The Warrior Elf

by Morgan, Mackenzie

  The elf shook his head. “I don’t know of anyone like that, but if you’ll come with me, I’ll take you to Weldon, the head of the Council of Elders. If anyone can help you, he can.”

  “Thank you.”

  A few blocks down, the elf turned down another street, walked a couple more blocks, and entered a large building. Once they were inside, the elf led Gildan down a long hall to a small reception area and motioned to one of the few chairs. “If you’ll have a seat, I’ll let him know you’re here.”

  Gildan sat down as the elf knocked on a door, went inside, and shut it.

  Weldon was going through a stack of messages on his desk. “What is it, Eldwyn?”

  “I’ve brought a man to see you, a human.” When Weldon looked up, Eldwyn continued. “He says he’s looking for a human woman, red hair, mid-twenties. He claims her family hired him to find her and that he’s tracked her to North Amden. He’s asking the shop owners if they’ve seen her.”

  Weldon groaned and motioned towards a large stack of messages on his desk. “All of those are about humans prowling around North Amden, questioning people, searching barns, even going through sheds. If we don’t get this mess stopped, someone’s going to get killed.” Weldon sighed. “Has he caused any trouble?”

  “Not that I know of, sir, but he is offering money for information.”

  “That’s a new one. Any takers?”

  “Not yet.”

  “All right. Show him in.”

  After Gildan explained why he was in North Amden, he said, “I’ve heard you may be able to help me find her. I’ll be happy to pay you for your time.”

  Weldon shook his head. “Assistance to visitors is part of my job, but I do have a couple of questions. First, what makes you think this young woman’s in North Amden?”

  “The last time she was seen she was with a warrior elf.”

  “A warrior elf? Are you sure?”

  Gildan nodded. “Several men saw the two of them together. The elf was described as well-armed, and she threw a dagger at one of the men. Killed him, although it took him a while to die.”

  “You’re saying the elf killed a human?”

  “Sure did.”

  “Were the humans threatening them in any way?”

  Gildan shook his head. “The best I can figure is the elf didn’t want anyone to know she was connected to the woman’s disappearance. As soon as she threw the knife, the two of them vanished. No one’s seen a trace of either one of them since, which is why I think they must have come here. If they were anywhere around humans, someone would have noticed. Elves aren’t that common.”

  “I see,” Weldon said slowly. “And what makes you think this woman is missing against her will?”

  “Well, she didn’t help the elf attack the humans. She tried to hide. And why would she have been with the elf to start with? If she’d intended to go somewhere, she’d have let her family know, wouldn’t you think?”

  “I suppose, although I’m not an expert on either humans or females,” Weldon said quietly. “I’ll see what I can find out, but it may take some time. Are you planning to stay at the inn?”

  Gildan had a bit of cash, but he didn’t want to waste it on a room. “I hadn’t planned on staying overnight, much less several nights.”

  “I’d count on being here at least a week, probably more. I’ll have to send letters all over North Amden and wait for the answers. Of course, we could get lucky and hear sooner than that.”

  “Maybe I could exchange a day’s work for room and board. Do you know of anyone who needs some help?”

  “I imagine Chandra could use some. He owns the livery stable. His house is small, but his barn has a nice loft, and his wife’s a good cook. How would you feel about bunking down in the barn?”

  “Suits me a lot better than staying in an inn.”

  Weldon picked up a pen and wrote a quick note. When he was done, he folded it, stood up, and handed it to Eldwyn. Then he offered his hand to Gildan. “Eldwyn will take you to the livery stable and introduce you to Chandra. I’ll let you know as soon as I’ve heard something.”

  After Eldwyn and Gildan left his office, Weldon started pacing. A fine fix they were in now. They couldn’t betray Landis, but they had to put an end to all these humans crawling all over North Amden. How could his niece have been so careless as to be seen with Landis? And what was this about her killing a man? That was serious. There was nothing he could do about any of it from here, and he couldn’t leave right now. But someone had to find a way to fix this or the elves were going to end up at war with the humans.

