Elves- the Book of Daniel

by R Brent Powell

“Because in cities most people work inside very large buildings and can’t see the sky, or it is heavily overcast and the sun isn’t easy to pinpoint. Or moving around makes those things like lit candles hard to carry with you. In my world being an hour late or early is considered embarrassing. With no clocks, the idea that the elves can travel from all over and still arrive within an hour or so of each other, is impressive.”

  “It is hard to imagine time being so precise,” she said slowly trying to think it through.

  “I never really thought about it before,” he said. “I have no idea how we got where we did. I wonder if watches started as a luxury novelty and then became common. Everyone has a watch; it’s so common we don’t even think of it. It’s amazing how many of the answers I have to wing. The good news, he thought, is that the technology is like magic to them. I could make up anything and they might believe it. Something to ponder, he smiled.

  Lissette saw the smile and wondered if he was laughing at her. It didn’t seem cruel or condescending. She wondered again how she would adjust in his world, something she could hardly imagine. She also knew she had been amused, at his expense, at his ignorance of what came so naturally to her. Two sides to every coin, she thought, something to ponder.

  Lissette was distracted by the arrival of the next elder and his small entourage. Directing Daniel’s attention toward the small group she pointed to an elf apparently as old as his newly acquired grandfather. “That is Glydrif,” she whispered, “the stories say he was at the gathering that sent you back. He is one of your grandfather’s oldest friends and sometimes adversaries. The two joined the council at about the same time…maybe twenty years apart…and about four hundred years ago.”

  The same time, he thought to himself, twenty years difference. I guess as a percentage it is a small gap. But…

  “Look more to the left,” she directed, “that’s Malney. He is really new to the council.” She knew the question he was preparing to ask when she heard him suck in the air so quickly. “He joined the council about five years ago after one of the elder’s was killed. So this will all be a bit of a fairy tale to him.”

  This continued for the next hour or so as small groups began appearing in the glade. Each received a quick description from Lissette pointing out time on council, relationships to other elves, and any other tidbits she might know.

  “Wait a second,” Daniel said, “What was the guy’s name on the left? Where the three people are talking?”

  “I already told you about him not more than a half an hour ago. Aren’t you paying attention to me?” Her tone was frustrated and on the edge of angry.

  “Sorry,” he said sheepishly, “To be honest, I have forgotten most of them. You have known them your whole life. For me they are a bunch of faces.”

  Most of the names were lost on Daniel; it was just too much information to absorb. A mass of strangers coming to see if he was the real deal, he thought. He did enjoy Lissette’s enthusiasm and he enjoyed the look of conspiracy on her face with each new opportunity she got to dish. No matter what or where or even when, he thought, gossip around the rich and famous grabs the attention.

  She looked at him a moment and smiled with understanding. She kept forgetting how much he was trying to absorb when it was so common to her.

  He was watching her face intently enjoying the twinkle in her eye when she stopped cold and the twinkle disappeared. He followed her gaze and saw a group of five elves enter the clearing. Their clothes were darker and their manor more…formal… controlled, no, wary, he thought, than the others. Whoever they were they had stopped Lissette like a deer in the headlights.

  “Who’s that?” he prompted, trying to snap her back.

  “I am not sure, exactly,” she replied after a two count, “those are mountain elves. I’ve only ever seen one once.” They must have flown to get here this fast unless they were in the area. But from the stir around the ring this looks like a big surprise.”

  “Flown?” he asked with excitement, “they can fly?’

  “It is an expression,” she said quickly trying to quiet him, “I don’t think they can actually fly.”

  Stir was an understatement, he thought. Most of the elves that had been casually standing had become tense. The body language was as stiff as the new arrivals.

  “I wonder,” he heard Lissette whisper.

  “What?’

  “The leader of the mountain clans is called Draskin. With the reaction from the others, this may be a formal delegation.”

  “Formal? I thought the council of elders was formal. You mean it just got more formal?”

  “They live farthest from the humans and try to avoid them. They always avoided humans even before the Baron started this war. The nearest of their cities is a week away. Their presence here and now could be a coincidence, but that sort of coincidence is a rare thing. To add further to our mystery, if this is no coincidence, how are they here? They would have to have left their city before you escaped the castle dungeon.”

  Lissette was always so in control, and took so much in stride, to see her so discomfited was making him more than a little nervous.

  “Don’t they get along with the local elves? Surely, they must all be relatives of some kind?” He asked.

  She tore her eyes away from the newcomers reluctantly and faced Daniel. “When the problems started here, envoys were sent to them for help. They advised withdrawing from near the humans, gathering the elven strength and attacking. There are many of the mountain elves who still hold humans responsible for most of the ills the elves have faced.” With a deep breath and a long look at him trying to decide how he would react, she plunged forward. “Daniel, when the great floods came elves and a kind of primitive human were thrown together. Modern humans are a cross between the two. This all happened a long time ago and people have been people ever since.

