The Call Of Shadows

Chapter Three

The Isle of Fae was normally a beautiful, peaceful place full of magic and wonder. But today, darkness lingered on the horizon. The Queen sat upon her throne looking at an eon's worth of information regarding the history of the realm, desperately trying to find answers to the predicament that faced them. A messenger had arrived yesterday from The Elven Step bringing a confirmation of her growing suspicion. Two weeks and four days ago, King Drogg renounced his alliance with the Elves, and sent word to inform them. Two weeks ago the elves found out, and only one week ago did the negotiations descend into turmoil. It was then that they sent one of their diplomats to ask for their support. The Queen did not say no right away, however there was more at stake than her kingdom's reputation to consider. By any stretch of the imagination, this was by far the most prosperous time in the Realm's shared history, but this could very well be the beginning of the end.

The Queen gestured to one of the guards standing by in the door, and she came to her aid. "Yes your majesty?" She stared off into the window outside while she spoke, already halfway lost in her thoughts. "Bring me Imnalla and Seflek. Take Mynn to the gardens, Seflek will meet her there once we are finished. If she asks tell her his new position requires him to weigh in on a certain matter. Don't elaborate." The guard backed away and left the room to bring forth word to the two advisors. Imnalla was the Queen's closest friend and confidant. They had grown up in the castle together, for perhaps the first century of their lives, inseparable as the sisters they wished they could be. But now the Queen was half an eon old, five hundred and forty three years to be exact. A lot had changed since those days...but at least Imnalla stayed the same. As she watched the grey dawn light turn into morning she wondered briefly how different things might have been if Triast hadn't changed. She sighed heavily. No use ruminating on a past that could not be altered.

There was a knock at the door and the guard entered with Imnalla and Seflek in tow. As soon as they both were in the room, the guard left them to their own devices. She had been in the service of the Queen long enough to realize that her services were no longer required, at least until the midday meal. "Seflek, have you been catching up on your history as I have asked? As the head of our army, you need to be aware of the full picture to advise the best course of action."

He looked grimly at the Queen. "Yes your majesty, I have. Might I ask, however, why no one was made aware of much of this? It seems relevant to several more officials than just I. While I am honored by your trust, if I were you I would be concerned that some will not see my decisions as wise given that they do not have the entirety of this knowledge." Her eyes held Seflek's gaze in a steely glare. "Only four people in the entire kingdom know the truth of our history. You are one of them, and I expect you to never betray that trust. If the truth were to be discovered by many in our kingdom it would put their lives in far more danger than they understand. You are not to speak of this outside of this room to anyone. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes your majesty." The Queen nodded, satisfied. "Good. Imnalla, I need your help to decipher the old language on these maps. You were always better at it than I, and some of these documents are far beyond my capacity for understanding them. We need to translate everything by noon tomorrow, bring in those you trust if you need help. I know you will only bring in wise counsel." Without a word Imnalla retrieved one of the scrolls and laid it out on the table to get to work. The Queen turned back to Seflek. "Let's take a walk to the gardens, shall we? I believe Mynn is waiting for you there." They crossed the room together at a leisurely pace, and silence descended for a few minutes. It was a rare occurrence for the Queen to be so closed off about her thoughts. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity the Queen spoke. "What are your thoughts of the war in light of these recent revelations?" Seflek sighed, having expected this question. "I think we are entering into an exceedingly dangerous era of our land's history, and I don't think we should proceed lightly. An alliance with the elves, at first glance seems advantageous but at the same time it could also put our troops dangerously close to The Wall. If we ally with Man, in the event of man's defeat, that could put our entire way of living in jeopardy."