The Black Stone of Elu

by Darrin Long

  The four of them headed back out to the walls of the city. Only this time, the soldiers all noticed the two Tunai that walked with Kaylu and the King.

  “My Lord?” one of the commanders said to King Lamu, who held up his hand to tell the commander to save his questions.

  The four of them climbed up onto the wall and stood looking out over the valley of Elu.

  “They fired a few stones at the wall earlier,” the commander said to Kaylu. “But they haven’t done anything since.”

  “It was only a show of strength,” King Krell said, “they will do nothing until morning.”

  The commander bowed to Krell and turned back towards the valley.

  “We will wait until then,” Kaylu said.

  Two soldiers brought up four chairs for the group to sit down.

  “Please,” Kaylu said motioning King Krell and Sonje to a chair. “It will be a few hours before the sun even begins to reach the valley.”

  The three of them sat in silence, but Sonje stood behind King Krell’s chair. Kaylu could see that no one knew exactly what to say or of exactly what would happen in the morning. Another soldier arrived with four glasses and a barrel of Dragoine wine. After a few drinks, Lamu was finally calm enough to speak to King Krell.

  “Krell.. I.. I know what I did was wrong” Lamu said “there is no excuse for it…. I was a fool.”

  Lamu looked down at his glass. Kaylu had never seen his brother so broken before and he rather liked him better this way.

  “Arrogance and pride have been my greatest flaws and my people have paid the price for them,” Lamu said looking up. “As have yours.”

  King Krell’s face showed his shock as Lamu poured out his heart before him.

  “I hope that one day, you and your people can forgive me,” Lamu said.

  Lamu looked at Krell, but couldn’t tell if Krell was going to say anything at all. He had a hard and stony look on his face as Lamu was talking.

  “When my father died,” King Krell said “I wanted to wipe your people from the face of the land. But after the great wars, I was just sick of the death. Revenge is not sweet; it is a disease that just eats at you.”

  King Krell stood up and looked over the wall into the valley.

  “I will be happy when it is all over and our people can try to live in peace again,” He said. “I think we can all agree that the Brun agreement was a mistake.”

  Lamu looked at Kaylu and he nodded back at him and smiled. Kaylu could see a completely humbled and very different Lamu than he had ever seen before.

  When the first light of dawn reached the far corner of the valley the four of them stood up and climbed down from the wall.

  “Open the gate” King Lamu ordered.

  King Krell and Sonje went out first with King Lamu and Kaylu behind them. They were halfway to the Tunai camp when the alarm was sounded and the Tunai soldiers sprung to life. Within moments there were hundreds of Tunai standing in a row between them and the camp. They stood motionless as the four approached and when the King was within eyesight the entire Tunai army instantly went to one knee and lowered their eyes. King Krell stopped and looked over the soldiers from left to right.

  “Aire” he yelled and the soldiers snapped back into position then, they parted to make an opening in the centre of their ranks.

  As the soldiers parted Kaylu noticed that there was someone standing right behind the soldiers. She was a stocky woman with a red sash draped across her armour that showed the Tunai Axe.

  “Fitting” Kaylu said as he saw that the Tunai Axe in her hands was exactly like it.

  Queen Karn of Furrow Iarthair walked through the soldiers and stopped a few meters away from where Krell stood. She held out her hands to the side so as to ask what was going on. Krell stepped forward and spoke privately with Karn as Kaylu placed his hand on Lamu’s shoulder. They waited for several minutes as Krell and Karn argued among themselves, but finally, Krell returned to their group.

  “She has agreed to sit with us,” Krell said “but it must be out here. She refuses to enter the city.”

  Kaylu stepped out and bowed to Queen Karn then, he waved his staff and a large table and chairs appeared in the field to their right.

  “Humph,” Queen Karn mumbled and walked over to the table.

  The four of them sat down and Sonje stood behind King Krell’s chair watching each of them. Kaylu nodded to King Krell and Krell turned to Queen Karn.

