The Potion of Life

Vilijn

Finally, Randar had noticed him. He had been sitting in the hall for hours, waiting, while Randar's gaze was fixed on other noble families. It had taken him ten years to enter this hall. He hadn't seen Merel in a decade; he could only hope that no harm had come to her. If everything went according to plan, he would see her again soon. It had taken Vilijn some time to devise a plan. At first, he had been too consumed by anger to think logically. 

The first thing he did after his banishment was to return to Sjavu Sytranië. He resumed his disguise as the old elf Drago and boarded the ship to Bitgorn-Vil. After the ship had been sailing for four days, he struck. He finally did what he had wanted to do for all those years. He killed everyone on the ship and relished in each murder. He used powerful, ancient dark spells that the old elves hadn't seen in ten thousand years. He defeated them effortlessly. After the last one was killed, he transformed into a bat and flew to the continent of Laagbad.

In the years that followed, Vilijn learned how to control his anger. He shifted his focus from rage to devising a solution. He needed a way to see Merel again. The only way he would be welcomed back into the shadow world was by making his family proud. They would be proud if he could bring the drows back to Mysterix in their former glory. He traveled all around Mysterix for eight years until he stumbled upon something interesting in a library on Pantoon. 

Pantoon is the continent of magicians. Here, magicians study for a century before they can control the basics of magic. Vilijn had expected to gain wisdom on this continent, and he did. He was reading a book about the history of their planet, Mysterix. The war between the dark elves and the high elves was mentioned, but a lot of details were missing. There wasn't a single name mentioned of those who had fought in it. Even the capitals, like Vrammahath, weren't mentioned anywhere. It was as if they had never existed.

As he read on, the history transitioned to the colonization of Midbad. He read how all the provinces were populated by humans. Each province listened to one king/queen. Below them were dukes, marquises, counts, and so on. Every province had the same structure. When Vilijn reached the province of Borgon, he read something that caught his attention. He read that Borgon is currently governed by the Brenner family. The king is named Ugmar Brenner, and his wife passed away five years ago. The crown prince is named Timel, and there is also a second son, Randar. They live in the capital, Clarus, which is technically in the realm of Jura but functions as a neutral city that is part of all three realms. The three realms are Batavia, Jura, and Winsard, each governed by a respective duke or duchess.

After this, Vilijn found the information particularly interesting. Previously, he had only been half paying attention to what he was reading, but the sentences he read next captivated his attention. He read that each realm possessed its own object: Batavia had a gemstone, Jura had a medallion, and Winsard had a grail. The combination of these three objects couldn't be a coincidence. For generations, his family had been obsessed with the prophecy of Remiro Dahvar.

Thanks to this, Vilijn knew the history of the war between the high elves and the dark elves very well. He also knew about the elixir of life and the three ingredients needed to create it. When the dark elves were numerous, they had used their black magic to infuse objects with magic. This is how they created the gemstone of damnation, the grail of souls, and the medallion of immunity. The gemstone was placed in a device in the temple of Quenya. When that device was activated, a red liquid flowed from the bottom point of the gemstone. This liquid had to be caught by the grail. If someone wearing the medallion drank this red liquid, they would be permanently transformed into a dark elf and would remember nothing of their life before.

If these objects were indeed the three ingredients for the elixir, it meant that the elixir could be recreated. If the elixir could be remade, more dark elves could be created. This would solve their population problem. With these new dark elves, it would be possible to destroy the elves of Kongorn and reclaim it as their home, leaving the shadow world behind forever. 

Vilijn searched for images or illustrations of these three objects. After a few hours of searching, he found them in a book about authentic artifacts in Midbad. When he looked at the images, he was certain. The gemstone was red, like the gemstone of damnation; the grail was entirely black with a white stone in the center, like the grail of souls. The medallion was made of emerald, like the medallion of immunity. Vilijn was sure: these were the ingredients.

Vilijn stood up and walked to the noble table. Disguised as a nobleman, no one in the hall realized there was a drow among them. He saw Randar looking surprised as he walked toward him. When Vilijn stood before Randar, he began to speak, "You are Randar Brenner, correct?"

"That's correct, sir, and may I have the pleasure of your name?" 

"My name is Nubé Savos. I am a baron living in Kamu."

"My apologies, but I haven't heard of you before." 

"That's not surprising. I've only been in Borgon for a few months, and this is my first time in the capital. Why are you sitting all alone, Randar? I see your father and brother talking to many people. Why are you just sitting here drinking wine?"

"Because I'm not the crown prince. Nobody in this hall is interested in me. This party is special for my brother; I'm obligated to be here."

"Don't you find it unfortunate that you have no chance at the throne? That people will always see you as the second son? Don't you have further ambitions in life?"

"Of course, I have ambitions in life. I am still a Brenner." 

"Randar, you're always welcome to come to my estate in Kamu. We can talk about your ambitions." After saying this, Vilijn returned to his table, feeling content.