Wow! Part 9 wasn't even up for a day before I started getting mail!
It's nice to know that people are enjoying my work.
Again, if you have any questions, comments, suggestions or criticisms, feel free to email me at cperez@gmotion.com
Until then, enjoy.
The full moon rose over the trees to the east, with its bands of colors shimmering in the night sky. A'rion'Tel'anethar shivered as he felt the blessed light of the moon wash over his body as it rose into full view. He was naked, as the ritual of devotion he was about to perform required.
After an hour of basking in the light, he slowly began to move. Following the song, which he had first heard at an early age, A'rion began to dance.
When he was 10 years old, little more than a babe, he first realized there was a song only he could hear. In times of stress, or when he opened himself up to it, the song would guide his steps and gestures in a dance that was almost surreal in its beauty. By the time he had turned 16, his need for the song had nearly driven him mad. It was during this time that he was taken into the care of E'tel'E'mone.
One of the most ancient of all Elvin kind, E'tel was considered the one true master of the Bladedance. Under his tutelage, A'rion quickly developed the magic that pulsed in his veins and learned to ride its flow instead of being overwhelmed by it. Over the course of the decade since then he had learned to incorporate this part of himself into the important things in his life such as his devotions to the Goddess Te'ema, for whom the moon was sacred.
A'rion flowed over the ground, barely touching it as he danced, his blade shining with reflected moonlight. Through a series of intricate moves he committed himself once more to the service of his chosen patroness. In his heart, he came to know the will of Te'ema. She spoke to him through the Song of Steel that burned in his blood, and told him that soon the young Prince E'rin must be trained.
His Highness also heard the song, though only distantly. Unlike most he naturally possessed the mental discipline to hold back the call of the song. Unfortunately this tended to create a block in one's mind that could silence the song forever if they weren't properly trained in time.
With a slow release of breath, A'rion's dance came to an end. He stood facing the figure that he knew watched him from the shadows and smiled.
"One could argue that such a lecherous act, as spying on me during a holy rite, could be blasphemous." He said in a mock serious tone. "What would you say to Te'ema if she demanded a reckoning for your immoral actions?" He walked slowly into the shadows that held his beloved.
"I could only tell the truth." Earlon replied with false innocence. "That I was blinded by the grace and beauty before me and could not turn away. I fear that she will have to bear responsibility for blessing you with such a perfect form."
By the light that now emanated from his sword, A'rion could see the mischievous grin on the face of his Belshatha. "Can you not see that I have been purified?" He raised the glowing sword for emphasis.
Earlon stepped closer and took A'rion into his arms and brought their bodies together. "It's a pretty sword dear, but I have one you might like better."
He stifled his lover's answering laugh with a slow, loving kiss that drove everything else from A'rion's mind. After a few, nearly breathless, minutes they separated. Earlon smiled at the dreamy look in A'rion's eyes. "Your sword still glows Belshatha, I guess my love for you is not as lecherous as you thought."
"In that case, perhaps you would like to show me this sword of yours that you seem to be so proud of."
The Magister's response was cut short by a small cough from behind.
"Your pardon father, may I speak with you?" Asked Count Beladon. "I have some concerns about His Majesty's plan."
Some hours earlier, Sir Lance conducted Andy and E'rin into the King's Pavilion. Waiting inside was King Kail, Annea, as well as two men and a woman that Andy did not recognize.
"Andy, I would like you to meet Magister Earlon Kharman, head of the Royal Magi." They very young-looking man bowed slightly to him.
"This is Count Beladon, and his wife the Countess Emelia." He indicated the other man and woman in the tent. "They are the head of your Bodyguard."
"Bodyguard?" Andy asked curiously. "I don't rate bodyguards Your Majesty."
Kail smiled slightly. "You agreed to play the part of Prince Ethan, so you certainly 'rate' a bodyguard unit." He sighed. "The reason you will need these guards is why I called you here." He looked uncomfortable, and shifted in his chair.
