To Claim the Elvin Princess: Apprentice (32 page)

57

As the new moon neared, Shocara worked to get ready for the Elvin attack. She had been unable to talk her father into leaving the village, to go with the women and non-fighters to several neighboring villages where he might be safe. She had been greatly annoyed by his recalcitrance, and had finally ordered three large warriors to simply take hold of him bodily, and load him into a wagon, hands and feet tied so he could not escape.

“I would beware his sorcery, when he returns! He’s not likely to forgive this affront for a long time!” Hacarim had laughed.

“He would likely enjoy being dead less! Should the Elvin discover who he is, I have no doubt his end would be dire and painful!”

“Because he killed Sayarin, long ago?”

“Because he used sorcery to do so. He could have never beaten the Elvin lord with just his sword! I’m sure they consider that less than honorable!”

“The Elvin seem strange to me...they can be the most vicious fighters, yet will cry over a fallen elf as if they were a woman! We have no need of tears...we avenge the fallen!” Hacarim declared strongly.

“And more die, that we must avenge! Perhaps the Elvin are wiser than us...they are certainly getting no less numerous, while we slowly die and dwindle!” Shocara suggested bitterly. “Perhaps we should learn to weep for our dead also, while there are any of us left alive to do so!” she hissed, loudly, and turned to walk away.

“Princess...I have no answer for such a thing, but it disturbs me too, that we are unable to beat the Elvin. Perhaps this battle will show us a better way to win?” Hacarim called after her.

“Or carry us closer to our doom!” she mumbled under her breath.

In spite of her concern, she was pleased that her people seemed willing to heed her orders. Some had thought her mad, the idea of leaving their homes unprotected while they went elsewhere likely to cause them to be homeless and even more lacking than normal. That a few men, all not warriors, had agreed to stay as caretakers, their task to redirect the Elvin to the encampment where Shocara would be waiting with a strong force of fighters, seemed an act of madness to most. Shocara trusted her instincts, that the Elvin would spare these ones, not killing them because they were not warriors. She had warned them that they might be taken as hostages, but such was their desire to aid her fighters that they were eager to take the risk, wanting to display the courage that made the warriors so much admired in their society.

The Eridian women and children had been moved in small groups, by wagon mostly, to other villages, and the Elvin captives had been taken, well covered via wagon, to two other villages, where they might be well concealed.

By the time the warriors from the adjacent villages arrived, eager to go to Sardac and prepare to meet the Elvin, their village was almost empty.

“I hope it might be still standing, when we return!” someone suggested.

“I hope we are alive to return to it! If we beat the Elvin, and gain the victory, we will have well earned it!” Shocara replied.

Shocara had stationed watchers who might observe the skies, wishing to have warning should the Elvin send a spy or two to gaze upon them. The conditions had deteriorated as the day progressed, clouds moving in from the west, low and dense. A strong breeze developed, and rain began to fall by mid day, the day before the new moon. This thrilled Shocara, knowing that the chances of the Elvin braving such conditions, having to fly low, were slim. She was not fully relaxed until nightfall, but even then, kept a half dozen guards watching, in case the Elvin somehow managed to do the impossible, and arrive unseen in the gloom.

The Eridians kept a dozen small fires burning, having used these for cooking, but now inclined to have the light, to better see any approaching Elvin. Shocara was pleased to see nothing, as night fell, but slept with her clothes on, as she had commanded all others to do, so they might at least not have to fight off a late night attack half naked. As she lay in the dark, her mind darted form thought to thought, her tension and worry unwavering.

What if this word regarding the Elvin was a lie or simply wrong? Or worse...what if it was somehow passed to deceive us? While we are here, or in Sardac, waiting for them, might the Elvin go elsewhere, and strip our villages of our women and children? The handful we will leave behind would be easily overwhelmed by a small group of Elvin!
She realized suddenly how dependant they were to the reliability of the ones in Alaranad, who claimed to be helping them.

If they are false, I swear we will go find them and kill them!
she thought, before realizing how hard it would be for even two or three Eridians to enter the Elvin city.

Even should our men cut their hair, and find clothing such as the Elvin wear, none of us can speak their language! We would be easy prey! We are fools to have never had any of our people learn their ways...especially how to speak their words. Perhaps we might do that...should any of us survive...
she thought, before nodding off.

The morning came, gloomy and much like the proceeding day. The warriors ate, and prepared to depart, saying little, the dreary weather dragging down their enthusiasm. Shocara scanned the skies, pleased more than annoyed. She was faced with moving three hundred flyers without the Elvin spying them, and gloomy weather promised to aid her in that task.

