Durstin

by Immortal Angel

  “We were here already, teaching the Renwynian elves some of our magic,” Evindal explained.

  Another small group of cyborgs joined them—and she was surprised to see Stephan with them.

  Tordan cleared his throat. “Thank you all for coming tonight. This is Kiersten, rightful Queen of Garthurian, the elven village in the mountains, and her husband, Durstin, King of Vierten, who is also my cousin. Many of you know one or the other of them already, so I would like for them to tell you what they’ve seen.”

  Kiersten raised her chin. “When searching the underground caves where we’d fled from the Ardaks, we found the Cave of Knowledge. Durstin and I took the first test together, and the first set of visions showed us that the merpeople were becoming sick as the poison penetrated the ocean, so we took them the cure. My second was of the future. I saw King Elsifan from Garthurian trade the golden key and the location of the Crystal Cave to the Ardaks for safe passage for himself and a few friends back to Melamar, the elven homeworld.”

  Angry murmurs went through the room, growing quickly.

  Just then, the door opened, and Valdjan came in, one hand on his sword. All eyes turned to him, but he locked looks with Tordan. “Sorry I’m late.”

  “You’re right on time,” Tordan replied. “So now that the golden key is missing, it’s time to take action to get it back. Do you know how the key went missing?”

  Valdjan shook his head. “I have no idea. I’ve never taken the key from around my neck, and we were in the domicile Ithyll made for us, shielded by her best magic.”

  “So, Elsifan has used his magic even to get past a guardian elf and steal the key.” Tordan rubbed his forehead. “Whatever we do, we can’t blame all the elves for this. Our understanding is that if he turns over the key to the Ardaks, most of the elves will still be left behind.”

  The others in the room began to relax as Tordan’s words sank in, but there was a tension there that hadn’t existed before.

  “I have agreed to gather what army we have and lend whatever help we can,” Tordan continued. “We have four commanders here—Mordjan, Aefin, Evindal, and Stephan.” He nodded at each of the commanders as he spoke their names. “We’ll split into four units for the attack, but we’ll split by function rather than by race, which means everyone will have to work together. How many elves do you think we’ll get from Garthurian?”

  Evindal stepped forward. “I’m not sure, but it could be up to half of them.”

  Geeeroo nodded. “I know many who did not want King Elsifan to take the throne in the first place, and I’m sure none of us want him to go back to the homeworld while we are left behind.”

  Tordan turned back to Kiersten.

  “That would be excellent,” she admitted. “We need as many elves on our side as possible, and if some elves need convincing, just inform them that Elsifan was the one who used black magic to murder my father and then lied to everyone about it.”

  The elves from Garthurian gasped again, their faces drawn in various expressions of outrage. Several of their hands went reflexively to the hilts of their swords, and one disappeared into a portal.

  “Dammit, bring Rylin back,” Evindal ordered, and Ryoduin and Rydaeron nodded and disappeared after him.

  “Where the hell did he go?” Mordjan growled.

  “He is either going to warn Elsifan or attempt to assassinate him,” Evindal answered. “And neither of those is good for us. There’s almost no chance he’ll be successful, and if Elsifan gets his hands on Rylin, he will torture everything he knows out of him.”

  “That means we need to act quickly,” Durstin said.

  “Yes, but it is important to understand that from our visions in the Cave of Knowledge, Elsifan and the others’ black magic may be stronger than ours. We need to band together against them so we aren’t slaughtered.” Kiersten reminded them.

  Tordan nodded. “This holds especially true for the Renwynian elves. For some reason, they have either lost pieces of their magic since they split from Garthurian, or they were never taught to use it. Geeeroo, Evindal, Theoduin, and Rydaeron have spent the past few days teaching others what they can, and they’ve made incredible progress.”

  “I wonder why. King Ardair, Queen Mirielle, and the other elders who came with them certainly had the knowledge,” Kiersten replied. “It seems so unfair to deprive them of their magic.”

