by Joanne Vruno
“So the colonies don’t ever communicate?” I asked.
“No, the only communication comes from the king. All the colonies report to him, and he chooses what he wants to share. It’s a safeguard. If one colony is captured, they can’t give away another’s location or size. We have no idea how large this colony coming our way is. Silver and Dolph have no idea who the head elves are, either. All the head elves knew each other a thousand years ago, but just as human rulers change so do elven ones. They have no information on us except maybe our names.”
“I’m seeing possible dangers with two colonies being close. I wonder what happened to their guardian. Aren’t we pretty much indestructible? I mean, with healing powers and transporting powers?” I asked.
Grandma shrugged. “For the most part we are, unless we lose consciousness. What would have happened to you with the tree sprites if I hadn’t been around to cure you afterward and you hadn’t sent them away yet? Disaster. Our situation is the exception because there are two of us guardians, maybe three. I was solo for many years and figured you would be when I was gone. Then you shouldn’t tackle tree sprites like you did, but then you shouldn’t have had a little sister with powers, either. She’s amazing me like you did this summer with her dedication to mastering everything. I’m so proud of you two.” Grandma gave another little shrug. “I just don’t know what it means that she might be a guardian, too.”
“I think we both, Emily and I, knew we needed to learn as much as we can as fast as we can. The creatures are appearing everywhere, which doesn’t give us a choice.”
“So true, so true . . . so, back to training. To hide the village and the yard or whatever needs to be hidden, you hold up the amulet like this, face it toward the sun or moon, whichever is in the sky at that moment and say, ‘Sight be hidden,’ out loud or in your head. Either way works. You’ll know it took the command when the flash appears. Try not to look directly at the flash, or you’ll see spots for a few minutes.”
“How do we reverse it, like you did at Silver and Dolph’s village the first time I went there ?” I asked.
“That’s easy. Say, ‘Sight be seen,’ but never leave the village without saying ‘Sight be hidden,’”
“Okay. Those are easy to remember. Now, I’d like to know what you did to Emily the first day I met Silver. She was watching the fish in your pond, then suddenly she was asleep, and she slept until you woke her.”
“Oh, I forgot about that. I gave her a sleeping spell.”
“A sleeping spell? We can also cast spells?”
“A few spells come with the amulet. The sleeping spell seems to work the best. I’ve used it on both of you girls when a creature has shown up unexpectedly and directly needs my help. One never knows when you may be needed. The sleeping spell works well to keep any humans oblivious to what may be happening around them. You just need to remember to wake up the person or creature afterward, because they won’t awaken on their own.”
“So it works on creatures ,too?”
“It does. In fact, it may come to be needed with this new colony if we need to speak alone with Silver or Dolph. Our meetings may be observed by their sentries unless we transport Silver and Dolph to us. If we have an urgent situation we need to discuss, we could put the other village to sleep. We just have to keep it to short intervals or they’ll notice the passage of time. It’s just a thought though, something we won’t do unless it’s very necessary. All right?”
“Grandma, it seems like you expect trouble. Is there something I should know?”
She patted my shoulder. “No, Aly. I just want us to be prepared for anything. I completely trust our colony of elves. Time and again they’ve proven to be there for me as much as I have for them. I’m concerned about the possibility this new colony may endanger the elves I love so dearly. I’m also nervous about the new colony and your safety. I want to teach you all I can right now so you can use it if need be. You’re so much stronger than I was at your age. I wanted us to be guardians together for a few years, but now it seems you’ll be on your own way too soon. My one comfort is that you’re smart and won’t easily be swayed by any creature. You have all of us for support and know we’ll be there whenever you need us. I want periodic updates on how everything’s going. Send one of your tomtes to my house to report or come yourself. I want to know if anything seems the least bit odd. Don’t ever go off with just one elf from the new colony, not until you can totally trust them. As much as I’d like to embrace the new colony in friendship, I know we need to be on guard at all times until we know more about them.”
Though I was concerned by all this, I loved that Grandma believed in me.
“You heard Dolph say that the light elf castle has been infiltrated by spies,” Grandma continued. “Nobody knows what they discovered except the elves aren’t in the castle. We don’t think they know how many left the castle. We just know they’re searching for signs of light elves. Trust of other elves factors in when we meet this new group. They probably won’t be like they were in the past. Too much time has gone by for all the colonies to be alike. I think they may be just as leery about us. More so, maybe, because they have no guardian. All guardians have been from the same families for generations. Nine lines of guardians. A bond has grown throughout the years. Now they’ve lost that bond. They may be distant toward you in the beginning and need you to earn their trust, also.”
My nerves felt frazzled even though I tried to stay calm. I was having a difficult time accepting that I’d be solo with unknown elves.
“Aly, one more thing. Always be conscious of the new elves’ eyes. I’ve never met a rock elf, but the books all say their eyes give them away. Report to us if any elf has a haze over their eyes. Actually, I’d also report it to your new head elves. Can you promise me that?”
