Soul Searching (Will)

The cave was about a two hour walk from the main village of Nordel and was nestled in among lush trees and flowering brush. The cave was virtually invisible to the naked eye unless one knew what they were looking for. There were torches in gold sconces lining the curved walls and a large fireplace was positioned on the back wall allowing the cave to be warmed during colder weather. An ornately carved round table was the only furniture in the place and this is where Will found himself quietly sitting as the council discussed some problem with something called the Beholder. Most of the discussion was foreign to him, there were things mentioned that he had never heard tell of before – driders, dracolythes, orcs, trolls – but there was one word he understood quite well – war. Will desperately tried to wrap his brain around this strange new world he had stumbled into but logic kept hindering his ability to absorb the information that was being presented to him. He found the cave that they had retreated to disturbingly bright and airy, unlike the ones he was used to exploring back home, which only further distracted him.

“William will ride out with Lith in the morning to gather the others.” Lutrol’s voice broke through the commotion in Will’s brain and he jerked his head back as if he had been struck in the face.

“Excuse me, Father, but did I understand you correctly? You wish me to take part in the preparations of this war but…”

Before he could finish Lutrol gave a small chuckle and smiled patiently at his son, “You will be doing more than just helping with the preparations, Son, you will be fighting along side me.” As if that answered everything he turned his attention back to the conversation at hand leaving Will completely dumfounded.

After several more hours of discussion and planning the council finally adjourned. Will lagged behind hoping to have a word with his father in private but was disappointed to see that the centaur was still chatting with the elf. Sighing, he reluctantly found his way back into the village, his shoulders slumping with the weight of his concerns.

There was much activity on the ground as the evening meal was being laid out in an elaborate spread on the forest floor in recognition of their honored guest. Will desperately wanted to retreat to the sanctuary of his room but knew that that would be frowned upon. Finding his place at the head table he sank down into his chair resting his chin in his hands.

“My dear brother, what has you so deeply troubled?” Emarl asked as she gracefully slipped into her chair next to him.

Will was touched by her concern but felt it better to hide his true thoughts until he could speak with his father. He wrote off his brooding to hunger and fatigue which Emarl seemed to believe willingly. Thankfully, any further discussion of the matter was put to an end with the arrival of the food and serving of the wine.

Will was not lying when he said he was hungry and he ate enough to prove it. Unfortunately, he drowned his concerns in the wine and was soon overcome with its euphoric effect. At the end of the celebration, Will was so severely under the influence of the elven wine that his cousin, Lith, had to help him up the ladder to the tree house for fear that the boy would fall to his death in his current state.

After sleeping for a few hours, Will awoke to the sound of muffled voices in the adjacent room. Groggily he got to his feet taking a moment to get his bearings and allow the drumming in his head to subside a bit. With a stealth that only an elf could claim he crept to his bedroom door to listen.

“Father, are you sure this is the best thing for him?” It was the voice of Emarl that came first to Will’s ears. “He’s a delivery boy, what does he know of wars?”

“I’m aware of what he did in the human world but that does not matter here. In Nordel he is a prince and therefore he will do this. He must earn the respect of the people.” Lutrol’s voice was firm and a bit agitated as if they had been on this topic for a little while.

“He is rather good with the bow,” Lith’s voice rang in with a note of pride for it was he that had taught Will this skill. “I would trust him with my life, Emarl. He is ready for this.”

“And what does he say about all of this? Did either of you bother to find out?” Emarl asked her voice rising an octave in her frustration to get her father to see the logic in what she was saying.

“I told you already that I didn’t get a chance to converse with him as I was preoccupied with Tavalox and then when the opportunity did arrive Will was already senseless from the wine.”

“I’m not now.” Will stepped into the room startling the trio. Although his eyes were still bloodshot and the hammering in his head persisted, his mind was clear. He knew that what he said tonight would shape his future forever.

“How long have you been listening?” asked Lutrol from his seat next to the smoldering fire.

“Long enough,”

“And how do you feel about the task at hand?”

Will looked into each of their faces and when his eyes came to rest back on his father he knew what he wanted to say. “I’ll admit that at first I was stunned by your appointment but now I realize why you did it. Whether I want the position or not, I am your son, and with that goes certain responsibilities. If I walk away from this, I will be haunted for the rest of my life. We’re not only fighting these dark creatures for the elves, but for all that is good and innocent. How can I turn my back on that? How can I say no?”

