The Broken Council (The Guardian Chronicles 1) (21 page)

“Milady,
yesterday we were to have a meeting with General Yukio regarding the mysterious
deaths of your sister, our chairman, and our good general.
 
We prepared for the worse by having the home
guard stationed in new places because we feared we had a spy among us,” said
one of the shaking council members.
 
They
were still in shock at the carnage they had witnessed, and they were afraid of
the awesome power of Queen Kishi.

“Please
continue, you have nothing to fear here,” she said soothingly.

“When
in the council chambers for the meeting, we hid several guards in the shadows
to protect us against a surprise attack.
 
When the general walked in the back door for the meeting, we knew that
we were betrayed.
 
He came dressed in his
full body armor and was armed to the teeth.
 
Many of us felt that we should have had the guards seize him at that
moment, but we hesitated.
 
That is why
three of our number did not make it,” the council member said with a look of
horror on his lined face.

“It
is all right. I will take it from here,” said the council member standing on
the right of the trembling speaker, the spokesman for the council.
 
He stopped shaking and looked dejectedly down
at the ground as if he were envisioning what had happened all over again in his
mind.

“Please
forgive him, Milady; we have seen such horrors that none of us had ever
witnessed before,” the new speaker said pleadingly.

“It
is all right.
 
Please tell me what
happened to the rest of the people.
 
Why
are only a third of you here?
 
Where are
the rest?” she asked with great concern.
 
She was still getting used to the idea of being kind and concerned for
the welfare of others.
 
Her dark elven
face looked hard and resolute as she looked out over the crowd.
 
She always had this look, but now it was even
more terrifying to look upon since the death of her twin sister.
 
Something had been taken from her that day,
and she wanted revenge on Yukio for taking a part of her when he killed Kira.

“Your
Majesty, when we escaped the surprise attack in the council chambers, we were
given cover by our archers stationed on the mountainside.
 
This gave us time to use the secret exit that
your sister had created for escape.
 
Yukio apparently did not know about this or was too enraged to
remember.
 
The entire courtyard was
covered in blood and was occupied by elf and man struggling to the death.
 
Body parts were strewn throughout the yard,
on the inner wall, and in the castle.
 
We
feared that all were lost, so we left through the exit to find a third of the
people had escaped as well,” he explained with a grievous look on his
face.
 
He looked like he was going to be
sick to his stomach, but he was determined to continue the tale.

“You
mean to tell me that Yukio’s army slaughtered everyone else?” Kishi said in utter
disbelief.
 
She thought he would dispose
of the council and make the rest of the high elves his slaves.
 
She did not believe that he was capable of
such egregious acts.

“Yes,
he killed them all.
 
During the night, he
had half of his army creep from house to house killing all in their path.
 
A mysterious stranger appeared by the inner
wall and approached one of the homes and informed them of what was taking
place.
 
If it was not for her, we would
have all died.
 
I do not know how this
woman knew what was happening or how we were able to escape without being
noticed.
 
Nevertheless, we are here and
alive; now we will serve Queen Kishi as servants and not subjects,” he said,
prostrating himself before her.

“Rise,
my friend…you are one of us now.
 
We are
all in this together.
 
The only one who
will be our servants will be the people of Nairi, and that is if they survive!”
she declared boldly.
 
She was a queen of
action and not diplomacy.
 
Even her
sister would agree with what she was planning to do.

“What
shall we do, Milady?
 
If you plan to
fight our enemies, we will join the ranks of your army,” offered one of the
high elves in the crowd.

“That
is well.
 
Anyone who desires revenge for
the unforgivable crimes committed against you, join the army that will be sent
to destroy or enslave the people of Nairi.
 
The rest may stay here and make their new home here.
 
If you have skills that would help in
finishing the construction of the remaining buildings, please stay here.
 
If you want to stay here and fight, please see
Lord Dükker about joining the elite home guard,” she said confidently.
 
Even if half of the refugees joined the army,
she would have the largest standing army outside the people of Landen.

Cheers
of approval rang through the air, and the crowd slowly dispersed as they
searched out their new homes.
 
Lord
Dükker had made the plans for the city and had built enough homes to house the
combined body of high elves.
 
Kishi was
in awe of her mentor’s ability to foresee future events and his ability to
prepare for any eventualities.
 
I need to find him as soon as possible
.
 
She would leave the city with the army and
wanted to make some additional plans that would need to be carried out while
she is gone.
 
As she walked down the
stairs from her perch on the wall, the sun burned brightly overhead.
 
She had a feeling of purpose come over her as
she continued to ponder her plans.
 
They
would need allies if they were to survive the long years of war that lie
ahead.
 
She knew that elves and men would
unite, but the dwarves might be able to be persuaded to join them.
 
If not, she would have to make a pack with
the devils of the southern land.

Lord
Dükker called together the captains of the home guard in the council
chambers.
 
This was the only meeting hall
that was completed, and it provided them with sufficient privacy for the topics
they would discuss.
 