  A lot of the mountain elves think the crossbreeding was forced on the elves and that humans are still more animal than elf. So when the elders were sent to meet with the Baron and all of them were killed, the mountain elves became even more convinced the humans should be eliminated and refused more contact with the lowland elves until they came around.

  As far as I know, there has been no contact between them until now.”

  “You are mostly right.” Another voice said from behind them making both Lissette and Daniel jump.

  Beylvar stood behind them with a smile, obviously enjoying their reaction. “We pass news back and forth as a way to keep us in informal contact. For Draskin to be here is a surprise indeed and the council will, no doubt, be even more lively than anticipated. Daniel, it is time for the circle to begin and I need you to come with me now. I have been trying to get your attention for several minutes but you two don’t seem to see much outside of a very small circle.” Beylvar chuckled at their reactions and walked into the clearing without looking back. If he had he would have seen them both blush and quickly look away from each other.

  Daniel glanced at Lissette and she back at him, making the color they shared deepen before she looked down and he turned to follow his new grandfather. Daniel could feel her eyes on him and then began to realize other eyes were on him as well.

  The circle had fifteen around it when he and Beylvar sat down next to each other. All eyes were on the two of them and Daniel could tell the newcomers were sizing him up. A few of them didn’t even pretend to hide it. He was now wishing he had paid more attention to Lissette’s version of “The Enquirer”. After a moment he noticed he didn’t have all the attention; most of the council was split between watching Beylvar and Draskin.

  They are suspicious of each other, he thought, what am I going to do if a fight breaks out? Lissette warned me not to frighten them but who warned them not to frighten me?

  He was beginning to wish he had some kind of weapon but was sure a knife or sword would do him no good.

  Without preamble Beylvar spoke. “Thank you all for joining
us in this special council meeting. Many here were surprised by the arrival of the mountain clan and even more so by the appearance of you, Draskin, something I wish were not so rare.

  To the point, Draskin, what business merits this happy circumstance?”

  All eyes swiveled to Draskin, whose face remained nearly impossible to read. Great poker player, Daniel thought, and then, I wonder if they play poker here….I wonder if they have cards.

  Draskin took a deep breath snapping Daniel’s attention back to the circle.

  “Greetings to all. Our presence here is for the same reason as yours. We all know of the sending ten years ago and news of the happenings over the last few days reached us as we were traveling across the edge of your territory. We have traveled hard and fast with little rest or sleep so we apologize for not sending word ahead. While we thank you for your kind words, it is also known to all that relations between us have been…guarded. But if the young human next to you is the returned one, I fear our travel was for naught.”

  The silence was thick for a few moments as everyone anticipated the reaction of Beylvar to the only slightly disguised insult. When Beylvar spoke, his was the only smile in the circle.

  “Draskin, and all who have come to this council. First, I understand that there are many rumors flying and tales spread with a life of their own. But,” and he raised his hands palm up and spread wide as almost a shrug, “they are mostly true. While we knew him as Deiniol, sitting next to me is my grandson returned. Son of Drelnid and now known as Daniel.”

  With everyone’s undivided attention, Beylvar told the tale of Daniel’s arrival with no embellishment. He offered Lissette, Barton and Alan as witnesses to parts of the story and then smiled and waited.

  Daniel had appreciated not having to go through it all again, and also appreciated the opportunity to listen and watch the faces around the circle for reaction. There was no reaction that he could see. He tried not to stare, but a tiny movement of the eye or a jaw muscle tightening gave away very little of their feelings. I wonder if they have poker here. He thought. Note to self; do not teach them poker if I ever want to have nice things.

  After a few moments of murmuring amongst the small clusters spread around the ring, Draskin was the first to speak. “Beylvar, if this tale had come from any other I would have wondered if a human was involved in some chicanery. But since it is you, whom I trust implicitly, we are torn on how to proceed.”

  Beylvar smiled again, the only smile in the ring Daniel noticed, and nodded his head. “Draskin, and all here, I swear that this is true, but I can also say that I had trouble believing this myself without proof. As for Daniel being my returned grandson, I will have to ask you to take my word on that. Those who knew his parents can see them in him clearly. Remember, we humanized him before he was sent to assure he would fit in where he arrived. However, to discuss or even comprehend his abilities, I believe a demonstration is in order.” With that Beylvar turned to Daniel with a slight tilt of his head, and the hint of a twitch in one eye no one else could see and so small and fast that Daniel wasn’t sure he had seen anything.

  Lissette had crept around behind them for a better view, though still not technically in the circle. The look on her face showed she was surprised just short of shock; such a human thing to do from the eldest of elders. She looked behind her and told herself no one else could have seen it. Lissette feared Beylvar’s almost playful behavior, especially here at council, would somehow impact the meeting and Daniel.