The room was silent, only the chirping of the crickets below and the song of the tree frogs could be heard echoing throughout the forest. After what seemed like an eternity to Will, his father stood up and embraced him. “No matter what comes of this, know that I am proud of you.” With tears in her eyes, Emarl joined in on the hug and for the first time the three were united.

Later that night, Will lay on his bed lost in thought. He was as much surprised by his little speech as the others had been but he knew that he had spoken the truth. His thoughts drifted to Alex as they often did and he felt a pang of guilt at having to postpone his search for her. But how could he even think of starting a relationship with her when there was a monster loose that threatened to destroy the very peace and happiness he sought.

Finally, his mind quieted enough to allow the boy a few hours of sleep before he and Lith would have to set out in search of others who would rally with the Elves of Nordel to fight against the evil of the Forest of Hereanafter.

Dusty Trailwalker

The sweet sounds from the piano lazily drifted through the room. Casually the notes caressed the sundry patrons of the Serendipity, helping each into a place they individually wanted to be. Rosey played songs that seemed appropriate for the situations she observed from her elevated perch. Her being was such that not playing caused a build up of emotions that found release through the fondling of the black and white ivories found on a keyboard.

Casey just sat at this point waiting for either Mike or Gabe to reply in response to her story. She had just related to them the story of her banishment to earth as it related to the Great Rebellion.

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Dusky Trailwalker continued to walk the now muddy trail, as he had for the past twenty three days. Fortunately the rainstorm was only four days old. His elven cloak and dragon skin cap kept him relatively dry, but did nothing for the cold. He hated cold. It reminded him of his service as King Geishlahan's captain of the guard. Fifty seven years of dedicated service with only ice drake scars and several medals for winning a handful of skirmishes against the mountain trolls to show for it. The northern frontier was no place for an elf, let men guard those outposts. Elves are made for the forest and plains, with some even suited for the waterways of Urth. Regardless Dusky was now his own elf and could come and go throughout the lands as he wished, or so he thought.

The horses were upon him from around the bend before he really had a chance to react. Normally he would have heard them well before they saw him, but the rain and his preoccupation with the cold took all Dusky's concentration. Regardless th reason, the ditch from which he extracted himself was still full of cold water and a wet season's worth of gakage. Now from head to toe and from outside to bone Dusky was soaked. which only made the cold worse. King Geishlahan's was never like this.

Methodically he continued down the trail. Only now he was paying more attention to his surroundings. He did not recognize the garb worn by the horsemen, but men at arms were a dime a dozen in these troubled times. Whatever evil was afoot in the lands of Urth seemed to draw men from corners only talked about in stories, until now.

Slowly as Dusky topped a rise in the road an inn became visible through the rain and fog. He could also see a small village, half a day’s walk in a small vale beyond the inn.

" Friendly Waters", Dusky spoke as he read aloud the inn's placard. "We shall see."

Pushing the outer door open and then shut behind him Dusky was struck by two things first the smell of a delicious stew simmering over the fire and a fist that caught him square on the jaw .

" That's fer spookin' my horse ya damn sneak thief.", added the gentleman who'd stunned Dusky with a sound uppercut.

" Who the hell are you?", Dusky asked raising himself off the floor and rubbing his jaw.

"You damn near made my horse throw me back 'ere on da road."

"Well then let me apologize and introduce myself." Dusky said as he bowed slightly.

Suddenly Dusky pinned the man to the foyer wall with an arm across his throat while the other held a wicked looking dragon sabre below the man's nose.

"Name's Dusky Trailwalker, and I'll cut your heart out and feed it to you and your buddies if you ever touch me or another elf again." With that Dusky let the man down, sheathed his sword, and sauntered into the common room.

Ambling from behind the bar, Phae greeted the elf with a hug before he was half way across the floor.

“Good to see you again.”

“Good to finally have some down time Phae.”

“Have a seat. What can I get you?”

“Flagon of ale to start.”


“ We were sent to make sure you were ok, Casey. I think we have a report to give to Father.” Mike said as he pushed his seat back from the table and stood up.

“Don’t come back unless it’s my time guys. I’m here for the long haul and I won’t have you two poisoning anyone against me.”

Gracefully, hardly touching the floor the two ‘brothers’ left the warm confines of Serendipity.


“I’m glad I was able to find you.”

“I told ya I’d always be there Phae. What’s up?”

“I’m thinking to make some changes Duse and you can help with it.”

Nodding his head slightly in contemplation of his friend’s word Dusty Trailwalker swallowed the first slug of what will turn out to be an interesting round.