Swanheart

Chapter Eight

Forging Treaties

King Zaylan and High Sorceress Ranya had donned their ceremonial robes. Zaylan wore dark blue, while Ranya's were red. The sleeves and rims of the robes, as well as the backs, were adorned with fine embroidery, showing the heraldic animal of the land the magicians represented.

Terrulli, wearing a simple light blue dress, which a seamstress in Chitaan had made for her, followed them into the Sacred Halls of the High Council of Shircon.

Since the beginning of time, as was known to the population of Yuron, these halls had been the place where the leaders for each magical country were chosen in a special ceremony and other important meetings took place.

A large, round, white marble table stood in the center of the high halls. Eleven chairs could be counted that surrounded it. They had been painted in different colors, similar to the gemstones, which were part of Asram's Stone of Creation. There were two light blue chairs for Ashkyhra, because in that country was a king and a queen ruling. Next to it stood a golden one for Pavan. A green one for Slidur, a dark blue chair for Chitaan, a gray one for Kentaara, a red chair for Urdgard and a silver one for Livos followed. There were also three chairs in the color of neutrality; white. On these would sit the three elected Council Chairmen of Shircon, also known as High Councilors.

The walls were adorned by colorful tapestries, each of them showing the heraldic animals of the countries and a map of whole Yuron.

The Animorph had never been in these halls before and was greatly awed by it all. She took in everything that was laid out in front of her with great interest. Terrulli's eyes darted all over the room, flitting from one corner of the room to another, not missing a thing. Here, in these halls, Xandir and Rovannah had stood and were crowned King and Queen of Ashkyhra.

The thought of her parents brought the ever present pain back that had deeply settled in her heart. She reached up to rub her chest, willing the piercing ache to subside. Taking a few deep breaths, Terrulli tried to get her emotions under control and quickly blinked away the tears that burnt strongly in her eyes.

A hand fell onto her shoulder, giving it a comforting squeeze. She looked up and encountered Zaylan's gently smiling face.

"It can be a little bit overwhelming, can't it?" he inquired.

Terrulli was too choked up to answer, so she just nodded.

The king held on to the girl's shoulder, offering silent support. He himself was reminded of the time when he had knelt in front of the Chairmen, pledging his allegiance to the country of his birth and was proclaimed ruler of Chitaan in the face of the Spirits.

"This brings back memories, doesn't it?" Ranya whispered, obviously having thought the same.

A man was sitting on the silver chair, wearing robes of a similar color. He had curly dark brown hair, bushy eyebrows and a chin beard. His face bore a serious expression, but when he smiled little lines would appear around his eyes and mouth that made his features look less stern.

Behind him stood a younger woman, who was dressed in silver robes as well. She was resting her arms on the chair's backrest. There was a similarity between them, indicating that they must be related to each other. As the doors opened to reveal Zaylan, Ranya and Terrulli, she leaned down and whispered something to the man.

He nodded, rose and slowly walked towards the new arrivals. The woman followed one step behind him. He bowed in front of Ranya and then took her hand to breathe a tiny kiss against her knuckles. "High Sorceress Ranya of Urdgard, I presume?"

"Indeed," she replied, charmed by his pleasant voice and attitude.

"It is nice to finally meet you in person. Since we have never met before, please, allow me to introduce myself. I am King Nirios of Livos. This is my sister, Niria. She is a priestess of Menor."

Niria bowed her head respectfully, as did Ranya.

Nirios turned to Terrulli next. "And who may this young lady be?"

Proper behavior called for a curtsey in a situation like this, so the Animorph dropped one. "I am Princess Terrulli of Ashkyhra. I am pleased to meet you."

"The pleasure is all mine," the king of Livos responded and bowed again.

Further introductions were interrupted by the arrival of the Chairmen.

Two older men entered the Sacred Halls. The face of one was partly obscured by long white hair and a long white beard. The other wore his hair in a braid down his back. A few black pearls had been braided into his beard.

They were supporting an old woman, who walked between them, holding on tightly to their arms. The men guided the crone to one of the white chairs.

She slowly lowered her frame to her seat under barely suppressed groaning. "I'm definitely getting too old for this," she muttered. She waited until the two men had sat down, before addressing the other magicians. "Welcome, High Sorcerers of Yuron. Please, take your seats."

Nirios sat down on the silver chair and Niria took a stance behind it.