Once they had
gathered together, Dükker explained to them that he was taking the command of
the home guard because General Jaali was going to the lands of Nairi while
Commander Tenanden was leading a special assault team to retake the city of
Alanderas.
 
He wanted them to understand
that he was taking over because their commander was the only person who could
reclaim the birth city of the high elves.
 
He lavished praise upon the captains as well, who then cheered their
approval of Dükker’s plans.

“I
want to make it known to you that Mistress Kana has not left our side.
 
She wants us to punish the wicked Nairians
and to avenge the blood of her chosen people upon all the kingdoms of men!”
Lord Aellenas said boldly.
 
Cold furry
and rage coursed through him.
 
His eyes
were full of malice and hatred.
 
His
fierce gaze inspired the desired reaction from the captains of the home
guard.
 
They all stood up and saluted their
new leader.
 
They stood at attention
waiting for Dükker to dismiss them.

“I
believe I speak for all of us Lord Aellenas when I say that we will crush the
infidels.
 
The city will not fall under
your command, and we will reclaim the land that is rightfully ours,” Commander
Harley said stoically.
 
He swelled with
pride as he spoke while a wicked gleam flickered in his eyes.
 
He was anxious to kill as many Nairians as
possible once they had retaken Alanderas.
 
He felt a burning desire to depart immediately to Mount Quang, but he
knew he needed to be patient.
 
He sensed
that Lord Dükker had some special instructions for him.

“Commander,
please stay for a moment.
 
We need to
decide who you will take with you and what you will need to do to be
successful,” Dükker said with a dark look.

After
all the captains had left, Commander Harley took a seat next to Dükker.
 
Lying on the table in front of Aellenas was a
map of Mounts Quang and Konane.
 
This was
no ordinary map, however; there were little objects moving on the map.
 
The commander looked at Aellenas in
disbelief.
 
He had witnessed many kinds
of magic in his day, but he had not seen anything like this.
 
There was a large group of people that were
armed for battle with siege weapons, knights, archers, and swordsmen gathering
together in the courtyard of Alanderas.
 
On the edge of the map were a few giants that were camped near Mount
Quang.
 
The capital city of the high
elves on Mount Konane was filled with so many people that it looked like a mass
of ants moving about.
 
He noticed a name
appear that seemed to be the name of their capital city.
 
It said Tiranidrol, named after the surname
of their mighty Queen Kishi.

“I
have never seen anything like this, my lord,” said the commander.
 
He was amazed at the detail and the accuracy
of its depictions.
 
He was simply
impressed that it was a moving map.

“I
show you this map because it will tell us exactly what we will need to do in
order to retake Alanderas,” Dükker explained with a sideways look at his
commander.

“When
do we attack?” asked Harley.

“Tomorrow
morning; after our army has departed, we will look at this map again.
 
I believe that Yukio will not stay put long,
so the number you will need to take with you will be very small.
 
However, we will not do anything until we see
what moves they make first.
 
I believe
they have spies watching us, so they will know when our army leaves the
mountain.
 
I will instruct the home guard
to be as invisible as possible while at their stations.
 
Their spies do not have magic, so we may be
able to trick them into thinking that we emptied the city.
 
This should be the edge that we will
need.
 
As for who you should take, I
recommend only those that you completely trust,” Lord Aellenas explained
confidently.

“It
sounds like an excellent plan to me,” the commander said with a bow.
 
He turned about and left the council room so
Aellenas could continue to formulate defensive strategies.

Dükker
stood in silence in the massive dome-shaped council room.
 
The evening sun was setting, and the white
clouds in the sky above turned red as the sun set in the west.
 
He was waiting for the queen to arrive so
that they could discuss their plans together and decide what would be the most
prudent course of action.
 
His apprentice
had become more powerful as a result of recent events, and he knew that she
would continue to grow stronger.
 
She was
his equal now and would be far superior to him very soon.
 
He knew that she would take the Nairi Canyons
and that by doing so she would spark a kind of war that had not been seen in
the lands of Tuwa for nearly a thousand years.
 
She would become the most powerful sorceress and would rival even the
guardians in most respects.
 
He had taught
her well.

He
was so consumed in his thoughts that he did not sense the approach of his
pupil.
 
Kishi entered through the front
doors of the hall and bowed as she looked at her mentor.
 
He smiled at her in a way that a proud father
would, but his dark demeanor made his smile look sinister and wicked.
 
She smiled back at him as she walked
resolutely to his side at the head of the council table.
 
She looked down at the moving map and was
impressed by this use of magic.
 
She
still had much to learn from her master and she knew that she did not have any
time left for further lessons.
 
Her eyes
scanned the portents of the moving map quickly.
 
She noticed that there were giants very near Mount Quang, and this
disturbed her.

“My
queen, I have met with the captains of the home guard and with Commander
Tenanden.
 
I explained what the army was
planning to do in the morning, and they were overjoyed at the prospect of
retribution.
 
