That's when he heard the first crash. It wasn't a crash like two cars colliding, more like something encased in metal hitting something that was not. The second crash was preceded by a scream and Daniel recognized that as the sound of someone going down. He could still hear the horse in front of him and he hadn't passed anyone so when he heard the next two crashes to his left and right he began to have some hope.
"Daniel, can you hear me?" Barton yelled from somewhere in front of him.
"Yes, I can. What's going on?" Daniel hollered back as loud as he could while folded over on the saddle.
"I need you to slow down to a walk so we can slow down without you running over us." Barton yelled back.
Daniel tried pulling back on the reins and after some trial and error, he managed to get the horse to a walk. "We're walking now," he shouted to the dark woods ahead of them. "Don't run off and leave me."
Daniel could hear the sound of running horses dropping off and he hoped it was because they were slowing down not running away. He continued moving forward at a slow pace, keeping his head down and trying to avoid branches while going in what he thought was the correct direction. The woods had gone eerily quiet. He could hear the horse panting over his own heavy breathing and the occasional twigs snapping under heavy hooves. The idea of being lost and alone in the woods did not slow the rapid beating of his heart. After a couple of long terrifying minutes he heard Barton shout for him to follow the voice and a few minutes after that he caught up.
Barton, Alan, and Lissette were standing by the horses looking for him in the dim light. As he got closer, he could see that they were not alone. They were joined by half a dozen tall men carrying bows and Daniel figured he was about to meet his first full elves. When he got close enough to the group he stepped down off his horse, glad to have his feet on the ground, and resisted the urge to rub his butt. His first few steps were a little shaky but when he managed to close the gap he looked at the elves and said, "Hello, and I suppose a thank you is in order."
The elves only reply was, “Follow.”
They followed the elves, who, even though they were on foot, kept a pace that would have been easier to match on horseback. At least, Daniel thought, they're not trying to kill us, yet. Several hours of hiking later, and well into what must have been pitch-black darkness, Daniel could still see enough to avoid the rocks in the trail and duck the branches. He could make out his companions in front of him all the way to the three elves who were guiding from the front. Daniel could also hear at least two more elves striding behind him. As he trudged along, he strained his ears listening for other elves traveling with them. He knew that the five he could see couldn't be nearly enough to have dropped the men on horseback who had been chasing them.
Exhausted, footsore, hungry, and thirsty they arrived in a clearing where they could see stars for the first time that night. The camp was a large clearing with a small fire in the middle. The elves produced a bed roll for Alan, allowed Barton and Daniel to remove theirs from the horses, and then pointed to an area where they could sleep. Little talking was done and Daniel was too exhausted to muster the energy to ask questions. With the blankets rolled out and the pointier rocks and sticks removed from beneath it, Daniel stared at the stars for no more than a minute before the day’s events overwhelmed him. Too tired to care about safety, food, or information his night was filled with dreams of home, the dark woods, and Lissette.
FOURTEEN
When Daniel awoke it was late morning. The sun was bright and as he squinted trying to get focused, he got his first look at the Elven camp. Barton was still wrapped in his blankets asleep and Alan and Lissette were nowhere to be seen. He remembered laying out blankets the night before and being told to sleep by the fire. He had been so exhausted he really did not remember more than lying down.
The clearing was a rough circle about fifty yards across covered with a short grass that almost looked like it had been mowed. There were elves moving about the edges of the clearing and they moved so quietly he wondered what had awakened him. Just then he caught the smell of something cooking and realized that his stomach had been the alarm clock.
Daniel untangled himself from the blanket and stood up slowly stretching out the kinks in his sore muscles. He felt like he'd been running for a week, and it had only been a couple of days. Apparently the jogging around campus and the martial arts workouts might need a little adjustment in intensity, he mused. Turning slowly to survey the clearing, he began to notice buildings under the trees. He hadn't seen them at first because the bright light in the clearing made the shadows of the tall trees difficult to resolve. Now, by shading his eyes with his hand, he could see several wooden buildings of different sizes hidden in the shade and spreading out and away from the clearing.
"Hungry?" Daniel spun to face the voice behind him. Lissette stood before him with a large metal plate covered with several pieces of meat, fruit, and a pair of fried eggs. He was so entranced by the food, it took several seconds to realize she also carried a mug in her hand and his thirst began to war with his need to eat.
"I don't think I've ever been this hungry in my whole life," Daniel replied reaching for the plate. He was ravenous. He used the fork she handed him to begin shoveling food into his mouth.
"It may be easier to eat that if you sit down," she said with a slight smile, "there is a place to sit over here by the edge of the trees." She began turning toward the spot as she finished speaking. Daniel followed her and continued to eat as they walked. A few minutes later they sat side by side on the log, his plate cleaned, and the mug mostly empty. Hunger and thirst quenched, feeling alive again, Daniel's mind began to turn to other things.
