by Lana Axe
The mages began conjuring their fire, and after a few moments they began to fire white streaks of lightning at the trees. The arrows stopped flying, but there was no sign the elves had been injured. As the mages ceased their fire, a strange silence filled the air.
Nat climbed ever higher among the branches until he felt he was in the proper position. Licking a finger and holding it skyward, he tested the direction of the wind. Knocking a runed arrow to his bow, he aimed high in the air. His arrow flew, arcing high out of sight. Silently, he counted down from ten. As he reached one, he heard the sound of his arrow hitting its mark. Smiling to himself, he began descending the branches.
The arrow landed in the midst of the mages, exploding as it hit the ground. All six of them were thrown from their mounts as the terrified beasts were burned with fire. Two of the mages were trampled to death as the horses fled. Aelryk’s horse was visibly frightened, and it took nearly all of his strength to keep it under control.
Mi’tal rushed to the prince’s side. “We’ve lost too many to pursue the elves into the woods, my lord.”
Nodding in agreement, the prince replied, “That was only their archers. I’m betting their swordswomen have improved their weapons as well. We have to retreat.”
“What of Lisalla?” Mi’tal asked.
“We’ll have to find another way,” he replied, looking off into the woods. “We must return to the palace and gather the rest of our army.”
Mi’tal sounded the retreat. From the forest, cries of victory could be heard as the Na’zorans sped away. The archers descended from the trees to celebrate with the sword maidens on the ground.
Essa made her way over to Nat. “Well done,” she said, clapping him hard on his back.
He nodded and smiled proudly at her.
“We mustn’t give them a chance to return,” Essa said. “We’ll head for the troll forest immediately.”
The elves began to make their way to the section of evergreen forest known as the troll forest. Legend states that thousands of years ago, before the Wild Elves came into existence, this section of forest was home to horrible, vicious trolls. Now, it would serve as cover for the elves if the Na’zorans managed to locate them.
“Does Reylin know to meet us here?” Nat asked as he walked.
“Yes,” Essa replied. “We discussed everything before our group traveled north.”
“I hope they’ve had as much success in the south as we had here.”
The elves continued to cheer and sing songs of victory as they marched. The winter air could not chill their spirits as they celebrated. They had destroyed the homes of many humans and sent their army fleeing in fear. The tide of the war had finally turned in their favor, and the victory tasted ever so sweet.
Chapter 44
Yori pushed his chair away from the desk and rubbed the back of his neck. After hours of staring at the scrolls, he was no closer to learning how to set the gemstones without using magic. The bits and pieces he could make out suggested various spells, but he had no idea how to go about casting them. Clearly, these scrolls were not designed for his type of magic.
A knock came from his door, and one of Eldon’s apprentices called to him. “Master Eldon would like a word with you. He’s on the first floor. Don’t keep him waiting.”
Relieved to have an excuse to stop studying, Yori began the long walk down the spiral staircase. As he neared the bottom, the ground began to shake violently. He clutched at the handrail to stop himself from falling on his face. No other elf in the room seemed to notice the trembling, and they casually went about their business. Once the shaking subsided, Yori proceeded down the stairs to find Master Eldon.
“Ah, there you are,” Eldon said as Yori approached. “Have you had any luck with those scrolls?”
“Not really,” Yori admitted. “They all suggest spells, but I don’t think I could cast them.”
“I’ll just have to do a bit of research on my own, then,” Eldon replied, shaking his head. “Let’s head over to the shop, and I’ll show you how I forge a dagger.” Standing, he clapped his hands loudly, calling two of his apprentices to his side. Both of them wore red robes and hateful expressions. “Come along,” he said.
Yori followed a few steps behind the sorcerers. So far, the apprentices had not been kind, and he preferred to stay out of their way. Angering someone who could set you on fire just by looking at you didn’t seem like a good idea.
Master Eldon waved his hands in front of the shop, and the solid wall of stone dissolved once again. Strolling inside, he mumbled some instructions to the two apprentices and sent them away. “This way, Yori,” he said, as he approached his workbench.
