CHAPTER EIGHT

The doors of the Great Chamber flew open and a lone elf messenger entered abruptly. The elf bowed low as soon as he saw his king.

"My king, your daughter tried leaving through the southern gate. She and her friends aided Captain Fellis against a group of giant spiders and Sendrick is said to have fallen." The elf messenger informed King Solaris.

"Where is my daughter?" King Solaris asked.

"She is unscathed," the elf messenger replied.

"I asked where she was," King Solaris growled.

"My apologies. She is with her friends tending to Sendrick's wounds in the guardhouse of the southern gate." The elf messenger said.

"Get my horse ready," King Solaris commanded.

"Yes, sir." The elf messenger replied before turning and leaving the chamber. King Solaris stood from his throne and stretched. King Solaris left his Great Chamber and strolled through the halls of his palace. All bowed at his presence as he passed by. King Solaris was distracted with his present task otherwise would have acknowledged his faithful followers. He came to his stable where his horse was being prepared for him.

"My king, we have not yet saddled Gertrude." The stable hands said apologetically as they saw their king enter.

"There is no time! I will ride her bareback." King Solaris hopped up onto his massive warhorse and guided her out of the stable in a hurry. The king rode as fast as he could without hitting any of his citizens in the streets. He was not the greatest rider these days. He was aging. In two-hundred and forty-eight years of life he had not yet mastered riding a horse. Riding bareback made things even more difficult, not having stirrups or a comfortable place to sit. King Solaris rounded a corner at high speed and nearly fell off Gertrude. He managed to hold one and pull himself back upright as he continued the fast pace. He could see the southern gate ahead. The guardhouse was nearby. A wagon full of arrows blocked the street in front of the gate. Archers fired at unseen foes below on the other side of the wall. The guardhouse was in his view now. The king slowed his pace and rode up next to the door and dismounted from Gertrude.

"Stay put, Gertrude." King Solaris instructed his horse. He turned and walked into the guardhouse where Annalisa was working on a motionless Sendrick with Eleanor and the others watching fearfully. Guards in the bunkhouse bowed at the sight of their king as he passed by. Captain Fellis heard the door and turned to see the approaching king.

"King Solaris," Captain Fellis said as he bowed low.

"I will deal with you in a moment." King Solaris said threateningly as he passed by the captain.

"Father," Eleanor gasped as King Solaris entered the room.

"Move aside Annalisa. You have done all that you can for him." King Solaris instructed as he began examining Sendrick. Annalisa was fearful of the king and his judgment of her relationship with Eleanor. She moved away cautiously. King Solaris saw all the blood on the armor of the paladin.

"Will you save him, father?" Eleanor asked as she stepped beside him. King Solaris looked his daughter in her eyes.

"I love you my dear. I do not want to lose you." He looked to Annalisa. "Fear not, I do not judge you for your deeds or life choices. I am a father as well as a king. I fear for my child and all of you." King Solaris said with love-guided tears. He turned back to Sendrick and chanted a spell to neutralize the poison that coursed through his veins. He chanted a second spell and everyone in the room was healed of all their wounds. Sendrick opened his eyes and sat up abruptly.

"What happened?" Sendrick asked as he looked around the room at everyone.

"What happened is that you all left abruptly and unprepared. Let me equip you all better for your journey. I do hope to see you al again, after all." King Solaris replied. Eleanor hugged her father tightly. Annalisa, Rustan, Valenor, Fauna and Sendrick all hugged him as a group.

"Thank you, father," Eleanor said happily.

"Fine, fine. Wait here." King Solaris said as he broke up the hug and turned to face Captain Fellis. "You have some explaining to do."

"My king, I had poor judgment due to my stress with running out of arrows on the wall." Captain Fellis began.

"You ran out of arrows?" King Solaris asked curiously.

"Yes, and I only had archers available to defend the walls. I had no infantry and no one was answering my call to arms." Captain Fellis replied.

"Really?" King Solaris gasped.

"Why panic? The walls cannot be climbed on the outside." King Solaris asked.

