Chapter V:
The Rise of Ilvas
Mind and Arm
They were not long among the rebels of the Marshland ere the old prejudices began once more to arise within the minds of those who observed them. After the brothers had taken part in just two raids (for Bralohi's men were not content with denying Parganas his tribute; they exacted a levy of their own from his allies) Agonas was deemed the stronger, and Pelas the wiser of the two brothers.
In the first raid, Pelas had devised a rather cunning ambush, one which Agonas had also conceived, but taken just a moment longer to put to words. In the second raid, Pelas and Agonas fought just as bravely, but Agonas slew the warrior Unli, who was well known for his strength. Pelas was his brother's equal, but there was only one Unli and therefore no means for him also to prove himself.
This inequity of perception only perpetuated itself, as Bralohi deferred to Pelas for council and called for Agonas when strength and skill were needed. At times the brothers laughed about this, but at others they became fierce rivals. During one raid Agonas disregarded his brother's strategy and thereby saved the lives of some twenty men. Pelas, in response, fought his way to the fore during the next raid, and dueled three warriors at once.
'These men are both fit to be kings,' Bralohi told his brother.
'But there is only one throne in Albori,' Kolohi said, shaking his head. 'Kings, you say, does that mean we will follow them?'
'Not until we see whether Thedua comes or not. If their word is true, then Thedua will hasten to war with us. They will not want to appear weak in the eyes of their lord.'
But Autumn came without any sign or threat from Thedua. Ruvis grew openly impatient, though the thought that they might soon rid themselves of these two schemers forced a grin to split his face. Otherwise the rebels grew to esteem the brothers, and even to appreciate the fact that Lord Parganas was not some distant political blunderer, but rather a warrior and a strategist. 'I believe,' Sol told the others, 'that come Springtime, we shall be leaving the Swamps.'
Agonas had not been idle. In every raid he made certain that some subtle dishonor was paid to Lord Parganas' authority. It was as simple as the tearing of a banner, or the slaying of a nobleman, or the taking of some booty that was meant for trade with Albori. In secret he sent threatening messages to the lords of Thedua, telling them that the Swamps would not have them nor Parganas as a master any longer. Pelas did his own part by commanding the rebels so acutely and so cunningly that they began to appear more like a military and less like bandits in the eyes of the people of the Marshlands.
By midwinter the first sign of open war came to the Swamps. A messenger appeared, accompanied by two hundred armed warriors. He spoke in the name of Lord Kasdeia of Thedua and Lord Abrion of Nassa, telling the people of the Swamps, 'Make no mistake, Lord Parganas rules these lands. If the sons of Lohi, along with all their cohorts, do not surrender and plead the mercy of their master, the lords of Thedua and Nassa shall fall upon them with the rage that, in ancient days, fell upon the quarreling hosts of mankind.' It was, of course, chiefly to the mortals of Marshland that this message was delivered. Their fear of death, Lord Kasdeia hoped, would keep them from foolishly risking their lives in support of Lohi's sons.
This new development was sufficient, it seemed, to impress upon the rebels the truth of Pelas' and his brother's warning.
'We cannot wage war with Lord Parganas,' Bralohi said reluctantly when again the elves met for council, this time without the sons of Parganas. 'If he presses his weight upon us we shall be crushed like grapes.'
'What then?' Ruvis demanded, 'Are we to follow these pups to their dooms? You know, Bralohi, all too well I think, the reasons for their exile.'
Kolohi rose to his feet with murder in his eyes when he heard those words.
Bralohi laughed. 'Calm yourself, brother. Ruvis speaks true enough. This band of rebels and our conflict with Thedua is our Doom Path, even as the conquest of Sunlan belongs to the princes of Alwan.'
