ Brighton started.
‘Yes, it is beautiful. There is plenty of food for everybody,’ Lance agreed.
‘Have you noticed the plants dying at all?’ Brighton asked.
‘No. To be honest, I think that it is growing faster than when we first got here. I foraged for food five days ago, picking one berry bush clean. When I passed the same bush yesterday, there were more berries than before. I have never seen plants grow this fast,’ Lance replied.
Brighton used his gift to connect to the forest. The life force around him stunned him a little. It was stronger than anywhere else in Livia Farasnei.
‘Come, I want to show you something. It is not far and on the way there, you can tell me what you’re doing here,’ Lance suggested.
He retrieved his shirt and pulled it over his head, pretending not to notice how Carlia was trying to sneak quick looks at him.
‘Leave the horses here, it is not far,’ Lance said as he headed into the woods.
As they walked, Lance asked, ‘Why did you come here?’
Brighton decided not to tell Lance yet.
‘I just wanted to see how your people were doing,’ he lied.
Lance smiled and said, ‘You can tell me the truth when you are ready.’
Lance pointed at something on the ground.
‘Do you see?’ he asked.
They were standing on the northern edge of Livia Farasnei. Brighton looked closely at the ground. Everywhere, there were small plants sprouting from the ground. Brighton looked at the barren land in front of him. As far as he could see, there were patches of green starting to show.
He used his sense.
‘There are new plants growing almost a full day’s travel from here. It seems the forest is expanding,’ he gasped.
‘Yes, it seems that way. This entire area is now protected land with only a narrow pathway leading through it,’ Lance replied.
‘Who declared it protected?’ Brighton asked.
Lance dropped his eyes self-consciously.
‘Oh, I see. It was you,’ Brighton smiled.
‘I hope you approve of this. I think the new growth should be protected,’ he replied.
‘Lance, you are a good man,’ Brighton said.
They started walking back to Lance’s half-finished house.
‘So, are you going to tell me now why you came here?’ Lance prodded.
‘You deserve the truth. Livia Farasnei is dying and I believed that the Tylians were responsible,’ Brighton answered.
‘Why do you think we are the cause of this?’ Lance frowned.
‘I don’t think so anymore. Unfortunately, I cannot share the details with you as I am under oath.’
Lance believed in honour and keeping an oath, so he did not press Brighton on the subject.
‘I’m guessing you came here to drive us out of the forest,’ he said.
‘Yes, that was my intention,’ Brighton admitted.
‘Are you going to do it?’ Lance asked carefully.
Brighton shook his head and said, ‘No. That would be wrong. Clearly the forest has accepted the Tylians.’
Carlia made a few hand gestures.
‘She said…’ Brighton started, but Lance interrupted.
‘As far as she knows, the forest has not expanded in many years. Her parents and grandparents often spoke about this, so she knows that this has not happened for at least three generations.’
‘You can understand her,’ Brighton smiled.
‘Yes, it is actually quite easy,’ Lance shrugged.
Carlia gave him a shy smile. Hesitantly, Lance made some gestures at her.
‘You just told her that she has empty eyes,’ Brighton laughed.
‘I meant her eyes are as beautiful as the stars in the sky,’ Lance stuttered.
Keeping her hands at her sides, Carlia said, ‘Thank you, Lance.’
He gestured You are welcome back at her.
‘Lance, how many Tylians are here?’ Brighton asked.
‘Just more than twenty thousand,’ Lance answered.
‘Where did the rest go?’ Brighton asked.
‘Most of them went back to Tyliana but some stayed in Erostan and the Mountain Kingdom,’ Lance replied.
‘How did you decide who could come here?’ Brighton frowned.
‘First, we gave everybody a choice of where they wanted to live. When it became clear that there would be too many people for the land, we decided that only those with at least one elf parent or grandparent may stay,’ Lance explained.
‘Were the others not angry about this?’ Brighton asked.
‘Some were, but they also understood that we had no other choice,’ Lance shrugged.
Carlia gestured to Lance, asking what his elf heritage was.
‘My mother was a true blood elf. When I was very young, my father killed her in a fit of anger. Many years later, I took his life,’ Lance replied softly.
Carlia gently touched his shoulder in sympathy.
‘It was a long time ago,’ Lance shrugged.
They reached Lance’s half-built house.
‘Carlia, we should start the journey back to Tolan’s house immediately. Something else is killing the forest and I have to find out what,’ Brighton said.
Hesitantly, Carlia gestured that she would prefer to stay with Lance for a while.
‘Actually, I was going to ask if I could join you. I would love to see the rest of Livia Farasnei,’ Lance said.
‘Good, then you two can talk about your heritage on the way,’ Brighton replied.
