The Fallen Guardian (The Guardian Chronicles 2) (16 page)

“
Raz
zu lőc ne
!” growled Ulric in the wolven tongue.  His back arched as he
surveyed their unwelcomed guests.

Tala
came bursting into view, taking massive bounds toward the nearest tree that was
refuge for three soldiers. She came to a sudden halt and swiped at the tree
with her massive left front paw. There was a sharp crack, and the tree began to
fall to the ground as though a dwarf had just cut it down. She hit the base of
the tree so hard that it broke in two at the impact point, which caused the
tree to glide to toward the ground. Once the men were on the ground, they were
grabbed by no less than seven different wolves that began fighting over their
prey. Commander Brugon knew that he had to do something and he had to be quick
about it.

“Draw
your swords, men!  Follow me!”  He leapt down from where he was perched in a
tree and caught two of the nearest black wolves by surprise. Before they knew
what was going on, he had severed two of their sleek heads from their bodies.
He then roared as he charged at the massive group of almost three hundred
wolves. Several of the beasts moved out of his way because the crazed man was
swinging his sword with great efficiency. He killed four more idle wolves
before breaking through the barrier they had created between themselves and the
elven capital. His troops were right behind him swinging their blades with
great success as they all too broke through the ranks. Only about one hundred
and fifty soldiers made it through the line, but that did not slow their mad
rush toward the eastern gate.

“
Couzja
!”
ordered Ulric loudly.
Let them kill themselves.
  His laugh was a
particularly nasty growl, which was duplicated by the rest of the small army of
wolves.

As
the maddened men reached the point where the rock vanished before the wolves’
eyes, Commander Brugon uttered an elvish phrase. “
Edhil nur!  Edr
!”  The
men continued through where the magical barrier was and did not disappear. Once
through the magical shield, they continued through the gates and immediately
took up defensive positions atop the bulwarks. Enraged by this trickery,
several of the wolves rushed after the men of Aran, ignoring the commands from
Ulric to stop where they were. Once they reached the barrier, they were stopped
abruptly. They did not vanish like the rock, but they were immediately turned
into stone. Thirty wolves appeared to be frozen midstride and moved no more.
They retained their color and looked as though they were merely frozen in time.
Howls of rage and indignation rose from the wolves as they backed away into the
forest. After a few moments of backing away, the men could no longer see them.

“What
are those things, Commander?” asked one of the soldiers nervously. He had blood
dripping down his forehead from a bite he had received while running past the
packs of wolves.

“Those
are the legendary giant wolves of the south lands. Do not worry. They will not
be able to penetrate this magical barrier left by the elves.”

“How
did you know what to say?” asked the same bloodied soldier in awe of his
commander.

“King
Tiranidrol is a personal friend of mine. He named me elf friend many years ago,
which gave me special access to any elven city.”  He smiled darkly as he
considered the luck that had befallen them.
I will have to serve King Ciel
to the end of my days to pay back this special favor. We were dead!

As
he dwelled on this unsettling thought, bright beastly eyes appeared in the
shadows of the trees. The moon and the stars began to make their appearance in
the night sky above them, which made the wolves’ eyes shine. There were
thousands of eyes looking at them this time. It appeared that there were more
of them in the wilderness that they had not seen. As they inched nearer the
edge of the trees, Commander Brugon ordered one of his men to shoot a warning
shot at the foul creatures. The arrow whizzed through the air and was
unaffected by the barrier as it continued to its apex. Then it started down
toward the ground and hit a patch of dirt making a small thudding noise. It was
some twenty feet shy of the eaves. Emboldened, the wolves inched their way into
the clearing. There were about four rows of wolves, that they could see, and
there appeared to be about one thousand of those furry demons in each row.

“What
do we do now?” blurted a soldier on the left of Commander Brugon.

“We
wait.” 
Let them stare…as long as we stay here we are safe.

Lord
Nariko looked over his shoulder at the battle for Mount Carrick with
apprehension. The mountainsides looked like they were on fire from the
intensity of the fighting that was ravaging both sides of the conflict.
I
hope that this does not take long. I need to return to the battle.
As the
druid stood on the east bank of the Blaine River, he shifted restlessly while
waiting for his fellow members of the druid council to appear. They needed to
determine what their role would be in this conflict and what lengths they
should go to in order to defend their respective races. While the councils that
the druids held were informal and infrequent, they still served a very real
purpose.
I wish that we could form a proper council and separate ourselves
from the people so that we could once again be independent from the politics
that plague the peoples of Tuwa. I think that I am lucky to have a king who is
above petty bureaucracy and does what is best for the people.

“Always
lost in thought, Nariko? You have not changed one bit,” chided Nita. She was a
tall, slender elf with beautiful, short brown hair that gave her a rather
boyish look. Her dark brown eyes stared fixedly at the much shorter dwarf that
stood before her.  Her elegant features hid her actual age better than most
elves.

“I
thought that an elf would appreciate the importance of taking time to ponder
weighty matters,” replied the burley warrior druid. He was stroking his long,
braided brown beard as he looked to the west over the river.  His body seemed
to be made of nothing but muscle.  His wisdom was such that many sought his
council.

