by Sanders, Dan
“They are the soldiers from the various armies preparing for battle,” Magas said.
“No, no, not them,” Emily said. “Over there, near the mountain edge.”
“They are your new rabbit family, Emily,” Elleran said. “They are rabbits from the far flung places of Annwyn that have come to resettle this new colony to help you in the vision of celebration of ‘Eostra Day’ each year.”
Emily peered closer and vaguely made out the thousands of small bouncing rabbits that lined the grassy cavern floor. She had so many questions. She wondered if Bently and Alecia were among them, and suddenly missed them.
“Magas—” Emily began.
Magas raised his spindly hand and said, “I will answer your questions in good time, but we have more pressing matters. We must hold our war-council in your chambers, if that meets with your approval, of course.”
Emily was dragged back to reality. If they were unsuccessful this place might not be here within another day. Her belly tightened at the thought.
“Of course you can,” she said.
Magas waved his staff for the guard at the door to retrieve the others. In a flurry of robes, helmets, crystal shields and swords, the room filled with the generals of confederation nations.
Magas signalled for Emily to join him. Emily hopped onto the most impressive piece of furniture in her chambers; a floating circular table covered by a living Map of Annwyn.
The door burst open. Bevan strode up to the table, slapped his chest and said to Magas, “Hail, Melder Whiteoak. Has the Ibaloth King arrived yet?”
Magas smiled and opened his palm towards the furry orange person at the table. Bevan pushed through the generals and openly embraced the Ibaloth monarch.
“King Kefflorn, I bring my heartfelt thanks.” Bevan leaned in and whispered, “and my sincerest apologies. I was inappropriate when last we met. I humbly ask your forgiveness.”
Surprised, the King rubbed his protruding mouth, cast a discerning eye over Bevan and said, “You have changed, young one. The Prince I knew as a boy would not have clasped such a concept.”
“Things happen, Your Majesty.”
The clang of Magas’ staff on the stone floor drew the reunion to a close. Daimon stepped through the crowd and up to the table. He smiled at Emily.
“General Frost, can you walk us through the plan?” Magas began.
Emily recognised the Ibendari general from the first time she met Bevan’s father. He looked ferocious, with his pointy jaw that reached up accusingly, and his crumpled forehead and bulging arms.
General Frost cleared his throat and pointed the tip of his stone blade to the map on Emily’s table. Emily kept hopping out of his way as the powerful general wielded his deathly pointer in angry gesticulations around the map.
“General, would you use this rod to point with, rather than your blade?” Elleran said. The general gruffly sheathed his blade and snatched the smooth elm rod that Elleran offered.
“We are grossly outnumbered,” the general said. “The current numbers are a little shy of two thousand soldiers. The major supporters of the Confederation are here, but with small forces.”
“Why?” Emily said, alarmed.
“The Confederation has had little need for real armies,” said a general with blue skin and white hair. “War on Annwyn is rare. They are unprepared for this new foe, Chosen One.”
Emily recognised him as one of the Vodnik.
Daimon asked the group, “Why is war rare on Annwyn?”
Magas said, “We have not the time to explain it all, but simply put, the Mindmeld, such as the one you saw at the Gala Ball, connects Annwynians deeply enough to overcome most of our differences.”
Daimon and Emily nodded in awe.
Bevan continued. “Are we expecting others?”
“I have been informed that Koetha from the north is close, and so is Lyford. The Alendi army, perhaps our largest supporters, have been reduced to a handful since the Darkness crushed their lands.”
“What about Gardsvor? They had pledged their allegiance to the forces,” Bevan said hopefully.
“That was before their queen was murdered by Torek’s assassins. They fear to leave their nation unguarded.”
Bevan groaned, then seeing Magas’ look said, “Understandably.”
“What is our strategy, General?” Daimon piped up. “I want to help, after what they did to me.” Daimon stroked the scar on his left cheek and held up his polished stone arm.
