by Dave Hazel
Mykal joined Diaz, Finley and Towbar by a rock formation alongside a steep rocky hill. Starling and Leeno stood with them along with the Dosch brothers and Nordad. They all crouched down and leaned against the rock wall.
“Whatta we have gentlemen?” Mykal whispered ever so faintly.
“Blair, Egoneal and Uminair with Winnie and Freeman have made contact with something strange,” Diaz whispered.
“Whadda ya mean something strange?’ Mykal asked and was suddenly fearful they were going to have to face another monster.”
“A damn birdman,” Finley whispered harshly as if he couldn’t believe his own words.
“What? A birdman?” Mykal gasped.
“Yeah, I can’t believe it,” Finley said and shook his head. He leaned against the rock wall and waited.
“Are we not allowed to go out there?” Mykal asked.
“Blair and Uminair instructed us to wait here,” Starling answered. “They are trying to communicate. They are trying to make our meeting a favorable venture so that it will not turn into a heated battle.
Mykal wondered if that was the flapping of wings the men heard earlier. “Bird men?” He asked in disbelief.
“They are birds with bodies the size of men,” Leeno said. “They have humanoid characteristics. We are not sure if they are a strange race of creatures or…” he paused.
“Or what?”
“A strange creation of the Evil One,” Starling answered for Leeno.
“Oh, I guess I didn’t really expect that.” Mykal looked up to see Corporal Winfield and Blair walk around the corner of the rock wall they stood beside. Winnie looked super excited and Blair, for one who didn’t normally express much emotion, looked to be pleased also.
“What’s going on?” Finley asked.
“Sir, you is not gonna believe this shit,” Winnie said while looking at Diaz and then looked to Mykal and Finley and then Towbar. “I’ll let Blair tell you.”
“We have encountered a strange situation my brothers,” Blair said to Starling and Leeno. “The creature we spoke to, it looks like a giant bird. It is taller than we are, though shorter than Towbar. The most amazing part of our discovery is the creature used to be an Elf who had been cursed by the Evil One,” he said which caused stunned surprise among everyone. When the gasps ceased and there was silence he continued. “His name is Lanorear and he says there are five others just like him. They are all Elves who have been cursed by the Evil One to be used as guards over these lands.”
“How did they get cursed?” Lieutenant Finley asked and looked surprised.
“They had been captured at some time and while they were his prisoners they earned their limited freedom by allowing themselves to be changed into flying creatures,” Blair answered.
Gwellon’s head lowered sadly. His son and daughter were missing and it had been confirmed to him that they had been taken captive by soldiers under Zizmon-Tarl.
Suddenly there was a screeching sound of a loud bird call. They didn’t know if there was a problem such as the bird creature attacking their people or if something happened to the bird creature. Another loud screeching call filled the air. All the men grabbed a tighter grip on their weapons
Sergeant Freeman just as suddenly rushed into view from around the rock wall. “It’s a’ight, it’s a’ight,” Freeman said and held his hands up to assure everyone that the situation was under control. “Another one of the bird people came down and they were squawking, I guess talking to each other. But there’s no problem. You should see them Sir,” Freeman said to Diaz and Finley. “They are amazing to look at,” he gasped.
“Can we go meet them?’ Mykal asked.
“Yes Sir, that’s why I came back here,” Freeman answered and nodded his head excitedly. “Just make sure we remain polite and friendly,” he said for all those behind the leaders. Lanorear said they would have attacked right away, but only cuz there are Elves with us they wanted to see what we were doing and they wanted to speak with the Elves. And let me tell you, the talons on this guy would rip us apart. And the size of his beak, if he wanted to, he could rip someone’s head off with it just like that,” he added with a quick snap of his fingers.
“Let’s go, I wanna meet him,” Mykal said. He was anxious to see if the birdmen of Zizmon-Tarl would have any information on the whereabouts or condition of Doninka.
When they walked around the wall of rock to where Uminair and Egoneal stood with the birdman Lanorear, Mykal couldn’t believe his eyes. If the thing that stood before him came out of a Hollywood sound stage it would have been an amazing piece of makeup art. But since he knew it was not a costume, a prank or a hoax, but rather an Elf who had been cursed by Zizmon-Tarl, he tried to take in the sight before him.
