by E. L. Todd
A sudden laugh escaped her chest, his words completely unexpected.
“Callon.” The Queen’s harsh command destroyed the warmth of their moment, dunking them back into the harsh abyss. Eden Star was still aflame. The dead were at their feet. The forest cried in pain.
Callon straightened himself before he faced her, hiding any sign of weakness or fatigue. “What are your orders, Your Majesty?” His sword was in his scabbard, his bow across his back, his arms rigid at his sides.
“Aldon has fulfilled his oath. I reinstate you as General of Eden Star. Secure the perimeter. Get the wounded to the infirmary. Heal the forest before we lose any more of it. Those are your orders—now, go.”
If he’s doing everything, what is she doing? She is unkingly.
You’re back.
I knew you would prevail, Hatchling.
Callon secured his hands behind his back as he addressed her. “I will take the position—but temporarily. When Eden Star has returned to its former peace, a new general will be elected.”
Her eyes widened immediately, her reaction forming quicker than she could sheathe it. “It wasn’t a request—but an order.”
She rules with fear, subjugation, and intimidation. We have a term for this. Wuzurk. In your tongue—tyrant.
Callon remained with his hands behind his back, looking up at the queen as she stood on the blood-soaked stairs. “Now is not the time for deliberation. Eden Star burns, and our people need us.”
“Then go—and don’t make me ask a third time.”
Wow…okay. Is King Lux looking to be set up? Because I think I met his match.
Unkingly.
Callon gave a slight bow then turned away.
The Queen’s gaze shifted to her. Her green eyes were red like the fire that consumed the trees, and the anger burst forth with more strength than the volcanic eruption that took the Land of Ashes.
Bitch, don’t look at me like that. I just saved Eden Star.
With her eyes still on Cora, she spoke. “And, General Callon?”
He halted, his face tightening into a look of annoyance. He quickly concealed it before he turned around to face her once more.
After a long stare, she dragged her sight off Cora to look at Callon. “We will speak of this later.”
Callon took the lead, running back the way they’d come to the heart of the forest, where the market had once been, where the remains of the tree houses were now debris and ash on the ground. Infernos continued to consume the forest, fire now replacing serenity. Dead elves littered the ground, their open eyes reflecting the flames in the sky. “The enemy is gone. Put out the fires. Help the wounded.”
Hysteria subsided significantly once Callon appeared in his elven armor and gave out his orders. A group of elves ran to the base of one tree, and with their palms directly on the smoldering wood, they closed their eyes and focused.
Callon joined them, reaching his hand above their heads to plant his palm against the bark. With his eyes closed, he did as they did.
Cora watched the canopy, and slowly, there was new growth. New bark replaced the charred pieces. New branches emerged to replace the ones on fire. Everything that the flame touched was ejected by the tree, dropped to the forest floor, where it could continue in an isolated burn until it was out of fuel.
Without instruction, she didn’t know what to do, but she joined the group, her palm moving between bodies to find a surface she could reach. She closed her eyes and pushed her mind out, feeling the consciousness of the tree that burned alive. The touch used to be met with serenity, with the sound of water moving through the roots into the heart of the tree, with the breeze through the leaves.
But now, it screamed.
She’d performed the Skull Crusher on the Shamans, but their death was so swift she didn’t feel it.
But this was a slow and painful death—and she felt it all.
She urged the tree to grow, guided water from the earth into the roots, pushed it through the branches. Buds grew on the limbs then quickly became flowers and leaves. Branches fell around them, like a snake shedding its skin to make way for the new one.
Then the screaming stopped.
The elves pulled away.
Cora looked up the bark into the branches, seeing that the tree didn’t look the way it once had, that the limbs were too immature for the age of the trunk, that the branches were uneven on the two sides of the tree, because one side had been set aflame, while the other hadn’t. It would take a long time for it to grow naturally, to look the way it once had.
She was disgusted.
Callon launched into action and rounded up the elves he came across, telling some to work on the next tree, while he asked others to get the wounded off the ground so a burning branch wouldn’t crush them.
“Cora!”
She turned around and spotted the bright blond hair and blue eyes. Her hair wasn’t in a perfect braid with flowers interwoven through the strands. Now, it was a mess—and her eyes were red and blotchy. “Are you okay?” Cora ran to her friend and, without thinking, wrapped her arms around her in an embrace.
Peony immediately reciprocated without hesitation. “Yes, I’m fine. You?”
“I’m good.” Cora pulled away, the flames still rampant with destruction. “Your dad?”
“He’s helping the wounded.”
“Lia?”
“I haven’t seen her…”
“Hawk?”
The question made her eyes shine even more, the thin film of moisture more noticeable. “He’s on duty at the front…”
“I’m sure he’s fine.” She blurted out the words without taking a moment to really consider them, whether she actually believed them or just wanted to make her friend feel better. But it was what she would want to hear from someone else.
Peony gave a nod, her eyes still sad.
Callon ran up to Cora. “I need to head to the front. Put out the fires with the others—that’s your best contribution.”
