Silvertree Chronicles Bk. 01 Ch. 35

Dorothy nodded, "Did you always use two hands?"

He shook his head, "Like them, I was right-handed but I told you I had a lot of time to train on my own. I started to teach myself to fight with either hand before the academy and always fought left-handed in everything. First time Grand Master Yetto saw me do it I tossed my sword. I did a roll past him and started fighting him with my other hand.

After that, he started training me to do it with either hand. I was in my third year. In the case of these two, one had not as outstanding sword skills but she watched her competitors as I did.

She looked for weaknesses. The other has at least 6 intermixed fighter styles. He was doing a real hatchet job on the training dummy. To break him of the habit I started training them both left-handed. Put them behind the curve.

But then they had to move back to right-handed and do the same maneuvers. In the end, they will still be better right-handed but in many cases, they have the advantage of fighting left-handed. They will have fought against right and left-handed foes."

He looked back at his apprentices. "Ride fast toward the intersection side-by-side, I want to see you both leap off at the same time and draw your swords so put them away. Moon Ray, you count it out three, two, one. Jump on one. RIDE!"

They took off down the road, "Now let me see if they listened about having 2 dismounts." They got to the end of the road and they each tried a different dismount. She did a double spin on her somersault and landed it with a slight misstep but she did have her sword drawn.

Strong Oak did the single somersault. Eldar rode up to them fast. He did a forward dive off the left side drawing his sword and tumbled at the end and was facing toward the road. He looked at them, "Why is that dismount important?"

Strong Oak answered, "Because it shows you how to tumble to keep from getting hurt?"

Moon Ray was more analytical, "You assumed in that situation that your enemy was on the right side. You dismounted on the left to have your horse block for you until you got on your feet."

Eldar sheathed his sword, "Sheath the swords. Moon Ray mount up. Ride at full steam all the way back to the falls and do the flip I just did, no sword, but land in the water. Your answer was the one I was looking for. Strong Oak is also correct in it helps you to learn to protect yourself with tumbling."

He waited until she was a few lengths away. "Mount up and chase her. Same maneuver but you have to dodge her."

He jumped on his horse and took off. Eldar mounted up, "Catch up. T'suras Biatus Evanill Aisiaon." They rode forward and shot past both of them before they got to the water. He did a jump to the right dismount with his sword so T'suras was on the other side of the pool.

He watched them come in and Moon Ray landed feet first and then face down into the water and Strong Oak jumped earlier. Eldar sheathed his sword and tossed his bag and cloak.

Strong Oak was at the edge of the water just as he hit the water on his shoulder and tumbled forward.

Eldar dove over him to Moon Ray and made sure she was alright. He pulled her up from the water and she was sputtering and her nose was bleeding. He smiled at her, "That is why I had you practice this on the water. How does your face feel?"

She choked out, "Felt like I slammed it into a rock instead of water."

Eldar nodded, "You hit on your feet instead of the right shoulder blade."

He looked at them, "Never practice this maneuver alone. In case you land on your face. You both are trying and pushing boundaries. Tactical question time, you are riding from the dwarven Kingdom back across that expanse of the border. What side should your weapon be set to draw from and why? Strong Oak first."

He thought, "I would say left side so your weapon would be facing the charging enemy."

Eldar looked to Moon Ray. She sighed, "I would say right side because the maneuver you showed us would allow us to put the horse between me and the enemy."

He looked at them and grabbed them both and dunked them. "Out of the water. The answer was 'Whichever side Grand Master Silvertree tells us to set it to.' Both of you had the sword reversed for the maneuver you were doing. You do not want your sword facing the battle you want to face the battle, spells, and a sword. Fighter yes you are correct. Blade Singers, Not so much. You just jumped into the Lake Strong Oak, what shoulder did you land on?"

He looked at Eldar, My right one." Eldar looked at him, "If you hit a rock or something on the ground which shoulder is likely to get injured. You would want your sword held in your uninjured side's hand. Greater chance of the ground impact knocking the sword from your hand." They nodded. "One of the first things I told you to do is set your weapon for a left-handed draw. For the next week, you will switch it to a right-handed draw. Then switch at the beginning of each week.

