Page 26 of Dragon Sword

A genuine smile appeared on the grim general’s lips. “That is all I can ask. You will find the source of the troubles southwest of here near the old forest road. There is a blackened spot where the blood of the creatures killed the grass. The mark is impossible to miss.”

Will nodded. “Thank you. We’ll go there now to see it.”

The general took a step back and bowed low at the waist to us. “You have my eternal gratitude, Lord Thorn.” The rest of the contingent of soldiers also bowed.

“We’ll be back as soon as we can,” Will promised before he took up my hand and led me away.

Relief washed over me as we left the oppressive circle of stones, but the heavy scent of the woods was hardly better. The tight circle of ancient trees meant we were forced to walk down the aisle between the soldiers and out onto the path. Will then took us at a sharp right off the path and into the thick trees.

I looked over my shoulder as the clearing disappeared. Terve gently lifted his ailing soldier in his arms and walked down the aisle where his men followed behind him, silent and grim.

I really hoped we would be able to help them.

The silence between us was oppressive as we ventured through the dark, heady woods. Now was a good time to start asking the questions that bounced around in my head. “Who was that Lady Akka person?”

“A most powerful sorceress who answers only to the king,” he explained. “Her family has always been strong with magic, and her elder sister was most especially powerful.”

“Why isn’t she the king’s high priestess?” I pointed out.

He pursed his lips. “She was banished from the city five centuries ago for defying the will of the previous king.”

“How?”

“She attempted to use forbidden magic she discovered in the archives. The spell she tried to cast at the ring of stones would have drained the forest of its energy and placed it within her.”

“Ring of stones? The place we just left?” I guessed.

“The very same.”

I recalled the strange chill I’d felt and shuddered. “That’s not a very nice place, is it?”

“Holy places tend to have a strange air about them,” he agreed as he looked me over. “Are you alright?”

I nodded. “I’m fine except for all the questions bouncing around in my head, like what were Terve and the priestess saying about their ancestor.”

“According to legend, the ring of stones is the body of the first king of the elves,” Will explained as he helped me over a fallen log. “The king fought a great battle against a terrible evil and was victorious, but he was mortally wounded himself. He instructed them to seal his body in stone and once a year a solemn prayer would be spoken over them in commemoration of his victory.”

“So this ancestor can heal peoples’ wounds, too?” I guessed.

Will paused still holding my hand and shook his head. “I’ve never heard of that working.”

I cocked my head to one side and blinked at him. “Then why were they doing that ritual back there?”

“Desperation,” he explained as he led me onward. “The ancestor has never been called upon to perform any miracles, much less to help a wounded man. What we witnessed was the last attempt of a people without ideas.”

“Do you have any?” I asked him.

He stared ahead as he sighed. “Unfortunately, no. I’ve never seen such wounds as were on that soldier nor do I know of any magic that creates such putrid beasts.”

“So we’re hoping to find some clues at the spot along the, um-”

“Old road,” he finished for me. “The capital of the elves is now their only settlement, but four millennia ago these woods were dotted with their settlements. Many of the small towns were situated along the old road that ran between their land and the land of the humans.”

“When did they abandon all those places? When they stopped trusting people?” I guessed.

He nodded. “Just so, and now they have only their capital in which to live.”

I wrinkled my nose. “It’s a pretty place but I wouldn’t want that to be my only option.”

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