  “I don’t know, and I’m not sure we’ll ever find out.” Tordan gave her a pointed glance and she took the cue to be silent. “But while we can warn the elves of the superior magic of the others, if they want to help in the fight against Elsifan, we won’t stop them.”

  “I agree,” Mordjan growled. “If they want to fight, let them fight. We all have reason enough.”

  “We need a plan.” Tordan took over. “We are blending roughly four armies, each with different knowledge and skills, so this will be a good test of how well we can work together.” He turned to Mordjan.

  “The cyborgs bring superior technology to the battle, heightened sensory perceptions, speed and power. Upgraded cyborgs bring higher-powered laser weapons and sighting, greater speed and power in their movements, the power of flight,” Mordjan offered.

  “The Renwynian elves have magic—it might not be as great as the magic of the Garthurian elves, but they have the fire of rage behind them, having fought the Ardaks before,” Aefin said.

  “And the Garthurian elves have magic, as well as fighting abilities. Some of us even know a bit of the black magic that Elsifan is using,” Evindal offered, nodding at Ryoduin.

  “Now to the upcoming fight. The golden key was stolen by Elsifan, and we need to recover it so he doesn’t trade it to the Ardaks.” As everyone nodded, he turned to Kiersten. “Can you summarize the situation? Tell us the size and ability of the enemy.”

  She stepped forward. “I believe it will be King Elsifan and roughly half the elves in Garthurian. It would be far fewer if everyone knew that I saw only twenty elves with him when he climbed on that ship. I am uncertain if his followers are also using black magic, so that is something we will need to watch for.”

  Durstin cleared his throat. “I saw an elf named Sepheth counteract your father’s golden branches with a dark magic and they withered where they were. Then Elsifan put his hand over her father’s heart and pull out his life force.”

  There was a shocked silence.

  Theoduin was the first to speak. “Where did you see this?”

  “In my vision in the Cave of Knowledge.”

  Theoduin’s eyes grew wide as his gaze shot to Geeeroo. “That’s ridiculous. Elsifan would never do such a thing! Besides, we would have known. The magical signature would have been on King Karolus’s body.”

  “Not necessarily. The magic Durstin described wouldn’t have left a signature.”

  “Actual black magic?” Theoduin frowned. “This is too much.”

  “You know it’s possible,” Geeeroo broke in. “Just because you’re ignoring what Elsifan is teaching the others, doesn’t mean that it isn’t black magic.”

  “This is so outlandish that I don’t know what to believe.” But for the first time, Theoduin looked like he was beginning to doubt Elsifan.

  “What do we have that could take on this type of weapon?” Tordan asked.

  “Several of the elders together might be able to do it,” Geeeroo answered. “The problem is that we don’t know how many elves will actually fight with him.”

  “I’ve gone to a few of the practice sessions,” Evindal said. “Mostly to see what they are doing. Elsifan never specifically stated it was black magic, but there was certainly something dark about it. One has to be angry to perform the magic well. There have been about twenty elves there every time, although not always the same ones.”

  “If Elsifan really made that deal with the Ardaks, you’d better believe some of his followers will fight to the death against us. They really want to go back to the homeworld.” Geeeroo shook his head. “As if that were even
possible.”

  “I want to go back, too,” Ryoduin said, “but not at that price.”

  “Do you know any others in Garthurian who might want to fight with us?” Tordan asked them. “We should warn them now.”

  “Yes, I can send word to at least ten.” Evindal nodded. “Shall I let them know?”

  “Now would be the time,” Theoduin said dryly.

  “Where shall they meet us?”

  “Tell them to be at the palace in one hour and thirty minutes.”

  Evindal raised his hand and a bird made of flame appeared. He whispered to it and then created a portal and sent the bird through.

  Durstin raised his eyebrows. “That’s a neat trick.”

  Another portal opened, and Ryoduin and Rydaeron stepped through, hauling Rylin with them.

  “We found him sneaking into the palace,” Rydaeron announced.

  Rylin shrugged him off. “If I want to kill him, that’s my right. King Cithir was like a father to me.”

