Page 25 of Dragon Sword

“Do not answer him!” Lady Akka protested as she scurried over to the other side of the pedestal. She wagged a gnarled finger at the general. “You have spoken too much already!”

“Then I have little to lose from speaking further,” Terve countered before he returned his focus to us. “He fought by my side against one of the fiends we managed to capture, but he was bitten on the arm by the thing. The wound festered and spread throughout his body until we were forced to hide him beneath the palace.”

My eyes widened. “The one in the door that didn’t open!”

He nodded. “Just the same. He had enough sentience not to join the beasts but there is hardly more than that left of him.”

Will grasped one of his eyelids and lifted the flap of skin. The eyeball was mostly black with only a hint of brown around the edges. He closed the eyelid and turned his attention to the lady of the grouch. “So you have given up on this man?”

She scowled at him. “You witnessed our efforts yourself. There is nothing more we can do for him.”

“What about finding the reason for his disease and eliminating that?” Will challenged her as he looked between the old elf and Terve. “Surely you have some idea what’s causing this mess.”

Terve shook his head. “None whatsoever, though my scouts did find a trail of some kind leading into the woods a few weeks ago.”

“And when did the problems with the animals arise?” Will asked him.

“Six months ago, though the problem has been growing worse over the last month,” Terve told him.

“Is there nothing you will not tell this interloper?” Lady Akka snapped.

The sharp look she gave her quelled some of her attitude. “What choice do we have? Your method is for me to kill every elf who becomes infected. If the creatures overwhelm the city and bite the citizens then our city will be destroyed by your method alone.”

“I have heard enough!” she snapped back as she balled her hands into fists at her sides. “I am informing His Highness of your treachery immediately!”

She stalked around us and down the aisle. A few of the soldiers moved to intercept her but Terve shook his head. They reluctantly stepped aside and Lady Akka was allowed to disappear down the forest path.

She left unease in her wake among both the troops and myself.

CHAPTERSIXTEEN

“Wasit wise to let her go?” Will asked the general.

Terve set his hands on the edge of the pedestal and a bittersweet smile slipped onto his lips as he stared at the body of his soldier. “Would you have me so defy the king’s orders that I would hold his high priestess hostage? I have disobeyed him enough now to get me thrown into the dungeons for a hundred years.”

“But all we want to do is help,” I insisted.

The general pushed off from the pedestal and turned to face us. “I am not sure anyone can help us now. The gods have ignored our pleas and our ancestor does nothing to alleviate the suffering of my man.”

Ancestor?I thought as I studied the ring of stones that surrounded us.

Will smiled at the despondent elf and clapped a hand on his shoulder. “Patience, general. We only just arrived and haven’t had time to assess the problem.”

Terve lifted an eyebrow. “Then you believe you can find what ails the woods and my man?”

“Don’t you believe we have a chance?” Will countered. “Why else would you risk your reputation by telling us all this if you didn’t believe we could save him?”

The general studied him for a long moment before a ghost of a crooked smile slipped onto his lips. “‘Hope’ would be a better word than faith.”

“Then continue having hope and you carry your man back to the capital,” Will suggested as he half-turned to me. “My wife and I will inspect the area where the monsters have been most prevalent if you would tell us where they were seen.”

Terve stretched himself to his full height. “I will tell you where it is as a last favor.”

My heart skipped a beat. “Last favor?”

“His Highness will hear of my treachery and upon my return I expect to be thrown into the dungeon, or worse,” he explained as he looked between us. “Thus I leave my man’s life in your hands to help find a way to save him.”

Will bowed his head to the general. “We will do everything in our power to find a quick solution to this tragedy.”

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