You will do the switch. It is up to you to remember. Now..." He pushed them both back in the water. "That was forgetting to say Grand Master at the end of each response. It shows respect and it lets me know you have finished your answer. Understood?"

They said together "Yes, Grand Master."

He looked at them, "Out of the water switch your scabbard dry off then mid-day meal. Then acrobatics training. Here from horseback. That last maneuver 6 times each one at a time with the other standing out of the way so you can observe and count how many times the other gets it right. This first part is getting the flip and rolling along the right shoulder. After that I want you to go see a cleric and take care of any wounds. Then onto your normal schedule. You are released."

They were finished drying off and switching the scabbard around. Eldar looked at them, "Pick a house but eat together. Talk about your day. I am heading back to see if Cook has any bear stew for a mid-day meal."

He looked at Dorothy and he mounted up, "Let us head for home." He dried himself as he rode. She looked at him, "The answer would normally be right side as most fighters are right-handed."

Eldar nodded, "If you can fight left-handed how many of your right-handed opponents have practiced against left-handed opponents? Now if your opponent is left-handed and you are stronger with your right then fight with your right or your left. Strength in one hand versus an opponent's lack of knowledge.

I would go with what I know. Fight right-handed because I know my strength. I do not know who he has fought. With my sword's ability, I can switch often. I hope the ability my charges pick up on to summon the blade. I was and will always be better with my right hand.

When I fought in the tournaments and when I was evaluated. I always fought left-handed, except for my last match. I put the sword in my right. I frustrated my opponent with that move. Her parents spent a small fortune on having her train against left-handed fighters.

Made her better for that reason alone. She never knew I could fight with my right hand until that match. I stretched it out 30 minutes to frustrate her even more. She never had a match go longer than 2 minutes. I practiced with each arm for an hour switching arms. Then did it again. 8 hours a day."

Dorothy shook her head, "Why?"

Eldar looked at her, "Spend your life being called an impure bastard and it will put a fight into you. To prove you are more than that label. That came from adults and children."

She nodded as they got to the house and dismounted. They walked inside and Cook smiled at him, "Bear stew?"

Eldar smiled, "Called it. I remember what you did with that bear we killed that crushed me. That is what gave me the scars on my face."

Dorothy looked at Eldar, "I wonder why your amulet did not fix those?"

Eldar smiled, "If I cut the scares out the amulet would fix it to look normal. They are a reminder to me and everyone. I can be hurt. In that case, I put myself on the line for people I had known for a few days. I would do it again and again."

Cook looked at Eldar, "You have done it again and again. Does not like to back down either even when being crushed."

Eldar laughed, "The bear's cave is where they found the holy symbol I have in my chest."

They sat and ate and Dorothy asked the wrong question, "Whatever happened to your opponent from that match?"

He sat his bowl down and walked out of the house. She followed him and looked at him. She realized something pained him in that question.

He pulled out his journal and let her look at the entry around the tournament.

She giggled, "That is funny." Then he flipped to the entry on assassins and the rogue Grand Master.

She looked back at Eldar, "Oh Gods. I can see why that upset you."

Eldar nodded, "Take the journal and show those 2 entries to the other brides. I leave those entries unencrypted. She walked back into the home. He followed her and sat down and finished eating. Then looked at his 2 elven brides who had just finished reading the 2 entries and looked at him in shock.

They now could see the killing machine that struck quickly and precisely. He took the journal and unencrypted parts tied to dealing with the wizard lich and his father. Then the section detailing what he did to the Barron. He handed that back to them.

They looked at Eldar and Astria looked at him, "I heard about the attempts on your life and all of the houses involved being stripped of assets because of what they did."

Eldar shook his head. He removed the encryption of a couple of pages where the entries said 'Mission Classified by the Elven Crown' and some of the 'Mission Classified.'

Eldar showed those to her, "You only know the rumors in a lot of cases. You do not know how bad stuff could have gotten. You do not go from being an impure bastard to the head of your house. Then knighted and made a Duke without several big things being found. Then to take care of the problems to save the Kingdom and our allies."

