Miras Last (24 page)

Galena watched detachedly as shadows began to
race away from Rau, as if they were finally free from their own
enslavement. They seemed to drain away, leaving nothing but a black
void in its place, much like an empty shell. All the features she
feared and hated dissolved away as well. Tiny cracks, like a spider
web, started at the point where the sword entered his belly,
spreading rapidly through his body. They widened and grew,
stretching out to the very tips of his fingers. Light began to peek
out from those cracks, little bits at first, but then they began to
shine out like beacons of hope. Rau seemed unable to move, to
breathe. He stood, frozen like a statue, eyes glued to the sword
that pierced him.

Haulua, who had not moved the during the
entire process, reached up, grabbing fists full of hair, his eyes
bulging in rage before screaming, “NNNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!”

Galena’s eyes rolled back into her head, and
her eardrums exploded with the cry of the god. She thought she was
past the point of feeling pain, but clearly, this had not been the
case. Blood came gushing out from both ears and down her neck onto
her shoulders. She was too weak and tired to do anything about any
of her injuries though. She found herself wondering how much longer
she would be able to hang on.

Galena noticed the god’s own body was covered
in the same cracks as Rau, and light spilled from them too. The god
took notice of these too and curses Galena had only ever heard from
the angriest elves, flew from his mouth. She heard something about
Mira and their mother, but decided what he had to say really wasn’t
worth listening to, so she tuned him out. An explosion of light and
wind blasted everything on the island to the ground as both Haulua
and Rau’s bodies gave over to the unescapable light.

Her fire ring was reduced to ashes and the
world around her lay motionless, as everyone was unconscious from
the blast. Only Galena was left on her knees, her arms hanging
uselessly beside her. She looked up to the sky, unable to control
her head properly. Light came from every direction and nowhere at
all. It blinded her, surrounded her, but still she could not shut
her eyes. Tears streaming down her face, she watched as the dark
intunerics all around her dissolved away into black smoke before
dissipating into nothing. The very castle she found so imposing
before shrank away, replaced by the blinding light.

Before her, stood three tall figures. In the
center stood Mira, her fiery, red hair blowing around her as she
stared lovingly down at Galena. On her right was a taller figure.
He was incredibly handsome with bright, blue eyes and golden hair
hanging around his shoulders. He had a sharp nose, but a gentle
smile. On Mira’s left was another figure every bit as tall as the
blonde god. This one had dark, brown hair full of curls and falling
just short of his shoulders. He wore a dark beard and had snapping
brown eyes. He too smiled warmly down at Galena.

She tried to bow her head to them, but only
succeeded in throwing herself face first onto the bare earth once
covered by the hated, dark stones. She groaned painfully when she
felt Rau’s blade dissolve as well, leaving her wound gaping, and
bleeding profusely.

“You have done well, my child,” she heard the
voice of Mira above her, but she couldn’t look up, she didn’t have
the strength. She felt a warm heat spreading through her body and
into her limbs, causing the pain of her injuries to fade
completely. She took a deep breath, relieved that it no longer
ached to do so. Using her hands, she lifted herself up until she
stood in front of the gods.

“We thought our sister foolish to hide away a
sword made of light. We didn’t believe the elf race would ever
return to their former state,” the blonde god, who Galena assumed
from the stories told was Luma.

“We are very glad to be proven wrong,” the
second god, Kya, said bowing his head to Galena.

“Peace, Galena. You have earned it,” Mira
said, her smile shining brighter than her brothers’. With that,
they faded from view, the light fading with them, leaving Galena
standing in the center of a beautiful island surrounded by light,
all traces of Rau’s dark domain gone.

Epilogue

In the instant Galena struck Rau with the
final blow, every elf in Tomiro experienced a burning pain on the
tops of their hands and the tops of their feet as the marks of Rau
dissolved completely. Even the marks on the heads of every chief
torlic dissolved, leaving the chieftain wondering why his race had
decided to join ranks with the evil dictator. Dropping their
blades, they returned to their homes where the now greatly reduced
earagos, dwelled. The narooks, mauks, and tookoos also faded into
nothing, having been fashioned by Rau with the help of the
intunerics for sole purpose of controlling his slaves. The dark
creatures that were never named had been created from the
nightmares of elves and made real with the stones they harvested
for Rau. Like every other creature born of the dark stones, they
dissolved, following their creator into the empty void of no
return.

In the following months and even years,
Tomiro returned to its former splendor and glory. The elves began
to use magic again, changing the world they once lived in to one
worth living in.

Creatures that had long disappeared such as
the favored pet ferrets, began to creep out of their hiding places
and return to the elf villages. Twoit, Galena’s beloved pet, was
the first to make her grand appearance. She danced in delight the
moment Galena crossed the unseen line of Blackwell’s domain and the
rest of Tomiro, much to Galena’s joy and relief.

