The Merchant and the Menace (17 page)

“Well, I’m not sure. Was it supposed to
go
at all?” asked Kael.

“It went exceptionally. I couldn’t script it any
better,” laughed Teeg. “And that bit about you exposing Prince Granu as Master
Hilro was fantastic. I mean, you threw everyone so far off balance, the shock
of the prince heir of Keltar standing in their midst was an anticlimax. They
almost took it as commonplace compared to your reference to Hilro. Think of it.
The heirs to a pair of kingdoms that have been at war for thousands of years
were standing a single yard apart. Amazingly, they didn’t try to bash one
another's heads in.”

“Actually, I think they would have,” argued Kael.

“Proud men cannot lose face easily, Kael. I
guarantee both Manfir and Granu were more eager to hear what one another said
than to kill one another. The killing starts once the information is gained,”
said Teeg.

“How do you know so much about the nature of men
and the importance of information?” asked Kael.

“Information is my business. I hold a somewhat
unique position in the kingdom,” stated Teeg.

“What?” smirked Kael “Are you some kind of spy?”

“Absolutely not!” exclaimed a disturbed Teeg. “I
prefer to call my duties information gathering. Spy! How preposterous!”

“Uh, I apologize,” mumbled Kael.

“Besides,” continued Teeg not listening, “the
official title is
Master
of Spies.”

Kael’s jaw dropped and he stopped dead in his
tracks, staring at the Elf as Teeg proceeded ahead gibbering to himself over
the indignation of being called a mere spy. After a dozen steps Teeg realized
he was alone and talking to himself. The old Elf quickly spun on his heel and
addressed Kael.

“Come along. Ader instructed me to fill you in on
certain things. You may ask questions and I will choose to answer some of them,”
said Teeg.

Once again questions flooded Kael’s mind, but
recent events dominated all else. He hurried to catch the old Elf and fell in
beside him.

“Who is Manfir? I might guess, but I want to hear
it,” said Kael.

“Manfir is the heir to the throne of Zodra of
course,” stated Teeg. “He is the first child of King Macin of Zodra and his
wife Queen Tay.”

Kael shook his head from side to side and frowned.

“Impossible,” exclaimed the boy. “I’ve known Rin
for many years. Why would the prince heir to the most powerful kingdom in the
world ride into Kelky three times a season in the guise of a poor tinker’s
son?”

Teeg hesitated.

“At this point,” returned the Elf, “I’m not at
liberty to answer
that
question. Ask another if you will.”

Kael frowned.

“Who is Granu?” asked the boy.

“
That
I may answer,” smiled Teeg. “Granu is
the heir to the throne of Keltar. However, he was disowned and his brother
Fenrel stands in his place. Granu also served as the Chief Abbot of the
Monastery of Awoi, a prestigious position. The Abbot is the head of an order of
priests who perform Keltaran religious rites. From what I gather, Fenrel
disbanded the order upon Granu’s banishment.”

“Why is he here?” questioned Kael.

“You heard. He seeks asylum,” replied an annoyed
Teeg. “Do try to listen, my boy.”

“No,” challenged Kael. “
Why
is he here? I
mean, he’s the enemy. Keltarans are evil. We heard the stories of how they
butcher women and children. Why would the Grey Elves give him asylum?”

Teeg looked hard into Kael’s eyes and shook his
head.

“Buried too deeply from sight in that village,”
mumbled the old Elf to himself. “Perhaps too deeply to become what he must.”

“Please don’t talk in riddles. This is all
confusing enough,” said Kael.

The Elf shook his head and smiled at Kael.

“I’m sorry, my boy. It’s been quite a heady week.
However, in order for you to dispel the confusion of which you speak, you must
rid yourself of your preconceived notions and your learned prejudices. The
Keltaran are no more evil than you, or your father for that matter. Men have
waged war on men for centuries. ‘Wrong’ is a relative term. In the eyes of the
Keltaran, fault lies with your people.”

“But they come down from the mountains and raid
villages and towns. Killing and stealing.” protested Kael.

“They come down from mountains they were driven
into centuries ago when the ancient Zodrian population grew and encroached on
Keltar society,“ stated Teeg. “The Keltaran once were a flourishing community
in the foothills of those mountains.”

“But ... but they murder and steal,” sputtered
Kael.

“I know of occurrences of this type happening on
both sides of the war,” stated Teeg.

Kael frowned. Teeg was challenging the natural
order of his world. Keltarans were bad and Zodrians were good. That is the way
things are. Now, this elderly Elf was telling him
some
Keltarans were
good and
some
Zodrians were bad. Why did they fight? What was it all
about anyhow? Kael ground his teeth.

“Perhaps it might help you understand, if you knew
the history of these peoples. Do you know anything about the Keltaran, other
than they are murdering monsters?” asked Teeg.

“Some,” said Kael weakly.

“We shall build on ‘some’,” said Teeg. “I’ll give
you a brief history of the Keltaran people and in so doing give you a small
lesson in the greater problems of this world.”

They quickly reached Kael’s chambers and Teeg threw
open the door and stepped inside. He walked over to one of the bookshelves in
the room and pulled a large parchment from a recess. Near the bookshelf stood a
white table carved from the same wood as the palace. Teeg unrolled the parchment
and spread it on the table.

