The Sword of Light

by Andrew G. Wood

  The temperature was certainly much warmer than that they had just left, and the air felt somehow much drier. Having a group with a Human, Elf and Dwarf was one thing, having a troll in their number only seemed to peek the interest of those they passed by even further. Galdrac though suggested they keep up a pace and not dawdle, having had unpleasant visits here before. While he did not say what had happened on those previous occasions, Leyna guessed it was something that had turned out nasty. Orcs, she knew, were notoriously volatile and aggressive people, and having one who wanted to fight you was probably easier than it looked.

  They headed for the largest of the permanent buildings which Leyna assumed to be the home of the Clan Leader, which when last she had checked was an Orc by the name of Coltas. Whether that was still the case, she was not completely sure as they did have a habit of changing sometimes far too regularly. Several burly looking guards barred their way any further as they approached the main building.

  Built from stone but not in any way that it could be described as Palace-like, it did though stand out and above from all the others around it. As an Elf of some years, Leyna was aware that the Orcs spent as much time destroying things as they did building them, probably another reason most appeared to live in makeshift accommodation.

  Galdrac looked up at one of the orcs stopping him from gaining entry, seemingly unafraid that the guard stood nearly two feet taller than he did and at least twice as wide. With an axe strapped to the Orc’s back almost as big as Galdrac, the Human Mage looked for all intent and purposes no match. However, Leyna assumed Galdrac knew what he was doing, and was aware you did not show an Orc any weakness or they would deem you unworthy and not bother even talking to you if that was the case.

  “My colleagues and I are here to see Coltas. Now step aside you ugly, overgrown lump of donkey dung or do I have to move you myself!” Galdrac said in a threatening tone that clearly had Mazen and Karesh on edge. Akeev just seemed not to care and was far too busy sniffing the air, probably something cooking, and as usual, the Troll was thinking about eating. Leyna held tightly to her staff and although she tried to look relaxed was ready to spring into action should this suddenly turn nasty.

  The Orc guard looked down at Galdrac but appeared unperturbed by the man’s comment. In fact, the Orc seemed more annoyed with his fellow guard stood beside him who was finding the entire thing funny, “Donkey Dung!” the Orc chuckled making that strange sound Karesh sometimes made when laughing. It was quickly evident that Galdrac’s comment had caused some friction between the two guards, and had somehow deflected some of the attention away from him. As a result, Galdrac quickly ushered his way in through the door while the two Orcs decided to throw insults at each other. Leyna immediately waved the others to follow, almost having to manhandle Akeev as the Troll appeared to want to watch what developed.

  Inside the building, it was a complete contrast to the outside. The exterior was essentially just stone, crudely built and looked little better than a Garrison building might do back in Neylarin or even Carison. However, the interior clearly had a bit more style and design. Orbs of light illuminated what would have been a rather dull entrance hall, giving the stone statues positioned around the room an eerie looking glow as if they were almost life-like. There were no paintings on any of the walls, but Leyna noticed a large mosaic underfoot, which to be fair would not have looked out of place in her own capital.

  Galdrac ignored the two Orc guards on the entrance to the grand hall and merely walked straight in unannounced. As to whether that was the correct procedure or decorum, Leyna for one had no idea, but in this instance had to bow to Galdrac’s better knowledge. Karesh was evidently nervous as he entered and as a result, she decided to stay close to him, although she refrained from holding his arm as she might have done back home, in case it was deemed some kind of weakness for an Orc to be seen doing such a thing.

  Sat upon a small dais at the far end of the hall, on a large wooden throne, was the Orc they needed to see. “I am here to see Coltas. The leader of the Orc Clans!” Galdrac shouted out announcing his presence in a strange kind of way. “Who seeks my audience?” came a loud booming voice so deep Leyna could barely understand the words being spoken.

  “I am Galdrac, Mage of Carison. These are my travelling companions.”

