Rojuun (16 page)

Adele smiled. “Yes. We are human. I think
the difference is spiritual. Druids are different spiritually than
all other humans though we wear the same race of bodies,” she
explained. “Many people have decided that Druids are different
anyway. It doesn’t matter.” She waved off those opinions with a
flip of her hand.

“Some people hold you in fear,” Tathan
said.

“And do you fear us, Friend Tathan?”

He chuckled darkly. “Me? No. Fear is a waste
of time.” It was a simple truth for him, but to the rest of them,
his answer was cryptic.

“I see,” Adele responded. “In any case,
Druids care for the forests of the world. Wherever there is forest,
at least one Druid will tend it.” She went on, “The Willden Forest
is one of the largest in the world. There is a thing very few
people know about forests.” She made certain their attention was
entirely on her. “Each and every forest in the world has a Mother
Tree. She’s responsible for the well-being of the forest.”

“Does she spank the other trees when they’re
bad?” Tathan asked dryly.

The Druids looked at him in shock while
Liselle, Vevin and Sir Danth laughed aloud. The party fell quiet in
a hurry when they realized the joke wasn’t appreciated.

Adele glared at him and took a deep breath
to keep her temper. “The Mother Tree is a sacred being.” Her eyes
narrowed, warning not to make any more jokes. “The Mother Tree of
the Willden Forest is powerful and wise beyond all. I expect you to
treat her with dignity and respect.”

Tathan tried to behave himself, but couldn’t
succeed. “Yes. I wouldn’t want her to send me to my room without
dinner,” he said with an irreverent grin. Liselle covered her
giggle with a hand.

The Druid glared at him in anger. In fact,
all of the Druids were glaring at him. Tathan concluded that
hugging trees didn’t cultivate a sense of humor. “So why are you so
upset about the fortress?” he asked.

Adele would have glared at him, had she not
already been doing so. Instead, she shook her head, muttering
something Tathan couldn’t distinguish.

“Seriously, what’s the deal with the
fortress?” he persisted, not caring whether or not she was cranky.
Tathan was tired of people being cranky and over-involved in their
own issues.

She didn’t say anything for a few moments
before answering him. “It’s where the Rojuun live.”

“I thought the Rojuun were a rumor . . .”
Tathan said. Adele shook her head and looked forward as she
walked.

“Rojuun? I’ve never heard of them,” Liselle
said.

“It’s a new race and they are not a rumor.”
Adele picked at one of her nails. “The Rojuun appeared from the
depths of the mountains about eight hundred years ago. It’s their
intention to take over the world, keeping humans as servants.”

“And if humans don’t wish to be kept as
servants?” Liselle asked, incredulous at the concept.

“That is a good point. Humans
don’t
wish to be kept as servants in general. The Rojuun are powerful
though, and many people consider servitude to be better than
death,” she answered.

“Perhaps if you were to tell us more of this
race we would better understand, Lady Druid,” Sir Danth suggested.
“It is not surprising that I have not heard of them if they have
only existed for eight centuries. I find it difficult to believe
they could force the entire human race into servitude.

“Of course, Sir Danth. I will tell you what
I know.” Adele cleared her throat. “The Rojuun first showed up
eight hundred years ago in the Caaldith Mountains. We haven’t been
able to discover how they came to exist.”

“Extraordinary. Please continue,” Sir Danth
said.

“They are similar to humans in some ways;
with two legs, a body and head with hair that is always black, but
then things get unusual.” It was clear she didn’t like this
subject. “Their eyes are shaped like upside down teardrops with
catlike pupils. Their skin is pale white, without color. They have
long legs and fingers, but four arms and hands. Their eyes and arms
are the most shocking part.”

“Alright. I can understand that they’re
different, but what I don’t understand is how a race that’s new to
the world could possibly think to convert humans into servants,”
Tathan insisted.

“They are beautiful,” Adele said. “Rojuun
are artistic and people who would face them discover they suddenly
don’t want to hurt them anymore,” she explained with irritation.
“They’re also fast, strong warriors.”

“So they’re pretty, and good with a sword. I
don’t see how that would enable them to take over the world,”
Tathan said dubiously.

“Why do they want to take over the world,
Adele?” Liselle asked.

