From Distant Shores Collection Part 1 by K.R. Gomlok (best book club books of all time txt) 📕

language in these parts.?
Valormin abruptly began to feel very wary about the man's understanding. ?Then how did you learn Zalian??
The man grinned, showing sharp needle like teeth. ?I learned it from Gorgrómith. You may want to see him at the Serpent?s Bane Inn. He arrived about a month ago.?
Getting an eerie feeling about the man, Valormin said a quick thank you before heading off in search for other means of transportation. If it really came down to it, he could try his hand at making a raft but he preferred the reliability of an actual boat.
?You were looking for me?? The voice startled Valormin, as it seemed to come from nowhere. ?I heard you talking to Rithan.?
Valormin turned to see a slim young man with dark hair like his own and the same Zalian style clothes too. Perhaps this was Gorgrómith. He certainly seemed Zalian, which was all the more reason to be careful. However, Valormin did not sense a Galdrood in him. So what was he? Another escapee?
?Rithan?? Valormin asked, taking a wary step away from Gorgrómith.
Gorgrómith gave him a chilling smile and stepped closer. ?The Vampire you talked to a moment ago, he said you might look for me so I decided to save you some trouble. You appear to be Zalian. What brings you out this far??
?I am searching for something,? Valormin replied, trying to keep the growing nervousness out of his voice. ?Might you be willing to help me??
?Perhaps,? Gorgrómith answered, studying Valormin as if he was wild animal, ?Depends on if you comply with my instructions or not.?
?What are your instructions?? Valormin inquired, wishing he had passed the village when he had the chance.
Gorgrómith contemplated the question before giving him a sidelong look, ?Keep all Zalians from passing the border until the coming storm.?
?When will the storm arrive?? Valormin asked impatiently, eager to vacate the premise. Here on the coast it shouldn?t be too long before any rain fell, but he still felt anxious.
At Valormin?s question, Gorgrómith laughed, ?When Nabrog returns the storm will start. Until then we will consolidate here.?
The answer was nowhere near as direct as Valormin would have hoped. However, he was not exactly in any position to bargain with Gorgrómith. ?What then will we do while we wait??
?It is my task to train you during that period,? Gorgrómith answered patiently. ?I am surprised that you came this early. Tmrag said you wouldn?t be coming for a few more weeks.?
Training? There was going to be a gathering of Zalians and Gorgrómith was going to train them for??
Suddenly it dawned on him: Gorgrómith thought he was a recruit of some sort. The Zalians were going to war. Darkness was about to march on the world.
?So sorry then,? Valormin said quickly, his mind racing for means of escape. ?I was sent as a messenger to the next village. All I need is a boat and I?ll be on my way.?
Gorgrómith?s demeanor suddenly changed from pleasant to unusually dark. ?Well then I suppose I?ll just have to change your orders, Valormin.?
?What?? Valormin started, completely baffled by Gorgrómith?s insight. ?How do you know about???
Suddenly, his vision exploded into a sea of stars and his knees buckled under his weight. Before he fell into darkness, he heard Gorgrómith talking with Rithan. Unfortunately, he could only make out a few of their words. Something about a fortress, the other prisoners? He was fading fast.
Falling, falling into darkness?