Staria looked at Eldar, "Annette and Charlemagne know about these things?"

Eldar sighed, "Most of them, there are a couple of recent events that still need to be addressed that they do not know about yet."

Annette walked in. She saw his journal out, "The Centaur Captain is outside and what did I miss?"

Eldar got up and as he passed her, "Rogue Grand Master."

Then they walked out to see the Captain. He looked at Eldar, "What is the word on the prisoners?"

Eldar looked at him. "Declared enemies of the Kingdom and are to be executed. Was told they do not exist. Those were my orders from the Queen. That I am passing back to you. This deals with the journals recovered and it was not just about poaching animals. It was MUCH larger.

The good news is there will be an influx of funds coming in the form of rewards that we can use in a variety of ways. Let me know what they need and want and we will get it resolved quickly. It is that kind of money.

The leather-smith has already been given instructions to size your men up for leather armor. This kind of money I can enchant it, buy, or have crafted just about anything short of a relic. The more complex the less we can do.

I want to get your armor crafted and to the enchanters. Here was what I was thinking. Put medium protection on it, protection from normal missiles, and a camouflage effect to make you blend in even more."

Captain Broxan nodded, "We will get sized up and consider what we want on the armor or if there is anything else, we need."

Eldar nodded. He looked at Silver Moon who just got back, "I need you to send another into town to collect every ring and amulet of protection or resistance. Every magical bow and melee weapons and bring them back here to start distributing to our Centaurs. They have a harder time dealing with transversing the Elven Capital. We need to start moving the mountain."

She nodded, "I got another going shortly she can get quite a bit of but not all of it. Where to bring it."

Eldar smiled. "Downstairs bedroom here for now. Captain, bring a couple of squads of your men at the evening meal. We captured several caches from an assassin and have been working on getting the equipment distributed. There is almost an entire building with this stuff laying around and I want to get it into the hands of those that can use them. Bows that shoot fireballs, no. Bows that turn arrows into acid, sure."

He looked over at the woodpile and pulled his bow, "The first from the silver wood and this is what it does." He shot the log and he watched the liquid fire burn half of it away. "The bow I took that big bear down with."

Captain Broxan nodded, "I will see what I can do. You have others who wish to meet with you. If you grab your horse, I will take you to them. They avoid cities and villages."

Eldar nodded and got on his horse and followed him into the woods after he ordered his men to see the leather smith. They traveled for over an hour through some rough terrain. They got to a small clearing and waited.

Broxan looked at Eldar, "They will come to us here."

Eldar nodded and hopped down. He pulled food and water out for T'suras and Eldar heard them approaching from all directions. Their heartbeats which they could not mask.

"I know you are. There are 8 of you approaching from different directions. Evenly spaced. There is a ninth but he or she is further back and observing for now. Hillside to the north about 400 feet out." They quickened their pace. The observer moves in closer. He saw all manner of Elves, Half-Elves, and Humans in the group. All dressed in robes and they carried staves.

Eldar looked at each one, "I hate to assume but it looks like a group of druids to me. A group passed by briefly to trade for a few items and left, I was 25 at the time."

The ninth enters the circle and looks Eldar over, "You smell of magic."

Eldar nodded, "I am a Grand Master Blade Singer and Champion of Corellon Larethian."

The druid looked at Captain Broxan, "This one says you are the Duke over this area?"

Eldar nodded, "I am also a Knight Protector of the Elven people. Titles do not make the person. Actions do. What would you like to know of me?"

He looked at Eldar, "What is your goal here?"

Eldar looked at him, "Some change is inevitable and some aids the community. We are building a new town." He explained about the mercenary company, the regrowth of the forest, reclaiming said forest, the enchanted stoves, and what the threat was.

"Where possible we combine resources like our leather-work, working with our human counterpart who makes a special saddle for the type of riding she does. We have children on the way, lots of children. Lots of twins occurring, two of those twins have predestined grand cleric for Erevan Ilesere and Rillifane Rallathil.

Most of the women in my group upon returning for my wedding are carrying predestined Grand Clerics. One will produce a Half-Elf or Elf-Blooded child who will be the Champion of Vandria Gilmadrith. Together we will face the coming invading force. We have already done a covert attack to take out the senior leadership.

