"So what news from the human islands?" Zalon asked.
"They have no inkling that there is an issue with ascensions. Most of the clerics there were so fascinated with the arrival of us that we chose not to stay long. But the paths seem as segregated as ever. Only the paths of God and nature seem to have any real contact"
"What of Unity?" Zalon asked.
"There was no mention of it, it is as though they believe it doesn't exist," said Mavok.
"Maybe that is for the best," said the old elder.
Zalon had been one of the founding elders of Unity. As one of the last builders, he had ascended and chose to share his knowledge to honour the great civilisation that had been lost in a time that nobody remembered. He had led them on an exodus from the human islands to end up here.
"The path of strength have grown bold once more raiding the other paths as much as they can," said Mavok.
Zalon and Alack knew that it was a sore subject for Mavok, he had come from the path of strength. Once a commander that led the raids that he spoke about to secure food, supplies and women in which to mate with. He had never forgiven himself for his past acts and doubted that he ever would.
"I am sure that they will resolve it," said Zalon.
"There is a slim hope for that, but it is not our problem," said Mavok.
"That, unfortunately, is true," said Zalon. "We have our own affairs to deal with"
"Has there been any progress?" Mavok asked.
"In the few days you were gone?" Alack asked. "Alas no. We have as many elves as possible working on the problem but there is a limit. We do not want to cause a panic. As much as we are now elves, there is much human left in us all and the one thing we fear is the end"
"What about the guardian?" Mavok asked. "We know where it sleeps, could we not excavate the cave and find it. Ask the guardian why the ascensions have stopped"
"We have considered it, but the guardian asked us to leave it alone. It has been three centuries and the lure of power was already too great for an elve. We cannot risk that happening again," said Zalon.
Zalon was talking about Amy, an elve that Mavok had trusted and one that had great potential to help lead the elves through the new dawn of their civilisation. She had betrayed Mavok, costing him his eye and tried to kill Rinne before meeting her end in a cave in at the mountain of the guardian.
"The guardian said it, they tried to end ascension once before. Maybe they succeeded finally. Whatever the case, we must know for certain," said Mavok.
The two other leaders fell silent in thought for some time before both looked at Mavok.
"You are right," said Zalon. "We must know for sure so that we can plan for it"
"Do you feel up to the challenge?" Alack asked him.
Mavok nodded.
"Put together a team and head to the mountain. Only take those you trust the most for the elven race cannot survive betrayal if the ascensions are stopping," said Alack.
"It is time for the meeting," said Zalon.
Mavok nodded and brought a hand up towards the ceiling then let off a small wave of essence. The bright blue wave travelled up and hit the bell that was suspended from the domed ceiling sending out a ringing noise the reverberated around them. Soon the council chamber began to fill with the various leaders and elders of Elevar and once they were all in, the running of the city was the hot topic.
Rinne sat within a tree on the outskirts of the city watching a bird feeds its young. It had been almost a week since Mavok had left for the human islands. She wished that she had gone with him though he had forbidden it and left her there with nothing to do. So she had spent as much time in the forest as she could without shirking all her duties. Rinne had never been one for leadership and it had taken many years for her to accept a position as a leader though she felt it was more of an honoured title. There was little she gave to the meetings and tired of the attention she received from the elves for what she did centuries ago.
The nightmares still haunted her dreams of what happened and the losses that were caused by her use of the essence. Since then Rinne had used it only when needed, not wanting to risk hurting anyone again and the words of the guardian stuck within her mind. Her essence was stronger than most elves and the responsibility of controlling that power was much more than she wanted.
As Rinne sat on the branch she turned to look at the city that had been built by the elves. It was spectacular and dwarfed the city of the philosophers that had once been her home. A bell sounded loud enough to bring her focus back to the present and she jumped down from the tree. The bell could only mean one thing; that a meeting of the council is beginning and it also meant that Mavok had returned with the ascended elve. Without any delay, she began sprinting back into the city and headed straight for the palace.
When she got to the council chamber it was already in session and her lateness was noticed by everyone who stopped talking and turned to look at her.
"Good of you to join us," Zalon's voice called from on high.
Rinne took the long climb up to her chair just below Mavok's. The blush was hot upon her cheeks and when she looked up at him he was smiling.
"Hello," she mouthed.
"Hi," he replied.
"Now that we are all here let us carry-on," said Alack.
Rinne sat and listened as they spoke about Mavok's journey to the human islands and the running of the city. Rinne contributed, giving an update as a leader of the medical elves and then sat there twiddling her thumbs waiting for the meeting to end so that she could speak to Mavok and berate him for being gone so long.
chapter thirteen
Balen walked around the room he had been given, the furniture looked new and the whole room was clean without a speck of dust to be seen. Mel stood by the door watching him.
