The Chronicles of Lumineia: Book 01 - Elseerian (42 page)

Voices bubbled up but Siarra cut them off with a raised hand.

"No." Her tone carried such intense horror that all eyes locked on her expression until she spoke softly in the stillness: "Of everyone."

Chapter 27: Council of War

Deiran, the heavily built general of the army, swept to his feet. "What do you mean
everyone
?"

Siarra started to respond but the queen stood up, her very presence silencing the room. "One moment, I ask of you. Please be seated and introduce our visitors so we may start at the beginning."

Her tone held no animosity but still carried the weight of authority, and even Siarra found a seat with the others in their group. After nudging a hesitant Braon, Siarra moved to sit at the foot of the table with Taryn on her right, followed by Liri and then Jack. To the Oracle's left Braon settled uncomfortably into a seat while Trin sat himself next to the young man. Mae slid smoothly to his left and Ryben, the woodsman from the east, sat next to her small form.

Once everyone had found a place to sit, the table felt considerably more crowded, with only a few chairs still empty. The queen remained standing and addressed the group. "I recognize the need for urgency, however this moment should be thought through, so let us begin by introducing ourselves, shall we?"

Without waiting for a response she said in her light voice, "I am Ayame SerˊTármaril, the Queen of the elves." She smoothly sat and indicated for the elf on her right to stand.

"Deiran Tandril, high general of the elven armies," he said shortly, bowing to the group. The general's eyebrows were gathered in what Taryn was beginning to think of as a perpetual scowl. Broad shouldered for an elf and tall as well, his form once again reminded Taryn of a human.

Standing next, a soldier dressed in dark green armor announced himself quietly as Keiko Ker’isse, captain of the home guard. Like Deiran he stood slightly wider than the average elf, but his movements were far more fluid, and his clear blue eyes constantly roved the room—and the new individuals seated at the table. He gave Taryn the impression of contained fire that could explode at the first hint of danger.

The next elf to stand bore a striking resemblance to Liri, and when she said her name was Lariel Tel'Runya, he wasn’t surprised. Almost identical to his long-time friend in every way, she carried the same beauty and grace, accentuated by her light eyes and even lighter hair. The only perceptible differences were the hair had begun to turn silvery, indicating that she was at least a few centuries old, and her demeanor appeared more somber than Liri’s, no less fiery, simply more disciplined. Taryn found himself wondering if he was looking at Liri in five hundred years. With his dwarf and elf blood he was glad he would be around to see it.

From their group, Ryben stood first, his frame large yet somehow gentle as he pronounced in his deep voice his name and his position as the woodsman of the east. Maemi stood and said her name so fast that Taryn barely heard it and he fought to hide his smile. She didn’t like formal functions.

Trin stood next and seemed completely at ease, although Taryn could almost feel his suppressed tension. After him the short, overweight Braon appeared awkward and out of place. Siarra then spoke quickly and abruptly it was Taryn’s turn. Despite his self-consciousness he straightened and said his name without title or origin. Liri followed him and smiled at her mother when she stated the name of her house.

For a moment Taryn watched the two, mother and daughter, obviously proud of each other and still close, despite the thirty years without contact—and wished he knew what that was like.

Jack fluidly stood and with a smug expression said, “Jack Myst, formerly of the thieves’ guild. It’s good to be in Azertorn again.” He winked slyly at the captain of the home guard but before he could sit down, Keiko was on his feet.

"He is not welcome here," he said firmly. "He should be in chains, or executed."

Before the queen could respond, Siarra mildly stated, "And yet he is, and has been, vital to our cause." Keiko's eyes snapped to the queen, who shook her head slightly, so he reluctantly sat down, his expression fiercely disapproving. Jack ghosted a smile before bowing to Siarra and sitting. Taryn suppressed a grin and leaned forward a bit to see the next elf, who was already saying his name.

Ladarius Re'Keserian proclaimed himself to be the head of the house of Keserian, the second ruling house of Azertorn. Although he said as little as everyone else, his tone and his robes spoke volumes about his character. Speaking with a subtle tinge of aloofness, especially when he announced his title, he wore robes far more ornate and expensive than those of anyone else at the table.