The creature stood near seven feet tall, it had thick long legs like that of an eagle. The feet were big and the talons did in fact look menacing. The creature had large wings and Mykal believed by the size of the large wings it would enable such a large person, or rather a large creature to fly. Though it had wings it also had two arms and in one of his hands he or it held a long bow that looked sturdy. The creature wore a belt around his waist that had a long sword attached to the right side and two daggers stuck into the waist on the left side of the belt. The quiver of arrows wasn’t draped over the back but was rather attached to the left side. The head of the creature looked like a very large American Bald Eagle but instead of being white with a yellow beak it was an amazing bright blue and its beak was a deep orange. The rest of the body was a mix of bright blues, yellows and greens with some browns.
Lanorear kept turning his head, looking in all directions like any bird would, but like an eagle it could make eye contact by looking straight on. When Lanorear looked at Mykal he stared deep inside Mykal and the sight of his enormous size, the beauty of his vibrant colors took Mykal’s breath away. Mykal knew Lanorear would be a ferocious foe. Lanorear stared at Mykal and the face of the creature looked serious and it came across as sinister since the eyes were bright yellow encircled by black.
“You are the leader,” Lanorear declared though it was almost a question. His eyes bore into Mykal.
“Well, well, I’m one of the leaders,” Mykal said and it appeared he had been startled and caught off guard. He felt extremely grateful that Towbar came up beside him.
“I am Lanorear the Blue,” he declared in introducing himself. “I would be called the leader of my small clan. There are six in my clan and I will bring my clan here after we have spoken,” he said and suddenly he turned his head upward and let out several screeching yells. “Fear not. I only informed my clan to keep watch while we speak. My sole purpose is to protect the lands of my Master. I am to guard the lands with my life and I am to warn my Master when danger is at hand. For my Master, with your presence, danger is at hand,” he said while eyeing those with Mykal. “However my Master is not my Master by my choice. I am something my Master had created when my Master decided not to kill me. I used to be an Elf,” he said and then paused. “No. Let me correct that. I am still an Elf who has been changed to be what you see now. In my heart I am an Elf,” he declared as if he needed help to convince himself. “If I shall turn a blind eye to the danger at hand, my Master will not know there is danger at hand,” he said and quickly squawked loudly.
“I am very thankful to hear that,” Mykal said. “I am very glad to meet you Lanorear the Blue,” Mykal added and slightly dipped his head.
“If you would not have had my brother Elves in your party we would have attacked and killed your party,” Lanorear declared boldly. “My brother Elf Blair said many good things about you in the short time that I spoke to him. Though I no longer live in the body of an Elf, I am still an Elf through and through,” he declared boldly and fluttered his massive blue wings. He let out another loud squawk. “Blair affirms that you are a very good friend to the Elves. There are very few in human flesh who are a friend of the Elves--” he stopped suddenly. “Oh my my. Do my eyes deceive me? Are ther
e Dwarves in your party?” Lanorear asked and turned his head in several directions as if to ensure what he discovered.
“Yes,” Mykal answered and looked back to see who he saw. Mykal didn’t know if that was going to be a good thing or a bad thing.
“Bring them here, bring them here,” Lanorear demanded and it sounded like a harsh request.
“Norg,” Mykal called back to them. “Could you, Klonk and Trankle come forward please? There was one more Dwarf who had been killed by the giants not far from here.”
“Anarts, the giants, are foul evil beings,” he said and screeched angrily. “Our clan originally had eight in number. Over the years two have been killed by Anarts. They are foul beings who torture for the cruel enjoyment of it. The giants ate the two of my clan that they killed.”
“Well we killed a number of them,” Mykal said once he knew the birdman didn’t like the giants.
“Good. Good. Good. I would love to have participated in their demise.”
“Yes Mykal,” Norg answered when the three Dwarves came to the front. They looked at the large Elf birdman suspiciously.
