The Broken Council (The Guardian Chronicles 1) (26 page)

“You
mean to tell me that they are attacking those vile Nairians?”
 
The elves had always gotten along fabulously
with the men of Nairi.
 
General Akuji had
had many run-ins with Nairian patrols along the Blaine River during his
lifetime.
 
He could not believe that the
elves, someone he thought to be a long-standing enemy, were now their
allies.
 
He stood there with a skeptical
look on his face.

“Yes,
General Akuji, the high elves, which is what this separatist group is known as,
was betrayed by the Nairian general and his army.
 
They attacked their capital city in the night
and slew everyone in their path while they slept.
 
I have allied myself with Queen Kishi Tiranidrol,
the eldest daughter of the elven king.
 
She is a powerful sorceress and will be able to annihilate the people of
Nairi.
 
She has powerful motives to carry
out my commands. Her twin sister was murdered by the villainous General Yukio
of Nairi.”

“Can
you guarantee me that these high elves are different from the others?
 
How will we be able to tell them apart from
the ones we are supposed to attack?”

“I
personally guarantee their loyalty.
 
If
they should waver in their charges, I will allow you to destroy them on
sight.
   
In answer to your second
question, the high elves have much darker skin than their fair cousins of the
woods unbeknownst to them.
 
I have also
added a special symbol that represents fire and air on their armor and
weapons.
 
The symbol will glow when two
of my soldiers should cross paths.
 
This
way you will not kill any of those that are on our side.”

“What
a wicked and cunning move. We will serve with you.”
 
He lowered his head slightly again as a show
of respect.

“General
Tadok K’K, go and do all that I have asked.
 
I will return to you by week’s end.
 
Be ready to move out when I arrive.”
 
She then rose higher into the air until she was nothing more than a
speck in the sky.
 
Then she burst into a
ball of fire and dashed off toward the goblins in the east.

General
Tadok K’K stood there for a moment while he watched the flaming elemental fly
out of view.
 
He quickly turned about and
stared coldly at the sentries who had not done their duty when Kana had
arrived.
 
The orcs that had failed their
general walked dejectedly toward their leader and bowed before him.
 
Each lowered their heads as if they were
praying to a god that would somehow help them in their precarious
situation.
 
The fear was palpable in the
air around the soldiers.

“You
vermin failed me!
 
You know the penalty
for such insubordination,” the general declared menacingly.

“General,
why are you going to punish us for not attacking our new leader?” asked one of
the orcs timidly.
 
As soon as the words
had left his mouth, he knew he was dead.
 
Tadok K’K took two swift steps to reach the idiot who dared to question
his authority.
 
He reached out with his
right hand and ripped his throat from his body.
 
Black blood gushed everywhere as the helpless soldier fell to the ground
soundlessly.

“Does
anyone else feel that I am being unreasonable?” General Tadok K’K asked imperiously.
 
“Good; the rest of you will be spared for the
war’s sake.
 
However, you will be on the
front line to help us determine just how far the elves’ arrows can fly.”
 
He laughed hard and loud as he marched off
toward his tent.
 
The rest of the orcs
joined in the laughter as they went back to their respective duties.

***

Kana
continued to streak across the sky toward the Sheldon Mountains where the
goblins of Tuwa made their aphetic home.
 
They lived so deep under the ground that no sunlight had ever touched
the cavernous halls of the goblin nations.
 
They simply cannot stand natural light, which made them use artificial
means.
 
They loved to make fire and to
use it against their perennial enemy the dwarves.
 
They hated those bearded midgets and their
intrusive nature.
 
The stout people of
Carrick were always driving their western neighbors out of their perfectly dark
and dank dwellings within the mountains so that they could get more of their
precious ores.
 
They loathed these
intruders completely, but they were no match for their power and military
tactics.

As
the rogue guardian approached the mountain range that was home to her little
friends, the sun had set and the day was drawing to a close.
 
She could see the night post arriving at
their stations just outside the main secret entrance on the western end of
Sheldon.
 
She burned white hot now to
make an even stronger impression on the goblins that stood watch.
 
They would be very impressed by the display
and would send for their leader immediately.
 
They were a superstitious bunch that would hail her as their god.
 
Her task here would not be nearly as
difficult as her visit was with the orcs.
 
The most difficult part would be when she explained that they would be
fighting on the same side as the brutes of Tarin.

Kana
knew that the orcs had the nasty habit of eating their little goblin friends,
but she would be able to persuade them to join her cause in spite of this
risk.
 
When she explained that the rock
trolls would be fighting with them, their fears would subside.
 
She knew that this visit would not take long
and that she would have the time she needed to persuade the rock trolls to join
her.
 
They would be the most difficult by
far to convince, but they should prove to be the deciding factor in the
overthrow of the dwarves and men.

She
went into a dive so steep that it looked like a star falling from the night
sky.
 
The goblins that were on guard
began to tremble and shake before this awesome display.
 
One of the guards had enough sense to run
back into the tunnels to report the spectacle to their leader.
 
Kana stopped just above the ground and
hovered there while she waited for the lords of the five tribes to arrive.
 
