Chartile: Prophecy Read Online Free Page A

mother said he was fearful and left in
a hurry. In his haste to be rid of me, he never raised his helmet.
My parents never saw the face of the man who gave them a
daughter.
    “ My father was a
blacksmith, and my mother was a healer. Outland Post is very
isolated from the rest of the elven cities. Most of the people in
the village knew my parents had taken me in, though I was never
treated any different.
    “ When I was fourteen, a
messenger from the palace came to Outland Post demanding all men,
young and old, were to report to the palace. Princess Taraniz was
organizing an army to drive all Dwarves and Humans from the
kingdom. She sought to first take Mount Kelsii from the dwarves
before bringing the rest of Chartile under Elven rule. She claimed
to be doing so in the name of her father, King Aramor, who had
begun to fall ill. She said it was for the good of all Elven
kind.”
    Piper looked up from the fire and sighed.
She leaned back and ran the ends of her hair through her
fingers.
    “ My gran had worked at the
palace as a scribe and errant. My mother taught me the laws of our
kingdom as passed down from her. I knew that without an official
order of mandatory recruitment, no one was obligated to go. I said
as such to the messenger. He struck me and it roused my village
into tumult.”
    “ Wait a minute,” Leo
interrupted. He immediately blushed and swallowed hard before
continuing. “Did you say dwarves? Like from The Lord of the Rings
or something?”
    Piper narrowed her eyes and studied Leo for
several long seconds. “I’m afraid I do not understand your
question.”
    “ What do you mean by
dwarves?” asked Jack. He did not want to offend anyone. “Like,
little people?”
    The scowl and confusion on Piper’s face
deepened. “There are many races in Chartile. Dwarves, Elves,
Humans. Of course, the Merfolk haven’t been seen for many
centuries. Most certainly the dwarves are not little. They are a
strong people who live in this very mountain.”
    “ So, what are you?” asked
Jayson.
    “ Me? I am elven, of
course.”
    “ Why aren’t your ears
pointy then?” Jayson smiled and raised his eyebrows.
    Piper’s expression relaxed and she sighed.
“I have heard my people had tipped ears at one time, but this is a
legend.” she paused. “Have I answered your questions?”
    “ Yeah, sorry,” said Leo.
“Uh, go ahead. You were saying your village started to fight
back?”
    “ Yes,” Piper said,
crossing her legs. She resumed staring into the fire and poking at
the logs with the stick. “We drove the messenger and his soldiers
back to the palace, but at a great cost. My mother and father,
along with countless others were dead. Taraniz declared the
uprising at Outland Post treason, and the remaining members of
Outland Post turned me over to her as the instigator. I nearly lost
my life that day. A man, a knight I presume, stopped Taraniz. He
said would be a greater punishment to cast me out into the wild.
Taraniz agreed, and here I have lived for the last three
years.
    “ Outland Post is the last
to still follow the ways of King Aramor and not the tyranny of his
daughter. We pay only the taxes and portions of food that are
dictated in the law as set forth by the King. The elven palace has
very little farmable land. Each town is expected to produce a
certain amount of food to be given to the palace as part of our
taxes. However, since Taraniz has decided she does not wish to wait
for her father to die in order to take his place on the throne
naturally, she has been attempting to change the laws on her own,
which she has no right to do. The other cities obey her out of
fear. I hear rumors she has killed hundreds of people, and taken
many prisoners on petty crimes or actions. But she won’t touch this
place. She fears me.”
    Piper drank from her water skin, and cast
each boy a glance before returning her gaze to the fire. Jayson,
Jack and Leo remained silent. None of what Piper had said reminded
them of any