Why
are we speaking out loud?
queried Lady Bernadine smoothly with her mind. The other two flinched at the
mental intrusion. They both disliked her disregard for the sanctity of one’s
own mind.

“Lady
Bernadine, I am glad that you could make it. Where are you?” asked the dwarf
gruffly.

“Here,”
she replied audibly this time. A black horned owl flew down from its perch and
landed on the ground right next to Nariko. She transformed into her elven form
and looked down at the stout fellow next to her. She looked very similar to
Nita in her appearance except her hair and eyes, which were jet black.  She too
looked a great deal younger than her actual age.

“You
always have to play things up, don’t you?” snipped Nita briskly. She did not
care for Bernadine’s dramatic flair.
What a waste of time and talent. If she
would only put that much effort into her charges, then this current situation
might be more manageable.

“Now,
now, Nita, it is not nice to think such things.” Bernadine smirked. She loved
torturing her fellow elf whenever she got the chance.  Though they were the
same race, they could not be more different in personality.

“Ladies,
that is quite enough of that. We have serious issues to discuss. Where are
Thanos and Zaide?  I know that Verandos has taken command of the elven army, so
he is excused, but the others are not,” complained the powerful dwarf.  He did
not care at all for elven banter or what they consider to be wit.

“You
really should work on patience with others Master Nariko,” replied Thanos
gruffly from behind a tree. He was the same height as his dwarf brother but was
not quite as thick like the other. He was still very stocky for his height.

“Where
is Zaide then?” barked Nariko even more impatiently. “Just like a man to be
late!”  While he cared little for elves, he truly did detest men.  They were so
unreliable.

“Master
Nariko, he has taken the army of Aran to the secret entrance to the High
Plains. He asked me to tell you that he is sorry for missing the council
meeting and would like a report of what is discussed and decided.”  Thanos
spoke calmly and with a silky edge to his voice that did not match his rough
dwarven exterior.  There were some who mistook this manner of soft speech for
weakness.

“Always
sticking up for that man. Oh well, I guess it cannot be helped with all that is
going on,” replied Nariko grudgingly. His long brown hair moved gracefully as a
breeze rushed along the shores of the Blaine River. He went silent for a moment
while he stroked his beard again.
Four out of six is not bad, but it is not
a lucky number. We are going to need all the luck and good fortune that can be
had.

“Why
don’t we begin this council so that we can return to our charges?” suggested
Nita calmly. She was notorious for mediating disputes between groups, and this
one was no exception.

“Of
course, you are right, Nita. Let us begin,” replied a subdued Nariko. They all
pulled their hoods over their heads and bowed their faces to the ground as they
formed a tight circle on the bank of the river.

Druids
were an ancient religion that assumed responsibility for the care of sentient
beings.  Over a thousand years ago they formed their first council and built a
castle fortress.  This sanctuary was home to representatives of very race in
Tuwa.  They came together as a sign of treaty and to work together for peace
for all.  They trained in arcane arts as well as in every battle method known. 
They built weapons that we magically enhanced as well as special armor.  They
acted as a balance to the power of the guardian council.  In the beginning they
were at peace with the Elementals, however, war has a way of changing views.

As
the druids stood side by side in their brown robes with black sashes, they
began to chant softly in a common tongue created by the original druidic
council. The ground in the center of their circle began to move in swirling
patterns as their rhythmic chanting continued uninterrupted. A mist began to
rise up from the unsettled ground and hovered at the waist level of the elves.
The misty cloud had a bluish hue to it as it hung there suspended in time. The
druids stopped their utterances and stood there stalk still. Life around them
ceased to move or make a sound. It was like the entire world had stopped
completely and time itself froze. After a few more silent moments, the council
raised their covered heads to look into the magical mist. Lord Nariko was the
first to speak, and he did so as the high druid of Tuwa, the rightful protector
of the peoples of the land.

“Show
us the pain of the peoples of Tuwa.”  His commanding voice was not rough or
even low when he said this. His tone was even and crystal clear. The mist
obeyed by first showing the dwarves at Mount Adem who were surrounded by two
massive orc armies. They were outnumbered two to one.

“Noble
Thanos, your assistance will be required by General Magnar if King Kasim is to
fend off this vicious assault on his kingdom.”

“What
shall I do to ensure their safety, Lord Nariko?”  His tone was filled with
reverence for his master even though he had chided him earlier. There was a
time for fun, but this was not it.
This situation looks worse than it did
for the dwarves during the first war for Tuwa.

“Let
us look at the other situations that vex the lands so that we can determine the
best course of action all around.”  Even though no one could see his face, it
was clear that he was troubled by the massive force attacking poor King Kasim.

As
they continued to look into the shimmering mist, they saw the plight of the
dwarves at Mount Carrick who were surrounded by all of the rock trolls and the
entire nation of goblins that resided in the Sheldon Mountains. Of course, Lord
Nariko knew this already, but it was good for the others to see just how
serious the situation was. Then an image of three orc armies combined with half
the high elven army appeared. They were gathering weapons and laying out
strategies to siege the southern cliffs of Landen. Meanwhile, in the north, the
other half of the high elven army, led by Queen Kishi and the bloodthirsty
General Jaali, were preparing for another attack on North Gate. The tidings of
woe did not end there.

