The Guardians: Book One of the Restoration Series

by Williams, Christopher

  Staying on the riverbank, Flare kept watching for any place that would allow him to cross. With dusk quickly approaching, he soon realized that he would not find a spot today. He kept riding in twilight, until he came to the Shore of Tranquility Lake. The Silver River emptied into the lake from the east, and the Black river drained the lake to the west. He made camp a hundred yards from the shore.

  Flare looked for and found two trees that were leaning together, and he set up camp under those trees. Before falling asleep, he set some fishing lines in the river. With any luck, he would be able to catch breakfast. A few minutes later, he was sound asleep beside his small fire.

  He woke the next morning at dawn and rubbed the sleep from his eyes. He loved the appearance of the forest at daybreak. There was always a chill in the air, and he loved listening to the animal sounds. After answering nature’s call in the bushes, he walked down to the river to check the fishing lines. Of the four lines he had set, three had caught catfish. The fourth fishing line was missing; apparently the fish had managed to pull the fishing line off the shore. He kept the largest fish, and he threw the other two back. The fish made an excellent breakfast, and then he carefully packed the leftovers for later.

  Breaking camp, he continued to ride eastward. Hopefully, it wouldn’t take more than a few hours to skirt the lake. With any luck, he would find a place to cross the river before sundown. He kept within sight of the lake shore, but carefully avoided getting too close. He had never been to Tranquility Lake, but he had heard the wild stories that surrounded it.

  The trip around the lake shore was not difficult, and he reached the eastern side of the lake, a little after lunch time. He tied his horse to a tree, and ate the remainder of his breakfast while looking out over the lake. When he was through eating, he continued to rest and observe the lake and shore. With his superior elven sight, he could make out the Black river fairly well. Something caught his attention, and he began to scan the shoreline more closely. After a few minutes, he caught sight of a horse moving along the far shore. Flare, and his horse, were hidden behind some trees and foliage, and could observe the horseman without being seen. After a few minutes, he spotted the horse again, still moving amongst the trees. This time, however, he also recognized the rider. It was Lenturin.

  ‘Damn him.’ Flare cursed, dropping the fish. He jumped up and quickly untied his horse. ‘Okay, all I got to do is find a place to cross. Perhaps Lenturin won’t follow me into the human territories.’ His heart was beating fast, as he turned eastward, and raced along the shoreline, quickly approaching the Silver River.

  Twenty minutes later, he stopped to observe Lenturin’s progress. Lenturin must have realized that Flare had spotted him, because he wasn't riding amongst the trees anymore, but instead was racing along the sandy shore. His horse had been bred for speed, because he was quickly catching up. Flare estimated that he had no more than half an hour before Lenturin would catch him.

  Ten minutes later, Flare reached the Silver river, but he didn’t even slow down. He fought off the despair that was trying to overwhelm him. 'I'm not about to lose before I even get started.' All of a sudden, he realized that at this point the Silver River was only about two hundred yards wide. They were only about fifty yards away from Tranquility Lake, but the water appeared to be rather calm. Flare scanned the opposing shore, to see if the horse would have any problem climbing it. Much to his delight, the opposite bank was nicely sloped, so his horse should be able to climb the bank. Flare looked back to see how close Lenturin was, and unfortunately, Lenturin was almost within bow range.

  Return whipped, or give it his best? Gritting his teeth, he turned his horse southward, and rode her straight into the water.

  The water was numbingly cold, and it took his breath away. He held on to the saddle, as the horse fought the current. Flare rolled on his side, and located Lenturin standing on the shore watching. He had dismounted, and was standing there with his hands on his hips. Flare rolled back over, and concentrated on breathing. He even allowed himself to smile, as he thought of Lenturin explaining to Prince Yolstice. He kept thinking, ‘Uncle, I beat you,’ over and over.

  The current was carrying them back towards Tranquility Lake, but they would still reach the opposing shore without any problem.