“They feel that they are superior to
humans,” she answered with disgust. “There is an arrogance about
them. I don’t think they can take over the world, but they
certainly seem determined to try.” Adele lifted a finger to make
her point. “They wield four long knives, not swords, and they’re
lightning-fast with them.”

“And they live in the fortress?” Liselle
asked.

“They live in the mountains, deep in the
caverns. The fortress city was built to protect them from the
Druids.” Adele smiled darkly. “We do not think them so pretty. A
Druid is a formidable fighter as well. The Rojuun have outlawed bow
and arrows within the fortress because of us,” she said, patting
the bow on her back.

Liselle reached over her shoulder to touch
her own. She didn’t want to give away the gift that her uncle had
made for her. Adele noticed the movement. “That is a very well made
bow, Liselle. It is obvious that it was crafted with love,” she
said with an approving nod. Liselle smiled quickly then ducked her
head to hide the tears that threatened.

“Is their engineering any good, Druid
Adele?” Sir Danth asked.

“They did not build the city. Humans did it
for them,” she said in disgust. “Rojuun are in league with Emperor
Kravka of Iynath, who has been taking over lands with their help.
The emperor captures people of conquered lands then turns them over
to the Rojuun.” Adele shook her head. “Between the forces of the
Iynath and the Rojuun, the captured people don’t dare try to
revolt.”

“That’s terrible,” Liselle said, shaking off
her memories. “Tathan, we must save them.”

He looked at his cousin and saw that she was
serious. Tathan sighed. “That sounds like fun, but . . .”

“I know. I’m being silly,” she said in
embarrassment. “I just can’t stand the idea of people being held as
slaves.”

“I would clarify a point,” Adele
interrupted. “They are servants, not slaves.”

“If they’re being kept against their will,
then they would be considered slaves by definition,” Sir Danth
stated.

She shook her head yet again. “They make an
income, but must declare allegiance to the Rojuun and Empire of
Iynath.” She shrugged. “If they do that, then they’re allowed to
prosper and own land. Adventurers may even carry weapons providing
they aren’t used against the Rojuun.”

“How extraordinary. It is not possible to
own land. The land exists irregardless of humanity or the existence
of any other race,” Sir Danth remarked.

Tathan looked at him with raised eyebrows.
“A new, four-armed race that turns humans into servants and you’re
struck by the concept of owning land?”

“Well . . . I suppose you have a point,” he
said. Tathan got the distinct impression that the knight was
grinning at him.

“What if they don’t agree?” Liselle
asked.

“The Iynath warriors kill any who don’t
agree. Here we are, The City of Brondaggiin,” Adele said with a
wave of her arm. Before them was a city within the forest.
Dwellings were made of branches and leaves from living trees. Those
trees were enormous, easily fifty to a hundred paces in diameter.
The branches joined with each other as though the trees were all
holding arms in friendship. Dwellings hung from these at different
levels.

“I thought we were two days out of
Brondaggiin, Druid Adele.” Liselle looked around in awe as she
spoke. It was late morning.

“We took a shortcut,” she replied with a
smug smile. It was clear she intended to keep the method of travel
a secret. “Come with me. I’ll take you to Mother Tree.”

The party, with the exception of Sir Danth,
looked around at the trees and dwellings in awe. There were people
living in the city, though it was not crowded. A light breeze
rustled the leaves and brought the sounds of wildlife mixed with
voices of people in the distance. Children ran and played in the
trees and on the ground.

After walking for ten minutes, they came to
a large clearing with an amphitheater dug into the center. It would
sit two thousand on the benches with probably another five thousand
in the trees surrounding it.

“I won a competition among the knighthood
here,” said Sir Danth. “Lords cheered me while ladies threw their
scarves . . . and other items . . . to me for their favor.”

“That sounds exciting!” Liselle said with a
smile. “I wish I could have been there.

“You would have been the fairest of all the
ladies,” Sir Danth said to Liselle.

Adele rolled her eyes and led them forward
for another fifteen minutes. The largest tree any of them ever laid
eyes upon appeared before them. Instead of one central trunk, this
tree had eighty, the smallest of which was one hundred paces thick.
Each of these trunks rose from the ground, wrapping around each
other as they reached toward the sky. It was hundreds of feet tall,
towering above the forest around it.