Tarisdell,
the elven capital city at the heart Renshaw Forest, was surrounded on the
eastern border by a massive army of wolves. The druids looked closer at the
beasts to make sure they were seeing them properly. They were the size of a
massive warhorse. They were black, gray, red, and white––and there were over
five thousand of them. This did not bode well for the one hundred and fifty
soldiers who were stranded on the eastern outer wall of the city. They could
see the magical shield, but they could tell that the magic holding it in place
was beginning to fail. Then they were whisked away to a distant place in the
far north, which was out of their area of influence. They only had stewardship
over the races found in Tuwa, so they did not recognize any of the mountains or
other landscape.

An
image of a black dragon flying toward a dirty gray mountain appeared next. An
elegant figure was seated right at the base of the neck and had a fierce look
of determination as she urged the fell beast toward the mountain. At once they
all knew what that place was. They did not know its proper name, but they all
knew that this was the home to the evil that almost conquered Tuwa a thousand
years ago. What was more, they could sense its presence again. This troubled
them greatly because they knew that the guardians had banished that vile
creature to the ice fortress in the north. They also knew that there was no way
for him to escape his icy prison without the assistance of those, or one of
those, Elementals who had imprisoned him.

Kana!
they collectively screamed in the
minds.  Even though the druids did not care for the guardians they still did
not believe what they were seeing.

What
has she done?
asked
Bernadine in her mind. They were all linked mentally at this point, so they all
heard and echoed her question.

“She
has committed an unforgivable sin. I believe that she is the source of this
evil that is plaguing the peoples of Tuwa. Because she is the root of all these
problems, we will not be able to handle this situation on our own. The other
guardians must rise to the occasion, and they must do it now!” said the
normally reserved Thanos.

The
mist dissipated, and the ground in the middle of the circle returned to normal.
However, time continued to stand still while they pulled their hoods on again
while still in the circle. The unique thing about a druid council was that when
they combined their powers they could literally stop time while they discussed
sacred matters in the circle. This had proved very useful over the years,
although it did not prevent the fall of their wise independent council several
centuries before. Unfortunately, the sacred circle never revealed treachery of
any of the members that were in the druid council. This limitation cost them
dearly and had made it difficult to fully re-establish the old order.

“General
Verandos and Zaide are aptly placed to assist the giants, the army of General
Yukio, and the army of General Lysander. Thanos could go at once to help
General Magnar while Lord Nariko returns to General Gideon’s army to fend off
the rock trolls and goblins. Lady Bernadine and I can retrieve some special
warriors that have already been informed of the situation,” suggested Nita
wisely.

“Agreed,”
chanted the druids in the circle. No one ever disagreed with Nita when she laid
out the options. She was definitely the wisest of them all and knew what was
best in this case.  She was kind enough to simply provide options and not to
dictate.  After all, she was not the head of the council.

“Let
us not tarry any longer. Each of you will need to contact the leaders you will
be working with so that they know you are coming. I recommend travel by the
swiftest means possible. Our werebear forms are not conducive to speed, so
transform into your other forms. Remember, distance is nothing more than time.
Control it like you do your destinies,” proffered Nariko solemnly.

One
of the unique abilities that a fully trained druid learns is to transform into
a variety of animal forms.  Typically they learn two forms while others who
obsess with the art learn several more.  The bear is the most common form
followed by various fowls.  This ability allows the druids to interact with all
forms of sentient beings and not just the races of Tuwa.  In times of war it
enables them to gather intelligence while minimizing the danger of scouting.

Nita
was the first to act by moving to the water’s edge and bringing her hands
together so that her fingertips touched. She uttered some words under her
breath, and a patch of water froze in time right in front of her. Once she had
left the circle, life sprang back into action all around them. She held the
water still with a powerful time-bending spell and stepped onto the unmoving
liquid. She was immediately transporting to where the valiant warriors were
that she was going to recruit with Lady Bernadine. Her fellow elf had joined in
the tear in time where they communicated to the warriors that they would be
arriving soon and in their fowl forms. Nita transformed into a lovely brown
barn owl and the two female druids flew to their destination now that they had
given warning to those they sought.

Each
of the remaining druids did the same thing in bending time to give an
instantaneous message to their respective generals about their impending
arrivals. Nariko changed into a large golden eagle and flew off at once to the
rescue of General Gideon. Thanos transformed into beautiful bald eagle and took
off to help General Magnar shore up his defenses against the wicked orc armies.
Finally, everyone had left to deal with their charges. Lady Hilzarie had been
watching from above and knew that she needed to inform Mistress Khalida of the
actions of the druid council. The guardian council did not fully trust the
druids after their fall centuries ago.
I think this is actually a good sign
that they are working together again. I wonder who the seventh druid is though.
I wonder if they know who it is.