  “What I have seen I cannot bear to speak of so, I must show you,” he said to her. “Sonje, stand firm.”

  Krell reached out his hand and Karn put her hand in his then, Krell nodded back to Kaylu who waved his hand over theirs. Both Krell and Karn went into what looked like a trance and they remained motionless for several minutes. Finally, Queen Karn pulled her hand slowly out of King Krell’s hand. She looked like she was struggling with what she saw.

  “How do I know that you have not been tricked by this sorcerer?” she asked.

  “I understand your hesitation,” Krell said “When I saw it I too thought it wasn’t real. But then I saw our people being herded into a pen and I knew each and every one of them by name.”

  Queen Karn looked at King Lamu and Kaylu then, back at Krell.

  “What are you asking,” Queen Karn said.

  “That we all join together to defeat this Caudee before he gets any stronger” Krell said. “He wears the Black Stone of Elu.”

  Queen Karn lifted her chin into the air when the stone was mentioned.

  “I was the one who was against keeping that stone,” she said. “But you and father went against me and look what it has done to our people. It is still a thorn in our sides even now.”

  Kaylu could see the anger in Queen Karn’s eyes.

  “This is not going very well,” Kaylu thought, but he knew that he must stay silent; he had not earned Queen Karn’s attention.

  King Krell took a deep breath.

  “You are right,” he said “we went against you and we were wrong. But if we do not act now, our mistake will turn into a nightmare like we have never seen.”

  Queen Karn looked down at the table and Kaylu could see the struggle that was going on inside her. Suddenly Queen Karn stood up then, she raised her chin and shook her head.

  “I will not,” she said and she walked away from the table.

  “Karn” Krell said, but she ignored him as she walked back through the soldiers who closed up the line behind her.

  “Let me go and speak to her” King Krell said, turning to the others. “Maybe I can get through to her.”

  “Thank you, Krell,” Kaylu said as King Krell stood up and walked through the soldiers with Sonje right behind him.

  “That did not turn out well at all,” Kaylu said to Lamu who was not able to say anything; he only frowned.

  They stood up from the table and Kaylu waved his staff to make the table disappear then, placing his hand on Lamu’s shoulder the two of them disappeared. They reappeared inside the walls of Draioch.

  “Keep a watch,” Kaylu said to the commander, “send for us if you see any movement.”

  The two of them walked back to King Lamu’s dwelling in silence and went inside.

  Chapter 13

  The Awakening

  Back in the Glen, Neilan was just beginning to stir from his sleep. He stared at the sunlight dancing on the cave wall above him. At first, his mind did not connect him with reality and it seemed as if he was still in a dream. Then, Iri stirred in his arms and rubbed the sleep out of her eyes.

  “Good morning” she whispered, but he couldn’t respond, so she reached up and pulled his face towards her, “Good morning,” she said a little louder into his ear.

  He could hear her words echoing in his brain and then fade away. She sat up and placed her hand on his cheek and looked into his eyes. He stared back at her like a drunk who just left the tavern, but slowly his mind began to clear and he blinked his eyes a few times and shook his head.

  “
Come on,” Iri said getting him to his feet. “We need some fresh air.”

  They walked outside and sat down on the bench and he took several breaths of fresh cool air. He noticed that there was frost on the heather in the Glen and on the tree, but he was happy for the cold; he always felt so alive in the cold. As Neilan’s mind cleared he felt incredibly uneasy sitting on the bench; his body seemed to urge him to move so he stood up.

  “Iri, I will be right back,” he said and he took off running along the mountainside.

  Each step he took resounded like a cannon in his head and each breath a shard of ice in his lungs, but he could not stop himself and he ran with all the strength he could muster. Up the mountain he ran, over the rise and up the next, not slowing as he ran right up behind a pack of mountain wolves that were running along the ridge. His mind did not even scream to him to be afraid and he was not. He ran side by side with the huge creatures and they did not even seem to notice he was there.

  “I can’t believe this is happening,” he thought “am I still dreaming?”

