The Tokens: Chapter 1

Part One: An unexpected meeting


“Look, over there! In the distance! Six horsemen are riding to the city!” a guard noticed on top of the Nenan Naër, a shining silver tower that could be seen from far. Its name meant “The Watchful Tower”. Nenan Naër was very tall and impressive to behold, but going up would take quite a while, even running.

Gehair searched for them in every direction:
Mountains with icy white peaks, shining like white diamonds in the morning sun in the north,
plains with long and short grass in the east,
the seemingly diamond sea with a small haven and small brown fishing boats in the south with the soothing wind breeze
and green fresh forests and wilderness unthreaded, except by few Rangers in the west.

“To the north sir.” The guard said to Gehair, standing next to him, still following the six riders with his eyes.
Gehair looked to the north. “Indeed, six riders.” Gehair said, more to himself than to the guard and he headed off to the Northern gate to greet them.

The six riders were hold outside the gate until Gehair arrived.
“Greetings travelers. What is your business in Heneth Naër?” Gehair asked them in utmost politeness.

Heneth Naër was the city. It was built on a hill, explaining its round shape and was divided in four levels. The First Level was on the bottom of the hill and it was the largest while the Fourth level was the smaller ring, on top of the hill.
The ciry was quite hard to defend it from all directions. But when under attack, the people could flee through one of the four great doors, mostly made out of wood, but their edges were all made of iron, and on the inside the wood was protected by iron bars lying horizontally against it. Each gate protected one of the four directions, and was guarded by six guards, two in front of the gate, two on top of the walls and two inside the city.

The riders got off their horses. Two of the riders were riding on ponies and were the size of a young child.
“I am Falfand, current king of the elves. And these are two of my guards. Endar and Denad.” Said the first traveller and he bowed deeply.

“Und I’m Heldan, son of Heldas, prinse of the dwarven mines.” Said the second rider while bowing even deeper, removing his hat in a gesture to him “Und I too got a guard with meh, Venkad.” He pointed at the dwarf right to him, who was busy with the pony.

“And I’m Levres, prince of Sendra, the other and much greater human kingdom.” Said the third rider, a bit taunting and trying to get him jealous. He shook his head instead of bowing.

“We are here to discuss something important. For all of our people’s sake.” Said Falfand.

Gehair was quite surprised that all of a sudden there stood a king and two princes of other lands before him. He slowly bowed back at them in politeness and to greet them back too.

“If you want to discuss things, go to my father. He will help you with anything that involves war.” Gehair answered quite flat and sighed.

“Will you not join us then?” Falfand asked him, not surprised.

“No, I don’t see the use of war. And I surely don’t want to take any part in it. I just want everyone to live in peace and to be in a time of prospering trade and harvest.”

“But you are already in the war. It is impossible to take no part of it as long as its going on. Right now, orcs and goblins are attacking and robbing our homelands. Ravaging and killing all in their path.”

“Then why are you here, if you are being attacked at your homes?”

“We are here to seek aid. We need to find allies in these dark hours.”
“Then go to my father. He knows these things better than I do.” Gehair said while going back in the city.

The six riders climbed back on their steeds and rode into the city. They quickly rode to the Fourth Level of the city, where the palace was.
After being inspected and relieved of their weapons they were escorted to the king. The king sat on his throne looking at a small map of the city. Gehan, the king”s other son and older brother of Gehair, was standing next to him pointing at the map and discussing things.

Falfand stepped up to the king and bowed .
“My friend Rehden, king of Denerag, we are here to discuss important matters”

The king looked up and noticed them. He quickly put the map away and stood up to greet them.

“What’s wrong that you need even more help, even if aided by Dwarves and other men?” Rehden asked, a little surprised to see the little company.

“War is growing in our lands. Orcs and Goblins attack us, more fierce every attack. We ask you and all of you men’s aid, for when we need it.” Levres, the human prince said, rising from his bowing.

“We will help you if you are under threat, but only if we don’t need any help or are under a threat ourselves. We do not have much guards that can be spared. Maybe we only can spare a total of ten. Even our food is low and trade has become difficult.”

Hereupon Falfand answered: “ It is not how much you lean us, but if you do lean us some. To know that you aid us in times of need, is a great relief. At the moment, goblins are attacking our homes, orcs are plundering villages in Sendrag and we heard that the goblins met some friends at the Valley close to the dwarven homes. Time is needed, help is limited. They attacked at a smart time...”

“Maybe even too smart to be plotted alone by goblins or orcs.”Levres said, using the small pause that Falfand left in his sentence.