Andy waited patiently. He had figured there was something that people weren't telling him very soon after his arrival, but had decided not to pry. He was sure that it was difficult for the King to ask him to play the part of his fallen son, but understood that Kail was the kind of man that put the good of his people before his own. That kind of devotion tended to evoke loyalty from those same people, and recognizing it had prompted Andy to start feeling such stirrings himself. Anything in his power he could do to help this man, he would do.
"Andy, not many people know that you are not Prince Ethan in this camp. Some of those that do are not pleased that you are taking his place, however temporarily." He sighed again. "Some are opposed for political reasons, but others feel that it is unjust of me to subject you to danger that you don't fully understand."
Andy felt E'rin shift at his side, as if he were nervous about something. He squeezed E'rin's hand reassuringly.
"I shall have to start at the beginning, so that you can understand your peril. 1,000 years ago, when the orkish horde threatened to completely overrun the world, two sorcerers appeared from the River of Dreams. They brought with them the power of the arcane magics that our wizards wield, and forged a close alliance with the Elvin Kingdom. As the first Kings of Man, the arranged a marriage between their son, and the son of the Elvin King." Here he paused. "I do not know how they managed to produce a child, no one does actually. But the fact remains that somehow they succeeded. Their son married the Heir to the Elvin Throne and together, again in a completely unknown fashion, they produced TWO sons. Both true half elves, and twins no less."
Kail paused for a moment to take a drink of wine from the cup at his side. "Each of the twins became heirs, one to the Throne of Man the other to the Elvin Throne. Both Royal lines descend from the same common ancestry." He glanced significantly at E'rin. "
"This marriage, and the births that came from them were more than a political necessity. " Magister Earlon put in. "It was an important mystical link bonding humans and elves together in the all important Cycle."
"I've heard people talk about 'The Cycle'." Andy said. "What is this Cycle?"
Magister Earlon glanced at King Kail, who gestured for him to continue.
"Well, to put it simply, the Cycle is a period of peril and salvation." He made a brushing off gesture. "It sounds like something out of a legend, but it's really very serious. You see humans and elves are bound together by the Cycle in ways that most people cannot truly comprehend. So long as the Cycle endures our peoples cannot turn against each other, nor can we be completely defeated. They Cycle is a bond of Fate."
"I don't believe in fate. " Andy said. "We forge our own destinies."
Earlon nodded. "True. The Cycle is the great destiny that the sorcerers allowed humans and elves forge for themselves. It is our responsibility to maintain the Cycle, and thus our own destiny. If one side of the other chose to break the Cycle, of if an outside force broke it, that destiny would change."
"This is what the orks are attempting to do." Kail said seriously. "They killed Ethan to prevent him from marrying Prince E'rin and renewing the Cycle."
"It was also people who sought to separate humans and elves by breaking the cycle who arranged for the death of Prince Bruen." Beladon said quietly.
"That's nothing we can prove son." Earlon said sternly. "And as much as we don't happen to like those individuals you refer to, we cannot risk the stability of the kingdom by tossing about accusations we cannot prove."
"That does not make it any less true." Said Sir Lance. "Andy deserves to know all the peril he faces, not just that which the orks offer."
Kail nodded. "It was Sir Lance who convinced me to speak to you tonight, and make sure you understand." He paused again. "The orks will stop at nothing to ensure your death. Those who plotted to kill Bruen would not hesitate to kill you to accomplish their goals. For this reason I am giving you the option of changing your mind. But before you decide, know this: Though you are not my son, I will spare no effort to protect your life. I WILL find proof to eliminate the domestic threat against you. But in the meantime, you will need to have the bodyguard unit to protect you, and be wary of any person who is not in this room, or those they assure you that can be trusted. Do you understand?"
Andy considered for a moment. "You want to use me as bait don't you?" He asked quietly. "You intend to marry Annea's son to Erin to complete the Cycle and you want to use me, not just to stabilize the Kingdom, but to help draw out those who would kill the child to end the Cycle."
E'rin stared at Andy in shock, wearing an expression that suggested he might think Andy insane.