"Six armed elves and a dog demanded to leave. I informed them I had my orders not to allow this and that it was too dangerous now. The paladin, Sendrick took charge and demanded I open the gates for him to fight off the spiders. Annalisa and Valenor accompanied him and fought valiantly. I sent a runner to get arrows for my archers from the Fletcher but by the time he had arrived with the arrows the damage had already been done. I'm sorry my king! I accept whatever punishment you see fit." Captain Fellis bowed again.

"I think you thought like a father to teach young elves a valuable lesson. I think you acted as a captain of the guard and deputized a well-needed infantry. You did your job well, captain." King Solaris said evenly.

"Thank you, my king," Captain Fellis replied humbly. King Solaris turned to face the six young elves before him. Dog sat obediently before him as he was trained to.

"I was against this because I fear for you all. I know you all mean well and are not simply after adventure alone. Eleanor speaks of saving other species being threatened by the destructive vermin which also will affect us in the future. I do not argue this! I cannot spare any troops because we lose enough every day in battle defending our walls. I can however give you my blessing and some gear that will aid you on your journeys. Meet me back at the palace in the Great Chamber." King Solaris said. He turned to leave the guardhouse. "You should join them, captain. I have something that needs to be made official and requires your presence."

"Yes, my king." Captain Fellis replied as King Solaris passed by him once more.

King Solaris sat upon his throne in the Great Chamber. His council stood as witnesses to dictate the words of the king during the meeting. Two royal guards stood behind the king armed with bastard swords that glistened in the light. A robed figured stood near to the king with several items laid out on a table. The six friends and Captain Fellis stood in the Great Chamber before King Solaris.

"Eleanor Valentha, my daughter… your calling to defend nature is true and you stood your ground even when your king was blinded by his fatherly stubbornness. I grant you permission to defend nature by finding the means to do so outside the safety of our walls. I know what is out there. Beasts that can swallow you whole roam the wilds. Other humanoid races struggle to survive along with animals. I hope you find the means to hinder the rise of the vermin and then return home safe. Annalisa, you and my daughter are inseparable. I think of you as a daughter as well already. Though you are no man, I do accept you as the chosen companion of my daughter. I just hope that one day the two of you will find a way to give me grandchildren to carry on our name. After all, one day you both will be queens of the city. Weapon master, if you would." The king took a break from speaking. The robed figure responded to his title of weapon master and pulled the cowl of his robe from his head. He picked up several small items from the table and carried them to the gathered friends. He handed them each a ring, including Captain Fellis before returning to the table.

"Those rings have a protective enchantment to help keep you all safe on your journeys." King Solaris stated. The weapon master returned and handed Eleanor and Annalisa each a matching scimitar and again returned to the table.

"Those blades match because you two share a bond." King Solaris smiled. The weapon master carried two bastard swords in his hands and handed one to Captain Fellis who stood in shock and the other to Sendrick. The weapon master returned to his table and waited.

"Captain Fellis, you look shocked." King Solaris noted.

"My king, I do not know why I also receive these gifts." Captain Fellis said with confusion.

"Because, you are going with them on their journeys to keep my daughter safe, of course." King Solaris replied.

"Then who will be the captain of the southern gate guard?" Captain Fellis asked.

"You have been replaced. Do not worry." King Solaris answered.

"Please do not take my job away from me. I need it my king. I'm sorry for any transgressions." Captain Fellis pleaded.

"Captain Fellis, you are being promoted, not fired. You are captain of the royal guard of the princess. With it, comes better pay and perks." King Solaris said with a smile.

"Thank you, my king." Captain Fellis said with a bow. The weapon master approached holding three more weapons this time. He handed a short sword to Fauna, a dagger to Rustan and a hand axe to Valenor before standing at attention, facing the king.

"All of you have been given weapons that you are familiar with. All of which hold the same enchantments to protect you from vermin. These magical weapons will aid you in battle but are most useful against vermin. They are the bane of all vermin. I know you are all in a hurry so I have had horses prepared for you, but there is one more thing we have to do before you go." The king said. The weapon master took his queue and disrobed to reveal the royal knight armor and drew his sword aloft. He stepped first before Captain Fellis with his blade upright in front of his face.

