Lord Of Dragons (Book 2) (26 page)

They were interrupted by an avalanche of servants bringing them plates of meat and cheese and fruits, and glasses of bubbling drinks that looked like sparkling wine. Sebine began telling them the story of their dragon flight from Trikar, and of the departure of Master Vhelan and the dragons, and their sea voyage to Glar Bay. She wisely failed to mention many items of obvious embarrassment, and tried to glance over their time in Rez'el.

"So the high priestess is still up to her tricks?" the Queen said, and waited to observe Sebine's reaction.

"I believe after my interactions with her that their society will find greater peace and less disturbance from their earth god. We were able to exchange magical knowledge, a part of which aided the high priestess in her control of magic."

"How very interesting, though I doubt the fanatics of Rez'el could be anything but disturbed," said Princess Marei. "We must discuss the knowledge you discovered, Princess Sebine. I look forward to reacquainting myself with you."

"Why would you be so foolish as to attempt an expedition to the ancient Saarian ruins?" Prince Jaraz gave Sebine a doubtful look that made Tael want to punch him in the face.

"I should answer that question," said Master Shalinor, and glanced around at the royal family. "As many of you know, I have recently returned to Shaar'el through the magical portals of Khalas Dralorn. I am afraid that by now the high elves have abandoned the ancient city for their sacred islands to the east. The Kingdom of Drazal'tan is in the hands of the dark elves, and King Braxion is likely in possession of one of the four ancient relics that binds Prince Xanthes to his underground prison.

 
"While I was in Khalas Dralorn, King Rhaelian allowed me to study an ancient tome scribed ten thousand years ago during the elves interaction with those of the Saarian Empire. The book detailed the beliefs of their religion, and described their two gods. I now possess some knowledge of their civilization and culture."

"But you do realize that in the nine thousand years of our history," Prince Jaraz said, "not one expedition survived to those ancient ruins. All perished and failed to return. There was even a massive expedition several hundred years ago that established a tent city far from the cursed ruins, and group after group they sent went missing."

The King raised a hand to silence the Prince. "Have you discovered anything in your research that might aid in your attempt to overcome the curse?"

As Master Shalinor shook his head, Sebine raised her finger to interrupt him. "You mentioned you learned something about their gods? Might I ask their names? A spell that I discovered allows the summoning of a god if the name is known..."

"That would be most foolish to invoke the names of those powerful, ancient gods." The wizard frowned at Sebine. "I already gave you a warning of using such magic. The consequences to the person and even to the world might be dire. Those gods are all but forgotten from the world, and I doubt even the Hakkadians worship them any longer, or perhaps some variant exists in their religion..."

"You have the ability to cast a spell and summon a god?" Princess Marei gaped at Sebine in astonishment. "And have you had such a spell cast on you?"

"I have," Tael said, and drew in the stares of the group. "Princess Sebine resisted the spell from the high priestess of Rez'el, but I was affected and encountered the god of the earth in a vision that was more real than any dream I've had."

The group of royals flinched at Tael's proclamation as if he had just revealed to them that he was suffering from a deadly plague. A shiver went through Princess Marei's body as she stared open-mouthed at Tael.

"Then you are affected by the energy of that strange god? Come no closer and do not touch any of my children." The Queen's eyes fired protectively as she glowered at Tael.

"He will not be affected for long," Master Shalinor said, and as his grandfather snapped his fingers, Tael felt cold hands burrowing deep into his chest and brain, and clenching and squeezing until the world faded into blackness.
 

Chapter Twenty-Nine

AT THEIR FIRST encounter in a small town between Yhalan and Khalas Dralorn, King Braxion wondered why it was necessary for him to deal with the dark elves. Jolrath, their leader, was the same elf who'd disrespected him so many years ago in Trikar. How many years ago? Almost twenty? But then the old fear crept up in his mind. Nineteen years ago, around the same time that Sebine was conceived.

He'd always doubted whether Sebine was his own child. She was even more lovely than her mother, and bore no resemblance to Braxion. In jest he always said he thanked the gods that she looked nothing like him, and there were many jesters at court who carried the notion to ridiculous heights of song and mimicry. King Braxion cared little for his ugliness, in fact he found it aided to bring terror and repugnance to his enemies. With a great deal of relish, he enjoyed the idea that the last thing they'd see in their short miserable lives was the sight of his ugly face spitting on them as he ran his blade into their hearts.

She was a traitorous bitch, anyway. Along with Master Vhelan and his band of outlaws. He looked forward to torturing the lot of them, especially as retribution for their betrayal. First he needed to deal with this
situation
in Khalas Dralorn, with Jolrath's ambassador claiming that the elven relic had vanished? That was their responsibility, secure the relic and give it to them, and King Braxion had promised to leave Drazal'tan in the hands of the dark elves. That was the bargain.

But now nothing made sense. How could the elves allow Master Vhelan and his allies to break into their most holy temple and steal the Mirror of Halien'shur? It was absolutely inconceivable that such a thing could happen. And that now that dark elves failed to live up to their side of the bargain, King Braxion didn't see any other way around it other than war. More like slaughter, a fine skewering of their arrogant elven heads on pikes outside Khalas Dralorn.

"General!" shouted King Braxion, and he heaved himself up to his feet as the Vizathian knight entered the war tent. "Time to give those elven bastards a taste of dwarven steel up their arses. Mount up and ride! We aim for the capitol. If any dark elves try and stop us, bring me their bloody heads!"

