Chapter 21

Erimbril stepped up next to Galdacil upon the wall. Beyond them, some distance from the wall, the forces of Terimak’s army were only now unfolding. A camp was even now being laid out by some of the forces while the rest drew up to present a unified front to the castles gate.

“I really wish that old Sorcerer hadn’t decided a single gate was all this place needed. It makes it entirely too easy to pen us into this place. He doesn’t even have to surround the walls since the only other way out is down ropes and he knows that’s not practical for any large body of men. Nor does it give them any way to escape quickly or easily.” Galdacil turned from the wall with a look of disgust and glanced at his companion. “At least Narn bought us some time and the report by the scouts he sent back are also encouraging. They’ve boosted morale in the castle greatly, and your work has ensured that everybody has a weapon that’s at least not going to bounce against the demon’s skins too often. If Terimak had come on with just his demons and Cavalry we would have had a chance of really inflicting some losses on him.”

Erimbril smiled slightly, “Unfortunately the enemy seldom does what you’d like them to do. And the unfortunate effect of Narn’s attack was that it did make Terimak cautious. But, by the same token, if we hadn’t taken that chance he would have been here earlier, and who could say what the troops would have done at that point. We could easily have had most of them surrender rather than fight. Now at least we know they will all stand and fight. The scouts who returned have been talking continually and the fact that Terimak felt threatened enough to reinforce his demons with humans has only improved the morale here.”

Galdacil waved his assent, “True. I just wish I knew more about what was going on. We’ve got an entire world to fight or defend and we know so little about the rest of it.” He scowled slightly, “Weldan and the rest only have the smallest glimpse of what is going on out there. Mistrew kept pretty much everybody here and the merchants who brought supplies met only with him or favored apprentices. None of which did you keep around after interviewing them. You probably should have killed them you know.”

Erimbril’s looked away then, looking out at the army, “I know. In fact I have a strong feeling that I will regret not killing at least one of those apprentices. But I couldn’t bring myself to do so. I know that they likely aren’t redeemable, which is why I turned them out, but I can’t kill them.” He looked at Galdacil, “we can’t become like our enemies Galdacil. If we do it leads down a path we both know ends badly. It’s what created the Sorcerers in the first place, those of us who felt the humans to be nothing more than sources of power for their spells.”

Weldan’s voice was a surprise to both of them, “Those of you? You created these sorcerers? But I thought you said you were the hated enemies of their kind and had never found these or you would have destroyed them!” His voice shook with confusion.

Galdacil whirled to look at him and his expressions rippled through annoyance, anger and finally to shame. “We did not create these sorcerers. Not the ones here. Rather we created the breed.” He looked out towards the army and then back to Weldan, “The truth of the matter is that the first of the sorcerers were Fae lords. Lords who had grown old and powerful. In their arrogance they felt that what nature had provided they could take, no matter the cost to others. Your race became their favored resource, for it’s strength and power. The first Sorcerers was kin from within my own family. A great uncle who first realized that he could easily strip the power from the unwilling, and that this would allow him to greatly multiply his powers. He was also the first to contact the demon hordes, those creatures that have existed in abyssal worlds from the beginning. He made several deals with them before being discovered. It was to our shame that many did not wish to believe how he had fallen, and still others took up his cause as being right. That your people were little more than cattle for our people to feed off of. And why shouldn’t the demonic forces serve our purposes.”

Galdacil glanced away, another age echoing in his words, “My family was torn apart during that time, as were the Fae we supposedly ruled. My family never really trusted the humans, and this seemed the perfect excuse to subjugate them, after all were we not the rulers of all creation? But others felt that while we couldn’t trust humans they didn’t deserve the cruelty inherent in the sorcerer’s way. That it was against nature herself to take in such a way as to cause pain.”

“Sadly it wasn’t my own family though who started the war against my uncle and his kind. It was Narn’s. The House of Oaks has always said that humans could be our greatest allies and friends. And they always held such friendships as key to a peace with the humans. When my great uncle’s servants came to one land allied with the house of Oaks they were met by Narn’s older sister. She defied them and fought them that day. If she had fallen in combat perhaps the conflict would only have been between the House of Oaks and a branch of the House of the Rising Sun. Instead though my great uncle used her life in one of his rituals and summoned one of the Great Lords of the demon world, binding it’s obedience with her blood. The House of Oaks was furious, as well they should have been, and they declared war upon our house and any who would side with the Sorcerers. My parents disowned and divorced our house from those who would side with the Sorcerers, the death of Narn’s sister was too much for them. Only that saved the Fae from becoming the Sorcerers entirely. The human alliances amongst the House of Oaks gladly threw in their alliegances with Narn’s father and the rest of the Fae houses stood with my parents and the House of the Rising Sun, as they were the rulers of our lands. And our long war began. Eventually the Sorcerers were driven from our homelands but not without cost. Against the advice of the House of Oaks we took our lands and hid them with magics, the wars having frightened us so much. We still search for our enemies but they too have pulled back and the war is sporadic, flaring up when one of us finds the other in the worlds we travel.”

Weldan looked at Galdacil and Erimbril warily. His spoke without fear though, only asking, searching for the truth from them, “And your own views of humans then? What of that?”

Erimbril answered, “My own view is that you are more curious, more likely to question and really no different from us. Shorter lives, different looks but as likely to be good or evil as we are. Galdacil can speak all he wishes about honor but in the end that is his house speaking, not him. Your people here have shown yourselves to be honorable and while you have served the sorcerers none could tell you otherwise when the choice is something that really never was offered to you.”

Weldan’s relaxation was obvious and he nodded, “Then we won’t regret standing beside you. And Riulan and I won’t regret what we’ve convinced the rest to agree to.”

Galdacil and Erimbril exchanged a look, “What you’ve agreed to?” was the cautious question.