Quarterstars Awakening

by David L. McDaniel

  Traelyn heard him coming before he spoke, but did not turn to face him. When he spoke, she felt his breath upon her neck. “It is,” she said flatly.

  “Much like my home, but this land is much more dangerous.”

  “It is,” she repeated.

  “What do you enjoy the most?” he asked, attempting to force her into a conversation more than the short, cold sentences he was receiving.

  She turned to face him and tried to stay staunch, but when she saw his face, she smiled and looked down and blushed. “I like it because it is my home.”

  Jaerick put his hand under her chin and lifted her head so that she would look into his eyes. “Your home is beautiful, though beauty is almost never as it seems. Much like you, very pleasing to the eye, yet wild and untamed.”

  Jaerick smiled, winked, then turned and walked down the battlements, returning from where he came. Traelyn stood speechless at his bold actions, but smiled in spite of herself.

  “Wait!” Traelyn called. “Where are you going?”

  “For a walk,” he said, stopping and turning to face her. She then walked toward him and stopped before him like a shy child, unsure of her actions, but then straightened herself with a surge of new confidence.

  “Come with me, I want to show you something.” Traelyn said, then just as he had done moments before, she smiled, winked, turned, and walked away from him. He stood and watched her leave shaking his head at her, and then watched her walk away until she was almost out of sight when she went downstairs into the courtyard.

  He started to hurry after her, but caught himself and changed his pace to a brisk walk. Following Traelyn downstairs, he passed the courtyard through an archway that lead to a walled flower garden. As he caught up to her, they walked through the small garden and Jaerick noticed the care taken in the plants and flowers.

  All four walls surrounding the garden were painstakingly covered with so many flowered vines that the exit on the other side of the garden was nearly obscured. The smell of the various flowers in full bloom permeated the dusky evening air. As they walked amongst the flowers and various colorful plants, Jaerick grabbed Traelyn’s hand. To his surprise, she took his hand into hers and cupped it tightly. Jaerick was still looking at the various multi-colored flowers, shrubs, and vines when she broke his awed silence.

  “I brought you to this garden for two reasons. One, for the quietness of the garden, and two-” she paused and turned to looked into his eyes, “-to get away from everything. But, this is not all I wanted to show you. Follow me, and I will show you what I mean.” She let go of his hand, still facing him, and began to walk backwards. Once he began to follow her, she turned away and ran.

  The prince ran in pursuit, following her through the rows of flowers, and then immediately turned to the right and the end of the row, rounding the backside of the archway to a clump of bushes where Traelyn was standing. She then walked into the bushes and stopped as she was surrounded up to her chest in the foliage, and motioned Jaerick to follow. She then inched her way to a spot between the bushes and the wall where a small clearing exposed a square wooden cover on the ground completely concealed by the bushes so well that it could only be seen by standing directly above it. She reached down and picked up the cover, revealing a downward spiraling stairway.

  Traelyn nodded to the prince and stepped down into the dark and damp entrance. Jaerick followed her down the steps and saw through the flickering torchlight mounted on the walls what unveiled to be a long hallway tunnel through solid, painstakingly chiseled rock. The torches were already lit as if they never ceased to burn and condensation dripped from the walls in the dark shadows. She continued walking down the spiraling steps at a brisk pace, saying nothing while Jaerick followed. They continued downward for several minutes until they came upon a long hallway-like passageway where they passed many corridors that forked left and right. The passageway had a distinct downward slant to it and it felt to Jaerick as if he was still going deeper and farther down into a cavernous tunnel.

  Finally, she stopped at a the bottom of the stairway that led to a large open circular room. She turned to face Jaerick and saw the confused and amazed look on his face.

  “What now?” he asked.

  “Beauty. Wild and untamed,” she said with a wide grin, repeating his words.

  “I don’t understand.”

  “It’s a bit of an illusion.” Traelyn then moved a few stone blocks that revealed a latch. She lifted the latch and a door opened, revealing another stairway steeper than the others. They continued down a few hundred feet until they came to the base of the stairway that ended in a wide room with a large iron door on the other side. Traelyn walked to it and opened the door. Outside light from the sunset flooded the room as she allowed Jaerick to exit before her.

  He stepped through the door, looked around, and saw huge majestic pines towering high above. A small brook prattled away in the distance. He turned around to look at the surroundings, and saw a steep rock cliff looming over him. He had to crane his neck straight back, to see that the top of the castle was chiseled into the face of the cliff. Traelyn closed the door and watched as the seams to the door disappeared, the illusion returning.

  “Is this not amazing?” she asked, beaming.

  Jaerick did not answer, but continued to gawk at the beauty of the surroundings, including the splendor of the size of the cliff.

  “Now try and find the door.”

  He looked at the cliff wall before him, and could find no door, no seams, nor any signs of any door, but only saw a rock face.

  “No one knows of this door, other than my father and his engineers. Father doesn’t even know that I know. This is the eastern side of the castle. I come here to escape the trapped feeling I have within the confines of the castle walls from time to time. Sometimes my father can protect me too much.”

