Elf Mastery

by Bryant Reil

  “What you want?” came Lug's deep voice. Kyla could only see one eye peeking out at her.

  She took a deep breath. She had planned the apology in her head, but it had abandoned her. She was used to the fake apologies mom always forced her to give Bit, but not the real ones.

  “Look – I'm really sorry. I feel bad I didn't help you stand up to that minotaur the other day. I didn't really think it was any of my business, but I guess you were so nice to me I could have at least stood by you.”

  “Thank you. What you want?”

  “May I come in?”

  There was a pause, and the door creaked open further so Kyla could see inside. The interior was lit by glowing crystals that grew straight out of the walls. It was much more decorated than she had expected. Lug was clearly a fan of art. Pictures and stone carvings decorated every wall and shelf. There was a painting of a dog, and one of a pod of dolphins leaping out of the water, and another of nymphs frolicking with satyrs around a pool. There were many abstract carvings of spirals and swirls, and set pieces of colored crystals. There were subterranean landscapes of great crystal caverns and seas of magma. All were beautifully arranged. And on the opposite end of the room was a shelf devoted entirely to rocks and gems of various shapes, sizes, and colors. This grabbed Kyla's attention, and without thinking to ask for permission she strode over to examine them.

  “Holy crab-apples!” she exclaimed. Then, “Oh, I'm sorry. I'm learning to watch my language. Did you know I collect rocks?”

  “No.”

  “Yeah. Yours are way fancier, but I guess you're a rock monster so you probably have rocks all over the place back home. I mean, I do too, but not so many as you, and most of them look kind of the same. What's this one?” She grabbed a black-and-white striped stone, which had been rubbed to a smooth polish. She had a similar stone in her own collection, but this one was shinier.

  “That gneiss.”

  “It IS nice!” Kyla replied. She set it back down gingerly, supposing perhaps she had been quite rude to pick it up without asking. “Where did you get it?”

  “Under ground.”

  “Of course. Of course. When I collect rocks they have a special meaning, you know? Like I have one from when I was little and my brother bit was teething and my mom was gone and he was crying, so I found a long roundish stone and stuck it in his mouth for him to suck on.”

  “Collect for memory. I like. I collect for pretty.”

  “Yeah, these are pretty. What's that one?”

  “No touch please! Is sapphire.”

  Kyla's excitement over Lug's rock collection distracted her for some time, and the more she talked the more Lug talked. Soon the lunchbox became an afterthought until she saw another one on the table. This one was unpainted and slightly rusted.

  “Oh! Right. Um...I found your lunchbox thingy. I had my friend fix it up. He didn't fix it all the way because I couldn't get him the date I promised him, but it's pretty good.”

  “No want.”

  “Why not? It's pretty. I mean, we could buff it up here and here, it'll be good as new!”

  “No want.”

  “But it's gorgeous!”

  “Work with Heff every day. No want trouble.”

  “Heff? Is that the minotaur?”

  “Yeah.”

  “He's kind of a jerk.”

  “Yeah. Big jerk. I have to work. No want trouble.”

  “Fine. I get it. I'm really sorry, Lug. I wish I had stood up for you back there. I felt horrible after.”

  “No feel bad. You no there every day. Heff there every day. You can no fix problem.”

  “Maybe not. Look, you seem like a nice guy. A great guy. I have a friend with a big problem, and I thought maybe you could help.”

  “What is problem?”

  “Well, he's supposed to destroy a town full of humans. I mean, that's not his job. His job is to set off a volcano, but that volcano will kill a whole lot of people. Thousands, maybe.”

  “I don't know volcanoes. I no can help.”

  “Well, he understands volcanoes. He just needs someone who knows how to dig.”

  Lug smiled. Or did he? It was hard to tell on his stony face, but his tone sounded more cheerful. “Digging, I know.”

  ***

  Kyla and Denzig watched as the mighty elemental carved a channel through the rock. Lug had grown to his largest size and moved stone as easily as Kyla might shovel snow. He looked happy; he had a childlike joy in his work, and asked no reward. She had one planned for him anyway.

