War Of The Wildlands (17 page)

A
s dawn arrived
over the new Sycamore village, Yori packed up his few belongings. His worn-out
knapsack had been replaced by a sturdy, oiled-leather bag crafted by the hands
of his elven kin. He rolled up his animal skin clothes and placed them inside
the bag. Today, he would wear the green shirt the prince had given him in an
effort to blend in with the humans of Al’marr. They were more accepting of
elves than the Na’zorans, but he was going to seek passage on one of their
ships. He did not know how readily an elf would be taken on board, so he
planned to keep his ears covered once he reached Marrel.

“Stay safe,” his
grandfather said as he prepared to leave the hut. “You’re always welcome here.”
He grabbed Yori and hugged him tightly.

Taking a deep
breath, Yori turned and slipped out the door. Once again, he hoped to avoid a
long goodbye. It was already hard enough to leave, and he was still unsure he
had made the right decision not to join the other elves in battle. Later in life
he may come to regret it, but his plan was to focus on today. Perhaps he would
learn something in the Sunswept Isles that he could share to better the lives
of the Wild Elves.

Several rafts sat
idly on the west bank. Yori chose the smallest one to carry him back across the
river. Though he intended not to look into the water’s depths again, he thought
he heard a voice coming from the blue. Peering over the edge of the raft, he
looked down into the deep blue river. A silver mist danced and twinkled amidst
the blue, but it took on no discernable shape. The voice faded, leaving only
the sound of the rushing water to fill his ears.

He knelt on the
raft and shoved the oar deeply into the rocks below to stop its motion. Leaning
in close to the water’s surface, he quietly asked, “Is there someone there?” He
waited and heard no response. Rising back to his feet, he began paddling once
again toward the east bank. Without warning, a fountain of water shot up next to
him, sprinkling him with water. He thought it surprisingly warm, considering
the season. A blue light encompassed his raft, and he gasped in surprise.
Though he had stopped paddling, the raft continued steadily toward the east
bank and stopped gently when it reached land. The blue light faded away.

Yori climbed onto
the shore and looked back at the river. He saw a silver light dance upon its
surface for a moment before descending back into the depths. Had the River God
blessed his journey? Perhaps the god had wanted him to make it safely to the
other side, but for what purpose he did not know. Perhaps it approved of the
choice he had made, or perhaps it thought him a coward and wanted him to leave.
Yori couldn’t be sure.

“Thank you,” he
said to the river. “I hope you will watch over my people while I’m away. They
may need your help.” A second fountain of water shot up from the center of the
river, sprinkling water droplets in every direction. Yori smiled and felt a
sense of peace. Surely this god was watching out for the Sycamore Clan.

The forest was
still dark, its thick branches allowing very little light to seep through from
the overcast sky. A few unseen critters scampered beneath the rotting leaves as
he made his way through the trees. Before reaching the edge of the woods, he
turned and stared back in the direction of the river. He wanted to freeze the
image of the forest in his mind to keep with him on his journey.

As he arrived at
Marrel, he noticed several changes to the town. Colorful banners and ribbons
adorned every building and merchant stall, and a large stage had been erected
at the center of town. It appeared there was some sort of winter festival
taking place, but he did not intend to stay long enough to join in the fun.

Yori stopped in the
fletcher’s stall to inquire about the town of Marron. Inside, Hydon sat busily
tending to his arrows. He looked up as Yori approached and said, “Good morning,
Brother. What brings you here today?”

“I’m traveling to
the Sunswept Isles,” he replied. “I was hoping you could give me directions to
Marron.”

“I can’t imagine
why you’d want to go there,” Hydon said with a laugh. “But Marron is at least a
full day’s walk south. You might see if some of the mining wagons could give
you a ride. They travel back and forth every day delivering gems. They’ll take
you right to the docks where you can purchase passage to the isles. Do you have
any money?”

“I have a little,”
he replied, undervaluing the coins the prince had given him.

“Don’t let them
cheat you. I hear those sea captains try to take advantage of travelers. It shouldn’t
cost any more than one silver coin.”

Yori nodded. “Thank
you, Hydon.”