  Weldon sat back down, picked up his pen, and wrote a carefully worded note to his brother.

  ~ ~ ~ ~

  Alastar had been dreading his first council meeting for the past week, but it turned out there was nothing for him to have been concerned about. No one mentioned the duel or his mother. It was business as usual, almost as if nothing had happened.

  He wasn’t sure how he felt about that. He couldn’t claim to be grieving, not in the traditional sense anyway. She wasn’t really a mother. She was someone to be obeyed, someone to be feared, but not someone to love. At the same time, it was hard to accept that her death had so little impact.

  After the duel, the castle in Hendon Port had been in chaos for about a week, but as soon as he had his people in place, things settled down. The memorial service had been well-attended, but he’d expected no less. One thing did surprise him though. One of his brothers, Mikos, hadn’t been there. Alastar hadn’t seen or talked to him in years, not since Mikos left for the mines in southeast Landoryn. Still, it was strange he hadn’t heard from him since their mother’s death. Alastar was beginning to wonder if Mikos knew she was gone.

  “Franco, have we received any letters from the mines lately?” Alastar called out. He and Franco had grown up together, close as brothers. His mother hadn’t been pleased when he’d chosen Franco as his assistant, but for once Alastar had stood his ground.

  “No, at least not as far as I know,” Franco answered as he walked into Alastar’s office and sat down. “I’m not sure if all the mail that came in between the duel and the memorial made it to my desk, but I can definitely say not since then. Why?”

  “I was wondering if Mikos knows that mother’s gone.”

  “I’ll send him a letter this afternoon, just in case.”

  “Don’t make it sound like we forgot to tell him.”

  “I won’t. I’ll ask him to send his monthly report straight to you instead of the business office.”

  Alastar nodded. “What did you think of the meeting today?”

  Franco shrugged. “I have nothing to compare it to, but I thought it was boring. I don’t understand why your mother was always so irritated when she returned.”

  “Seeing Myron was all it took to set her off. She hated the House of Nordin. And I have to admit, when I saw him today, sitting there all calm and collected, I seriously thought about tossing a few bolts his way.”

  “Because of your mother?”

  Alastar nodded. “It was horrible. She was there, and then she wasn’t.” He paused and leaned back in his chair. “He shouldn’t have been able to defeat her that easily. She was strong, stronger than anyone else on the council, at least according to some of the other council members. They said the only reason he won is because he’s part elf.” Alastar shrugged. “That’s why she challenged him. She didn’t want to be the Master Sorcerer, but she couldn’t stand the idea of an elf representing humans. I think that’s why she hated both the House of Nordin and the elves.”

  “She wasn’t too fond of dwarves either, or brownies, or gnomes, or any of the other races. She even hated the merfolk.”

  “I know. She blamed them every time we lost a ship at sea, especially if it was loaded with slaves. She claimed they stole the slaves and then sank her ships.”

  “Do you believe that?” Franco asked.

  Alastar shrugged. “I always assumed she knew what she wa
s talking about but now I’m not so sure. She insisted there was no way Myron could defeat her. That’s why she didn’t do anything to prepare for the duel. If she was wrong about that, maybe she was wrong about some other things, too.”

  Franco nodded. “There’s something we need to talk about. It hit me while we were at the meeting. You could be challenged for Landoryn’s seat, and if you’re challenged, you have no choice. You have to duel.”

  “That’s true, but any sorcerer in Landoryn who even thought about being ambitious enough to go after this seat’s long gone. Mother saw to that.”

  “What about your brothers and sisters? Are any of them strong enough to be a threat?”

  Alastar shook his head. “No. After Mother decided to make me her heir, she didn’t pay any attention to the rest of them. She didn’t even line up apprenticeships for them. I did, but they were only interested in the basics. None of them know enough to compete for anything beyond a district sorcerer.”