Ruvis straightened himself in his seat and addressed the council. 'Bralohi, you and your brother were taught the histories of Lord Parganas, even as these youths have been instructed. But I was there; I saw the Mountain of Life when yet there was life upon those rocks. I fought against the gods in those days with your father at my side. We marched beneath the banner of Lord Parganas with all the same promises in our hearts. Lands, honors, liberties - whatsoever a man might desire. There was nothing he would withhold from us if we marched to war. Yet here we stand, his own sons before us, tempting us to put our necks under a new yoke, as if the yoke of their father were not heavy enough. And was the word of their father was not false enough that we need new lies to replace it?'
'I will not go back on what I have said,' Bralohi answered. 'We will follow the sons of Parganas to their fates. But whether we follow them or no, we must depart from the Swamps, and leave my father to his own cunning. Thedua comes, and after them, Parganas; we can shield him from his duties to Albori no longer.'
Kolohi nodded and asked, 'Where will a band such as ours find a haven? We are, as of now, vagabonds and exiles, what difference does it make, then, if we cast our lots with the sons of Parganas or no? At the very least, if we help them, we shall put them in our debt. If not, then we have as much to fear from their success as we do should they fail despite our aid.'
After an hour of debating whether this or that region of Bel Albor would accommodate their band of fugitives, Sol called for a decision.
All but Ruvis chose to follow the course that Bralohi had described, putting their lives into the hands of Pelas and Agonas.
'My only solace,' Ruvis told his son as they left the council, 'Is that in all likelihood I shall not live to regret this night. For the dead have no regrets.'
'Is it as hopeless as you describe?' Falruvis asked, with a hint of fear in his voice.
Ruvis sighed, and then he spoke the words of one of the Theduan wise men, 'Have hope so long as you live, for you do not know what the gods may give.' But Falruvis could tell that he did not truly believe what he had said.
Within a week Bralohi, his elf captains and some five-hundred mortal men departed from the Swamps and began the journey into the eastern marches of Alwan.
Ambush
As it turned out, the sons of Lord Parganas knew their father's will better than they had thought. When the company had been on the eastward road for no more than three days, they were approached by a mortal man on horseback.
'What is your name and business?' Sol demanded, as he, Cheru and Kolohi surrounded the man, weapons drawn.
'I am an ally, I am the son of Erlun, who was once a servant of yours. Though you fought at the request of Lord Lohi, we mortals have never failed to recognize how much was done on our behalf by his brave sons. But I am come to warn you: a great host marches south along the Thedul River, and scouts and spies have been sent ahead to find you.'
'Spies such as yourself?' Cheru said, suspiciously.
'I am no spy,' he said flatly. 'My father suffered many wounds for your sake, and my elder brother gave his life for the sons of Lohi. Shall I betray them now?'
Sol nodded, 'We thank you for the warning, son of Erlun, the warriors are preparing to make camp. If you make haste you shall have no trouble finding a tent among them ere darkness falls.'
'But I must hasten back to my master, Lord Otha, who you know to be loyal to the sons of Lohi. It was he that sent me here on this matter.'
Sol smiled slightly and then, quicker than a gale, he drew his sword and killed the man, knocking him from his horse. Without thought or feeling the three descended upon the corpse and stripped it of anything valuable: Three pieces of gold, a silver chain and a short sword. 'Send a man out later to burn the body and cast the bones into the bog,' Kolohi said. 'Return to your master indeed,' he laughed. 'Do they truly think we are as foolish as that? Return, yes, return with news of our location!'
Two days later they came
to the River Thedul and found that the bridge was under heavy guard. 'They are not Theduan,' Bralohi said as he peered at them from behind a great rock, his sharp eyes having no need for a looking glass.
Pelas peered over and saw that, indeed, there stood some fifty armed men, garbed, not as soldiers of the north, but as the militiamen of Lohi.
'Is it some kind of ruse?' Pelas asked.
'Perhaps,' Bralohi answered. 'It may be Theduans in Swampland garb, or it may be the servants of my father making a show of it for Lord Kasdeia's sake. Or they may just be brigands.'
'Like us,' Pelas said flatly.