  Leyna actually felt as nervous as she had felt for a long time, even taking into account the events of late. She watched on as the Orc known as Coltas stood from his throne and stepped down off the dais and moved towards them. Galdrac appeared calm, certainly much more so than she was feeling, although she noticed he did have his staff held off the ground as if ready to use it should the need arise. Deciding if that was the case, she should probably be as prepared, although tried to make her movements slow and discreet so not to draw attention to herself.

  Coltas stepped right up to the Mage and looked down at him. “And what does Galdrac, Mage of Carison want with me?” the Orc finally said, speaking a little quieter than before.

  “I need to ask you to gather your soldiers. Abalyon has raised his armies once more and is as we speak attacking the Elves of Neylarin. The Dwarfs at Durn Raldun are trapped in their own city, and the Humans in Carison are to be next.”

  The Orc looked at Galdrac for a moment before turning his attention to the others in the group.

  “You! What clan are you from?” Coltas boomed pointing his hand straight at Karesh.

  The young Orc appeared surprised by the question, and Leyna quickly jumped to his defence in answering for him. “He has no clan, my Lord,” she said not entirely sure she was using the correct title.

  There was an awkward silence as Coltas stepped a little closer to Karesh, showing just how much the young Orc still had to grow. “No Clan? How is this possible?”

  Leyna knew she would once more have to be the one to answer, and decided to do so truthfully. “He was raised by myself, living amongst the Elves. I found him as a baby and took him in to raise him as my own,” she replied trying not to sound too emotional.

  Coltas looked at her and then back at Karesh, “That must have been very tough for you. I acknowledge your strength in doing this.”

  Leyna caught Galdrac giving her a nod as if indicating this was a good thing. “Thankyou,” she replied humbly. However, Coltas had already moved on to the next in line, “A Dwarf. You are so small!”

  Mazen looked up at the much larger figure glaring down at him, “Aye that I may be, but I could still kick your ass!” were not the words Galdrac was hoping Mazen would say. Alas, he did just that and waited somewhat anxiously for Coltas to respond. Thankfully the Orc appeared to take it as humour and started laughing, “I acknowledge your bravery little Dwarf,” he replied before moving on to Akeev.

  “And a troll? I have never seen one before…Such an ugly looking creature, it is little surprise that Abalyon wanted them wiped out!” Fortunately, it was evident Akeev could not understand what was being said, and so the insult was lost.

  “Akeev!” The troll said standing upright and stretching nearly as tall as the Orc stood before him. It was quite evident that Coltas was unsure as to what to make of the reply. “I fear your words were probably lost in translation, his understanding of the common language is sketchy at best” Leyna added explaining the Troll’s response. Coltas looked a little closer at the Troll, “Coltas!” he said loudly thumping his chest with a large clenched fist.

  “Akeev!” the Troll shouted back imitating the Orc’s actions.

  Galdrac rolled his eyes back, as the two repeated the process twice more. Apparently, Coltas thought it hilarious, but at least that was a good thing in that all had now been accepted by the Orc leader. “Come and drink with me!” The Orc announced waving a hand to a female positioned just off to their left. Galdrac nodded and followed as they were led through a side door of the main hall and into some kind of meeting room. There was a large chair along one wall, and a semi-circle of six further seats all sat facing it.

  Nat
urally, Coltas took the larger seat, and waved for his guests to all be seated, as a large female Orc ventured in carrying a large tray on which were several tankards. “Don’t refuse it!” Galdrac whispered over to Leyna knowing before she even tried what was on offer she would not like it. She nodded her understanding and passed the message on to her son, who she was certain would not like it either.

  Each was handed a tankard containing some kind of frothy ale, and although Leyna knew she would never be able to drink it all, she waited for their host to take a drink first before making her own somewhat tentative sip. Mazen seemed not to mind the drink, as the Dwarf appeared to take huge gulps of it, before letting out a loud belch, “Ah! That hits the spot” he declared, seemingly pleasing their host to hear it. Leyna was somewhat surprised by her son though as he appeared to be liking it also as she noticed he had nearly finished all his. Seeing she was looking his way, he slowed up a little and gave her a wry smile.