“Okay,” Cora said with a nod.
His hand went to her arm, and he pulled her close. “Keep your sword with you.” He spoke close to her ear, so Peony couldn’t hear.
“Why?”
Without giving an answer, he dropped her arm and departed.
Night turned into day. Day turned into night.
Over and over.
There was no sleep for anyone, not when the forest remained a blaze. Elves worked together to save every tree they could, but unfortunately, some of them couldn’t be spared. They fell—turned into ash.
Once the fires were out, the dead were carried to the cemetery. The corpses were lined up on the dirt while the graves were dug and the headstones engraved. The wounded were carried to the healer, Voronwe.
His building was in the northern part of Eden Star, away from the center as well as the market. It was built to accommodate several dozen elves—but not hundreds. Cora and Peony carried an unconscious man through the door, his arms over their shoulders, his feet dragging behind.
There was nowhere else to put him besides the floor, so that’s where they laid him, straight on the wood.
Voronwe focused on a patient on his table, his hands joined together and pressed against his chest.
“I’m going to see if there’s news about Hawk…” Peony left, her hair oily and matted against her scalp after several days of hard labor, of heat from the searing flames, and not bathing or sleeping.
“Alright.” Cora continued to watch Voronwe, an elf with silver hair but a youthful face. With his eyes closed, he slid his hand across his patient, feeling the bones against the skin. He seemed to have found what he sought because there was an audible crack.
The patient was motionless—too deep under to wake.
Voronwe moved his hands to another place, eyes still closed, fixing entrails that he couldn’t see.
Cora watched.
The patient’s visage slowly changed, from a dull gray to a flushed cream. Breaths became d
eeper and more natural. The tension in the face slowly faded. Blood flow had been restored with his mind.
All of the wounded had been collected, the fires had been extinguished, so it was the right time for her to rest. But she remained, fascinated by what this elf could do with just his mind. She could take life away—but he could give it.
When he was done, he whispered in Elvish under his breath then removed his hands. As if he’d known Cora had been there the entire time, he turned to regard her. Light-colored eyes examined her face, as if he could see past her flesh to everything underneath.
“Can I help?”
“Are you a healer?”
She shook her head.
“Then no.” He moved to the next patient.
She wandered to the rejuvenated patient on the table, an elf she didn’t recognize. She wasn’t even sure if she was the one who had brought him in—because there had been so many. She stared at his chest, as if she could see what had been broken and what had been fixed. “When we put out the fires, I directed the water into the roots, forced the buds to grow, helped the tree shed old bark and replace it with new bark. Is that…what you’re doing?”
“The simplification is insulting.” His hand touched his patient, his eyes open and focused on his actions. “A tree is a one-dimensional being. It operates in a linear fashion. Elves are much more complicated. Bone. Cartilage. Blood. Tissue. Organs. There’s so much more.”
“Is that why there’s only one healer?”
“Yes.” His hands glided over, mapping out the body in his mind. “It took a very long time for me to reach this status. It’s about exploring the body with just your thoughts, understanding normal, functioning anatomy, distinguishing a variant that’s still normal, and deciding if something needs to be altered—and if it’s the right thing to be altered. Change one thing—change the whole body. It takes experience, much experience.”
“Yes, that does sound complicated.”
“Tell me…did General Callon drive the Shamans from Eden Star?” He looked up as his hands continued to move, his eyes settling on her.
Cora swallowed, her wrapped sword stuffed into her pack. “Actually, it was me…”
“You?” His eyes dropped, looking her over.
“Yes.”
CORA!
Her head exploded with his loud voice.
Cora, are you there? Cora?
“Please excuse me.” She left the building and returned to the forest, stepping off the path and into the tree line. I’m here. Are you guys okay?
Rush’s voice came next, his voice bursting through a solid door and breaking it into pieces. Are you alright? Has Eden Star been taken?
Wait…how do you know about that?
So, it’s true…
General Noose and the Shamans invaded our forest, but they are gone now. For the last few days, we’ve been putting out the fires and healing the wounded. But a lot of elves have fallen.
But you’re okay?
Yes, I’m fine.
Rush released a heavy sigh of relief.
What a relief, Pretty.
What about you guys? I tried to reach you, but you were gone.
We were in the Stronghold. Really long story. You have time to talk?
All the wounded had been delivered to the healer, the dead had been taken to the Cemetery of Spirits, and the fires had been quenched. There was no place she could go because her home had been destroyed. She hadn’t slept in days. I’ll get back to you in an hour. Just have to find somewhere first.
These things are big and ugly. I mean, really ugly. They infiltrated the Stronghold like ants overrunning a neighboring anthill. I could take on a couple myself, but not forever. But she sacrificed her Durgin so we were able to escape.
Durgin? She sat in the shade of a tree near the river, the same place she and Callon had lunch after their training sessions.
Dwarven warriors.
That’s so sad.
