“Let's not get ahead of ourselves,” Ethmira cautioned him. “Amelda is only one voice on the Council, after all. Malfiess seems to already be on our side, and the others do not always bow to Amelda's wishes. Be patient, both of you, and we'll see what happens.”
The five councilors spoke together as the visiting elves looked on. The discussion quickly became quite animated, with Malfiess waving his arms as he leaned forward to stare down the table at Amelda. He spoke sternly to her and she answered by slapping the table and barking back at him. The others on the Council weren't as emotional, but they did not remain silent either. The woman sitting next to Amelda, white haired as she was but with a smooth face and wide green eyes, flipped through a pile of papers and placed one in front of the older woman. She tapped on it forcefully and snapped something at Amelda.
“Sallah is being bolder than usual,” Ethmira told her companions. “She's usually happy to allow Amelda to get her way, but it looks like she has some report that may support our position.”
“I do not doubt that news has come to the Council about the problems with the ley lines,” Waylan said as he stared at the vociferous debate. “Amelda was being coy about our reports, as she often is when presented with facts she disagrees with. But this time, the threat is too great for her to ignore and Sallah has apparently had enough. That speaks volumes about the danger she feels we are facing.”
“About time,” Ethmira said flatly. “Yassar and Stassin are usually as reticent as Sallah has been. But look at them now. Both of them seem to be siding with Malfiess and with us against Amelda. She is standing alone for perhaps the first time in decades and she's obviously not happy about it.”
Amelda did indeed look dismayed by her fellow Council members. She looked from one to the other as if seeking allies, but all four of them looked back at her angrily. Malfiess actually seemed furious as he stopped speaking, sat back in his seat and glared at her.
The Council settled down and all of them appeared to be waiting for Amelda to make a decision. The Elder looked down at the note that Sallah had given her. She shook her head and pushed it away. Then she looked across the room at Ethmira, an angry expression on her face.
“I don't think that Amelda has been convinced,” Chase said to the others.
“That won't matter,” Waylan replied as he glowered at the Elder. “If the others vote to respond to the threat, that is all that's important.”
“The Council should respond with a united voice though,” Ethmira murmured as she met Amelda's glare calmly. “It will disturb our people if their leaders are divided when it comes to protecting them. Amelda's voice still carries a lot of weight with many elves and they will be confused and unsure if she publicly disagrees with the other councilors.”
The room became silent as everyone waited for Amelda to speak. The Elder seemed to be struggling internally. She looked from Ethmira to Waylan and then turned to stare at Malfiess. He returned her look silently, his face set with determination.
Amelda shook her head and slowly pushed herself to her feet. The room seemed to hold its collective breath as she prepared to speak.
At that moment, three people strode into the room, interrupting the proceedings. A very tall male elf led the way, followed by two women. All three of them wore flowing robes of pure white. Their hair was as white as their robes and their pale skin and colorless eyes marked them as keepers.
“Loristar, leader of the Keepers Spire,” Ethmira exclaimed with surprise. “What is he doing here? He and the other keepers hardly ever appear before the Council.”
A murmur traveled around the chamber as the other elves reacted to the appearance of the three keepers.
“Loristar?” Amelda said with a frown. “Welcome. This is a surprise. I can't remember the last time you visited our tower. Is there a problem?”
The tall elf nodded at the Council. The women behind him stood immobile, staring calmly at the councilors with their unnerving eyes.
“No, Elder, not a problem,” Loristar replied, his voice a deep bass rumble. “A catastrophe. The ley lines have failed us. Their energy has suddenly become so chaotic and unfocused that we keepers can no longer control them.”
Amelda gaped at him and then quickly glanced past him at Ethmira and Waylan.
“Failed, you say,” she gasped. “But how is that possible? The ley power is generated by Trillfarness itself. It cannot fail!”
“Perhaps not, but it can become erratic enough to be of no use to us,” Loristar told her. “This has never happened before, not in all of recorded history. But it has happened now. The scryers have informed me that they are not able to use the ley energy to see over large distances, meaning that they are effectively blind. And we keepers cannot channel the ley lines to transport ourselves or others around the planet. As of this moment, the portals are useless. Our people are now stranded, cut off from each other and blind to any dangers that may threaten Trillfarness.”
“I knew it!” Malfiess exclaimed as he leaped to his feet and slammed a fist on the table. “I knew that the reports we've received were more than just nonsense. Amelda, you were warned that something like this could happen and you chose to do nothing. And now look what has happened.”
Ethmira moved forward until she stood next to Loristar. He looked down at her and smiled slightly.
“Ah, Ethmira. How good to see you again. Forgive me, but I did not notice you when I came in.”
“Thank you, but we have more important things to worry about than manners at the moment,” she replied as she glared at Amelda. “Is Malfiess correct? Did you know that the ley lines were behaving erratically before Waylan and I came to you with our warnings?”