  Now they had all taken a drink Galdrac asked permission to speak, and the Orc Leader waved his hand for him to continue. The old Mage started by explaining that Abalyon was once more releasing his hordes upon the world as he had mentioned earlier on his arrival. While the other races were now fully engaged in various battles, only the Orcs were left playing such a minor role. Galdrac hoped by playing on the fact that Orcs did not like being thought of as weak, might help his cause. Although some Orcs were already involved, mainly in Neylarin these numbered just a few dozen and were usually of the magical fraternity.

  The problem with the Orc’s feudal society meant each clan would not want to commit too many of its soldiers in case it weakened their standing, allowing another tribe to attack it and steal its lands. However, on the other side of that argument was the Orcish pride of not wanting to be outdone by one of its own rivals. If Galdrac could persuade Coltas to fight, then there was a good chance some of the other larger clans would want to get involved as well.

  “Moreover, the clan responsible for raiding the human lands has been dealt with. As I understand it, the Clan Leader perished in the last failed attack,” Galdrac said trying to dangle a cherry for the Orc to take. “While only a minor Clan I assume the lands left will be ripe for the taking,” he added trying to judge if his offer was tempting.

  “I thank you for this information,” Coltas said immediately waving a hand to one of his guards stood just outside the room in the main hall.

  Galdrac stopped talking as Coltas spent several minutes conversing with his guard before the Orc left the room allowing them to continue. “We need your Orc armies to aid us in our plight, and we need them quickly!” Galdrac added deciding to get to the point of their visit. Although not particularly fond of the drink he had been given the old Mage took another few mouthfuls as he let the Orc have a moment to think.

  With the discussions going on far longer than he had expected, Galdrac was probably not the only one thankful when it finished. While no definite answer had been given he felt confident Coltas would not let them down. All they could do now was wait and hope the Leader could get his message to the other clans as quickly as possible. Although not having an answer, Galdrac thanked Coltas for listening and suggested the group make their way back through the gate back to Felham and on to Neylarin. As to what they might find there when they returned was anybody’s guess, but he thought it the right thing to do before heading back to Felham and eventually on to Carison to meet up again with Finley. All being well the Balgraf had not reached the human capital, and the King would have the city on full alert to repel any attack when it came.

  Chapter 21.

  Finley had found gaining access to the palace a little awkward despite explaining to the guards at the gates who he was. Eventually, they had called for the Commander of the Elite Royal Guard who vouched for him being who he said he was. Yet even that man seemed less than cooperative when Finley explained he needed to see the King urgently. Only after he had explained to the Commander what was coming their way, and very soon, did the man finally decide the circumstances did warrant a meeting with the man in charge.

  As a result, Finley had already lost over an hour, time that could have been better spent getting Carison’s defences ready, and the people wandering around outside the city as if not a care in the world, to get inside where they would be safer. Moreover, he was still being made to wait as the King was apparently busy at the moment, and hence Finley was left sitting in the main foyer of the palace waiting his turn. Sessi didn’t seem to bother as he appeared to find the plush carpeted floor much to his liking, as he curled up and went to sleep.

  Feeling frustrated by his lack of progress Finley was trying to think of ways he might speed things up a little. Having already asked one of the guards and a member of the Palace Staff if they knew how long the King would be and not getting any answer, he was considering something a little more drastic. Slamming his hands down on the chair next to him, Finley stood with a new purpose in mind, deciding he was just going to walk straight into the King’s office anyway. If any guard tried to stop him, well then that would have to be dealt with in the only way he knew how.

