slightly, which left a ten-foot gap that made it impossible for big equipment to move across. The other bridges made by the knights were considerably less stable and could only handle so much weight at a time. There was existing living quarters which had been prepared for the army's habitation. An ancient army must have built this impregnable fortress during one of the north land wars. Queen Kishi looked around appraisingly and smiled slyly at her good friend, General Jaali. She was very pleased with this outpost and knew that after only a day of rest that she would be able to begin her attack.
'General Jaali, have the troops find their rooms immediately so that they can get some rest. In the morning, we attack!' she said savagely.
'Yes, my queen,' he said, with a rueful smile at Kishi's enthusiasm. He could see that she was full of purpose and that she actually cared for the troops and their well-being. It gladdened his heart to see such devotion in his best friend. She had been lost for so many years and had wasted a lot of time searching fruitlessly for meaning in her life. Now, she had found what she was looking for. It was rather tragic that she found it after losing her sister.
'After you have carried out my orders, please get some rest. I am going to put up some of my own protection around our new base. There is some innate magic already protecting this place, but it never hurts to put our own layer of magical protection,' she said confidently. 'I will see you just before dawn. We will attack as the sun rises, so make sure the soldiers get plenty of sleep and that they have a substantial breakfast for the long day ahead of them.'
'I will. I would also like to say that it is good to see that you have found purpose in your life and that you care so much for the welfare of others. As your friend, I will do what is necessary to keep you from harm. As your general, I will keep you safe,' he said with an appraising look at his oldest friend.
'Thank you, Jaali. I could ask for nothing more and would expect nothing less from you. Now, let us get on with our tasks so that we can get some good rest. Good night, my friend,' she said warmly as she wrapped her arms around her massive friend. They held one another for a few minutes and then she kissed him lightly on his forehead before departing.
As the sun crested over the edge of the canyon walls outside the castle of Queen Daria, the home guard noticed an eerie glimmering along the northwestern rim. It was as if there was a long line of metal objects standing along the rim of the canyon. They had never seen anything like it before and could not understand exactly what they were seeing. Then they saw a dust ball heading toward them at a great pace. As they looked closer, they could tell that it was one of the guards from the outer defenses. As he neared them, a ball of fire came down out of the cliff and instantly incinerated the poor soldier. Then clouds began to form overhead, quickly blocking out the sun.
The shining objects along the cliff could no longer be seen as a huge dust storm seemed to have risen out of nowhere and was heading directly for the queen Daria's castle. Lightning began to strike randomly all about them, and the loud echoing thunder ripped through the canyons so violently that rocks began to fall to the canyon floors. Commander Zareh Hacus came out of the front gates at a dead run at the sudden disturbances. He knew almost at once that they were under attack. He had no idea who it was, but he could not mistake the fact that they were being assailed by a powerful sorcerer. He barked orders at the guards to alert the rest of the home guard and to have everyone get to their stations at once. He ran back into the castle to warn the queen about what was taking place.
Before the army of Queen Kishi reached the first real defenses of the canyon lands, the guards had been alerted. They were stationed in cavities of the rock walls and began to shoot at will when the army came into their line of sight. The battle for the Nairi Can yons had begun. The Nairians entrenched themselves and would prove to be very difficult to kill. The high elves were not detoured by the superior defenses. They had the most powerful sorceress in all of Tuwa on their side, and Mistress Kana would be sending aid to them. With a queen as powerful as a guardian and a goddess who was more powerful than most of the Elementals, they could simply not lose the battle.
CHAPTER 14
Lord Diikker watched his former pupil leave with the army and felt a sense of immense pride come over him. He could clearly teach the sorceress nothing more as she marched toward her destiny. Now that she had gone, it was left to him to protect Tiranidrol from invasion, recapture Alanderas, and to deal with the giants. Queen Kishi may not approve of how he was going to accomplish these tasks, but she would be pleased with the end result. He felt that the experiences that Kishi was going to have while fighting the people of Nairi would help her understand his dark wisdom and cruel tactics. There is no such thing as a nice or polite war. She will understand this soon and will do what is required to capture those cursed canyon lands.
He turned to face Commander Harley and saw the look of utter amazement on his face. It was clear that he had no idea that Kishi was so powerful. Even though he had an astonished look on his face, Diikker could tell that he was feeling even more confident about his task ahead of him. It was unsettling to be standing under the hot sun looking at Mount Quang engulfed in black rain clouds. Loud echoing booms continued to rock the neighboring mountain while flashes of lightning lit up the blackened sky. Noises that accompany utter chaos were carried on the wind from Alanderas to Mount Konane. The residents of Tiranidrol cheered at the apparent misery of General Yukio's army.
'Commander Harley, do you have your team selected for the retaking of Alanderas?' Dukker asked. He smiled at the look that the commander gave him. Apparently he had not noticed Lord Aellenas standing there.
'My lord,' Harley said with a bow. 'I did not see you there. I … I do have a group selected to go with me. When shall we attack?' It is unnerving how Dukker can appear out of nowhere.
'That will not be for three more days. In the meantime, I want you to call another meeting of the captains. We need to select someone who will lead the home guard of Tiranidrol. You will be in charge of the guard at Alanderas, so we will need someone to take over in your absence,' explained Aellenas.
'I thought that you were in charge here; has that changed?' queried the commander. He was puzzled by what the warlock was saying. Is he leaving us?
'No, I am not leaving you, Commander-not for good, that is. I do have a couple of special missions of my own to carry out. I will explain what I will be doing in our meeting. Now, will you go and call the captains together? We need to get our plans firmed up so that we are all on the same page. Gather the captains and meet me in the council chambers within the hour,' Dukker said sternly. He had a dark, determined look on his face as he finished speaking. It was clear to the commander that Lord Dukker meant business and that it was time to get on with things. Harley bowed quickly and departed. Lord Dukker smiled darkly as he watched the good commander running as he did the warlock's bidding.
He turned around to watch the atmospheric assault on Alanderas and laughed softly. You may escape the mountain, dear Yukio, but you will not survive what Kishi has in store for you and your army! He continued to laugh louder as he thought of the destruction awaiting their canyon neighbors. His revelry was cut short by the appearance of a mysterious creature that was walking resolutely toward him. Lord Dukker knew at once that Kana had arrived to give him some further instructions before his meeting.
'Mistress Kana… ' Diikker said with only a slight bow. 'To what do I owe this distinct pleasure?' He respected the powerful guardian, but he was not afraid of her. He knew that he could hold his own against her in combat and that he could block her mental intrusions. This gave him equal footing when dealing with the temperamental guardian.
'What? You cannot read my thoughts, Dukker?' she said with great sarcasm.
'Let us not play games, Kana; time is against us,' said Aellenas sharply.
'You are right. Time is something we are both running out of. That is precisely why I am here,' she replied pointedly. 'You do not have time to garner support from the other races, so I will do that for you.'
'So, who will you recruit to our noble cause?'
'I will get the ores and goblins to help us. I will also obtain the support of the most deadly creatures in all of