“The consensus among the generals is that we should wait.”
“Wait, for what?” Daimon became animated. “Wait to be slaughtered?”
The general from Errenor spoke first, quietly, with precision. “Young one, you must remember, the objective is not to destroy our fellow beings, but to allow Emily to fulfil her destiny. In the second sunrise from now, she must lay Eostra’s Egg in the nest, even if the battle rages outside this building. Once that mission is complete, Eostra’s power, and that of the Land, will be restored.
“He’s right,” the Ibendari general agreed. “The Circle will then have the power to overthrow any opposition.”
“I think you are underestimating Gorgos.” Daimon threw his blond hair aside. “We are not aware what his armies are capable of. I’ve seen them. They have no regard for any life, for your land, or mine. They have no respect for any power other than their own, even Eostra’s.”
Bevan leaned over the map. “I think we should strike first. By wiping out their soldiers before the Paytah arrive, we can then focus on one battle at a time.”
Emily saw both sides of the argument but wasn’t sure which was right. She said to Magas, “Melder Whiteoak, what are your thoughts?”
Magas looked at Emily and said, “The consensus is correct. We must not take life needlessly, but Torek will not rest while we wait for the rise of the spring sun. I have stared at him in battle and even I fear his power. He is not bound by our rules, or values. He will use that against us. And as Emily has informed us, he is in possession of the Zora Stone. No, Torek must know we are serious and capable. I believe we need to demonstrate this proactively and aggressively. But the decision is Prince Bevan’s.”
Bevan drew breath. This is what his father meant by responsibility. He wished Father was here now. He always knew what to do. Bevan said, “The boy–I mean Daimon–is right. We must take them by surprise and push them back.”
Bevan ignored Daimon’s smile across the table. He had just signed the boy into a battle which might cost him his life. He couldn’t look at anybody.
Bevan pointed to the map and said, “For those of you unfamiliar with this region, let me explain. In front of Havendel’s great wall are the Galdiel Plains. The plains end here, at the Orena River. On the other side are the Greydell Barrons, home of the Zerali, nothing but desert. The river splits the two sides. We must not let our enemy cross the river. If they do, their access to the Havendel will be swift. The Reven guards will not hold them off for long.”
The room burst into chatter. Emily could see these people, like her, were not accustomed to real war.
“The river is too far way,” one of the generals, a woman in black battle skins, said. “Our enemy is already at the river’s edge on the other side. They will see us coming from afar and, if they haven’t already, will cross the river in anticipation.”
“Perhaps we can attack in the dark—”
“Too dangerous,” said another.
Emily said, “I have an idea. Why doesn’t Lupi create a mist across the plains, so we can sneak up on the river at first light.”
“Who is this Lupi?” said the general from Eralon.
“She is a powerful Agramond,” Daimon said, “and one of the Circle of Six.”
“That cannot be,” said the Ibendari general. “Exotics do not involve themselves in Annwynian politics.”
“I have asked all Exotics including the Agramond to aid us in our battle,” Emily said.
Magas raised his eyebrows in
surprise.
“Well,” Emily said, defending herself. “We have to be prepared that the Faoir may take action in the fight. I’m sure they will. They already tried to kill me once.”
All mouths dropped open. Bevan nodded at the generals. They finally understood their plight.
“This is more than politics, General Frost,” Bevan said. “This is a battle between the Elemental forces of Earth and Annwyn, a battle for harmony, and is the biggest battle faced since the Silder’s War two millennia past. The Exotics must take part in its salvation.”
Magas added to Bevan’s observation. “I would say this battle is the most important ever since the original Elemental battle over the Abandoned Lands, well before sentient beings came upon the land. I think the Chosen One was wise in her actions. Perhaps the Exotic nations will listen to her.”
The Errenor general tilted his head and said, “Assume they will help us. Can one Agramond, this Lupi, do such a thing?”
