by N. Saraven
“That’s right, good girl. Everything will be alright now,” whispered Veilon as he held her close. He could feel her body shaking in his arms, yet somehow she felt more stable now, as if his presence could soothe her down. Either way, it seemed that she slowly but surely was coming around. The forces faded away, and the air became light again.
The kobold felt Neila take a deep breath, but then she collapsed. He immediately grabbed her so he could help her slide to the ground instead of falling. She had lost consciousness, but nothing else seemed out of the ordinary. Veilon changed grasps to pick her up, then said a word to teleport them to her room. After he lay her down on the bed, he found Enargit with his mind, then joined the dragon.
“Well, the Tower still stands … but what was that?” gasped Elnor, who stood in the corridors with Carus and the shadow Leader.
“Exactly what we are dealing with here right now,” replied Veilon. Suddenly he became overpowered by exhaustion. The fight against the extreme tenseness took way more out of him than he imagined.
His paleness caught Enargit’s attention, so he suggested for them to continue this inside. They hardly took their seats when the door slammed open again as Halgor barged in. He glanced around, measuring up the situation. He faintly nodded at Veilon, who looked absolutely terrible, then took a seat.
Enargit just raised a brow to the rivals’ behaviour. The fact that neither of them said anything more proved how serious the situation had become.
“So … could somebody tell us what just happened?” Elnor asked again, eyeing Halgor sternly, which interestingly made him wiggle.
“As you could see, Neila is not … stable …” started Enargit reluctantly.
“Not stable …?” cut in the paragon as the dragon poured a drink, then handed it to Veilon. “You are waaay off, my friend! I have never seen her like this, ever! It’s worse than the end of the Dragonwars!”
“You touched it with a needle,” Veilon agreed weakly, who sipped his drink slowly. He did not even try to hide his fatigue.
“What made her shatter like this?” asked Carus suddenly, which made the others seemingly uncomfortable. The air became cold. Finally the elven started to talk.
“For one, Cameron. I assume you know what Indrek did to him after capturing him.” The dark mage turned to the scÿta, who nodded. “I assume you also know about the soultaker spell.”
It was a long shot, even Halgor had to admit to himself, yet he had to try it. But he only got a head-shake, what filled him with hopelessness. He continued bitterly.
“Well, whatever that spell means, it tore Neila and Cameron apart. Their relationship broke. Then we learned about Enargit and freed him. He became part of our meetings, which Cameron could not handle very well. His jealousy got the best of him to the point that he rather betrayed us just to kill Enargit.”
The guests glanced piercingly at the shadow, who only stared out the window. The dark mage continued.
“After his betrayal, Neila … shattered. She could not handle this on her own,” he finished solemnly. The scÿta and the kobold exchanged looks.
“What do you mean ‘on her own’? Where were you?” Elnor asked the elven, who just dropped his head.
“Oh, a weak elven could not handle the situation,” cut in Veilon. His soft voice was filled with killer sarcasm. Halgor glanced at him so furiously that it could have made water turn into ice in fear.
“Ooooookkkaaaayyy …” Elnor glanced from one to the other as he tried to work out what lay behind the scenes. However, he stopped prying.
“I doubt that this was enough on its own,” whispered Carus, who seemed to be catching up fast. “Something else’s happened, has it not?”
Silence. Every single one of them tried to make them believe that their attention was fully occupied by the bookshelves, or the cup in their hands, or the bug that crawled on the window. However, after a little push, Enargit quietly told about the meeting with the Gods and the one-world discovery.
The guests listened with open mouths. Even Carus seemed to be completely caught off guard. He gazed with widened eyes.
When the shadow dragon finished, silence fell on the room.
“So what now?” asked Elnor, drawing all attention. He seemed genuinely worried about his cousin.
“I don’t know,” sighed Veilon. He seemed to be worsening with every passing moment.
