A Song of Askaldenfirsts and Dragons. Book one: The outlanders (Part I-IV)
Chapter 9: Laeltilat

Twenty years have passed since Edelmer went to the Belt of Twilight. Lanialis raised her daughter alone. Laeltilat is a half-blood arqilunian, she often had to experience the disdainful glances of Eileenelia’s supposedly progressive society. Her bright blue eyes full of sparks of curiosity came from her mother, and her small ears from the snunorf father. Her light blond hair was a little curly, and it was dark blond at the roots, descended to whitened tips.

Laylith gained the speed and swiftness of the arqilunians and the stamina and strength of the northerners, but still, she was slower than pure forest elves. Unlike the snunorfs, she was able to use magic. But since childhood she preferred to train more acrobatically than to improve herself in the field of magic, she preferred to study the practice of martial arts with swords, spears and hammers. However, magic, oddly enough, was given to her much easier, and her successes were praised even by skeptical arqilunian teachers.

Just twenty years ago, the planet Ermir was completely different for millions of years. Two stars, two giant suns moved across the sky until the dragon woke up and flew to one of the stars, to Iglara, and collided with it, displacing it from orbit. Iglara began to move away from Ermir, leaving the planet with her sister, the second star, Silenta, which changed its movement trajectory. And the way beyond the mountain range of the Belt of Twilight was open.

Laylith was in one of the training arenas and was practicing alone, fighting with a rather small water elemental, which was summoned by her, when suddenly her close friend, an arqilunian familiar from childhood, who had fallen in love with her, ran in.

“The ambassador has arrived,” Arlandiel said.

“All right,” and she lunged with a stick, piercing through the water creature, which did not affect the enemy. In turn, the elemental created sharp icicles and ice thorns, which it threw at Laylith. And she beat them off with her wooden weapon.

“Fos Rik Nyan Drul!” Laylith uttered the spell to return the elemental to its world. And the creature disappeared before her eyes, splashing the rest of the water on the girl’s boots.

“You seem more annoyed than usual,” Arlandiel remarked.

“I’m always more annoyed than usual, I’m a half-blood!” Laylith quipped.

Arlandiel dulled his green eyes, and the tips of his ears sparkled with different colors.

“Is the ambassador already at the palace?” not paying attention to the elf’s embarrassment, Laylith asked.

“As far as I know, when I ran to you, he was already on his way up.”

Mijiran Nemonis, isters, ambassador of Kaushmanashtoon, dark-skinned middle-aged man.

Laylith and Arlandiel ran up the steps, squeezing through the crowd. The king of the arqilunians sat on a throne made of thainecretia, a strong tree that grows mainly in the territory of the forest elves, its trunk very thick, it was often impossible to wrap your hands around it, and the average height is about thirty feet, with light green foliage, the leaves of the tree were wide with small sharp carved edges. On each side of the throne, there were low long-lived kalatialites, branchy trees that seemed to bloom endlessly, enchanting with their snow-white petals.

Forest elves called it a royal palace, but it could hardly be called that. The throne room was a gigantic space with huge tall columns that did not support anything, they rose to the sky and a transparent dome hung right above it. Silenta illuminated the hall at noon.

The customs and traditions of the forest elves meant that the reception of an ambassador takes place in open conditions, and not only nobles, but ordinary arqilunians have the right to attend this diplomatic event.

Aelarnal Ilfelkeer DelRaddik, king of Eileenelia, sat on the throne. His posture expressed absolute calmness and neutrality to all that was happening. Aelarnal is an arqilunian of noble birth, he was king before the second luminary of Ermir left orbit, and he hopes to be king for many years to come. Forest elves lived on average for about four hundred years. Aelarnal recently celebrated his two hundred and seventieth birthday. Slightly less than half of his age he held the title of king, often ruling wisely, like his ancestors. Eileenelia has been a moderately progressive country for a relatively long time. Men and women had the right to join different orders and colleges. Women, along with men, could be knighted...

“My respects, your majesty,” the ambassador bowed.

The king stood up.

“We are delighted to welcome ambassador of Kaushmanashtoon,” Aelarnal said, a slight disdain flashed across his expressionless face, and the edges of his lips slightly twitched.

“Thank you, Your Majesty. My name is Mijiran Nemonis, and I bring, to my deepest regret, unpleasant news,” the ambassador hesitated and broke into a malicious smile, “king Yashkirran Vindrick declares an ultimatum to Eileenelia. Within ten days, Eileenelia must swear allegiance to Yashkirran Vindrick and become a territory of Kaushmanashtoon, otherwise, an army consisting of isters, azdairiks on mighty ashklahars, arnadacres, wallitarfs on combat gatakanaties, and of yadonagrishes, as well of some jartraxies will invade the territory of Eileenelia.”

An indignant murmur passed across the hall, anger reflected on the faces of the elves. The isterses are skilled warriors, the arnadacres are the sand elves, staunch and hardy, the wallitarfs are the desert dwarfs, who had at their disposal the combat gatakanaties. Combat gatakanaties resemble Earth’s triceratops dinosaurs, a massive animal about thirty feet with two powerful horns, a huge torso, low limbs and a thick tail.

The elves of the arqilunian lineage, the guardians of the forest, possessed magic and many of them were trained professionals, and the forest elves have huge birds, argiphones. Argiphones were relatively kind birds, but despite their kindness, they could be an excellent aid in battle.

Laeltilat did not wait for the king’s words and headed for the exit of the hall, followed by Arlandiel.

“Now it’s time have come and I’ll go for searching my father,” Laylith said.

“Do you realize there’s a whole army of Kaushmanashtoon between you and the Belt of Twilight, you heard the ambassador, didn’t you?” The elf allowed himself to raise his tone.

“I have been waiting for a long time, Arel! Now that we are on the brink of a terrible war, I must try to replace my father!”

“Have you decided to die alone in the desert?” Even though Arlandiel knew that it would not work to press on logic, he tried it anyway.

Laylith was obsessed with replaceing her father. For so long she had wanted to know who he was, the unknown snunorf who had become almost a legend but only in her mother’s social circle. The clairvoyant spell and such did not help to see beyond the Belt of Twilight. No one knew where Edelmer Arnwaldskar was. Several times she tried to escape, and several times she was returned either by the guards of the city or by the soldiers of Eileenelia’s army. Her mother had power in the capital and she knows how to replace Laylith.

But now she can definitely run away. All the soldiers will be pulled to the borders, and she will simply move east, to Farderland, the land of the tonnebeards. Dwarfs will not pay attention to some half-blood arqilunian girl. Or will they?