Yeah, it sucked. But there was no other way. We were able to escape, and now I need to return with an army to flush out those Fazurks from the Stronghold. The remaining dwarves will have their mountain once again, and Talc will be released to us.
How many dwarves are left?
Maybe a thousand. But we hope there are more hidden somewhere in the mountain. It’s a really big place, so you never know.
I hope so too. It’ll be hard for them to defend their mountain in the future with such low numbers.
True.
And the Fazurks are from the Shadow Lands?
They gotta be.
I would never eat one—too hideous.
How would they get through the rock? I thought it was solid?
Maybe they climbed? I don’t know—but these guys aren’t from Anastille.
Just…why now?
Psh, no idea. It could be any reason. Maybe their food source has become scarce so they’re searching elsewhere. Or maybe someone told them to climb the rock and invade the Stronghold… I don’t think we’ll ever know.
They smell too.
Okay…not relevant.
Pretty doesn’t smell.
She was exhausted, dirty, and overwhelmed. But she gave a chuckle. I miss you guys. I get used to our separation when we’re apart, but then when we talk…I’m not sure how I ever did.
Rush gave a long pause before an answer. Same here.
So, what happened next? How did you know Eden Star was under attack?
When I breached the surface, Flare took over and burned them.
They smell even worse when they’re on fire.
Rush ignored him. We knew the fires would attract the Shamans, but we didn’t have a choice.
The Shamans told you?
Well, the Shamans weren’t the only ones that came.
Oh… Cora pictured the blue dragon from her dreams, a dragon she’d never seen in person, only through the thoughts she shared with Ashe. What happened?
Rush didn’t speak.
You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to.
Words were shared. So were threats. We battled in the skies—and Obsidian fell.
For good?
No. He changed into his human form—and disappeared in the smoke.
Coward.
He told us that he had taken Eden Star.
That was a lie—because we prevailed.
General Callon protected his people once again. Is he alright?
Yeah, he’s fine. But it wasn’t him…
Both Rush and Flare stayed quiet.
The gentle sound of the stream beside her was replaced by the flames of the inferno. Sunshine was drowned in the blackness. Music from songbirds was replaced by the screams of dying elves. I was asleep when it happened. Ashe woke me up, and if he hadn’t, the smoke would have a moment later. My tree house was on fire, and if I hadn’t jumped, I would have gone down with it. She swallowed, replaying a moment that seemed to occur an eternity ago. I searched for Callon first. I heard the clicks of the monsters just as I heard the screams of those they killed. When I found him, a Shaman was there—performing the Skull Crusher. Without thinking, I just did it…I killed him.
She closed her eyes, remembering the way he could barely stand. He insisted I take the secret passage out of Eden Star to safety while he protected Queen Delwyn. I refused to leave his side, so we went together. There were a dozen Shamans. General Aldon was dead. The Queen’s guard Melian was slain too. There were other elves on the stairs, elves who died trying to protect her. She was the last one standing. General Noose was about to slay her, but Callon got there first—
Too weak to fight, his blade fell. Ashe’s deep voice emerged, kingly in its authority, exuding power that could be felt by each of their minds. The effects of the Skull Crusher had dwindled his mind. But Cora’s fiery blade met General Noose’s before he could be slain. My strength became hers, our minds became one, and with unbridled power, Cora killed six Shamans at once, all the while holding her own against one
of the best swordsmen in Anastille. Outmatched, General Noose and his monsters retreated from Eden Star. The pride in his voice was unmistakable. My hatchling prevailed.
Ashe, King of Dragons. It is a pleasure to hear your voice once again.
It is mine as well.
Cora remained quiet, silenced by the story her dragon had just told.
After a heavy silence, Rush spoke. Attagirl.
All the tension in her face left when the smile formed.
Wish I could have been there to watch you kick his ass.
I didn’t really kick his ass—
You defeated him in battle, and he retreated. Same thing, Hatchling.
Callon has trained you well. Must be proud.
Yeah…he is. But it was Ashe too. Without my abilities, I wouldn’t have stood a chance, so Ashe helped me learn how to utilize my skills.
You’re the only reason Eden Star still stands. If you didn’t have any friends before, you’ll definitely have them now.
I don’t know…the queen looked ticked.
Maybe she always looks that way.
No. I could tell by the way she spoke to Callon that she’s not happy.
Wuzurk.
Translation?
Flare spoke. Tyrant.
Callon told me to keep my sword with me, so I think he anticipates an issue.
You literally saved all of Eden Star…and she still doesn’t like you?
Ashe’s deep voice rumbled. Wuzurk.
Well, this puts a damper on our plans.
What plans?
I told Queen Megora that I would return with an army to eradicate the Fazurks for good. Was hoping the elves could be that army.
Cora shook her head as she watched the water drip through the cracks in the rocks of the riverbed. Yeah…that’s not going to happen.
You’ve gotta have some friends by now. I thought that was the plan?
Yes, I have some. But not a lot.
Well, what is some?
Like three…
Wow…that’s bad.
Look, it’s hard to make friends when everyone already has this preconceived notion of who you are.