“What is this?” Loristar exclaimed with a frown. “I was not aware that you had received word from others about these fluctuations. I have been preparing a report for the Council myself, but you've had independent confirmation of the problems we began experiencing over the past few months?”
Amelda seemed to be at a loss for words. She looked around as if seeking support from someone, but everyone in the Council chamber was staring back at her accusingly.
“I...I read a few messages from various rangers and others around Trillfarness,” she said haltingly. “We all did. But they were just rumors. Vague stories. Certainly there seemed to be no real threat to us. Loristar, it is your task to monitor the ley lines, not the Council's. What have you been doing in the face of these reports? Surely you saw them too?”
The keeper shook his head.
“I did not,” he replied coldly. “My people only report on what they see and experience for themselves. They are a conservative lot, only passing along their concerns sporadically. I was told of various anomalies here and there around the planet, but they were inconclusive. It appears that your information was more complete, and more worrisome. You should have passed along those reports to me, Amelda. I am very disturbed that you withheld such knowledge.”
“I did not withhold it!” the Elder snapped at him angrily. “I simply assumed that you knew as much as I did.”
“A misguided assumption,” Malfiess growled. “Now look what's happened. Do you realize how dire this is? We could be under attack at this very moment on the other side of the world and not even know it. And if we did, we could not coordinate a defense or send warriors to respond to such an attack. We are now wide open to assault.”
“An assault? By whom?” Loristar asked him. “Our world is safe from danger, thanks to the lords of Light. Is it not?”
“No longer,” Ethmira stated. “My grandmother sent me to the Council to warn them that the dark gods may be planning an incursion on Trillfarness. Now that we are locked closely to the Earth, the gods may be able to transport their forces to this realm. And if that is so, this disruption of the ley lines may be their doing.”
Loristar became even paler at her words.
“That might explain it then,” he muttered. “An outside force may be responsible for scattering
the ley power and leaving us vulnerable.”
“We don't know that!” Amelda said harshly. “You are all jumping to conclusions. We need more information before we go running off witlessly in all directions, thinking that the world is in danger.”
“And just how do you intend to get that information?” Malfiess asked her sarcastically. “We are cut off! We can't contact any other towns and villages. We cannot coordinate a response, if we are indeed being attacked. We can't even warn anyone!”
Amelda's anger seemed to evaporate at his words and she suddenly looked as frail and as old as she actually was. She sat down heavily and looked at Ethmira.
“Salfrena wanted you to take charge of the defense of Trillfarness, should we find ourselves in danger,” she said tremulously. “Is that what you want as well?”
Ethmira was caught by surprise at Amelda's sudden change of tone. She hesitated and then shrugged.
“I do not want it, Elder,” she replied softly. “But if that is what is necessary to save our world, then I will accept it. But frankly, now that we are stranded here in Alderthal, I do not know how much I can do to help defend our people.”
The other councilors became quiet and Malfiess sat down as well. He looked down the table at Amelda and, when she appeared to be at a loss for words, cleared his throat to get everyone's attention.
“There may be a way,” he said slowly.
“A way? To do what?” Amelda replied, sounding confused.
“To get information about what is happening around Trillfarness. And to transport Ethmira to wherever she may need to go.”
“What way?” Loristar asked. “With the ley lines in flux, it would be suicidal to try to use the portals. Anyone who did so would be ripped apart by the unstable ley energies.”
“Yes, I understand,” Malfiess replied, nodding. “But I may know someone who could help us. She is reclusive and may be hard to find, and she may not choose to lend us her aid, but it wouldn't hurt to ask her nonetheless.”
“Who is this person?” Ethmira asked him. “Is she a keeper?”
“Oh no, she is not a keeper. Nor is she a ranger. She is something...else.”
“Well, what is she then?” Amelda snapped at him. “Don't be coy, Malfiess. It doesn't suit you.”
“I'm not being coy,” he replied irritably. “But I will not betray a confidence. The information I have is not meant for the general public. I trust my fellow councilors' discretion, and Ethmira and her companions as well. And you too, Loristar.”
“You are too kind,” the keeper said sardonically.
“But before I reveal more about this person, I would ask that the chamber be cleared.”
“Very well,” Amelda said.
She looked behind her at Othellan.
“Othellan, today's session has now ended. Please ask the others waiting for an audience to leave. We need some privacy.”
“As you wish, Elder,” the Speaker said with a bow.
He walked around the table and began to disperse the crowd of onlookers. There were grumbling complaints from some of them, but everyone began to make their way out of the chamber.
When the last of the elves had left, Othellan bowed from the entrance.
“I shall prevent anyone from entering, Elder,” he told Amelda from across the room.
“Thank you, Othellan. We would appreciate that.”
He turned and left the chamber. As the Speaker walked out, Loristar sent the two keepers who were with him outside as well. They accepted his order without question and left together.
The only ones left in the Council chamber were the five councilors along with Loristar, Ethmira, Chase and Waylan.
“Now you have your privacy, Malfiess,” Amelda told the dark-eyed elf. “Tell us about this person you say may be able to help Ethmira.”
