Silvertree Chronicles Bk. 02 Pt. 02

He looked at the crystal, "We lost 18 getting on the island. Tell Jarron if the Queen approves it, I want another 25 ships. Five as cargo ships and 20 more warships. I want a 20-mile area around this island to be declared Elven territorial waters. Only with our allies. Others will find out the hard way."

He heard Jarron sigh, "She wants you to contact her now."

He sighed, "I will contact her."

He looked over, "Someone please send me one of the clerics overseeing the work."

He walked over and Brannar looked at him, "Are these numbers current I have to contact the Queen."

He looked them over, "He shook his head, "The four likely are dead and we have 7 with lost limbs.

Three more bodies were just brought down we did not have before."

Brannar nodded. He got the Queen on the Crystal, "Your Majesty, we have the island. We have it locked down at the moment."

She sighed, "How bad is it?"

He looked around. "Pretty bad compared to some of the Gray Blade battles. We lost 18 trying to get onto the island. Bad weather was inbound and the seas were heavy. We have another 94 dead and a 109 injured. Seven with lost limbs. On the dragon side, 14 dead and 24 seriously injured. That also does not count the prisoners lost here, including three of my siblings and three dwarves in that last attempt which they attempted early.

One Lich, 300-400 mostly low- to mid-level necromancers, and we are still getting a count on the half-dragons killed but is over 30 now confirmed.

They brought down 27 dragons not counting the 2 from the other day. Then there are the two Draco-liches who were destroyed. The third did not survive the transformation. We rushed them so they had no chance to secure phylacteries other than the Lich's which I found and destroyed. A room by room search is being conducted from the top-down and from bottom up.

The control room is secured. All defenses are in place. A search of the surface by our dragon friends found nothing got in with them. We have a severe storm in place overhead. Your Majesty."

Silver walked over and was obviously upset. The Queen responded back, "I want to see you back here as soon as possible."

He sighed, "Your Majesty, I lost my only Commodore with our 2 first ships. I have no clear-cut second in command here on-site to take over. Silver would be it. However, she is about to kick the shit out of me for some of the high-risk things I have personally done since getting onto this island. She took over the fleet for me but she is not going to let me out of her sight now.

Every time I open the barrier, I risk somebody getting into this place and I have no idea who knows how to teleport or where they will teleport to on this island. I do not have the forces. I request a temporary reassignment of Tranosa to this facility. I can bring him and 6 blade casters, and a couple of our seasoned training officers here.

That way I can work with Jarron on getting fresh troops straight to this island while the bad weather is in place. I want the casters so they can start bringing the wounded and dead back. I would like to request Lady Silver Hair remain behind to start looking through all the records for anything of value to any of us. Let some of her dragons take their dead and wounded out.

I would like a contingent in place here until I return with the master craftsman. Lady Silver Hair and craftsman will be able to restart the forge, we can go over the data together, and from there figure out how our relationship will evolve. Especially in regards to Dragon attacks over the oceans."

The Queen responded, "Lady Silver Hair, your thoughts?"

She nodded, "I will watch over the controls as they go out. Tranosa has a crystal to get in touch with me directly to let me know when they are ready to come in."

Brannar nodded, "I will be on your front lawn shortly, Your Majesty."

He looked around, "I need a show of hands from our casters who mass teleport prepared; not scrolls! He had ten hands going up. Who has more than one prepared? One hand went up. Brannar looked over, "Do we have a breakdown of the dead? How many from the province?"

The cleric shook his head. He sighed, "I want the badly wounded taken to Quatarsia eight to a caster. Get rooms at the inn on me. Further instructions will be coming. The one caster with two I want you to bring Tranosa here. Get at least three more healers, 6 Knight casters who can cast teleportation circle with you when you bring them all back.

I expect all casters to memorize two teleportation circles and a teleport for the morning if capable. I will divide you up when I get to Quatarsia. Lady Silver Hair you want to let us know when you are at the controls."

She came back from talking with her people and they set up the different groups. He looked over, "Captain Two-Stroke! You are in charge here until General Tranosa arrives. Except for the dragons. They have a leader."

