Forces Collide by Jamie Wilson (ap literature book list txt) 📖

no way to tell. Drawing the unconscious man’s neck to his mouth.
Vampires lurked behind the line. That made me worried. Was the man lifeless now? Or was he becoming one of the despicable undead human creatures?
I knew Drannor was listening to my every thought, seeing what he could gain while I was inside the city.
At last we reached the keep, where five soldiers stood waiting. Only these were no standard soldiers, they reeked of blood gone stale.
That triggered a memory. The memory of Ciarbera. They were vampires.
Then one of them smiled hungrily at me. “I never got to taste you,” she said in a soft voice.
I glowered in answer. “And in no way will you get the opportunity,” I refused her.  “Let us go by. We imply your sovereign no harm.”
The fact she was still around surprised me. She was still alive which meant that wyvern fire was not enough to kill them.
Thank you for that bit of information. I’ll converse with Barrain about that, Drannor said in my head.
Of course, I mentally replied.
“Follow me,” the same vampire answered.
I nodded snappily and my warriors dismounted. They seemed taken aback by the stench of these people. However they bravely walked past the vampires following me. If I could sand it, they would be able to.
The vampire led us through the corridors and then stopped at an elaborate door. “Here you go,” she said. This time to my surprise her voice was respectful.
She pushed the door open. Then she backed out of the doorway into our hallway.
I walked through the wooden doorway and fixed my gaze on the woman at the other end of the room. On her face there was a smile which made me instantly weary.
Behind her there was another door.
She walked to address us. We met half way through the room. “Welcome to Nuduien,” she said. “My sovereign waits for you, Ma’am.”
“Then I shall speak with him,” I replied.
“You must go on from here alone. Your warriors must remain here,” she said.
“Ah there we have a problem. I shall no leave them here,” I said.
“Go, Milady. We shall be listening,” one of the others said.
I rolled my eyes. “Very well then. So it shall be.” I walked alone after the woman, worry in my head. Why must I come to him alone? Puzzled I was about the meaning behind that. Not that I really minded the confusion. He must trust me, I thought, or is it a trap?
Be wary, Drannor stated.
I shall be, do not worry about me, I said. There was no reason for that, I was fairly sure.
Though I myself was not sure about what Lindan Marcos wanted by having me come to him alone. There was comfort in the fact that my warriors were so close at hand. Ready to defend me at a moments notice, I knew this. It was a good feeling for me to have, I realized that now.
Perhaps he wanted to talk to me. But he would not do so if I did not come in alone. That seemed unlikely, but I was more than ready if he wanted to dare to attack me. I have not come into the city without my sword. And never would I come here unarmed until he was dead. To attack me right now would be folly.
He seemed a man that would dare to do such a thing in my eyes.
At that moment I walked into the next hall. This was no real hall, instead it seemed to be a massive chamber that seemed like it was made for people to do things they liked. I spotted a few bookshelves, some tables, and many different chairs about the room. There was no order to this room, unlike all the other rooms.
Only one of the chairs was currently occupied. I knew the man that sat there, from my own memories. It was him. Lindan Marcos.
As I drew nearer, he stood up, his stormy grey eyes watching me carefully. He did not completely seem at ease, even though I was not showing any anger towards him in my stance. I wondered why that was.
Then I reached him. He bowed to me.
I raised an eyebrow. This was not expected for me to see him do. This man was no friend of mine and yet he could actually be polite? It made no sense. His dark black hair was not as shiny as when I had last seen him, at my wedding.
“You wished to speak with me?” he asked, his voice was as polite as it had been when I first met him at my wedding.
“That I did,” I replied.
“What about?” he asked. “Please, take a seat.”
I don’t plan on staying in here long, I thought. I did choose a seat though and he sat down across from me.
Careful, Gem, Drannor said.
I am being careful, I said. I know I am in the lion’s den right now. And indeed I was. If he wanted to end things, this was the perfect opportunity for him. I sighed as I watched him. “You have caused us a lot of trouble, Lindan Marcos,” I began.
“I doubt that very much. What trouble have I ever caused?” he asked.
“Two hundred years ago, you stole my grandfather’s daughter’s heart, I know you remember Ava Berilan,” I said.
“Of course I remember her. I love her. And she loved me!” he said in defiance.
“You know that doing such a thing was going to have a negative impact on you. We will never truly see her children as the rightful heirs to your throne.” He looked surprised at the mention of children. “Yes she had children. Two of them. They have been in an orphanage for sixteen years. Then for the last three years, I have looked after them.”