“I introduce to you, Mother Tree of the
Willden Forest,” Adele said in a formal voice with a grand,
sweeping gesture.

“How extraordinary,” Sir Danth stated. “That
wasn’t there before.”

Chapter
15

They turned to look at Sir Danth. He
shrugged. “It wasn’t here the last time I was here. I have never
heard of a Mother Tree in Brondaggiin, or anywhere to be
honest.”

“Mother Tree did not live in Brondaggiin
until centuries after the Great Disappearing, Sir Danth. It moved
here when the Rojuun appeared,” Adele explained.

A deep, rich and sonorous voice sounded
within their minds. It wasn’t painful or even intrusive, more like
the touch of the breeze upon a leaf. “Greetings, Travelers. Welcome
to Willden. May the breeze bring peace and warmth to your
hearts.”

Sir Danth bowed while Vevin did a dance of
greeting. Liselle followed Sir Danth’s example with a curtsy.
Tathan tried to decide between giving a simple hello or a bow
before saying, “Hello, Mommy Tree. How are your children behaving
today?” He immediately thought to himself that there were probably
good reasons so many people in his life wanted to kill him.

Laughter drifted through their minds. The
enormous tree rustled as though moved by wind. “My children are
well this day, Tathan of the Shadows. I enjoy your irreverent
humor.”

Tathan bowed respectfully. “Thank you Mother
Tree. It tends to get me in trouble most of the time.”

A deep, motherly chuckle touched their
minds. “Yes. I see that trouble follows you even now. Do not worry.
That trouble will not reach you in this forest.”

Tathan wondered what Mother Tree knew. Could
someone have followed him even this far, and what did she mean by
‘that trouble’ would not reach him?

“Sir Danth, it is good to see a Knight of
Morhain in the Willden once more. I am afraid all of your people
are gone,” she said with sorrow in her voice. Tathan imagined
drooping leaves in his mind.

Vevin was the next to be addressed. “My dear
dragon, I see the pain you suffer and I suffer with you.” Vevin
looked very sad and his lower lip quivered. A branch filled with
leaves and flowers reached down from the canopy and gently brushed
his face. The wound closed, leaving a long white scar. Relief
washed over Vevin’s face. Tathan wondered yet again, what in the
world could do such a thing to a dragon.

“And you, Liselle, Child of Flowers.”
Everyone’s attention turned to Liselle, who took a worried step
back. “Did you know that you were born of flowers, my dear?”

Liselle frowned, slowly shaking her head
no.

“It is true. Your mother was not able to
bear children,” the voice spoke gently through their minds. “She
would go to a field of flowers where she would cry for hours. She
would lean down and caress the flowers with her cheeks to brush the
tears away.” Tathan looked at his cousin who didn’t seem to know
how to react. She moved closer to him and smiled thankfully when he
put his arm around her shoulder in comfort.

The Mother Tree continued, “One evening,
after telling the flowers of her sorrow, she fell asleep in the
field. The flowers held her through the night and the next four
days.” Realization was beginning to dawn on Liselle’s face causing
her eyes to widen. “At the end of the four days and nights, your
mother stood up, smiling in the knowledge that she was with
child.”

Tathan caught his cousin as she fainted. He
let her down to the grass. “It appears as though her mother never
told her the story,” Mother Tree mentioned offhandedly in their
minds.

“It would seem so,” Sir Danth said with a
chuckle. “Now we know why she is ‘Liselle, Child of Flowers’ but I
would know why her cousin is called ‘Tathan of the Shadows’. Was
his mother impregnated by shadows?” he asked with another
chuckle.

Before anyone else could react, the tip of
Tathan’s sword was at Sir Danth’s neck where the helmet met armor.
The knight’s posture showed surprise at the speed. Everyone froze
as Tathan held his sword at the knight’s throat. Everyone except
for Vevin, who did a nervous shuffle dance.

Tathan sheathed his sword just as quickly as
he had drawn it. Not saying anything, he knelt once more by
Liselle’s side, ignoring the dropped jaws of the Druids. The loss
of his mother was still fresh and it hurt to hear a joke in her
name.