He smiled. The crystal lit up and he grabbed Silver as Silver Hair spoke, "At the controls."

He looked at everyone and watched all of the groups disappear. He teleported out with Silver to the front of the Palace. "Close until you hear from Tranosa or me."

He walked up and the guards looked at him like death warmed over. He got inside, "The Queen?"

The guard was about to tell him something when the Captain came around the corner and looked at Brannar, "She is waiting for you in the upstairs conference room Duke Silvertree."

The new guard almost said something stupid before he realized that he looked like hell for a reason. He got to the door and the Guards also stared at him.

He asked Silver, "Why are they all staring?"

She reached over and showed his ripped and bloodstained shirt, deep scratches across his chest, arms, legs, and torso, "You also have dried blood all over the top of your head and you smell of death. Your clothes look like they have been through a meat grinder."

He nodded. He went to the door and the guard opened the door for him. The Queen sat at the table with her son and she looked across at Brannar, "By the gods and all that is holy!"

Zaria looked over and she about lost it. "My Gods' brother, what in the nine hells did you do!?"

He looked at her, "My job."

The Queen pointed for them to take a seat, "Jarron and Lord Regal will be here momentarily. Can you tell me what the awful smell is?"

He sighed, "It could be my blood, the blood of my men, or of the enemy we waded through." He pulled up a wrecked shirt sleeve a little and they could see the marks. "The touch of a Lich grabbing me by the arm draining the life out of me. Else it might be from the mouth of the Draco-lich I jumped into as it was breathing fire on me because I just destroyed its phylactery, Your Majesty."

Zaria chuckled, "Why did you jump in its mouth?"

He smiled, "It was the safest spot. It could not hit me with claws, wings, or tail.

The bite was not a problem as the sword was wedged into the back of the roof of the mouth; he was trying to shake me loose. I launched a lightning bolt into its brain as well. Tough to cast while being shaken like that. Lady Silver Hair said I probably saved 10 of hers by taking out that phylactery and taking the attention away from her troops. As it was, they lost 8 dragons to the 2 draco-liches alone."

Brannar looked at the Queen, "Now you know why Silver is pissed at me."

He looked at Zaria, "You remember the story of what the sword did to the family member who tried to claim the sword from father?" She nodded. "Almost as cool when I dropped the flaming sword into the Lich's skeletal rib cage when it grabbed me and paralyzed me. It grabbed the sword by the handle. Slammed it into the ceiling and drained what life was in it until the bones turned to dust."

He got up from the chair on unsteady legs and pulled a book from his bag. He looked at the Queen, "You told me once you wanted to see when I did this. I finished it on the way to the island. My dreams told me I needed to get this taken care of sooner rather than later."

He threw his father's journal into the fireplace. The Queen looked at him and smiled; that quickly turned to shock and horror. As he collapsed on the ground.

Journal entry Added by Silver Silvertree

Neva 7th 7017

We found he had a will on him. His accounts were transferred as instructed. Brannar'Lortan 'Storm Wraith' Silvertree, Knight Protector of the Elven Kingdom, Admiral husband, and expecting father died. Unknown to him part of the reason he looked like hell was the poison running through his veins. The Lich did more than grab him with a clawed hand.

It had a thumb ring that injected a necrotic poison into his body. The same poison that killed his mother/Aunt Staria Silvertree. After reading his journal and the work he did to take the highlights of his father's life and condense it for the next blade Wielder I felt it only fair to put my thoughts on the two men. First was Eldar, a man who felt rejected by society and the Elven people he had pledged his service to.

He had a father, but he only observed him from a distance. A mother who died on a mission when Eldar was 37 years of age. He felt neglected for years. He found it within himself to find love several times over, expand the empire, defended it against an invasion, and had 31 children before his death. Another 12 children are expected. His greatest achievements came in the changing of the views of elven society.

Concerning his greatest personal failures dealt with having so many children and wives that he found it hard to do everything in life and give them each enough time to make them feel special. Especially true for Brannar.