Clarissa rushed into Brighton’s arms.
‘Pappa, I missed you. Mamma is still sleeping,’ she said.
‘I missed you too, angel,’ Brighton smiled.
He went inside to check on Lilian. Gently he sat on the bed next to her.
‘I will find the answer and then you will come back to us,’ he whispered to her.
Adri came into the room.
‘Where is Kesh?’ Brighton asked.
‘At the river,’ Adri replied.
Brighton walked out and took course to the river. Kesh was busy filling up water skins.
Brighton greeted him and said, ‘We need to talk. The history you shared with me was either wrong, or the elf leaders made a grave mistake.’
‘Why?’ Kesh asked.
Brighton told him about the forest expanding to the north.
‘It seems that the forest accepted the half elves and is now flourishing where they live. Something else is killing Livia Farasnei. Tell me, how far does the forest reach to the south?’
Kesh indicated that he was not sure, but knew that it was many days travel by horse to the southern border. He also told Brighton that, as far as anybody knew, nobody lived there. The furthest south anybody lived was only about two days from the palace.
‘Why?’ Brighton asked.
Kesh pulled up his shoulders.
Brighton sat down on a rock, deep in thought.
‘We came from the east and know that there are very few people there. In the north, the forest is expanding and nobody lives to the south. That only leaves west.’
Kesh pointed west and said, ‘Go.’
‘Yes, we are going west now. Hopefully we will find something there.’
Brighton, Lance and Carlia rode into a large village.
‘Erostagnos!’ the elves greeted as he rode past them.
After his last visit to the forest, his description had been circulated among the elf people, so everybody recognised him.
‘Why does everybody call you Erostagnos?’ Lance asked.
‘The elves think I am the reincarnation of a wizard called Erostagnos that did them a great service many years ago,’ Brighton explained.
Carlia nodded enthusiastically, pointed at Brighton and said, ‘Erostagnos.’
‘Carlia, you met the real Erostagnos in the swamp,’ Brighton argued.
She shook her head, pointed at Brighton again saying, ‘Real Erostagnos.’
Brighton just shook his head. There was no point in arguing with her.
‘What are we looking for?’ Lance asked, changing the subject.
‘I don’t really know. I am hoping to find this “evil” that is poisoning the forest, but I have no idea what it is,’ Brighton sighed.
They had travelled through numerous villages. Although food was starting to become scarce, the elves all looked happy. Brighton saw no sign of evil anywhere. He spoke to a few elves but they did not know where or what this evil was.
‘Are you going to ask the people here whether they have seen anything,’ Lance asked.
‘No, their answers will just be the same as all the others. Everybody is concerned about the forest, but believe that I will save them,’ Brighton sighed.
They continued to travel west until they reached the edge of the forest. Brighton stood next to his horse, looking out over th
e desert.
‘The land you came from is in that direction,’ he said to Lance, pointing due west.
‘No, we came from there,’ Lance said, pointing northwest.
‘Did your people never travel south?’ Brighton asked.
Lance shook his head.
‘This desert stretches far to the east and south. It is the southern border of Tyliana. Nobody has ever crossed it and returned. The desert between Tyliana and Livia Farasnei is not that wide. It takes roughly ten days to cross, if you have wagons and supplies,’ Lance answered.
‘I wonder how Jaclyn crossed it when she fled from here?’ Brighton mused.
‘We never asked her. We just heard one day that a sorceress had come to Tyliana. Everybody assumed that she had used her magic to get there,’ Lance replied.
‘Lance, you know magic does not exist, don’t you?’ Brighton smiled.
‘If you say so, great wizard,’ Lance said and took a deep bow.
This brought a fit of giggles from Carlia. She motioned to Lance that Brighton does not like being called that.
‘Yes, I know, but I like teasing the great wizard,’ Lance winked at her.
He had become comfortable very quickly once he realised that Brighton was a man like any other, save for the special talent he had.
‘One day, I’m going to turn you into a goat,’ Brighton threatened light-heartedly.
‘Can you do that?’ Lance gasped.
‘You will have to wait and see, my friend,’ Brighton smiled as he remounted his horse.
Carlia shook her head at Lance and said, ‘Impossible.’
‘Let’s go back. There is nothing to be done here,’ Brighton suggested.
Brighton sat in front of the house, staring into the forest.
Lance came up from behind and said, ‘Where to next?’
‘I don’t know,’ Brighton replied.
‘I might have an idea,’ Lance said.
Brighton looked up at him expectantly.
‘It’s only a theory, but probably worth a look. Let’s go and get our horses,’ Lance suggested.
As soon as Carlia saw the men saddling up their horses, she quickly did the same.
‘Carlia, wouldn’t you prefer to stay here?’ Brighton asked.