"Will it be suitable?" Mel asked him.
"More than suitable," replied Balen. "But what am I supposed to do here?"
"Rest, relax and we can begin your treatment. The most important thing for you to do is feel at home," said Mel.
"I do not remember my home, though," said Balen.
Mel smiled at him and then walked to a desk, from a jug that is made of glass. Mel poured himself a goblet of water and drank some. "There is much for us to do, but luckily we have enough time to fix it"
"How will you do it?" Balen asked.
"We use essence to unlock the memories. A few at a time which in turn will unlock others until the full picture has been restored"
"So what is essence?" Balen asked. It had been mentioned many times yet he had no answer about what it was.
"Essence is the power that lives within all living things upon this world. From elves to humans to even the smallest blade of grass," replied Mel. "Elves; thanks to the Guardians have an excess of essence that is generated by our body. We are able to manipulate it, control it to do our own bidding and change the world for the better"
"Sounds like someone could abuse it," said Balen.
Something opened up within his mind and he remembered lessons he had learnt as a child about elves and the magical powers they had.
"Essence, which is the power that was used to win the great battle somewhere," said Balen.
Mel nodded. "That is right, can you remember where the battle took place and when it was?" Mel asked.
Balen thought about it for some time, images of the island with the statues kept appearing.
"Was it at Unity?"
"Yes, well done," Mel answered.
"Were you there?" Balen asked the elve.
"No, it was well before my time. I had not been born then, much less ascended," said Mel.
"What were you before?" Balen asked.
"I was on the path of Nature when I ascended. In the middle of a forest with no-one else around," said Mel.
"How long did it take you to get your memories back?" Balen asked.
"My memories were not blocked. It has only been that way for the past century," said Mel. "I knew who
I was and where I was. But it was still a scary experience"
"Why have they done this to our memories?"
"To ensure an easier transition to your new life. It became harder for elves to leave their families so the leaders decided to block the memories using essence," said Mel.
The memory of a small boy returned to him, someone that he must have cared about a lot for his eyes began to water.
"What is wrong?" Mel asked.
"I think I had a son," Said Balen.
"Do you remember his name?"
Balen shook his head, the memory faded and he struggled to get it back.
"Well, you have made good progress for the day. I do not think that we should overdo it otherwise you may suffer some negative side effects," said Mel.
"Like what?" Balen asked.
"Sometimes the memories, if returned too fast can become muddled which can lead to serious brain damage that no amount of essence could heal," said Mel.
"If there is that risk then why do you do it," he asked, worried about the process.
"That is a question I ask myself every time we do this," said Mel as he walked back to the door.
"So why don't you do anything about it?"
"It is out of my hands," said Mel who left the room and closed the door after himself.
Balen watched the door for a long time before he moved again. He chose to get himself a goblet of water and then exploring the room further. Rooms, as it turned out for there was another one at the back that led into a bedroom. The bed stood against a wall, carved out of wood with thick blankets. He went and sat down on it and almost jumped back off as it sank down.
He removed the blankets and found a thick springy blanket, he remembered seeing one before. It was back at the community the elves called Unity and lay upon the beds there, they called it a mattress and it was much softer to sleep upon than regular beds.
Against another wall was a small bookcase with several books, Balen walked over and looked at them. Each was about the history of the human and elven islands. With a sigh Balen picked up the first book, lay on the bed and began to read it.
chapter fourteen
Rinne lay on the bed as Mavok got out and pulled is shirt and trousers back on. After the meeting hey had headed straight back to their chambers, high up in one of the towers. There had been little words spoken as they headed straight to the comfort of the bed.
"Do you have to go so soon?" Rinne asked and she pulled the blankets up to fight back the cold that blew in through the open window.
"They have given me this mission and the sooner I put together the group the sooner we can get some answers," said Mavok.
"You have only just got back from a mission," Rinne pointed out. "Why do you get to do all the fun stuff?"
Mavok laughed and through her clothes onto the bed. "There is plenty to do in the city," he said.
"Nothing but reports, sick elves and telling people what to do," she replied.
Life as a leader was far from fun. She wanted to travel across the land and search for what is out there, but according to her beloved it was too dangerous. Many elves had gone missing within the forests and it took some effort to keep it quiet. The elves were a curious people and also paranoid, especially the older generations that remember a time when they had been subjugated by the humans.
"Who are you going to take?" Rinne asked.
"Nate and a few of the other originals," said Mavok.
Rinne nodded in agreement, the originals were those that journeyed with them on the exodus three hundred years ago.
"Many of them are leaders now, will it not raise suspicion if so many of you leave?" she asked.
"We will leave the city limits as singles and then meet up afterwards, that should reduce the chance of it being seen. They are going to be calling endless sessions in the council chambers to give the illusion that we are always there," replied Mavok.
