The Elves of Cintra (Book 2 of The Genesis of Shannara)

“You may present yourselves to the members of the High Council,” the King ordered.

She had given their names already to both Simralin and Maurin Ortish, so Arissen Belloruus could have presented them himself. But he was after something more. He wanted them to understand clearly that he expected them to do what they were told. He wanted to make certain that they understood he would not tolerate any form of resistance to his commands.

He was testing them as he tested everyone.

Fair enough, she decided. She would do whatever was needed.

“I am Angel Perez,” she replied, straightening slightly, her dark eyes locking on the King’s. “I am a Knight of the Word. My companion is a tatterdemalion. She is called Ailie.”

The King leaned back comfortably in his chair, not inviting them to sit. “We have allowed you to come into our city despite the rules that forbid it,”

he declared. “You know this from hearing my comments to Simralin. We have allowed this because of who you are and because we are led to believe that your coming to Arborlon is of great importance. Now is the time for you to reassure us that this is so.”

The King was a big, strong man with handsome features and a smooth, commanding voice. He used that voice and size both to intimidate and to reassure. Angel had seen how effective he could be when he had dressed down Simralin. He would attempt to do the same thing with her. But she was a child of the streets and a survivor of far worse than anything the King had encountered. She would be stronger than he was.

“We have been sent to you by the Word,” she said, addressing her remarks not to the King, but to the Council. “That is our first and most important reassurance.”

“The Word did not speak to us of this,” the King declared quickly.

“The Word does not speak to us at all,” added another man.

He was stooped and hawk-faced, and he did not smile.

“Perhaps not directly and not in the way you would expect,”

Angel replied.

“Nevertheless, the Word watches over you and cares for you.

That is why we have been sent as messengers. The Elves are in great danger. The world outside the Cintra is changing. The demons and their followers are winning the war against the human race and seek to destroy it. Worse, they would destroy the world itself. It is necessary for you to protect yourselves if you are to survive. To do this, you must leave the Cintra and go to a safer place, one where the destruction elsewhere will not impact the future of your race.”

“Leave the Cintra?” the Council member who had spoken before interjected in disbelief. “On the basis of what you are telling us and nothing more? That is ridiculous!”

“Enough, Basselin!” Arissen Belloruus cut off anything else the man might have wanted to say. He turned back to Angel. “You will understand, lady Knight of the Word, if we are hesitant to believe this. Humans are the ones who have destroyed the world, acting foolishly and recklessly at every opportunity. Demons have prodded such actions, but humans have carried them out. We have stayed safe by staying where we are. Now you tell us we are to leave? Are you going to tell us where it is we are expected to go?”

“We do not know that,” Angel answered.

Arissen Belloruus looked at her as he might look at a difficult child. “Very well. You have delivered your message and fulfilled your purpose in coming to us. We will discuss the matter and make our decision. You are free to go.”

Angel shook her head. “There is more. In order for you to leave the Cintra, you will need the use of an Elfstone called a Loden. We are sent to help you find that Elfstone.”

There was stunned silence. No one seemed willing to say anything, even the King, whose expression suggested that he was deciding if he wanted this discussion to go further. “We have no Loden Elfstone,” he said finally. Then, as if realizing he was simply reaffirming what Angel had already said, he added, “No Elfstones of any kind. They have all been lost for centuries. There is no way of knowing what happened to them.”

“Perhaps there is,” Ailie said suddenly, her small voice surprisingly strong in the large chamber. “Perhaps one among you already knows a way.”

She might be guessing or she might know something that she had not told Angel. But the look on the King’s face, at once dark and angry and startled, was a clear indication that one or the other was true. He knew more than he was giving away to anyone in this room, and now everyone realized it.

“Historically,” said another of the Council members, an older man who spoke not to the King, but to Angel, “the Loden Elfstone was meant to protect the Ellcrys in time of danger. The legend, as recorded in my own family’s journals, says the Loden possesses magic that will allow it to encapsulate the tree and keep it safe while it is being moved.”