Eldon placed a flat sheet of steel on the workbench and hovered both hands a few inches above it. Closing his eyes, he focused his energy into the metal, which took on an orange glow. As the color flickered, Yori could tell the steel was the right temperature for shaping. Master Eldon began to wiggle his fingers slightly, keeping his wrists and arms perfectly still. Yori stared in disbelief as the form of a blade took shape in the center of the glowing metal sheet.
“Unbelievable,” Yori whispered.
Having finished his work, Eldon dropped one hand to his side and began to move the other hand in a circular motion. A bluish tint came over the dagger to cool it, and tiny sparks flew from the edge as he sharpened it without the need of a grinding stone. Once he was satisfied, he lifted the blade and handed it to Yori.
“Try etching some runes into that,” Eldon said. “I’ll make a hilt for you.”
Yori accepted the blade and took out his chisels. He wasn’t sure which runes he should etch, so he chose a simple set of runes that would prevent the blade from becoming dull. By the time he had finished, Eldon had already crafted a simple hilt for the dagger.
Looking at the runes on the blade, Eldon smirked. “You couldn’t think of anything better than that?”
Yori shrugged apologetically. “I’ve never added fire to a blade before. I’ve added fire to arrow tips, but with blades I’ve only added runes to improve its function.”
“Don’t you think adding fire to it would improve its function?”
“I wouldn’t want it to explode in someone’s hand,” Yori commented.
“That’s not how it works.” Eldon thought for a moment and added, “Unless of course you etch something that will cause it to explode. You need to learn another word for fire.” He strode over to a shelf and took out a large blue volume on weapon crafting. Yori could not make out the full title, but the words “blade” and “enchantment” were clearly visible.
Thumbing through the dusty volume, Eldon found a suitable page and laid the book on the table. Pointing at a graphic of a partially crafted hilt, he said, “Examine this closely.”
Yori looked at the picture and tried to make out the words in the description. Clearly, a red gem was being added to the hilt of the sword. The pieces Yori could read stated: Fire strengthens steel, giving the wielder an advantage. The heat will radiate at various levels, burning one’s opponent, shooting sparks in an attacker’s eyes, melting the enemy’s weapon, and sometimes melting the opponent himself.
Realizing what he had just read, he stared up at Master Eldon, his jaw dropping open.
Upon seeing Yori’s expression, Master Eldon nearly burst with laughter. “It’s quite amazing what you can do with gemstones, is it not?”
Nodding his head, Yori replied, “It certainly is.”
“Now,” Eldon began. “Try etching something more along those lines. I can bring you a dictionary if you need me to.” The old elf chuckled quietly.
“That won’t be necessary,” Yori replied. He knew just what to etch next. Turning the blade to the other side, he began etching again. This time, he chose a derivative of fire that also insinuated strength and passion in the ancient elven tongue.
Master Eldon watched and nodded approvingly as Yori completed his work. “Excellent choice,” he declared. “Now let’s se
e if you can set a gemstone into this hilt.” With a magical burst, Eldon opened a drawer that contained various gems laid out on a soft cushion. Choosing a small red stone, he said, “This one should do nicely.”
Using the same method his uncle had taught him, he delicately set the precious stone into the metal. The dagger glowed red, but after a few seconds the color faded away. Even the etched runes lost their small amount of color as the pair stared in disbelief.
“What would cause that?” Eldon asked, scratching his chin.
Yori shook his head. “I guess that gemstone didn’t like what I did to it.” He had no idea why the runes would lose their effectiveness, but it had to relate to the gem or the magic contained inside it.
“I’m going to have to fix this,” Eldon declared, turning the blade in his hand. “This is going to require more research on my part. I might have to visit the university.”
The sound of footsteps told Yori the apprentices had returned. They walked in stride with one another as they approached the workbench where he sat. As Yori looked over his shoulder at them, they glanced at each other and shook their heads. He turned away, hoping they would keep their comments to themselves.
