by T Nisbet
Chp. 26
When we reached the outskirts of Brighton, our escort stopped. Two of the warriors untied Ivy and me, grinning ridiculously. They helped her get down and back on her own mount, then waved and turning around, rode away.
The wall surrounding Brighton was a strange mixture of wood, stones, metal, dark glass, and what appeared to be concrete. It wasn’t very tall by comparison to the great wall around Lockwood, but tall enough. We rode up to the gate were Gill announced he was a corporal of the guard in Lockewood. We were allowed to pass inside immediately.
The city of Brighton reflected the odd walls surrounding it. The buildings inside were constructed out of the same variety of materials used to create the wall. The styles of architecture used were more than just a contrast in building materials, they represented the five different kingdoms that shared the city. Being into architecture I found it odd, but taken as a whole it was beautiful.
There were relatively few buildings constructed out of the dark glass, but the couple I saw as we traveled down the main street were oddly striking. They reminded me of elongated Hersey’s dark chocolate kisses. As we passed the first, Gill informed us that the Blood Elves had constructed it. I immediately saw it in a different light. He nodded seeing how all of our expressions changed.
“Brighton is technically a Cenerian city, but it was built by five different kingdoms: Ceneria, Alissia, Kri’Stin, Thunderhome, and Mozgul, the kingdom of the Blood Elves. It’s a truce city like all the larger cities in Ceneria and is ruled by a council of mages. The threat of banishment keeps the peace here as well,” he said.
“Why not just banish all the Blood elves from Ceneria then?” Carla asked. “I mean if the council is that powerful, then why not stop this invasion before it happens?”
I’d wondered the same thing myself.
Gill laughed quietly.
“I wish the stones’ power extended to the whole country, but it doesn’t, Carla. They only hold power over the city’s that contain one of the treaty stone the arch mage Thallium created. He was the most powerful mage to rule the council in Ceneria’s history by the way. Perhaps if he were still alive such a thing could be done, but the current council cannot banish a whole nation from entering our borders, only from breaking the law in our cities.”
“So if one of them breaks a law in a city, the entire army would be cast out?” I asked.
“I don’t really know in all honesty. Rival kingdoms certainly believe that’s the case though, and no one in Ceneria advises them any differently. I was told that the stones were made for individual and group banishment only,” Gill shrugged. “I hope we don’t have to find out. Some people believe that if an army were divided into small groups, that only those groups could be banished. If that is true, then an army could attack a city if they had limitless numbers. We don’t know what the Blood Elf army’s numbers will be, but they certainly aren’t limitless.”
“What about the underworld horde the Demon will send against the cities then?” I asked, confused. “Won’t they be banished as a whole.”
“Unfortunately, the creatures of the underworld are individuals, holding no allegiance to each other. They can only be compelled, not commanded. The banishment would probably be one at a time.”
“Damn!” Toby grunted.
“The council has to review each case and decide if banishment is warranted too, which isn’t very practical in a war. Their time and energies would be better spent using magic against the invaders rather than sitting in chambers banishing one creature at a time. They may not be as powerful as Thallium was, but they are still a force to be reckoned with.”
It made sense now. That was why the Demon would release the underworld against the cities. The blood elves couldn’t directly attack a Cenerian city without help.
A thought occurred to me.
“Gill, you said Lockewood had fallen before, didn’t that test the whole ‘army banishment’ theory?”
The guardsmen chuckled ruefully.
“Civil war.”
“Oh.”
