Chapter II:
The Broken Peace
Kingdoms At War
'Fate will burn me up from within,' Pelas said to his counsellors from atop his father's throne in Alwan, 'if I do not act. The old man is gone,' he said, referring to his father, 'but still that devil stands beside me as an equal. The contest has ended, but no winner has stood forth.'
'What would you have us do?' Maru asked. The high elves of Bel Albor had assembled before him, including many of those who had served his father Parganas. The chief of these was the warrior Maru, who had, in ancient days, taught Pelas the use of the sword and spear.
Maru was a strong and noble man, but he never did more than what Pelas asked. At least he did what was asked of him for honor's sake. Cheru and Oblis were wont to do what they thought to be more than necessary while somehow forgetting what was necessary. If Pelas sent them to form an alliance, they returned with the heads of those who they were meant to treat with. Of late Pelas had assigned them to be the guardians of Falruvis, who was Master of the Doctrai.
Falruvis was not really under any illusions about the supposed divine nature of his master. But he was content to drive away belief in any other gods. If that meant that the people would abandon belief, so be it - they would still have to believe in Pelas' authority, if not his divinity. His chief concern, and he was quite open about it, was that no form of worship should threaten the civil power. And to this end he and his sons worked quite hard.
'Dalta was mine from the beginning,' Pelas began. 'He was with us in the Swamps when first I departed from Lord Parganas' hall. For thousands of years he was in my council, but for an age now he has played the rebel, siding neither with the devil or with me. But to side with no one in this contest is to side against me, and therefore with my rival. He has made himself an enemy and a traitor.'
'I will go and take Ilvas, my Lord Pelas,' Cheru said boldly. 'Give me a thousand men and I will make an end of Dalta's folly.'
Pelas laughed, 'I am sure that is what you would set out to do, dear Cheru, strong in hand and heart. I am sending the Doctrai, and ten thousand men under the banner of my father, under the command of Lord Maru. You will go as well, of course,' he added when Cheru began to look disappointed. Pelas was only happy when he had what he wanted, and he wanted his servants to serve him happily. If any man seemed less than eager to do his will, Pelas was capable of doing anything, condescending to any request to see his servants happy. To acquire wives for his favorite servants he had executed several of his father's most faithful servants and given their wives away as prizes. Thankfully neither Cheru or Oblis had yet had the fortune, or misfortune as the case may be, to have fathered any children.
These fools were his most devoted followers, however, although one might argue that Bralohi was the most faithful. Pelas could not allow them to be disappointed for long, and even if they were unfit to lead a mission, they were not unfit to follow. Indeed, they were not as skillful as Falruvis and his sons, or as wise as Kolohi or Sol, but they were strong, and their many years had given them a degree of skill that would be hard for any mortal man to attain.
'I want to cross the Thedul River again,' Pelas said, 'and not to call upon Lord Dalta,' he said the world 'Lord' with a jeer, 'for treaties or agreements. I mean to rule up to the Esse River herself, and then see what Fate has in store for me.' By this the others assumed he meant that he would see if somehow he could overthrow Sunlan and take the Golden Palace away from his brother Agonas.
And so it was that within the space of two months following this meeting the Kingdom of Ilvas and the Kingdom of Alwan were at war, with the army of Pelas marching steadily toward Ilvas. They crossed the Thedul in the early autumn and regained control of the whole region of Lushlin in a matter of weeks. The elves who ruled there - elves always seem to rule, wherever they dwell - still remembered their old master Lohi and his wisdom and kindness. They were not happy to see more war, but they were glad to see something like the old order of things making an appearance.
Pelas' sent more and more warriors, most of them human, to fortify the towns on the eastern shores of the Thedul River. But these gains came too quick, and the army of Alwan was not planted deep enough in the land. Dalta countered them, and sent his own armies against him, and sent messages to Sunlan for aid. He also sent emissaries to the dwarves of the Talon Mountains, who were, for the greater part, descendants of the Sparkans. Some of these dwarves answered his call quickly, along with and a great force of Lupith mercenaries from Sunlan and eastern Ilvas.