“Safe journeys,” he
replied before returning to his work.

Yori hurried past
the marketplace to the warehouses where he had helped Atti unload his goods
when he first arrived in Al’marr. It wasn’t long before he spotted the gem
wagons. Stout men were loading heavy wooden chests with iron locks onto wagons.
No other goods would have need of such hefty locks, so Yori assumed they must
be filled with precious gems. Approaching one of the men, Yori asked, “Are you
heading to Marron?”

“Sure am,” the
bearded man replied, loading a chest into a wagon.

“Do you think
you’ll have room for a passenger?”

The man turned and
looked Yori up and down. Apparently, Yori didn’t look much like a thief. “I
suppose so,” the man replied. “You’ve got to help load the wagons first,
though. There’s five of them, and these chests are heavy.”

“I’m stronger than
I look,” Yori replied with a smile. He was shorter and thinner than the bearded
man, but years of hammering iron and steel had provided him with a decent
amount of muscle. He slid a chest to the side of the loading dock and lifted it
onto his shoulder. The bearded man raised his eyebrows and nodded in approval.

“We’ll be at this
until lunchtime,” he said. “The miners will let us eat with them before we head
out.”

“Sounds great,”
Yori replied, lifting another chest. The chests were indeed very heavy, but
Yori did not mind the work. Offering the man coin would probably have spared
him the physical labor, but he preferred to help out rather than sit back and
watch.

Lunch consisted of
boiled potatoes, a small strip of dried meat, and a large chunk of bread. As
soon as he saw the food, he missed the fresh cuisine of the forest. The elves
collected berries that they could make into jams that kept all through the
winter. The hunters supplied fresh meat nearly every day, and they drank teas
from the dried leaves of dozens of different plants. He allowed his mind to
wander and tried to imagine what he would be eating once he reached the
Sunswept Isles. Everything he had heard of the Enlightened Elves had been
negative, so he could not imagine their food being very good.

“All set to leave?”
the bearded man asked.

Yori nodded,
returned his empty plate to the cook, and tossed his leather bag over his
shoulder.

“Can you drive a
wagon?” the man asked. “One of our drivers has been throwing up since last
night. I thought he was drunk and needed to sleep it off, but I guess he’s
really sick.”

“I can do it,” Yori
replied. He had driven a wagon for his uncle many times and was not bad at
managing stubborn mules.

Along the road to
Marron, Yori took notice of the landscape. The area near the city was drab and
brown, but as they moved farther away, the land came alive. Fields of gold
stretched on for miles, and the trees grew tall and proud. Tiny farmhouses
dotted the landscape, and chickens roamed freely beside the road. Children were
playing despite the cool weather, and they waved cheerfully as the wagons
rolled by.

As they neared the
coast, the smell of the sea filled Yori’s nostrils. The air seemed denser and
warmer in Marron, and the sound of the waves filled the air. Catching his first
glimpse of the ocean, Yori sat in awe. Never before had he seen so much blue.
The waves crashed fiercely against the shore, leaving a white foam behind on
the sand. Fleets of cargo ships littered the coastline, each being loaded or
unloaded by hundreds of workers.

Gulls screeched
noisily overhead as Yori’s caravan came to a halt near one of the ships.
Hopping down from his seat, Yori walked around to the back of his wagon to help
unload. The bearded man waved a hand, telling him not to bother.

“You don’t have to
unload,” he said. “They pay these men to do the work from here. They don’t want
us mucking up their precious boats.”

With a nod, Yori
said, “Thanks for bringing me along.” He looked up and down the long row of
ships, wondering which one to try first. The ship he was closest to seemed as
good as any, so he followed the men who were unloading the chests full of gems
as they made their way up the ramp to the deck.

The ship’s captain
was closely supervising the cargo being brought on board. When Yori appeared on
his deck, he became visibly angry. His face reddened, and the veins in his forehead
bulged as he shouted, “You don’t belong here! Go back where you came from!”

“I’m sorry for the
intrusion, sir,” Yori began. He did not have a chance to finish his thought
before he was interrupted.

