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

the woods. Though I had said no and that they should anyway. What if there was someone with me who was not really trustable? I might trust them, but their job was to challenge anyone who tried to enter the woods.

Of course, they knew that if I said for them to do it, they had to. Otherwise they would get in trouble with me and anyone else I spoke to about it. Not something that any elf wanted. I had a lot of influence over the rest of them and I knew that. Not that I would ever abuse that fact.

That would be wrong. As we drew closer, I slowed my horse down for a few moments. “Stay close to us,” I said to the four children.

“Why?” Collin asked.

“My people are not accustomed to having humans in our forests. There may be trouble coming seeing as you are what you are,” I said

They all nodded and I started to get my horse moving a bit faster again. We all caught up with the others, Haemir and Drannor had stopped.

“Call Gaelira down, “Haemir said. “They have to stay with us for a while now.”

Gaelira, come down for me please, I said in my head.

She roared from above us. Then the two wyverns’s soared down and landed heavily. “Why do you need me?”

“Haemir says its best you stay with us for now,” I replied. “After all the elves have not seen you before.”

“Fine,” she snapped.

I laughed. What was her problem right now? It made sense that she should stay with us for now. I loved her and the worst thing that could happen was her getting hurt because no one knew she was my wyvern.

If she got hurt then I would feel it, we were linked now, and I knew that she would feel it if I was hurt. That was the only problem with this sort of link, we always knew whether the other was in danger or not.  Also we would do what ever we could to help the other, regardless of our own safety. To lose the other side of the link was unbearable. If either wyvern or elf died, than the other died too. Same went for the bond between human and wyverns.

“I’ll stay,” she promised. “Though it is troublesome walking on the ground like this. I prefer being up in the sky than on the ground.”

“I know you do, but it’s only for a short while.”

“As soon as I can I’m getting back up in the sky,” she muttered.

“Why are you so interested in being up there? I see nothing interesting about up there except that it is enjoyable to fly with you.”

“See you do like being up there,” she laughed.

I groaned.

Then we came to the tree line and just before we entered the trees someone called, “Who comes into the forest?”

About ten elves were visible watching us and all of them had their bows aimed at us, ready to shoot. I gasped at the unfriendly greeting.

Drannor and Haemir turned their horses around to talk to me.

‘They know our faces but not yours or the four other faces,” Drannor said.

“They knew I was leaving to go scouting, but they did not expect me to return with others,” Haemir said.

“You had better speak for yourself and your friends, Gem,” Drannor said.
I sighed. “Very well.” I looked at my friends. “Stay here!”

They all nodded, their eyes not leaving the elves. They knew the stories of my people and sadly not good ones. The humans told stories of us not being very friendly people at all.

I dismounted and strode forwards until I was very much in their bow’s range. If this went badly well, I knew I would die. There was no chance I could defend myself against all of them. I knew though that Haemir and Drannor would not allow a single arrow to even touch me.

“Yaa are lle!” called one of the elves, a male.

“Mani ness ha lle sinome in ese tuar?”

I sighed. “Amin essa is Gem Hawksong tinu en’ Aran Zelphar Nightstar ar Tari Laura Berilan,” I said. “Amin wish entul eska!”

“Prove to us who you say you are,” one of the replied, jumping down and walking closer to me.

Of course they could not see my face; after all I was wearing a hood, since it was cold at nights. I laughed for a second and once he was well and truly close enough to recognize me I swept my hood back so that my face was revealed.

I smiled as his eyes looked at me in shock.

“It is you!” he said.

I knew that he had not trusted me because of the fact he could not see my face. After all, anyone could say that they were me; he had to check my face before he could say anything as to whether I could come by or not.

“Took you long enough,” I said. “Do not worry yourselves about the other faces you see with Drannor and Haemir, they are my friends and if they do anything wrong you may be sure I will make them leave our forests.”

“And the wyvern?” he queried.

I had been hiding my hands until this moment. I raised the hand with the mark on it. “She is mine! Her name is…”

“Gaelira!” my wyvern finished. She leapt over to stand next to me, without my asking.

Her eyes were calculating, interested in these elves who dared to raise their weapons at me.

“Now will you let us all pass?” I asked.

“Of course. Welcome home,” the elf stammered. He bowed and then ran back to the others.

I heard several questions asked of him and he replied. The bows all lowered as the elves bowed to me.

