Steven Burke - The Dark Tide

“No…they do not know yet. I appreciate your sentiments General Lang…I will most certainly use my considerable talents and abilities to help us win this war.” He smiled grimly at the giant general and briefly winked to indicate his sincerity.

“Yukio, I must report this information to the guardian council and to the druid council” replied Khalida simply. She did not really look like she cared if Yukio replied. She was going regardless of what he says. I hope he really does intend to use his considerable talents for good.

“You must do as you see fit…tell the druids that I will help them bring back Sali Castle when they are ready. For now…I must return to my duties in the north.” It was clear that he did not want to dwell overly long on the topic.

“I will pass along your message. I will leave you now so that you all can discuss tactics and other battle plans.” Khalida disappeared with a loud pop and left the giants sitting there with the newly revealed seventh druid. The blue mist seemed to linger a while longer this time and then vanished just as completely the elder guardian.

“Well, that explains a great deal…I bet you Lord Marcello guessed your secret too. He always said to not judge you too harshly and that you were vital to our success. I guess he was right” General Lang said definitively. He liked it when things made sense and could be easily categorized. For him, everything seemed to fall neatly into place now.

“Yukio…you and General Lang will need to keep the level of intensity high as General Tomo and his orcs join Kishi’s high elves” said the king distractedly. His focus was clearly still elsewhere and everyone there sensed it.

“Do not worry…I have some ideas that will make life difficult for the orcs trek to Mount Lamont” Yukio said with a devilish grin. His eyes seemed to dance a little as though there was a flame in them. I wonder if those brutes are dim enough to travel close to the eaves of western Renshaw.

“Generals…you have matters to attend to…off with the both of you. I will explain to Gerodi what we need him and Boaz to do. Good luck” said King Angus with more sincerity and interest than he had displayed thus far.

“Luck has nothing to do with it…”replied Yukio with a wide grin. It will be the orcs who need luck!

Khalida arrived at Zege Castle shortly after her meeting with Yukio and the giants. One of the main features of this castle was the incredibly tall central tower. The harried guardian felt that it was important to recall the rest of guardians from the war effort long enough to discuss what had taken place thus far and to reveal the secret she had just learned. I wonder if my master will come to this meeting. He has been gone for an awfully long time now. I fear that he may know things that will make this situation even more complex. As if in response to her thoughts, the guardian himself entered the meeting hall. The room had ivy growing every which direction as it climbed toward the glass dome. There were all sorts of fine craftsmanship, jewels, gems, silver, and gold found in the vast room. As he approached the center of the room, a table with seven chairs appeared out of thin air.

“Welcome back Khalida” her master said in his deep, rough voice. He smiled slightly at her, but it was clear that he had many troubling thoughts that held his focus elsewhere. He shimmered slightly as though he was not completely physically present.

“It is good to be back…I hope that you approve of me calling this meeting” replied Khalida to her clearly troubled master. She craned her neck to try and catch his eye. She wished she could give him a reassuring hug or at least a smile of encouragement.

“I was going to call the council together myself, but it appears that I am not the only one with new information. Ah and here are the others.” His tone was light and welcoming which did not match the troubled look he had the first moment she saw him.

Lords Neb and Keb appeared with simultaneous pops. Ladies Hilzarie and Necia also appeared out of thin air within moments of one another. There were joyous exchanges as they all welcomed Keb back. He had somehow escaped from the clutches of the dark lord…they pressed him for details, but he said that they would have to wait. He indicated that it would be brought up in the meeting. Lord Adair cleared his throat to get their attention. Silence fell and the guardians took their seats around the ornate table. The feeling in the air was hopeful with Keb amongst them once more.

“I welcome you all to this council…it has been far too long” began the eldest guardian. “We have much to discuss and there are reports to be given. However, I would like to give an account of what I have been up to…that is if no one objects.” Silence met this statement as they all looked at him intently. They clearly wanted to hear what he had to say. Lord Keb bowed his head slightly and would not meet his master’s eye.

“I was able to find out several things in my travels…the most important of which was Kana’s plans” he said with a small gesture to the empty seat. “She has discovered one of my secrets with the aid of the dark lord Drogan.” As one they all looked at the empty chair with disgust. Even though many months had passed since Kana’s betrayal, some of the guardians still struggled to fully accept her treachery.

“Drogan…has he escaped?” asked Lady Necia questioningly. She did not like the sound of that…it should not be possible. She had the most difficulty coming to terms with Kana’s breaking from the council.

“No…he was released. All of his minions were set free as well. Kana’s doing.” The guardian gave a small shrug as he said this. His delivery was simple, yet the gravity of what he had shared bore down on each guardian. This defied what they knew to be possible. No one guardian should have been able to free even just one of the minions from the fortress. It had required the entire council to lock away the dark lord and his followers.

“What? I thought it would take all seven of us to release them? The magic barrier we created required all of us to construct it” Lady Hilzarie said with a worried look on her face. She clearly understood the significance of this turn of events. She clutched reflexively at her robes.

“I am glad that you appreciate the magnitude of this development. Somehow your fallen sister has acquired powers that have made her as strong as this council. I have been unable to determine how this was accomplished, but at this point that no longer matters. The secret she has uncovered is of the greatest concern from here on out.” The redirect from the troubling notion of Kana’s ill-gotten power had an ominous feel that was clearly troubling the guardian though he had successfully distracted the others with the hint at even more dire news.

“What is this secret master?” asked Lord Neb softly. He could tell that the guardian was trying to redirect them away from Kana’s new found power which was beyond troubling. He suspected that she may have made a deal with the keeper of the underworld. Still, his master was right to move on as there were obviously even more pressing issues that needed attention.

“This world was created by an orb that contained all of the elements needed to create life. The almighty Kedem created me from this powerful sphere and then gave it to me to create all of you. He created this world and its inhabitants with my assistance. We were ordained to be stewards over the elements that sprang from this source of life. I was told to share the knowledge with Khalida and one other. The other I chose to share this information with was Lord Keb. The reason these two were selected was because they both have stewardship over the earth.” Momentary silence followed this bit of information. Information about the event called foundation was limited and carefully guarded. That the guardian shared some of this information freely was significant.