“Just passing the time, old friend,” Nadir said.

Ivan coughed seeing the uncomfortable look on Anders’ face, “There is a place several miles ahead where we should stop to camp. The sun is about to set and, at these altitudes, the temperature drops rapidly once it’s gone.”

Once the camp was established, Anders huddled around a warming fire with Max, Nadir and Ivan. It seemed that even though the Rollo people had declared their temporary peace with the elves, they didn’t want to be friendly with the Elf Prince. He drew dirty looks from the warriors all day and every once in a while he was called ‘elf-grime and other curses Anders didn’t like to think about.

“How do you put up with all of the hate they have for you and your people?” Anders asked him as they stood close to the warmth of the flames.

Nadir looked up and sighed, “It’s something that comes with experience. I can remember stories of the time when my father was a young man and the warriors first landed on our shores. Our people had always been friendly with the humans, so when I learned of how they betrayed our offering of peace, it made me want to hate all humans. And for a time, I did. I have seen more fights with the Rollo people than any one of them here today.

“I learned during my years of constant fighting with them that the fighting only fuels the fire between us. One attack on their people is followed by sorrow. Then they seek revenge and hurt our people. We grieve and are angered by this, so we retaliate. At a certain point, the reason for the fighting and hatred blinds you and you forget what started it all in the first place. All you know is that you hate them and you want them destroyed.

“One particular instance changed my opinion about hating these humans. It happened after defending one of our villages from an attack. We were tracking Islanders down. They had tried to shake us off their trail by hiding in a well-known goblin cave. It did not, however, fool us and we assumed that if they were able to hide in the cave, the goblins were not a threat. Upon entering the cave, we drew our focus on the men. Weapons at the ready, we stared each other down in the brief moments before engaging in combat. At that moment, like a spider catching its prey in a web, we were blindsided by a large group of goblins. I hadn’t noticed until that instant that among the Rollo Islanders were both women and children. In that moment, I realized that they were families, just like ours. The fear on their faces of the overwhelming odds was staggering. During the fight, I watched as a young boy wildly defended an injured woman I could only assume was his mother. He was about to be overtaken by goblins when I stepped in and drove them back. As members of both of our groups fell in the fight, I made a decision that I would get the Islanders out to safety. I cleared a way out for them and they took it. Once out of the cave, they thanked me and ran back to their ships.

“So to answer your question, I deal with the hate because I know if I retaliate it will only make things worse. I must show by example that if we can work together, the benefits outweigh the grudge that has lasted between our people for centuries.”

“I never thought about it like that,” Anders said. “You see a future that not many are willing to see, at least in this camp.”

“Unless that future is crushed like a bug by Merglan,” Max said tossing another log onto the fire.

“Oh, come on,” Anders said. “Don’t be so negative.”

“He’s right,” Nadir said. “We must first focus on the greater evil that is Merglan before our people can settle our disputes. That is the only reason why Jorgen has agreed to the temporary peace.”

“While we are on that subject,” Ivan said. “Tomorrow night we need to discuss battle strategy before we reach the other side of the mountains.”

“Agreed,” Nadir said. They remained silent the rest of the night and went to bed shortly after their exchange.

Anders didn’t like not being able to sneak off and meet Zahara. He missed her. As he lay looking up at the stars shining brightly in the dark sky, he wondered if their paths would ever cross again.

The next day, Ivan led them along a narrow path. They tried to stick to the lowest points of the mountain passes and stay out of the deep snow that blanketed the mountaintops. The cold mountain air numbed Anders’ cheeks as they hiked.

He was impressed at Ivan’s and Nadir’s ability to find the best passage through the scree fields scattered below the steep rock cliffs that skirted much of the mountain range. They walked along small streams fed by the melting snow, pooling into tiny lakes and ponds downstream. Anders tried to imagine how hard it would be to live here as the trolls from Nadir’s story had. There was no good place to farm and very few animals inhabited the area. The valleys below were much richer in these resources. Anders felt some sympathy for the trolls that were forced from their lands. He appreciated how lucky he was to be human. Although, if he was in fact who Merglan, Ivan and the elves thought he was, perhaps he wasn’t going to be lucky enough to lead the simple life he cherished from his youth.

That night at camp Ivan, Nadir, and the Rollo warrior leaders talked battle strategy. Once again, Anders and Max were not privy to the conversation, but afterward Ivan and Nadir filled them in around the campfire.

“Red and those with the ships will be waiting for us in a small cove at the base of the mountains. We will come out of the mountains here,” Ivan pointed to one side of the mountains he had drawn in the dirt next to the fire. “It’s close to where the boats will land, but there is some flat ground between the foothills and the shoreline.”

Nadir joined in, “My people will meet us here,” pointing to a spot next to their planned exit from the Eastland Mountains. “They will be prepared for battle and join our ranks.”

“We will hold our position in the foothills while a small party goes to collect Red and the others waiting at the ships,” Ivan continued. “Once we have retrieved them safely, our collective armies will march to Merglan’s fortress. To stay unnoticed, we will wait to cross the valley under the cover of darkness. If by then he does not know our position, it won’t take long once we are out of the mountains for him to sense our presence. It is imperative that we make it across the valley before he sends his forces to meet us.”

“And if we don’t?” Anders asked.

Ivan took a deep breath and said, “If we can’t catch Merglan by surprise, then it is likely that the orc and kurr army he has will greatly outnumber ours and we will be sitting ducks.”

