"So you are the builders," said Mavok confirming his suspicions.
"Yes, there are stories of us once being the builders or architects," Alack answered.
'The upheaval of this world was our fault, a great battle took place between myself and my brothers. As much as it is in our nature to create and protect life, we are driven by an urge to be all powerful and fight for what we believe is ours. The essence that runs through life is our power and we used it to wage a war against each other. This is what almost destroyed the world'
"Essence?" Mavok asked. "Like the power that runs through us?"
Alack nodded. "The release of so much essence into the world caused an irreversible effect on the humans, changing them into what we are now and also giving us access to use the power of the guardians"
'This was never meant to happen' said the guardian. 'The mother did what she could to reverse the process, but life and death refused to do her bidding. All she could do was stop your kind from reproducing’
"That is why we cannot have more children. It is down to the will of the guardians," said Alack.
Mavok was trying to process all the information, but his head was swimming.
'You have so many questions Mavok. There will be plenty of time for answers'
"How do you know what is in my head?" Mavok asked.
'I can read your mind, in the short time that we have spoken I have learnt a lot about where you have come from and the conflict that is taking place upon your land.'
"The elves are not welcomed by the humans. We are abominations that live against the flow of life," said Mavok. "Now you are saying that the guardians created us. Why have we not seen you before?"
'My brothers and the other guardians will not interfere with the way the world works. After the last great battle that almost cost this world we agreed to slumber until the end of time'
"But you are talking to us now. You interact with the elves that already live here," Mavok pointed out.
'Yes, I have chosen to reveal myself to the elves as you call them. What happened was not your fault and there is some redemption in sharing my knowledge and wisdom'
"There are others on this land that joined us in the travel here," said Mavok. "Would they too be welcome here?"
'You are all welcome to come under my protection. To know that others survived out there so long ago is reassuring to me'
Mavok turned to Alack.
"Will you let us go to the others and bring them here?" he asked the leader.
Alack nodded.
"Our leader; Zalon would like to meet you, guardian. He is one of the original builders from that time long ago," said Mavok.
'Then it would be a pleasure to meet him' replied the guardian.
"I will send some of my people with you to guide you back," said Alack. "Come with me"
Mavok looked at Amy who still looked terrified.
"How are you?" he asked her.
Her voice trembled as she spoke.
"It's too much to take in"
Amy shuddered. "He spoke in my head," she said.
"It will be alright. We will bring the others here and then we will all be safe," said Mavok and he began to follow Alack back through the corridor, turning to look over the guardian once more.
'We will speak again Mavok' the guardian said within his mind.
Amy began following Mavok and once again the booming voice of the guardian sounded in her head.
'Child, you look terrified on the outside, but I can see deep into your heart. You cradle the power that you have and seek more. I know what you think and what you are planning and I warn you that the path you are on will not end well. Do not covet my power, it is not yours to command and you will not be able to control it'
Amy ignored what it was telling her.
'Be careful, you will not be able to change your mind when you set your mind upon the task'
Amy carried on walking until she knew they were out of sight of the guardian. He could not know Amy's real feelings, now that she knew where the power came from she could plan on how to gain more and knew there were others that shared her lust for the power that ran through them.
Mavok turned and looked at her, the concern on his face was amusing to her. "Are you sure you are okay?" he asked.
The mighty commander from the path of strength is fooled by her timid acting. Though the girl that was besotted with the commander was not convinced, Amy could sense the mistrust Rinne had for her and for good reason. Now that Amy could gain more power, she could control the elves, return to the land they had left to seek vengeance for the pain and hurt that the humans gave them.
chapter ten
Rinne walked at the front of the group, they had been trekking for many hours now and Rinne was feeling confident that they were going the right way. She had followed what Mavok had done and often climbed a tree to ensure that the mountains were still north of them. It was a small group, with Zalon spurring them onwards with his encouraging words. Words that began to grate at Rinne and she was thankful for the brief measures of quiet when sat up in the trees.
"How much further?" Zalon asked as she climbed down from a tree that had been lacking enough branches to make the climb easy.
"We are moving fast but still a day away at least. I still can't see any sign of life out there," Rinne replied.
"But we know they are out there," said Zalon.
Rinne nodded an agreement. If they were out there it was likely that they were already watching the group walk through the forest but Rinne had not seen them. She could feel the cold once more coming on as the sun began to set. Following Zalon’s advice Rinne did not use her power to keep warm, instead pulling a blanket out of the pack she carried and draping it across her shoulders.
"It does get cold here. We experienced it on our first night and the beach did little to protect from the oceans breeze and the rain," said Zalon as they continued the path.
"It was not much better here in the forest," said Rinne.
"I can imagine not," he said with a thoughtful tone. "We should rest soon"
"We need to save them," said Rinne.
"It will do them no good if we tire. We still don't know if they are hostile or not," said Zalon.