At a loss, Terrulli looked at Zaylan for help. "What shall I do?" she whispered, a bit intimidated by it all.

"You are the Princess of Ashkyhra. It is your right to sit on one of the light blue chairs," Zaylan explained and gently pushed her towards them.

"Are you sure?" Terrulli was still hesitating.

"Absolutely. Now go and sit, before they grow impatient."

Reluctantly, the Animorph took her seat. She was glad that Zaylan's chair was right next to hers. The fact that he was close by, calmed her and took away a little bit of the nervousness, which was overcoming her. As soon as she had seen the old man with the wild, unkempt hair, she felt an instant dislike for him. She couldn't tell exactly why, but there was just something about him that she didn't trust.

With an encouraging smile at Terrulli, Ranya sat down on the red chair and finally Zaylan lowered his tall frame onto the dark blue one.

The old woman cleared her throat. "Now we begin with the formal introductions. My name is Arida and I am one of the High Councilors." She extended her hand to the left, indicating the man with the braided hair. "This is High Councilor Naphtalon and to my right side sits High Councilor Ciem."

The men in question bowed their heads respectfully in welcome.

Then the magicians introduced themselves and after that Arida continued, "It has been a while since a meeting has been called for. In fact, I can hardly remember the last one. We have gathered here today, because King Zaylan of Chitaan called for a meeting and expressed his wish to discuss certain matters concerning an ancient prophecy and the attack on Ashkyhra."

As the word 'discuss' fell, Terrulli couldn't resist the urge to roll her eyes. She felt the anger raising its head. Leaning over to Zaylan, she whispered, "More discussions? You've got to be kidding me! This is just a bunch of old people. How will they be of any help if all they want to do is talk?"

"It will be alright, child. I understand how you are feeling, but please, be patient."

The Animorph exhaled sharply, biting back a snide remark.

Arida shot her a harsh glare and Terrulli blushed. "Anyway, my eyesight may not be the best in the land, but I can see that several chairs are empty. The representatives of Pavan, Kentaara and Slidur are not here. Can anybody offer an explanation?" She lifted an eyebrow, looking from one to the other.

Suddenly, the doors flew open and a woman hastened into the room, her emerald green robes billowing behind her. It was Queen Samira of Slidur.

All heads turned to look at the newcomer and Zaylan rose to pull the woman into a hug. Besides Cibor and Ranya, Samira had been another close friend for him during his time at the Wizardry Academy.

The Queen of the wood country quickly introduced herself to the Councilors, Nirios, Niria and Terrulli, walked over to greet Ranya and then took her seat on the green chair. "I apologize for my late arrival," Samira began, nervously brushing a few wisps of her ebony hair behind her ears that had come loose off her bun. Her face was the epitome of concern. "I bring rather disturbing news."

*****

They had been on horseback almost all day, only once in a while taking a break to water their animals and stretch their legs a bit, before Loreen urged them on. The Half-Elf led the way. She was unable to tell the others how she knew it, but she guided them along the path as confidently as if she had a map, even though it had been several decades since the last time she had been in the country of her mother. "You can't find Ilumera on a map," Loreen had explained. "You carry it in your heart if you have been there once and your instincts will guide you. Eventually, Ilumera is going to find you."

The white wolf walked alongside Uruth, sticking close to the princess at all time in a protective manner. Alannah had not even tried to leave Cerulia at the castle, because she knew that nothing would keep her from following them anyway.

The sun was low in the sky, when they reached a clearing in the woods.

"Well, I don't know about you, but I would say that this looks like the perfect place to set up camp for tonight," Leigh said, pulled on the reins to bring Mican to a stop and slid out of the saddle. Her brown leather boots hit the grass with a soft thud. She walked over to Uruth to help Alannah off the horse's back.

Once standing on solid ground again, the princess pulled a face and reached back to rub her sore behind, groaning in relief. "We should have asked Ranya to let us fly to Ilumera on Firetail's back. That would have been much quicker."

Leigh smirked, but decided to bite back any remarks.

Loreen though didn't have any such scruples. Grinning, she approached the young, silver-haired woman. "It's a pain in the butt, huh?" Her eyes were sparkling with mirth.

Alannah glared at the Half-Elf. "Yes it is and no pun intended," she grumbled.

The knight gently patted her shoulder. "You'll get used to it. Tomorrow it won't hurt like this."