"Thank you again for the breakfast, I was starving! How long have you been awake?" He asked.
"I've been awake since shortly after dawn," she answered. "I can understand how you and Barton are so tired. You've been on the run with little rest for two and a half days. We were just catching up after breakfast when I saw you start to stir. After sleeping on the hard ground last night I figured a little warm food would be appreciated."
Daniel looked at her for a moment letting her words sink in and putting the pieces together. "You didn't sleep out here on the ground with us?"
Lissette's face lit up with genuine amusement, "of course not, I have friends here who offered me a nice comfortable bed. Besides, it's unseemly to leave nobility to sleep on the hard ground even if they are half human. At least, when there are beds to be had."
Daniel stared at her for a second before he heaved a heavy sigh and contemplated his empty plate. "So, Princess," he said with as much wry sarcasm as he could muster, "what happens next?"
Lissette stood up and, with the flick of her head, motioned for Daniel to follow her. Daniel rose, and carrying his plate and mug, trailed behind her as she angled across the clearing. I wish someone would just sit down and explain things to me, he thought to himself. Of course, this all makes perfectly good sense if I’m in a coma. If comas are like dreams, you’re never really sure what’s going on until after whatever it is that’s about to get sprung on you … springs. He also found it a tiny bit irritating that Lissette never bothered to look back and see if indeed he was following her.
She was headed to the tree line and as they got closer he could see a house partially revealed by the small rays of sunlight dabbling the roof. She opened the door without knocking or breaking stride, and said, “We are here.” He had little choice but to follow her in. Walking through the doorway, he squinted trying to get his eyes to adjust more quickly. As he did he realized there was an Elven woman standing with her hand out right before him.
“I’ll take those if you don’t mind,” she said with just a hint of a smile. It took Daniel probably a full second to realize she was referring to his plate and the mug standing on it, which he quickly surrendered.
“Thank you very much for the breakfast, it was delicious.”
“I’m sure you
were starving,” she replied, “but the thanks don’t go to me, Lissette is the one who cooked your breakfast, and brought it to you. And I don’t believe I’ve ever seen anyone else get quite that sort of special treatment. But, I suppose she has seen more of you than the rest of us.”
Daniel felt his face flush. “Does everybody know about me being naked at the jousting tournament? You know, I have no idea how I got there or here or any of the rest of this.”
With the dishes comfortably in her left hand, the woman reached out her right hand to shake his and said, “My name is Eliana. Welcome to my home where I get to decide what we do and do not talk about.” Obviously enjoying herself she continued, “To be truthful, I don’t suppose a story like that will ever see the end of its telling, but come with me, please. There are others who wish to meet you.” She set down the dishes and turned back to Daniel so she was close enough to place her left hand on his right arm, her smile was kindly and warm, “From what I know of your last few days things are making your head spin. Try to relax if you can and know that above all else we are happy and relieved to have you home.”
Daniel tried to smile back but his expression seemed to amuse her even more. She dropped her hand and nodded with her head for him to follow. Daniel trailed them through a doorway that led from what he supposed was a foyer, and into a room where Lissette immediately took a seat in one of the chairs arranged in a semicircle. She joined several others who had been waiting.
Among them was Alan, who smiled. “Good morning Daniel, I hope you slept well and feel somewhat recovered from your… adventures.”
Eliana stepped to Daniel’s side and began introductions. “As much as you can, try to relax. Here you are among friends. You have met Alan. I would like to introduce you to Belwin, his cousin Aldon, and Durbin who is no easily explainable relation but is still family,” she smiled. Eliana waited as each stood in turn to shake his hand. Daniel found the handshakes firm but in no way threatening. There were no grip contests, none lingered as if trying to establish control, only friendly gestures with a hint of formality. Formal ‘we are all friends,’ he thought. Durbin gestured for them all to be seated and Daniel hesitated, looking at the only available chair. Eliana leaned in the doorway with arms crossed and the look of a sergeant-at-arms. Daniel actually found her stance comforting.
“Lissette and I have related to them your story,” she said, “and it has led to many questions. If you don’t mind participating in our little family gathering, some stories just have to be heard firsthand.” Daniel looked at Eliana, then Lissette and then the rest of the group. He didn’t feel like he had a lot of choices so he shrugged and then gestured to the chair while he looked at Eliana.
“A gentleman,” she laughed with mock surprise, “I think Daniel may have more to offer than we thought. If he can put some manners into you lot, I, for one will believe anything. Go ahead and sit Daniel, I prefer leaning here.”
Daniel sat gingerly and he could see that Alan was enjoying this and having way too much fun. The good news was that Alan seem to be fairly straightforward and completely at ease. The others had open body language, not threatening at all but obviously very curious. All except for Lissette, who seemed to be doing her best to keep from bursting with impatience and frustrated by the whole process.