“The main problem is that nothing can ensure that Neila can regain her control, even if she kills Indrek. We could serve him on a silver platter, and still it might not be enough for her to find peace …” Carus swayed his head.
“Not to mention that I cannot imagine how she could even get to him.” Elnor nodded; he seemed to be seriously considering handing out the Ruler. “Maybe if she marches in the city on a flaming dragon’s back, with tornadoes howling around her, destroying everyone and everything, she can get Indrek out.”
“Don’t give her ideas …” growled Halgor.
“But seriously … do either of you know HOW she wanted to kill Indrek in the first place? How she would get in, and so on?” Elnor wanted to know.
“I think not,” muttered Veilon, who seemed capable of falling asleep at any moment. “At least, she didn’t say a thing to me. I think she was occupied too much with how she wanted to kill Indrek, instead of the road there.”
Silence fell on the room again.
“However, we haven’t see the other side of this whole situation,” said Halgor quietly. All eyes were on him now. “What is with Cameron?”
Carus looked at Elnor.
“He doesn’t want to come back,” replied the paragon with a shrug, which made the elven frown.
“Are you sure? Why not?”
“I am as sure as I can be. He said so.”
“Hmm … interesting … very interesting …” murmured Halgor. “Maybe I should pay him a visit and ask him myself.”
“And what would you gain from that?” barked Veilon.
“Facts, what else? Neila fights because she believes that Cameron cannot get home. If he himself faces her and explains the situation …”
“And you could get a look around the city,” added Enargit, who seemed to be considering this option.
“I still don’t see how the elven’s word could make any difference, whatever he may see in the city,” argued Veilon.
“Well yes, I would need another strong voice to back me up when we present this to Neila,” admitted the dark elven with a grimace. “Anyhow, it is still worth it. Neila wouldn’t even notice that I am gone. Just give me a couple of days. I will look around and speak with Cameron.”
“It will be hard, but not impossible,” muttered Elnor after he glanced at Carus. “You only have to behave like a typical elven, and everything will be fine.” The kobold grinned when he saw the other’s expression.
“But one thing would still interest me,” hissed Carus quietly, looking around firmly. “In the worst case, when Neila loses control, who can stop her?”
Uneasy silence fell on the room again, mixed with awkwardness. The companions seemed to look as if they would not mind eluding this question. The wraith looked from one to the other, hurrying them, although nobody yielded to his piercing gaze.
After a short, uncomfortable break, Halgor stood up and started for the door.
“We need to go,” he said to the friends as he passed them. His firm voice cut off all further arguments. The guests jumped to their feet, hurrying after him.
Veilon and Enargit stayed in the study. The kobold fell asleep in his seat almost immediately, and the dragon did not want to disturb him. The Leader picked a book, sat in another chair, then started to read. After a while he ordered a servant to bring them some warm meals. He even woke the Ruler up, who had to eat also if he wanted to regain his strength.
They ate silently. Neither of them wanted to muse on the ‘what ifs’. They heard nothing from Neila, although Enargit checked up on her at one time. She seemed to be asleep, nothing felt out
of the ordinary, so the companions stayed in the study. Veilon curled up comfortably in the big armchair with pillows and a blanket, falling asleep again almost instantly, while Enargit read.
But they could not rest for long. Abruptly Eryn barged in, panting. His eyes were widened and filled with fear, mixed with worry. He burst into words, not even apologising for startling Veilon almost to death, or that he forgot to knock.
“The Master …!” he panted hoarsely. “The Master … is gone …!”
41. Nightfort
Halgor, Elnor, and Carus stood in the rain, moody and miserable. During that half a day which they spent on that strange other land, nothing had changed in Nimron—the skies were still heavily clouded as they cried their rain tears.
“Now I know why I don’t miss this,” growled Halgor as he held his cloak even tighter around his body. A few drops still found their way to his neck, which made him shiver and even more miserable.
“If you say so … I would trade that damp warmness for a little rain in a heartbeat,” argued Elnor. “Anyhow, we must be on our way now before a scÿta shows up.”