Bralohi smiled.
'The latter two possibilities I do not fear,'Bralohi said. 'If they are my father's men, then they will let us pass untroubled. And if they are brigands, well, you know as well as I who has the greater number. But if they are soldiers of Thedua, then we have come into an ambush.'
'It is even as the son of Erlun spoke,' Sol said, 'They have come down Thedul upon the Southerly road, and cut us off.'
'That is impossible,' Bralohi said, 'Unless they sent a force before their messengers had even come.'
Pelas looked at his brother. Agonas smiled - their cleverly devised tale had not been a lie after all. Lord Parganas had indeed commanded Lord Kasdeia and his northern allies to press hard against Lohi's rebellion. Bralohi turned to the princes, 'We should have believed you,' he said soberly. 'I apologize.'
Pelas offered him his arm and they clasped one another's forearms as friends. 'Now let us see what we can do about this rabble.' Pelas now spoke as if the handshake itself had transferred the authority of command from the son of Lohi to himself. 'They are most certainly men of Thedua,' he continued. 'For brigands would not stand guard in this manner. Nor are they your father's servants, for they would have sought you out by other means, and not lain in wait like this. But they do clearly wish you to believe them to be such.'
Pelas took a moment to think. 'What is the lay of the land?' he asked.
'We are but three leagues from the Turtle, where the mighty Thedul River is broken in twain, swallowing the Swamps and encircling the dominion of our father.'
'Then we are not, properly, within the Swamps of Lohi, where your father's authority cannot be challenged.'
'Correct,' Kolohi replied. 'His influence extends far beyond his rightful borders, as I and Bralohi have evidenced. But, thinking upon it, I do not think he would send a force to aid us this far to the north.' He squinted in the sunlight as he spoke, giving the guardians upon the bridge a more careful look.
'Then it is an ambush,' Pelas said. 'And I am certain that they have sent out spies to find us.'
'And find us they shall,' Sol said. 'For no man can hide a force such as ours in this place.'
'Yet they will not dare to fight us in the wilds themselves. They will try to draw us into the open, by means of some ruse or another.'
'What shall we do then?' Bralohi said, now fully sounding like the servant rather than the master.
'We must draw them into the bushes and thorns, and drown them in the bogs. For nobody knows these lands and how to battle therein better than Bralohi's men.'
'If these men are soldiers, then what you suggest is impossible,' Ruvis said, speaking for the first time.'
'How is it impossible, if they be men?' Pelas asked. 'To get men to do whatsoever it is that you will, you merely need to find the right motivation.'
For a moment the men looked at him as though they were afraid.
Agonas grinned, as if for the first time recognizing Pelas as his own brother. There was such a calculating tone in his voice that they were convinced in that moment that he was capable of anything.
Figures and Angles
For the rest of that day Pelas led the rebels in groups through the surrounding bogs. As he happened upon certain places he would call the men to a halt, inspect the terrain carefully, and then, if it seemed fitting, he would leave some men behind to lay in wait. Each group was instructed to defend their hiding place in a certain manner, and to flee the moment their defenses were overrun.
When evening was nigh, Pelas and his brother, along with Cheru, Oblis, Ginat and twenty other men rode up to the bridge and slew ten of its guardians. When the whole company was alerted, they departed and vanished into the swamplands like a storm wind.
Just as they had expected, a much greater force appeared from the north and from the south, bearing the colors of Thedua, green and blue banners waving in the air. As soon as they had entered the wilds and bogs the rebels broke company, each taking a separate path into the swamp.
Confident in their numbers alone, the Theduans pursued, thinking their enemies would lead them back to their encampment. But they found it impossible to stay together in those lands, as the paths through the swamps and stones were very narrow and difficult.