By the time winter fell upon the land, Pelas was all but driven from Ilvas, having lost all of his gains along the northern stretch of the Thedul River. He lost no ground in the Swamps of Lushlin, however, and he sent Bralohi and his brother to rule over that land, giving them the old honors that had belonged to their father Lohi. But whereas Lohi had opposed Alwan, his sons were faithful to Pelas, and so united the Swamplands with Alwan in a way that had not existed since the first years of Parganas' kingdom.
Not content to let things lie as they had fallen, Dalta ordered Amro and a force chiefly comprised of elvish warriors and dwarf heroes to recapture the eastern banks of the Thedul River. Their campaign was to begin in Thedua itself, and it was meant to secure for Ilvas all the territory down to the Lushlin Lake in the south.
These conflicts created havoc throughout the region, and many people fled from the fighting, some to Lushlin, where Bralohi and his brother held the land secure, and some to the north, where they inevitably came to find the peculiar people of Theodysus.
The Harvest
It was harvest time when the first of these refugees found themselves in what appeared to them to be a land of dreams. Upon every fence was wrapped vines with plump berries and every tree limb hung low because of the weight of the apples that pulled upon the branches. Every field was lush and green, just about ready to be harvested against the coming winter. Whatever else they might learn of the inhabitants of the valley, they could tell at once that they were a hardworking people, and a people well prepared for the coming cold.
The first of these men came to call upon Garam's farm, and were given a place in an old farmhouse. Soon Sazo and the other Wisemen all took people onto their land, some even into their own homes. Ilder took at least three dozen families into the woods and guided them in the construction of cabins, helping each family prepare a place for the winter. For the most part these people were welcome in Thedval, for there was plenty of food to be harvested that year, and were it not for all the extra hands, much of it would have rotted in the fields before it could be gathered.
Nihls gave up his parent's land for the use of several refugees who seemed to know a good deal more about farming than he. He packed up his belongings and took up residence in Abbon's home in the village, much to the frustration of Teacher Sazo and the Wisemen. All that he brought with him was a small chest filled with clothes, his sword and Abbon's old horse Urian, with whom he was seldom parted.
Nihls was the only person in Thedval who had openly supported Teacher Abbon, and having him dwell in the exiled Teacher's home did not sit well with anyone. The last thing any of the Wisemen wanted was for Abbon's teachings to make a resurgence. This danger was all the more present in Sazo's mind because he suspected that Nihls might already possess what qualifications he needed to be considered a Wiseman, though tradition generally restricted that appellation to those who had passed their thirtieth year.
Giretta refused to even walk by Abbon's house, and would not even speak to Nihls about anything pertaining to his living arrangement. 'They will think that you are trying to follow in his footsteps,' she warned him with frustration.
'It is sad to say, but it is true enough,' he replied, 'men will think as they wish.'
'At the very least you can put aside that wretched sword,' she said coldly.
'It is the very last thing that I have from my grandfather's father,' he said with a shrug
. 'I know the laws of Thedval,' he said before she could remind him that swords were forbidden - in truth it was, according to their scriptures, sword-slaying that was forbidden. This argument they had already had, and neither thought it would be fruitful to say any more on the subject.
'What of your farm?' she asked, hoping he would reclaim the land. It was not much, but if she had to marry him the least he could do is retain what belonged to him so that they would have a home to dwell in.
'It was given to my grandfather as a gift,' he shrugged. 'I have no right to it.'
She shook her head and then, with a sigh, said her goodbyes.
As she stormed out of Abbon's old garden she caught a glimpse of Noro making his way up the street with Amarin and a few other young men. He came to face her for a moment and she raised her hand to wave to him, but he did not see her. The youths passed her by and she felt more alone than ever she had felt in her whole life.
