A Gathering In Whitestone
on them all. Everyone had been busy recovering from the various battles. Not only did they have repairs and preparations to make, they also had funerals and leadership changes that needed to take place.
Whitestone, in particular, had been in a mad scramble over the past couple of weeks. People worked together to clean up and prepare their city for visiting guests from all of Tarrine.
The Griffin Guard had taken some huge blows, and many of them had fallen prey to the deception magic of Jaernok Tur. Over the past two weeks, though, all of them had been able to shake off the residual effects of the dark magic. The guardians who had been thrown into the dungeons and tortured during the sorcerer’s brief control were released and healed. Many of them had already returned to duty.
The Griffin Guard was being rebuilt and restructured. The loss of High Commander Danner Kane was particularly heavy for all of them. He had been well loved and regarded by the guardians with unwavering trust.
Pernden and Commander Mattness had many discussions, and she had accepted the call of her soon-to-be king and taken on the role of High Commander of the Griffin Guard. Pernden had always known her to be tough but fair. The fact she was able to shake the dark magic of the sorcerer at the perfect time and rally the rest of the guardians was a testament to her ability to lead. She was the obvious choice.
Nera had led beside him for a long time, so Pernden quickly chose her as his replacement for Captain of the Talon Squadron. The squadron knew her well. Not to mention, her new prowess with the magical spear Santoralier left none in doubt of her abilities. She would lead them well.
Plus, while Pernden would have many new responsibilities as king, he considered the close access he had to the king when he had been Captain of the Talon Squadron. Whether he would admit it or not, he wanted Nera near him. He greatly valued her advice and opinions, two assets he welcomed as he took on his weighty role.
Orin had lost his entire squadron, and diving into another was not at the forefront of his mind. Pernden thought better of it as well. As Orin had explained his experiences and the need for the guardians to remember who they fight for, Pernden could think of no one better to organize the initiative. Orin had spent more time among the peoples of Tarrine during his sojourn than most guardians had in years. There would be more to discuss on the matter, but Pernden saw the necessity of the guardians being part of the world they protected.
The coronation was a grand affair. Whitestone had not seen so many dignitaries in all its history. King Thygram Markensteel had brought a group of his people and a small regiment of war-hog warriors. The Loralith Riders who had stayed in Galium had traveled with them.
Coal and Ezel embraced Orin and Ellaria, who greeted them when they arrived. Argus and Lanryn looked around excitedly for Smarlo and Deklahn as the wyvern riders of Drelek flew into town.
The whole city took a collective breath as the orcs flew overhead. But Pernden, who was already doing a fine job at encouraging his people, was the first to greet the travelers from Drelek when they landed.
All said, they had four kings in the city. Genjak, the new king of Drelek, had come to show his support for their peoples’ budding friendship. Even King Solorin and Queen Velari had made the journey from Loralith.
The ceremony was magnificent. Orin was granted the honor of placing the crown upon his brother’s head in front of the great crowd of witnesses. In that moment, the brothers shared a look, recognizing the heaviness Orin placed on Pernden.
“We will visit our cousin tomorrow,” Pernden said with a hint of sadness.
“Dona says he seems to have come back to himself, at least to the best of her ability to heal.” Orin shrugged slightly. Sorrow filled his eyes.
“Perhaps after we visit him, we can bring Ellaria to see him. Who knows what her magic could do to help him?”
Orin’s head dipped. He worried for a second but then shook it away. “That is a matter for tomorrow.”
He hugged his brother close, took a step back, placed his fist on the Whitestone crest on his new armor, and bowed low.
The entire gathering bowed low to honor the new king. Even the other royals present gave him a slight bow, acknowledging his new position.
For the first time, as Pernden looked over the sea of peoples, intermingled—as many of them had found the friends they had made in Galium—the young king recognized the true weight of the event. He was among the leaders who would have to protect that newfound unity. They would have to nurture and grow the future hope for their peoples.
He had always been confident in his abilities. Not prideful, but certain he could handle anything. Melkis had trained him and his brothers well and instilled in them a solid foundation of confidence and faith. Pernden had been selected to serve in the Griffin Guard’s elite Talon Squadron from a young age because of his abilities. He had led them through many difficult and sometimes seemingly impossible missions.
But the task ahead was different. For the first time in his life, his confidence wavered.
He had always led warriors on warrior tasks. The weight of responsibility over all these people and the challenges facing them all began to crush him.
A slender hand curled its fingers in a comforting grip with his. Nera’s eyes peeked up at Pernden, and her smile brimmed with the confidence he needed. He took it and squeezed her hand in thanks.