“Do you know what a tasty meal you would be for me?” Lanorear said harshly which caused all to rear back. When everyone reared back, the Dwarves gripped their weapons tighter in preparation to defend themselves which caused Lanorear to flap his wings. “I only jest. I only jest,” he said and gave a choppy laugh. “I have not seen Dwarves in more than ninety-five years. The last Dwarf I saw I owe a great debt of gratitude to. So I say I owe a great debt of gratitude to all Dwarves. Yes, yes, yes you are my friends,” he shouted and sounded a little on the crazy side.
“So you’re okay with my three Dwarven friends?” Mykal asked to be sure. Mykal wasn’t sure if it was the creatures attempt at humor or if there just wasn’t something right in his head. Mykal had never known the Elves to show any kind of humor let alone a teasing attacking sense of humor which Lanorear just displayed.
“Yes, yes, yes. Please listen to my tale,” he said and stared at Norg. “I once had a close friend who was of the Dwarven race. When my Dwarven friend died, he gave up his life to save my life and the others who were with us. Because of my Dwarven friend’s ultimate sacrifice, I am truly indebted to you three Dwarven warriors,” he said and slightly bowed his head. I vowed to my Dwarven friend while he was in the throes of death that I would show my gratitude to his family. I never had that opportunity to show my gratitude to his family. It was some time after that I was taken captive by my current Master. I will keep my word and show my gratitude to you three, Norg, Klonk and Trankle. I will show my gratitude to you three, not because I must. I will show my gratitude to you three not because I feel obligated. I will show my gratitude to you three from a heart of true compassion and honor for the Dwarven friend that I lost all those years ago.”
“We thanks thee,” Norg said and bowed until he was down on one knee and his head almost rested on the raised knee.
“But what about your Master?” Mykal asked and assumed the Master was Zizmon-Tarl.
“I am a slave to my Master,” Lanorear hissed and then squawked as if angered by the word. “I owe my Master nothing. I am a prisoner against my will. I will rebel as I see fit, even if it should cost me my life,” Lanorear said and twisted his head in a bird like fashion. “Since there are Elf brothers present, I will rebel to help them. And now that I know there are Dwarven warriors here, I will rebel to repay a long unpaid debt to a long lost friend.”
Mykal didn’t know what to think. The Elf birdman sounded and looked ‘crazy’, but he would gladly have the ‘crazy’ birdman on his side to help their group as opposed to being against the birdman. He didn’t know if he should mention they were trying to get to Zizmon-Tarl’s palace, because then they would have to tell him why. If Lanorear was to turn on them not only could he be a dangerous foe, but he could alert Zizmon-Tarl, or those in the palace of Zizmon-Tarl, of their plan and work to thwart their plan.
“May I ask about the rest of your clan?” Captain Diaz asked. “Will they rebel against your Master as you will?”
“Yes. My clan will do as I say,” Lanorear answered. “I am the leader of the clan. They are all former Elves and will follow my lead. As I hate the form I am a prisoner in, they also hate the form they have become prisoners in. I do not say that as a tyrannical leader. We all agree to stay together and I have been chosen as the leader since my time under the Master has been the longest. For the most part we obey the Master’s rules or we will face the penalty of death.”
“Does your clan have a name?” Diaz asked.
“We are called Hawkmen. Though the name no longer captures the nature of this clan,” Lanorear said and paused. He squawked and looked in all directions before continuing. “None in my clan are hawks. And none in my clan are men, or rather former men. However,” he quickly raised his finger which caused his entire right wing to fly up. “The origins of this clan started with men who had been cursed, as we, and they were turned into creatures of flight. The first three had been fashioned from a pet hawk of my Master. Thus the clan had been named Hawkmen. There had been several Hawkmen and they died out rather quickly. I was the first Elf who had been cursed. At that time there had been a human who had been put under the same curse as I. That human was a very large, very heavy and a big round fat man. When he had been turned into a flying creature he maintained his fat, unhealthy body. Our first lesson in flight was disastrous for that man. We had been taken to a cliff and told to fly. He tumbled to the ground where his broken body lay until a pack of wolves devoured him.” Lanorear said and then squawked loudly. “I personally think it was a form of punishment for him. He was never intended to fly. However, I could be wrong in assessing my Master’s motives.”
