Elfin, Book 1 The Elfin Series by Quinn Loftis
Chapter 19
Rescue mission advice #1: Have a plan. Rescue mission advice #2: Have a plan…Rescue mission advice #142: Have a plan.
You would think that would be a no-brainer, right? Tell that to the two humans and five elves that went traipsing off into the dark elf realm hell bent on rescuing the King and Queen, dispensing justice where it was needed. Ask them how that worked out for them once they get their own asses rescued. ~ Elora
“Lisa, if you ask me if we’re there yet one more time, I swear I’m shoving you through some reflective surface and back to the human realm,” Elora growled as they walked through the dark forest. Tamsin, Beleg, Nedhudir, Rincavornon and Sidhion, which were four of Tamsin’s strongest warriors, along with Lisa, and Elora had all set out together. Syndra had stayed behind at the command of the King to keep an eye out for Trik should he return. They had been walking for two days and Tamsin had finally seen fit to tell them that Lorsan could hinder their progress by shifting the realm so that they were literally going in circles.
Since then they had been marking the trees with strips of fabric as they walked, hoping that if they passed the same tree again they would know for sure that Lorsan was at work.
The night of the second day they were all sitting around a campfire. Tamsin, Beleg and Sidhion had gotten them dinner in the form of some strange birds. Elora had made it a point to step away from the camp while they prepared the meal and was trying to keep from picturing the birds strung up while she ate.
“So can I ask something that I’ve been dying to ask?” Elora looked at Tamsin and then at each of the elves. They all nodded. “I don’t promise an answer,” Tamsin added before she asked.
She waved him off as she swallowed her last bite. “It’s not anything top secret.” She cocked her head to the side as she looked at the five male elves. “Then again, as strange as you guys are it may very well be a matter of life and death.”
Tamsin and his elves waited patiently.
“Is there a competition amongst your parents to see who can give you all the most difficult name to say and spell? Or do your parents just hate you?”
There was silence as the five elven men stared at Elora. Lisa’s mouth dropped open and she started to stand, thinking she just might have to protect her from the good guys when the five men erupted into laughter.
It was several minutes, while Elora stared at the beautiful elves with weird names, until they found their composure.
“Our names have meaning,” Tamsin told her as he wiped his watery eyes. “They are not just picked for how they sound. They are chosen based on their meaning.”
“Huh,” Elora nodded. “Okay, let’s hear’em.”
Beleg was the first to answer. “My name means strong. No hidden meaning for why my sire and mother named me that. It’s what they wanted for me; to be strong.”
Rincavornon spoke next. “My name means quick moving.”
“Did they think you were going to be chased a lot?” Elora asked with a straight face.
The other elves laughed and nudged him.
“Like you have room to laugh,” Rincavornon gestured to Nedhudir.
Nedhudir made some of his own hand gestures, all the while spitting out what Elora guessed was elvish profanity.
“Wait, wait,” Elora held up her hands. She looked at Nedhudir and a wicked grin spread across her face. “Come on, pretty boy, what are they ragging you so hard about? What does your name mean?”
Nedhudir glared at the four elves who were failing miserably to stifle their laughter. He looked over at Elora and she had to lean forward to hear his muttered answer.
Her mouth dropped open as she sat back and stared at him wide-eyed. “Shut-up! You’re parents gave you a name that means cushion? As in a place to set your butt after a long, hard day?”
Nedhudir stood and walked over to a tree away from the fire. After several minutes, Elora composed herself and looked over at Nedhudir. She felt slightly bad for teasing him, sort of. Okay who was she kidding, his name was freaking cushion, how could she possibly feel sorry for laughing about that.
She watched him as he stood there, quietly looking out into the forest. He didn’t look mad, just thoughtful. It was then, as she stared at him, that she realized that he was every bit as beautiful as Trik, only different. The elves no longer bothered to hide their true form from her so she saw them all now in their Elfin form and she had gotten used to the odd eyes, and out of a box colored hair. Nedhudir’s hair was long and he wore it in a braid down his back. He was blonde, not dirty blonde, but truly blonde and it shimmered like golden threads had been weaved into the strands. He wore a band around his forehead that should have looked odd, but somehow looked right on him.