  “Yes, but it’s a lot more likely that we’ll kill him with proper backup,” Theoduin stated flatly.

  Kiersten nodded at him sympathetically—she knew how he felt. She turned back to Evindal. “Can you tell us anything about Elsifan’s magic or give us any other information about what’s going on in the village?”

  This time, it was Ryoduin who answered. “I’ve been to more of the sessions than Evindal. A lot of it relies on illusion. Making others see things that aren’t there or feel things that aren’t there. They can make you see monsters or feel like you are suffocating.

  “It’s a dark, evil magic. Most of us wouldn’t touch it if we had a choice. I was spared a lot of pressure because my father is an elder, but Elsifan has been trying to force most of us into it.” He noticed his father’s frown. “I tried to tell you about it, Father. You just didn’t listen.”

  “Well, he’s listening now,” Kiersten said. “How many people do you think will support Elsifan?”

  “I don’t know, my lady. One cannot speak publicly against Elsifan, so many of us who dislike him have remained silent.”

  Tordan had joined them, and he raised his eyebrows. “That would never work in my kingdom.”

  “It doesn’t work so well in ours, either,” Ryoduin agreed. “It just takes longer for us to do something about it.”

  Kiersten remembered her father telling her how he believed that Elsifan would rule with an iron fist and how that wouldn’t be effective. “My father said it doesn’t work in any kingdom.”

  Durstin’s eyes met hers. “Your father was right.”

  Tordan and Aielle also nodded.

  Guilt went through Kiersten as she remembered what else her father had said. That their people would need her to temper his anger and make him see reason. She had run from that responsibility, and it appeared her people had paid the price.

  If they did get the key back and she returned to the kingdom, she would have a lot of apologizing to do.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Durstin

  Durstin edged closer to Stephan while the others spoke. He was interested in what Stephan had discovered about the cyborgs and Renwyn while he’d been here.

  “All right,” Mordjan broke in. “Let’s talk strategy. If Elsifan were a normal opponent, we would simply send in a small team to assassinate him. So this black magic is why we’re gathering an army?”

  “Yes. The black magic gives them strength and powers I’ve never even heard of,” Kiersten explained. “The abilities to break into the king’s quarters, counteract the royal protective magic, and suck out a being’s life force—those are things I haven’t seen before. I think a small team stands a good chance of being wiped out. A larger force can provide us cover and distraction.”

  “If we come in through the front door, they’ll attack us straight on, and we’ll probably suffer a lot more casualties. It would be better to attack Elsifan in his room, engaging fewer people. The others might fall in line once we have him.”

  “In your vision, what time of day did Elsifan trade the key to the Ardaks?” Tordan asked.

  “It was just after dawn,” Kiersten replied.

  “That gives us only nine hours, assuming it’s tomorrow. It will take about an hour for us to get the army in motion and thirty minutes to get there, which puts us at attacking around midnight. Arriving in the middle of the night should mitigate some of the traffic that would normally be up and about,” Mordjan replied. “How easy would it be to get to his rooms?”

  “That strategy will probably be impossible. There should be no way to get there without going through the great hall—all the other doors are protected by magic. I’m not even sure they’ll allow me to enter at this point,” Kiersten said. “Even if I managed to open a portal straight into his room, only one of us could enter at a time, and who knows how many he would be able to kill before we overwhelmed him.”

  “If that great hall is built like this throne room, the best way would be for some of us to go through the front door so that they can open the doors on the sides of the great hall so we can flank.”

  “That’s a good strategy. I’ll lead the people in the front door,” Kiersten said. “Hopefully, I can keep him distracted while we open the other doors.”

  Only minutes later, the plan was set and Durstin found himself itching to find his troops and make sure everyone was okay. “Do you know where the soldiers are?” he asked Stephan.

  “Everyone has been told to gather at the Ardak ship, and I’ll bet most of them are already there.”

  “Where is the ship?”

  Stephan pointed toward the main doors. “Down the steps and through a patch of forest. It’s on the open plain just beyond. But I’m about ready to go there—do you want to go together?”

