Chapter Thirteen: Home in Elaria

Tranith Argan: Book 4

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Thanks to Jela, the travelers are safely bound for Elaria.

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The journey to Elaria was as peaceful as the previous weeks had been eventful. They rode the elven horses north to the coast above Brinham, and from there Erenár ships were waiting to sail them to the west coast of Elaria and home. On a fine mid-spring morning they arrived at the home of the Lord and Lady of the Llaráin, and Llarand and Heléste along with Dalonír hugged Alessa again and again while the others watched and smiled.

Pross and Jela's wide-eyed approach to the Elaria coast, not to mention sailing on an elven ship, had slowly given way to a shaky acceptance that there was never a reason to fear these elves. As everyone smiled at Alessa's homecoming, they joined in and felt the genuine warmth of the moment.

They were in the elven town of Irulára in the midst of Lorena forest and standing on one of the many wooden platforms of Llarand's house. Knights of the Order of the Findára, wearing their white garments with the tree insignia, stood guard throughout the tree on different levels. It was just as Felanar remembered it from his childhood visits and then later as he grew older. It was here that he first got to know elves and it was here that he felt safest, most secure, of any place in the world.

It was also, he remembered, where he had first gazed upon Alessa, all those years ago, and this thought made him pensive as he watched her chat happily with her parents and brother. Pensiveness grew into discomfort as another elf knight joined the group. Bounding up from the level below, he burst into their midst and embraced Alessa warmly.

“Aren!” cried Alessa warmly as she hugged him back.

“I thought your life was gone, Alessa,” said Aren in a voice heavy with emotion. Felanar had never seen an elf cry, but Aren came the closest in this moment of joy.

“It almost was gone at times,” said Alessa, glancing at her father.

“We will hear your story in great detail,” said Llarand, “all of your stories,” he added to the others. “We have much to discuss, Felanar, and much to tell you. It can wait while you rest from your journey, however, for nothing is of pressing importance at the moment. First, though, may I suggest that word be sent to your parents in Brindledown? It has been nearly two-thirds of a season since you went missing on Shanaar—more than seven of your weeks—and many have assumed you were dead. I am certain your parents are worried, and it would be nothing for me to send word to them of your safe return.”

Felanar nodded, then stopped and thought for a moment.

“I’m thinking that there may be strategic value in our return being hidden,” he said. “I want our parents to know that we are safe, but I would not want this to be common knowledge—not just yet. If my parents know, the village will know, and then anyone who passes through the village will know, and that means anyone could get word. Can you ask them to come to Elaria to meet us, and instruct them to tell no one of this news in the village before they leave? I do not think we will be returning to Argan right away so let our parents come to us, I think.”

“I agree, it shall be done just as you suggest,” said Llarand who gestured to a knight and gave him specific instructions before the knight was sent off.

“Has it really been that long ago that we were in Shanaar?” asked Dolen.

“I have been working it out,” said Kara, “and I think Llarand is exactly right. I make it 54 or 55 days all told on our trip through the wilderness, and our many imprisonments.”

“Imprisonments?” repeated Heléste to her daughter.

“Yes, mother, we have had many experiences these past few weeks. There is much to talk about.”

“Are any of you hurt?” asked Llarand. “My apologies, we should have asked immediately.”

“No, we are fine now, thank you,” said Felanar.

“Mother, you should look at Felanar's back and see if you can heal it better than I was able to,” asked Alessa.

“Why? What is wrong with his back?”

“He was tortured.”

Heléste looked at Felanar with alarm.

“By who?” asked Llarand.

Felanar said nothing, so Alessa answered for him.

“Namoníkkar.”

Llarand's eyebrows rose. “We do have much to discuss, I see. Yes, we shall attend to your wounds, Felanar.”

“I am fine,” Felanar repeated.

“Then we shall confirm that,” said Heléste softly but definitively.

“For now,” said Llarand, “rest, all of you. I do not know you two,” he said to Pross and Jela, “but you are welcome along with our friends and you may be assured of our every hospitality. You are our guests and welcome ones at that. Please, relax and enjoy yourselves. There is plenty of time to talk about what needs to be discussed. There is no need to hurry the process. Not at this moment. Right now we rejoice that my only daughter and her friends have returned to us in safety and health. Nothing else is as important as that.” He again hugged Alessa.

The five of them, all except Alessa, were shown to their guest quarters on nearby levels of the tree. To Felanar's regret, Alessa stayed behind to talk with her brother Dalonír and the knight Aren. As Felanar descended to the level below, he looked behind him and saw Alessa animatedly talking to Aren, who looked very happy to be in her presence.

Their sleeping quarters were of the usual elven luxury, consisting of goose-down beds of surpassing comfort, small wooden chairs and tables, candlelight on the tables, and all the refreshing elven food and drink they wanted. Night soon fell and they all slept soundly.

The next morning Felanar awoke to the sound of Pross and Jela laughing. He felt refreshed, as he always seemed to do when sleeping on elf beds, and so he bounded out of bed to see why they were laughing. He found them on a neighboring platform where they were seated around a table enjoying breakfast with Dolen. The laughter came from the delight the westerners felt at discovering each new elven food. As Pross or Jela would try a drink or a morsel, Dolen would look in expectantly with a jovial face, and as they would dissolve into another moment of delight as the taste spread over them, he would smile at their reaction and they would laugh at his smile. Felanar found himself grinning at the sight. At seeing him approach, Jela stood up.