  As he ran he could feel the beating of his heart and the feeling of the cold air filling his lungs with every step. The wolves turned towards the top of the mountain and Neilan turned towards home. Never had he felt like this before. He didn’t know how to explain it, but he felt at peace within himself; like he had never felt before.

  “It’s like I finally know who I am,” he thought “like I finally belong somewhere.”

  He made his way back to the valley and to Iri. As he ran up to the cave Iri jumped to her feet as if she was startled.

  “Wow,” she said, “you came out of nowhere.”

  Neilan looked at her strangely.

  “What do ye mean,” he said through his heavy breathing.

  “Neilan, you disappeared into thin air and just now you reappeared, that’s amazing,” she said.

  “Really?” Neilan asked.

  “Ya,” Iri said with a smile “it must be magic.”

  Neilan smiled back. ”Maybe, it is,” he said “Iri, I have never felt like this in my entire life. It is the strangest thing.”

  Then before Iri could protest Neilan pulled her to him and placed his forehead against hers. His heart was beating loudly as they very quickly linked their minds together.

  “All that I am, I pledge to ye. Now and forever bound together; two but one” Neilan said, as he felt that amazing feeling that started where their foreheads were touching and spread throughout his whole body.

  Neilan didn’t know how long they were connected, but when it was time to break the connection Neilan knew it and pulled his forehead away from hers. Iri looked into Neilan’s eyes unable to say anything so, she just held onto him and buried her head in his chest. They stood for a while just holding each other.

  “What are we becoming?” he said to her and she looked up at him with a smile.

  “Inseparable,” she said, “no one can separate us now Neilan, not the King, not even death.”

  Neilan smiled because that’s the way he wanted it.

  “What do ye think happened at Draioch?” Neilan asked.

  “I don’t know” she replied, “I am afraid for my people.”

  “I wish we could go and just see what is happening,” Neilans said. “Not knowing is the worst thing.”

  Iri pulled away and smiled.

  “Do you really want to see it?” she asked.

  “Yes,” he said, “but why are ye asking?”

  “Because I’ve been pactising a spell that I took from Kaylu,” she said. “I am pretty good at it.”

  “So, what is this spell?” Neilan asked.

  “Well, I’m not really sure what it’s called” she replied, “but you send one cloud to a location you desire to see and you can look at that location through a second cloud where you are.”

  “Wow,” Neilan said, “ye can really do that?”

  “Well, I’ve never tried long distances before, but the book said you can send out more clouds through the first cloud to reach even further,” she said. “Do you want to try?”

  “Sure” Neilan replied.

  “Ok,” Iri said waving her hand in front of her and saying a few words that Neilan could not make out.

  Suddenly, a cloud appeared before them.

  “Seall dhomh tuath,” she said and half of the cloud broke off and flew up into the air and headed north.

  Neilan looked at Iri in surprise.

  “So, how long does it take?” he asked.

  “I’m not sure, I guess it depends on how long the clouds have to travel” she replied.

  Then Neilan noticed the cloud begin to change in front of them.

  “I think I can see something,” Iri said.

  Neilan leaned in as a mountaintop came into focus in the cloud.

  “I know where that is,” Neilan said, “It’s on top of the next mountain north of here.”

  “I wasn’t sure how far it would go,” Iri said.

  “Well that’s pretty good” Neilan replied, “can ye go further?”

  “Sure,” Iri said waving her hand, “Seall dhomb Beinn creag.”

  Iri giggled as another cloud formed and seemed to pass right through the cloud before them and disappeared.

  They waited for a while, but no picture came.

  “Maybe ye can only go so far,” Neilan said.

  “Maybe” Iri replied “I haven’t practised with more than one cloud before. But let’s give it some time.”

  They sat quietly watching the cloud and a moment later another picture appeared.

  “Where is that?” Neilan asked as he looked down into a valley of dirt.

  “That is Furrow Thor right across there,” she said pointing across the valley to three tunnels that went under the mountain. “That is where King Krell lives.”