Kael looked down upon a map of the world. Some of
the details were familiar, but others were unusual. The Nagur Wood remained
relatively similar to what Kael saw on current maps. The Eru plains were the
same although the Derolian forest looked much bigger on this map.  The Zorim Mountains
were readily recognizable. However, the wood running along the foothills of the
mountains extended much further into Zodrian territory than Kael remembered.

“This is a map of our world from many centuries
ago,“ said Teeg. “In those days there were no Erutre, just wandering tribes
across the plains. Society did not exist as we know it. The Grey Elves had not
come to this world and evil had no foothold in this realm.

Avra created this world. Man went forth and
prospered, creating more order and beauty from the resources Avra supplied.
Avra knew his supreme creation was clever and resourceful, but he determined to
ensure their success. Therefore, he created the Guides, the Seraphim.”

“The Guides weren’t here first?” asked Kael.

“No,” replied Teeg. “The Guides were created out of
Avra’s compassion and love for man. He anguished when men struggled. He pitied
their failures. His compassion welled to the surface and out of it he created
the Seraphim, Awoi and Amird. Their task was to push and prod man in the proper
direction. The brother Seraphim roamed the world and helped man. They were
teachers, counselors and healers.

“The brothers were long-lived, virtually immortal.
When Avra dipped his hand into the life pool, he created the guides with a
tremendous force of his will. His hand rushed through the pool and on either
side a swirl of equal, powerful force was created. Their spirits spun in the pool
strong and enduring. They lived for thousands of years.

“Just as Avra couldn’t create man to be a slave,
subservient to Avra’s will, so he could not create the Seraphim as such. The
brothers were instructed by their Creator then left to fulfill his wishes. They
took different paths.

“Amird immersed himself in the culture of men.
Pushing them toward fulfillment. Amird directed cultivation of the soil and
spread its use. Amird helped men develop language skills and writing. He guided
men toward using their minds to better themselves. Amird set men off on the
right track with a hard shove and eventually they built speed, progressing
forward on their own. The seeds Amird planted grew into art, literature and
math. He truly was the father of the society men know today.”

“But, Amird is evil. I mean, that’s what the
stories say,” said Kael.

“Ah, again you refer to stories. Kael Brelgson
you’ll be much better off in this world if you start to believe, truly believe.
Look around you. Do you honestly think this whole world just happened? How do
you explain its existence? From the great Hdjmir Mountain down to a grain of
wheat, the world is a most complex and beautiful place. Do you think it just
stumbled upon itself?”

“I’m uncertain,” mumbled Kael.

“Uncertainty is the springboard for faith, Kael.
Will you stand on that platform forever, or take the leap and experience a
deeper understanding of the world?” asked Teeg.

The boy looked down at his feet and fidgeted. Teeg
smiled and put a hand on his shoulder.

“Take your time, boy. For now we’ll stick with
uncertainty and the possibility of faith. Now, where was I? Oh yes, Amird.

 “Evil? Possibly. However, at this point in the
lesson, he was simply the servant of a master he adored. All that he did was to
fulfill the wishes of Avra. He worked hard, striving mightily to glorify his
lord. Men flourished under his tutelage. Over a span of hundreds of years they
moved out of their caves and huts and gathered in villages. Farms were planted.
Societies formed and grew.”

“Awoi held an extremely different take on man and
the world. He recognized this world as unstoppable, a vast and ever expanding
wildfire of newness. The world continually changes and transforms itself. Some
of it is left behind and fades away as other parts evolve. An always advancing,
improving world.

 “Awoi looked at man and saw a creature capable of
wonders. A being so infinitely advanced over all others, that he holds the
power to create a course for all in this world. Awoi also saw a being ruled by
desires and temptations, aware of so much around him, that he is also pulled by
the power of Chaos. A creature possessing an equally immense ability to produce
evil.

“Awoi felt his task was to instruct man in the ways
of love, compassion and kindness and to show all men the task at hand. We are
to glorify Avra through works of kindness, to hold those up who cannot hold
themselves, to care for the weak and sick, to shelter those without a dwelling
place. Awoi spent his time reaching out to the dispossessed and unwanted. Those
wretched creatures left behind as the strong moved on. They were the projects
of Awoi.”

“Why did he do that? He would be forced to care for
them. They were weak, a burden,” interjected Kael.

“Not true, Kael Brelgson,” returned Teeg. “Often,
those who fall to the bottom and survive are the strongest among us. When you
learn to survive in your most desperate hour, you learn how to truly live. Many
of those Awoi helped rose to be leaders of tremendous spiritual depth and
understanding. Men and women of compassion, who made their lives a testament to
his principles. Men and women who sacrificed all for the betterment of
mankind.”

“Then what happened to Awoi?” asked Kael.

“The unthinkable. Awoi and Amird led their separate
existences. The world proceeded on its course for millennia. Then one day Amird
and Awoi crossed paths. The brothers knew of each other’s work but had not met
for centuries. Awoi looked upon his brother’s accomplishments with awe. Such
progress. So many wonders. Man truly prospered with the guiding hand of his
beloved brother.

“Amird privately smirked at his brother’s successes
and failures. To waste time on a man starving in the wilderness, while cities
were springing up throughout that wilderness appeared absurd. One life meant
nothing in the great scheme. Progress created casualties, such was the life
bequeathed upon man.

“The brothers spoke for days. Amird’s confident
talk heartened Awoi. Amird rambled on and on about his triumphs and basked in
the adoration of his brother. Awoi saw the pride well up in his brother and it
pleased him to make Amird feel good about his triumphs.