  “You, my dear, do great work,” Denzig said.

  She shrugged. “He's doing all the work.”

  “The labor, yes, but you brought him here. Don't underestimate your value.”

  “If there's one thing school has taught me is I don't know how to do anything.”

  “Please!” the dragon snorted. “For decades I've pleaded for help and not once has anyone made any offer, though thousands of lives depended on it. I told you my problem, and in a matter of hours it's getting done. The most talented person in the world has no value if they don't do anything. Even if this is your only talent, you are the most gifted young lady I have ever met.”

  “Thanks!” she beamed. She seldom received compliments from anyone but her parents.

  “Now you have earned my eternal gratitude. What is it that you might want from a dragon? I have gold and treasures beyond imagining. I can't bear to part with it all, but I am happy to let you take anything you can carry.”

  “I'd just like some more cheesecake, if you have any. But, you know, Lug here might need a hand with something.”

  ***

  Kyla decided to brave the elevator one more time. Lug had his unicorn-themed lunchbox, and Kyla had found one covered in kittens at the student shop which she brought for support. Heff, as expected, was not pleased.

  “You and your girlie pal here need to shape up or you're not going to last down here!” he snorted. “I thought you learned your lesson last week.”

  “I no learn. You learn. I like this one. I use this one.”

  Some of the elementals snickered, more at Heff than Lug. The great minotaur roared. He was losing face.

  “You want to fight this out? Yeah, I know you're strong, but you're a sissy. I'll tear you to pieces! You'll learn who's in charge here if it kills you. And, by the way, it will.”

  “I no fight. I use lunchbox. It have carrots. You like carrots?”

  Lug opened the lunchbox and held it up as an offering, but Heff slapped it away and sent it sailing against the stone wall. Kyla sighed. The lunchbox was ruined again.

  “You'll fight me, or you'll spend the rest of your days dreading every moment of every day. Because, believe me, I can make you miserable forever. Or, we can settle this now.”

  Heff started circling Lug with his arms outstretched, as if asking for a hug. Lug stood his ground and eyed the minotaur warily. “I no fight you.”

  “I'll fight you!” Kyla stepped in front of the entry corridor with her arms crossed. She made her fiercest face, which didn't amount to much. Heff was not amused.

  “You?” he roared, and stomped forward. He looked back at Lug. “Your little girlie friend's more of a man than you are!” He glared back at Kyla and leaned in close, snorting in her face. She did not enjoy the odor of warm cow snot. “You'd better leave, elf. This doesn't concern you.”

  “It does now!” she said boldly, though it was hard to hide her shaky knees. “And just so you know, I'm the greatest wizard around, so if you want to surrender I understand!”

  The minotaur stood upright and stared at her grimly. “A wizard, huh? I wonder, now – how many wizards did I kill in the Kellian Wars?”

  “I have no idea, but I'm afraid of no one.”

  The minotaur grew silent and grim in a way that was more terrifying than when he had been bullying Lug. Kyla sensed he was even more dangerous than he let on. Still, the plan was the plan.

  “Wizard or no, you'd best leav
e before I crush you.”

  “Fine. I'll leave. I should warn you, though, that I'm the only one who can un-conjure my friend.”

  ***

  Heff became mildly concerned as the lights went out. Unlike the earth elementals he couldn't see in the dark. There was a rumble through the entry corridor behind the elf, and he could hear the elementals shouting and moving back across the room. Soon two yellow eyes appeared. They were much farther apart than any creature's Heff had seen, even in the war. A blast of flame singed his hair and gave him a glimpse of a massive draconic head, with the little elf girl sitting on top.

  “I hear you are very particular about lunchboxes,” the dragon growled. “Well, I am very particular about beef. And you, sir, are the finest cut I have seen in many years.”

  Heff had been the largest and strongest warrior in his clan. He had killed many in the war – thousands, probably. He had fought wizards and hydras and even a couple manticores, but he had never been up against a dragon. And now he was old and his injuries still bothered him from time to time. His glory days were gone and he had mouths to feed. He already lived with the humiliation of his mundane job. He hated to be bested by this little elf girl in front of the elementals. But a dragon. Heff snorted and turned to Lug.

