The Elf King Read Online Free PDF Page B

door, shouts and a flooding of
footsteps erupted, growing louder. The sorcerer and the Elf Lord
looked to the door just as a heavy thudding beat at it
continuously.
    “ Lord Estrial! Lord
Estrial!” A voice summoned from the hall. “Please, I must speak to
you!”
    It was Bim, a scout on the
fringes of the Lyyn, loyal and dependable. Terill looked at the
sorcerer in question, hearing the desperate pleas continue,
noticing the panic in the halls escalating.
    “ Enter!” he called
out.
    Instantly the door swung
in, a mass of rushing bodies seen in the hallway before the elf
closed the door, and hurried to relay his message. Nodding quickly
in homage, and not waiting to be recognized, the elf began speaking
eagerly, his words spilling out on top of each other.
    “ My Lord, forgive my
intrusion. I have just received a message from Cillitran. It is
reliable and cannot be taken for anything but the urgent
truth.”
    Terill cut in quickly,
seeing the panic in Bim’s eyes. “What is it, Bim?”
    The elf looked scared,
glancing up to the sorcerer. Terill waved off any questions,
“You’re fine. Speak.”
    Bim did so quickly. Wearing
his hunting attire, the elf nervously rubbed his hat with his
narrow fingers. “My Lord, the news is not good. King Andelline was
assassinated just this morning.” He watched their faces turn
instantly; the Elf Lord and Shadox were stunned. Bim paused for a
second before adding, “It was an Elven blade, my Lord. There will
be no peace talks.”
    The young messenger stood
his ground for a moment, watching the shock move in waves across
their faces, watching the disbelief settle with confusion. Bim
swallowed hard. “That is all, my Lord.” He nodded fully, and then
left the room to join the turmoil in the hall.
    Terill’s eyes were wide,
his mouth sagged open. “This cannot be. We would not have...” His
voice trailed off as he wandered over to sit at the table, the
blood appearing to have been drained from his face.
    Shadox followed. He stood
at Terill’s side and rested one great hand on the elf’s shoulder,
turning him, pulling him close so that their eyes were inches
apart. The sadness swept from his dark eyes, turning hard. “Prepare
your men for war, Lord Estrial.” He turned for the door leading
outside, drawing his hood over his head.
    “ You’re leaving
now?”
    As Shadox reached the door,
he wheeled back, seemingly angered. “I go first to restore order to
the house of Andelline, then mass an army to fight the Mrenx Ku . If we are
lucky, I can reason with them before they attack. Spare their lives
however, we will need them. Create whatever magic you can to aid
us. Be ready, Elf Lord, for the darkest battle.”
    “ Men are no threat.” Terill
dismissed Shadox’s concern annoyingly.
    Shadox paused briefly, his
eyes narrowed coldly. “Elf Lord, an army of demons created by
the Mrenx Ku marches south. Its numbers I could not count. Find talismans,
my Lord. Find them soon.”
    Terill Estrial swallowed
hard. He felt his strength waiver. “We will be ready, sorcerer. But
what would you do for the house of Andelline? The King and Prince
are dead!”
    Shadox’s voice was deep and
threatening as he hastily unfastened the locks on the side door.
“Worry for your own, Elf Lord. Worry much.” Shadox slipped quickly
through the entrance, disappearing into the garden.
    Mulling it over in his
head, Terill Estrial walked to the window and looked out to the
courtyard seeing no trace of the sorcerer.
     

     
    D eep below the surface of stagnant water and soil, beyond the burning
midmorning sunlight, hidden in the lost ruins of an underground
citadel, moans and wails of constant pain echoed relentlessly. In
the darkness, dozens of Seers stood chained hand and foot to the
wall circling a massive ball of pitch blackness. Their bodies were
arched forward, chest out, arms and legs stretched back, iron
chains taut, as if something was pushing them away from the dirt
wall, or sucking them