“Oh, believe me, I plan to keep alert for that!”
“Good girl, now back to the sleeping spell. You face the amulet towards the individual or group you want to put to sleep, then say, ‘Slumber now.’ To wake them, say, ‘Awaken now.’ These should be very easy to remember.”
“That’s all you need to say?” I asked. “I’ll remember.”
“I’ll teach you more down the line, especially if the visitors have their guardian’s amulet. If not, we’ll wait until King Klas makes another one,” said Grandma. “Now, let’s order some pizza. We both need to eat as much as possible today to have strength for tomorrow’s big job transporting a village. Why not ask Dolph and Emily if they’d like some?”
I went out but watched from the garage doorway as Dolph taught Emily the differences between regular bird calls and the elf sentries’ signals. I didn’t want to interrupt. I knew how important the lesson was. From now on, Emily would be alerted to any creatures whenever she was outside. I had been grateful for the times a sentry had alerted me, such as when I spotted Alvit.
I was happy when the lesson ended and I mentioned pizza, Dolph chose to stay for dinner with us. He gave both Grandma and me a pep talk for our undertakings the next morning.
Sixteen
In the morning, we rose early for our drive to the park. Lunt asked for a ride to save all his energy in case it was needed. He’d never been in a car and was fascinated by how it worked. Grandma and I smiled at all his comments, knowing how foreign the experience must be for him.
When we arrived at the park, we were the only car in the lot. A seven o’clock on a Friday morning that didn’t surprise me. We found Silver and Asa around the first bend. They had searched the park—no signs of any humans or other creatures.
“I think we should climb up the hill there, so we’re out of human travel areas,” said Silver.
We climbed until we were hidden from view from below. Silver and Asa took to the trees, and Lunt disappeared into the woods.
I watched them go. I told myself, Aly, you can do this, stay calm. All wi
ll be fine.
Grandma flashed the amulet to make us invisible. She then looked at me and said, “Are you ready?”
I let out another breath and replied, “Yes.”
Grandma took my hand to combine our powers, looked at me and said, “On three, we’ll say in unison, ‘Send us half the colony of light elves without a guardian’ three times. I know it seems like a long request, but we don’t want other light elves to come our way.”
Grandma squeezed my hand, and then started to count, “One, two three.”
In unison we said, “Send us half the colony of light elves that do not have a guardian. Send us half the colony of light elves that do not have a guardian. Send us half the colony of light elves that do not have a guardian.”
Poof! A group of thirty or so light elves appeared startled, saw us and took a battle stance.
“We were told you’re in need of a guardian,” said Grandma. “I’d like to introduce you to your new guardian, my granddaughter, Aly. We could not send a message to you because we didn’t know your location. We only have the power to transport half of your colony at a time, so please, relax.” Grandma held out her amulet for verification that she was a guardian. “Are any of you one of the head elves?”
A beautiful female elf with bright reddish-gold hair stepped forward. “I am Koppor. I am one of the head elves. How did you know about us?” Her green eyes examined our faces as we spoke. I noted they were clear.
“I had a visit from Alvit,” I said. “She seemed to know who I was and was determined to have me go to your village, but I didn’t know her. I sent her back to you.”
I could see this answered some concerns for them. I continued. “I found out through others she was someone King Klas would send. So, with my grandmother here, we decided to bring your village members to us. As you know, a guardian can’t be taken from her family, but every light elf village needs a guardian.”
“You’re correct. We do need a guardian. Can you two bring the rest of my colony here now? They must be frantic, not knowing where we went,” said Koppor.
“Yes, right away, “said Grandma as she took my hand and whispered in my ear what we were to say. Together we said, “Send us the other half of the light elf colony without a guardian. Send us the other half of the light elf colony without a guardian. Send us the other half of the light elf colony without a guardian.”
Poof! The other half of the village appeared and were ready for battle as the first group had been.
“Stand down. Everything is fine,” ordered Koppor. “We have a new guardian. This young girl’s name is Aly. In these woods we must make our new village. Scouts, go out and search for an area suited to our needs.”
Several members of the village took off on their birds that came with them in the transport.
Grandma and I waited as Koppor spoke to different members of the village in soft tones. Then through the crowd strode a distinguished male elf we both knew had to be the other lead elf.
“I’m Fredek. I’m pleased to meet you, Aly, and your grandmother,” he said, holding out a hand. “We’ve been fearful of attack without a guardian for protection. You must realize the fear that overtook when half of our colony suddenly disappeared. Thank you for keeping that time brief. We knew it was magic but had no idea whose. It’s a relief to be united again and a greater one to discover we have a guardian again. Judging by your appearance, I’d guess you haven’t been a guardian for long. Am I right?”
“My powers came this spring. I’m still being trained, but my grandmother will always be close to help.”
Fredek looked towards Grandma, “This must mean we’re close to another village of elves. You’re their guardian?”
