The Elf King (71 page)

The
LifeWaters
smashed through
the
Mrenx Ku
,
filling it with life, drowning the dark thoughts and intentions,
changing the killing nature of its magic, unbinding the souls
trapped within, transforming all of its creations. The dark lines
of magic stretched and bound to the cavern snapped quickly,
shriveling up and replaced by silver life. Those bound to Qenn and
Kandish disappeared altogether. The air refreshed, exploding
through the tunnel out into the open land. The
LifeWaters
erupted into the soil,
emerging into the dead grass and trees, giving them life and
nourishment. Stagnant pools of rotting water transformed into blue
ponds, shimmering with purity.

The
LifeWaters
stood then next to the
remaining ball of magic bound to three empty husks as two spirits
were still held prisoners, chained by the magic they had created.
The
LifeWaters
placed its hands on the magical orb, releasing itself down
into the core. Sparks flew at its touch, but it pressed on, digging
deeper, engulfing itself around the magic, collapsing it within
itself. The
LifeWaters
could not be denied. It was a Faerie creature, not magic bred
and birthed. As strong as the
Mrenx
Ku
was, it folded under the touch of
the
LifeWaters
.
It coiled, trying in vain to escape, struggling to survive. The
ground shook in response. Still the
LifeWaters
pressed on. Finally it
imploded, collapsing down into the three Dark Elves infused
together. Two souls escaped the chains, wailing terribly as they
swirled around like wraiths, before disappearing.

The young
LifeWaters
stood proud
then. Traces of its magic coated the cavern, lighting it sharply,
sinking deep into the earth. A cleanse was underway; a
transformation into a new existence.

The translucent being
turned to see two bodies: an elf and a girl. It moved over to
them.

A
s the darkness appeared to have swallowed the land, the sun
lit the sky to the east with the promise of a fresh start. Elves
and Men fought with their lives as the
Takers
began to howl and die.
Legions of them suddenly dropped to the earth lifeless. Their magic
within vanished with the destruction of the
Mrenx Ku
. Elves and Men stopped
fighting and looked on in disbelief. Tane shouted in triumph,
realizing what had happened, screaming his brother’s name to the
sky. Shadox and Terill joined, the celebration rejuvenating their
near collapsing bodies. Soon all of the army, all of what was left
of the hundreds standing against the thousands, cheered and roared
in victory as the
Takers
were wiped clean from the earth.

Q
enn was still shaking off his dream-like state, his vision
cleared, though his mind was still groggy. He saw Kandish’s body
off to his side. He had no idea how she got there. Then he was
aware of something else. It was the
LifeWaters
, only smaller somehow,
almost childlike. It was moving closer to him from the end of the
cavern.

“
What happened?” Qenn sat
upright, confused.

The
LifeWaters
cocked its head to the
side in wonder. “You live? You have a life then that is worthy of
existence. Your heart is true and pure.”

“
You destroyed it?” Qenn
realized then what must have happened, his memory coming back in
slow waves. He quickly looked over to Kandish.

“
She is
alive.” The
LifeWaters
stated, knowing what Qenn worried. “She is
adjusting. In time she will recover. She has a life as you do. I
was in her for a time, healing her. But my work in her was finished
when I began my work here. This is where I belong. She will be fine
without me.”

Qenn rose and walked over
to Kandish. She was asleep. “What happened to her?”

“
She is made
pure.”

Qenn was not entirely sure
what it had meant. He decided it didn’t matter. If the darkness was
destroyed, and Kandish was alive, then that was enough, more than
enough for him. He wanted to go home. He bent down and carefully
scooped Kandish up into his arms, cradling her head close to his
left shoulder where he could feel her breathing. He turned back to
stare at the young
LifeWaters
.

“
Will you be staying
here?”

It nodded. “The land is
sick. I will cure it. It will be new again.”

It would be as the utopia
hidden in the Pikes, Qenn thought. He nodded happily. “Well, thank
you.”

The
LifeWaters
stared with
confusion.

“
I must be going now. I
have people waiting for me.”

With a nod of gratitude,
Qenn turned and carried Kandish up the slope, out of the tunnel and
into the land. Daybreak was on the rise. He looked to the east for
a moment, smelling the fresh air swirl around him. Then he saw
the
LifeWaters
emerge from the ground. The grass began to grow in plush
pockets all around it. It stood watching Qenn for a moment, then
dove back into the ground. Flowers and grass grew in streaks,
spreading quickly around the mountainside, venturing
outward.