She had missed Garen’s help, having sent him to keep an eye on her father, wanting him to be safe, should anything go horribly wrong. All of the leaders from the other villages had gathered to hear her words before they departed, and waited, speaking quietly among themselves when she stepped close.

“I want us to break up in smaller groups as we fly, and so approach Sardac from different directions; should the Elvin somehow spy us, I much prefer them to see an isolated small group, than our full force! Hacarim, take your men wide and approach from the south! Merdia, you take the east, Jocadac, the west, and I will approach from the north, to be the first to land! Let us hope that the Elvin have not misled us somehow, by passing false information to our helpers!” she declared.

The Eridians were soon awing, the gloom still pervasive. As they moved southward, Shocara noted, far to the west, the clouds lifting. They were flying south and slightly east, and were pleased to have the misty rain dwindle and stop by mid day.

When her terranon’s talons hit the ground in Sardac, Shocara leaped down and drew her sword, as dozens of other’s did likewise. A swift check displayed nothing different than the encampment had been when they had departed the previous autumn. There was also no sign of any Elvin.

“Good! Get the Terranaks into the forest!” she called loudly, even as the warriors had begun, the creatures reluctant, but eventually complying.

“The bare trees offer little cover!” Hacarim grinned, when they were done.

“No, they would do little by day, but at night, I judge them to be better concealed. If the Elvin wait until daylight to attack us, we will have more things to regret than a lack of tree leaves!” she laughed.

While her men set up camp, dragging out several iron cooking pots, and preparing to cook a mix of grain and beans, Shocara dispatched a lone flyer to go station himself on the old Elvin tower that she favored. No one was eager for this duty, but at last a couple volunteered to take turns. She wished to have eyes elevated and well able to see any mass of Elvin passing by, and on it’s exposed height, one could see an enormous distance.

With these tasks done, she turned her attention to deciding how to place her warriors. This camp had been built as a temporary place, several dozen rough cabins thrown together mostly to offer shelter from the rains. Since the camp was never graced with women or children, it was crude even by normal Eridians standards. It’s sole worth was that it allowed them to have a place to rest, near the edge of their frontier with the Elvin, saving them three hours fling time each way on any raid. They came and went during the warmer months, and had rebuilt it a dozen times, when the Elvin had burned all of it, to show their annoyance. Shocara was much more inclined to sacrifice it rather than one of their villages.

“I would have two thirds of our men hidden in the forest...so they might join the fight when the Elvin are well committed, forcing them to battle us on two fronts! That requires the ones within the buildings to hold the Elvin at bay until the rest might join us!”

“You want our strongest within?”  Merdia asked.

“Yes...put them there...I will be with them! I need you to guide your own against the Elvin, coming from among the trees.”

“What if the Elvin suspect a trap, and hold back a suitable group, which might ring our people as we intend to do them?!” Hacarim wondered.

“Then pull you men to the west, so we might open a way for our people to gather and fight as a tight mass. If nothing else, we can open a way for our people to withdraw, and reach our creatures. I would rather we escape, well beaten, than to loose all our fighters in a failed effort! And if light might aid us, set the buildings ablaze! The Elvin will likely do so anyway!” she laughed.

Shocara and her warriors had been preparing to eat, when the sound of wings caught their ears. The one who had been watching at the Elvin tower had returned hurriedly, leaping down and running towards her.

“Princess!” he yelled, seeing her, and ran up.

“You are most wise! A mass of flyers just passed in the distant west going north...they seemed a large cloud, much like our own force did!” he declared. Shocara nodded.

“Good! The Elvin have come exactly as we were told they would! Perhaps we are destined for a great victory...at last! Are you sure you saw only the one flight?”

“Yes, Princess...the sky that way is clear and bright, and the late day sun well displayed them! I saw no others before or behind!”

Shocara consider the light, and nodded. “They will arrive just at dark, and swiftly prepare. Once they discover that no one is there, it will be early, and they should be well tempted to fly here, hoping to catch all of us asleep!”

“You are certain they might attempt such? How would they find us in the darkness?” Jocadac asked, brows furrowed.

“The Elvin are masters of flying by the stars, and they will be shining bright tonight! We shall keep a half dozen small fires burning, to light their way; I would not wish them to fly past, and give up!” she insisted, smiling wickedly. “I wish to fight them for once on our terms, not theirs!”

58

Rasten had been preparing for their raid on the Eridians, when his young orderly had come running in, breathless.

“Lord Rasten! Amein has sent word that she will not accompany you...there is some event or problem on Am-Anarian that requires her attention! She has already gone to the gate to depart!” the young elf blurted out as rapidly as she could. Rasten stood, mouth open a moment, before he nodded.