  There was about fifty yards to go, when Flare heard an ear piercing screech from the direction of the lake. He whipped his head in that direction, and his blood froze in terror. Sticking out of the water, was the head and neck of a creature, the like of which he had never imagined. The head was a mottled combination of gray, green, and brown. The forehead had several spikes extending from it, with scales covering the entire neck. The creature had its mouth open, and he could see its teeth. The teeth were at least as big as Flare’s hand and looked needle sharp. Except for the spikes and teeth, the head reminded him of a snake's head. The head from top to bottom was at least three feet, and the top of the head, was at least fifteen feet above the level of the water. He shuddered, imagining the size of the creature. It screeched again, and this time, Flare’s horse answered with an equaling ear piercing screech. The monster had swum into the mouth of the river, and was nearing them. It was now no more than twenty yards away.

  The poor mare was exhausting herself in an attempt to reach the other side, and her fear urged her on faster. Flare, who had wrapped his left hand in the reins, hit her rump with his right hand, over and over, hoping to help speed her up. She was going as fast as she could, because his paddling her had no affect.

  They were now forty yards away, and the creature was still gaining. He was unsure of how close to the shore they would need to be before the creature would be unable to pursue. Flare was still frantically trying to motivate his horse, when the creature struck.

  The creature lunged at Flare’s legs. It was so close; he could smell the rotting breath of the monster. Its teeth clamped down on his trousers, with two of its teeth scraping his ankle. He grimaced in pain, as he realized the monster’s teeth had ripped a gash in his lower leg. He left a trail of blood in the water behind them, and the monster reared its head, and emitted another ear piercing screech.

  They were now twenty-five yards from the shore, and his horse was still moving as fast as she possibly could, but the monster was still with them. The creature had slowed way down, and he hoped it was because of the nearness of the shore.

  Flare leg was throbbing, as he looked back at the creature. Even though the creature had slowed, it would still have another couple of chances to attack before they reached the far shore. With his right hand, he drew his sword. He didn't know what use the sword would be against a creature of this size, but he hoped it would distract the creature long enough for them to escape.

  The creature moved up closer to Flare and his horse. All of a sudden, the head shot down on top of them. He did not even have time to think, he just instinctively reacted. He thrust upward with what little force he could gather. The sword shot upwards and hit the monster on the side of the neck. The thrust did absolutely no damage, but the blow distracted it. The creature’s lunge had been directed at the front of the horse, but the sword thrust deflected the creature’s head to the right side, and it missed the horse and Flare. The creature’s head hit the water just to the right of him, and it immediately whipped its head to the left, towards Flare. This time, however, Flare had a chance to see what was happening and he reacted by slashing his sword at the left eye of the monster. The sword cut an arc threw the air and hit the left side of the monster’s head. His slash had been too soon, and missed. The sword hit several inches short of the eye, scraping across the scales. However, as the creature turned, it caught its eye on the sword. A white milky fluid seemed to erupt from the ruined eye, covering Flare’s sword and arm. The creature emitted a scream, and it began to writhe in the water. Its head and body rolling over like a snake.

  The mare took advantage of the creature’s wound to pull ahead and reach the shore. She climbed up the shore, dragging Flare
by the arm. His arm was so well wrapped in the reins, that at first he couldn't get loose. She continued dragging him until they were nearly twenty or thirty yards away from the water, where she finally stopped. Flare let loose of the sword, and he pulled himself to his knees. He kneeled there trying to catch his breath. He unwound the reins from his left arm, and slowly massaged his hand trying to get the blood to circulate. Finally, he stood up and kissed his mare on the forehead, immediately becoming concerned with the poor horse. She was standing there with her legs spread open, head down, gasping for breath. He had never heard of a horse dying from fear, but he began to think his horse might be the first.

  “It’s okay, baby,” he said, stroking her neck. He was also breathing hard, but from the excitement, not the exertion. He continued slowly talking to her, until she started breathing normally. Then, and only then did he wrap the reins around a tree, and tend to his leg. It was bleeding, but not gushing. The gash had missed the arteries, and the blood was only trickling down his leg. After bandaging the wound, he walked back down to the shore.

