Part Two ~ The Tower

Clouds of purple and red slowly drifted across the darkening sky. Elrion stopped writing for a moment and leaned back in her chair, staring out the window at the sunset. She closed her eyes as she relaxed back into the chair. She heard a creak come from her kitchen and in one fluid motion she drew her sword and stood up. Her eyes widened as she saw that she was no longer in her house but standing on the main street of a town that she would never forget.

Slowly Elrion sheathed her sword and looked around at the empty street. The town was silent except for the sound of the wind echoing through the buildings. She softly winced as she looked to the north and saw the tower that she knew would be there. The silver spires twirled up into the sky giving the illusion that they never ended. Though she could not see them, she could vividly remember the great golden doors in the front and the beautiful marble statues that decorated the main hall.

That was the face of the tower that all the villagers saw, but Elrion had seen a completely different side of that tower. Something much darker than any of them had guessed. She saw the underground rooms, the ones that smelled of death and blood. A shiver ran down her spine despite the heat of the sun baring down on her when she heard a voice on the wind. It was very faint, but calling to her though she could not understand it. She stumbled up the rocky, uneven street towards the white stone tower. Almost in a trance, she continued toward it, even as the street began to move underneath her feet. She felt a hand on her shoulder, but ignored it, her only purpose to get to the source of the voice. Someone shouted her name, but she only growled, determined not to be deterred. Elrion stepped up to the golden doors and reached out her hand to touch them when her world suddenly went black.

Before she opened her eyes, her knife was at Crystine's throat. Elrion was shaking a little as she looked up at her friend who merely stared down at her with fear in her eyes. "Elrion? It's me, would you please put the knife down?"

It slipped from her hand and clattered on the wood floor. She stood up slowly and gritted her teeth as pain swept through her body. She looked over at her half-elf friend to see if she was doing okay. Her look of fear had quickly turned to one of worry. "It's okay, Crys. I'm sorry about-"

"No! What...What happened to you, Elrion?!"

She frowned softly and went to her mirror, the sides of her shirt were wet with something dark. She slowly turned as much as she could and saw the back of her once light brown shirt was wet with blood. She peeled the shirt from her back and winced as it stripped away from the deep cuts on her back. They had stopped bleeding, but appeared to be fresh wounds. Elrion closed her eyes and shook her head. "I'm dreaming, aren't I, Crys? How can this be happening?"

Crystine only shook her head and opened her mouth as if to say something but couldn't find the words. She quickly ran and grabbed some sheets from Elrion's bed and tore them into strips, bandaging her. "Elrion. What's going on? These...cuts, they were scars weren't they? I mean, that happened over ten years ago. How..."

"I don't know, Crys. I don't know. What was I doing before I woke up? Was I saying anything, moving in anyway?"

Crystine ran her hand through her long red hair nervously. "I don't know. You were kind of moaning and whispering something, but I couldn't understand you."

Elrion slumped back into her chair and stared at the floor, lost in thought. She sighed heavily and looked back up at Crystine. "I don't know, Crys."

Crystine winced as she watched her lean back in the chair. She was sure that Elrion was in pain, but she also knew that the dark elf's first response would be to disregard it. "Elrion, you need to sleep, to rest. There is something weird going on, and I can start trying to figure it out. You, on the other hand, desperately need to rest to try and heal."

"I have work to do."

Her red hair swayed back and forth gently as she shook her head. Crystine knew that tone of voice and there wasn't going to be any arguing with her friend about it. She got out Elrion's leather armour from the closet. "You know, I really should make you stay home today, because you aren't going to be much good to me in this condition."

She slowly began to put on her armour, saving the chest piece for last. "You know as well as I do that I'm mostly there for show. People just don't want to mess with my kind. Even if they have known me for years, still everytime I merely stand up they all get quiet as if they're expecting me to suddenly change and kill them all," a soft sigh escaped her lips as she looked at Crystine. "They aren't ever going to accept me, are they? I think they would have killed me in my sleep by now if it wasn't for you. They love you so they will tolerate me."

She gently did the clasps on Elrion's armour, trying not to injure her back anymore. "Look, they do accept you. And of course they wouldn't have tried to kill you in your sleep, I mean, everyone knows that dark elves have excellent night vision."

Crystine chuckled and looked at her friend. The upset expression was still on her face. "Elrion, you can't let them get you down. I know what kind of person you are and that you would die for them to save them. And I also know for a fact that many of them would put their lives on the line for you. You have nothing to worry about, they are just frightened of you because to them, you are one of a kind. Other than you, they only have their stories and myths of what dark elves are like. You don't fit their little tales, and so they aren't quite sure how to judge you. It will eventually get better."

Elrion snarled as she grabbed her sword and strapped it around her waist. "Better? Better, Crystine? How much longer do I have to wait until they will accept that I am not going to kill them. That I'm not here to steal their children. We've been here for seven years. Seven years, Crystine. Now, that's not very long to you and I, but to them, that's a damn long time. And still, even now, after everything I've done, after all the children I have not killed, they still do not trust me. After I've helped each and every one of them with whatever problem they may have. If I asked for a copper so that I could buy food because I was starving, I seriously doubt they would spare it."

She sighed heavily as she began slipping her daggers into various pockets in her armour. Before slipping her cloak on, she turned to Crystine again. "I am hated here. I have done nothing to deserve it, and yet, they go on hating me," she opened her door and stared out into the near darkness. "I don't think you understand what that feels like, Crys."

She shut the door behind her, leaving Crystine in the cold house. She looked down at the chair, bloodstains still on the back of it and sighed. She glanced back up and ran to the door, heading out after Elrion.

From The Darkness Index