The last one to stand proclaimed himself to be Teleriel Sur'Maegrian, archmage of the guild of magi. His expensive robes rustled slightly as he stood, and it was evident the colors were amplified by magic. A glance towards Siarra when he said his title revealed an air of superiority.

The queen finally stood and thanked the group. "Liriana of the house of Runya, please start at the beginning when you left the city, and then perhaps the Oracle can finish the tale and explain her previous words."

Siarra fidgeted beside Taryn, and he could feel her frustration at having to wait further, but she didn’t comment as Liri stood and began to tell of their journey to the Oracle's home. She conspicuously left out both Taryn's test of loyalty and Jack's attempt to steal from them, so it didn’t take her long before she nodded graciously to Siarra and allowed her to take over the tale at the point when they had arrived at her home.

Siarra virtually leapt to her feet and explained Death's attack on her home, including the full details of the destruction and slaying of everyone there. When she described the assassin, several people shifted, including Ryben, who unconsciously rubbed his thigh where he'd been injured by the same killer.

Siarra continued by describing their flight from the swamp and the elves that had disappeared during the night when Deiran interrupted.

"That's impossible! No assassin could take so many elves unaware! Especially Denithir’s command." His face tightened in fury, but diffused slightly when Siarra began nodding at him.

"You are correct general—no assassin could catch so many elves unaware . . ."

"Then how could—" he blustered, but she cut him off in a voice of ice.

"They weren't unaware, general, they were
extremely
vigilant—
and he still killed them
like they were children!”
By now she was leaning forward, her voice thick with anger. Silenced, Deiran sat with his mouth agape.

Her voice rang throughout the chamber, and for the first time the true danger of the assassin came into focus. Almost everyone that didn’t know the end of the tale tensed and looked around as if Death was already lurking around them. Surprisingly, the queen's soft expression didn’t change except for a slight tightening of her eyebrows.

"Please proceed with your tale," she requested, serene despite the upswing in tension.

Siarra thanked the queen with a glance and continued with the desperate battle at the ravine and the fall of Ren. Taryn glanced at the queen and saw her face go rigid as she swallowed hard upon the news of her bodyguard’s death, but she didn’t interrupt. Taryn felt a pang of sorrow as well, and the image of the memory orb falling into the ravine flashed across his eyes.

When Siarra came to the battle in the grotto, she stopped and inclined her head towards Taryn, saying, "I was knocked out early in the fight. I believe Taryn can explain the rest of the battle. She sat and looked expectantly at him. Surprised, he stood slowly to organize his thoughts before speaking.

Beginning with Death's attack, he told of Denithir's valiant effort to save the Oracle. Catching the saddening expression on the queen’s features almost made him stop, but he forced himself to describe the feigned slaying of Jack Myst and then his own battle with Death, followed by Jack's rising to destroy the assassin.

A palpable sigh went through the room as he sat, and several people tried to speak at the same time. Teleriel, the archmage, spoke the loudest. "Why was
he
able to destroy the creature?" he demanded over the babble of voices.

Everyone quieted again and looked at the Oracle, who shook her head. "I cannot say."

In that instant something clicked in Taryn's mind. "But I do," he said hesitantly.

Every eye turned to him but he just stared off into space, trying to remember a conversation in Keese. What was it that Rezko had said about a thief being . . .
the cheater of death
. That was it!

He snapped back to the present and looked at Jack. "Have you ever been called the cheater of death?"

Jack smirked and nodded.

The captain of the home guard snorted, still angry. "I think
we've
tried to kill him at least a couple of times."

Jack's smirk widened. "Six actually, in different guises."

Keiko glowered at him, but Taryn spoke loudly, drawing attention back to himself. "Don't you see? He was
supposed
to kill death. Perhaps the only one that could."

"Are you trying to say that this . . .
thief
. . . is the only one who could have killed the assassin?" Ladarius Keserian challenged, his voice full of scorn.