“Where are they now? You should not have kept them from my knowledge,” he replied, his voice showing that my words had affected him.
“They wait back in my army,” I replied. “You may come and meet them if you want, but I will not bring them to you. However they are not the only issue.”
“What else?” he asked in anger.
“You also may not realize this, or maybe you do, but one of my sisters, Elanil was found working as a slave in one of your towns. She was stolen at the time of my own birth and we have not seen her in the thirty years between then and now.” My voice was filled with a cold fury beneath the calmness that I spoke with.
“I would not dare do that. If someone else has dared to do that without my knowledge then they were very foolish and will be punished.”
“Don’t worry about punishing them. One of my riders made sure the whole town was punished. The town no longer exists.”
“That’s taking it a bit far,” he said. “There was no need to do that. I would have made them return her to you.”
“I doubt it. I know you hate my kind with a passion. You would have killed her had you found out they were hiding her from you. You know I speak the truth about the matter.”
He glowered at me. “So what if I would? No damage made.” I heard the anger in his voice. I laughed scornfully. He was close to losing his temper.
Careful, Gem, Drannor said again. Do not anger him too much.
“Had you have killed her, I would have known and this war would have ended the very day you did that to her. You should be aware of that already.” My tone was cold and threatening. For him it was a good thing that my rider had found my sister and not himself.
“Is that a threat?” he demanded. I saw the anger in his eyes. “If an elf is in my land they are mine to deal with. Even King Sudryl knows that. Not that he is around anymore; else I would not be dealing with you right now.”
I sighed. It seemed he did not realize that I would be about to punish him even though he had done nothing to her himself as yet. “I shall not be calling my army off, if that is what you are thinking,” I snarled.
He scowled. “We will meet again in battle and I know you’re aware of that,” he said. “Even if you did draw your forces away we would.”
God, this human was so pathetic. He thought that he stood a chance. “You have no idea as to the colour of my wyvern, have you?” his bullying voice was having no effect on me.
Rhothilion woke up at those words. He looked at me with one huge sparkling red eye. “Your little pathetic sun wyvern stands no chance against us, Elf Queen.”
A loud roar of protest rang out as his words echoed in my head where Gaelira heard them. Tell him that he will be punished for the insult, she said.
I looked at the dusk wyvern. “Gaelira tells me to say that you are simply an insolent bully who has nothing noble in you. Also that you have deeply offended her and that she will punish you for that when we meet in battle.”
To this the dusk dragon had nothing to say in response.
I raised an eyebrow. “No response then, Rhothilion?”
“There is no need for me to give one,” replied the wyvern.
We would teach him a thing or two when we met him in battle. Both Gaelira and I knew that in our shared mind.
“Then I shall see you in combat,” I said, standing. At sunrise blood would be shed!
He nodded and I walked swiftly from the room. Facing Collin and Sam about the identity of their father was not going to be easy, but they had the right to know now. I would tell everyone when we et together on the battleground.
***
Drannor had not been inactive while I was in the city. I could see our camp on the far side of the plain, near the entrance to the long, narrow, deep valley that his scouts had found.
I knew the humans would be focused intently on our camp now. My challenge had been issued, and the standard of peace was no longer needed.
When I reached the tents, the first person to meet me was not Drannor, but Hycis.
I smiled at her as I dismounted. “What’s up?” I asked as I walked towards my tent.
“You never have told me which wyvern is yours,” she said.
I laughed in surprise. “So I haven’t. Come and meet her then,” I said.
We walked through the tents, this time I lead my way through to where the wyverns were laying in the sun. All of them looked in my direction as I got nearer.
“I’ll call her,” I said. ‘Gaelira, come to me please.’
Every single one of them stood up as my wyvern surged to her feet. They were all so very respectful of her. Even enormous Goldberg, over a century older, bowed his orange head as she passed by.
“Yes Gem?” she asked, speaking out loud.
“I brought someone to meet you,” I answered.
Gaelira tilted her head. Waiting.
I looked at my sister. “Hycis meet my wyvern, Gaelira,” I said.
Hycis looked up at my wyvern and smiled. “An honour indeed to meet you, Gaelira.”
“It is a pleasure to meet you, Hycis,” Gaelira rumbled gently. She lowered her massive head to Hycis’ level.
“She is so beautiful,” Hycis said.
“We shall get to know each other after this battle is over,” Gaelira said.
“That we will,” Hycis replied,