To delay the war from happening until we have the fortifications built to protect these changes and improvements to the elven people. Especially the Wood Elves and Wild Elves who would be on the verge of extinction if we did not make these preparations to protect them.

I guess the only thing we have not done is ask for your guidance in this area. This is because you are so reclusive. There are likely other groups who are watching to see what we do. Like the Wild Elves that I have not spoken with. It is easier to keep the enemy from them than try and change their very nature and be open to outsiders and working in mixed units. I grew up in the Wood Elf village until sent to the city when I was 37, I have a history with them."

Eldar walked over to him. He removed his armored shirt and then he removed his shirt so he could see the embedded holy symbol. "I am also the activator of blades." He took his sword belt off and held it before him. "24 of these blades were made, one was confirmed destroyed. While 9 others are missing.

After the ceremony at Silent Falls, there will be 13 of these blades in a wielder's hand. An hour after the ceremony the Lady of Dreams will be coming to perform a mass wedding for those who wish it. The sword ceremony is an invitation-only event. Those who have tried, there was one, had their eyes burned out of their skull.

The area is totally off-limits except for those authorized for the ceremony. Each participant is allowed only one guest. I am allowed my wives and brides to attend. Have I answered your question enough?"

He looked at Eldar and placed his hand onto his chest and pulled back from him. "We will be watching. We will send word if we have an issue you need to address."

Eldar nodded at him and proceeded to get dressed. By the time he was done, they had vanished back into the wood of the trees. He looked at Captain Broxan, "How did I do?"

He chuckled, "You should have led with taking your shirt off."

Eldar smiled, "But that is magic. I smelled of that already."

Broxan laughed as Eldar strapped his sword back on. Eldar mounted up and they took the long ride back to the house. The night approached the evening meal and he walked into the house. "Wait here, Captain." He headed to the lower bedroom and it was full of stuff. He looked at it, "Ladies can you help me to carry some of this outside for the centaurs to look over?"

They came down and the bedspread was covered in jewelry. They folded it up and he took that out first. Meanwhile, they started bringing out weapons in small groups. He set it on the ground and spread out the blanket. "Everything is tagged with what it does. Anything unsuited to the forest life set it over on this corner of the blanket. We will put weapons out on one side.

Again, if anything is not suited for use in the forest set it to the side. We try and limit jewelry to two items per person. Weapons are one ranged and one melee at most. As an active field Captain, you can take two rings, an amulet and you have the choice at the first pick."

The ladies finish bringing out the weapons that were brought back. "This is most of the small stuff we have larger things coming in tomorrow. As you can imagine we have hundreds of suits of armor that you could not wear. We do not have a lot of full plate wearers. I will be out after the Gray Blades meeting. I would like your thoughts on what we have here today. Please wait for my return."

Captain Broxan nodded and Eldar went inside. "Trying to keep the centaurs happy. I was summoned to see a circle of druids. They basically said they would be watching. Any other surprises."

Commander Tranosa stood up, "There were a few more skirmishes, we lost 2 elves in the attack both green privates. Found out that some of the men have been pulling these from the dead enemy. I informed them that anymore show up then they are to be turned over to the General immediately as they are important to the Elven Blade Singers."

He hands Eldar another 6 rings to return. Eldar looked at him, "Thank you for bringing this to my attention. Please be sure that word is spread to keep an eye open for these very distinctive rings on the dead. Give me a moment."

He teleported into the Grand Masters meeting hall where the trial by combat took place. A meeting of the council was in progress and he had just interrupted. The Head Grandmaster looked at him, "Duke Silvertree, to what do we owe this surprise?"

Eldar walked over to the table and laid them out one by one. "Given to me by men in the field taken from the enemy. I return these to the council so they can find closure."

He nodded, "I understand. I know this has been a grim part of your job in returning these rings to the order. Some have given you a disparaging name in regards to this task. I look at it as the Grand Master who works to bring closure to our fallen comrades, not the bringer of death. The bringer of closure. Completing the circle which is symbolic of the circle of life."