“Very well. Thank you, Kirein, I’m sure I’ll manage! Is that all?” he replied.

“Only that she wished you well...and told me...to tell you...not to pee yourself!” his aide managed to blurt out, turning red, and failing utterly to not smile.

“Very well, go see to your duties!” he sighed, amused by his aide’s embarrassment. A human might have been less honest in relating such a message, but not an elf, which Amein knew well.

Rasten had the suspicion that Amein had chosen to go off, not of necessity, but to force him to go and do on his own. He could imagine nothing on an Elvin world like Am-Anarian that would not have been handled by the planetary governor, or with just some instruction relayed from the Princess.

It took him a while to realize that he was more relieved than disappointed that she would not be present, his old earthen values making him inclined to worry about her, and his wish to protect her likely to just get him yelled at or his butt kicked.

I don’t know if I’ll ever get used to females who can hack you down easier than one on earth might have slapped you!
he considered as he prepared to leave. He also knew he had no desire to tell her how he felt regarding this either.

When he arrived where the flyers were staging for their assault, he beheld row upon row of Elvin terranak. They had studied their maps, and considered where all their flyers might land, to be able to bring an overwhelming force to bear on Shocara’s village. While they could have brought thousands, the layout of the village, and the surrounding terrain made more that two or three hundred impossible to land effectively. They had compromised at two hundred and fifty, expecting this to be well able to deal with any number that might possibly be there. Rasten expected their element of surprise to be total, which would make their numbers more effective.

Rasten had spent a week practicing with the warriors, having caused a mock village to be constructed and poles set in the ground to define the size of the open areas around it. They had experimented with possible landings, and several different configurations of potential attack, finally settling on one that promised the most disruption and effect.

His biggest worry was one that most seemed amused by; finding their target, in an ocean of utter darkness. Even Elvin villages had lights showing at night, and their cities blazed with them, but the Eridians lived in near total darkness at night, unless they kept a fire burning.

He had been well assured such was no issue, an Elvin navigator being able to use his Elvish device, which seemed to Rasten to be an astoundingly complicated compass, and the stars, to bring their flyers within a rock’s throw of their target.

“Just trust them! Kimarien laughed, he being one of those going along. “I can recall no time when such a one got lost!” he laughed. “You’ll have more trouble on the ground, if it is pitch black!” he suggested.

Rasten and his warriors departed the next morning, intending to stop and rest in the afternoon, close to the border, and to depart that place so as to arrive precisely as they wished, after dark. The previous day’s weather had been bad, but it promised to clear during the day, which would aid them greatly. Rasten had been mesmerized by the flyers launching themselves, row upon row, as a large wave might undulate and roll along. He flew in the lead, with a few others, including the one guiding them, the rest appearing as a dark cloud massed behind. The idea that at times tens of thousands of Elvin warriors had fought, darkening the very sky with their numbers, seemed unimaginable.

He flew, relaxed but deep in thought, reviewing every aspect of their plans. Their stop in the afternoon was uneventful, and as planned. They kept a watch, but saw no sign of any flyers. This made Rasten more hopeful that their arrival would be a complete surprise.

When they judged the time right, they mounted and took off, for their final stretch of flight. They had divided themselves into two groups, one of which kept a steady pace, and the other slowed to drop back, and thus arrive a few minutes later. The first to land planned to do so behind tree cover, and advance on foot through the forest. These ones, of which Rasten was part, would creep into the remote part of the village, and determine what building might be set ablaze to create a diversion, and to give light that might aid their attack.

The sun set beautifully, the sky now clear, as they neared their destination. By the time the dark was well established, their navigator called to them, and they followed him in a wide sweeping turn. Rasten saw only a few tiny spots of light ahead, and to his right, and hoped this was their target.

Landing blind in a clear space beyond the narrow strip of forest nearly made Rasten stop breathing, even though he had practiced it many times during his training. The terranons could see well enough to land in almost pitch black darkness, and would do so instinctively if allowed to choose their own spot. All a rider needed to do was get close and give the command
down
with the reigns, and sit still.

The instant Rasten felt his bird start to fold its wings, he had his belt unfastened and had jumped down, hoping he didn’t impale himself on a stick or cut off sapling. The Elvin gathered at the trees, before moving forward, the front ones using their swords to feel for obstacles. When they were close to the end of the trees, Rasten could see the silhouettes of the houses and buildings which comprised the village. There was no sign of any Eridians.