Here, and again there, the rebels set the plan of Pelas into action. In each place the rebels had the advantage of terrain, and instructions from their new captain regarding the best use of their environment. Whether it was a simply matter of keeping to the southern face of a great rock, so the enemy could not swing their right arms without exposing themselves to attack, or taking up positions such that a small number of men could encircle a greater host and rain down arrows upon them, the rebels did as they were told, and made such a slaughter that it seemed the swamp itself was wounded and bleeding.
In the end the Theduans drew back, gathered their wounded and left the Swamps, bearing the tale of their defeat to their masters. 'Ere any retaliation can be made,' Bralohi said, 'we shall be far from these lands.'
'And into more perilous circumstances, no doubt,' Ruvis complained.
'Indeed,' Bralohi nodded. 'But can you not tell, friend, that there is something of destiny within these two young men?'
Fallen Fortress
If one were to follow the course of the River Esse into the Far North, he would find a great fortress built in the frozen pine forest of Esathann. In ancient times this fortress marked the southern border of a mortal kingdom, the name of which history has forgotten altogether. When the goblins came, and the land froze, the kingdom was abandoned.
Lord Parganas had partially restored this fortress after his conquest of Bel Albor, thinking he might use it as a shield against the northern goblins. But the expense of maintaining the outpost was greater than he had expected. He judged that the harsh terrain itself was sufficient to discourage goblin invasions. In time the northern forest grew about and swallowed the fortress whole, so that from Alwan no sign of the fortress could be seen.
Among the mortals it had become a place of legend, and rash souls would travel there to see if they might perchance bring back some trinket as evidence of their foray into goblendom. By now, however, nearly all the treasure had been taken away by the goblins, who prize things that shine as much as their human neighbors.
It was to this fortress now that the rebels made their way, passing swiftly through the eastern marches of Alwan to the banks of the Esse River. From thence they traveled north in small companies, passing through those empty lands unnoticed and untroubled. At last they came to the edge of Esathann, where towering pine trees rose up into the air like the spears of an enormous guard.
They made camp at the edge of the forest, felling a dozen trees and building great bonfires for warmth. Winter was fast approaching - indeed, in the land bordering the Far North it had already arrived. By now the men had grown accustomed to meager rations and cold nights in cloth tents. The rickety wooden houses in their camp south of Gilwel now seemed to their memories like the warm walls of a log cabin. But they could not go back, for all the Upperlands were against them. 'Our father Lohi will sue for peace, claiming that he had nothing to do with us. He will pay his tribute, and live,' Bralohi thought to himself. 'But we cannot return.'
The next morning, the sons of Parganas led their captains into the forest to seek out the fortress. 'It i
s built along the river,' Agonas told them, 'So if we keep the water to our right, we will find it without trouble.'
This was very nearly incorrect. It was, as he said, built along the river, but it had become so overgrown and broken down that it took some time before the men discerned the stones of the fortress from the rocks and trees of the natural landscape. 'Goblins have been here,' Ruvis said, shaking his head as he examined the ground.
'Goblins?' Bralohi asked, 'How can you tell?'
'These stones have been chipped so as to sharpen the edges,' Ruvis explained. 'See here, there is blood on the edge.'
Pelas came and looked at the large stone. 'What is the purpose of such a thing?'
'It is a weapon,' Ruvis replied impatiently. 'They throw them at their enemies or at their prey. The sharpened edge pierces the flesh and breaks the bones. This blood is not that old, by the look of it.'
'But where is the body, if there has been a battle?' Pelas asked.
'Goblins do not leave bodies to rot in the open, whether they be bodies of beasts or of their own kin. To them there is living flesh and there is food, it matters not from what creature it comes. Especially,' he added with a shiver and a curse, 'in this barren devil's land.'
'Devil's land?' Agonas laughed. 'You mean the Old Dragon?'
'This is, they say, the land in which he deceived the Ancients,' Ruvis explained.
'Or enlightened them,' Pelas added, 'as some stories recount.'
Ruvis grunted. 'Think what you will about the Dragon. But this is an evil land; it lies dead and barren. Why do we come here, to the land where nothing can live?'