  Daniel took his cue and for once was ready, he hoped. “I don’t know most of you here. Before a few days ago I knew no one here. In fact, I was someplace very different from here. I have tried to describe the world I came from but so much of what was normal to me there would make no sense to you. Just like so much here makes no sense to me.

  Everything I do with magic is usually the first time I have ever done it….like you have heard, a couple of days ago I didn’t know magic was real and certainly never thought I could do it. I am going to try and make something no one here has ever seen. I have never made anything this big so I am not sure what will happen. If it does work, I think it will answer all the questions.”

  With that Daniel held up a finger in a sign to wait - he realized after he did it that they probably had no idea what it mean. So he gestured with open palms for them to stay and trotted out of the circle to gather his ingredients. He retrieved the wood he’d gathered earlier thinking it would be good starter material and placed the pile in front of him on the ground.

  He sat back down and closed his eyes. Taking a deep breath he began transmuting. He built the now familiar tune and began to see the molecules he wanted. This should be easier he thought because he wasn’t moving atoms so much. He saw the molecules and the transformation he wanted clearly in his head. He laughed to himself as he focused on the image in his mind. This image was as clear to him and most everyone in the world…his world, he corrected, as the silver dollar had been to him. He formed the image and built the shape in his mind. It seemed the more clearly the image was in his head, the faster things worked. He didn’t have to shape each particle, just set the pattern, and the music somehow accelerated the change. The last to form were the fingers, all eight of them grew simultaneously.

  He was focusing for all he was worth. Nothing threatening, she had said: unique and surprising. To any kid in the world, this was the answer. The tune wore down somehow knowing the deed was complete. Another thing that just seemed to happen by magic, he chuckled.

  He opened his eyes and there it was, about two feet high, almost perfectly clear, with one four fingered hand raised in greeting and a big impossible smile on its face. Relieved it had worked, he looked at the faces around the ring still dumbstruck and staring. With a smile he said, “Let me introduce you to Mickey.”

  Their eyes slowly pulled away from the figurine focusing on him, then each other, and then at Beylvar, looking for signs of comprehension from any in the ring. Draskin broke the silence. “What is that?”

  From the tone Daniel began to question his choice of avatars but after a quick glance at his grandfather he dove in. “In my world this is a character that is world famous as a friendly playmate and ambassador to children, and many adults, who also grew up with the stories around Mickey and his friends. He comes from a place called The Magic Kingdom,” as they started to stir, he quickly added, “There is no magic there. It’s only an expression because we have no magic. It is a… permanent, festival where people come to enjoy themselves. More important than the image of a friendly mouse is what it is made of. Draskin would you examine the figure and tell everyone what the material is?”

  Draskin neither moved nor reacted but looked at Daniel and then Beylvar.

  “It is perfectly safe, Draskin, but if you would prefer someone to touch it first, I will be happy to step up.”

  Daniel was pleased that his new grandfather had thrown the gauntlet so smoothly and was prepared to trust him without explanation.

  Draskin hesitated another few seconds deciding what to do, then rose slowly and approached the clear figure. He touched it hesitantly, but not too much with so many eyes on him and watching how he would react. He felt the smooth material and at first thought it was glass, but when he tapped it with a fingernail, the sound was wrong. He tilted and then lifted it to find it lighter than he expected…too light for glass.

  He was becoming engrossed in the puzzle when Daniel spoke again. “Hit it with your sword or knife and take a swing at it as if it was wood. It will not harm your blade or you.”

  Draskin looked at Daniel, sizing him up, and then removed his sword. The Elven blades were special, touched with magic to help hold the edge. He lifted the blade and took a full swing into Mickey right in the torso between the buttons. The sound was odd, soft in a way, and the statue flew several paces landing at the feet of one of his men. The elf picked it up examining the damage. There was an obvious impact point and the materiel ha
d turned white in streaks scattering out from the point of impact. The figurine was still intact and otherwise undamaged. The elf rose and carried it to Draskin to see for himself.

  Draskin turned it in his hands considering what he saw. “This is a child’s toy in your world?” He asked without looking up?

  Daniel simply relied, “Yes.”

  “If this is a toy, what do you use for armor?” Now Draskin’s eyes met Daniel’s and they were flat and calculating.

  “We haven’t used armor as you think of it in two hundred years.” With the reaction from all the circle matching the surprise on Draskin’s face, Daniel hurried to continue. “This material is called polycarbonate. I chose it because it looks like glass but is much harder to break or cut, as you have seen for yourselves. We have many items made from this material for common everyday purposes and it is often melted and reused. Any home in my world has the means to destroy the toy, but here that is not so easy.”

  “So much power exists in this other world?” Draskin asked.

  “I am searching for words to explain the differences,” Daniel replied slowly. “I can only give an example. In the world I was sent to, ten of our soldiers could defeat a thousand armed knights in open combat.”