“Oh, Felanar, you must try these,” she said, holding up what looked like small powdered balls of sweetened bread, “they're delicious, really amazing and delicious!”

“I know,” laughed Felanar, “I have enjoyed them many times on my visits here. Please, sit down and keep eating. The elves will see to it that your plate is never empty, and by the time your visit is over you'll find your clothes do not fit as well as they did before your visit.”

He sat down at the table with them and started to enjoy his breakfast as well. His hair was still tousled from sleep but he looked alert and rested.

“Where's Kara?” he asked, suddenly noticing her absence.

“Gone to meet a friend,” said Dolen, munching on some cracker-like food.

“Which friend?” asked Felanar.

“I don't know,” said Dolen.

“Well, how are you two doing?” Felanar asked Pross and Jela. “Are you feeling more comfortable around elves?”

“Yes, Felanar,” said Pross, “they treat us very well and I now feel ashamed of being afraid of them before. I don't know what I was thinking to believe such lies.”

“You will find,” Felanar began, “that there are many beliefs people hold that turn out to be not true. I have traveled over various lands and I have seen similar beliefs among similar people, yet each group has had the same wrong ideas about the others, and each group thought that it alone does things right and everyone else was misguided. We are all taught many wrong things.”

“You are very wise,” said Jela.

Felanar blushed and thanked her.

They enjoyed their breakfast and especially the drink that accompanied it. It was a variation of the same citrus-flavored, brightly-colored drink Felanar had enjoyed before, but each time the flavor was slightly different, and the color was never the same, yet the coolness and smoothness were ever present.

“Oh, how I could have used this in the wilderness,” sighed Felanar after a sip.

After breakfast, and learning that Llarand was busy elsewhere, Felanar offered to show Pross, Jela and Dolen around Lorena forest that morning, and soon they had descended to the forest floor. They spent the morning exploring the nearby area and Felanar showed off his skills at talking with animals, a feat that amazed Jela and left her open-mouthed in wonder.

“It is a skill the elves taught me,” said Felanar. “Actually Alessa was the first to show me how to do it, and I was very bad at it at first, but I can show you if you'd like.”

A shadow passed over Jela's face at the mention of Alessa, but the offer to learn from Felanar banished it quickly and soon she was doing her best to communicate with a hedgehog. Her best was not nearly good enough and poor Felanar had to explain just how rudely the hedgehog had responded to Jela's invitation to have it for dinner.

“I said that?!” she exclaimed.

“I’m afraid so,” said Felanar, “but as I said it takes practice.”

As the morning waned, Felanar caught sight of Alessa and Aren walking together a hundred yards off. If Alessa saw them she gave no indication, and he silently watched them pass out of view while Pross and Jela were trying to talk to a sparrow. Seeing Felanar's gaze, and having not been as interested in animal-talk as the others, Dolen approached.

“Your mind is occupied,” he said quietly.

“Yes, a bit,” said Felanar as he turned his head toward the dwarf.

“She is happy to be home,” Dolen said.

“I don't blame her, it is a nice home. Very safe.”

“Not like the wilderness,” Dolen said. “She experienced many things for the first time on her journey, some good, some bad, but all new.”

“True,” murmured Felanar, “she reacted to events that were extreme, but now it is like a nightmare that is past and banished by the bright sun of day.”

“We all went through extreme experiences, Felanar. Now we are safe, but there is much to do. How long would you like me to stay here? I have a yearning for home and for my people.”

“We need to confer with Llarand and find out the news,” said Felanar as his attention returned to other matters, “and your people will be discussed. Please stay for that and let us decide as a group what is to be done next. Nevertheless, I see no reason why an Erenár ship cannot carry news of your survival to your people in the meantime. They must be dealing with great sorrow over the loss of your father and their king, and for all they know the loss of his son. I will ask Llarand to send word of it right away. I'm sorry I did not think of it last night.”

“We were all glad to be safe last night,” said Dolen. “Today we think of the future, last night only of the present.”

“The future it shall be,” said Felanar resolutely.

“Do you still plan to give up power?” asked the dwarf.

Felanar started at this question, but then said, “Yes, I suppose I do mean to, but not right away. I will not walk away from my responsibility as king, if that is what you mean. Yet I will walk away once the throne is settled and the kingdom is secure, but before any temptation to corruption overtakes me.”

“Not all power corrupts,” said Dolen.

“I do not agree,” said Felanar.

“Well, at least you will carry out your role for now, and perhaps time will soften your despair about power. Know this, king of men, that as long as I am the king of dwarves you will have an ally in me who will not be corrupted by power. I vowed to fight alongside you back on that day of battle, and I will continue to stand by you in the peace as well.”

“I value your loyalty, Dolen. You will make a good king.”

“According to you, I will be corrupted by power.”

“Well . . .” said Felanar, his voice trailing off. At that moment Jela walked over and interrupted.

“What are you talking about?” she asked innocently.

“Our future plans.” said Felanar.

“Oh,” she responded, “Well, can you come and see if we are talking to this sparrow correctly? I don't think we are.”

Felanar smiled and followed her while Dolen stared at his retreating figure.