Eric asked put his own goblet down and asked, “These dark elves prefer the trees like all elves, I assume. How widespread are they?
“Not very. Before the war, they were in their lands, occasionally seen elsewhere in tiny groups. They cause distrust. Since the attack, they have largely withdrawn from all such places, so the conquest of Aker has increased their territory and yet shrunk how welcome they are elsewhere. We believe many among them are not happy about this and do not support further expansion or even holding on to Aker.”
“And you believe removing the king and his son will cause a retreat?”
“That is our hope. If we are wrong, your quest is still done and you can return.”
“The dark elf king is in Kiarven?”
The king replied, “We are not sure, as his whereabouts change, but yes. He is the lesser priority. You must eliminate Prince Kammer. He is in Aker at the capitol, Rivina.”
Dreading the answer, Anna asked, “How far is that?”
“From here it is nearly a week by horseback, but with Soliander’s powers, you should be able to cast yourselves there.”
Anna stifled a frown. Matt didn’t know how to do that. How were they to explain that? The idea frightened her anyway, unless he had a lot of practice. What if they showed up inside a wall? Instant death. Were there any safeguards against that? She had to admit, if Matt could master that spell, it would save them all sorts of time. Maybe it was time to practice, like casting himself ten feet away. Or did the distance not change how hard it was?
Eric asked, “Do you have a plan in mind for how we can reach and deal with the prince?”
The king nodded and talked turned to details on city layouts and suspected locations of royal prisoners. What stood out to Anna was the guesswork. They had few solid leads on where anyone might be, and she knew her friends were thinking the same thing. So did their hosts. Princess Miara excused herself in irritation early on, and the champions tried to be polite with King Sondin and Prime Minister Othor, who finally admitted that they only had rough ideas because they had felt certain that the champions would need to devise their own plans based on the information provided. This was true and Eric more than Ryan took the lead in assuring them they were right and not to worry. But he did say they really need to gather more information first. They agreed to provide various maps or anything or anyone else who could help give ideas. After several hours of this, they were shown to a suite of rooms and told what time they would be escorted to dinner.
Finally, they were alone together, ornate white couches and divans embroidered in elegant finery, numerous mirrors on the walls, thick curtains open to let the sunlight in onto the hardwood floors. The place reminded her of pictures of palaces in France. The sitting room had three suites adjoining them. But they would look it all over later. Right now, they all converged on Anna.
Eric asked her, “Okay, you seem fine, but are you absolutely sure?”
She put a hand on his shoulder. “Yes. I feel normal. Really, it’s like a miracle, what the Quest Rings can do. I’m very grateful. Jack could only tell me a little about your talks with Eriana. I really need to get caught up. And read this scroll to find a god. Then we need a plan because these people don’t have one.”
“I know,” he admitted, turning to sit in a chair that he seemed to think was uncomfortable from the way he kept repositioning himself. “One thing Eriana told us that you need to know is about your amulet. You can use it to find a god more easily. We didn’t quite get into how. While the scroll and all of that will help, this is how she did it quickly, especially if that kind of info wasn’t available.”
“Yeah,” said Matt, “like the last time we saw a dark elf. As they were talking, I was wondering if by some miracle that was the same guy. You know, that wizard who summoned us and was killed, and we went home with all of those goblins and ogres trying to get to us.”
“And there was that dark elf I hit with a knife,” he Eric.
“We never learned his name,” admitted Anna, “or what the quest was.”
Ryan suggested, “Maybe we should get a description. But I don’t suppose it matters.”
“It could,” said Eric, turning to Matt. “Can one Quest Ring teleport us to another?”
The wizard cocked an eyebrow. “Well, that’s an interesting idea. We could get to this city quickly if so, and it’s the same place, or where we need to reach. It would save time at least.”
Eric spread his hands. “Anything pop into your head from Soliander’s memories when I said that?”
Matt thought for a second and shook his head. “No.”
“Well,” began Ryan, taking off his armor, “let’s catch up with Anna here, get ready for this