  Neilan moved closer to the cloud and looked intently.

  “So, they really do live in tunnels,” he said.

  “Oh yes,” Iri said, “But, inside, you wouldn’t know that you were underground.”

  “Wow,” Neilan said, “I would love to see it someday.”

  “Ok, one more and I think we can reach Draioch,” Iri said excitedly.

  She waved her hand, “Seall dhomh beinn Elu” she said, as yet another cloud developed and then disappeared.

  A few moments later another picture appeared.

  “Oh no,” Iri said as the picture cleared, “Neilan”.

  Below them, Neilan could see a walled city and to the right, out in a large valley were what looked like thousands of soldiers camped.

  “That is the Dragoine city of Draioch,” Iri said, “to the right is the Valley of Elu and that is the Tunai army that came to destroy my home.”

  “It doesn’t look like there has been any fighting,” Neilan said, “that is good.”

  “Yes, but where are the leaders?” Iri said looking back and forth between the army and the city.

  “Maybe they are in a council in the city,” Neilan said.

  “Maybe” she replied.

  “Iri, someone is moving,” Neilan said pointing to the Tunai army.

  A large group of soldiers were moving south out of the valley.

  “They are leaving,” Neilan said, “maybe the talks are already over.”

  They watched the group closely as it headed south out of the valley.

  “No, only a part of them are leaving, the rest seem to be waiting for something,” Iri said.

  Then there was more movement and Neilan saw King Krell walking towards the city.

  “Hey, I think that’s Sonje with the King,” Neilan said.

  “Who?” Iri asked.

  “Sonje, he was the Tunai that I rescued from Caudee’s soldiers” he replied. “What is he doing with King Krell?”

  They watched as the two approached the wall of the city and motioned to the soldiers to open the gate. Neilan could see a couple soldiers leave the gate and run away, but the rest stood their ground and opened the gate. King Krell
did not enter however, he just stood there. Suddenly, Neilan saw the soldiers returning to the gate and they had someone with them.

  “It’s Kaylu,” Neilan said to Iri, pointing to the figures moving towards the gate.

  “And my father,” Iri said.

  They waited in silence to see what would happen when the two Kings came face to face. When Kaylu and the King approached the gate, King Krell and Sonje entered the gate and the four of them stood just inside the gate talking then, they headed into the city.

  “Where are they going?” Neilan asked.

  “They must be going to our dwelling to talk” Iri replied.

  “That’s good, right?” Neilan asked.

  “Well, it can be” she replied, but Neilan could see how nervous she was.

  After all, with an army that size, the City would never have been able to defend itself. The Tunai would have left nothing but rubble and dead bodies.

  “Hey, what’s happening,” Neilan asked as the picture in the cloud began to fade.

  “It only lasts for a short time,” Iri said, “I’m not as strong as Kaylu.”

  “That’s ok,” Neilan said, “at least we know that Draioch is still ok.”

  Iri nodded as the cloud in front of them disappeared.

  “Are ye ok?” Neilan asked.

  “Yes, I just need to sit here for a few minutes and rest,” she said.

  “Ok,” he said sliding over beside her and taking her hand in his.

  “Neilan, you cannot tell Kaylu,” Iri said.

  “But, why?” He asked. “Yer good with magic. Maybe, he can train ye.”

  “Neilan,” she said shaking her head “not a word.”

  “Ok,” he said, “not a word, I promise.”

  Back in Draioch, Kaylu had just escorted King Krell and Sonje into the library in Lamu’s dwelling.

  “Please, have a seat,” he said motioning to a couple chairs. “I will grab a few more for Sonje and Me.”

  Kaylu went into the next room and grabbed a couple chairs and took them back into the Library.

  “Here you go Sonje,” he said handing the chair to the young Tunai.

  Sonje took the chair but just stood there with a confused look on his face. King Krell turned and noticed Sonje’s dilemma.

  “It’s ok Sonje, sit down,” Krell said to him.