  “All right, but they aren’t the only sorcerers out there, and from what I’ve heard, a sorcerer doesn’t have to live in Landoryn to challenge you for the seat.”

  “That’s right.”

  “I’ve also heard Myron practices drills every morning, just so he’ll be ready.” Franco paused for a moment. “I think you need to start doing that, and I think we need to find a way for you to practice dueling, preferably without getting yourself killed in the process.”

  ~ ~ ~ ~

  Shortly after Kevin and Chris returned from Chamber Isle, Ariel knocked on Kevin’s door. “Joan came by while you were gone. She wants to see you and Chris after lunch.”

  “Okay. As far as I know, I don’t have anything else planned.”

  Ariel nodded and left.

  “Do you have any idea what Joan wants to see us about?” Kevin asked Chris as he sat down and flipped through the messages that had come in while he was at the meeting.

  “I think it’s about the women and children we rescued. They’ve been here for a month. She’s moved some of them around, but for the most part the families who took them in are still housing them. It’s time to find permanent homes for them. And the women from the mines are still at the chapel. Sister Agnes has been good about it, but we need to get them out of there.”

  Kevin leaned back in his chair. “I hate to admit it, but I’d completely forgotten about them. Any idea where we’re going to put them?”

  “Joan and Cpt. Lawrence have been working on that. I don’t know any details, but she wants us to provide transportation today and tomorrow.”

  Kevin nodded as he stood up. “I’m going to find Nikki and take her for a walk. Sounds like our afternoon’s going to be pretty full.”

  ~ ~ ~ ~

  Joan and Cpt. Lawrence were waiting at the conference table for Kevin and Chris when they got back from lunch. “Do you mind if we meet out here?” Joan asked. “I’ve got a lot of papers I’ll need to spread out.”

  After they were seated, Joan began. “Cpt. Lawrence talked to the men and boys you brought back from the mines and I’ve talked to the women you rescued. Some of the women have husbands and sons at the camp in the mountains, but not all of them do. Some of their husbands were killed, and some are missing. Most of the children are accounted for, but a few of the older girls and boys were sold off separately, so we have no idea where they are. I have a list in my office of the ones who’re missing so if we find them later, we can get them back to their families.” Joan spread out three sheets of paper. She pointed to the first one. “This is a list of complete family units and where they’d like to go. Most of them want to go back home.”

  When Kevin nodded, she pointed to the second sheet. “These are women whose husbands are either dead or missing. If they’re missing and we find them later, they can join their families, but in the meantime these women have written to other family members and found places to go.” Joan pointed to the third sheet. “These are a bit harder. These women are on their own. For whatever reason, they don’t have any relatives who can take them in. Fortunately none of them have children. I’m not sure what we’re going to do with them.”

  “Is this everyone?” Chris asked.

  Joan nodded.

  Kevin looked at Cpt. Lawrence. “How many men were left over after you matched up the families?”

  “Eighteen, although a couple are hardly men.”

  “Any idea where we’re going to take them?”

  “I’d suggest leaving them right where they are,” Cpt. Lawrence answered.

  “Why?”

  “They have no idea where their families are, what’s happening to them, even if they’re still alive. They’re frustrated and they’re angry, deep down angry. That camp is the best place for them until they come to terms with never seeing their families again, and that’s going to take some time.”

  “All right,” Kevin said as he stood up. “I guess the first thing we need to do is pick up the men who’re going to be joining their wives.” He looked at Joan. “Where do you want them?”

  “I’ve asked the women who have husbands at the camp to be here around three. Since the weather’s nice, let’s use the patio instead of Miranda’s dining room.”

  “What about these?” Chris asked, pointing to the second sheet.

  “I don’t want them up here today. Seeing the other families reunited would be too much. I thought we’d take care of them tomorrow afternoon,” Joan said, glancing at Kevin.