  “You want to bring pictures of unicorns to work, fine by me.”

  Chapter Nine

  Sulafat Station

  Linkin had never seen so much nothing. He had been told this would be a temporary position but his supervisor Dunkin had been on Sulafat Station nearly twenty years. Dunkin had never requested a transfer. Linkin wondered at that. One hour staring into the dead mist of the Oort cloud and he had nearly called it quits, but now he was forcing his way through his shifts and dreading every day. It would take at least another year to get reassigned. And no one had been clear what he was watching for. He had simply been told 'report anything'. Well, tiny particles of ice and dust was all that had been on the reports for years. Occasionally a small rock would strike the station, and even those had to be written up. Sadly, those reports were the biggest highlights of working here.

  Linkin as a child would have loved the idea of living on one of the stars. From Earth there was a sense of wonder to them. From here, however, the bright beacon atop the tower blinded him every time he forgot himself and looked up. And Dunkin was his only company; the tengu who shoveled the light into the chariots never spoke to either of the dwarves. They made Linkin uneasy as well. They had once been followers of Chaos, as the stories told. Why should they be part of the defensive sphere around the solar system? Of course the last war with Chaos was eons ago, and Linkin doubted the veracity of the tales.

  One thing Linkin did enjoy here was the lack of gravity. He liked to hover over his platform, but had to be very careful to check his tether. It wouldn't do to drift off into the cloud. There would be no rescue, and no worse way to die than drifting in the vast loneliness of space, waiting to starve. That was what happened to the person Linkin replaced, though he wasn't allowed to see the official report. There were only rumors. He hoped he wouldn't see the dead body drifting by. He wasn't sure if one even could die in the Oort cloud, as the rules of Order didn't apply there. At any rate, if he saw the previous watchman drifting by waving his arms and shouting for help, he didn't know if there was anything he could do. His tether wasn't very long and the Steeds of Light would never step into the cloud.

  There was a flash of movement just in his left periphery. Or was there? It could be his mind playing tricks on him. He wondered if he should report it. At first he decided against it. There was certainly nothing there now, but the more he thought about it the more he decided he should say something. At least it would give him something to do. Then it happened again. Again it was in his periphery, and so quick he couldn't be sure if he imagined it. He pulled himself in by his tether and floated inside. Dunkin was sitting at a table drinking. Drinking here was fun, Linkin had to admit. There were no cups; the ale would form balls that floated in midair, and you could just suck on them.

  “I think I saw something,” Linkin said. Dunkin looked up gruffly. He wasn't the friendliest dwarf.

  “Just your imagination,” he grumbled.

  “I thought so, too. But I saw it twice.”

  “Saw what?”

  “I don't know. Movement. Something quick. Should I write it in the log?”

  “Let me have a look.”

  Dunkin drifted over to the doorway and fastened his own tether before going out onto the balcony. “Okay, where was it.?”

  Linkin pointed off to his left. “I saw something over there. Just a quick movement. Didn't see what it was. Then a minute later, over there. Same thing.” The more Linkin explained it the more he was convinced he had seen something.

  “Hmpf.” Dunkin pulled something out of his belt. It was a knife, with a wicked curved blade and a hilt of deep red. There were strange engravings on it. Dunkin grabbed Linkin's tether and drew the blade against it. Linkin felt a wave of panic.

  “Sorry boy. Nothing personal, you know. I told them, I prefer to work alone.”

  If Linkin had been more experienced, he might have been able to fight Dunkin off. Though he thrashed and punched, the dwarf veteran was impossibly strong and held Linkin back with one hand and with the other cut the tether. Then with a wicked grin Dunkin gave him a kick. It wasn't a hard kick. It didn't have to be. Linkin drifted into the Oort cloud, watching helplessly as the watchtower shrank in the distance. By the time he collected his senses it was too late, and he flailed his arms in a panic to swim back but there was no resistance to draw him. So the cloud enveloped him and soon all he could see of Sulafat Station was a pinprick of light from the beacon he had once called a star.