Also, the dwarves report that there are goblins taking over their mines, one by one, infesting it for their own use. Maybe it is best to get all of our people to the East. Where the land is richer, the land easy to defend and where goblins are no geniuses.” Levres suggested.

At this proposition, there were long discussions with the leaders. The guards in and around the room were all trying to follow and understand what was happening, but it was simply too long.

After a while, Gehan went outside. He got tired of the discussion and went to take some fresh air.

Gehan was captain of the archer battalions. With his dark-green cloak, good vision and aiming, much courage, and other of his skills, he was able to defeat attackers easily. Also he was the leader of some elite archers in the great forest, Denlinadan. They ambushed enemies and left none alive.

At the same moment Gehan came out, Gehair came up to look how things were going.

“So how is it?” Gehair asked.

“Long discussions.” Gehan answered tiresome, while looking to the west.

“You got to go again soon?”

“Yes, I need to keep the road safe, see to it that nobody will attack us, and I have to lead the defenses.” He sighed.

“But you just came back.”

“I had to check up on you, little brother.” A smile appeared on Gehan’s face

Suddenly the company that met the king, came out. They seemed in a rush, but the wind blew so hard that they had to struggle to get further.
Gehan ran to them and asked what happened.

‘We will meet again soon, young prince.’ Falfand answered and he got on his horse.

‘What?’ asked Gehan a bit amazed because they had such a rush to get out.

“You will notice.” Falfand said and he rode away, followed by his five companions.

Gehan rushed to the king and Gehair ran after him.

“Father, what happened?” Gehan.

“We had a long conversation which I will spare you. But we have come to an arrangement.” Rehden, the king, answered.

“What arrangement?”

“There will be another meeting, a council, here in two months.”

“What? But why?”

“There is still much to discuss and the war won’t stop on his own.”

“So it’s about war?”

“A part of it.”

“What part?”

“Power, the lands and the Tokens.”

“Then we have to be here?” Gehair asked, coming forth to his father.

“Yes.”

“With our Tokens?” He asked a bit disappointed.

“Yes.”

“Then I will part now, to guard the passages at the forest and to get my Token. I’ll be back as soon as I can.” Gehan said and got out.

“But father!” Gehair protested, “We can’t do that! It will unleash chaos and destruction!”

“Gehair, I don’t know what you mean, but there already is chaos and destruction in the land, together with the other lands. If we don’t act, the orcs will kill us.” Rehden answered calmly. “When we got the Tokens, we go east.”

Gehair was shocked when he heard this. He had to leave his homeland, the beautiful area, the big historical tower...

“B...But father...” Gehair mumbled.

“No but. We go after the meeting, with the Tokens. You’ll get information in two months.” Rehden said and he pointed to the door as a sign for Gehair to leave.

Gehair left, feeling disappointed and angry. The rest of the day he went to the library in Nenan Naër and searched for books from the past about the use of the Tokens. He read a lot of big and old books, dusty scrolls, saw at a lot of maps, but he didn’t find anything.
He fell asleep after a while on the books and he fell off the chair he was sitting on. He fell with his head on a tile on the floor and woke up.

“Auch...” He said while rubbing his head.

Suddenly a sound was heard. It seemed the rolling of stones and some falling rocks. He looked at the tile, which was pressed in, and then looked around to search where the sound came from. A hidden passage was revealed and he went to it. It was a dark tunnel going underground. The stairs were all of marble and the tunnel itself of stone.

“A hidden passage!” He said, feeling amazed and happy. “I got to inform father about this!”

Gehair ran outside the tower and the tunnel silently closed.

When he got out, he suddenly heard the town bells, people screaming, running, panicking, ... He looked to the gates and saw a great fire and an enormous group of orcs, merged with armored goblins, surrounding the city at all four Gates.
The army, which existed of hardly 48 guards and 16 archers, were all going down to the gates. He saw arrows with fire shooting over the gates and walls to them and the buildings, and the guards fired back. The people ran out of their homes, holding food, carrying their crying children and their possesions, screaming and in panic. They all ran to the fourth level and looked over and over again at the gates to see if there would be a chance to get out.

The happiness and amazement turned to horror and sadness on Gehair’s face. He ran in the castle, to the king.

”Father! We’re being besieged!’ Gehair yelled when he saw his father.

“I am aware of that, my son.’ Rehden answered, quite calm.

“What do we do now? We’re surrounded by orcs and goblins from all directions, the people can’t get out, there is fire in the First level, The guards are being shot and are outnumbered! How can we get to safety now?!”

