As Sheanni and Meridin led their soldiers out of the palace gates, she glanced back. Their daughter, Canellaine, wept in young Lord Erloff’s arms, burying her face into his chest. He nodded after them and saluted, then kissed the top of her head as Sheanni had always done to him when he was afraid. Sheanni blew them a kiss and Meridin waved.
The occasional cool breeze was their only comfort on the journey south. The summer sun glared down and the horses had to stop and be watered whenever the opportunity arose. Even the night was muggy. Some elves chose to sleep out in the open rather than in their tents.
They ate before dawn and continued their journey. At noon, they reached the top of a hill which overlooked the human capital, Dracarne, and the chaos which had taken it. The prospect of rest and preparation vanished before their eyes as ogres and goblins set fire to houses and crops in the distance. At The Grey Keep, men fired their arrows upon the hordes below while the enemy fired boulders from their ballistae. With each hit, parts of the fortress wall cracked and crumbled. They had found a weak spot. If they were allowed to keep firing, they would bring down an entire section and the city would be lost. Ordinarily, elves would not take their horses into battle and risk the animals’ lives, but now it was necessary for those who didn’t have wings. Sheanni and Meridin could fly down to the city, but the others needed their mounts to get there in haste and have the height advantage over the vast crowds. The two High Elves dismissed their horses to the pastures behind them then raised themselves into the air.
Sheanni blew her horn and led the charge. Hooves thundered downhill toward the enemy. She reached to her soldiers with her telepathy, sending each group to where she wanted them: some defending civilians and their homes, others toward the keep, and some with her towards the ballista that was doing the most damage. They swung their swords, taking heads from shoulders. Sheanni looked into the monsters’ menacing eyes and cut each one down. When it came to the last, she battled the creature to the ground. As she stood over it, there was a plea in its eyes. She crouched to hear it speak.
“They tried to take our land first,” it said before she stuck her blade through its throat.
She surveyed the damage all around her. It was true enough that these vile creatures came after flesh and tortured their prey for sport. She had seen it with her own eyes. But this was not about feeding or sport; this was war, and something had brought them to it.
Atop the battlements of The Grey Keep, Meridin fought alongside King Almeir. She spread her wings and flew to the top. Terror flashed in King Almeir’s eyes when she grabbed him by the throat and pinned him against the wall.
“I need to talk with you, Your Majesty.”
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