  Looking out over the water, he could see the tip of the creature’s head as it swam back into the lake. He had believed that most of the rumors about the eternal forest were told to scare children, but he promised that he would pay more heed to the stories in the future.

  Flare looked back toward the right, toward where Lenturin had been standing. He was still standing on the shore, with his hands on his hips, looking across the river. When he saw Flare looking at him, he cupped his hands to his lips, and shouted, “You’re ...........uckiest son of .........itch. I ha.....ver.....een.”

  In return, Flare hollered back across the water, “Come on across, the water is wonderful.” After a short pause, he continued. “I beat you! You failed. Tell Yolstice good-bye for me.” He was grinning ear to ear, and felt like he was unbeatable at that moment. Lenturin was too far away for Flare to make out facial features, but Flare hoped that he was furious.

  “You don’t actually believe that you beat us. Do you?” Lenturin replied, louder than before.

  “By the time you warn the elven guard, I will have at least a four day head start. I doubt seriously they can catch me.”

  “Don’t worry Flaranthlas. I can guarantee you a six day head start.”

  The response confused him. He had expected Lenturin to curse or threaten, but not agree with him. Flare was still frowning as he asked, “What are you talking about? Six days? Are you trying to help me get awa...?” He couldn’t even finish the sentence, before a frightening thought occurred to him. Perhaps, his uncle wanted him gone. There was a note of panic in Flare’s voice as he said,” Lenturin, are you trying to help me get away?”

  “Very good, Flare. Prince Yolstice had guessed your plan ever since the meeting with King Feilolas. I was supposed to make sure you escaped.”

  “Why? Why send you with me? Why did you follow me to Tranquility Lake? If you wanted me to escape, then you shouldn’t have pressured me.”

  “I was sent to make sure you left, one way or the other.”

  Flare didn’t like the sound of that last comment. His elation at escaping the forest was quickly turning to dismay at being manipulated so easily. “Are you saying that you would have killed me?”

  “I am not saying anything like that. But, a human bastard hanging around the elven court is an insult to all elves. Now, enough talk. You had better get moving. It is already afternoon, and you have to find a place to make camp.” Lenturin turned and started to walk away, when he stopped and turned back. “If I were you, I wouldn’t try to come back.” With that, Lenturin mounted his horse and rode away.

  Flare was crushed. He had believed that he was in charge of the whole situation. In reality, he had been manipulated from the very beginning. It was a strange feeling to know that somebody else had that much control over him.

  He slowly walked up the river bank feeling dejected. For the first time, since the start of his journey, he began to question his life choice. It was really a miserable feeling, but he certainly believed that Lenturin would be waiting for him if he tried to cross back over into the eternal forest, not that he really wanted to.

  He was glad to see that his mare was perking up. She was standing straighter, and breathing more normally. He untied the reins, but he did not climb into the saddle. She was still exhausted from the swim, and he was content to lead her.

  There was a Telurian city called Deladon almost due south of Tranquility Lake, so Flare shouldn’t have any problem finding it. From there, he just had to follow the northern road straight to Telur. The terrain, on this side of the silver river, was hillier and had fewer trees.

  After several hours of walking, he stopped to make camp. The clouds that had been gathering all day opened up and poured rain on him. He was soaked, miserable, and sore trying to sleep under an oak.

  The next morning, Flare began the second half of his journey toward Telur. The rain stopped in the early hours of the morning, but not early enough for him to get any real sleep. He broke camp and rode south. He was relieved to see his mare had perked up after the near fatal events of yesterday.

  Even though the terrain was hilly, there were less trees and vegetation to slow them down and they made excellent time. No humans lived this far north, and he rode without worrying about running into anyone.

  The rolling hills were grasslands broken up by small patches of trees. Off in the distance to the east and west, he could see forests, but he was headed to the south into the grasslands.

