From Distant Shores Collection Part 2 by K.R. Gomlok (ebook reader browser txt) 📕

Ikiaghn. Nafilas stared blankly at her friend?s back, hoping the tedious journey would soon come to a close.
?Seems you?re in a hurry,? Rilth asserted, observing Nafilas?s subconsciously quickened pace. ?To tell you the truth, I?m a bit nervous myself. It may be daylight but that doesn?t stop me from thinking about what may be hiding in the shadows of these mountains.?
Nafilas waved off the comment with a hand gesture reminiscent of clearing foul air, ?It doesn?t matter, the fortress should be just around this bend. Let us refocus on the task at hand for now.?
She half expected him to protest, but it gave her no satisfaction when he simply fell silent and continued to match her hasty pace.
They came upon the gates of the fortress before long and arranged themselves into a battle line with Ikiaghn at the front.
?Come forth, shadows of the dark lands! Justice has come to your door and you must now answer it!? He shouted, notably keeping a confident stance.
For a moment nothing happened, but then a figure came up upon the ramparts and glared down at them. ?And who demands such things?? The figure spat, who was now recognizable as Gorgrómith. ?I do not answer to you, Éllossar.?
?Then answer to me!? Ansoran challenged, stepping forth from the crowd. ?Gorgrómith, man if Umvor, son of Sortho, I free you now from your bondage!?
Gorgrómith fell back holding his throat and coughing, unable to make any further reply. ?Thus it begins,? Ikiaghn said, drawing his diamond sword, ?Ready the grappling ropes, we are going over.?
At his signal, the assembled troops sent a hooked length of rope over the wall and began to climb it, releasing gate mechanisms and such as they proceeded to assume control of the castle.
Nafilas nodded to Valormin and together they once again entered the place of their imprisonment. But now, they had come to liberate those that still lingered in this dread place.
?Through Dungeons deep and Castles strong, my quest will end, and end this wrong,? She recited to herself, thinking back to the ancient epics she had read as a child. Stories of heroes and knights and noble things? And now it seemed she was living one of these tales with Valormin as at her side.
Instantly, she retreated from the idea of closeness between her and Valormin. It seemed that he did not really enjoy her company all that much as he was usually rather coarse in his manner. Was it her fault that he did not like her?
She brushed the thought aside as she came to the dungeons and found the keys at the entrance. Unfortunately, there was only one key for all the cells and thus she could not impart any to Valormin to hasten their task.
?I?ll keep watch,? Valormin said when he saw the circumstances, ?Who knows what lies in these dark places??
Despite his words, he seemed subdued by the thought of potential uselessness. He was learning how to conceal his feelings, she noted as she searched the hall for Erima?s cell. She hoped that he would not lose his honesty. She had enjoyed his straightforward manner even if it had been a little short tempered?
?Nafilas!? The cry broke her thoughts as a teardrop breaks upon meeting the ground. It was not Valormin who was calling her though; it was a far higher in pitch, indicating that it was a child.
?Nafilas!? The unknown prisoner called again. This time Nafilas derived that it was coming from the far end of the hall and fading quickly.
?Valormin!? She uttered sharply before sprinting after the voice source, ?This way!?
The cries continued and now Nafilas could discern that they had been joined by that of the boy she had met in her previous incarceration. Spurred by thoughts of failure, she quickened her pace despite Valormin?s protest.
There, at the top of the stair, stood a very familiar figure. A sharp grin split his pale face and his bony hands were clasped among two children. ?Through mountain top, and stone and steel, Sorrow is all the heart will feel.? Rithan said slowly, his eyes filled with triumph, ?No rest awaits your weary plight, no end to chase and test of might. Druvor and Erima are coming with me.?
Erima, whom Nafilas recognized immediately, struggled in the grasp of the Vampire. Her young eyes emanated fear and despair as her work came to no avail.
Druvor, the young lad she had talked to in the cell, was calm as he stared at Nafilas and leaned forward to whisper, ?Take care of her for me.?
With these words, Druvor threw himself into Rithan and forced him to stagger back towards a window. ?Go!? he shouted, ?Take Erima and run! Escape while you can!?
Rithan, who by now had regained his balance, forced Druvor down and curled his long nails around his neck. In his face was now a rage of unspeakable magnitude. ?Never get in a Vampire?s way,? He hissed as his grip tightened, ?You may find yourself a little pale.?
But before Rithan could further strangling Druvor, Nafilas drew her sword and slashed Rithan across his abdomen, drawing forth a howl of pain and fury from the Vampire.