  Durstin nodded and turned to look for Kiersten, finding she was already beside him.

  Stephan went silent, and Durstin realized he was studying Kiersten. Finally, he shook his head. “If they hadn’t announced it, I wouldn’t have believed it. That’s why you were so strange down in the tunnels. You knew what was happening.”

  “Yes,” she admitted. “I didn’t know everything, but I knew enough.”

  Stephan’s gaze turned to examine him. “Did you know?”

  “No,” Durstin admitted. “But. . .it’s all right.”

  Stephan accepted that with a nod. “Well, let’s get to the others. They’ll want to see you again, and ‘meet’ Kiersten.”

  “Are you ready?” Durstin asked her.

  Her expression was fierce, but her eyes were bright with worry. “To meet our people, or to face him?” She shrugged. “I’m ready for both. I just hope that they’ll accept me in my true form, and then I hope we win.”

  He took her hand. “What Elsifan did to your father wasn’t right. What he’s doing to all of Aurora is even worse. And the people loved you before—they’ll come around. Whatever happens, you have justice on your side. And me by your side. We’ll do it together.”

  When they arrived at the Ardak ship, his people were indeed already there. Their faces were still wan and haggard from their time in the caves, and perhaps more than a little stressed by the battle to come.

  At his arrival, their faces brightened, and he clasped arms with Cahin before moving on to Duncan and Finnian. “Glad to see you guys again. It appears everyone got here safely.”

  “We might not have made it, save for the elven portal,” Cahin admitted. “We were heading in the right direction, but we’d been lost once already due to a faulty map.”

  The circle parted and everyone glanced at Roland, who’d been standing just behind them.

  The younger man grimaced. “We forgot to mark your secret doors, so we ended up taking the wrong tunnel.”

  Durstin clapped him on the shoulder. “Well, we’re all here now.”

  “But where is Queen Kiersten—and who is this?” Finnian asked, turning to Kiersten. He studied her for a moment, then stepped back, his eyes growing wide. �
��No. It can’t be.”

  “And yet it is,” Durstin said, putting an arm around his wife. As the other men stared at her, agog, Durstin realized how much he’d become accustomed to her new appearance. Her facial expressions and body language were the same, and once he’d seen past the differences, she was still Kiersten to him.

  “But she’s. . .” Roland trailed off, glancing helplessly at the others.

  “. . .an upgrade,” Duncan finished with a shrug. “Well, why not?” he said defiantly when the others stared at him. “Everything else has been crazy enough. We’re about to fight an evil elf who wants to give some special crystals to a race of alien cats. Hell, not much would surprise me at this point.”

  With that, his soldiers all seemed to relax. There were a few chuckles, and their expressions became more welcoming. They walked through the throng of people together, gradually introducing her. Their people smiled in welcome at Durstin, but when they saw her, most faces turned to shock. Most of his people knew by now how he felt about elves. But Kiersten warmed them by discussing shared memories and having good humor about her disguise.

  The women, however, were another matter. When they got to Kiera, the woman crossed her arms. “I can’t believe it’s you. After everything we’ve been through—everything we’ve shared. I didn’t even recognize you. Why didn’t you tell us the truth?”

  Kiersten stepped closer to her. “I was afraid. I’ve been in hiding,” she replied honestly.

  “Have you been an elf this entire time?” Rosae asked.

  A pained expression crossed her face. “Yes. Yes I have.”

  “You should have told us,” Isabel accused. “We don’t keep secrets.”

  “I know. I’m sorry. It just went on for so long that I didn’t know how to get out of it.”

  Serai tilted her head to the side. “You’re the one who made the portal. You saved us.”

  Durstin watched the women closely as they processed the information, and silently thanked Serai. Trust a child to see through to the heart of the matter.

  Kiersten nodded, some of the strength returning to her voice. “I know I’m different from the last time you saw me, but I still love you all just the same. I had to hide from King Elsifan, but now that we are going to fight him to save Aurora, I’m not hiding anymore.”