“I am not sure,” Emily confessed, and regretted throwing Lupi into danger again. “But she is the one who created a storm in the desert which delayed the Paytah from storming our gates by half a day.”
General Frost of the Ibendari said, “Perhaps the Chosen One has an idea that could work. On the morrow’s dawn we could travel under the protection of a mist.”
People nodded, relieved that a plan was forming. Emily looked at Daimon and sensed his frustration at the lack of trained soldiers. He rolled his eyes in exasperation. She smiled back.
A tall thin woman with a straight back and a curved neck, hidden by a black cowl, stepped forward. “Perhaps we can make a contribution to the war effort.”
Emily recognised her as Jezebell Vossen, General of Adros. She held out her bony hand out to reveal a crystal egg. Its light-blue surface glowed.
“What is it, General Vossen?” Emily said.
“The Adros are masters of Crystal Lore. This has no name, but we think they will dissolve the hard shells of the paytah. They will have to be dropped from a great height to gain the necessary speed to split onto their shells.”
“May Eostra thank you and your people, General Vossen.” Bevan bowed slightly.
Vossen faced the crowd peering around the table at the light blue egg. “The people of Adros help not just for this battle, but for an even greater danger. Torek has the Adros Dagger, and is close to controlling its power. We have seen and felt its use. We must reclaim the Dagger before he succeeds in unleashing its full power. If he succeeds with the Dagger, he will gain power over our Twin World, Earth.” The general pulled her black robes about her shoulders, as though she was keeping out a chill.
She continued slowly. “But we have uncovered an even greater evil. Torek and his master, Gorgos, will also have power to enter other worlds we have not yet discovered.”
The room gasped and Magas said, “I thought there was only one other.”
“The Dagger was created with the notion that an Adros Lore Master would wield it. We did not anticipate the power that a Melder would wield from the Dagger. When Torek’s Melder broke into the portal near Springton Forest–with the Chosen One, we detected another possibility. Other worlds may exist in the energy lattices.”
Emily wished Sabina was here to make sense of what the general was saying. Was that what she saw in her dream with Torek? Did they both see other worlds in the black space in her mind? Was that glee she saw in his eyes? Did she reveal this truth to her murderer? She reeled with the thought.
“…he will possess the power to let loose all manner of beast and being upon this land,” Emily heard her continue.
“The veil between the Twin Worlds is thinnest in this building, and Eostra’s power is greatest in this building because of it. But so is Torek’s power. You must keep him and his kind out of the Celestial Room.”
The general pointed to the room above Emily’s chamber, and slid back into the crowd.
Emily felt sick. She felt the darkness in the room grow. The floating table seemed to waver under her.
Magas said, “Emily, when are the Agramond due to arrive?”
Emily shook her whiskers and said, “I’m not sure of their support. Lupi says they granted their help, but the timing is their choosing.”
“They must arrive on time,” Bevan said. “They are crucial to our success in this battle. They can fly the Adros bombs over the Paytah and perhaps balance our disadvantage.”
“We may have sufficient time for the Agramond to arrive. We know it is no trivial thing for the Paytah to cross the river. The giant fire-ants loathe water. They will have to construct a bridge strong enough, for none exists now.”
“With a dozen Melders on their side, I don’t think it will take long,” the Ibendari general said.
Emily asked Magas a question that had occurred to her after meeting Elleran. “How many Melders like the two of you are there on our side?”
“Our numbers are not large,” Magas said, “but I’d like to think we are stronger.”
“How many, Magas?” Bevan said, annoyed at the evasion.
“Five,” said Elleran.
“Five?” wailed the general from Koetha. “We have no hope.”
Magas spoke in measured tones. “The general from Koetha is observant. Hope is not easily seen in those numbers, but we have faced this danger before. And we are fighting for what is good and right. We fight for that which is central to the might of creation. We must prevail.”