“Not just Ethmira, but the world itself,” Malfiess reminded her. “I learned of her and her talents fairly recently, not long after we had come into conjunction with the Earth once again. Actually, she visited me at my home in Illistra, the village of my birth. I travel there when the Council is not in session for an extended period of time.”
He frowned down at some papers on the table in front of him and rifled through them absently as he spoke.
“I was alone at the time. There was a knock on the front door and, when I answered it, I was met by someone who was wearing a thick brown robe that covered them from head to foot. I could not even see their face.”
He glanced up at Ethmira and the others.
“It is rare for one of our people to hide their face, as you know. I wondered if perhaps this person was disfigured in some way and did not want to expose themselves to others.”
He went back to shuffling his papers.
“At any rate, I greeted the cowled figure and asked what they wanted. The person replied that they had been sent to me with a message. I could tell by the voice that my visitor was a female, although her accent was strange and she spoke Elvish haltingly, as if the language was strange to her. Not wanting to be impolite, I invited her in and asked her to take a seat by the fire. It was a chilly evening and the sun was just setting.”
Everyone was listening intently to Malfiess as he spoke. Chase was visualizing the encounter in her mind and listened with fascination to the story.
“When she sat down, the woman began to speak without any prompting from me. She said that she had been sent by someone whom she respected with knowledge meant just for me. She asked me at the time to keep this message to myself and to only share it with others if there was a dire need to do so. I'd say that today our need is indeed quite dire.”
“I agree,” Loristar said.
“And what message did she share, Malfiess?” Amelda asked him.
“It seems prescient now in retrospect, but she warned me that Trillfarness might one day be threatened by dark forces, as it had been when the brown dragons invaded.”
He looked at Ethmira once again.
“I'm sure that you remember those horrible days better than most, Commander,” Malfiess said to her respectfully.
“I will never forget them,” she replied simply. “They still haunt my dreams on occasion.”
Several of the councilors nodded as she spoke. Even Amelda's expression reflected grim memories.
“I was naturally skeptical at this woman's words,” Malfiess continued. “We had defeated the dragons and our world was separate from the realm of Earth. How could we be threatened, I asked her? She wouldn't say. Instead, she told me that if we ever found ourselves in need of aid, or in a situation where we needed allies, that I should contact her. Perhaps she could help.”
He looked down the table at the other councilors.
“But she added that our situation would have to be desperate before she would get involved in our affairs.”
“And who was this savior?” Amelda asked scornfully. “Why would you even listen to some stranger who spouted such nonsense, Malfiess? Whoever she was, she obviously had delusions of grandeur to offer you such aid.”
Others murmured in agreement and Malfiess smiled wryly.
“I felt the same way, let me assure you. And that is just what I said. 'Why should I take your word for this?' I asked her. 'Who is powerful enough to offer assistance to an entire race of people?'”
“And what did she say?”
Malfiess shook his head in wonder.
“She pushed back her hood to reveal her face,” he told the listeners. “And I admit that I gaped at her witlessly. She was human!”
“A human? Here on Trillfarness?” Ethmira gasped.
“Yes. Her skin was very dark, tanned from the sun as an elf's never could be. Her hair was as black as mine is. And her eyes. I have never seen eyes like them. One was green and the other was blue. Her gaze was unnerving as she calmly stared at me.”
“Mismatched eyes? I have never heard of such a thing,” Waylan said with wonder.
“I have,” Ethmira stated. “I knew one
human who had eyes just like that, except that his were blue and brown. And I agree. Seeing them for the first time is quite unsettling.”
“Which human was that?” Chase asked her.
“The wizard, Simon O'Toole,” Ethmira said. “He told me many years ago that, after his world had fallen to the dragons and the magic returned to it, he'd changed physically. One eye had turned blue as he discovered his powers. It was almost as if the magic had marked him.”
Malfiess nodded.
“Yes, exactly. This woman introduced herself at that point. She said that her name was Diane Hastings and that she had been sent to Trillfarness to act as a sentry of sorts. She was meant to watch over our world just in case it was threatened again by the old gods. And perhaps that is what has happened with the ley lines now.”
“Sent by whom, Malfiess?” Amelda asked him. “Who would even have the power to send a human to our world in the first place?”
He looked at Ethmira silently and she gasped again.
“Simon O'Toole? Did Simon send her here?”
“He did. Diane claims that he is her mentor and her friend. Wherever he is now, Simon O'Toole was concerned enough about the welfare of his old allies that he sent Diane to be his eyes and ears on Trillfarness. She told me that he cannot intervene directly in our affairs, for whatever reason, so he had done what he could. And that is why she is here now.”
The room erupted in a flurry of excited conversation. Malfiess sat back and waited while both the Council and Ethmira and others discussed his revelations. After a few moments, Amelda rapped loudly on the tabletop to get everyone's attention. As the room grew quiet again, she looked at Malfiess.
The Fall of the Elves Page 8