“Come!” Rasten commanded four others in a whisper, motioning the others to crouch down and await a signal. He and his fellows moved forward at a crouching run, and were soon in place behind three of the nearest buildings. Rasten moved cautiously around the side, to peer into the main part of the village, seeing three small fires burning.

“Someone has to be tending them!” he whispered over his shoulder. “String a bow!” he added, wanting to be able to deal with any who might appear, and try to sound an alarm. Leaving this one placed to watch, he motioned for another to check it, and ran to the nearest building, and looked for a way in, finding a door, barely pushed to on the opposite side. Opening it a bit without the rusty hinges squeaking was hard, but he took his time. Slipping inside, he discovered nothing but empty cloth sacks, and some hand tools. He went out, and back around, gesturing for the one who carried Master Emareili’s sorcery device.

“Burn it!” he whispered, before making his way back to the first building. The others had examined it, and had news of a sort.

“It was once a storehouse...but is filled with places where people slept! Likely the Elvin were kept in here, at least some of them!” Kimarien declared, his voice a whisper. “There is much that will burn!” he added.

“Good, torch it. Hurry!” he insisted, knowing that the remainder of his flyers would arrive at any moment.

The two wooden structures were soon burning, and Rasten and his men had moved off behind another, well away.

Crouching behind the structure, peering around, he noted a lone Eridian venture forth, to toss more wood on one of the fires. Rasten whispered to the Elf with the bow, to keep him from letting an arrow fly, not wishing to give an alarm.

“There’re here!” he heard from behind himself, and suddenly the air was full of the sound of beating wings. A hundred terranaks emerged from the black sky, and landed in the clearing to the south of the village. These Elvin leaped down, to prepare for the expected rush of Eridians, but none appeared. The sound of a couple of doors opening, was the only sound from the village.

The Elvin  who had landed, went rushing for the buildings and houses, throwing open doors, but found no one inside. Four Eridians emerged, including the one Rasten had seen earlier, cautiously, with their hands held high, and they stood, offering no resistance when the Elvin rushed them.

Rasten motioned for his close companions to follow, and they moved around from their place of concealment, swords drawn and bows strung, expecting some sort of trap.

One of the Elvin flyers approached him and spoke.

“There appears to be no one here...except these four; every building is empty!” the elf declared.

Rasten nodded, and stepped close to the Eridians.

“What might you tell us of this? Do you know where your people have gone?”

The Eridians looked back and forth to each other, before one nodded.

“Shocara took her warriors to Sardac, to launch an attack on some village. She feared you might come here in there absence, and sent all the women and children elsewhere.”

“Do you know where?” Rasten wondered.

“No. She said nothing to us of such,” the man replied, no trace of lie plain to Rasten’s truthsense.

“Did the Elvin females go with them?” Rasten wondered.

“They took them somewhere,” the man sighed. “What will you do with us?” he asked, his fear showing.

“Perhaps we should take you with us, to see how honest you are?” Rasten suggested. “You fear we might kill you?”

“Shocara hoped you might spare us, my lord...we are not warriors, but only ones who tend the animals and crops!”

“Did you volunteer for this task?”

“Yes...because we four have no wives or children, that might suffer, should we perish,” the man replied, clearly proud to be able to contribute to his people’s efforts, no matter how dangerous it was.

“Take them over there, and watch them!” Rasten commanded. He walked over to his commanders, to consider what they might do.

“You judge them to be honest?” Kimarien asked.

“They told no lies, but only what they had been told to say. Shocara wishes to entice us to fight her at a place of her choosing! She guesses that we might fly directly to her, wishing to use the darkness to aid us!

“Lord Rasten! Sardac is a wicked place! There is little clear area close in, where a large force such as we have might land! The camp is ringed with cut off saplings, sharpened, which might impale a landing terranon, or rider, leaping down in the dark!”

“So I’ve heard. Here, the darkness would have been our friend; there we need light. I suggest we rest a while, and then fly so as to arrive at the break of dawn, where we might have enough light to avoid unpleasant surprises, and where we could fall on them while they are tired. They will stay up late, expecting us to drop in!” Rasten laughed. “I just hope they don’t run off; we could end up following them around like fools!”

“Somehow I doubt they’ll do that. I think she hopes we’ll come there, and be at some disadvantage. She seems smart and devious!”

“She likely is!” Rasten agreed.

They quickly set up guards, who would take turns, so all might get some sleep. Rasten lay awake a time, trying to envision what Shocara might be planning, but eventually grew tired.

My visions and dreams all showed us in dire striates, in the dark, fighting by firelight! Hopefully, my choosing to wait until daybreak will render that less possible!”
he thought, hoping he was correct.