"My uncle on Sri Rosen said something to me before I left," Taryn said forcefully, knowing his words to be true. "He said
everyone
was important in the battle against evil, that everyone had a
specific
place and a
specific
purpose."

"But he
is
the evil," Ladarius scoffed.

"No," Siarra said quietly, drawing attention to herself. "He's not." She looked at Taryn. "Thank you, Taryn, for helping me to understand." Then she looked directly at the queen and stood up once more. "The true evil is the
source
of power that sent the assassin to slay me."

"Who?" several people asked, but instead of answering, Siarra turned around and indicated for a wizened old elf, who had slipped into the room unnoticed, to come forward.

"Father of records, please come and tell us about the one who commanded Death."

The old elf walked forward slowly and stood next to Siarra, gazing at each of the high council in turn.

"His name is Draeken, the demigod of chaos, my queen." His voice was whispery, like two scrolls being rubbed together, and the sound matched his wrinkled face perfectly. He was perhaps the only elf Taryn had ever seen that truly looked ancient.

Teleriel, the archmage, snorted and gave a dismissive wave. "That's impossible, he was destroyed during the holocaust ten thousand years ago."

The elderly elf shook his head. "No; I believe he was not killed. I believe he was only imprisoned." He coughed and Siarra touched him briefly. Energy seemed to flow into him and he stood straighter. Thanking her with a glance, he continued, "For those of you who do not know, Draeken was cast out by the gods for conspiring to destroy them. He was cast down here and bound. As a final mockery, Skorn told him he would be freed 'when chaos reigned upon the earth.' Without being able to implement his own desired result, he could only languish, trapped and helpless, able only to hope for the races to bring about this destruction on their own.

"But the gods did not know how close Draeken was to destroying them. Unbeknownst to them he had created an army, so vast it could destroy everything in the heavens—and he'd gathered the fiends into a place where he could open a portal to bring them in.

"Furious at his banishment, he found a way to open the portal from within his confinement, and the holocaust began. Death was the forerunner, killing leaders and other key warriors. However, his ability to take lives was far surpassed by his power to spread fear and divide the races. This terror was his most effective weapon to keep people separated and easier to conquer. He was the perfect assassin, and until now, I believed nothing could kill him." He inclined his head towards Jack Myst before continuing.

"Famine and Plague came next. Riding separately, they swept through the countryside to weaken the population by destroying food and spreading disease. The closer they came, the weaker armies became. Food became spoiled and rancid; men and women were too sick to fight. There was no defense and no way to stop it.

"Last of all rode War, general of the fiend army. Leading the countless hordes he swept the land, killing everything and everyone that had survived his predecessors’ attacks. We do not know much about him because the army disappeared before they had gone very far."

Ryben suddenly interrupted, his deep voice resonating through the room, "I saw him—I saw War.” His big frame twitched and he swallowed at the memory. “When they wiped out Terros, he was there."

The historian coughed. "It has begun then, the beginning of the end."

"Can Draeken be killed?" Ladarius asked, his voice full of bluster, but a sliver of fear had seeped in.

The wizened elf bobbed his head. "The Oracle of that age prophesied that only if the races combined could Draeken truly be destroyed. Lakonus, said to be descended from the elves, humans, and dwarves, sought the Lord of Chaos, and gave his life to destroy him—at least that is the way the legend goes."

At the mention of the blood of the races in one hero, a shiver of foreboding crawled up Taryn’s spine and he almost missed what was said next.

"But you don't believe he was killed." Lariel spoke for the first time.

He nodded again. "I believe that Lakonus didn't kill him, but he somehow managed to close the portal. In that moment, all the fiends were pulled back to their home, disappearing in an instant."

"Why do you believe this, Sirfalas?" the queen asked.

"Because it is the only explanation. All the signs are the same. Draeken has certainly opened the portal again. I understand this only now that I have heard of the destruction at Terros and Death's demise." He wheezed to a stop and fell silent.

After a moment of silence Siarra broke the stillness, "As with all Oracles, most of my power was chained at an early age to prevent misuse, so I did not understand the full extent of the danger until I was unbound two days ago. As soon as I knew, I hastened to this high council so we can prepare with all speed."