Clearing his throat, as a means of redirecting, Belwin began. “Welcome Daniel, and I think I can say we are all more than a little fascinated by the incredible lore and tales surrounding you….especially after just a few days. If I understand this correctly, you’ve been here a little more than two days and in that time,” and he raised his hand and began ticking off on his fingers, “broken out of the castle, fended off an assassination on the Baron Below, escaped the city just ahead of what we understand is one of the largest manhunt’s in recent memory, and convinced Alan, Barton, and Lissette that you may be a living legend.” He calmly looked to the others in the room and asked, “Does that about cover it for everyone?” He took the glances and slight tilts of the head as acquiescence and then saw Eliana nod as well. “One more vote for, ‘It’s true!’ I see.” Belwin shook his head with a half-smile and continued, “So, Daniel, are you a living legend?”
Daniel felt frozen in place. These people sure don’t mince their words, he thought to himself. How am I supposed reply to an opening statement like that? Don’t they have chitchat here? “Sir, I’m not really sure what I can say. Everything you describe, more or less, has happened, as I’m sure you know from speaking with Barton, Alan, and Lissette. I’m just trying to figure out what’s happened to me, what’s going on, and what to do next. Three days ago, I thought magic was something performers did to entertain an audience not something that actually existed. In fact, if I had any control over events I wouldn’t have saddle sores, a stiff back from sleeping on the cold ground, and I’d be in front of the TV trying to catch up on my homework.”
“See, what I told you” interjected Lissette, “he references common things we have never heard of. It is in many of his comments and the descriptions of the things are beyond imagining.”
It was clear he had done it again, and they had no idea what a TV or homework might be. “Sorry, it appears I’ve used vocabulary uncommon here again. A TV is a device on which we watch movies… that won’t work… It’s a device for entertainment and education. Where I live I am a student and homework is an assignment that we do outside of class.”
“Like an apprentice?” Durbin inquired, speaking for the first time.
Daniel felt almost relieved; it was a question he had an answer for, “In my world an apprentice is someone who studies with a master to learn a trade or skill. I am a student pursuing a university degree. We study many subjects trying to gain knowledge in a variety of areas, most of which,” he chuckled to himself, “don’t contribute to skills or trades. I think you’d have to be there and see the whole system for it to make any sense; let’s just say it’s really different from here.”
Everyone in the room was quiet for a minute and Daniel realized they were trying to process what he’d said and give it some context that would make sense to them. He reminded himself once more to think before he talked as he was spending more time explaining things they would never understand than he was finding anything out.
With a deep breath he tried again. “In my world many people do learn trades and some use an apprenticeship much like you are thinking. Others, like me, spend time learning many different things in large schools to make sure we know at least a little about most subjects. In our later school years we begin to concentrate in specialty areas. For instance, I was about to graduate as an engineer.” He saw some reaction to that, and jumped back in quickly before it went sideways again. “In my world there are many kinds of engineers… I don’t think the words exist here yet to describe them. I was studying chemical engineering… maybe like alchemy… with a minor in mechanical engineering… which is how to build things.” He saw their faces were mostly attentive with some showing confusion. He had no idea how to translate maybe eight hundred years of technology to them. He stared back for a second and said, “We study how everything is made from the smallest pieces up to the finished thing. From giant buildings to bicycles…we don’t have bicycles here do we?” No one needed to answer him as their faces told it all. “We are taught to know what the inside of things looks like and so we know how to make the pieces do many different things. I am sorry,” he said, “I just can’t explain it any better.”
Lissette was aware of the confusion and frustration they were all feeling. She had had a day to digest this and came to his rescue. As she spoke all looked to her with some relief. “Daniel has told us of many amazing machines and the knowledge they must have to build these things is beyond our understanding. But wasn’t that the purpose of the elder’s actions? Isn’t that what they hoped to accomplish?”
Belwin opened his mouth to speak and hesitated for a second before continuing on. “That was very helpful, Daniel.
Alan and Lissette have been trying to explain to us the strange way you speak and the things you describe but we didn’t fully grasp the depth of the differences until just now. When you said different world, what exactly did you mean?”
For once, Daniel took his own advice and stopped to think about his reply. What did he mean by ‘in his world’? Well, it was certainly very different from this place. None of the rules were the same; in fact the laws of physics didn’t seem to be exactly the same or at least were twisted in some way. It was for sure that he was sitting across from elves in a cabin in the woods and, even more disturbingly, he was having more and more trouble convincing himself that somehow it wasn’t all real. “Where I come from things are very different, and I use the expression because they are so different it’s hard to imagine it could be any way else. As I’ve said before, we don’t have elves and dwarves or giants or unicorns no one his carried a sword in a hundred years. Even then it was mostly ceremonial, except in the primitive and backward areas.
Elves- the Book of Daniel Page 13