  “But it’s, -” Jaerick began, but she put her hand to his lips.

  “I know. You even said it yourself, that beauty can be deceiving. It is beautiful, yet wild. I am also attracted to this type of beauty.”

  “How long do you stay?”

  “Long enough, never too long, sometimes I even take a walk. I will walk to the brook and think.”

  “But the door is impossible to see from here, how do you find your way back?”

  Traelyn smiled at her cleverness. “I have planted this Scillia tree to mark my return,” she pointed to a small, five-foot tree that was nestled in-between three large pine trees. The tree had a small wispy trunk but stood firmly in the ground. It had many thorny branches and upon each branch had many leaves - beneath each leaf was a bright pink flute-like flower.

  “The tree is like my situation. Not only does the tree mark my way, but also these large trees in the wilderness protect the tree. It is like my father, who smothers me with his protection. I love him dearly, but I am enticed by the danger that he shelters me from.”

  “I don’t like it. Your father is right to protect you, but he is also wrong to keep you here at all.”

  “And what would you have me do? Leave?”

  “Yes. It is not safe. Your father has told me of the gronts and goblins here. They are so desperate to destroy you and everything you have here. Do you not understand that?”

  “Please don’t worry about me,” Traelyn said sternly, shaking her head. “We are fine here. This is our home, it is my home.”

  “You are not fine here, and I do worry. I want to know you better, and in order for me to do this, you have to be alive.”

  “I will be alive long enough for you to know me,” she said softly, moving a step closer to him.

  Jaerick reached out and touched her hand. She accepted his hand ove
r hers and smiled as he looked into her eyes. “Don’t you long to see new places, to see what is outside of your castle walls?”

  “No, I love my father, we are here to stay. He knows this land, and I do not long to see anything else.”

  “My ancestors lived in this land for many years, but it is no longer safe for any of us to stay, including you, your father, and his dwindling defensive force.”

  “Maybe so, but I choose to stay. This is my home, no matter how stifled I may feel at times, or as dangerous as it may be.”

  Jaerick brought her close to his body and held her tight. As he did so, she trembled as if she had a slight chill. They remained there for an hour beneath the darkening shade of the pine trees as their conversation changed from the dangers and cares of the moment to talking about the little things of daily life. When the stars had reached the brightest point of the night they decided to return to the castle, hoping no one had noticed their absence.

  * * *

  Early the next morning the elven king and his entourage met with King Dar Drannon for one brief and final time. The elven king promised to keep in contact, but no other promise was made. Keiyann Krowe emphasized that maintaining this kingdom in the wilderness was a certain risk that he deemed unnecessary. The elves did not wish to see the humans slaughtered, but he doubted he could commit any of his elven forces to such a dangerous environment with so little to gain in return. The elven king gave Dar Drannon a sincere promise that he would talk with his advisors to consider the human king’s request.

  The elves then left in the same manner in which they came. They filed in their formations in the courtyard, then left single file through the tunnels, then regrouped at the foot of the fortress. Jaerick sat mounted on his battle horse and saw Traelyn watching from the top of one of the battlements. Traelyn waved goodbye to Jaerick. The prince looked at her only one time as he rode away. He did not return the wave but looked at her for a long while before turning his horse and falling back into formation. Traelyn stood unmoving until the last elf was out of sight.

  * * *

  Once the elves returned to their kingdom, King Keiyann Krowe called his leaders together for a secured meeting. His chambers were not as elaborate as the human king’s, for the elves were still in the midst of settling into their new home on the northern coast. The last of his people had only crossed into these borders just forty-two years prior from the same wilderness that Dar Drannon called home. They settled in the temperate northern coastal area and began to build in the tangled forests where the coastal breezes offered a pleasant climate for them. It took time just to clear out a defensible area to effectively build their fortress.

  Val Eahea, the founder of the Val Elves, once walked amongst the elves when they were nothing more than scattered tribes near where the Halls of Dar Drannon now stood. During this time, he sought out a young Keiyann Krowe. Even though Keiyann was just a young boy, the elven god knew he would be the elves’ first king and he gave Keiyann the Sword of Valkilye, the sword of kings.

  This sword, he told him, must one day be given to a human king, and that human king would later return with the sword to unite the whole world in peace. He also told Keiyann to begin the elven migration to the west, because this land would soon turn too dangerous for the elves to thrive.

  Keiyann would begin but would not finish. Under this direction, he traveled first northwest and found the northern coastal areas perfect for what they needed. He knew Val Eahea had directed him to go farther west, but this land was fertile, the temperature mild, the trees of the forests were plentiful, and the area proved to be free of hostile creatures.

  They also found another race of elves, the Sor elves, which were receptive to their people. Keiyann, at first, found this race of elves much inferior to them in intellect and society as they were still in the tribal stage of understanding. Though they did discover that they were much more magical than the Val elves were, and that it was a different type of magic. Where the Val elves relied more on an outward magic to manipulate events to their advantage, the Sor elves were quiet, withdrawn and worked, lived, and breathed the land, in essence, using magic to become the land.