“
You’re lucky I don’t punch
you in the head, elf.”

Qenn turned with a start.
Kamen Ode stood beside him, looking like a wreck. His mad face was
hard, but softened quickly. “Kamen!”

“
You’ve got a lot of nerve
leaving us like that.” Kamen looked at Kandish. “How is
she?”

“
She’ll
recover.”

“
It was the magic, wasn’t
it? I could feel it in the tunnels. Too dark and evil to fight it.”
Kamen looked at Kandish, then to Qenn. “So you did it, then. It’s
over.”

“
Yeah. It’s over.” Qenn
looked down to Kandish. “We owe a lot to this one.”

Kamen Ode looked away.
“We’ve got a long walk back. Start talking. Tell me everything that
happened.”

Qenn smiled. “Fair enough.
I’ll tell you what I know.”

They began walking south,
Qenn telling Kamen the story as he knew it.

When he was finished, they
were miles away, walking across the
Takers
path, flowers and grass
blooming across the land behind them, when Kandish stirred. They
stopped walking, setting her down in the soft grass. Her eyes
opened, sparkling Qenn thought.

“
Kandish, how do you
feel?”

She was unsure, standing to
her feet between them. “What happened?”

“
Kandish,
we were saved by the
LifeWaters
. It destroyed the
Mrenx Ku
. Look.” He
pointed north. “It’s restoring the land.”

“
What do you remember?”
asked Kamen Ode.

She thought for a minute,
turning to Qenn. “I was chasing you. I found you in the tunnel,
then everything went white. I felt something in me, another
presence. I think I blacked out then. I feel different, Qenn. My
power is gone, I think.”

Qenn told Kandish how
the
LifeWaters
was in her, that the
Mrenx Ku
tried to enter her but the
LifeWaters
interfered and destroyed
it. When he was finished, they were quiet for a few
moments.

“
So, it’s over? It’s really
finished.” Kandish began to smile.

Qenn grasped her hand in
his own and held it firm. “Let’s go home.”

Chapter 39

T
he hours following sunrise found the surviving of Elves and
Men tending to the wounded and burying their dead. The army of Men
lost nearly all of their troops, the Elves didn’t fare much better.
Together they worked on assembling make-shift wagons for the
wounded men of Cillitran. Xtalt helped in taking injured Elves back
into healing quarters burrowed in the Ailia as the remaining army
of Men began their long trek back to Cillitran. Tane stuck around
with Ern Dwull, saying their goodbyes and wishes to their new
allies. They discussed their thoughts about what had taken place
far to the north. Tane voiced his thoughts proudly of his brother
saving them, destroying the evil’s source. No one
protested.

It was then that Shadox
stepped in close to Tane, looking and speaking tiredly. “Tane, you
are King of Cillitran. Use your best judgment, listen to your
council, and be good to your people. I think that you will be fine,
Elf King. You have many allies already that will support
you.”

He paused for a moment, his
tone changing slightly to something more serious. “The magic is in
you. You first thought it just your sword, your weapon. But now you
know that it is far more. You are the weapon. The magic, the power
of the Issilix Delsoue is in you. Your blood. Your mind. It is all
linked to whatever means you wish to channel it.”

“
Be wise of its use,”
Terill offered.

“
Magic can get the best of
the weak minded.” Ankar Rie said, looking away into the smoking and
charred battlefield. “But I think you will be fine,
Tane.”

Tane took their words
wholeheartedly. He would be careful. “It would be my hope to never
use it again.”

“
Well said, Tane.” Shadox
patted Tane on the shoulder, then turned to each of them, saying
his farewells, ending with Terill. “My friend, I must be going
now.”

“
And so must I, sorcerer.
The Lyyn is always your home, Shadox. You know that.” Terill’s
smile was sad.

“
Worry not. I will see you
soon, Elf Lord.” Shadox extended his hand, Terill
accepting.

Terill laughed. “I’m going
to believe you some day, sorcerer.”

Ankar Rie sighed. He was
wishing that his mentor would travel back to Illken Dor with him.
“Where to, Shadox?”

Shadox smiled to Ankar. He
knew what the other wanted. “I’ll return to Night Well before long,
Ankar. I promise you. Farewell, again. Safe travels, my friends.”
He turned then and walked away, moving northwest, a solitary figure
against the vast Shyl Plains. In moments he was a blur,
disappearing altogether.