"She's right," Loreen said, chuckling. "Tomorrow it will be even worse, my Princess."

"Don't listen to her. She just loves picking on you," Leigh responded and untied the water skins from the saddles.

"It will be alright, Alannah," the Half-Elf announced then and winked. "I was just teasing you. Come on, help me get the saddles off and then you can go with Leigh to refill the water skins and try to catch our dinner as long as there is still light."

The princess did as she was told. "I was just about to ask. What are we having for dinner?"

"There should be trout in the creek. Leigh, do you think you could get some?"

"I'll try. If it doesn't work we can have some bread, cheese and fruits that the servants packed for us," the knight replied.

Loreen nodded. "Alright, run along then. Meanwhile, I will collect some wood and get a fire going."

"That was one pretty tasty meal," Alannah praised, lying on her bedroll and patting her belly in satisfaction.

Cerulia had curled up next to her, content after hunting down and eating her own dinner. Since fish was not so much to the wolf's liking, she had caught herself a fat rabbit.

Darkness had fallen over their little camp, but the merry fire that was crackling chased the shadows away and kept the cold at bay.

The trout, which Leigh had caught with help of a makeshift spear, had been perked up by Loreen, using some herbs and spices, and together with some bread and fruits, the fish had made a very delicious dinner.

"I can only agree," Leigh confirmed. "You really know your way with plants."

"Thanks you two," the healer responded, pleased. "Say, why don't you entertain yourselves for a bit, while I go and check the perimeter?"

Leigh rose. "But I can do that, Loreen."

"No, you lay back down and rest. My eyesight is better than yours in the dark anyway. I will wake you in a few hours for guarding duty." With that, the Half-Elf disappeared into the forest.

Alannah turned on her side to look at the knight, who had her bedroll right next to hers. "Do you think we are safe here?"

Leigh rolled over until she was facing the princess. "Are you scared?" she wanted to know.

Alannah shook her head. "No. With you at my side, my brave little knight, there is nothing I fear." Her heart skipped a beat as she saw the blonde smiling at her.

"That's good to know. My mother's shield and my father's sword are close by, just in case somebody might stumble across us. And, we have a Half-Elf, who can see in the dark as well as a fierce wolf to protect us, right Cerulia?" Looking over at the wolf, she saw her yawn. "Okay, she might not look quite as fierce now, but I'm sure we are pretty safe here."

Alannah grinned before closing her eyes. "I told you, I'm not worried in the slightest."

Leigh lay down too and a thought came to her mind. "Hey, did you check and see if your father wrote anything?"

The princess' eyes flew open. "Oh, to tell the truth, I almost forgot all about the scrolls." Under much moaning and groaning, Alannah rose and walked to Uruth's saddle. She rummaged in the bags for a while until her searching fingers touched the parchment, ink and quill. Returning with the objects to her bedroll, she sat down gingerly and unfolded the scroll. "No, it's still blank."

"That probably means they are still wrapped up in the meeting and that there is no important news."

"I think you are right." Rolling it back up, Alannah placed it and the other things next to her bedroll, because she didn't think that she could get up one more time.

Cerulia sniffed at the parchment, before deciding it wasn't worth any more attention and lay back down.

"I'm sorry you are in pain," Leigh said in a small voice and a compassionate look at Alannah. "We should have padded your saddle more."

The princess smiled at her reassuringly. "It will be fine. Like you said, I just have to get used to it. From now on I might just have to spend more time on horseback. Maybe we can go for a ride everyday when we are back in Chitaan?"

"I would like that," Leigh replied, returning the smile. "Do you think you will be able to sleep? Maybe Loreen has something in her pouches that will help with the pain."

"I'm so tired. I don't think I'll have any problem going to sleep." The words had barely left her mouth as the princess had to stifle a hearty yawn. "See what I mean?"

Leigh chuckled. "Yeah."

"Good night, my brave little knight."

"Good night, my precious princess."

It didn't take long for them to enter the realm of dreams.

As Loreen returned to camp, she found them lying side by side and fast asleep. Alannah's head was resting on Leigh's shoulder and one of her hands lay on the knight's stomach. Their fingers had found each other in sleep and were intertwined. "Rest well, our saviors," the healer whispered, smiling softly in the dark. Then Loreen took Leigh's green cloak and spread it over the sleeping women. The silvery swan embroidery sparkled in the dancing flames of the campfire as the Half-Elf sat down to keep watch. "Bad times are ahead, challenges are waiting for you, but as long as you work together, nothing can beat you down."