"Kneel, Captain Fellis." King Solaris instructed. Captain Fellis began to shake with excitement as he obeyed. The weapon master began the ritual and held his sword on one side of the bowed head of Captain Fellis and then moved it to eh other side before returning his blade in an upright position in front of his face.

"Rise as a knight of the elves, Sir Fellis." King Solaris declared. Sir Fellis rose proudly and held his sword in the same manner as the weapon master respectfully. The weapon master moved from Sir Fellis to Sendrick who gasped in response.

"Kneel Sendrick," King Solaris commanded. Sendrick obeyed. The weapon master repeated the ritual.

"Rise as a knight of the elves, Sir Sendrick." King Solaris declared. "Now go with my blessing and return home safe when you have completed your quest." Cheers erupted amongst the friends as they all inspected their new gear and smiled at their king.

"Thank you, father," Eleanor said with appreciation. King Solaris smiled at her but deep in the back of his mind he feared for her safety. He had ventured years ago before the construction of their great city. He watched many of his own perish as they fought to survive. Since they built their city walls the elves like the dwarves had fortified their sanctuary they call home. Their population had grown because of their intelligence and skill. They learned of the forge from the dwarves and adapted the practice to their own style. In some ways, the elves were better crafters than the dwarves. Their knowledge of magic is what set them apart from everyone else. They enchanted their crafted items to make them appear better than that of a dwarf's. King Solaris recalled beasts that could swallow a man whole as well as others that could rip a man into shreds in an instant. Since the dwarves did not have regular communications with the elves, King Solaris had no way of knowing if they still survived. It was a common belief that the elves might have been the only humanoid species to adapt and survive the wilds of the world. King Solaris watched as Sir Fellis, his daughter and her friends leave the Great Chamber.

King Solaris spared no expense. He made sure that the group of elves had the mightiest of horses and that they were fitted with the best gear available. Sir Fellis and Sir Sendrick rode in the front followed by Eleanor and Annalisa. Dog followed beside Eleanor. Rustan and Fauna rode behind them and Valenor followed at the rear. Sir Fellis lead them through the streets of the city to his home. He dismounted and handed the reins to Sir Sendrick.

"I'll be back momentarily," Sir Fellis said reluctantly. He strode into his home where he faced his wife with a sad face.

"What happened?" His wife Blanche asked when she saw the sad face on her husband.

"I have to go away for a while." Sir Fellis said sadly.

"Did something happen at the gates today? I heard that Captain Del ignored your request for more arrows and infantry." Blanche said regrettably.

"That does not matter anymore. I am no longer captain of the gate guard." Sir Fellis informed his wife. Blanche had a look of panic on her face.

"Were you reprimanded for Captain Del's actions?" She asked.

"No. In fact I was promoted. I am the captain of the royal guard that protect the princess." Sir Fellis said proudly. Blanche smiled.

"Well that is excellent news!" Blanche sighed with relief.

"Yes. It comes with better pay so you will be more comfortable in my absence." Sir Fellis said.

"What do you mean, in your absence?" Blanche asked curiously.

"I have also been knighted. I am now Sir Captain Fellis! Eleanor is leaving into the wilds and I have to protect her and ensure that she returns safely." Sir Fellis replied.

"How long is her trip?" Blanche asked.

"I'm not sure. King Solaris only said I need to protect her and make sure that she returns alive. It sounds like several weeks or months." Sir Fellis guessed.

"When are you to leave?" Blanche asked but already knew the answer at this point, seeing the tears in her husband's eyes.

"We are leaving now," Sir Fellis replied. Blanche said nothing more and sprung at her husband, embracing him in a hug. She kissed him passionately.

"Come home to me!" Blanche whispered.

"I will. Love is with you." Sir Fellis said before pulling away and walking to the door. He wiped away his tears.

"Love is with you, my husband. May the creators watch over you," Blanche blessed her husband as he left. Sir Fellis held his head low to hide his red and damp eyes from the group as he took the reins back from Sir Sendrick and mounted his horse. Sir Fellis turned his horse back to the road and without saying a word led the way to the west gates.