“Thank you, all!” he shouted as the gathered peoples looked back up to him at the top of the stairs in Whitestone’s main square. “I am honored to be called your king. And I will do my best to live up to that call.”
The crowd watched him silently. He wasn’t sure, but it seemed as though they waited for him to make some rousing speech. He looked to the leaders who stood nearby, and all of them beamed at him with pride. He looked out over the crowd again and decided it was much too quiet and he had no such speech.
“I’m pretty certain this is supposed to be a celebration.” He paused again, as everyone looked at him in confusion. “So, let’s celebrate!”
The crowd exploded in an uproar of applause and laughter. Musicians around the square played old songs of kings and new songs of heroism inspired by recent battles. People enjoyed food and drink, stories and jokes. Where there was hesitation about the orcs earlier, they now enjoyed great fellowship.
Many came to congratulate the new king with excited dreams about the future of Whitestone.
Merriment echoed around the city, reverberating off the white stone and reaching into the depths of the damp dungeon. A fallen king drew himself nearer to a high window so he might hear some of the joy he utterly lacked in his current state. Garron’s mind had cleared to an extent, but he had spoken very little to anyone, including Dona. She had been nursing him back to health and had been kind to him.
A shuffling noise behind him shifted his attention into the darkness of the dungeon. His eyes had a difficult time adjusting to the pitch after staring at the brightness of the window. He peered hard into the darkness but saw nothing.
“Though blind, you have seen ...”
Garron’s heart pounded as though it wanted to climb out of his chest. He shook his head and blinked his eyes, trying to see through the dim or shake the voice out of his mind. When the light of the window glinted off some flowing golden fabric beyond the bars of his cell, he realized he was not alone and hearing whispers.
“W-what?” Garron stammered. “Who’s there?”
“Though blind, you have seen.”
The figure groped at the bars with gangly fingers. She pressed her face between two bars, and Garron recoiled at the sight. It was a she-elf who wore a strange cloth over her eyes, and streaks ran down her face.
“Who are you?” he asked.
“I am like you. I am a seer,” she responded. “You know the land is destined to be covered by shadow.”
“No ...” Garron started to argue, but he could not.
“Yes. You know it to be so.” Her voice came out in a hoarse whisper as she scolded him.
“No. My cousin has defeated him ...” Garron started again.
“Hahaha!” she cackled. “How does a man defeat one who walks among the shadows?”
“He is an orc. Orcs can be killed.”
“And how did that work out for you, fallen king?”
“I—”
“You what?” she yelled. “The wave is coming. None will be saved from the flood of darkness.”
“Then warn them.” Garron yelled back, frustrated by her blasé tone. “If he intends to return, then you must help them.”
“They do not listen to my ways anymore. The peoples of Tarrine have gotten arrogant. The old ways are forgotten,” she spat. “The end draws nearer, and they cannot see. This war cannot be won.”
“I don’t believe you ...” Garron growled.
“You lie to yourself,” she laughed. “For you have seen. You know it to be true.”
A sudden noise of children running and playing a game outside the window startled Garron. When he turned back again from the window, the seer was gone. Tears streaked his own face, and pressure built up in his creased forehead. His sobs sent his body into a heaving fit as he curled into a ball in the corner of his cell.
While the whole of Whitestone celebrated, its fallen king wept.
The morning sun spilled through the high windows of the dungeon beneath Whitestone castle. In the mornings, the dungeon was well lit, which woke occupants early. Dona hummed as she entered, the same tune she’d hummed thousands of times. She caught herself, thinking it rude to hum while she led guests into the place.
When Garron saw her and the two men she escorted, a single tear rolled down the side of his face.
Pernden was struck with how much better his cousin looked, even in that wretched place. Garron had been eating again at Dona’s constant nagging. He had filled back in a little, no longer looking like a bag of bones. Dona had also been adamant about cleaning him up. He was freshly shaved only a couple days ago, and his hair was trimmed, making him look less scraggly than he had before.
Garron approached the bars and stared in shock as Orin stepped to Pernden’s side.
“Cousin!” Garron said, elated.
“Hello, Garron,” Orin smiled. “It’s good to see you again.”
“You would not have said so only a few days ago. Dona has been taking very good care of me.” He paused and looked over at the nurse, who waited with a raised eyebrow as if to let him know he should finish his thought with care. “Even if I’m not always happy about it.”
They all shared amused looks, even Dona.
“How do you feel, cousin?” Pernden asked.
Garron shifted uncomfortably. There was a long pause. An uneasy tension filled the room.