Brannar Silvertree was not led by gods like his father had been. He had not been gifted with unexplained abilities other than his abundance of magic. He was born of the Storm that killed his mother Astria and his brother. He was destined to kill the Lich but he did so much more than that. He took his father's fears, concerns, and suspicions and brought another set of eyes on them.

He flashed the light of truth onto the things being hidden by Dragon Society. He searched for his missing siblings even though he barely knew them. He served his Queen and Kingdom with distinctions. He captured the Eternal Forge to aid all in the coming Dragon War. His attitude about his father will always be an enigma to me. At times despising him and at other times admiring his insights.

I believe he saw his father's flaws and hoped to never repeat them with his own wife and children. Unfortunately, except for this short footnote in history, not much will be remembered about Storm Wraith. It is considered classified by the Kingdom.

Silver Silvertree's Saga

Neva 11th 7017

The one sibling Brannar saved attempted to claim the sword. Some believed she thought it would help her to fix her broken mind. Others believed she just no longer wished to live. The sword found her unworthy and her husk of a body was found near the sword. Viola Silvertree was dead.

Juna 2nd 7019

Gaziur Silvertree, Son of Staria attempts to claim the blade. Nobody knows why or if the gods had a hand in it or not. His body was found outside Silver Silvertree's home. Silver was very pregnant and puts the sword upon the mantel out of the reach of anyone after carefully recovering the blade as instructed. With children on the way, it needed to be kept safe. This home and the sword was a part of the legacy, it was a burden for her to bear. She was a Paladin and she would bear it until it was time to resume her duties.

She did worry about her children's future. She went to see Doc, to try and get the answers that Brannar never asked; "Why triplets? Was the sword tied to one of them?" Doc was hesitant to pursue some of the details she wants but agrees to ask if there was a significance to her having three children. What Doc heard and repeated was cryptic, "Two will follow in the ways of magic. One like their father's father.

The third may fill a role away from Elven society like their mother or fulfill the role closer to home." Doc, being confused by the answer, decided to find the children's destinies, One Battlemage, One Blade Singer, and the third was an elven Paladin. The deity was being obscured in a haze. Doc did not share this second divination believing it should play out as the Gods intended it. He got no answer in regards to the sword.

Juna 24th 7019

Brenner Silvertree was the eldest son and new Duke heir. His sister Kirra Silvertree was born next and a second son Travious Silvertree was Born.

Feba 1st 7020

The start of the Dragon Civil war began. Dragons did not communicate out of the homeland. The forges had been working non-stop and continued to do so. Weapons were being delivered around the world with their allies. The elven and dwarven defenses were in place. As were the defenses in Grand Falls and Warlord Sun's province as promised. Others who were late in joining the alliance would get them as they got built.

The opening days were bloody with the Silver Queen losing her life Mate in an attack from the Blue Queen while she was away safeguarding their personal horde away from the fighting at her mate's insistence. She was crushed and in mourning but was not deterred.

Feba 1st 7021

The first Chromatics began attacking societies outside of their own kingdom. One appears to have aligned with the Orcs but this eventuality was expected. A new campaign was started against the allied races and the Gray Blades were waiting for them. The red dragon came in to fry the troops in Fort Ash.

The casters erected walls of force over the top of the fort while two new 'dragon slaying' ballistas waited in the woods for just this kind of attack. They fired and one caught the dragon in the stomach and the other ripped a large section out of one of its wings. It crashed back into the orcs and ogres it was fighting with.

In its anger, he started to burn down his own forces. They turned on each other and the elves moved in with Battle Mages and cut the head off of the invasion with cold and lightning-based spells. The rest of the horde left the field after seeing the great dragon felled.

Feba 1st 7022

The dragon attacks by chromatics continued but were quickly put down due to the weapons from the great forge. Metallics were never seen in the sky neither had any of the neutral dragons.

Juna 23rd 7033

At the time of the evening meal on this night, every unencrypted or draconic encrypted communication crystal across the land activated. Not a sound was heard from them when they did. What was sent across them was an emergency recall message in psionic communication that only a dragon or another psionic could hear.

It called for an emergency recall of all metallic dragon forces to return to dragon lands. Lady Silver hair heard with the others. She was not far from there and made it back in time to find Lady Amy Tryst with several hundred metallic dragons at a staging area. Most neutrals were dead or had fled this world. She was the only one of her kind still here. Why? The metallics did not know.

