across Jerris’ face, but he could not resist the power of the spell. He finally yielded entirely and spoke, "She always told me it was a symbol of our house, and that if I ever found our people, I would be recognized as one of our house."
"Did she tell you the name of that house?" Darien asked, slowly and calmly, still holding Jerris' eyes in a trance, frozen.
"Tolmirran," Jerris replied. The name held no significance, but the fact that he had any family name indicated that the family must be nobility, or was at one point. The stone had to be some kind of familial treasure.
"She told you the stone would mark you as one of your house if you ever found your people. What did she mean? What people are there for you to find?" Darien asked. He had never heard of any town or settlement of pure-blood elves in any part of the known world.
Jerris hesitated, resisting the spell, hiding something, but Darien had to have the whole truth. He sharpened his gaze, concentrating upon the magic, not a pleasant task, considering the sympathy he now felt. He had been the target of this spell many times, as part of his training. He remembered how terribly painful the spell could be if pushed to its limit, like having a thousand tiny shards of glass inside him, tearing at his mind until there was nothing left but pain. At this level, the spell was unpleasant, but not painful, and the powerful shade could not bring himself to push the spell any farther. Indeed, he began to find it difficult to maintain his own concentration. "Please, I mean to help you if I can, but I need to know what you know." Darien blurted out in uncharacteristic desperation, but it was no use. He could not continue. He broke the spell as a wave of disorientation flooded over him, and blinked his stinging eyes. Jerris looked down, suddenly released from the spell.
To Darien's considerable surprise, Jerris answered, "She said there was a city somewhere, a secret city where the ancient elves slept, awaiting the restoration of their kingdom. She made me promise never to tell that to anyone."
The older half-elf stared in shock at the boy. Why did he reply after the spell was lifted? Darien gasped for breath, exhausted. Jerris' constitution had proved stronger than expected, to resist the spell and to tire him so quickly. "I am… sorry… for that, but I had to be certain you were telling the truth. That spell is used for gathering information. It prevents the target from lying, but it also brings out any information the caster requests, even if the target has himself forgotten it or doesn't realize its importance," Darien said in erratic breaths.
Jerris remained surprisingly calm. "Apology accepted I guess. Anyway, it looks like that wasn't much easier for you than for me," Jerris commented, clearly noticing the other's exasperated state. Darien only nodded yes and continued to gather himself. "She called it Kadanar, the hidden city, but she had no idea where to start looking for it." Jerris then looked away, a pained and uncomfortable look upon his face.
"What is it, Jerris?"
"It's just… Well I didn't really believe her. I still don't. As I grew older, she seemed to become distant, strange, addled or something. I don't know whether it was something the Duke did to her, or whether the captivity made her mad, but she was not herself. She had never said anything about the city when I was younger. I… can't tell if it's something real or just a delusion. She said many odd things before I left. That's why I didn't tell you earlier." Jerris stammered out the words, clearly having difficulty admitting his own doubts about his mother. “She gave me a book, but I can’t read it. I don’t even recognize the letters. She told me it was written in the elven language, but I don’t know. Why would she have a book that she can’t read? It doesn’t make any sense to me, and it looks sort of… well take a look.”
Jerris produced a book from a pocket on the inside of his
"Did she tell you the name of that house?" Darien asked, slowly and calmly, still holding Jerris' eyes in a trance, frozen.
"Tolmirran," Jerris replied. The name held no significance, but the fact that he had any family name indicated that the family must be nobility, or was at one point. The stone had to be some kind of familial treasure.
"She told you the stone would mark you as one of your house if you ever found your people. What did she mean? What people are there for you to find?" Darien asked. He had never heard of any town or settlement of pure-blood elves in any part of the known world.
Jerris hesitated, resisting the spell, hiding something, but Darien had to have the whole truth. He sharpened his gaze, concentrating upon the magic, not a pleasant task, considering the sympathy he now felt. He had been the target of this spell many times, as part of his training. He remembered how terribly painful the spell could be if pushed to its limit, like having a thousand tiny shards of glass inside him, tearing at his mind until there was nothing left but pain. At this level, the spell was unpleasant, but not painful, and the powerful shade could not bring himself to push the spell any farther. Indeed, he began to find it difficult to maintain his own concentration. "Please, I mean to help you if I can, but I need to know what you know." Darien blurted out in uncharacteristic desperation, but it was no use. He could not continue. He broke the spell as a wave of disorientation flooded over him, and blinked his stinging eyes. Jerris looked down, suddenly released from the spell.
To Darien's considerable surprise, Jerris answered, "She said there was a city somewhere, a secret city where the ancient elves slept, awaiting the restoration of their kingdom. She made me promise never to tell that to anyone."
The older half-elf stared in shock at the boy. Why did he reply after the spell was lifted? Darien gasped for breath, exhausted. Jerris' constitution had proved stronger than expected, to resist the spell and to tire him so quickly. "I am… sorry… for that, but I had to be certain you were telling the truth. That spell is used for gathering information. It prevents the target from lying, but it also brings out any information the caster requests, even if the target has himself forgotten it or doesn't realize its importance," Darien said in erratic breaths.
Jerris remained surprisingly calm. "Apology accepted I guess. Anyway, it looks like that wasn't much easier for you than for me," Jerris commented, clearly noticing the other's exasperated state. Darien only nodded yes and continued to gather himself. "She called it Kadanar, the hidden city, but she had no idea where to start looking for it." Jerris then looked away, a pained and uncomfortable look upon his face.
"What is it, Jerris?"
"It's just… Well I didn't really believe her. I still don't. As I grew older, she seemed to become distant, strange, addled or something. I don't know whether it was something the Duke did to her, or whether the captivity made her mad, but she was not herself. She had never said anything about the city when I was younger. I… can't tell if it's something real or just a delusion. She said many odd things before I left. That's why I didn't tell you earlier." Jerris stammered out the words, clearly having difficulty admitting his own doubts about his mother. “She gave me a book, but I can’t read it. I don’t even recognize the letters. She told me it was written in the elven language, but I don’t know. Why would she have a book that she can’t read? It doesn’t make any sense to me, and it looks sort of… well take a look.”
Jerris produced a book from a pocket on the inside of his
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