  The rebuilding and unification phase had proven to be exhausting, but not without its rewards. The capital city Aalararae was built within the first five years. The Val elves accepting the Sor elves animistic ways intact, decided to join forces and together built Aalararae to its living breathing magical splendor. The surrounding communities began to form shortly after.

  Keiyann Krowe stood at the head of the table ready to address his advisors while they took their seats. Kroejin, his spiritual advisor, Jaerick, General Meztrae and the general’s top commanders, and the rest of the king’s advisors who had remained in Aalararae took their seats and waited for him to speak.

  “Most of us here have just returned from the human kingdom and have witnessed how isolated they are from any civilized race. I want to discuss his dilemma with you before I make any decision to his requests.”

  “My king,” General Meztrae stood as he spoke. “I think you know where your military stands. I don’t see how we can spare even a single warrior.”

  “I understand your concerns to the here and now and our rebuilding, but we need to consider the bigger picture. That is why Kroejin was part of our journey, so that he may witness first hand the possibility of Dar Drannon being the one prophecy speaks of.”

  Kroejin stiffened, but did not speak.

  “What of the prophecy, and why should it matter?” Meztrae said defiantly.

  Kroejin now stood, but General Meztrae, still standing, spoke before he could answer. “The prophecy must be ignored, my king. There must be some other way.”

  “There is no other way other than to allow the prophecy to be fulfilled,” Kroejin finally said, reasserting his position of authority in the conversation.

  King Keiyann Krowe looked directly into Kroejin’s eyes and paused before asking the question he had waited many years to ask. “Is Dar Drannon the human king the prophecy speaks of?”

  “It does not matter!” Meztrae shouted, now walking towards the king.

  “It does matter!” Keiyann responded. “Our entire race depends on it! Ever since our creator Val Eahea came in physical form and gave me this sword that I now carry by my side, I have also carried the burden of our people.”

  “The burden does not need to be yours alone,” Meztrae said, grabbing the king’s shoulders with both hands, and looking to him with sincere compassion. “The sword is powerful, it belongs to elven kings, and I beg of you, pass it down to the elven kings, starting with your son Jaerick.”

  Keiyann unsheathed the sword, and raised it with both hands, pointing the sword towards Meztrae’s head causing him to jump back in surprise. Keiyann then laid the sword on the center of the table with the point of the blade pointing towards Kroejin. The blade itself was polished silver, without a single blemish, save the etchings of elven language on the blade. The grip of the sword was ivory white with a twisted twine-like handle leading to a single purple gem on the end of the sword. “I want everyone to read the words on the blade that is inscribed upon this sword by Val Eahea when the sword was forged in our eternal home.” All eyes were fixed upon the sword in awe as if this was the first time that they had seen it, and for some it was. Keiyann put his arm around Meztrae, and instructed him to read it.

  Meztrae looked at Keiyann, reluctant to comply, but did so obediently. “It reads . . . The sword of Valkilye; the sword of elven kings, device for delivering the human king, and erecting the mighty elven kingdom.”

  “I repeat my question to Kroejin, and I would expect no interruptions this time. Is Dar Drannon this human King?”

  Kroejin did not look at his king, but instead looked at Me
ztrae and muttered in a low voice. “Yes. Yes he is the one.”

  “Good! Now we need to get to business.” Keiyann picked up the sword and sheathed it. “Val Eahea promised me that our road ahead would not be an easy one, in fact, it will take us to the depths of darkness before we prosper again. It will also involve moving one more time. We will know where this land will be when the final Quarterstar shard is found. So then our next and final move will be to the west to our promised land. We must continue the path set before us.”

  Meztrae spoke to the king while looking at the prophet. “I do not believe in this weak interpretation of our future.” Meztrae then stood back up and addressed the king respectfully. “I beg of you my king, let us take the elven kingdom to the highest, most powerful reign it deserves. The good elven people do not deserve to be oppressed and treated like transient beggars moving from land to land searching for a mystical homeland.”

  “I hear your request, and again I defer to our spiritual advisor, whom I have noticed has been far too quiet in this matter.” Then the king pointed to Kroejin and asked, “Tell us. Is there any other way out of this?”

  “If you wish to follow the path of Val Eahea, then there is no other way.”

  “But your response suggests that there is another way,” the king pressed.

  “Yes, but it is of my own opinion, and I am very much divided as to if it truly is the will of Val Eahea.”

  “Tell me, I do indeed wish to hear it.”

  “It is simply by letting the human kingdom be destroyed instead of preserving it, but instead bring the human king here to the elven kingdom. I believe there is a chance that Val Eahea will smile at our strength and be forced to bless us.”

  “No!” Keiyann announced slamming his fist to the table. “Years ago Val Eahea spoke his intentions to me, and now I question why he must speak to me through another person when long ago he spoke to me directly. But regardless to whom he speaks, you or I, we must not speculate what Val Eahea will think after we disobey his commands. Your job is to simply tell me what his wishes are, and from there I will choose what action to follow.”