For a moment nobody spoke, realizing the seriousness of the situation.

“We must trust that our information is accurate and that he hasn’t been paying attention to the happenings of the world around him,” Nadir said.

“So our plan hinges on the hope that this evil guy has his head stuck in the sand and doesn’t notice a large army of elves and men marching on his gates? And if he is paying attention, he’ll destroy us all and we will have come all of this way for nothing?” Max said with a tinge of sarcasm.

“Yes,” Ivan said straightly.

“That’s mad!” Max exclaimed. “I was in this when I thought it was just a raiding party that captured Anders’ family. I’m not even sure that my brother was captured. I don’t want to be slaughtered over some lunatic who believes Anders is a powerful sorcerer.”

“No one is forcing you to do this,” Ivan said.

“Hey,” Anders interjected. “Max is here because of me, let me talk to him about it.” Anders pulled Max aside and said, “Look, you and I have grown to become close friends, and I appreciate all that you’ve done for me. You’ve stuck by my side through the toughest moments of my life. I get it if you don’t want to do this, though. This fight was mine from the beginning and apparently from long before we met. You don’t owe me anything. Don’t throw your life away for my cause. If you want to leave now and search for your brother elsewhere, I won’t blame you.”

Max looked down at the ground and said, “This is crazy. I grew up hearing all about the battles during The War of the Magicians. I never thought I would be caught in the middle of one.”

“My world changed for the worse that day we met, but through our journey I have been proud to have you as a friend and a person I could always rely on when the going got tough. Thank you for everything you’ve done for me,” Anders said putting out his hand as an offering.

Max sighed as he looked around, grabbed Anders hand, pulling him in for a hug and said, “Ah, hell. Who am I kidding? Thargon definitely has Bo. If he didn’t, Bo would’ve been waiting for me in Brookside. I’ve been involved this long. What are a couple more days?”

Anders pulled away laughing, “You’re a good brother and a better friend, Max.”

The two returned to the fire and Max reassured Ivan and Nadir he was going to stick it out. After discussing where they would be placed and who their commanding officers would be, the four of them went to bed.

The next day required strenuous hiking over mountain passes, across plateaus and along steep slopes. Anders spent the day talking again with Nadir, whose wealth of knowledge he found fascinating. Nadir distracted Anders by telling him all about the dwarves and their culture. Anders learned Mount Orena was home to the largest colony of dwarves, and had been since the dwarves first came to the Eastland Mountains. Their ancient city, Hardstone, was built near the mine where they extracted the many riches of the earth that made their people so well known in Kartania.

“It sounds like a wonderful place,” Anders said when Nadir had finished describing the great halls of Hardstone.

“I’m sure it is,” Nadir said.

“You’ve never been there?” Anders asked surprised. He assumed Nadir had been there after providing such a detailed description of the dwarf kingdom.

“No,” he said. “I’ve never received an invitation to go, which you’d think I would have by now. My father put me in charge of trade negotiations with the dwarves several years ago. I suspect it’s because our peoples are mostly at peace with each other and they don’t want to foul anything up. For the most part we stay out of each other’s politics and as a result our relationship remains healthy. Every once in a while some argument occurs between our political houses and the trading stops. But in the end, we’ve always come to some kind of agreement to make the commerce work.”

“Well, I’ve never met a dwarf either,” Anders said.

“And you wouldn’t unless you lived near these mountains and traded with them,” Nadir said. “They keep to themselves under that mountain and rarely do they come out. Like I said before, they’ll defend their homes fiercely. That’s how they’ve managed to survive in the same place for so long. Well, that and they have a very wealthy mine.”

For the rest of the day, Anders tried to keep his mind off the rapidly approaching battle. It was hard, however, because he knew they had only one more day of travel through the mountains before they would be looking down the valley at Merglan’s fortress.

Upon establishing their camp that night, the only thing anyone could talk about was the battle they would be fighting the next evening. Anders hoped he would see his two cousins again soon. It seemed like years since he’d last been in their company.

He reflected on how dramatically his life had changed and wondered if he would be able to go home after it was all over. An idea popped into his head that once he and Thomas and Kirsten were reunited, he could take them back to the elf city where they could live with Zahara. It was a fantasy, most likely impossible. He’d never heard of a human living with the elves, other than when they were training for war, as they had with Ivan.

They woke at dawn and spent their last day hiking through the Eastland Mountains. Anders kept his thoughts to himself; it seemed no one wanted to talk. Everyone focused on the battle. They stopped in the early afternoon. Ivan and Nadir went ahead to scout. The army took this time to eat and rest one last time before the march on the fortress. The two were gone for several hours before returning to the group. It was late in the afternoon and the sun was beginning to hang low in the sky.

“Red and the other captains are in position. All we need to do is send a group of men to get them to join our ranks,” Ivan said to Nadir and Jorgen. Anders and Max stood nearby, listening to their conversation.

“There is a problem,” Nadir said. “I couldn’t find the elves who were supposed to be here by now. I’ve tried to contact my father with the mirror, but it’s not working.”

“They have forsaken us,” Red’s father said. “I should have known your people would never help us.”

Irritated by this, Nadir said, “My people understand the threat that Merglan poses to them as well as to you. They would not abandon us. Something else has happened to them. There’s no other explanation.”