Silence settled on the room as the sun settled behind the mountains. The bustling group of multicoloured rabbits had been swallowed in the night air. Elleran spoke to the curved walls. They resumed their original eggshell colour, closing off the blackness from outside. The glow from the walls cast shadows across Emily’s chamber.
“Night is upon us,” Bevan said. “Is there more we should discuss?”
Daimon raised his hand. “I have been thinking. The Treebith should stand among the loose collection of trees, disguised, ready to assist if the battle crosses into the plains.”
Nods of approval bounced shadows across Daimon’s face.
Emily finally said, “What am I to do? I cannot just sit here and watch everybody battle.”
The generals laughed at her.
“You must rest, Chosen One,” said the general from Koetha. “Your journey here has been daring and fraught with danger. Your greatest challenge will be when you drive the Elemental power of spring between the Twin Worlds.”
Emily went to speak, saw the glance from Magas and closed her mouth. I will not sit here and watch the people I love die, she told herself.
Bevan saw the sombre face of King Kefflorn of the Ibaloth and realised he had forgotten to mention them. He waved his hand to the King and said, “We come to the role of the Ibaloth. I have just the thing for the unique power of the Ibaloth. Kefflorn, I ask that your people cast a mind shield around Havendel. It will prevent mental and physical penetration from our enemies.”
The orange King puffed his large round mouth, as though chewing over the idea, and said, “Our number is less than one hundred. A mind meld of such a number would require the mental strength of a Melder. We could not hold off such an offensive off for long. We could only hope to delay.”
“Elleran will act as the focal point in the concert of the minds.” Magas looked at Elleran. “Are you are up to it?”
“My will and training will be sorely tested, my Lord, but I will try.”
Magas nodded his thanks.
The Ibendari general pointed to the far eastern water nation on the map and said, “My Prince, what about the Styx? When will they arrive?”
Magas raised his hand. “I will be leaving shortly for Errenor. I will bring our message and our plight to Sabina and her people. In the meantime Elleran will lead the Melder position.”
Bevan said, “It is settled. We attack at dawn.”
Chapter 47
The First Attack
HAVENDEL–Eostra’s City
ANNWYN
> As prepared as Bevan and his army were, nobody expected the size and ferocity of the first attack.
In a high arc above the battlements, before the soldiers rose for the dawn attack, a shaft of red light pierced the night, slicing into the chest of a surprised confederation soldier. The soldier briefly glowed red before falling to the plains below. Three more streaks of scarlet light rammed into the stone walls, splintering in a puff, falling short of their prey.
A deep horn from inside the great Havendel wall bellowed its call-to-arms.
Bevan woke from his fitful sleep. His heart sank when he saw the light-stones casting shadows across the makeshift tent. It was still night.
Already clothed in his battle garb, Bevan pulled on his royal robe, kicked Daimon’s stone arm that hung on the floor, and pulled on his boots.
“Let’s go. We’re the ones who’ve been taken by surprise,” he said to Daimon.
Daimon rolled off the bed and splashed water from a crystal bowl on his face and through his hair. He said groggily, “But Lupi’s attack?”
Bevan snapped at General Corset waiting in the doorway, “How close are they?”
“Your Highness, the attack appears to be from an advance force. The bulk of their forces are still crossing the river.”
Bevan was relieved. “And the Paytah?“
“They have not yet reached the river, Highness.”
“Good. Are we ready to go?”
“We await your command. The first wave will charge the plains and keep the enemy pinned to the river.”
Bevan threw open the tent flap and was swallowed by the night. The two moons hid shyly behind the low cloud cover that had settled at the base of the converged mountain ranges. He rolled his eyes at the irony of the situation. Using Lupi, he had planned to create a mist to gain the first advantage. He had not reckoned that nature might unwittingly lend a hand to their enemy.
He faintly made out the standards of the confederation nations in front of their tents. He saw the men thrust together, jostling silently, faces forward, waiting for the order to attack. They carried shields made from crystals native to their lands, and the entire gully shimmered with a multitude of coloured shells.