It was not only the poor and the helpless, however, who made their way north in that day. There were many who fled, not from the villages and towns along the Thedul River, but from the fortresses and walled cities that were besieged and taken by Dalta's troops. Some of these warriors made their way into the valley of the Enthedu and, indistinguishable from the others, made their homes in the region. In this way it became known both to the spies of Dalta and to the lords of Alwan that there was a people, rich in grain and flock, living along the northern stretch of Thedul. Soon both Dalta and Pelas came to have an interest in the secreted valley.
Whoever took hold of this land would have access, not only to their resources, but to an easy crossing of the river, and a fortified position from which to assault their enemies.
In due course, emissaries arrived from Lord Pelas in Alwan; and among them was Daruvis, son of Falruvis, lord of the Doctrai.
He listened patiently to Teacher Sazo and some of the other Wisemen as they described their teachings and their doctrines. 'The Eternal King wants men to seek the welfare of their neighbors, and to bring joy and enjoyment to all,' Sazo said, as if he meant to persuade the elf lord that his wares were worth purchasing. 'Life in the God's arms now, and eternal life to follow in another time and place. These are not offerings to be shunned.'
'They sound lovely enough,' Daruvis replied politely, but without any sign that he was impressed by the doctrines or at all interested therein. 'But shall I trade what security and joy I have for something that no man can see or hold? That is bad business,' he said with a laugh. 'Show me what I am buying, and then I will know whether or not it is worth the gold.'
He left them with a warning, 'Stray not into the south, and make sure that your teachings do not stray either. The Doctrai are not as hungry for blood as the god-hunters of Sunlan, but they do not tolerate threats to our Lord Pelas, who, to our understanding, is the only true Eternal King. Regardless of what you do, however, do not neglect to offer that tribute which is due to Pelas - one fifth of what comes out of the ground and one tenth of what is born among your flocks. Send the grain and the sheep, and we will not concern ourselves any further with your doctrines.'
Sazo bowed obediently, and promised that the Enthedu would not disappoint him.
'Do not worry about pleasing me,' Daruvis said with a confident laugh. 'Worry about pleasing Lord Maru and his representatives. They have less patience than I.'
Zoor'Da
It was around this time that the dwarves, under the command of Zoor'Da, began to depart from Bel Albor. Those who had gone to fight for the Kingdom of Ilvas remained until the very end of all battles and perils, but the greater part of them left under the guidance of a powerful dwarf named Zoor'Da. Among the elves he was named Zoor the Hateful, for he learned of the coming destruction of Bel Albor from the Elementals long before any signs or marvels appeared among the elves, but he said nothing to them beside the fact that he was taking his people into the south.
Agonas sent Gheshtick to withstand them, and to see if they might be persuaded to remain, but their numbers were so great and their weapons all of dwarf make. Gheshtick dared not oppose their departure with aught more more than pleading words.
'They have heard it already,' Lord Folly laughed as he watched the dwarves board ship after ship, filling every sailing vessel in Evnai with the short, hairy descendants of the Sparkans. 'They have heard the rumblings of things to come.'
'There are still some among them who can hear the Elementals?' Sleep marveled. 'I thought that gift was doomed to pass from them.'
'Zoor was the last among them who will be able to hear them. Forever the dwarves will be hearers of the world, but no more shall they speak with the earth.'
'What is the reason for this change?' Sleep asked.
'What is the reason for anything?' Folly laughed. 'It just is; nothing lasts forever, except change - that is, time itself. There was a time when every dwarf could hear the voice of the earth, and the trained could discern even distant events clearly. They did everything in their power to foster this gift and to breed it into their children. But little by little it fled from them until only a few could manage it. Zoor'Da is the last of them - the last of the Old Dwarves. His race will ever be strong and cunning, but the spirit of Sparka will vanish from them in time, and no man will remember from whence they came.'
'Sad are all such passings,' Sleep said with a yawn.
'The age grows weary, brother,' Folly said, noting his brother's perpetual exhaustion. 'A new age shall come upon the world, and few of the old things will be remembered.'
Their brother Death, who stood close by, grinned; for he was lord over all passing away.