Communication crystals had stopped function, at least until the alarm being broadcast out was shut off, but that would be in the Draconic Capital. They saw the horde of chromatic dragons circling over their kingdom. Hundreds if not thousands laid siege to the area. Several hundred metallics went charging into the fray.

She heard Bahamut for the first time in years. 'Now is your time to rule and be the Queen you were meant to be. Take those with you who will listen. Run and hide. Monitor the elves but disappear and hide for now. Seek safety to rebuild. You join the fight now and the metallics will be lost in this world.

Over half of the group that follows you will die, but the best chance to save your kind, to save the non-chromatic dragons, lies with the elven champion coming. The Gold King activated the Travvonix device. It will destroy and reshape the world if you do not take steps to hide now and save those you can. When the time comes is 90 years, it will be time to find the elven champion.

To grow a half-dragon army to aid for the return of the lands in 165-185 years from now. Teleport them away and do not heed the recall.

Most dragons here will ignore you and follow the Gold Kings command. They will likely perish. If not today, then before they return. You will be the hidden dragon rebels for the next 90 years. You will learn humility and you will feel a great loss. But the survival of the metallics in this world rests on your shoulders now.'

She turned to the crowds, "This is not our fight. We all see what is going on. The Gold King is activating a reset device. A relic built long ago following the First Era.

It has never been tested, if it works, all of those in that area will be shunted out of time. They will return far in the future. It is up to us to build the forces needed to save metallics on this world and that cannot be done by jumping into this fight right now.

We need to be getting to safety, hiding in small groups, and working to rebuild our numbers for the return when the world is reshaped by what the Gold King has triggered. It will reshape the world physically. He started something he cannot stop.

It is up to us to be able to be ready to take this fight to them upon the return. We have small families around the world who will not heed this recall. They will not bring their eggs and hatchlings into this!

We have to be there to protect them. To protect our own. Amy grabbed her hand and her mind was flooded by the words of Bahamut. She looked across at the others, "She received directions from Bahamut. She let me straight into her mind. She is speaking the truth."

Almost 150 gold dragons in the group took off, all but one. Lord Regal's youngest daughter. She looked to the Queen, "You have a plan for us?" Hundreds more followed the Golds but some stayed as she watched the majority of the force before her fail to listen to her.

She sighed, "First we must gather and then hide youngling. When this plan comes about you will be old enough to breed. We will have to try and find the others who have stayed behind and not rushed forward to die. This world will change from what we know of it.

We will have to rely upon our allies, those we thought or had been taught were inferior, but they will be fighting the chromatics left behind without us for a while. Until the time of champions comes from our ally's races to deal with the challenges of our own failures."

She began teleporting others away to safety, those who would heed her words, mostly silver dragons who respected their Queen. Amy looked at her, "I will plane shift and return when the time is right. There is nothing I can do now, but I will help you then."

The Silver Queen nodded as Amy shifted away.

Juna 24th 7033

The night of the Tri-moons returned to the sky and the world shook. No elven prophecy had mentioned this event as the Elven gods could not see the chaos created by dragon deities. Several dragons were seen traveling toward their homeland to find a crater in its place.

Before scattering or teleporting away. Nothing struck the area it was if the entire section of land was scooped out of the ground. This spawns several volcanic eruptions and the nearby sea poured into the massive hole. Rumors circulated later that the isolationist faction of the Dragons took action and moved the Dragons away.

A new spot on the moon's surface was thought to have been the destination. Darian was renamed Dragon's moon. The Eternal forge was buried into molten rock and the island sunk into the Deep Sea. The volcano collapsed in on itself. Hundreds of craftsmen were lost but 80 were quickly teleported away.

Moon Blade and the other two Craftsman who helped to start the forge escaped. Even if the forge were recovered without a Royal Dragon's blood the forge could never be started. The action had awoken most of the villages and Silver was outside looking at the sky. While her children awoke from their sleep within the home. When another massive tremor hit that knocked her on her ass.