Elvenbane

Valyn had the presence of mind to cancel the magic that made Shadow look full-elven, and to cast a hasty illusion of halfblood appearance on himself; she saw the features on both of their faces blur and reform at the same moment. In the general disturbance as the transportation-spell's effects died down, she doubted if anyone noticed the light breath of music that came with his magic.

Right now she didn't want to even think about casting another spell. No wonder the old ones didn't do this often. She had known this would be more difficult than the simpler version she and the others had used to steal goods from the elven overlords...but she had not anticipated anything like this.

Zed reached them first, running as if his feet were on fire. When he saw who was sprawling all over the grass, he slowed, then stopped beside Shana, a strange mixture of surprise, apprehension, and wry amusement on his face.

'Well, Shana,' he said, looking from her to Valyn and back again, 'you certainly know how to make an entrance.'

I don't believe it. The one time I do something I'm sure is right and it turns out to be completely wrong.

Shana buried her head in her hands; Keman sat down on the bed beside her, and patted her shoulder sympathetically.

She couldn't believe what a mess she'd made. She just couldn't believe it. She'd turned the entire place on its ear and undone hundreds of years of secrecy in one afternoon. How did she do these things?

'Hey,' said Zed. She looked up, and he handed her a cup of hot tea. 'Look, it could be worse,' he continued, squatting on his heels next to her. 'So, you didn't know the transportation-spell can be traced...so what? There was no reason you should know that...and I'd be willing to bet it was only a matter of time before the elven lords learned where the Citadel was.'

'But I'm the one who broke the disguise,' she said miserably. 'It wasn't chance, or fate, it was me...doing something stupid.'

'So?' Zed didn't look terribly worried. 'There were a lot of us who wanted to face the elven lords straight on; now there's no choice. We fight, or we get wiped out.'

'If that's supposed to make me feel better, it doesn't,' she told him sourly.

He grinned. 'We're not exactly helpless, you know...and anybody who's afraid to fight can pack their things and head into the wilderness or the desert.' He paused a moment, then added, 'Besides, even though they won't tell you this, I will. The elves only know where we are in general. They don't know the exact location of the Citadel. That gives us a really good tactical advantage when they move into the area to try and find us.'

'But that wasn't what I wanted,' she protested unhappily. 'I didn't want to force anybody into anything.' She glanced sideways at Shadow and Valyn, who occupied the room's only chair and the top of her little chest. 'All I wanted was to get myself and my friends to someplace safe.'

Zed shrugged. 'So it didn't work out that way. Despite what anyone else says, I think we're ready to take the elven lords on. Provided we aren't taking on all of them at once.'

At that, Shadow looked up. 'I've been keeping track of the Council through the lovely Triana,' he said, 'just in case the wizards decided they weren't going to tell us anything. They're divided on it. In fact, it's business as usual. Some of them think this is a trick by one of the others, some are certain it isn't serious, and some just want to play games of politics with the situation. And of the ones that want to come wipe us out, most think that there isn't more than a dozen of us. That lot is arguing about who's to be in charge, and who is to report to whom...where the troops are supposed to come from...who's going to supply them. It's funny, really. While they're debating, Dyran, Cheynar, and a couple of others are stealing a march on them and coming after us.'

Shana was surprised; first, because she hadn't known that Shadow's reach was that far, second, because of the elven lords' behavior. It seemed so ridiculous...

But Zed nodded. 'That was what I thought would happen. Back during the Wizard War they were united. Nowadays they're so used to betraying each other that it's second nature to them. That's the weapon that is going to win this one for us.'

'Win?' Shana squeaked. 'I'll be happy just to survive! You haven't seen what they can do...'

Valyn finally roused enough to take part in the conversation.

He had been acting so...flattened. As if when his plan went wrong and she took over, all ambition and energy seemed to drain out of him.

'Shana, don't write us off the record before we even try!' He turned to Zed. 'You can work that business of dividing them up even with the ones that are allied,' he said slowly. 'At least you can with Dyran's faction. No one trusts anyone in that cabal. If we can defeat them quickly, we'll frighten the rest...and I think at that point there would probably be enough elves on the Council who are concerned only with their own skins and prosperity that we might be able to get them to sue for peace before they figure out how few we are.'

'Now that is what I was hoping to hear,' said a voice from the doorway. Shana's old mentor Denelor entered, on the heels of his own words. 'I've been studying the histories, you know,' he said, rubbing a tired eye with one finger, 'and I'd noticed something about the elven lords. Since the Wizard War, every bit of real, physical fighting that's ever been done has been fought through humans. You don't like to risk your own lives at all, do you, lad?'

He looked directly at Valyn when he said that, and it took Shana a moment to realize that the wording of that last question was significant.

Valyn paled, his fists clenched, and he looked about him as if trying to figure a way to escape.

'Do relax, there's a good lad,' Denelor said wearily. 'I have no intention of doing anything about you, other than picking your brains for information. You there, youngster, give me that chair, will you? I'm too fat to want to stand for long. Which one are you, Mero or Keman?'

'Mero,' Shadow said, giving up the chair and taking a seat on the floor instead, relaxing under Denelor's matter-of-fact attitude. 'Keman's on the bed. How did you know Valyn was elven?'

Denelor smiled a tired smile. 'Two things, I suppose. One was his name...I know something about all the major elven lords and their heirs, and 'Valyn' isn't a human name, anyway. The other was the fuss that occurred when Dyran's heir and the heir's bodyslave went missing at about the same time, and the fact that it was hushed up so quickly. That told me that the youngster was probably either a runaway or an abductee, and more likely the former. We don't all bury ourselves under this mountain, and ignore the world outside, Shana.' That, she presumed, was for the look of surprise she must be wearing.

Denelor settled himself in the chair with a sigh. 'At any rate, I keep a quiet eye on the affairs of our neighbors; I put all the facts together and added the faint glow of illusion that hangs about you, and concluded that the V'kass el-Lord Valyn and the Valyn that materialized with our Shana were one and the same.' He gave Valyn a kindly smile. 'Sometime if you feel like talking, you'll have to tell me what led you to bolt, lad.'

'Does anyone else know about him?' Shana asked anxiously.

'No,' Denelor replied, folding his hands over his stomach, 'and I don't intend to tell them. It isn't relevant. A lad who would keep his halfblood friend...relative?...safe for years, then turn and run with him, is not the kind who would betray us. What is relevant is what you can tell us about our opposition.'

'You were right about them not wanting to risk their own lives,' Valyn said, slowly relaxing again. 'That's absolutely true. That's why feuds never turn into assassinations. When you have as long a prospective lifespan as one of us...well, you don't want to cut it short. If we can defeat the forces under Lord Dyran and make them think that we could just as easily defeat anything they'd bring against us, the Council is very likely to want to sue for peace. Especially if...'

He stopped, his expression clearly saying that he was torn between wanting to continue, and wanting to let his words remain unsaid.

'Especially if we can kill one or more of the elven leaders and bring it home to the rest that the immortals can be slain. Is that what you were going to say, lad?' Denelor asked softly.

Valyn nodded, reluctantly.

'That's easier said than done, Master Denelor,' Zed said with direct matter-of-factness. 'There aren't a lot of things that'll kill an elven lord. Magic, if you can get it past his shields. A sword, a knife, poison, if you can get within range to use them. Projectiles can be gotten rid of at a distance, so arrows are out. Except for elf-shot, and we