The knight stood dumbfounded at the King's proclamation, so much that Braxion thought he'd need to bash his head to get the command into his thick skull. "Move! I didn't hire you to think, just to act, now get our troops ready to march."

He swept aside the curtain and stepped outside, enjoying the misty morning dew of the magical elven forest. To his disappointment, upon their arrival at the gates of Yhalan, he'd found the border guards submissive and the city empty. Not a pretty elven girl in sight. In Khalas Dralorn, though, he expected a better bounty, even if the high elves had already left the city.

His squire trotted over to help him mount his dragon. After the betrayal by Master Vhelan, the King always kept Keraxes close. The Hakkadian sorcerers always seemed to sense his desire to leave, and soon they floated across the air and mounted on their horses, their eyes focused and ready to fight. At least someone in his army knew how to act quickly.

"Prepare to march for Khalas Dralorn," shouted King Braxion, and the Vizathian knights assembled around him cheered in a raucous display of upraised swords and fists. "Kill any elf or dark elf that dares to stop you. Do not cease until you possess the capitol. I'll be watching your progress from the skies. And as a reward for your bravery, I'll offer a thousand gold crowns to the knight who finds me the sacred elven relic I desire, the Mirror of Halien'shur. Search the city far and wide, and trust not the lying words of the dark elves."

Cheers rang out across the crowd of Vizathian Knights, and the soldiers' eyes grew greedy with a determined frenzy to be the first to win the prize. Even though the King doubted they'd find anything of worth, the hope and the game would boost morale and cause a commotion in the men.

His dragon took flight and Braxion surveyed his vast army as they formed up and charged off into the dense, elven forest, and the green of the treetops caught the misty light of the sunlight and shimmered. He'd uncovered the truth in Khalas Dralorn, or kill every elf that he encountered.

Chapter Thirty

AS TAEL WRITHED in a fit from the wizard's spell, Sebine reached out to prevent him from collapsing to the ground. His body trembled and jerked, and a bubbling foam came out of his mouth. What was the wizard doing to him?

"He should be fine in a few minutes." Master Shalinor bent down and placed a palm over his forehead. "The foreign entity will be removed quite soon from his mind. Keep this as a warning for the next time you think about casting a spell that summons a god. The effects are usually permanent until a spell is cast to cure the afflicted of the taint."

"Are all gods this way?" Sebine braved the wizard's harsh stare as she spoke the words. "Perhaps some gods provide benefits to those summoning them."

Master Shalinor shook his head and scoffed as if she were an idiot. "To a god, humans are like cattle to consume and control, to milk and provide them with sustenance. All of them are the same. Some gods are worse than others, causing virulence in the afflicted and the taint to spread quickly to others around them. In recorded history, entire civilizations have succumbed to the sickness of the gods and plunged their people into darkness and madness. Fortunately the names of such gods have disappeared or have purposefully been banished from books."

Tael's eyelids fluttered and he squinted as he came back to consciousness. A groan escaped from his mouth as he tried to talk, but Sebine just whispered in his ear for him to just relax and give himself some time to rest.

"He should feel better in a few minutes. But the full recovery of his magical power will take hours." The wizard gave Princess Sebine a knowing smile. "He'll need some nursing to ensure his speedy recuperation."

"Are you certain the curse has been removed from him?" The King shifted in his chair, a look of discomfort clouding his handsome face.

"You have nothing to worry about, I can assure you. My grandson is free of the corruption of the earth god. Assuming Princess Sebine ceases to cast any more spells summoning Gaa'el."

"Then shall we eat dinner?" the Queen said, and waved a hand at the food. "In all this excitement, I'm afraid that the food has gone cold. Marei, will you do us the favor of preparing the dishes for consumption?"

Princess Marei bowed her head in respect to her mother, and flourished her hands at the food. Soon steam wafted from the meats and hot dishes, and they sat to enjoy their dinner. Sebine swore she'd learn the spell from the Princess, and any others she'd be willing to share. Despite already eating, she found herself ravenous from all the stress of meeting the royal family.

After dinner, Sebine was unable to take her eyes off the enchanted beauty of Princess Theria. The elf stood away from the group studying the expansive landscape. Her long, silver hair danced as she turned to inspect Sebine's arrival with a cautious expression on her face. Princess Sebine couldn't stop staring at the elf's lavender eyes glittering in the torchlight.

"You possess the elven seed?" Princess Theria studied Sebine's face. "Indeed you do have elven blood, but not high elf, I sense the power of the dark elves in you. Would this make us enemies or friends?"

"Of course I would like to be friends," Sebine said, and gave the elf a small smile. "I've never even met a dark elf, and I'm not sure why they would be your enemy."

"Surprising that you know so little of elven lore and history. Though considering you were raised in Trikar, I suppose I shouldn't expect much of your education."

Sebine let out an incredulous huff, and narrowed her eyes at the elf's sly expression. "I'll do my best not to take that as an insult. I studied as much as was allowed, and secretly studied magic by sneaking into the Hakkadian lair below the palace."

"Even worse." Princess Theria twisted up her pretty face into a sneer. "I thought I felt the disgusting taint of those cave-dwellers on you. It's no wonder you sought them out, considering your heritage. Why exactly did Master Shalinor allow you on this expedition?"