Silvertree Chronicles Bk. 01 Ch. 34

He nodded and shook his head. He walked over to the Queen, "Your Majesty, we just did a little experiment to confirm something. The Amulet neutralizes the effects of alcohol. Else removed them quickly. Either way, I could probably drink a dwarf under the table."

She smiled and laughed. "That amulet is full of surprises."

Eldar smiled, "The Ambassador told me he thinks it has made me partially dwarven, Your Majesty"

The Queen laughed loudly. They continued their walkout to the ceremony and it was long, and boring with a lot of people talking. After the Queen delivered her words, Eldar decided to take the podium.

"I am Duke Eldar Silvertree. I spoke with the Queen earlier about how I got here. A Duke to multiple Kingdoms. She informed me the idea originated with King Thornlord. We never met face-to-face. We discovered and warned him about the traitor in his midst. Yet he was a powerful caster and plans had to be made to capture or kill him with 20 high-level human Mages.

The effort, unfortunately, failed. I think of the King and what he dealt with daily. Sitting next to a powerful traitor of your people. The best words I could find were, 'Brave and Heroic.' The Princess lost a father and so did I that day. My father was here on a Diplomatic mission. I look now at the King's idea of making me a Duke in his court.

If he had not taken that step, I would not have been able to aid in establishing a framework for the Princess to rule with advisers. The Queen also passed the word to me that the Dwarven King thought what I did for the human people was noble. Specifically, not taking the crown.

I was not made a Duke in Dwarven or Human communities to rule them in the event of a catastrophe. It was a sign of honor and respect from two great Kings to say we appreciate the work you have done.

The work you will continue to do on our behalf. Some of which are classified and will never be known to the general population. My place is not in Court but the Battlefield. Being Elven we look at things that are decades out.

We try to be ready for when the war will come. Being an ally, I ensure that all of the rulers in our Alliance are aware of events that are going on. The continuing preparations we are undertaking on the Elven southern border. The human northern border. With the aid of dwarven craftsmen.

Dwarves have joined my mercenary company. We have a few humans but we are always looking for more. We are an interracial Cross Border Mercenary company. When it was first brought up to King Thornlord commented, 'I wondered when someone would use that provision in our treaties.'

There has been a lack of trust in the past. The Town of Quatarsia means 'tolerance' in the common tongue. Those who can work together for the common good of all 3 Kingdoms. The idea to act on those provisions was mine. It took some support on the Elven side. The Human King was happy to see it happen.

The dwarven King found the idea of keeping the battle out of dwarven lands was an outstanding idea, as he does not wish to lose ground. The company is financed by all 3 Kingdoms with a clear division of who will do what. It was my concept based on existing treaties and supported by 3 Kingdoms. King Thornlord was a visionary in honoring and supporting this effort.

I hope to find some humans willing to take up arms with my company who are also tolerant visionaries to help protect the trade routes. Eventually being the pointy end of the spear in the next war. We will know the area and the enemy better than any of the armies coming in. Which is why I will be the Field Marshal in that area when war strikes.

I do not have the latest numbers, but before I left, we had over 300 of the enemy dead. The human army loss of 8 and the loss of 4 in my ranks is concerning to me. I would like that to be closer to 50 or 500 to one instead of 20 of the enemy to one of ours.

We are new, we are building both in size and fortifications. We are not going anywhere. We are The Gray Blades because we exist between the light and dark. We work to keep the dark forces at bay. Some will say this is not the place to bring this up.

When the attack occurred, I was in the Dwarven Warriors Hall giving the same kind of rallying call with my next stop here. Your King knew this. I am finishing that aspect of what he expected of me.

All while I have such a large audience to address. Help to support the vision King Thornlord supported. Seek the Gray Blades if you are interested in supporting this. He was brave and a visionary. His presence, like my father Heliar Silvertree who died in this attack, will be missed."

His address was longer than most. Given his involvement as one who lost family in the attack and one who was on a mission, he felt he did alright. He got back to his seat and a note was passed to him from the Queen, "I see both you and your father in your statements. I hope it helps to fill out and balance your ranks. I think you did very well. Especially for a 'non-diplomat.'"

Everyone finished speaking. They headed back inside after the Princess delivered her word. She added one comment to the end of her prepared statement. "Support the Gray Blades. They are doing good work for the Kingdom and our merchants."

The honor guard moved the body into the royal crypt. Protective wards and magic were cast within and outside to ensure the sanctity for those buried in the crypt. They moved back to the Palace without incident.