'You contradict yourself, Ruvis,' Pelas said sternly. 'You have already conceded that the goblins dwell in the Far North. How is it then, that you think the sons of Lord Parganas, and the sons of Lohi, and the mighty rebels of the Swamplands have not the strength you grant to the stupid brutes?'
'Call them not stupid,' Ruvis said scoldingly.
Pelas and his brother laughed.
'I alone among us have battled these creatures. In the old days, when Lord Parganas defended his kingdom from all enemies, it was I, along with many older elves, that fought them in this country.'
'Not in this country, old friend,' Bralohi said. 'You fought in the west. We should not judge this land on the account of circumstances four hundred leagues to the east. Remember, there was once a strong kingdom of human beings that dwelt here.'
'And a lot of good this land brought them!' Ruvis scowled.
'Father,' Falruvis interrupted.
Ruvis turned and looked at his son, whose face was red with anger. 'You have told me many tales concerning your deeds against the ape-men. If half of them are true, we shall have little to fear.'
Ruvis slapped him with the back of his hand; the others turned away, so as not to see the youth's embarrassment. Ruvis drew close to his son's face and hissed, 'Don't ever oppose me in council, son. Do you think I am somehow above the methods of my countrymen, who send their sons away on Doom Paths for lesser insults.'
'You have no authority to send him away,' Pelas said, stepping between them. 'He, along with your whole band, are now sworn to the service of the King's sons.'
'On a Doom Path there are no King's sons,' Ruvis hissed.
'No indeed. But hear me, Ruvis,' and Pelas seemed to grow almost divine as he spoke. 'When the light streaks across the sky, you know what is to follow; though you be no more than a swamp-soaked fool you know to expect the thunder.' His voice almost began to sound like the thunder as he spoke. 'Even so, I, who have been raised by a King and Queen, gods among the gods themselves, and slayers of the lords of Mount Vitiai - I can see farther than you. I am already a king. Nay, I am more.'
Ruvis looked at him with fear in his eyes, and said nothing more.
Bralohi thought to himself, 'Is that fate itself I discern in this young man's voice?'
The reach of Lord Parganas had shortened in the many years that had passed since his first conquest. Though he had on many occasions proved himself willing to fight to maintain the borders his first bloody wars had established, there were still a great many places within Alwan where men could live entirely free from his influence. The utter East and the Far North, the Jagged Lands in the northwest, and the coast of the Great Lake in the south, were almost completely free of his policy. To these lands flocked the greater part of the mortal men, who wished to live out their lives undisturbed by their elvish masters.
In the northeast marches of Alwan there were a great many such peoples. The Essenes, who lived along the coast of Esse herself, the Knariss, who dwelt in the south near the shores of the Great Lake Brost, and the Lupith, who had settlements scattered throughout the region. It is this latter people from which the Lapulians are said to have descended. So it is said among the elvish historians, at least.
This is a lie, however, as the Magic Tower of Lapulia had already been erected and the walls of Old Lapulia already built. What kinship these Lupith bear to the Lapulians is not greater than that kinship which all men bear one to the other.
Freedom was something that existed to a greater extent the further one lived from Albori. Even as freedom enlarged, however, security diminished. The same sword that gathered the taxes cut down the goblins and kept law and peace. In these lands there was little government, and therefore even less peace.
The following day the camp was taken down and the rebels disappeared under the cover of the trees. They made their way north toward the fortress, clearing a road as they went. The rotted front gate was battered down and a new one was hastily constructed. 'We shall do better than this,' Pelas explained, as Ruvis looked at the makeshift door in horror. 'It will be better to have a temporary defense of limited strength than to put our trust in this battered old gate.'
The whole forest seemed to come to life with the coming of the rebels. There were hammers pounding, axes chopping, and the constant hum of saws filling the air. The small, northern gate was in good repair; Pelas permitted it to remain, saying, 'We will make a better, but for now we have more pressing renovations to undertake.'