Rinne realised that they had it all planned out, though she was not sure when it had all been decided. The more she knew, then the better chance she had of following them.
"Do not do it!" He said to her as he reached the door.
"Don't do what?" She asked trying to keep her face looking innocent.
"Follow us," he said with a smile.
"Now why would I do that?" Rinne asked as she pulled her own clothes back on.
"Rinne. I have lived with you and loved you for three hundred years and I know exactly what you are like," he said and then left the chamber, letting the door close behind him.
If he did know Rinne, he knew that it was pointless to tell her not to do something without inflaming her curiosity to do it. Also a secret part of her, deep down where she hid her secrets was the longing to once more speak to the Guardian. Three hundred years and she had decided on the questions that she wanted to ask and needed the answers to.
Once the sound of Mavok's footsteps had faded, Rinne got out of the bed and went to a closet to pull out her bag that held everything she would need to journey through the forest and her sword lay, sheathed against the wall. Upon opening the bag, she found it empty.
'When did he do that' Rinne wondered. Then she realised that it had been many years since she last looked within the bag and it could have been emptied at any point.
Luckily Rinne had hidden another bag under one of the dressers. she was never sure when he might need to leave the city, a sense of mistrust and paranoia that had never left her.
Rinne tipped back the heavy dresser and pulled out the bag from underneath. She had found the space when searching the room after it had been completed for them.
Rinne left the bedroom and went into the kitchen that was little used, only as a storage for some dried food. Rinne packed enough for a few days into the bag and then left the chambers completely, heading down the long spiralling staircase until she reached the bottom into the palace proper.
Many elves walked around with many stopping to greet her and say a few words before she could make her excuses and get out of the palace into the city where it was easier for her to blend into the crowd.
Mavok watched Rinne as she left the palace with the bag and sword and smiled in spite of her disobedience. He knew from the moment the mission had been approved that Rinne would want in, but he had to try to keep her safe. It seemed she was still as resourceful as ever since Mavok had emptied the bag that had been prepared for such an excursion.
When Rinne had gone out of sight Mavok moved out of his cover and headed to the office that Nate occupied.
"Hello Mavok," said Nate as he entered.
Nate's office was full of paperwork, books and even scrolls from the fishers.
"You seem to have your hands full at the moment," said Mavok.
"I took on some extra work as a favour to some others," said Nate.
"Well it will have to wait, we have another mission"
"Thank the guardians for that. You know, the trip to the human islands reignited the spark of adventure within me," said Nate. his face beamed. "So what is it and when do we go?"
"We are heading back to the mountain to see the guardian," said Mavok.
Nate's jubilation disappeared when Mavok mentioned the mountain and for good reason. Back when they first reached the island and were exploring, Nate and the group he led had become separated from the others. Thanks again in part to the betrayer Amy who provided false information to Nate, he set alight the colony that lived within the mountain and it brought about the evacuation and sealing of the mountain.
"I think that you should find someone else," said Nate. "I do have a lot of work to do"
"Nate, it was not your fault. What happened was because of Amy, you did not know all the details and I want you to come with as I trust you to do the right thing" said Mavok.
"What do you mean?" Nate asked.
"We are going to see the guardian, the power it holds is too tempting to some people as we know," Replied Mavok.
"We are going there to ask about the as
censions?" Nate asked.
"How did you know about that?" he asked.
"Rumours fly around this place like leaves on the wind. If you listen then you can find out anything that you might need to know," said Nate. "I will go with you, the urge for adventure is too great"
"I'm glad you think that way. Leave the city and meet at the cross point in four hours," said Mavok and he left the office in search of the others he wanted to take.
Nate watched Mavok leave the office and he gathered some papers then left to get to another. It was interesting that they were going back to the mountain without anything being said in the council meeting. Someone would want to know this information and he had little time. With haste he travelled through the palace and reached the office of Nivin, a middle-level leader that was in charge of warehouse and storage in the industrial sections of the city. By the time Nate got there, he was out of breath.
"I wondered how long it would be before you would come to my office, but you needn't be running," said Nivin. When the elve saw the look on Nate's face his turned serious. "What is wrong?"
"I have some information for you," said Nate.
"Something about the human islands?" Nivin asked. "Whatever could be happening there that would interest me?"
"Nothing from there, the journey was uneventful as expected. But I have been given another mission by Mavok to go back to the mountain to speak to the guardian once more," said Nate.
"This is interesting news, but something that she will want to hear," said Nivin.
"We are to meet at the crossing point in three and a half hours," said Nate.
"Go with them and keep an eye on things. I will send word to her and get word to you with any updates or with anything that you will need to do," said Nivin.
Nate nodded and then left the office to pack what he needed for the journey.
The Ascension Trilogy Page 20
