Elves: Beyond the Mists of Katura Read Online Free Page B

Curtains billowed before an open window beyond which he could see rain falling in sheets. The odd drip was coming through the thatched roof above him.
He was lying in a bed and there were three people gathered about him. One of them had a wild and unkempt aspect and his eyes would not stay still. Nor would his mouth, as if he was in constant
conversation though there were no words.
    There was another man there – no not a man, an elf, a male elf. Male elves were called
ulas
, weren’t they? Whatever, he was a stern-looking individual, and whenever he
looked at the unkempt one, which he seemed to do a lot, he scowled. The third was a female, an
iad
. She was young and bright and excited, and when she spoke to the stern one and he
answered, he realised he’d heard their voices before.
    ‘Where am I?’ asked Stein, using the elvish that he and thirty-five generations of his family had been tasked to learn.
    ‘You are on Herendeneth, largest island of the Ornouth Archipelago, north of Calaius,’ said the stern one.
    Stein relaxed back into his pillow.
    ‘I made it,’ he breathed. ‘It’s a miracle.’
    ‘I’m so glad you’re alive,’ said the
iad
. ‘I’m Ephemere; pleased to meet you.’
    ‘The credit should be given to those of us who found you and brought you here, not to some ethereal notion.’
    Stein turned to the unkempt one, and knowledge clicked in his head, knowledge that had been passed down over seven hundred years of family secrets.
    ‘You are Takaar,’ he said. ‘Your name and face are noted in the historical records of my family.’
    Takaar, for it was Takaar, paused and his eyebrows rose in surprise.
    ‘And your name is . . . ?’
    ‘Stein.’
    There was a silence and Takaar hissed a breath in and out.
    ‘Then your arrival is welcome but the message you bring is not,’ he snapped.
    ‘Didn’t you mention that Stein’s survival was irrelevant to the experiment that brought him here?’ asked the stern one, a smirk on his face.
    ‘Your tongue will bring you to harm one day, Drech,’ said Takaar.
    ‘What is it you came all this way to say?’ asked Ephemere, her smile bright and fragile amid the sudden tension.
    Stein looked at Drech and Takaar, waiting until they were both paying him their full attention and the atmosphere had softened a little.
    ‘War has engulfed my country and it is a war we’re losing. You must help us, or when they are done with Balaia, they will visit their fury and revenge on Calaius next.’
    ‘Who are “they”?’ asked Takaar.
    ‘The Wytch Lords,’ said Stein.
    ‘You speak that name as if it should chill our souls,’ said Takaar.
    ‘Ystormun is a Wytch Lord,’ said Stein, and he saw Takaar’s expression change from confidence to anxiety in a kind of weary slow motion.
    Drech and Takaar exchanged a glance.
    ‘We must speak to Auum,’ said Drech.
    Takaar spun on his heel and left the room.

 
     
     
     
Chapter 3
     
     
     
     
    We must never turn away from faith in however small a measure because to lose faith is to lose both belief and hope.
    Auum, Arch of the TaiGethen
    Despite the slow pace, the ox dragging a comfortable litter behind it, and the focused ministrations of the finest elven healers, Nerille’s condition had deteriorated
throughout the journey to Aryndeneth. Auum did not think it had anything much to do with the journey itself, more that the increasing distance from Katura was breaking her heart.
    The sadness was infectious. Auum had thought to engender a light spirit on the long days of walking and sailing, but even the normally effervescent Ulysan was muted and introspective. Auum found
himself walking next to Nerille’s litter, as he had for large parts of each day, trying to treasure each moment as if that might banish the sombre mood.
    ‘I’m sorry to bring you all down,’ said Nerille suddenly.
    Auum looked down at her and smiled. ‘I hadn’t realised you were awake.’
    ‘I rarely sleep. I just watch very