*****

"Tell us, what news do you bring, Queen Samira? Does it have anything to do with the missing representatives?" High Councilor Ciem asked in a scratchy voice, brushing his long hair out of his face.

Samira nodded. "First of all, I would like to say that I am really glad that King Zaylan called for this meeting. The time to act is now, before the dark force that is threatening our country gains more power. I came to the conclusion that we are facing a threat beyond our wildest imaginations. I know about the attack on Ashkyhra from King Zaylan's letter and I fear that this was just the beginning."

It was deadly silent in the High Halls. Everybody listened to the sorceress' words with bated breath.

"Shortly before I got the message to attend to this meeting today, I was trying to get in contact with my good friend Tanith, the High Sorceress of Pavan." Samira's breathing hitched and her voice broke. "Pavan has been attacked too. The few survivors tell the same tale as did the ones from Ashkyhra, whom Tanith mentioned in her letter to King Zaylan. The masked sorcerer from the ancient prophecy came to conquer the land." Samira lowered her emerald eyes, to keep the others from seeing the tears that welled up.

Shock, disbelief, fear, dismay, all these emotions flickered over the faces of the present men and women. The only ones whose expressions didn't change were the High Councilors. They had to keep neutral, no matter how bad the situation was and they had to keep their emotions in check at all times.

"What of High Sorceress Tanith? Did she survive the attack?" Naphtalon inquired. His voice was deep and cold, not betraying any feeling.

Samira cleared her throat to get rid of the lump that had formed there. "One of the survivors said that Tanith unleashed the Sacred Golems on her opponent, but in the end she was defeated. The masked sorcerer took her with him and he also ordered his soldiers to bring along the golems."

King Nirios frowned. "For what purpose? They would not be of any use to him. The sacred protectors of Pavan only listen to the one that holds the gemstone…" He trailed off and then his eyes widened. "Oh, by Menor, he is after Asram's Stone of Creation!"

"Please, King Nirios," Arida interrupted him. "Don't jump to any conclusions just yet. We are still in the process of gathering information."

The ruler of the metal country had gotten up from his chair, ready to defend his sudden outburst. "But now it makes sense! He will go from country to country and gather the pieces of Asram's stone! Remember what the prophecy says, about the 'Deliverer of Peace', who will unite all of Yuron?"

The crone fixed him with a harsh glare. "I demand that you sit back down and wait till it is your turn to speak. We are still investigating and I will not have you disturb this meeting further with wild guesses that are just based on speculations!"

Nirios' mouth opened once more to object, but his sister placed a calming hand on his shoulder and he sat down, pressing his lips tightly together and grinding his teeth in frustration. He crossed his arms in front of his chest.

"What about High Sorcerer Krymm?" Naphtalon continued with his questions. "Does anybody know why he didn't see it fit to make an appearance today?"

"Krymm has been keeping to himself ever since the death of his wife. But even before that terrible tragedy, Kentaara was one of the countries that didn't like to interact with others. It was a little world of its own and guests were not often welcome there," Zaylan answered. "It can be that he didn't deem this meeting important."

Naphtalon nodded. "Everybody is entitled to their own opinion and there is no rule that forces him to partake in High Council meetings."

"What if he got attacked too?" Nirios threw in.

"I will say this only once," Arida snapped, barely able to hide her irritation with the ruler of Livos. "One more outburst and I have you removed from the High Halls."

"But he is right," interjected a firm voice. Terrulli had risen. "It is time to stop beating around the bush and talk sense. How much more evidence do you need to realize that our land is facing a severe threat? We will be doomed if we don't start acting anytime soon!" The Animorph's heart was pounding wildly while she waited for the High Councilors' reactions. She was a bit surprised about her own courage to speak up like that.

"Because you are so young and have never attended a Council meeting before, I will let your disrespecting behavior slide," Arida began, only to be interrupted once more.

Unexpectedly, King Nirios came to the girl's aid. "Disrespecting behavior? This girl is the Princess of Ashkyhra and she has every right to be upset. There is nothing left of her country, her father was killed by this monster and her mother and younger brother are missing. What are you going to do about it? Try to talk him to death when the masked sorcerer comes to conquer Shircon? Or do you think the capital will be safe from his clutches?"