?Insolent Elf!? He exclaimed, ?I should have killed you before Gorgrómith decided to let you live!?
?No!? Valormin burst from the staircase, brandishing his katana in a heavy thrust. ?You shall not touch her!? With a deft movement, he ran the shocked Vampire through.
?Fool,? Rithan taunted softly ?You cannot kill me with this toy.?
Valormin?s face was taut with concentration, ?I know.? He murmured, and stepped back to let pass a clear ray of sunlight from the window.
Rithan?s face suddenly became horribly contorted with pain and rage as the beam of light burned into him. And so Rithan, former Alimirian, passed in the castle of Lutholian the gray.
?Is he really gone?? Druvor asked hesitantly, his gaze not leaving the pile of ashes that remained.
Nafilas nodded. ?Yes,? She said quietly, ?You need not fear him any longer. Let us join the others now, there may still be work to do.?
They walked down the silent corridors, every once and a while encountering a member of their party, until they came to a balcony overlooked the main courtyard. Ikiaghn stood in the middle of it all, directing the efforts to salvage materials and escort prisoners as Ansoran stood by his side overseeing the whole process.
?Do you think Ikiaghn is Ansoran?s apprentice?? Valormin whispered to Nafilas.
She shook her head no, though she still stared hard at the two. ?I think Ansoran is one of the old Alimirian; the first born of Tharis. Very few of them are left in the world, even fewer than the Elves. Any skills Ansoran possesses, I believe to be his own and non-transferable to Ikiaghn. He is simply here to assist him.?
Valormin nodded to show some form of understanding but it was apparent he was still unsure. ?Shall we continue down to them??
Nafilas smiled, she would have to have a long time before she got used to how humans could jump from subject to subject so easily. ?Of course.?
?Where will we go?? Druvor asked uncertainly. ?Erima is in no shape to travel.?
?Our friends will help you,? Nafilas soothed, taking his hand and motioning to Valormin to pick up Erima. ?A new day is dawning on Xan Conten?
When they finally arrived in the courtyard, Ikiaghn, Rilth, Serri, Ansoran, Bemaldar, Joria, Nafilas, and Valormin stood round in a circle and presented their progress as Druvor and Erima went off with one of the soldiers who had accompanied them. ?The fortress is now ours.? Ikiaghn stated at long last, his tone unbearably passive. ?We have taken no casualties and Gorgrómith is now in our hands. The former prisoners are now to be escorted home. Rilth, Serri, Ansoran, and a few of our other soldiers will take on this task while the rest of us proceed to the Fillinian valley. It is there that we will meet the main Zalian force and end this once and for all. If we do not stop them, dawn will not come for the southern continent.?
Rilth nodded and grabbed Serri, ?You can count on us sir. We will join you as soon as the task is done.?
As they departed and went their separate ways, Valormin pulled Nafilas aside. ?We?re waging full out war with them, aren?t we?? He asked. His voice was low, almost threatening.
?It is for the good of these people.? She said simply. Even if they are not my own, she thought silently.
Valormin sighed, ?So we?re putting everything at stake for them??
It then occurred to Nafilas that she was not the only one who did not belong here. ?I suppose so,? She finally said, and walked to the fortress gate, out of it?s darkness but still within the shadow of the mountains above.

* * *

Nafilas stood; armor donned, and stared across the future battlefield. Trees grew in thick clumps here and there, creating islands of shade on the otherwise empty landscape. It was a coastal plain, the Fillinian valley, covered in the thick morning mists from the ocean. Across the plains, she could make out the outline of the mountain range looming over and around the scene like a great beast perched on an unfair vantage point, waiting to jump onto its prey.
Beside her stood Ikiaghn, an Elf she had met only recently, and Joria, her friend and commander. Near by, Valormin sat in the tall grass, thinking about subjects he apparently did not see fit to disclose to his companions.
Valormin was different from the others, Nafilas already could tell by the look of him. His hair was now a deep, natural brown and his skin was a rather healthy hue. He was still young, sixteen at the most was her estimate, but his emerging features were sharp, commanding, and almost regal. She absently started wondering about his heritage. Now that she thought about it, she knew little more about him than the fact that she had met him in the dungeons of Gorgrómith?s castle, she didn?t even know what he had been doing there. Still, she felt something for him, for he had a way about him that she could not help but feel attached to.
Just then, her acute Elven hearing caught a sound originating from