“Excuse me, but is that a map?”
Enrich looked at him, puzzled. “Yes, why?” Then he corrected. “You haven’t seen a full one before, have you?”
“No, just of the empire. The Queen doesn’t allow anything else,” Keither said.
“Hoelaria is no Queen. She is just a regent as she well knows.”
There was defiant anger in Enrich’s voice and Keither thought he heard him mutter something about a usurping whore as well. Talk like that got you executed back home, but now…
“Sorry, yes. The usurping whore won’t let us see maps,” Keither said.
Enrich laughed heartily. Keither wasn’t trying to be funny; he just wanted to see the map.
“I like you. Ah, let’s see, you must be Keither, right?” Enrich asked.
“How did you know my name?”
“Arkin’s reports. Yes, you can see the map if you like.”
Keither stepped up to the table and pried at the map. It wasn’t a map of all Airmelia like he thought but only of the immediate area. Manton was just southwest of them at the end of a fjord. To the northeast was a line indicating where the border was and the main road that led here. From Manton there were roads leading all over the place, some moving to the Elves lands and others just south leading off the map.
Mantic spoke. “Keither, Arkin says that you have a good mind. May we get a demonstration?”
This was a bit of a shock. An Elf wanted to test him? Keither would understand if Mantic wanted to see what Legon could do, but him? What benefit would that be?
“Ah, ok. Sure,” Keither agreed.
Mantic walked to the map and lifted it, revealing another one underneath. This one was a broader view of the land and he saw more cities, many running along the border to the Elves.
“What do you see?” Mantic asked.
“Well, I see a lot of cities and towns along the border with the Elves, and I see that all of those roads lead back to Manton and other cities. All of the other cities are in the usual spots; rivers, lakes, big bodies of water. But the ones on the border are situated with Elven dots on the map.”
“And what does this tell you?” Mantic pressed.
“That the human resistance relies on a lot of supplies from the Elves. No surprise. This land must be hard to farm, mine, and defend.” Did he say too much with the last part?
Mantic looked at Arkin. “You are right about this one. Who is in charge of him?”
Who was in charge of him? Were they asking who was going to take responsibility for him? Had he screwed up? To his horror, Legon spoke.
“I am, and he is a good man.”
“We see that. Do not worry, we would like his opinion. Keither, if you were Hoelaria, or more important her chief warlord Parkas, what would you do with a large part of your military on the border?” Mantic asked.
Surely they knew the answer. This was another test. He looked at the map.
“I would hit the Precipice, and hit it hard.”
“And why is that?” Enrich asked
“Well, look at it. From here you could go south and sever the connection the humans have with the Elves. Then you could slowly kill off the human resistance in this part and weaken the Elves by making them protect another border.”
Arkin smiled at him and Enrich spoke. “That’s what we think they’re going to do, but we don’t know when. We have been bringing forces north in preparation but it’s been a nightmare taking care of them. Keither, when we have more time we will talk about your possible futures here if you want them. Thank you.”
With that, the conversation ended as fast as it had begun. Mantic looked at them. “We will go to the Elves now and you can eat, rest, and have healers look at you. Someone will also show you around.”
Mantic gestured out of the room. Keither didn’t feel himself begin to walk as Enrich’s words repeated in his head: “Your possible futures here.”
Chapter Twenty
“Nothing is impossible. You just haven’t figured out how to do it yet.”
Mantic led them out of the building and toward the large dome-shaped hill. Legon was confused as soon as they left the main town area and walked to the base of the hill. Were the Elves just on the other side of it? As they approached the hill he realized just how large it was. Its base had to be close to the size of Salmont and it was easily two hundred feet high. They started to walk up its perfectly shaped side. He wondered if the people had built up the land like this, or if it was once a natural hill that they had shaped. Keither’s mind suggested that it was left over from mining silver and gold. Mines often had large piles of ocher dirt outside of them, and this place may have been formed with that. Sasha was unsure of what the purpose could be. She tried to ask Arkin but his mind was closed.
“Perhaps there’s a military advantage to giving them high ground,” Legon suggested.
The turf on the hill was short with small flowers blooming all over. There were also leafy plants that covered the ground as well. He looked over his shoulder and saw that the town was now below them. They were about half-way to the top. If he remembered right when they saw it from a distance, the top looked like it was cut off, like a plateau. Then it hit him: this was a raised area and the Elves lived on top of it! He walked with surety, now knowing what to expect at the top.
As they reached the top, however, that surety left him. The hill had an indentation at its top that went down ten feet or so. At the center of this indentation was a gaping hole that was easily one hundred and fifty yards across. As Legon stared he heard the tell-tale sound of a dragon. He instinctively looked behind him to see a blue Elven dragon gliding down to where they were, passing overhead and into the hole in the hill. But it wasn’t a hill; it was a massive structure.
Mantic turned, smiling at their awestruck faces. “Welcome to our Dragon Dome.”
“The what?” Sasha asked in confusion.
Arkin answered. “Dragon Dome. This is the Elven base.”
“This thing is our base?” Legon heard himself say, though he wasn’t aware he had told his mouth to speak.
“Yes it is. Both Elves and Iumenta use dragon domes. They were invented toward the end of the War of Generations,” Mantic said.
“The Great War between the Elves and Iumenta,” Arkin clarified.
They all nodded in understanding. Mantic led them down the lip and then along the small patch of land between them and the opening. “All entrances to a dome will be at the top.”
He stopped at an alcove, walked into it and turned to his left, opening a door. This entrance would be perfectly blocked from any enemy attack. Legon marveled at the thought behind it. As they entered he was met by the smell of the forest in spring, an odd smell to encounter at the end of the summer. The hall ceiling arched. The walls, floor, and ceiling seemed to be made of one solid piece of wood. Occasionally they would reach ribs in the hall that were a darker wood, but his Elven eyes saw no line where the different woods began and ended.
Along the walls there were little silver fixtures that were mirrored. In the fixtures were little shining sticks that stuck up from them. On the end of the sticks were bright balls of white light, presumably magic, that reflected off the shiny surfaces lighting the hall.
“Mantic, this workmanship is amazing. It looks as though this is one solid piece of wood,” Sasha said, running