“We will stand and fight!’ Rehden got up, ‘I’ve ordered the people to get armed and to gather here. If we can’t escape, we will die fighting!”

Gehair hated this...He didn’t want to fight. If he just could make a way out...
Suddenly he remembered the passage in the library and thought it could atleast be a place to hide.

“Father! I know a place where we could hide! I found a hidden passage in the library. I don’t know if it leads to a dead end or a way out, but we atleast could hide in there.”

“When did you find this ‘passage’?”

“Just a while ago.”

“Well... You go with the people and your bodyguards. If nowone returns, I know it isn’t safe. I’ll stay here and fight until someone could return.”

“Why don’t you go with us, father?”

“We got no time for discussion. Go! Now!” Rehden said and he commanded Gehair to get ready and go.

Once outside, he saw that the orcs got in the First level and were pillaging and destroying everything. The goblins broke through the defenses at the Second level and were going to the Third, killing and putting things in fire on their way. The only obstacle between the Goblins and the last humans in the city was the barred fate of the Fourth Level.

“Everyone!” Gehair yelled to get the people’s attention.

The people all looked and listened to him, though he had to yell a few more times to rise above the screaming and crying.

“Get ready to follow me. I will lead you out of here through a hidden passage. We need to move fast so leave all things that are not edible behind. When you are ready, get in three lines. Me and the guards will be in front. Do not linger on the way, we will not wait.”

Gehair and his guards got to the library, while the people sadly threw away their possesions, yet they knew it was for their survival.
Gehair didn’t find the passage or any clue for it.

“What is this? Where is it?” Gehair runned all over the place and searched the whole floor. After a little while, the people got ready and stood in three lines, just as Gehair asked them to.

Gehair began to panic a little when he suddenly pushed the tile that triggered the opening of the passage.

“Finally.” He sighed. “Let’s move!”

He and his guards went down and the people followed them.


***********


The air in the tunnel was moist and dampy. It was hard to breath or to get a fire on for their torches to light the way.
The tunnel itself was quite broad and big. It was made out of stones and it was going downwards in the ground. The stairs were made of light reflecting marble, but were very slippery and dangerous.

Suddenly the way became flat and split up to two ways. One going down, another going straight ahead. Above the two ways were runes. They were hard to read, but Gehair was able to read a little.

“Elfish runes.” He said and pointed to them. “They are old and hard to read, but I guess the first says: ‘Li...ry’. I can’t make anything else out of it.”

“The second reads ‘O...ts...de’. That has to mean outside. Let’s go!” He yelled and runned in the tunnel.
The guards and people ran after him. Behind them there was a big explosion and a part of the tunnel collapsed.

Gehair stopped and looked back, while the people and guards kept running, the people, quite scared for their lives, thought the tunnel would collapse. The guards thought this too, but didn’t show it and kept on leading faster and faster.

“The entrance... It collapsed... How can father get out...”

Screams of the guards where heard just a while ahead. Gehair turned around, ran to where it came from and saw some grauwls.

Grauwls are big, black, furry, ugly and they stink. They got a small, fat body with little hair all over it and a small ugly head with bunny ears. As they look a little like bats, they still got weird parts of other animals, like their paws are from a bird, ears and tail from a bunny and the teeth and nose from a bear. The major reason they stink is because they eat people’s guts .

They flew up and dived at the guards and the people, attacking and taking them further ahead. The guards fought with all their strength, but they aimed at the grauwls’s body while their only weak spot was their head.
Gehair drew his sword and ran to one that was on a guard who fell on the ground. The grauwl noticed him and screeched. While everyone else covered their ears to stop the pain, Gehair didn’t even flinch and stabbed the grauwl through his mouth. The other grauwls noticed Gehair’s action and all began to screech and attack him. Gehair tried to evade them, but one who was in the air grazed his arm while he was holding another’s attack back with his sword. A third grauwl charged at him with open mouth. Gehair could kill it, but one of the other grauwls bit in his arm while he was distracted. Gehair yelled out of pain. The guards, who came to their senses, killed the grauwls swiftly while they were distracted by Gehair, saving his life.

The only person skilled in medicine and treatment of wounds was an old man who went by the name of Ölard.
Ölard went to Gehair and looked at his wounds. His arm was heavily wounded by the grauwl and needed to be tended right away.

The rest of the people and the majority of the guards went ahead while Gehair, Ölard and two guards stayed behind so Gehair could get his wounds mended. The bite of the grauwl was bleeding heavily as the teeth almost got to the bone in both sides. The air around the wound was foul and made everyone nauseous.

Luckily, there seemed to be a small breeze of fresh, yet cold air. They had made it out!