I looked around as we trotted towards our ancient city among the trees. It was soon that I noticed how much thicker the tree trunks around me were getting. Glancing behind me, I saw that my friend's eyes were widening in amazement in the sheer size of the great white barked oak trees surrounding us now.

Soon a great stone wall loomed out in front of us. I knew that a gate would be somewhere, as I guided my steed behind Drannor and Haemir. Gaelira strode along beside me, as eager as I was to get inside the walls.

Then a pair of magnificent, ornately decorated white doors loomed up in front of me. They swung open slowly, and a horse cantered out. I could see Nuala settled on the horses' bare back.

She greeted us and praised Drannor for keeping me safe over that short period. Then she said, "Every elf in this city knows you are just here, Gem. They'll be watching you in particular, so do not do anything silly."

I gulped nervously at that. Though I'd often dreamed of this moment, now it was particularly daunting.

Welcome home Gem, to Anthatal, the heart of all the elfin cities in Nuban," Drannor said in a soft voice.

We continued on and soon as I entered the city all my memories came rushing back to the front of my mind. The human ones now faded to the back of my mind, fading away.

I smiled as I looked around as we moved. I remembered this ancient town; it was my one true home. The city spread for a mile in every direction that I could see.

My eyes instantly searched for the most ancient, white ash tree in the city. There it was, with its twenty-five meter thick trunk. Fine white steps circled around its beautiful, delicate trunk, towards a white flet twenty meters up that was the door step. At least another hundred meters up was a huge white box like flet, where the wyverns my parents used to have slept and nested in Bizandra's case.

I told Gaelira this and she seemed amused by this. She was very eager to get up there and have a look at where her parents had often slept.

“Just realize this Gaelira, that that area is yours now,” I warned her. '”Even if it does still carry Bjart and Bizandra's scent.”

'”what about the other wyvern that will live there?”

“That depends in many ways on me. If you have a mate, they sleep there, however if my mate has a wyvern, your mate will not sleep there,” I replied.

“Have you decided on a mate?”

“Not quite but I certainly have ideas about whom it will be. I am not ready to confront him about it yet,” I informed her.

Then we reached the tree and a young elf lord and his mate could be seen standing beside the tree.

Just before we came into earshot of them Drannor told me, "Now it's your turn to do the talking."

I nodded as we reached the young high elf.

"Ai' elen lusin ni deno' i' gia en' lye omenta, nar Dina Gem Hawksong tinu ar' Zelphar dul Laura," said the male elf.

I greeted him in a similar fashion and then asked, "Tah sen lle eman?" What is your name?

"Nar eman sen Ruthyn Shortbow, nar Dina Gem," the elf replied. Then he looked at my wyvern and asked, "Laia sen minx uruloki?" Who is that wyvern?

Mien sen Gaelira Wenada, tinu ar' Bizandra Retrina dul Bjart Gorganada," I replied, smiling pleasantly. "Mien sen nar uruloki. I'm going upstairs, if anyone wants me."

I flashed my wyvern marked palm at him. Then I turned to my friends and said, “Come, there are things I wish to show you.” I was aware of the others dispersing, moving away to other places.

Collin was first to speak. “Do you answer to anyone Gem?”

“Only to the council, though they do not really control me. They simply bring matters to my attention. I am the most highborn of all the elves in Nuban presently,” I said, smiling. Then I laughed at their bewildered faces. The clear sound of my laughter rang among the trees.

When my friends moved towards the stairs behind me, they were forced to stop. The guards were the ones responsible.

“You may not pass!” one elf said.

“We’re with Gem,” Collin protested.

“This tree is her’s and only her family may enter,” replied the guard coldly. “Now go back where you came from.”

Hearing the guards upraised voice, I turned where I was, ten meters up the tree, and moved down the stairs again. I was surprised by the guards actions. However I smugly hid that and looked at them all mildly when I reached them. “Is something wrong?”

The gaurd bowed to her and then said, “These humans tried to enter your sacred home. We told them to leave, but they will not. They say they are with you but we still cannot allow them to pass. What do you wish us to do, Your Highness?”

Collin seemed to be outraged. So I simply asked, “What is the reason as to why they cannot pass other than this is my home?”

“Well there is the similarity between Lindan Marcos-” the elf hissed the name “- and this boy.”

“I cannot allow you to hold that as a reason. I know Collin better than any other being alive.” I was infuriated at the