Indeed, there was a portion of the western wall that had been all but battered down, perhaps during some ancient siege, now forgotten by all peoples. There were so many vines growing upon the wall that it would be easy even for a man to scale the whole structure. 'The goblins will pass over these walls with no difficulty whatsoever,' Ruvis warned. He was then given the task of overseeing their removal.
Camp was made in a large courtyard that stood between the river and the fortress. 'Here, at least, we have only to fear attack from the north and from the south,' Pelas judged.
The following morning the work began with the sunrise. All the axes, hammers and saws started up almost in unison, waking Pelas and his captains from their uneasy slumber. Every man was set to work, save for those who had kept watch during the night. When the sun was fully risen, Pelas and his brother entered the Fortress, along with Ruvis, his son Falruvis, Bralohi and Sol. Dalta was left in command of those who labored on the outside.
'Tell me, Ruvis,'Pelas ordered, 'If you see any sign that goblins have been here.'
'There is little in this place,' he replied, 'that does not speak of goblins.'
Indeed, there were several small, manlike skeletons with gnaw-marks upon the bones as though they had been eaten where they lay. There were several broken swords and stone weapons lying about. There was filth everywhere.
'It is clear that the last residents of this place were not men,' Ruvis said, sniffing the air. 'But the goblins that dwelt here have left many years ago. This room has been untouched for many generations.'
They continued past the entry hall by torchlight, lighting torches on the wall where they were able. There were bodies of both men and goblins strewn about the fortress, but all of them had been reduced to bones and dust by time. The only sign of life came from a rather robust population of rats and other vermin, who screeche
d and fled at the approach of the elf warriors.
'The place is foul,' Pelas said, 'but it will do for our purposes.'
'Besides,' Agonas mused, 'We shall not be here long; a few centuries at the most.'
The elves laughed, knowing how such words would sound to those mortal men who, as they spoke, labored outside in the forest for their sakes.
'We will need to trade with the people of eastern Alwan; lumber will be our most plentiful resource no doubt. We must bring women here, so that the number of our servants might increase. In time we will have a nice little kingdom here, and, then we can see to the matter of Sunlan. If we are careful to conceal our numbers it is likely that they will think nothing of us until the day we march against them from the north.'
The North Rises
In time the fortress was restored, trade was begun with the Knariss of Alwan, women were purchased from among the Lupith (the Essenes took no part in such transactions), and several battles with the goblins of the north were fought. By the time a generation had passed, it was known by all that a new power had come to the forest of Esathann. Even in Albori itself it was rumored that a rival king had arisen in the east.
Lord Parganas wondered whether it might be his sons or not. However, Lady Aedanla was certain that it was her Pelas who now seemed to rise up to threaten the authority and supremacy of Lord Parganas.
The Far North was a place Lord Parganas dared not enter, even to quell a potential threat to his own dominion. 'Many wars have been fought in those frozen lands, and never has anything good come of it,' he reasoned. 'Let them be, and we shall do well. But let them enter my borders - then blood shall turn the Esse to crimson.'
By now the leadership of Pelas was unquestioned, and even Ruvis seemed to have accepted him. Agonas' reputation diminished in the sight of the others, though his renown in battle was not in any way affected. Whatever the others thought or said, however, Pelas sought his council first in every matter, trusting him more than any other of his captains.
The new kingdom, as it arose in a land inhabited almost entirely by mortal men, became known, at first, simply as the Kingdom of Elves. By the time two hundred years had passed the name had become Ilvas, and now few mortals remember the origin of the word.
The many adventures that the goblins of that land occasioned gave the brothers ample opportunity to demonstrate their wisdom and their might. And though they were equal in both, the ancient prejudices forbid that Agonas be honored for his wisdom or that Pelas be known for his might with the sword. To the people of Knariss, Lupith and Esse they together became known as the Mind and Arm of Ilvas.