She continued to be illuminated as she
remained suspended in the air.
 
She
smiled to herself at how easy this task was going to be.
 
She knew that in order to unite the different
tribes they would all have to witness this grand display.
 
She stayed where she was for only a few
minutes before one of the lords appeared with his entourage.

Within
minutes of one another, the remaining three lords appeared followed by the only
ruling lady.
 
They were all transfixed by
this powerful display and were in awe that such a visit would be made to them.
 
No one said anything for a long time; they
just stood there looking at the elemental.
 
They could not tell exactly what the creature was or from where it
came.
 
More importantly, they did not
know its intent toward them.
 
Maybe the
being was there to destroy them.
 
Kana
read these nervous thoughts and decided to end the prolonged silence.

“My
friends, I am Mistress Kana, master of fire and air.
 
I am here to discuss a cause that requires
your special talents and abilities,” she said with a warm smile.
 
“Will Lords Daray Krumok, Kieran Magurth,
Rothrock Momurth, Pirro Thadak, and Lady Kiara Sodok please come forward?”

The
five leaders came forward slowly and stopped several yards before the
stunningly beautiful apparition.
 
They
kept a respectful distance from the guardian and dropped to one knee as they
awaited further instructions.
 
Kana
smiled at this display of total obedience and submission from her newest
subjects.
 
They apparently revered her as
a god, so she would make use this to further her cause.
 
This is
going to be even easier than I thought.

“Noble
leaders of the great nation of goblins, I have come to ask your aid in
cleansing the lands of Tuwa of its rebel races.
 
Men, dwarves, elves, and even giants have plagued these lands for too
long.
 
As a guardian, it is my duty to
protect the elements from these thoughtless creatures, and I require your help
to cleanse Tuwa of one of the vilest among them.
 
Will you join me?” she asked in a booming
voice.

“We
will, Mistress Kana,” said Lady Kiara with a sanctimonious nod.

“Excellent.
 
As my first act, I will form a unified army
of the goblin nations.
 
I will then bolster
your ranks with your neighbors to the north of your beautiful mountain homes,”
she explained.

“Who
are you referring to exactly?” asked Lord Daray cautiously.

“I
will meet with the rock trolls tomorrow morning to persuade them to join your
ranks.
 
Once you have joined together,
your first mission will be to wipe out King Jarvis and his pretentious
dwarves,” she said with a venomous hiss.
 
Stunned silence greeted this declaration.
 
The leaders of the tribes looked at one
another uneasily as they took in what they were being commanded to do.

“How
will we be able to uproot the bearded miners?” asked Lord Pirro tentatively.

“With
the aid of the rock trolls, you will be able to remove your foes from their
strongholds,” she replied coolly.
 
All
five of the leaders nodded their acceptance of this answer while harboring a
sense of dread in their hearts.
 
They did
not believe they could do what was asked of them.

“I
sense that you still do not believe that you can overthrow stunted
dwarves.
 
Bring Yuki Togok to me,” she
commanded imperiously.

“I
am already here, mistress,” Yuki said with a slight bow.
 
She was a fearsome-looking goblin that had
silver hair that glimmered in the moonlight.

“You
will be my general of the armies of the goblin nations,” Kana said resolutely.
 
The tribal leaders looked at Yuki in shock as
they backed away to allow their new general to approach their mistress.

“I
will wreak havoc on our stunted foes until they are no more!” she shrieked
vehemently.

“Very
well, General Yuki…now, prepare the armies for attack, and I will return to you
with the rock trolls to fill your ranks.
 
They will have two commanders that will answer to you, and they will
keep their soldiers in line,” Kana said succinctly.

“We
will be ready,” replied General Yuki.
 
She bowed to one knee this time.
 
The host of goblins that had gathered together outside the gate bowed
like their general.

Kana
smiled warmly at their acceptance as she rose steadily into the night air.
 
She began to glow crimson red as she turned
into a ball of fire again.
 
When she was
nothing more than a red dot in the sky, she bolted in a northeastern direction
toward the home of the rock trolls.
 
The
goblins went into a frenzy of work after her departure.
 
They were excited and scared all at
once.
 
They were afraid of the dwarves
and their brutish ally from the north, but they felt a new level of confidence
after their meeting with the powerful elemental.
 
They had never seen one before and were in
awe that she would choose to reveal herself to them in person.

As
the land below Kana changed from mountains to open and desolate plains, she
began to think about the task that lied before her.
 
The rock trolls did not revere the guardians
as gods and would have to be persuaded in a different manner altogether.
 
They would not be willing to accept her as
their leader simply because of who she was.
 
They would not be impressed by her magic, and she could not use it on
them.
 
Their tough hides made them
impervious to her powerful offensive magic.
 
The only exception to this rule was her ability to control minds.
 
The only problem with this is that they can
break a mind-controlling spell after only a few minutes.
 
They did not use the same mental defense
mechanisms that Kana was used to.
 
She
did not fully understand how they ejected mental intrusions.
 
She would have to persuade the brutes to do
her bidding without resorting to coercive measures.
 
She would have to appeal to their destructive
and distrusting nature.