Earlon laughed out loud. "What makes you think that my boy?" He asked.
Andy shrugged. "I may be new to this world, but you should see the politics on mine." He shrugged again. "I know that you would do anything to protect your people Your Majesty. I know that you are intelligent, and at least a little ruthless, or your men wouldn't respect you as they do. Using me as bait is only logical, as even if I were to die, it would not leave you in a worse position so long as you got the proof you needed to end the threat to the Throne."
Kail eyed Andy intently, and then nodded. "What you say is true." E'rin gasped in shock. "You are perceptive, dangerously so in fact."
"Bait!" E'rin demanded incredulously. "Helping you maintain stability is one thing Your Majesty, but using my Belshatha as sacrificial pawn is quite another!"
Earlon flinched at E'rin's outburst, and looked quickly tward the king.
Kail paused, and looked from E'rin to Andy and back. "I see." He said after a moment. "I was not aware of the situation."
Andy's brow crinkled in confusion. 'What the hell is going on?" he wondered. "What situation Your Majesty?" He asked instead.
Once more Kail turned to Earlon and gestured for him to explain.
"Belshatha is an elvin term." He began. "Loosely translated it means: "One True Love'. It is a term for the one that was chosen for them by the gods. Their soul-mate if you will."
"My people are blessed with the ability to recognize our Belshatha at first sight." E'rin said with a smile. "I loved you from the first moment I laid eyes on you at the side of the river. You were like an answer to my most desperate prayers." He cupped Andy's cheek with his hand. "I knelt there at the bank of the River of Dreams and prayed for the gods to send me the strength to go on for my people." He leaned forward and kissed Andy gently. "You are that strength."
Tears gathered in Andy's eyes as emotion overwhelmed them both. They stared into each other's moist eyes for what seemed like an eternity before a discreet touch on their shoulders brought them back to reality.
Annea smiled, and hugged both of them. "Do not worry Your Highness." She said. "I will make sure that Andy survives. Even though you will have to marry my son for the Cycle, you will always have Andy at your side as your consort. I swear before Adarian, Lord of Magic."
The moment passed, and eyes were quickly dried. Kail looked over the two boys. 'So young.' he thought. 'So full of promise they are. Is this how Ethan would have looked?' He sighed deep in his own heart. 'I'll never know, but in your memory my son I will ensure that these two have the chance you never did.'
"Your Highness." Kail began, his stern gaze fixed on E'rin. "Keep him close to you. Listen to his council, for his mind is as sharp as I could have hoped for my own heir." His lips twitched into what could loosely be referred to as a smile. "I think his grasp of political realities will stand you in good stead in your role as King."
"Perhaps I have simply been a bodyguard too long." Beladon started when his father told him to speak his mind. "But it seems to be that using the young man as bait is contraindicated when we need to keep him alive."
A'rion snorted in a most un-elvin fashion as he dressed. He had treated Beladon as a son from the time the boy had been brought to their home. He knew he would never take the place of his dead mother, but he had long ago determined to show the boy, now a solid man, all the love he would give a child of his own. He understood Beladon, and knew that his fears were well founded.
"Is that a new form of commentary A'rion?" Asked Earlon with a mock scowl. "I've never known you to be so eloquent."
"I'm merely agreeing with Beladon belshatha." He responded reasonably. "Human politics are so terribly murky and convoluted. It amazes me that you accomplish anything at all sometimes."
Beladon smirked at his parents. He barely remembered his long dead mother, but he would always remember A'rion. The elf took care of him, and comforted him when his father was off on his many different duties for the Throne. He taught Beladon duty and honor, and showed him all the love and devotion that a child could need. It was A'rion, more than his father, who inspired him to become a Mage. It was A'rion who inspired him to join the Royal Guard and to strive to join the Prince's Guard. He loved his father, but A'rion was the one who had always been there for him.
"It's not just that which bothers me though." Beladon continued. "I'm worried that Annea might do something rash when the hammer comes down in this situation." He pursed his lips in thought. "After all, it was her love who was killed. She knows as well as you do that Harmon and duPre' were behind it, and she is going to want some of her own back."