“I am sorry,” Garron said to Pernden. “I was out of my mind. I was not myself.”
“I know,” Pernden said. “This whole thing has been a mess.”
“Yes,” Garron’s head drooped as he agreed.
After another brief silence, Orin laughed. “Do you remember that time when we were young boys, and Melkis had Garron spend the week with us at the Corral to give him a taste of what life would be like when he eventually came to train with us?”
The other two snickered at the memory.
“Garron was always getting us into trouble,” Pernden added.
“I seem to remember a certain young Orin who climbed through the window of the war room to unlock the door for us,” Garron said, feigning offense.
“Yeah? And who was it that said we should add tar to the feathers before we covered the whole room?” Orin asked.
“Yeah, who was that?” Garron echoed, giving Pernden a wry look.
“Okay, okay,” Pernden surrendered with his hands up. “That was a sticky mess. I had tar on my hands for weeks. The only reason we even got caught.”
“It felt like it took weeks to clean the war room,” Orin said.
“It was only a few days,” Garron shrugged, humorously. “And I took most of Melkis’s—”
There it was. He hadn’t said Melkis’s name since ...
Orin noticed their flinches, and the awkward silence fell in the room again. He tried to recover the heartfelt moment.
“You know, no matter how much trouble you two got me tangled up in,” he smirked at them both, “you always managed to fix it later.”
Pernden and Garron looked at each other.
“I’m sorry for what I have taken from all of us,” Garron said, tears welling.
“I am too,” Pernden replied.
“I’m also sorry that the weight of the crown has fallen upon your shoulders. It was my responsibility. My duty. But I cannot be the people’s king. I have killed the heart of their trust.”
“No. You can’t.” Pernden sighed. He did not want to be the king of Whitestone. It had never been a thing he’d considered. But the duty had fallen to him, and here he was. “I will carry the burden the best I can.”
“I will help in whatever way I can,” Garron said, reaching his arm to Pernden through the bars.
Pernden took the extended arm. “We will get you better and get you out of here.”
All of a sudden, Garron was caught in a difficult position. He heard the words of the elven seer in his mind. The doom she foretold. The devastation he knew was coming. He wanted to warn them. He wanted to tell his cousins what was coming. But he also realized how crazy he would sound, and he did not want to stay in the dungeons anymore. No. Perhaps if he waited for the right time ... If he waited until they could see he was sound of mind again. Then he could tell them, and they would listen.
Garron drew in a deep breath and tipped his chin. “I look forward to it.”
Coal and Ezel happily munched on a couple of skewered meats they had acquired from a vendor in the Whitestone Market. They hurried along to keep up with their friends’ longer strides.
The vendors of Whitestone had quite enjoyed the many visitors from out of town. Many of the orcs and elves and dwarves were eager to try all that Whitestone locals had to offer. It was great for business. And after everything that had happened, it revitalized many of the merchants.
Orin led the group onward, following the road through the city. He intended to show them the renowned Grand Corral, a place that had been his home for so many years. It was then, as they walked and laughed together, that he remembered their time at the beginning of their journey on the Lady Leila, rowing up the Palori River. Though Ralowyn had not been with them then, she and Merrick seemed to be growing closer. As she had spent more time with them, she fit right in with their ragtag group.
When they arrived at the Grand Corral, Orin took them inside and gave them a thorough tour. So thorough, Coal ribbed him about the tour being so long it was time for another meal. Orin paused for a moment. His muscle memory had him moving toward his old room. When another guardian emerged, it took a second for him to remember they had all thought him to be dead.
The thought that he would not get another room in the barracks, but rather, one at the castle, was still odd. He would miss being here with all the other guardians. Like the Griffin Guard, Whitestone, and the rest of Tarrine, Orin, too, was entering a new season.
Once the tour was over, Orin took them to the Corral’s main dining hall but was redirected to the officer’s dining hall by an adamant High Commander Mattness. Orin graciously accepted the redirect because of his guests but felt awkward about eating there. He’d spent so many years eating with the other guardians, it gave him an uncomfortable twinge not to do so. The rambunctious group that accompanied him distracted from the location, and he soon fell into the conversation with his friends.
“I’m thinking Ezel and I will stay here in Whitestone with you and Ellaria for a while if that’s alright,” Coal said.
“Of course,” Orin replied. “In fact, I may need some help with a new mission from Pernden. That is, if you don’t have other plans.”
“I don’t know ...” Coal trailed, tugging at the long black braid on the front of his big beard. “The last time we helped you, it caused us all sort of trouble.”
“Of course, we’ll help,” Ezel signed.