The remains of the elf army returned to their
villages to reunite with their family and friends, spreading the
tales of Galena and her triumph over the wicked god and his
creation. The ones who perished at the hand of the dark creatures,
were never seen again. Many believed the gods had taken these elves
home with them, the ultimate reward for their sacrifice in the war
against everything they stood against. Although their families
mourned their deaths, they rejoiced in the fact they were so richly
rewarded.

Tark and Taura returned to their village with
their young daughter, Silva. It was there that Tark continued to
train elves in the art of fighting. He never let the elves forget
the terrible price of not being able to defend oneself against dark
creatures. He believed it was his personal responsibility to make
sure no elf was ever unprepared again, because peace would not last
forever. He and Taura had many more children to add to their
already precious family.

Morgo returned to find Venia. He was
pleasantly surprised when she recognized him and even smiled. It
was still many more months before Venia would completely rejoin the
elf world, but when she did, she embraced Morgo and returned the
love he gave to her. Her young son Jamin began to call out for
Morgo as his dad, even before Venia came around. A year later, to
Galena and Tark’s utter joy, Morgo and Venia were united as
commitment partners. They decided to settle down in Tomeka with
Tark, Taura, Galena, and Elenio. Morgo helped Tark train armies,
but spent most of his time working on the complete history of the
reign of Rau so that future elves would never forget.

Many of the elves returned to their own
villages to continue training their own family members with the
exception of the underground elves. With the help of Nina and Lars,
all but the oldest underground elves formed their own villages in
the world above. Several of them traveled around Tomiro teaching
elves from the different villages how to use magic more effectively
as Morgo had with Galena.

Galena and Elenio finally went through the
commitment ceremony with all their new friends and families present
to witness the happy occasion. The celebration that followed lasted
for several weeks, making it the longest celebration in the history
of the elves. Together, Galena and Elenio created their tree home
in the clearing where they used to train for hours at a time when
they were younger. Galena remained powerful, with magical abilities
that outstripped more than a hundred elves. Elenio, as he had
threatened repeatedly, used his magical abilities to help Galena
whenever the time arose, but also to get even with her for all the
times she sent him flying through the air, into trees, and sending
objects up his nose. For the first couple of months, elves refused
to visit them in their home for fear of what would happen if they
got in the way of Elenio and Galena’s ongoing prank war.

Together, they had many children of their
own. Their children also had magical abilities that equaled
Galena’s, much to Elenio’s delight. He felt they were creating a
new breed of elf that would be very hard to beat even without
Tark’s ongoing training. As to continuing with the sword, Galena
decided she’d had enough fighting to last a lifetime.

Without the mines to wear away the life of
the elves, their life spans continued to lengthen until they were
practically immortal once more. The land of Tomiro prospered again,
and was the jewel of the gods, by far their most beautiful
possession. The greatest change evident by their enslavement was
the elves’ attitudes toward one another. In the days of Lamiria,
grudges were common, and pride easily wounded, but after the
triumphant return from lifetimes of enslavement, life took on a
greater meaning. It was now nothing to take for granted, and
forgiveness was a much more common concept. The elves never forgot
what it was to wish for more time with loved ones, of a time when
fear ruled and the desire to be with family was the strongest
emotion possible. They no longer took their magic for granted, but
cherished it as a skill to grow and something to always be thankful
for.

As to the Sword of Lumina, it disappeared
completely. Some said when Galena plunged it into the heart of
evil; it dissolved into nothing, its job finally fulfilled. Others
said Mira called it back, hiding it in the cave once more and
making it available if the need should ever arise. Still others
said that light can only be contained for a short time before it
must go into the world to destroy the dark as only the light can
do. Galena never knew what to think, but learned to accept it as a
mystery just as everything was when dealing with the Sword of
Lumina.

About the
Author

I am a preschool teacher in a little town in
Ohio. I have three wonderful children, Damon, Thomas, and Megan. I
love watching football in the fall and swimming in the summer.
Christmas is awesome and without a doubt, my favorite time of
year.

Believe it or not, I did not like reading
until about the fourth grade when I finally found a genre that
really sparked my interest—fantasy. From there it became a passion
of mine and often times the perfect way to escape the difficult
times in everyday life. Mythical creatures are another love of mine
so I combined my two loves and set forth to accomplish what I have
always wanted to do: write books for everyone to love.

Facebook page:
http://www.facebook.com/swordoflumina
Twitter page:
@eelliottauthor

Blog Site:
erinelliottwriter.wordpress.com

Also by Erin Elliott with Fire and
Ice

Mira’s View, The Sword of Lumina,
Book 1

Mira’s Hope, The Sword of Lumina,
Book 2

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