  Walking at pace, he marched up the staircase with his fists clenched down at his side and Sessi ambling along behind him. Turning on the first landing and down a corridor, he spotted two guards outside a door and whether rightly or wrongly presumed the King was probably inside. Finley marched right up to the door, “I am here to see the King,” he said to whichever guard wanted to take notice of him.

  “King’s busy Lad. Now run along and don’t be troublesome!” the man to his right replied in a voice that somehow did not fit with his stature. Somehow softer, and not the deep resonating voice one might assume a man of his size would have had. Pushing such nonsensical thoughts from his mind, Finley had already made his mind up that he was going in anyway.

  “Well, whatever he’s doing will have to wait,” he said reaching out for the handle to the door. He immediately felt the guard to his left grab his sleeve, but Finley was in no mood for any more nonsense, “Let go now!” he said through gritted teeth, saying each word slowly, as Sessi made a low snarling sound from behind him. Unsurprisingly the guard was much physically stronger than he was, but Finley knew that would be the case and had no intention of trying to struggle, at least not in that way. Moreover, he sent Sessi a command to refrain from interfering, and thankfully the wolf silenced.

  “I will not tell you again!” Finley said, only to be forcefully thrown away from the door.

  “Go away you silly little boy!” the guard snapped.

  Finley regained his composure, “Right. You are seriously annoying me now. I am going in to see the King, now you either step aside, or I’ll move you out of the way. Trust me you do not want the latter.

  The two guards looked at each other and laughed as if he had said something funny. Finley shook his head, positive that this was going to end badly, but the consequences would have to be dealt with later. Calming his breathing so he could control his powers a little more carefully, Finley waved a hand to his left sending one guard tumbling over and then to the right doing likewise with the second.

  “Thankyou Gentlemen!” he said smiling as he simply stepped up to the door and opened it. Unfortunately, when Finley marched inside the person, he wanted to see was not there. “Oh! Sorry,” he said feeling a little foolish.

  “Hello…Oh it’s you again,”

  “Imogen…Uhm I mean Highness,” he said forgetting himself. “Sorry I thought the King was in here..seems I was wrong.” Before he could say another word, he heard the sound of one of the guards shouting and drawing a sword. Finley stepped a little nearer the Princess and turned to face the man barging in through the doorway. “You will pay for that!” the man snarled lifting his sword up and pointing it Finley’s direction. Once more Sessi snarled and had to be calmed, knocking the guards over was one thing, having the wolf savagely maul one to death would not end well for anybody.

  “Stop!” Imogen shouted
. “Now!” she added forcing the man to do as he was told. “What is the meaning of all this?” she asked.

  “Begging your pardon Highness that..him there just assaulted us!”

  The Princess turned her head to Finley and glared his way, and he thought he was really in for it now. At least that was until she winked at him and gave a little smile, before turning back to face the guard.

  “I will see he is dealt with. You may go about your duty!” She said walking over and ushering the man back out of the room. The guard mumbled and cursed under his breath, and despite his plea’s that Finley needed to be punished for such an act, they all fell on deaf ears.

  Only when the Princess closed the door, did she revert her attention to Finley. He cast a smile her way, but it was evident she was not taking things as lightly as he had first thought. “Right, I will now have my father reprimanding me for allowing you in here. Moreover, he will want to know why I allowed you to get away with assaulting my guards.”

  “Sorry Highness,” Finley said again trying to at least look apologetic even if he didn’t much feel like it. Imogen exhaled loudly planting her hands firmly on her hips, “Why do you need my father?” she asked

  Finley smiled her way hoping he might get something similar in return, but alas it was not forthcoming, so he decided to explain everything to her. Surely if he could get her on his side, then she could get access to the king and have him ready the city. Imogen listened without interruption, as he told her what had happened at Neylarin, “They are coming this way, Highness. Not just a few, hundreds of them,” he added telling her as it was. Although the look of concern on her face told him she believed him, unlike the Commander who had seemingly dismissed it as unlikely.