  “That’s fine. This group will be enough for today.” Kevin handed Cpt. Lawrence his key to Terah and took his key to the Gate Between the Worlds off his chain. “Between the two of us, we should have all of the husbands and sons here by three. Meet you out back.”

  Chapter 2

  Sunday

  Sunday morning Kevin would have loved to sleep late. He was worn out from all the trips he’d made Saturday afternoon. Chris and Cpt. Lawrence had both been willing to help, but while the women and children had been living in Milhaven, they’d accumulated quite a bit of luggage, so Kevin had to make most of the trips himself. It had taken until well after dinner to get everyone where they wanted to be, but he hadn’t felt good about some of the locations. He’d done what he could to make their homes livable again and make sure everyone would be safe, but he’d had to leave a few families in isolated locations even though he’d tried to convince them to let him take them someplace else, somewhere populated.

  Glendymere was waiting on his favorite butte when Kevin made it to the canyon lands. “You’re late.”

  “Sorry. Busy day yesterday.”

  “Anything I need to know?”

  Kevin shook his head.

  “Then let’s get started.”

  As soon as Kevin lowered himself to the canyon floor, the practice session began, and it turned out to be a grueling one. After an hour the dragon called a halt. “Take a break. We need to talk.”

  When Kevin joined him on top of the butte, Glendymere said, “Landis has mastered gathering and storing energy from Terah, water, wind, and fire. We’re going to start working with her life force tomorrow.”

  “Isn’t that the hardest one?”

  Glendymere nodded. “It takes a lot of practice and patience, and since it’s always the last one, a lot of sorcerers don’t bother with it.”

  “You’ve been working with her for six months now. How do you think she’ll do? I mean, will she be strong enough to take care of herself?”

  “I can’t answer that. She gathers and stores energy well, but all the energy in the world won’t do her any good if she can’t juggle things. She needs to be able to do more than one thing at a time and still have enough concentration left over to gather and store more energy while she’s using it. Will she be able to do all of that? Time will tell.”

  “Is she ready to start using it?”

  Glendymere nodded. “That’s what I wanted to talk to you about. Have you talked to that sorcerer of yours yet?”

  Kevin shook his head.
>
  “You need to, and the sooner the better. I could keep going with her, and from a magic standpoint, that would be fine, but before long she’ll need to decide what role sorcery will play in her life. There’s so much for her to experience in addition to being a sorcerer, and the human life span is so short, the blink of an eye for me. She’ll have to figure out what she wants to do and find a way to fit it all in. I can’t help with that. A human sorcerer can.”

  Kevin nodded. “I’ll talk to him tonight and see what he says.”

  “If he agrees to work with her, he and I need to talk, soon.”

  “I’ll set it up. When do you want him to take over?”

  “I’d like to keep working with her for at least another couple of months, but if he could, I’d like for him to start before then. He can stay in Rainbow Valley and she can split her time between us, but I’d like for him to take over by mid-summer at the latest.”

  ~ ~ ~ ~

  Chris was in Kevin’s office when he got back from the canyon lands. As Kevin sat down at his desk, he asked, “Anything happen while I was gone?”

  “Joan came by to say that the women and children who are going to stay with relatives will be here around three.”

  “What about the ones who don’t have anywhere to go?”

  “She’s meeting with them at her house this evening. She hopes to have something definite by tomorrow.”

  “Okay, but if not, tell her we’ll get Laryn and some of the others to work on it. She’s done more than I expected when I dumped this on her last month. I’m sure someone can come up with something.”

  ~ ~ ~ ~

  Gwynn was preparing lunch when a falcon landed on the windowsill with a note addressed to Hayden tied to its leg. After she untied the note, she opened the back door, called her husband, and set out some food and water for the falcon.

  “What?” Hayden asked as he came in. “I was in the middle of putting hay out for the horses.”

  Gwynn handed him the note. “You got a letter from the Council of Elders. Thought it might be important.”

  Hayden raised his eyebrows as he opened it.