Kirsten dropped the pack she’d gathered shortly after Anders ended their practice with the crystals. Straightening, she peered over the houses following Thomas’ direction. Though the evening light was dim, she could still clearly see the white and silver sails nearing Brookside’s port. She didn’t recognize them, but their design was similar to the Rollo Islanders’. “Are those…?” she began to ask.
“Elven royalty,” Thomas said, finishing and answering her question in one breathy exhale.
“And elves. And dwarfs,” Kirsten added.
Thomas nodded, keeping his gaze on the ships, “I can’t believe we will actually meet a king.”
“Anders is a King,” Kirsten stated simply, “and Ivan.”
“Shhh,” Thomas said, nudging her and looking over his shoulder for Bo. He’d refused to march with the others while his friends were still in Brookside. “Not so loud,” Thomas whispered. “You know what he said about keeping that hush-hush.”
“I don’t know why,” Kirsten said, swiveling. Bo continued to trail behind by a short distance. “If I were Anders, I would announce it to the whole army. Maybe that way some of those stubborn people who have been elected to lead would actually listen to him instead of questioning his intentions on every point.”
“Who are you talking about?” Bo asked, suddenly alongside the siblings.
Thomas leaned back, looking past Kirsten to address Bo, “Anders, but that’s beside the point. The Elf King has just arrived in Westland for the first time in over a hundred years.”
“Oh, so that’s why you’re all dreamy-eyed and starstruck,” Bo said.
Kirsten chuckled and nudged her brother, “Just try to avoid swooning like this if we end up meeting him.”
“I’m not swooning,” Thomas said defensively, pushing his sister back lightly. “It’s just that when we saw them last, I only got a glimpse of the Prince and now he’s King. I was just telling Kirsten how I haven’t been in the presence of proper royalty yet.”
“Yeah, I guess Anders doesn’t count,” Bo said nonchalantly.
Thomas’ eyes bulged. Kirsten tried to avoid it, but she failed to escape Thomas’ punch to her shoulder. “You told him? After he explicitly asked us not to tell?”
Kirsten winced and rubbed her shoulder, “Hey! Come on; it’s Bo. He won’t tell anyone?”
“You don’t have to worry, Thomas. I can keep a secret,” Bo said.
Thomas snorted as he considered what to say next. After a moment, Kirsten said, “Bo has been with us since the beginning. He went through the same horrors and helped keep me alive, the same as you. If we can’t trust him, then who can we trust?”
Thomas nodded, “I guess that’s true, but that’s not what Anders asked from us.”
“If she didn’t tell me, Max would have,” Bo said. “He was about to. Max was beating around the bush when I figured out what he was mumbling about, so I told him I already knew.”
“See,” Kirsten said. “Not my fault. Now what was it you were about to tell me about this elf that you’re so excited about?”
“Elven royalty is the real deal, Kirsten,” Thomas started. “You should know this from the books in father’s library.”
“Those weren’t exactly the kind of stories I enjoyed reading,” Kirsten said.
“Well, if you had, you would know that they are high class nobility. They dress in lavish attire woven from the finest silks and stitched to perfection with a floral design more beautiful than the flowers themselves. And jewelry, to die for,” Thomas said, closing his eyes and sighing pleasantly.
“If you’re into jewelry, the dwarfs are the best smiths in the world,” Bo said.
“Well, the elegance of the elven royalty and their High Council was described to be more regal than anything we humans have achieved.”
“I bet if we stuck around after they give us the crystals, Anders would introduce you when they land,” Kirsten suggested.
Thomas’ cheeks flushed, and he stammered, “I don’t know about that? With the battle looming and all, I doubt he would have time to even acknowledge me.”
“Nonsense,” Bo said. “Max told me that King Nadir is all kinds of friendly. Very easy to talk to. I bet he would love to meet Anders’ family.”
Thomas shifted nervously and stared down at his feet.
“Oh, come on,” Kirsten said, retrieving her pack and grabbing him by the arm. “Let’s go. They’ve nearly landed. By the time we get down there, they’ll be here.”
They resumed their walk down the cobblestone street toward the assigned meeting point where Anders was to give them their crystals. Max, Evans and Sanka had continued down to the docks while Thomas and Kirsten stopped to grab their packs from the house.
The three walked together in a line as the sun began to set. As they walked, Bo asked, “Thomas, do you still have the poudrettite?”
Thomas pulled the sapphire necklace out from under his shirt and said, “Never let it out of my sight after that demon incident. Why? Do you want it back?”
Bo shook his head, “No, it’s your family's; you keep it. I’ve healed up good enough. I just wondered if it helped in the training?”
Thomas looked down at his feet and said, “Not yet.”
“Anders said you don’t even have to be a part of the fighting if you don’t want to,” Kirsten chimed in. “He told me Rune and his assistant will need as much help as possible. The camp had three other doctors before the last fight, but they died and now Rune’s the only one who knows anything about surgery. We already know the poudrettite has healing properties. Why don’t you help them there?”
“We’ll need all the help we can get with the fighting. Bo saw what this thing did to scare off the demon,” Thomas said. “And I’m still good with a bow.”
“With Anders and all the others using magic during the fight, we’ll need healers who can offer any extra advantage,” Kirsten persisted.
“The elves probably have some; there were a few in the camp the last time,” Thomas said.
“Just think it over,” Kirsten said.