The paragon motioned at a direction, so they all started forwards. He led the way, although it immediately struck the elven that they moved away from the city. He grabbed his sword-hilt under his cloak, looking around intently for signs of betrayal.
“Where are we going?” he asked tensely, which drew the friends’ glance. After a little while the wraith took the lead, eyeing the thicket intensely for anything unusual. Sometimes he changed direction frantically. Maybe he saw somebody else’s traces.
“No need to worry your little head. Only to a place where we stocked some things, clothes and stuff.” Elnor did not even look at the mage as he spoke.
“Why so careful when you are Indrek’s loyal subjects?” teased Halgor, raising a brow. The kobold only gave a wry smile.
“Nobody said that we were. We only said that trying to kill Indrek would make more trouble than leaving him alone. And a spare disguise can always come in handy,” replied the paragon as he turned again when Carus gestured them to.
Halgor was not satisfied with the answer at all, yet stayed silent. Especially since the other spoke a lot but said nothing, not even a hidden hint. He still grasped his hilt, looking in every direction. He could not help his distrust. His only satisfaction was that not long after the rain stopped, the clouds even let a little sunshine through.
“However”—Carus broke the silence—“you could answer my last question in Varomor. Can you stop Neila if needed?”
“Don’t ask questions if you don’t want to know the answer,” growled the mage, then fell silent again. The wraith stopped asking for more. He seemed content enough with this.
They walked the rest of the way in silence.
“We have arrived. There, in that huge tree, we hid the clothes.” He pointed at a huge, almost-dead tree with a twisted, bumpy trunk in a little clearing before them.
Before they stepped out from the thicket, Carus scouted around, looking for signs of other scÿta or soldiers. After he found everything in order, they approached the tree. Elnor delved into a huge crack on its trunk, fishing out a few tightly wrapped bags.
“Here, this is the newest style among the elvens. But you should do something with your hair too, if you want to blend in.” The paragon eyed the mage, who opened the bag and looked into it. The kobold bit his lip to keep himself from laughing out loud when he saw the other’s expression.
“And they ask me why I left my kind …” muttered Halgor as he regarded the pieces of clothes. “You cannot be serious …” He glanced at the other two, almost begging. The wraith spied the thicket around them, not even minding the other two. The kobold only shrugged with a smile.
“Listen, you can stay as you are. I don’t care,” cut in Carus coldly. “But even with the disguise, you have a chance to get caught. But I won’t save you, I tell you that.”
Halgor’s eyes flared up for a moment, then he took a deep breath and calmed himself down.
He knew the scÿta was right, so he hurriedly changed in the cold, puffing huge clouds as he panted. He could use magic to change, but with unfamiliar clothing it would take more energy than the elven would have wanted to give. Luckily, Elnor’s body type was similar to his, so the clothes fit him perfectly. Although he could not stop wondering why a paragon would need elven clothes. There was no way he could look like the other species without knowing serious magic.
Which he did not. The dark mage felt no power around him.
After he managed to arrange his clothing perfectly, Elnor burst into a laugh when he looked at him, which made even him blush.
“By the Gods! This was worth living for, I tell ya.” He laughed, wiping tears from his eyes. Every time he glanced at the elven, he burst out laughing again. Even Carus gave a faint smile when he measured the elven’s looks.
Halgor usually wore plain dark colours, yet now he was covered in bright ones from tip to toe.
He tucked the light-green trousers into his grass-green moccasins. His deep-red, thick, warm tunic had a matching deep-blue pattern embroidered in it. The motifs suited the elvens’ nature, so they mostly showed flowers—lots and different types of flowers. Above this he had a light-brown, also heavy waistcoat with somewhat fewer patterns. On top of it all, he had a several-layered cloak—each and every layer was thin, but the many of them created a very warm cover. Each was a bit smaller than the other, letting the lower ones’ edges show. Because they were dyed in different colours, the edges of the layers gave a fine pattern.