“Here, hold this,” Eldon said, passing the dagger to one apprentice.
“Achh!” the elf shouted as he dropped the dagger and staggered backwards.
Eldon chuckled. “At least that part still works.”
The apprentice retrieved the dagger from the floor and glared at Yori as he handed it back to his master.
“You two should take this young elf to see the duel. I’m going to head over to the university for a bit.” Eldon turned to Yori and said, “We’ll continue this lesson in a day or so. I’m sure I can find something by then.”
Eldon hurried off, leaving Yori behind with the two apprentices. He stood and managed a weak smile. The apprentices looked at each other and rolled their eyes.
“So what are you, anyway?”one of them asked.
“An elf from the Wildlands,” Yori replied, not bothering to mention his human blood. He knew that would only make him more disgusting to their eyes.
The elf shrugged at his answer. “Let’s go,” he said.
After magically sealing the shop, they continued down the street through the massive marketplace. Yori would have enjoyed stopping to browse the wares, but he barely had time to glance at the shops as he matched the hurried pace of the apprentices.
At last they arrived at a large coliseum. The entire structure was made of polished white stone that sparkled in the sunlight. Inside, hundreds of spectators had gathered to witness the daily duel.
“What are they dueling about?” Yori asked.
“Does it matter?” one apprentice replied. “They have some dispute, and they’ve come here to settle it.”
“How do you determine the winner?” Yori asked, fearing the answer.
Both apprentices laughed at the question and continued inside the coliseum. They found seats near the upper row just before the duel began. Two sorcerers, one in a blue robe and one in brown, stood at the center of the stage. Neither carried any visible weapons as they paced, sizing each other up.
Without warning, the blue sorcerer shot sparks at his opponent, who barely had time to put up a shield. As the sparks faded, the brown sorcerer was already wrapping his opponent in what appeared to be some sort of webbing. Yori glanced over at the apprentices, who sat on the edge of their seats. A blue light flashed, and the blue sorcerer was somehow freed of his bonds. The crowd roared with excitement. Yori remained silent, unsure how to respond. He assumed the spell must have been rather difficult if it could impress this crowd.
The brown sorcerer wasted no time in attacking again. This time, he emitted a green light from his fingertips, enveloping the blue mage in some type of sphere. The sphere began to fill with water until it burst, freeing the blue sorcerer from his prison. He quickly shot a stream of blue light at the brown sorcerer, hitting him in the face and knocking him off balance.
The brown sorcerer hit the ground hard, and the blue sorcerer stood over him triumphantly. A purple glow encircled his hands as he prepared for his final attack. The brown sorcerer, however, was not yet finished. With a swipe of his foot, he knocked the blue sorcerer to the ground and pummeled him with an unseen energy attack. The force of his blows drove the blue sorcerer into the earth itself, leaving a shallow pit in the center of the arena. Shaking his hands as if to dry them, he commanded the dirt to fill over the top of the blue sorcerer.
The elves jumped to their feet, cheering the victory of the brown mage. Yori was the only person in the coliseum to remain seated. Never before had he witnessed such a scene. One elf had clearly killed the other in front of hundreds of witnesses, yet no crime had been committed. Disputes in the Sunswept Isles were apparently settled in this fashion, and the crowds enjoyed it immensely. Yori wondered what two people might fight over that would require such drastic measures. Surely they could have settled their dispute more peacefully.
The crowd began to disperse, and Yori followed the apprentices back to Eldon’s tower. The old sorcerer had not yet returned home, so Yori proceeded to his room to await dinner. He sat down in front of the desk and once again looked over the scrolls. Reading, he hoped, would take his mind off of the spectacle he had just witnessed. He chose a scroll about purple gems and studied it closely, hoping to forget about reality for the time being.
Chapter 45
King Domren sat tall and proud on his throne as Aelryk stormed into the throne room. “There you are,” the king said. “I’ve been awaiting your return.”