“I said get off my
ship!” The captain approached Yori and towered over him. The glare in his gray
eyes nearly burned a hole through Yori’s head. “I’ve got to get these gems to
Master Yarion, and I don’t have time for sightseers.”

An idea burst into
Yori’s mind, and he quickly removed his cap to reveal his ears. Standing as
straight as he could and sticking his nose in the air, he said, “Master Yarion
is my father. That bastard owes me an explanation!”

His pretense at
arrogance must have been convincing enough for the captain. “I’ll be damned,”
he said in disbelief. “In a million years I’d never guess one of those haughty
elves would make it with a human woman.”

“Obviously he did,”
Yori replied, still feigning arrogance. “My mother has finally told me the
truth, and I will have his explanation.”

The captain laughed
and said, “Fine by me. I’d love to give that old sorcerer a shock. It’s one
gold coin for your fare.”

“Gold?” Yori said
stunned. “I’ll give you a silver, and I won’t let my father blow your ship to
bits as you sail away.”

The captain eyed
Yori suspiciously but bought the act. “Fine,” he said. “Just stay out of the
way.”

Yori handed him a
silver coin and proceeded onto the deck of the ship. He smiled to himself,
pleased with his own performance. He doubted it would be so easy to convince
the Enlightened Elves that he was one of their own kind. They could probably
smell the Wild Elf in his blood. At any rate, he was aboard the ship that would
bear him to the isles.

The sun finally
broke free of the clouds, and its rays sparkled on the water’s surface. After
what felt like hours, the ship was finally loaded and ready to set sail. Yori
stayed out of the way of the sailors as they went about their duties. Wondering
what kingdoms might lie far off in the blue, he leaned on the starboard rail
and stared off into the vast ocean.

As the ship began
to move, the ocean breeze swept over him. His sandy hair danced on the wind,
and he closed his eyes to stop them from watering. The wind was more intense
than he imagined, and he found it difficult to take in a full breath. The ship
began to sway, followed shortly by Yori’s stomach. Observing the magic of the
sea would have to wait until he was acclimated to the motion of the ship.
Despite his queasiness, his spirits remained high. Adventure awaited him just
beyond the horizon.

S
now fell in
large, chunky flakes as Reylana led the Sycamore warriors to rejoin her
brother’s army. The heavy snow was nearly blinding, and she was having a hard
time recognizing her surroundings. Tracking the movements of his company was
impossible with the fresh snowfall. It was still early in the afternoon, but
the blizzard showed no signs of relenting. “Let’s make camp here for the
night,” she declared. “We’ll have better luck finding them after this storm has
ended.”

The elves climbed
into the trees to wait out the storm. Nat took a seat on a wide branch next to
Reylana. “We should have tried harder to convince Darin to come with us,” he
said.

“He was too old for
this journey,” she replied. “But we should have dragged his fool grandson with
us whether he wished it or not.”

Nodding, Nat said,
“That could have worked too.”

“We can only hope
my clansmen have done better at convincing the other clans. Perhaps one of them
has a rune carver. We still stand a better chance with greater numbers, even if
most of our weapons are not etched with runes.”

“All of us here
have runes, and we have a few to share with our kinsmen. We could use a mage or
two on our side in place of a rune carver.”

“I don’t think
that’s going to happen,” Reylana said. “I’ve never heard of any of our kind
with that type of power. Shamans always focus on repairing the earth, not
destroying it.”

“I’ve never
encountered a mage,” Nat said with a shrug. He grinned and added, “I’m looking
forward to using them for target practice, though.”

Reylana stretched
out on the branch and closed her eyes. There was no need to keep watch. Even
humans couldn’t be stupid enough to travel in this weather. Relaxing, she let
her mind wander until she soon fell asleep. In her dreams, she saw the forests
burning. Her kinsmen were dying all around her as magefire blasted through the
air. As she made her way toward the mages, the ground in front of her erupted,
sending dirt and dried leaves in every direction. Only gaping pits remained
where once earth and trees had existed. With no other option before her, she
retreated to find safety in the woods. Many elves joined her, running from all
directions. Their efforts had been defeated by the mages, and the Wildlands
were now destroyed. No forest would remain once the mages had finished. The
elves had nowhere left to run.