His eyes were light blue and shined like glass. He had a straight nose, high cheek bones and a square, strong jaw. Typical of his race, he had pointed ears. Elora didn’t know how he didn’t look feminine with pointy ears, but Ned was anything but feminine. Ned, she thought. Oh hell, I’m giving him a nickname.
He was tall, and a little wider than others of the Elfin who tended to be leaner. Where they were more swimmer builds, he was closer to a linebacker. He wore a green vest, leaving his arms bare. He was muscular, and very, very intimidating.
Elora walked up to him and he slowly turned his head. He looked down at her, and with a small nod said, “Elora.” And then went back to staring at the forest.
“Okay, so maybe I shouldn’t have laughed at your name, but you have to admit being named after a butt pillow is just a tad hilarious.” Elora waited for his response but he didn’t even acknowledge her words. “I feel like I should disclose to you that I intend to call you Ned, or Cush, haven’t fully decided, but in your case a nickname is a necessary evil.” Still no reaction. Elora rolled her eyes and turned to walk away. “Glad we got that cleared up,” she called over her shoulder. She swore she heard a chuckle and quickly turned, but he stood, stoic as ever, without even the slightest smile.
The next day was as uneventful as the first two, until after their third break. Tamsin and the other four elves suddenly all unsheathed swords, some of which Elora had no idea that they even had. Tamsin pushed Lisa to the center of the circle that the elves were making. Nedhudir grabbed Elora’s arm and pulled her behind him. Elora tried to quiet her breathing as she looked out into the foliage and forest around them. Tall trees towered above them and rich greens of all shades covered the leaves, the blades of grass, and the shrubs. She looked for anything that didn’t fit with the green and still she saw nothing.
Then Tamsin made a motion with his hand and spoke words that Elora didn’t understand. Slowly they began to move, Lisa and Elora in the center of their elven shields, being herded to the cover of the trees. They didn’t make it.
“Well the day wasn’t a total loss.”
Elora’s head swung around as a deep voice resonated behind her.
“Lorsan,” Tamsin growled and it was a sound worthy of a pissed off lion.
“It’s been a while, Tamsin.” Lorsan stood casually, his shoulder leaned up against a tree. He didn’t seem worried over the very sharp swords pointed at him, or the very fierce elves that held them. “I’ve lost a prisoner and a dethroned King today, and thought that it would end without anything being accomplished and then this little gift is dropped in my lap.”
Elora looked around Cush. That’s what she finally settled on for the name that most suited him. She looked at Lorsan and threw her hands up in the air. “Are you kidding me? We’ve been going in circles for days, trying to get to your jacked up castle to rescue the two love birds and you’re telling me they escaped? And now instead of rescuing them, we are being captured?”
“Elora when did you get so snarky?” Lisa asked.
“When elves invaded our lives and drug us into their centuries old useless battle. That tends to make a person a tad snarky.”
“A tad?” Cush asked her as he looked at her from the corner of his eye,
“Oh, now you decide to talk to me? Really?” She crossed her arms over her chest and turned back to glare at Lorsan. “Let’s get this over with already. I’m tired, I stink, and I’m sick of the bad guys winning.”
Elora felt Cush nudge her with his shoulder and felt something at her side. She looked down and saw he was handing her a dagger. She smiled wickedly.
“Do not hesitate,” he told her firmly.
“You don’t have to worry about me, Cush. I have about as much sympathy as a rabid dog on crack.”
“What?” He asked, clearly unsure of what Elora had meant.
“I’m mean; that’s all you need to know.”
“Noted,” he replied.
Tamsin turned to look at his warriors. Something he did must have been a signal because his warriors roared in unison and rushed the Dark King. Elora looked over at her mom.
“We can go down fighting or crying? What’s your vote?”
Lisa pulled a dagger from under her shirt where a sheath had been tied.
“You had to ask?” She snorted at her daughter. They both turned to see that Lorsan was no longer alone. Warriors dressed in black had joined him and were fighting Tamsin and his elves. Elora felt a battle cry well up inside her and, though she didn’t understand why, it felt right. She ran with her dagger held high, her mother beside her, both yelling at the top of their lungs and plunged into the fray.
Life or death, they had decided they would fight. They would fight for the good left in the world, in theirs and in the Elfin. They would fight for Cassie and all she had been through. They would fight for Trik, the King who had found his Chosen and found love again. They would fight because sometimes a few must make sacrifices to save many.