the
countryside?” he asked forcefully, turning his gaze to the
king.
“Things were
moving too quickly for me to alert you, Auroram.”
“I am aware of
the situation. I will meet you in the village.” He said, then
turned and was gone.
Glavlin spoke a
word and the horses were off again, but at a much slower rate.
After a few minutes of riding, they burst through the trees and
stopped right before what looked like a village.
“Welcome to my
home,” said Glavlin, reining in his horse.
Koral looked
around, and was going to comment about the incident with Auroram
when she suddenly felt ill, and fell forward on Swift.
“The feeling
will pass princess. There must have been a tracking spell on you.
No one who enters our realm can have spells on them. It is a
precaution.”
The elf king
was right, and after a few moments, she felt fine. Not wanting to
dwell on who could have placed the spell on her, she decided to ask
about the unusual elf.
“Who was
that?”
Glavlin smiled.
“That was Auroram. He is head of the
Protectors.
They are in charge of the safety of the royal family. However,
here, he is the only Protector.”
Koral was
confused, but felt asking more questions would be rude. Instead,
she decided to look around, and was surprised at how small the
village was. There looked to be just a scattering of dwellings. “I
had expected it to be much bigger,” she responded, disappointment
apparent in her voice.
Glavlin, amazed
at how quickly she pushed aside the tracking spell, laughed. “You
are only seeing what we want you to see. Look into the trees and
tell me this is a small village.”
Koral raised
her head and almost fell off her horse. Hidden within the trees
were at least a hundred houses, with rope bridges attaching them
all together. Koral never would have noticed them had she not been
told to look.
“This is
amazing,” she said with awe.
“We have only a
few houses down here, and living in them are our guards. It is a
way to protect the actual village,” declared Glavlin.
“Village,”
remarked Koral, laughing. “It looks more like a city. Even Klayhern
is not this magnificent, and it is one of the biggest towns in the
Central Lands.”
“I would get
used to seeing large cities if I were you. Where we are going, you
may have to go through one.” Glavlin stated, then jumped off his
horse and motioned for Koral to follow.
It confused her
as to why he would say such a thing. Klayhern was home to the king,
there wasn’t anywhere larger than her town. Sighing, she let
herself be led towards a large tree, and was amazed to see the bark
move aside and reveal a lift. “This is how we get up to the
village,” explained Glavlin.
“I can see this
is going to be a very interesting visit,” replied Koral.
The elf king
just smiled and closed the door, activating the lift. When they
arrived at the top, it opened up onto a landing area. From this
point, Koral could see just how vast this village was. From the
ground she could see about a hundred houses, from here, it looked
like three times that amount.
“I wish I could
show you everything,” whispered Glavlin, “but we must catch your
brother.”
Glavlin’s
remark pulled Koral out of her state of awe, and she knew he was
right. “Yes, we should get down to business.”
They walked for
some time and when she saw the structure rising up before them.
Judging by the size of it, Koral knew it had to be Glavlin’s home.
The tree molded to create doorways, hallways, and rooms. It was
magnificent and fascinating. They went inside and straight to his
throne room, or at least she assumed it was. Inside it there were
many elves waiting to speak with the king. “Koral, could you please
go into the room on your left. I will join you as soon as I am done
here.”
Koral nodded,
not wanting to speak in the presence of these creatures. She was
still in awe when a guard approached her and asked her to follow
him.
The guard took
her into what
countryside?” he asked forcefully, turning his gaze to the
king.
“Things were
moving too quickly for me to alert you, Auroram.”
“I am aware of
the situation. I will meet you in the village.” He said, then
turned and was gone.
Glavlin spoke a
word and the horses were off again, but at a much slower rate.
After a few minutes of riding, they burst through the trees and
stopped right before what looked like a village.
“Welcome to my
home,” said Glavlin, reining in his horse.
Koral looked
around, and was going to comment about the incident with Auroram
when she suddenly felt ill, and fell forward on Swift.
“The feeling
will pass princess. There must have been a tracking spell on you.
No one who enters our realm can have spells on them. It is a
precaution.”
The elf king
was right, and after a few moments, she felt fine. Not wanting to
dwell on who could have placed the spell on her, she decided to ask
about the unusual elf.
“Who was
that?”
Glavlin smiled.
“That was Auroram. He is head of the
Protectors.
They are in charge of the safety of the royal family. However,
here, he is the only Protector.”
Koral was
confused, but felt asking more questions would be rude. Instead,
she decided to look around, and was surprised at how small the
village was. There looked to be just a scattering of dwellings. “I
had expected it to be much bigger,” she responded, disappointment
apparent in her voice.
Glavlin, amazed
at how quickly she pushed aside the tracking spell, laughed. “You
are only seeing what we want you to see. Look into the trees and
tell me this is a small village.”
Koral raised
her head and almost fell off her horse. Hidden within the trees
were at least a hundred houses, with rope bridges attaching them
all together. Koral never would have noticed them had she not been
told to look.
“This is
amazing,” she said with awe.
“We have only a
few houses down here, and living in them are our guards. It is a
way to protect the actual village,” declared Glavlin.
“Village,”
remarked Koral, laughing. “It looks more like a city. Even Klayhern
is not this magnificent, and it is one of the biggest towns in the
Central Lands.”
“I would get
used to seeing large cities if I were you. Where we are going, you
may have to go through one.” Glavlin stated, then jumped off his
horse and motioned for Koral to follow.
It confused her
as to why he would say such a thing. Klayhern was home to the king,
there wasn’t anywhere larger than her town. Sighing, she let
herself be led towards a large tree, and was amazed to see the bark
move aside and reveal a lift. “This is how we get up to the
village,” explained Glavlin.
“I can see this
is going to be a very interesting visit,” replied Koral.
The elf king
just smiled and closed the door, activating the lift. When they
arrived at the top, it opened up onto a landing area. From this
point, Koral could see just how vast this village was. From the
ground she could see about a hundred houses, from here, it looked
like three times that amount.
“I wish I could
show you everything,” whispered Glavlin, “but we must catch your
brother.”
Glavlin’s
remark pulled Koral out of her state of awe, and she knew he was
right. “Yes, we should get down to business.”
They walked for
some time and when she saw the structure rising up before them.
Judging by the size of it, Koral knew it had to be Glavlin’s home.
The tree molded to create doorways, hallways, and rooms. It was
magnificent and fascinating. They went inside and straight to his
throne room, or at least she assumed it was. Inside it there were
many elves waiting to speak with the king. “Koral, could you please
go into the room on your left. I will join you as soon as I am done
here.”
Koral nodded,
not wanting to speak in the presence of these creatures. She was
still in awe when a guard approached her and asked her to follow
him.
The guard took
her into what
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