  ***

  Dunkin watched as Linkin drifted away. Too bad: Linkin had been more amicable than Gobbin. Maybe Linkin would see reason where Gobbin hadn't. Nyx and Erebus were always in the market for disciples.

  A signal from the shadows told him it was time. So. Linkin had already changed sides. Fear had bested him, likely. Dunkin looked up at the tower. The tengu were fierce and hard to kill, but they would be no match for one of the Avowed of Erebus.

  ***

  After the events of the last few days Kyla was excited to share the details. The harrowing journey to the volcano was now an adventure, and she had, after all, made friends with a dragon. Eunoe was furious that she had embarked on such a long trip alone and was trying her best to scold Kyla, but Kyla wouldn't stop talking long enough to be chastised.

  “...and so I totally passed out on the side of the mountain...”

  “You could have been killed, you nitwit!”

  “...and then I woke up and couldn't see anything!”

  “How DARE you ignore me when I'm talking to you!”

  “...and he had these huge yellow eyes and breathed fire, and that's all I could see! Believe me, I thought I was done for.”

  Kyla carefully avoided Eunoe's entrancing gaze as she turned from speaking to Aspen, who was enthralled, to Aura, who bore no expression but was listening intently which was more than usual. Eunoe eventually frowned and crossed her arms in defeat.

  “Anyway he agreed to help Lug—that's the earth elemental's name—and we scared the pine nuts out of Heff. That's the minotaur. I still don't know what's in the Gravity Well, though. They keep it locked up pretty tight.”

  “That's where they manage the grounding threads,” came Saul's voice from the next table. He was sitting with the brownie from his class.

  “The what?”

  “Everything has invisible ropes tied to them called grounding threads. They pass through everything except the thing they manage. If you jump, one of the workers pulls you back down. That's why you don't fly off the earth. Same as if you throw a rock or something. Someone has to monitor that thread and yank it back down.”

  “That sounds strange,” Kyla said. “But no stranger than having a DRAGON for a friend! So anyway he's taking me to Whiteh
all. It's a human town near his volcano. You guys should come!”

  “Oh, I'd love to!” Aspen gasped. “Can we?” she asked, turning to Eunoe.

  Eunoe shrugged, still upset at her rant being ignored. “We'll see.”

  “Oh, yeah, I'm totally in!” Saul sounded particularly excited. “I've never seen a human! I hear they look just like satyrs, but they have elf legs! And no horns.”

  “One of the stars went out last night,” Aspen noted as she looked out the window.

  “Oh, yeah!” Kyla clapped her hands together. “One of the stars went out! And guess who gets to deliver a new filament?”

  “You?” Eunoe replied brusquely.

  “Yeah! It's cool because it's a military thing, and they always have to send two people for some reason, but one guy got sick and they just need someone to go to make it all above-board, you know. So they asked Professor Ciana – that's the Dean of Communications – and he said I got such a recommendation from Denzig he thought I'd be perfect for the job! I get to ride in some chariot right through space! It's a long trip, though. I have to leave at noon and won't get back til nine. Can you make my bed for me, Aura? I think I forgot this morning.”

  “No.” A stiff breeze issued as Aura spoke, which Kyla took to mean she was irritated by the question. Kyla didn't press. She needed to go home and change into her uniform anyway.

  ***

  Early autumn was usually a slow season for Grizzlesnout. It would pick up again as it got colder, but for now he decided he might as well accept the job to drive the Steeds of Light to Sulafat Station. It was a military assignment, but one of the two responsible for the trip had fallen ill last night and the other just on the way to Equinox. Why Equinox was involved Grizzlesnout didn't know, and now he had to make the journey with one of the students. He asked to make the trip alone. He was not, after all, in the military, and shouldn't have to follow their protocols. He was told an exception had already been made to allow civilians to make the delivery, but they needed to follow the standard directives, according to whatever such-and-such.