Rinne agreed and they set up a small camp with no fire. Zalon wanted them to remain undetected for as long as possible though Rinne thought it too late for that. She sat upon the floor and the fallen leaves crackled as she lay down and closed her eyes, hoping for some sleep.
Dreams of a great monster terrified her. It chased her over the lands flying high above with leathery wings that seemed to block out the sun. Onwards they travelled to the city of philosophers where the great tower stood once more. A great wave of energy burst from the monsters mouth and knocked the tower down just as she had done after her capture.
It then chased her to Unity, the safe haven of the elves. There she could only watch as it destroyed the community, burning it with the fire that now came from its mouth. Rinne tried to fight back, but her power was gone. She was human once more so she kept on running.
Rinne woke up in a sweat and screamed, rousing the others who went for their weapons.
"I am alright," she called out and they all relaxed once more. Zalon headed over to her.
"What happened?" he asked.
"Just a bad dream," Rinne replied, she could feel her body shaking.
"What did you dream about?"
"A great monster, covered in scales was chasing me. It used its power to destroy everything on the land of humans," said Rinne.
"What did the monster look like?" he asked.
"It was enormous, covered in scales like a lizard and it flew with giant wings," said Rinne.
"A dragon," said Zalon "A monster from a fable I was once told about as a child. They are not real, just a story"
"It felt real to me," said Rinne.
"Dreams often do. We do not understand what they are but just stories our mind entertains us with
whilst we sleep," said Zalon.
"It was far from entertaining," Rinne said with a shiver.
"You have been through a lot in your short lifetime, more than some of us that have lived beyond reason. It is no wonder that you have nightmares," said Zalon.
Rinne was not comforted.
"Come. As we are all awake now we might as well continue towards the mountain," he said.
Rinne stood up, her legs ached once more and with another day of walking ahead did not raise her mood. Everyone was giving Rinne strange looks and it made her want to disappear into the shadows of the trees.
"Rinne, climb the tree and find out which way we need to head," said Zalon.
Rinne obliged and found a tree. With each pull up her body resisted. Many of the branches were still damp from the recent rainfall and the accompanying moss caused many to be slippery, but she prevailed and reached the top to see an orange dawn beginning to break. It was a beautiful sight that took Rinne’s breath away.
To the north sat the mountains, illuminated by the sun giving them a glow that looked almost like it was on fire, reminding her of the dream she had. Doing her best to put it out of her mind Rinne thought of Mavok and hoped he was safe at least until they could get there and save them. Rinne climbed back down once more.
"This way," Rinne pointed and then began to walk before Zalon could ask her anything.
They walked most of the day, stopping only to have something to eat and a quick rest. It was not until the afternoon that they found their first decent source of water. A small pond of water filled by a thin river that streamed from the direction they were heading.
"Fill up your flasks. We should be close now," said Zalon.
"Closer than you think," said a voice that was familiar to Rinne. The other not so much and they drew their weapons as a figure stepped from the trees.
"Mavok!" Rinne called out and then ran to him, without thinking she embraced the man causing him to stumble backwards and into a tree. Coming to her senses, Rinne disengaged herself from him and felt her cheeks turn red with blush. "How did you escape?"
"You knew that we were captured?" Mavok asked.
"I encountered a group of unfamiliar elves. They were talking about two people that they had captured. I assumed it was yourself and Amy," Rinne answered.
"It was though we were not prisoners," said Mavok. "Zalon! What are you all doing here?"
Rinne felt the blush grow stronger on her face. "We came to rescue you," said Rinne.
Zalon walked over and clasped Mavok's arm.
"It is good to see you well. We were on our way to make contact with the elves that had captured you and request your release" the elder said.
"As I said, we were not prisoners, I was heading back with others to welcome you all to the mountain. There is a community of elves there and something even greater than that"
"What would that be?" asked Zalon.
Mavok smiled and winked.
"I will leave that as a surprise, but they are quite excited to meet you" Mavok turned around. "It is alright, you can all come out"
From beyond the trees walked first Amy, much to Rinne's dismay and then a group of elves dressed like the ones she had seen before.
"Welcome to our land," said one of them almost as cheery as Zalon did it. "My name is Alack, leader of those that inhabit this island."
"My name is Zalon, thank you for the welcome"
Rinne watched the exchange, anxious to speak to Mavok alone and to get him away from Amy who seemed to be staring at her.
"Well we seem to have come all this way for nothing," said Zalon.
'Too right' thought Rinne who was tiring of walking back and forth across this land.
"We welcome you to our mountain and the courtesy extends to all that have travelled here with you," said Alack.
Zalon turned to Mavok. "That means going back to the camp again"
"Yes, it would be best to get everyone there as soon as possible. From what Alack has told me, the storm we saw was small in comparison to what they often get on this island," Said Mavok.
"Have you seen the others?" Rinne asked Mavok.