  The first night, he made camp in a copse of trees. He was exhausted and excited at the same time. He was in the real world and was riding to Telur to join the guardians. Alternating between fear of failure and sweet dreams of glory, he nodded off to sleep.

  The second day of travel mirrored the first, at least until early in the evening. The sun was starting to go down, and Flare was looking for a good place to camp, when he rode over a small hill and he first noticed the lights of Deladon.

  In the dusk, the lights reminded him of a swarm of fireflies. Judging by the number of lights, the city was larger than he had expected. From his studies, Flare knew that Deladon was a small city on the edge of the Telurian border with the elves. For a 'small' city, it looked awful big.

  He sat on his horse staring out over the city, considering what he should do. Undoubtedly, the gates of the city would be closed at night. And besides, did he really want to ride through that city crammed with humans? Perhaps, he thought grimly, it would be better to ride around the city in the night and make camp on the far side; there would definitely be less chance of trouble that way.

  His mind made up, he started riding down the road toward the city. He left the road well short of the high walls and turned his horse to the west. He didn't completely avoid attention, as he was surprised to see small huts and shacks thrown up around the base of the walls. Apparently the city was packed to overflowing, and the poor were being forced to live outside the walls. His stomach turned as the sight of the squalor that these people were enduring. Half naked children covered in grime ran around the camp fires, playing with large dogs. The fires were being used to cook the evening dinner, and for once he wished his sight was not so good. After looking to see what was on the spit of one such fire, he carefully kept his eyes away from the other cook fires.

  It took several hours to skirt the city, and he was greatly when he stumbled across the Northern road. Upon reaching the road, he turned his horse southward and nudged her into a slow gallop. He wanted to put several miles between himself and the city, before he stopped for the night.

  On either side of the road, the grasslands were broken up with small clumps of trees, although most of the trees were short and stumpy. In the darkness, Flare spotted a small clump of trees off to the right, several hundred yards away from the road. He dismounted and led the mare over the grasslands to the trees, after tending to his horse, he quickly fell asleep.

  He slept until the warmth of the
mid-morning sun woke him, and then he quickly saddled his mare, while eating some more of the elven bread. Not wanting to waste any time, he mounted and quickly headed south along the road.

  The journey continued in much the same fashion, but now more villages and towns started to appear along the road. If the village was small enough, Flare just pulled his hood up and rode right on through, pretending not to notice the stares of the villagers. However, when he approached a larger town or city, he followed the plan that he had used previously, wait until dark and ride around the city. Perhaps he was being overly cautious, but then again maybe he wasn't.

  The road slowly turned to the southwest, and then back to due south as he got closer to Telur. The farther south he got, the more people he noticed along the road. Also, farms replaced the grasslands running along the road. He spotted many a farmer working the fields, but they rarely noticed him.

  Flare finally abandoned the idea of skirting around the towns and cities in the night. There were so many travelers on the road this close to Telur, that the townspeople didn't even seem to notice them. He rode through the towns and cities with the rest of the masses. Tired guards posted at the gates looked them over, but they apparently did not find anything amiss. As bored as the guards looked, he wondered if they would have missed a goblin riding through the gates.

  He was beginning to think that he would never reach Telur, and several times he caught his attention drifting. There were just too many sights with all the people that were around him now.

  A fight broke out between two merchant guards from different caravans, and he watched intently, as the guards rushed to break it up. He quickly followed the other travelers, as they moved to quickly get away from the argument. The last thing that he wanted was to accidentally get involved. He continued to ride slowly, looking back over his shoulder at the fight, until he started to lose interest. He turned back around and for the first time noticed how thick the crowds of travelers had become. For a moment, he was confused as to why there were so many, but then his gaze swept forward to the plains ahead. The road had just crested a small hill, and the view from here was excellent. Flare sat frozen in his saddle, looking in amazement at the massive city that stretched out in the distance ahead of him. He had reached Telur.