Grandma took his hand. “It does. It also brings up safety issues having a large number of light elves in one area. We’ll be more noticeable to others. We’ll all have to be more cautious. We’ve had dwarfs come through of late and the troll population in the area has grown. Oh, my name is Alice, and it’s a pleasure to meet you.”
Fredek smiled. “Alice, I’m pleased to meet you, too. May I ask who are your lead elves? We have not seen any other light elves for a thousand years. I’m hoping we can meet them soon.”
Grandma was quiet. I could sense she was talking telepathically to Silver. Soon she looked up toward the trees. Others looked in the same direction. A large hawk swooped to the ground. Silver dismounted Asa.
Koppor squealed, “Silver, is that you?” and ran toward Silver.
Soon the two elves were hugging each other while Fredek watched with a joyful smile.
Grandma and I waited. Tears flowed down Silver’s cheeks. I had never seen Silver so emotional. She usually hid any sign of emotion except maybe disappointment, which I was used to seeing from the summer.
Fredek said, “Koppor is Silver’s older sister. For all the villages for us to be near, Silver’s is the one that makes the most sense. Our life in isolation has been long. None of us have seen or heard about our family members. We knew all the colonies had so far been safe, but I think ours is the first to lose a guardian. We’re grateful yours had two. Aly, we’ll be here to guide you along the way as Silver and Dolph have. Speaking of Dolph, how is he?”
“Very well. They’ve been living close to me in this area all my life,” said Grandma.
“May I ask where are we? It’s beautiful with all the wonderful fall leaves in full color. Normally, we would know what part of the world we are in, but today’s transportation has left us lost.”
“This is the Unites States, the central northern part, in a state called Minnesota. We’re in the capitol city, St. Paul. Where have you come from?” Grandma asked.
“Not that far away. Montreal, Canada.”
“That must be why Aly and I aren’t completely exhausted. But I’m feeling a little drained. How about you, Aly? I have some snacks in the car. Let’s go down and get something to eat. We can rest in the car while Silver and Koppor reunite. Fredek, will you send someone to us when you’re ready for us?” asked Grandma.
“I will. You two go rest.”
Just like Grandma, I beginning to feel the effects of using such powerful magic. My body was feeling drained. At the car Grandma gave me a granola bar, a banana, and Gatorade. We sat is the front seat and rested as we ate.
I looked toward the hill. “Imagine what Silver must be feeling. I can’t imagine being separated from Emily for that long. Isolation must have been awful for the nine colonies. Will the war between the elf kingdoms ever end?” I asked Grandma.
“It’s sure gone on a long time. Too long. From what I understand, it’s similar to a family feud. Both were family in the past and separated during the war between the giants and the Norse gods. As time went by, the light elves stayed dedicated to preserving the planet, while the rock elves lost their identity when the giants left. Everyone needs a purpose. When you lose that, bitterness seeps in and hatred controls you. For light elves this is difficult because they don’t want to eliminate the rock elves. If they did, they might have overthrown them centuries ago. Instead, they’re hoping for co-existence. It’s so sad.”
“So they won’t eliminate the rock elves?”
“They never want to eliminate anyone. That’s why we just transport them away from us. Only rarely, such as the dwarf this summer, is a creature destroyed.”
My head started spinning. “Grandma, can we go back to your house? I don’t feel too good right now.”
“You do look pale. Let me tell Silver and Lunt.”
She spoke telepathically to the pair, and we drove off.
We were pelted with questions when we got home. I soon fell asleep in the recliner as Grandma explained the events at the park.
Seventeen
I awoke several hours later famished. As I got up to make a sandwich, I heard Emily ask Lina about all o
ur family members who had been guardians before Grandma. I listened to our family history. Lina said, “Alice’s mother’s name was Tillie. She was full-blooded Swedish, with blonde hair and always such a sweet smile. Unfortunately, she had a stroke and passed away when your grandmother was thirteen. Your grandmother tried to save her but there wasn’t enough time. Alice told me she became a nurse because of that. Not only did she have guardianship powers to heal others, but she also wanted the knowledge behind each disease to know what time limit she had for healing.”
I remembered Grandma telling me she’d tried to bring her mom back to life. I never realized how long she waited, being a guardian alone without someone to talk to about it. I felt sorry for her and also admired her for her strength to carry on. It dawned on me that she wasn’t there. “Where is Grandma?” I asked.
“Taking a nap. She lasted an hour longer than you did. It sounds like you had quite the morning,” said Lina, reaching for my plate to take it into the kitchen.
“It was kind of awesome. I could feel Grandma’s power blending with mine. It felt like we were pulling something really heavy towards us. Every other time I used my transportation power it had never seemed like this difficult of a pull.”
“That must have been due to the numbers of elves you moved at one time,” said Lina, as she handed me an apple and also gave one to Emily, before she took a bite of one for herself. “Besides, no doubt they resisted.”
“It didn’t seem hard when I transported the whole colony of tree sprites, though, and there were more of them.”
“Maybe not all the elves were in their village at the time. Maybe you pulled them in from other areas.”