"What others?" Mavok asked her.
"Alyster and the other elves that were with us. I sent them back, but they seem to have gotten lost in the forest," she said.
"I will send some of my people to go and find them, the forest is large but they should have no problem tracking down your friends and bringing them straight to the mountain," said Alack.
"My thanks," said Zalon. "I will send some back to bring all the elves north to the mountain"
"Then it is sorted," said Alack. "Come let us send the men off and we can head back to the mountain"
Rinne turned and walked away from the discussion and knelt down by the pond to take a sip of water. She could feel Mavok come up beside her and sit down.
"How have you been?" he asked.
"Tired, scared and quite hungry," she said without turning. Rinne did not want him to see the tears that trailed down her face. "You?"
"Much the same," he replied.
"I hardly believe that," Rinne scoffed and wiped her eyes. "I don't think anything scares you"
"That's not true, there is plenty that scares me," he said and then moved next to her.
Rinne turned to look at him. "What scares you then?"
"Going into battle," he replied.
"But you are a commander from the path of strength, how can battle scare you?"
"Nobody wants to die Rinne, the same goes for anyone no matter what path they are on," he said. "Each battle I went into could have always been my last and the thought of death terrified me"
"You are a strange warrior," said Rinne.
"No stranger than you are as a scientist," Mavok said with a laugh and Rinne joined in. "That's better, now let's go and I can show you this mountain that you have waited so long to see"
Rinne smiled and took his hand as he got up, with a heave she stood and picked up the pack that had fallen when she knelt down.
"We are not far from the mountain. Come and we will get some food in you all," said Alack.
Both leaders led the way as another two groups went in separate directions. One to find the missing elves and the other to bring the rest to the mountain.
chapter eleven
Nate poured some water over Alyster’s head in an attempt to rouse him. "Alyster, wake up!" Nate said to him.
Alyster coughed and tried to sit up, but Nate rested a hand on his shoulder to keep him still.
"Don't move, you have injuries," said Nate.
"What happened?" Alyster asked.
"You fell from the tree and broke your leg. I have done what I can to stop the bleeding and secure the leg, but I do not think you should move," said Nate.
"How long was I out for?" Alyster asked.
"It has been over a day since the accident. We have collected some food and water and managed to start a fire to keep warm," said Nate. Hoping that he had done the right thing.
"Did you send anyone back to get help?" Alyster asked.
Nate shook his head. "We thought it best to all remain here, safety in numbers," he replied.
Alyster looked around the area. "Is there any food?" he asked.
One of the elves brought him a bowl of stew that had been bubbling over the fire.
"Nothing else?" asked Alyster with a weak smile.
"Best we could do with what we found," Nate replied and then stood up. "Dawn has broken, now that you are awake we need to talk about the possibility to move you and get back to the beach"
"With some help I should be able to move, there is no more pain apart from my leg."
"Still, I think we should take it easy for now," said Nate.
One of the other elves appeared from the trees and ran over to Nate, whispering something into his ear. 'We have company coming'
"Friendly?" Nate asked.
The elve shook his head.
"Grab your weapons ev
eryone and put out that fire," he said.
They carried out his command and then moved into the trees. Nate crouched beside Alyster and began to cover him with leaves.
"Give me a sword," Alyster said to him.
"No, you must hide. You are in no condition to fight, leave it to us"
Alyster agreed and Nate moved into the trees and waited. It was not long before five men appeared in the clearing wearing unfamiliar clothes. They made their way into the clearing Nate and the others had just been in and he held his breath as they neared Alyster.
One went over to the extinguished fire and placed his hand over it.
"It's still warm, they cannot be far," he said to the others.
"Then we should keep on looking," said another who walked forward and must have trodden on Alyster for a small yelp sounded from the leaves.
Without another thought, Nate and the others ran from their hiding with swords ready and before these other elves could speak the group set into them, hacking them to pieces. Nate felt a sharp sting on his face as they begun defending themselves but it was soon over, surprise giving them the edge they needed. Nate looked around and saw there were no other injuries then ran over to Alyster, uncovering him.
"Sorry," he rasped, his face contorted in pain. "Damn fool stood on my leg"
"Don't worry about it, we got them all!" said Nate.
"You killed them all?" Alyster asked.
"We had no choice, they would have done the same to us"
"We cannot be sure of that, they may not have been hostile," said Alyster. The injured elve pulled himself up into a sitting position and looked at the scene around him.
Nate followed his gaze and saw the bodies upon the floor as well as blood splattered upon the trunks of the surrounding trees. It was gruesome and disregarding Alyster's comments he thought it necessary for their survival.
"We need to get away from here before anyone discovers these bodies," said Alyster who tried to get to his feet but fell down again crying out in pain.
"You can't go anywhere without some help," said Nate as he knelt down and put one of Alyster's arms around his neck. With the help of another elve, they managed to get him to his feet.
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