"He's right you know." A'rion said thoughtfully. "You could barely restrain her from burning both of them down during an audience at Court." He shook his head. "If she thinks she can get the proof she needs, I'm positive she will put herself in harm's way to get it without a second thought."
"What would you do, oh wise one?" Earlon demanded.
"Well, if it was me, I would have done something fairly permanent about those two long ago." A'rion said casually. "Unfortunately, that would only cause more harm in this situation. All we can really do is keep a close eye on the situation."
A slow smile broke across A'rion's face as an idea occurred to him. "You know, it suddenly occurred to me that I have a perfect solution."
"Do tell." Earlon said seriously.
"While I danced, I received a message of Te'ema's will." His smile grew. "The time has come to train young Prince E'rin in the art of the Bladedancer. It seems logical that I should take up this task."
"That's a great deal of work." Earlon said with an answering grin of his own. "You would have to spend a great deal of time with him, and of course Andy... Or should I say 'Prince Ethan'?" He chuckled. "No one will think anything of it either."
"Come to think of it father, would it not also be appropriate for you to train 'Prince Ethan'?" Put in Beladon. "After all, the Royal Heir has a great deal of talent, and your experience at the Academy makes you the perfect teacher." He shrugged. "The fact that you and A'rion are a couple, as the Princes are only makes it more logical. After all, you two have been together for so long that it would make sense that you would be able to advise the young couple on their relationship."
A'rion turned his brilliant smile on Beladon. "You have always made me proud Beladon."
With a blush, Beladon bowed. "Thank you father."
As a rule, Historians are not an argumentative group. Being so completely objective, they generally do not find any points on which they disagree.
There's a first time for everything.
"Surely you can see the danger this represents." Stated he who had summoned his brothers. "She is abusing our knowledge and using it in ways that were not intended."
"That is the purview of the Guardians brother." Another spoke. "It is not our concern what they do with what lies in the books."
"We cannot allow it." The summoner argued. "It debases all we have ever stood for." He paused. "I know that I have not been among you for as long as most, and perhaps you think that I have been unable to leave life as a mortal behind me..."
"It certainly seems that way." One of the female historians spoke up. "You appear to be... Anxious, offended. It is not our place to have opinions brother. We must be objective."
"And above all we must not interfere." Added the arguing Historian. "What would you have us do? We cannot lie."
The summoner sighed, which brought a look of curiosity from the others around him. "Are you all so divorced from the world that you cannot infer the obvious?" He demanded of the others. "Do you not see where this will lead?"
"It is not our place to infer anymore than it is to interfere. We are recorders of the Now. While we stand here, our work goes undone. " The arguing Historian responded.
"Don't you see? We will be interfering!" The summoner insisted. "That was the reason the Guardians existed in the first place. When first the Historians walked the world, did not kings and nobles change their demeanor so as to appear to be better than they truly were for our benefit? Was not our mere presence an interference?"
"This is true." Acknowledged the arguing Historian. "A situation we rectified so as to not corrupt the history we record."
"Exactly brother." The summoner said. "So we must do here as well." He pointed again to the offending half-elf woman. "She is using US brothers. She is using our knowledge of the Now to corrupt the Now. Through her and her son, we will be interfering in the most egregious way possible."
"What would you have us do?" The arguing Historian repeated.
"It was pointed out to me that we can prevaricate." The summoner said blandly. "However, I would not care to allow room for misinterpretation in the Histories. Instead, I suggest that we simply not allow them to record what we see until the situation is resolved."
He saw nods of agreement from all around him, including from the arguing Historian. "Agreed. As of this moment, the Histories are closed."
It was frustrating.
Oh, he knew where to find both Heirs, and where the Human army way, and their general plans.
But suddenly, the Histories had just stopped. Completely. It was ominous. Without that constant update he couldn't be sure of properly coordinating his two strikes, so he would simply have to choose one.
Ter'Zhull brought forth the bloodstone that linked him to his agent, and began to give orders.