“Of course,” Coal waved him off. “I was only playing with him.”
“I need a break from Galium for a while.”
“Yeah, no kidding,” Coal said. “Argus has always been a little bit pushy—”
“A little?”
Coal laughed. “Well ... maybe a little more than a little. But he and Lanryn ... ugh, you know the elf mage from Loralith?”
Coal shrugged a knowing hand toward Ralowyn, hoping she could chime in on the elf mage.
“I know him,” she said, looking quite amused, while the rest of the group nodded.
“Well, anyway, those two have been asking Ezel questions about our time with the wizard, Enkeli. They want to know how the token works and what else it might do. I guess it’s not every day you run into a wizard artifact. I also think they don’t like that they don’t understand Ezel’s magic. I tried to explain to them it was a sea witch that saved his life. A monster of a pirate had nearly killed him, you know.”
Everyone stared at the dwarf, no idea what he was talking about.
“Oh, I haven’t told you that story yet?”
“Another time,” Ezel waved him off the rabbit trail. “Point is, I’m tired of all their prodding. So, yes. We can stay and help you.”
Orin had caught some of Ezel’s signing. He was getting better at it. Coal translated anyway, so all knew what the deep gnome had said.
“And will you be staying for a while, Ralowyn?” Ellaria asked.
“Well ...” the elf started to reply and pulled some of her silvery hair out of her face. She tucked the strands behind her pointed ear.
“Actually, sister,” Merrick cut in. “The people of Calrok have been rather good to us. They have been kind, and the city is so beautiful.”
“You mean to stay in Calrok?” Ellaria asked.
She watched as Merrick looked to Ralowyn. They had been getting close. She saw something in her brother she hadn’t seen in a very long time: hope. Though, Ellaria wasn’t sure her brother realized yet what he and Ralowyn’s relationship could bud into.
Boys, she shook her head humorously.
“Gar Karnak has graciously extended the invitation for us to stay longer,” Merrick continued. “I’ve begun training with Valurwind on the Scar Cliffs with the wyvern squadron there. I’m learning so much. Valurwind and I are really starting to work as a team. And Ralowyn and I have spent a lot of time with Karnak’s family.”
Merrick laughed at a thought, and Ralowyn pursed her lips, knowing what he was thinking. She shared with the others. “Just the other day, I was playing in the field with Gernot, by their home, and he ran off to hide. I couldn’t find him, and of course, I got worried that I lost our host’s son. I was frantically looking everywhere for him, while Merrick sat on the steps to the cottage and watched me.”
“She even grabbed her staff and tried to use magic to find him!” Merrick added to the story.
“Yes, but the whole time, Merrick had him hidden under a heavy cloak sitting in a pile right next to him on the step.”
Merrick laughed again, and the others joined in his glee.
“I couldn’t help it. Her face was so great!”
“I’m glad to see you like this, Merrick,” Orin said. “It seems Calrok has been good for you.”
“It has,” Merrick said, as Ralowyn elbowed him playfully.
“It’s funny, but you don’t usually think of orc families,” the she-elf said.
“You know, I had the same thought when we first arrived. But Gernot is great. And Tanessa is beautiful.”
“Tanessa is absolutely lovely,” Ralowyn agreed.
Ellaria teared up as she watched her brother. Merrick caught the look, stood, and walked around the table. He bent over to give his sister a big squeeze. “I love you, Ella,” he said softly.
“I love you, too,” she said. “I just love seeing you happy.”
Merrick chuckled. “It’s been some time since I’ve felt this way.”
“Who would have thought I would find my brother again in an orc city?”
Merrick looked her straight in the eyes. He had no more words. He had tried to be a good brother, but he’d always felt he had let his entire family down when they’d lost his big brother Greggo. Here, with his sister and their new friends, he realized it had never been his fault, and he was never going to be Greggo. He didn’t need to be; he could be Merrick.
“I think it’ll be great for you to stay in Calrok and continue to grow there,” Orin said. “Part of what Pernden wants me to do is help Whitestone and the Griffin Guard be more tightly knit within the fabric of the other peoples of Tarrine. If you can grow in an orc city, it gives me great hope we can do so, as well.”
“Karnak and Smarlo have spoken often of this ‘future hope’ we are embarking on,” Merrick added.
“Argus and Lanryn, as well,” Coal put in.
“With everything we’ve seen,” Orin said. “It seems Tarrine has a great future for us to build toward, together.”
The friends raised their cups and took deep swigs. They laughed and ate and drank for a long time. Tomorrow, they would get to what the future held. Today, they were glad to be together.