“Wasn’t your Master worried you would fly away?” Finley asked.
“I was attached to a chain and a long length of rope.”
“Lanorear, is there any way to undo the curse that has been put on all of you?” Mykal asked as others slowly moved closer to hear and view the amazing looking creature.
The blue creature stood there and looked into the distance until the silence became uncomfortable. Everyone looked back and forth to each other unsure of what happened. “I do not know,” Lanorear finally said. “I do not know,” he repeated. “I have always thought our only option would be death,” he added and squawked loudly. “I suppose there should be a way of taking the curse off of us. However, the Master would never do that. We are a mighty weapon in the Master’s hand.”
“How long have you been under this curse?” Mykal asked.
“Much longer than I care to remember. In the time of years I would have to guess somewhere between eighty-five and ninety years. In time of mental contemplation it has been an eternity. We feed on live rodents and animals. We usually eat them raw. When we have tried to clean and cook our food, it makes it an unbearable chore. However, I must be honest and state there are some benefits we share under this curse. We can fly. Our strength is greater than before the curse and as for myself, my eyesight has increased greatly.”
“When will we meet the rest of your clan?” Captain Diaz asked.
“In time,” Lanorear answered and flapped his wings. “May I ask what your quest is?”
“We’re trying to find someone?” Mykal answered. “And to be honest we’re not sure where that person may be.”
“As I have previously declared, due to the Elves in your party and due to the Dwarves in your party I will assist you.”
“I really appreciate that Lanorear,” Mykal said and dipped his head as if he was bowing. “But we think the person we are looking for is being held against their will. That person may be a prisoner.”
“This is sad,” Lanorear said and looked around as if everyone was eyeing him suspiciously.
“We don’t know who the person is who took our friend captive,” Mykal continued. “But if it turned out that our friend was being held by your master, would that create a problem for you
or your clan?”
Lanorear looked all around him at those watching him. He squawked loudly and flapped his wings. “I am no longer an Elf so to say I am an Elf of my word would not be correct, however to say I am a Hawkman of my word would be just as disingenuous since I am neither a hawk nor a man. I am Lanorear the Blue, and my word means more to me than my very life. I will keep my word even to my own hurt.”
Without giving much thought Mykal gambled on telling the Hawkman the truth. “We believe my friend is being held by someone by the name of Zizmon-Tarl. Do you know the name Zizmon-Tarl?”
Lanorear gave an extended squawk and flapped his wings wildly while looking in all directions to those watching him. “He is the one and the same who has cursed those of us of my clan,” Lanorear declared. “Assisting you will result in our deaths. However, I will keep my word. I only ask that you do not speak his name out loud.”
“Sure, no problem,” Mykal said. “Would it be okay if we called him Ziggy Stardust? Or the evil Overlord? Or Mister Zee?”
“You may call him by anything other than the first name you spoke,” Lanorear said and actually looked and sounded scared.
“That’s not a problem. Nordad seems to think he can pick up on when people use his name,” Mykal said and pointed to the older wizard.
“This is true. This is true,” Lanorear said and blinked wildly while turning his head in all directions like a frightened bird. “I gave my word that I will help. I will keep my word. However, I must speak to my clan and then I will tell you to the depths of our commitment to help you. We will assist you in arriving to the palace of my Master. That in itself will result in our deaths if it is ever learned that we assisted the enemies of our Master. After I speak with my clan I will inform you to the extent of our assistance. We may cease our help after we have reached the walls of the palace. That will be determined after I converse with my clan. It will mean certain death when we enter the walls of my Master’s palace. Understand when I say palace, you may have in mind a scene of a building. However, when I speak of my Master’s palace it is actually a city, a very large city, which I am referring to. We will discuss these matters at a later time. I must fly off and join my clan. We will be close at hand and will assist with the many dangers in this area. We will guide you and direct you and will defend you to the best of our ability. I will return before the darkness covers the land,” Lanorear said and jumped upward. Suddenly his beautiful wings flapped open and he soared skyward.