Bowing before his father, the prince said, “My men and I were forced to retreat. The elves have acquired some very powerful weapons. They killed nearly a quarter of my men, and wounded hundreds. The city of Duana has been decimated.”
“Yes,” the king said. “Enald has been destroyed as well. It’s very clever of them to take out two market districts.”
Aelryk glanced back at Mi’tal, who was standing at the back of the room. Mi’tal’s face wore an expression of surprise. The news that elves had managed to attack and destroy two of Na’zora’s largest cities was shocking. “What is your plan, Father?”
“The college has sent over a little gift.” The king’s face broke into a wide smile. “Months ago I ordered them to cease all training that did not involve battle skills. I now have fifty mages at my command who are ready for war.”
The disbelief was clear on Aelryk’s face. He had been kept completely in the dark about his father’s plan. “So you’ve been planning this all along, yet you did not bother to share it with me.”
“That’s right,” the king replied. “Why should I? You’ve been against this war from the start.” He leaned forward, taking a closer look at his son. “You are a magnificent leader, and your men would follow you into the sea if you rode there.” He frowned, adding, “Unfortunately, you are weak. You don’t have the stomach to do what must be done. You’d have tried to talk me out of it had you known my intentions. I didn’t want to listen to your whining.”
Aelryk could feel the heat rising to his face. “Whining? All I’ve ever tried to do was offer you sound advice. It’s more than I can say for those pitiful dolts you call councilors.”
“My son, if you’re going to be king you must learn a thing or two.” He sat back in his chair and shook his head. “Councilors who disagree with you can be replaced. The rule of Na’zora belongs to one man alone. Someday that man will be you, and I expect you to uphold your father’s legacy.”
Aelryk stared at his father, maintaining his silence. No one in the room dared to speak. The councilors who were present didn’t even dare to glance at one another, for fear of making a sound.
“Prepare your troops,” the king said, cutting through the silence. “We will be riding out again tomorrow.”
“We don’t know where the elven army is,” the prince pointed out.
“Yes, we do,” the king stated prou
dly. “Orzi has given me their precise location.” So far, the prophet had not been wrong in his advice to the king. His words were golden to the king’s ears.
With a bow, Aelryk turned on his heels and strode to the door. Mi’tal followed closely behind as he exited. Once they were outside in the sunlight, the prince paused to speak.
“Did you have any knowledge of these mages?” the prince asked.
“Not in the slightest, my lord,” Mi’tal replied. “I would assume only General Luca was aware of it. He would never divulge the king’s secrets. Not to me, at least.”
“Nor to me, it would seem.” The prince stared at the ground, lost in thought.
“Shall I prepare the troops, my lord?” Mi’tal asked.
With a sigh, the prince replied, “Yes. If my father is riding into battle, we must go as well. Once those mages are unleashed, Lisalla may be in grave danger. Without us, there will be no chance of stopping my father. He won’t care if the princess is among the casualties as long as she’s accompanied in death by many elves.”
* * * * *
Three days of riding brought the king’s army within range of the elven encampment. Their arrival, however, had not gone unnoticed. Scouts had seen them approaching, and the elven army was given a day to prepare for the coming battle. Reylin’s troops were low on arrows and had busied themselves crafting more. Unfortunately, they did not have enough time to craft new metal tips and were having to make do with sharpening the wooden shafts. Essa’s troops still had a small amount of runed tips, and they planned to use them wisely. They would only be shot into the largest groups of enemy soldiers, in hopes of taking down as many men as possible with a single arrow.
The sun was already high in the sky when the scouts sent word that the enemy had arrived. The archers began ascending the trees, taking cover in the thick evergreen boughs.
“All sword maidens split into small groups,” Essa told the women. “Find a place low in the branches where you can take cover, but be ready to strike at a moment’s notice. We want to avoid the possibility of a mounted charge, but once the forest has forced them to disperse, we must be ready to fight.”