When Valormin came into consciousness, he found himself in a dark, stone room, lit only by a small lantern with dirty panes that withheld the light.
Attempting to stand, he received a sharp bump on his head as rebuke from the low ceiling. Rubbing his dark hair and checking his hand for blood, he decided that keeping low was a good idea until he could see his full surroundings.
What happened last? He vaguely recalled Gorgrómith and the Vampire, Rithan. But aside from that he had no recollection of how he had gotten into the cramped room.
?A little dazed, are you?? Spoke a woman?s voice. It came from beyond what Valormin perceived as a make shift, but sturdy, wall.
?Yes,? He replied hesitantly, ?How do you know??
The woman attempted to laugh, though it was a pitiful sound to Valormin?s ears. ?You make so much noise I would be worried if I didn?t hear you.?
?Well I can barely hear you now.? Valormin said, puzzled and a little irritated at his cellmate?s acute sense of hearing. ?Were you listening through the ground??
?Forgive me.? She replied, seeming to apologize for the confusion. ?I keep forgetting that you are all humans.?
We are all humans? Valormin did not quite like the inference. ?What might you be then?? He asked, wondering what his unseen companion could be.
?I?m one of the Elebán.? She explained. Then, seemingly as an afterthought; ?I am a Wood Elf. And, by your speech, I assume you are Zalian.?
Valormin did not answer for a moment. A Wood Elf? Elves had all but disappeared from the face of Tharis almost nine hundred years ago. They were a dying legend, soon to leave the memories of all that lived under the sun.
?How did you end up here?? She asked, after an uncomfortable silence.
?I was about to ask you the same question,? Valormin answered, his fingers searching the wall for a weak point. ?I thought that Elves were extinct.?
?No, not extinct,? She replied, an amused tint in her voice, ?Just in hiding. There are few of us left in the world. After the great fall we retreated to our many Londes.?
Suddenly, a thought struck him. If he could get to the Elves he would almost certainly be able to employ their vast knowledge. And if he could use that to find the shores of Kädorin? ?If we get out of here, could you take me to one of these Londes??
?I?d at least need to know your name.? She stated, a hint of apology in her tone, as if she was sorry to inconvenience him.
?Very well, my name is Valormin Korlon, and you??
She hesitated for a moment before answering; ?Nafilas, Elven path finder.?
?Pleasure to meet you,? Valormin said, trying to visualize what she looked like in person. ?But, if you don?t mind my asking, how did you?? He trailed off, thinking of how to phrase the question correctly.
?Get captured by Gorgrómith?? She finished for him. ?I was with a group of Elves crossing through a mountain village when we were ambushed by Halthact. Two of my companions were slain and one was left for dead. But Xölwin and I were taken captive and brought to a borough near the village of Miklem. We escaped but as we passed through Miklem in search of a ship we split up. That?s when I met Gorgrómith. He attempted to deceive me into coming to this place voluntarily. When that didn?t work, he had Rithan come up and take me by force. I was no match for his Vampiric strength and thus I was captured. I can only hope that Xölwin escaped when he noticed I was gone but I can?t be sure.?
Rithan, now he remembered. He had been attempting to get away from Gorgrómith when Rithan had apparently knocked him unconscious. The Rat! While he had been trying his best to handle the situation with skill the snake must have come up behind him and bashed him senseless!
?So how were you imprisoned?? She asked Valormin. ?It seems strange that Gorgrómith would capture a fellow Zalian.?
Valormin did not answer; he was too caught up in his thoughts. Only a few weeks earlier, perhaps a month at most, he had escaped the Zalian city of Ramador when his Galdrood was slain. He hadn?t known at the time but now he strongly suspected he had been spotted as he fled the premise and was now a wanted figure in Zalian circles. How ironic that his search for freedom had brought him right back into the Zalians grasp. But how had the word spread so fast? So many questions and so many of the answers were out of reach.
?If you don?t mind,? Nafilas tried again, a little more pointedly this time, ?I would like to know how and why Gorgrómith captured you.?
?He had orders from Gorban,? Valormin replied, partly guessing at the truth. ?I was about to escape when he intercepted me.?
Nafilas fell silent for a moment, most likely contemplating Valormin?s words. ?So you were escaping?? She asked, a strange note in Her voice.
?Yes,? He answered, a little wary of her questions.
?Would you like to have another chance at freedom??
He sighed, absently observing his breath in the cold air, ?More than anything at the moment.?
?Good, then be ready tomorrow. We shall be gone before day break.?


The preparation for their escape was delicate. If they were caught before hand they would be doomed. Nafilas, who had considerable skill in metalworking, unmade her lantern so as to make use of the iron frame and fire. Placing one of the metal sticks into the fire she whispered softly in an ancient tongue, coaxing the flames to engulf the metal and reshape it. It was not magic, or at least, not the sort of magic most people engaged in. It was a natural ability to the Elebán, who had immersed themselves in nature.
Pulling the fragile newly forged blade out of the fire, she cut a small hole in the wall through which she would trade resources with Valormin.
The night wore on and somewhere around midnight Nafilas extinguished her lantern. Its purpose was complete.
?Are you ready?? Nafilas asked Valormin. Her hands grasped the broken lantern pieces that had been delicately reshaped into lock picks.
?Ready,? He affirmed from beyond the wall. Though, to her superior Elven hearing, he sounded doubtful of her plan. He was so unsure, yet he held so much potential. She could sense in him an overwhelming inner strength that was yet to be awakened. Perhaps she could bring it forth?
Her thoughts were interrupted