Halgor had to arrange them carefully, which became difficult work, but when he finally managed it, they stayed together perfectly. Right now, he wore the ‘coming spring’ pattern, which meant different shades of yellows and greens.
“You will pay for this …” he whispered hatefully when the elven looked at himself. Albeit he had to admit that because of the terrific fabrics, he no longer felt cold. On the contrary, he had to loosen up his pieces a little to let in some air.
“Why? It suits you.” Elnor grinned. “But it won’t work if you cannot behave according to it,” said the paragon firmly. His grin disappeared in a moment.
Halgor only sighed.
“Don’t worry. There will be no problems with my ‘behaviour’,” he barked, annoyed. Then he started to hurry the others. He wanted this whole thing to be over as soon as possible.
They started forwards. If Carus was right, they would not stick out from the crowd.
When Halgor had a difficult time believing this, the wraith explained further. According to him, in those times nobody was surprised if a townsman was accompanied by a Guard, or even a scÿta. Not one of them made a secret if they belonged to this organisation, albeit they did not make a big deal out of it either. If an ordinary townsman knew a few scÿta, nobody really cared. None dared to ask about their job, nor showed any interest in it.
Sometimes the inhabitants asked for directions; in others, the scÿta could be a buyer. Even the scÿta had normal lives, when they had a little free time. They could buy a house, eat wherever they wanted just like everybody else, and even could have friends.
Nightfort had the unique ability to merge all different species into one big unit. So no wonder if a wraith, a kobold, and an elven strolled on the streets together. Despite the different quarters, as time passed, many found friends from other species.
The companions left the forest, taking the wide main road that led to the city. It was in perfect shape, even though carved and arranged from dirt.
“From now on, at least one of my brethren will be watching, so you’d better be on your best behaviour,” whispered Carus, glancing at Halgor.
But even he raised an eyebrow when he saw a perfectly normal, smiling person walking beside him who looked around curiously. He heard a faint humming too, making the picture whole. No trace remained of the piercing looks, the high-held nose, or the condescending tone when he spoke. Even his motions seem
ed more loosened up, almost fluid-like and very elegant. But most importantly: nothing indicated a fighter’s presence.
“And I lived to see this …” mumbled Elnor, who had a difficult time keeping in his laugh. He obviously enjoyed himself very much. But at this comment, Halgor stepped on his heel, making him stumble.
“Oh, I am truly sorry, my friend. It was an accident.” The elven stepped beside the other, patting his shoulder. Obviously it was anything but an accident …
“Don’t mind it, can happen to everybody.” Elnor smiled as he put his arm around the other’s waist. As best friends, they walked on the road. Physical contact was perfectly acceptable amongst the elvens, so if a kobold could handle it, nobody looked at them twice, even though it would seem an odd picture. Everywhere else maybe, but not in Nightfort.
So the Guards at the main Gate only smiled and nodded at them when the three companions walked in the city.
Elnor and Halgor were chatting about everything meaningless—the foreseeable crops and the effects of the unusually cold nights on them, or how one should treat a certain house pet. But under this cover all three of them eyed the billowing crowd intently. Sometimes they accepted the welcoming words from Elnor’s friends, and during the short small-talks with them, Halgor mused on what could lay behind all of this.
As he played his ‘friendly-elven’ part, he could not help himself to be astonished by what he saw. Wherever he looked, he saw blooming city-life. The vendors’ voices rose above the crowd’s base-murmur as they shouted how appealing their merchandise was. In other places, performers lightened the mood, earning a few coins with their show. The air was filled with wonderful smells from the carts which sold different types of meals. Everything could be found, whatever one would like to have. Children were running all over the place, playing games, giggling.
Halgor glanced around, amazed. If somebody looked at him, they said hello, or some other kind little thing. But whatever the people did, their smile never disappeared. All eyes shone in happy excitement, and the chatters sounded light and cheerful.