"King Nirios…"

"No! I don't care if you will expel me from the room or exclude me from further meetings! I will speak my mind now!" he shouted. "Don't you want to see it or are you just too scared to face the obvious? I don't mean any disrespect, but take my earlier words into consideration. Talking will not save us when he comes to destroy us! We have to make plans for the inevitable!"

Zaylan rose then too, but he kept his voice calm as he stated his point of view. "King Nirios and Princess Terrulli are right. This is not the time to hold on to proper protocol. I know that you have to look at the situation from each possible angle, but we can't afford to waste anymore precious moments. We are confronted by a powerful enemy, who is skillful in the arts of magic. Apparently, he also is in cohesion with dark forces. If it is true that he is after Asram's Stone of Creation then our whole land is at stake. Two magical countries have fallen already, maybe three, since the fate of Kentaara is unknown at the moment. From the eyewitnesses we know that the masked sorcerer has at least the golden stone in his possession and he might try to use its powers."

The High Councilors looked at each other for a moment. Arida rubbed her chin in thought. "I understand that all of you are upset, but if we don't have all the information, we cannot make a decision. We can't just declare all of Yuron a state of emergency and begin waging war against an unknown enemy when we don't know for sure what exactly is going on."

Nirios rolled his eyes and sighed in exasperation. Only his sister's hand on his shoulder kept him from another outburst.

Arida's eyes traveled from magician to magician, until they rested once more on Zaylan. "So, what are your suggestions?"

Immediately, Nirios, Terrulli, Ranya and Samira started talking at the same time, but nobody could understand what the other was saying.

"SILENCE!" High Councilor Naphtalon thundered. After everybody had quieted down and was sitting again, he added, "This question was meant for King Zaylan."

"We need to forge treaties. I'm positive, if we all work together, we will be able to defeat the masked sorcerer," Chitaan's ruler replied.

"And with whom would you like to form alliances?" Arida asked.

Zaylan looked at Ranya and saw her encouraging nod. He knew that he had to choose his next words wisely, but in the end it wouldn't make a difference. Preparing for a negative reaction from the High Councilors, he answered, "First of all, I think that we should inform the non-magical countries as well."

"That might prove difficult. You know the reasons why," the crone replied.

"I think it's time to finally stop once and for all the animosities that happened centuries ago. The non-magical countries are a part of Yuron just like our lands and who is to say that the masked sorcerer will not try to take them over too?"

The High Councilors exchanged another look, before Naphtalon said, "We see your reasoning and we approve of this choice. Is there anything else?"

Zaylan took a deep breath. That the councilors had agreed to inform the non-magical countries was already a small victory, so it was now or never. "I wish to involve the Elves of Ilumera."

Niria and Samira gasped. Nirios blinked in surprise and looked rather dumbfounded while Ranya, Terrulli and Zaylan watched the High Councilors closely after the king's last sentence.

Arida had turned pale and Ciem looked shocked to the core. The only one whose face was still unreadable was Naphtalon. "I beg your pardon. I don't think that I heard you correctly, King Zaylan."

"I wish to involve the Elves of Ilumera," he repeated firmly, not taking his eyes off the High Councilors, inwardly preparing to fight for and defend his decision.

"Impossible!" Ciem sputtered exasperated, completely forgetting to keep up the indifference of neutrality. "In all my years as High Councilor this must have been the most outrageous suggestion ever! We don't know anything about the Elves. Their look at the world differs greatly from ours and they use a different kind of magic. The 'Pointy Ears' have no business meddling in the affairs of humans!"

Now Terrulli knew where her instant dislike for Ciem came from. He was obviously ruled by prejudices, a fact that should have been highly uncommon for a neutral High Councilor. Nonetheless, there he sat on a white chair in the High Halls of Shircon, being a chairman of the meeting.

"And why not?" Zaylan asked. "Is Ilumera not also a part of Yuron?"

Stubbornly, the old man shook his head in denial. "Not as far as I am concerned. We keep away from them and they stay away from us. That worked well for centuries, so we should leave it at that."

Nirios, who had gotten over his first shock, curled his hands to fists. "This attitude is exactly why our country is doomed! We are still ruled by distrust and prejudices! When will it ever stop?"

"I can only agree," Ranya chimed in.

Terrulli nodded, "Me too."

Arida raised her arms in a peremptory gesture. "Would everybody please calm down?"