She awoke in a cold
sweat, the visions from her dream refusing to leave her mind. Darkness loomed
all around her, but the snowfall had become lighter. Though she had never
prayed before in her life, she felt the urge now.
If there is truly a
Goddess of the Forest, please help my people. We cannot do this alone.
Immediately after thinking the words, she felt foolish. She knew that there
were no magical creatures out there that were willing to help. If the elves
were to survive, they needed true leadership and a damn good battle plan.

She sat up and
looked over at Nat, who was fast asleep. He seemed courageous enough, having
spoken out against his clan’s Overseer. Also, he had managed to convince nearly
half the clan to join in the fight. She hoped he would prove wise enough to
lead a group into battle, though she knew he lacked experience. She herself had
not experienced battle until Na’zora declared war on her people. She had proven
herself a quick learner, and so could Nat.

As dawn finally
broke, the clouds separated to allow the sun to peek through the sky. The snow
had ended, leaving at least ten inches behind on the ground. Today’s march
would be slow as they grew ever nearer to joining the others. Reylin’s group
was on the move, but she was sure she would be able to find them.

With a firm shake,
she roused Nat from his sleep.

Yawning, he said,
“Good morning.”

“Send some scouts
out ahead. We need to figure out where Reylin’s group has gone. I’m betting
he’ll be somewhere near Na’zora’s border and not too much farther north. He’ll
want to stay central, I’m sure.”

Nat descended the
branches to find his clansmen and dispatch the scouts. Reylana descended from
the tree as well. Her mind went first to the thought of food, but all she had
brought was dried meat and nuts. Not exactly a feast, but it would have to
suffice for now.

One of the scouts
came back within minutes of heading north. “There are elves ahead of us,” he
said. “I saw tracks not a few hours old. I’d say it was a scout who turned back
before he reached us.”

Reylana sighed in
relief, knowing she would rejoin her brother that day. The deep snow made their
journey difficult, and Reylana cursed every time she tripped over a hidden
obstacle. Her legs were beginning to ache already, and she wished for some
magefire to thaw her path.

Up ahead, a
familiar voice called out. “Where’s my fiery-haired sister?”

“Reylin?” she
called, craning her neck to see ahead.

Reylin strode her
direction accompanied by a Sycamore scout. “It’s good to have you back, Sis,”
he said, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.

“It’s good to be
back. The snow was so thick last night I couldn’t tell where we were. I’m still
not completely sure,” she admitted.

“You’re not far
from our old village,” he replied. “Everything looks different in the snow.”
Shaking his head, he said, “Women make terrible guides. They never know where
they are.”

She punched him in
the shoulder and said, “If we spent as much time goofing around in the forest
pretending to hunt, we’d probably know better.”

“Oh just stick to
what you know and swing your pretty sword,” he said jokingly.

Reylana smiled
briefly, but her thoughts took a more serious turn. “Have we lost many of our
clansmen since I left?”

“Not too many,” he
replied. “Though, we have seen some battle. You’ve missed out.”

“I wouldn’t have
been much use with a busted shoulder, but it’s healed now.”

“We’ve gained a few
friends,” he said with a grin.

As the army of
elves came into view, Reylana’s mouth dropped open.

“I’ve got about
twelve hundred friends here,” Reylin said. “How many did you bring again?” He
chuckled and looked back over his shoulder at the Sycamore warriors. “Only
about four or five hundred, I’m guessing. Looks like I win.”

“I didn’t know it
was a contest,” she replied, still staring at the army. Never before had she
seen such a gathering of elves. The elves of the Wildlands usually kept to
their own clans and had no need for each other. It amazed her to see so many
come together.

“I’m still hoping
some clans across the river will join us. We haven’t heard anything from them
yet.”

“I couldn’t
convince the rune carver,” Reylana said, the disappointment clear in her voice.

“No worries,” he
replied with a smile. “I’ve found one of those myself. The Mountain Clan has a
rune carver, and he’s been very busy.” He held his head high with pride but
couldn’t stop himself from laughing.

Shaking her head,
Reylana said, “It’s good to see you again, Reylin.” She wrapped both arms
around him and squeezed him tightly.