red note.
He removed the note, and the hawk took off immediately. The bird soared high and headed due east. The commander returned to the safety of the walls through the secret door and opened the red note immediately. It was written in the language of the men of the northern kingdom of Nairi. How did they know how to deliver a message to us? King Edric must have helped them! Why would he do that? He was lost in these troubling thoughts for a moment and then decided to read what this person had to say.
King Kasim Thokrog,
I, General Yukio Ibreshri, have visited King Edric Nognili with an urgent plea from Queen Kira Tiranidrol of the new nation called high elves. He has pledged his support along with Queen Darla Thejar of the Nairi Canyons. These elves have left the Black Forest at the command of the powerful Mistress Kana. She informed them that King Ciel Tiranidrol was leading the people down a dangerous path and that she would assist them in building a new and better kingdom. One of King Ciel's daughters was crowned queen, and they took the name of high elves to distinguish themselves from those they left behind.
As they are still in their infancy, they are seeking the support of the good races of Tuwa. I am the husband of Queen Kira and her ambassador. The illustrious Kana herself blessed our union and has helped us secure the support of Queen Darla and King Edric. I have been instructed to request your support in our cause of freedom. The messenger bird that brought you this message will return in two days with the reply from King Jarvis and return to the main gate to receive King Kasim's answer. We fear that there may be an axis of evil forming against this new nation and the powerful Elemental Kana. Please reply to our humble request as soon as possible.
Best Regards,
General Yukio Ibreshri
Commander Giles was stunned by the request and its boldness. No one from the race of men or elves had ever attempted such a direct approach. Dwarves traded with the other races freely, but they never got involved in their politics. This general claimed to have the support of King Edric, but the commander simply could not believe this to be the case. He wasted no more time on pondering the particulars of this matter and left immediately to visit his king. This was one message his majesty would want to hear straight away. Normally he would wait until morning, but this note contained information that would take some careful consideration and time to determine the appropriate response.
As the commander passed his guards that he had called to attention earlier, he told them it was a message for the king and thanked them for doing their jobs. He told them that he would return shortly to fill them in because he needed to get the note to King Kasim as soon as possible. He nodded to the dwarves and continued his trek up the mountainside. He did not head to the entrance to the castle but to the east side of the interior wall. This barrier was not as thick as the outer wall, but it was twice as high. Situated atop the wall were trebuchets, catapults, and stationary arrow launchers. What were not visible to the naked eye were the numerous home guards hidden at various locations on the top of the bulwark.
Giles headed toward the far east end of this massive barrier. He reached the point where the wall met the mountainside and moved his hands gently over the smooth surface of the wall while muttering something in his native tongue. A secret door opened abruptly to admit him. He entered quickly, and the hidden door slammed shut behind him. He was engulfed in utter darkness, but this did not dissuade him. He plunged into the dark with reckless abandon. He moved deftly as he made his way to yet another secret entrance. He did the same thing as before, and this time the door glowed red for a minute before opening. This was the private entrance to the king's bedchamber. King Kasim was already on his feet and holding out his hand for the note the commander carried.
'Commander Giles, this had better be important,' said the king imperiously. There was not a trace of tiredness on the stoic leader's face.
'It is very important, King Kasim. I would not dare wake you in the middle of the night if I felt it could wait until morning,' Commander Giles replied confidently.
The king opened the letter and read it through quickly. His brow furrowed as he continued down the page. He had a look of disgust by the time he was done reading the note from General Yukio. He looked at both sides of the letter and read it through again to make sure he did not miss anything. He did not believe one word this supposed general said. He looked up at his head of the home guard as if to ask if King Jarvis had been sent the same drivel.
'My king, another message was attached to the hawk that delivered this message colored after our fashion. It was white, and it was clearly intended for King Jarvis. The bird took off immediately and headed due east toward Mount Carrick,' reported Commander Giles.
'Please retrieve General Magnar and Thanos Thrargoin immediately. Have them meet me in the war room in fifteen minutes. We need to discuss this further and determine what, if anything, we will do,' commanded King Kasim. He was not pleased with what he read at all, but he knew that he should ask his most trusted advisors what should be done.
'I will return with them in fifteen minutes' time,' replied Commander Bobrilir. He turned to the private door and silently slipped through.
'General Magnar and my dear Thanos, thank you for coming on such short notice,' welcomed the king. He bade them to sit down at his table so that they could discuss what would need to be done. The surface of this unique table was covered with a map of the lands of Tuwa. Commander Giles turned to leave but was hailed by the king to return and join them in the discussion. He turned about-face and marched back to the table and took a seat next to the mighty druid Thanos. He sat quietly as the king read the letter to the other two. He still had the feeling that this message was treacherous, but he wanted to hear what the others thought before expressing his concerns.
The group discussed the letter until the sun came up. They finally decided that they would continue with their policy of not mingling in other races' politics or affairs. They would send this message back to General Yukio when his bird returned. In the meantime, they would dispatch their own messenger to go visit King Edric and find out what he was thinking. Spies would also be sent out to discover what else was taking place in Tuwa. They all agreed that something was happening, and they wanted to be prepared. They knew that the ores were on the move because they have seen a great deal of activity on Mount Tarin. Maybe they had something to do with this treachery, thought Commander Bobrilir.
The home guard of King Jarvis watched the warrior hawk approach their main entrance. They had no idea who would be sending them a message in this manner. If it was from another dwarf, they would use one of their own to send a correspondence. However, the bird followed all of their protocols, so they did not shoot it out of the afternoon sky. The hawk landed softly on the ground just in front of the massive steel gate. The dwarves looked down at the little speck on the ground with great suspicion. The walls of King Dagnolir's fortress were as thick as King Kasim's, but it was made of steel and stone. Lord Nariko watched the bird that appeared to have a great deal of patience from outside the fortress. As a druid, he would be able to communicate with the hawk to some degree, so he felt it was up to him to greet the unexpected guest.
The enormous brown bear that had been walking near the fortress changed at once into a dwarf. He walked calmly up to the messenger bird and retrieved the letter. He reached down again and gave the bird some of the meat he had been chewing on before he had changed shapes. The warrior hawk took the food gratefully and focused on eating. Lord Nariko uttered some unintelligible words to the hawk, and the bird replied as if he understood what the druid was saying. They did this for a few minutes, and then the hawk went back to chewing on his treat. The druid's attention returned to the letter. He opened it and read it through quickly. It was almost exactly the same as the letter to King Kasim.
Nariko reached down and picked up the messenger bird and placed him on his left arm. He walked resolutely toward the main gate and demanded entrance. The doors opened slowly at his command, and there were onlookers all around trying to get a glimpse of this mysterious visitor. He continued to walk up the main thoroughfare until he reached the entrance to the castle. The king's guard halted him and asked him to state his purpose. He explained that he had an urgent message from Queen Daria Thejar's general. The contents of the note were intended for King Jarvis himself. They let him enter and bowed as he walked past them. The dwarves respected all shape shifters and would do whatever they asked. Lord Nariko Kromnog was revered as the most powerful and wise of the druids in Tuwa.