"Why don't we just dismiss them and declare this meeting over?" Ciem grumbled. "Involving the Elves… pah… why don't we just give our world on a silver platter to the 'Pointy Ears'? Because that is what they are after! Who says that it isn't them, who sent the masked sorcerer to conquer us?"

"High Councilor Ciem, it is best that you remember your position and where you are. Regain your composure or you will be the one who is dismissed from this meeting," Arida told him firmly.

The old man muttered something into his long beard, crossed his arms in front of his chest and leaned back in his chair like a petulant child.

"I have to admit though that your suggestion was rather unexpected and took me by surprise, King Zaylan. What made you think of wanting to form an alliance with the Elves?" Naphtalon asked. He seemed to be the most reasonable of the three councilors.

"Desperate situations call for desperate measures and like I said, it is time to stop the animosities," Zaylan answered. "The Elves are not our enemies. They never were. I have a healer, who is a Half-Elf, and she has been a most loyal friend for many years. Besides, two decades ago, after Chitaan was attacked by a non-magical country, it was Elves, who came to my aid and they never asked for anything in return."

"What makes you think that they will risk their lives to battle an unknown opponent and help us?"

"I can't say for sure but it's not going to hurt to ask, is it?"

Ciem snorted in disgust. "Crawling on our hands and knees to the Elves to beg for help… I'd rather get conquered by the masked sorcerer…"

Arida glared at her fellow councilor before turning to Zaylan. "It is an unusual request, but we will approve and…"

Before the crone could finish her sentence, Ciem stood up. Adjusting the sleeves of his robes, he declared, "Excuse me, but I do not approve. I want no further part in this conversation and therefore I will leave." Though everybody stared at him, not one of the present men or women made a move to hold him back. He was only one step away from the door as he turned on his heel once more. "Mark my words, doom will not come by a magician from some ancient prophecy. It will be the Elves that will seal our downfall." Then he left, closing the door with a mighty bang behind him.

Nirios was barely able to keep from jumping up and applauding. He was relieved that Ciem was gone and unlikely to return.

"We apologize for High Councilor Ciem's irresponsible behavior. Rest assured that he will have consequences to face," Arida promised.

Zaylan nodded and looked from the crone to Naphtalon and back. "Thank you for approving. I agree, it is an unusual request and the outcome cannot be determined as of yet, but…"

"Desperate situations call for desperate measures," Naphtalon finished for him, allowing a tiny smile to flicker for a brief moment over his face. "You are right King Zaylan. It is time to change a lot of things. A treaty with the Elves and the non-magical countries will be a good first step in the right direction."

Arida cleared her throat. "King Zaylan, would you be willing to take up the responsibility of talking with the Elves? As you have told us you had interactions with them in the past so you have the most insight in their culture."

"I would be honored, High Councilor." He glanced at Ranya and saw her grin. After some difficulties, this meeting had turned out a success and there was one worry less on their shoulders.

*****

The third day of their journey had dawned in a fiery red light and once again they had covered a lot of ground. Loreen was positive that they would reach Ilumera before the day's end.

"Thank Ossyr," Alannah groaned in relief at the Half-Elf's announcement. Her backside was still sore but it didn't hurt as bad as it did after the first day. She was getting used to it and from time to time she would walk, which helped with the pain too. The thought that they might sleep this evening in a real bed and not on the ground was very appealing to her.

"Let's take a break. I need to stretch my legs and I feel a gnawing in my belly," Leigh said, sliding off Mican's back. This morning, before they had set out, she had not been hungry. Now, her stomach was voicing its neglect quite loudly and she regretted that she had skipped breakfast. She rummaged in the saddle bags and pulled out some bread and a little pouch with fresh berries that Loreen had plucked in the morning. "Would you like something too?" the knight asked the other women.

"No, thank you," Loreen declined and took the reins of all three horses. "I'll go and water the horses. I'll be right back."

Alannah ate a few berries and had a drink from the water skin. Then her eyes fell on the scroll that her father had given her. Unrolling it, her eyes widened. "Leigh! Come here and look at this!"

"What is it?" the blonde inquired, hurrying over to where the princess stood.

"It's a message from Father. The meeting is over and they are on their way to join us in Ilumera."

Leigh nodded. "Good. That means the Council must have approved a treaty with the Elves. What else is it saying?"

Alannah frowned while skimming over the words in Zaylan's neat handwriting. Then she gasped, "Oh no!"