I then informed our good
friend Harley that he would be leading a special unit of troops tomorrow to
recapture the city of Alanderas.
 
I
believe that General Yukio has spies watching us, so it is safe to assume that
he will pursue our army as it leaves the mountain heading east.
 
Retaking the city will be rather easy for
Commander Harley.
 
I do have one concern,
however,” he said, pointing to the giants camped out near Mount Quang.
 
He had sensed the surprise Kishi had about
the giants and their proximity to Alanderas.

“What
in the name of all that’s holy are they doing there?” asked Kishi in an uneven
voice to her master.
 
She hid nothing
from him, including her emotions because he would be able to sense them
anyway.
 
She also knew that she could
trust him and that he would share in her concern about the giants.

“They
may be curious about what has been going on in the mountains.
 
They do not ally themselves with anyone, so I
do not believe that we need to worry about them siding with any of our
enemies.
 
I am more concerned about their
innate curiosity,” explained Dükker with a sigh.
 
He thought that the giants were rather dull
creatures and that he could handle the whole lot of them by himself.
 
They had no magic and no way to defend
against his particular powers, so he could take them out with a rather small
force without a second thought.
 
However,
he knew that the queen would not approve of such a course of action.
 
She did not share the same idea of power
quite yet, and she was not ready to embrace his position on the matter.

“How
big of a force do you think we need to send as a result of this possible
threat?” she asked patiently.
 
She was
thinking that the mad general had gone and allied himself to the giants
somehow.
 
This would not bode well for
the high elves if that were the case.
 
The giants could resist elemental magic and could take on all of her
people and win with a considerably smaller force.

“I
believe that Commander Harley will be able to retake the city without any
losses or interference from these brutes.
 
I will, of course, inform him that there are to be no prisoners taken
when he sacks the city,” he said darkly.
 
“I think that if we send a fourth of our archers to defend the outer
wall and a small number of cavalry to run down spies, we should be able to
defend against an assault by the giants if they should try to surprise
us.”
 
He knew that Kishi did not believe
this, but she would trust his judgment in the matter.
 
He had never led her astray.

“I
think we should send spies of our own with Commander Harley.
 
How about one or more of your steed’s
offspring?
 
They should be able to find
out what we need to know about the true intentions of these giants.
 
Plus, they could set some pretty sticky traps
for our intellectually challenged friends,” said Kishi with a derisive
snort.
 
She thought that the giants were
slow and would easily fall into a massive spider web.
 
She knew that the easiest course of action to
take with the giants would be to confuse and outsmart them.
 
The later should not prove too difficult.

“I
agree with your suggestion.
 
We should
send in spies of our own to learn all that we can.
 
I do believe that Razi’s spawn can do what is
needed while providing the necessary effect we are looking for.
 
I will have him send his spies into the camp
of these giants first.
 
We should have a
report within a few days during which time we will have already retaken
Alanderas.
 
Kishi, we should not delay
taking action any longer; time will be our most formidable ally or our greatest
enemy.
 
We must move swiftly,” he said
wisely.

“You
are right…as usual.
 
Have your spies set
as many traps as possible while gathering intelligence from our unwanted
guests.
 
Instruct them to find out what
they can and to send someone back to report right away.
 
Also, prepare the defenses of Tiranidrol for
surprise attacks.
 
Make sure there are
enough provisions to outlast a long siege if it should come to that,” said the
queen in anticipation of the worst.
 
She
did not want to be caught off guard like her sister.
 
She knew that this meant being on guard at
all times.
 
Unlike her sister, however,
she was not afraid to use her magic to protect herself.
 
Her sister had always been very reluctant to
use her powers, fearing that they would eventually control her.

“Do
not worry yourself about the defense of the city or the reclaiming of
Alanderas.
 
I know that these ventures
will be successful and without loss.
 
My
worry is for you, Kishi,” he said kindly.
 
He was so much like the father she had wished for all her life.
 
He understood that it was bitter sweet to get
revenge and that it would be a difficult feat.
 
He knew that the Nairians would not be caught off guard and would fight like
a wild beast backed into a corner.
 
The
queen needed to anticipate a long siege while attempting to capture the canyon
lands.
 
He had the feeling that she
thought her task would be rather easy to manage.

“So,
you think that my task is more difficult than I feel it is?” she asked without
equivocation.
 
“You are probably right;
you always are.
 
All I know is that this
is where my course lay and that Kana is on our side.
 
We will take the Nairi Canyons and repay our
debt to those who died at the treacherous hands of General Yukio!”
 
Cold furry rushed through her body, and she
rose a little into the air as her anger built.
 
The people of Nairi will learn
what the true meaning of revenge!
 
Her eyes had turned red as if fire were about to burst out of them.

“I
will leave you to your thoughts then, Milady,” Lord Dükker said with a
bow.
 
As he stood to leave, he had a
triumphant look on his face.
 
She may not want power by any means
necessary yet, but she is now on the right path.