"What? What's wrong?"

"He says that Pavan has been attacked and that High Sorceress Tanith has been abducted."

Leigh looked shocked. "So we were right. Ashkyhra was just the beginning and now it continues."

"He also says that they are deeply concerned about Kentaara," Alannah continued. "High Sorcerer Krymm didn't attend the Council meeting and it is assumed that the mountain country did fall prey to the masked sorcerer as well. They want to check it out before they come to Ilumera."

Leigh rubbed her chin, thinking about what she had just heard. "You know, we really need to quickly come up with a good plan to stop the dark magic-wielder before all Yuron is conquered. By the Spirits, three magical countries are lost already."

"Maybe not three, I mean Father said they are worried about Kentaara, but they don't know yet what's going on there."

"I hope that everything is fine with the mountain country but something tells me that's just wishful thinking."

Alannah looked at her in dismay. "I feel the same."

"Let's find Loreen and be on our way to the Elves," Leigh said and walked into the direction the healer had disappeared.

Cerulia followed them.

They didn't get very far before Leigh stopped dead in her tracks and Alannah almost crashed into her back.

"What's wrong?" the princess whispered.

Placing an index finger on her lips, Leigh motioned for her to be quiet. She cocked her head and strained her ears, listening attentively to their surroundings. Squinting, she caught movement in the undergrowth. She couldn't tell if it was an animal or a person.

Cerulia pressed close to Alannah's legs. Her hackles bristled and she started growling. Whatever was out there, it moved as if it was one with the forest and the white wolf didn't like it.

Slowly, the knight pulled her sword from the scabbard. Looking around for her shield, she realized that it was still tied to Mican's saddle and Loreen had left with the horses. Cursing inwardly, she grabbed her sword tightly with both hands. "Get behind me, Alannah," she told the princess.

"What's going on?" the silver-haired woman wanted to know, holding on to Leigh's armor with trembling fingers.

"Don't worry, Alannah," Leigh calmed her. "I won't let anything happen to you. Just stay behind me." Fixing her eyes to the trees and bushes, the knight called out loudly, "Show yourself!"

The rustling of leaves accompanied by the snapping of twigs came from every direction. The sounds were not loud, but they were definitely there.

'By the Spirits, we are surrounded,' Leigh thought. 'Where is Loreen?' She bent her knees slightly, getting a better stance on the soft moss that covered the ground. "Come out!" she shouted again, raising her sword, prepared to strike.

"How dare you give us orders in our own land, human?"

Leigh whirled around and pointed her sword at the face of a seemingly young man. There was no way to tell his age. Holding his body in a graceful posture, his features looked as if he had barely seen twenty summers. He was tall and of slender built, wearing clothes in colors of brown and green, which helped him to blend in with his surroundings. He also carried a longbow in his hand. A gray quiver was strapped to his back. The arrows that looked out of it bore white feathers. His long, blonde hair cascaded over his shoulders. A metal band around his forehead kept the locks from covering his pointy ears or falling into his pale face. His skin was smooth and without any beard stubbles. The slightly almond-shaped eyes regarded the young women with curiosity, despite his earlier harsh words.

"Y-you… you are an Elf," Alannah stuttered in surprise.

"His name is Loredane," a female voice announced. "He is a distant cousin of mine." Loreen stepped out of the bushes. "It's alright, Leigh. You can put your sword away. We are safe."

Reluctantly, the knight did as she was told.

Loredane came closer.

Still growling, Cerulia, who had been at Alannah's side the whole time, lowered her body, getting ready to pounce on the stranger should he try to harm her companions.

The Elf sank to one knee and held out his left hand to the wolf. "I do not wish to hurt anybody," he said gently.

Hesitating, Cerulia slowly inched her way toward the new arrival. She sniffed the hand and decided the he didn't pose a threat to her beloved humans. Retreating, the wolf sat down next to Alannah, watching closely but no longer growling.

"Loreen, what's going on?" Leigh asked a bit confused.

"Remember when I said that Ilumera was going to find you?"

"Yes," the knight nodded.

"We are close. Loredane is a scout. He and his men will guide us the rest of the way."

The Elf in question rose from the ground and disappeared into the undergrowth. "Follow me. King Mandylor awaits you."

Leigh and Alannah exchanged a questioning look before hurrying after him and Loreen, Cerulia right at their heels.

*****

Continued...