Lily of the valley

21

At the witches will time raced onward again, they jumped about two years this time. The ladies of the mountain could see that it was spring through the windows of the hall, heather bloomed deep purple and the few trees that graced the landscape were beginning to sprout lush green. The councillors sat in their thrones in despair, King Hans was missing from the communion. Queen Eithene had lost her thread of control, the room was filled with layered shouting and discord.

"The man is a scourge and must be stopped!" The dwarven King yelled with depth and vigour.

"He has no heir." Gabriel of the moorland had died of old age some time during the past year and had been replaced by his son Daniel. He was a level headed King, often preoccupied by planning for the future, he valued stability above all else.

"There is a younger brother." Spoke King Edward, "but still how do we rid ourselves of the brute?" The King of dwarves looked at him as if he had said something entirely stupid.

"With war!" He shouted and Mora of the dryads responded with enthusiasm.

"Aye war! He is invading our borders, he has already dealt the first blow."

"It is our duty to defend the forest!" Called out Omar of Maequil who had long wanted to see Hans dead. The forest had its own ways of defending itself, the trees were filled with a deep ancient magic. Their branches twisted and their roots rose from the earth, they became warriors of earth. King Hans brought fire, for this the trees had no defence and the dryads were armed only with arrows against sharp slicing steel.

"When he is done with us he will come for you, he wishes to become emperor." Mora expressed her grief.

"How do you know this?" Edward of the canyon asked.

"He has sent letters." Mora thrust a stack of papers towards King Edward, all signed with the seal of the mountain king. Edward skimmed Hans' manic scribbles, they were barely legible but incredibly troubling.

"These are the writings of a madman!" Edward exclaimed, beginning to read out sections of the scrawl to the court. "Being King was never enough for me... I will not share the title King with eleven inferiors... I demand everything... the world will be mine and mine alone..."

"Please, I beseech you, my people are no warriors. We are helpless against his army. We need help." Mora begged of the councillors. There was no immediate response to her pleas, the Kings and Queens sat and pondered their next move. War had been successfully avoided for so long, their soldiers were few and poorly trained and for some the forest was so far away that they believed Hans would fail before he reached their borders anyway. Queen Anne of the meadow stood, it would be her lands that came under invasion next and was in her interest to stop it before Hans' army got that close.

"You have my sword Mora." The dryad Queen was moved to hopeful weeping, the meadow army was the smallest of all but it was at least something. The dwarf King pledged himself next, while his armies were not vast the mines his people called home gave him unimaginable wealth. He would call upon sell swords and vagrants. The few faye that dwelled in the forest had already begun to join forces with the dryads, but it was not much alone. King Omar stood then, the soldiers of Maequil were rough and fearsome, they could turn the tides.

"And mine." Decreed Omar.

"I will not have you marching that army of ruffians through my lands." Edward of the canyons complained, Omar's soldiers were known to be rapers and raiders but there was no other way through to the north.

"Edward." Mora pleaded, her eyes wet.

"I am sorry Mora, I cannot afford the damage his men will cause."

"I do not care if you allow it Edward, I will help the dryads. As it is my sworn duty to do." Omar hit back.

"You care only for revenge, not duty!" Edward raised his voice in frustration while Mora grappled with bleak hopelessness. "If you approach my borders we will be there to stop you." Edward threatened the desert King. Eithene was lost in despair.

"Then we will beat you back!" Omar swore, his tone filled with bloodlust. Edward would have sent soldiers to aid the forest but it seemed that they would all be needed at the southern border.

"I will send men to the mountain's Northern border, to give you a better chance. They won't let me pass through to help at the forest." The King in the far north offered, fighting in the deep north was near impossible. The snows were many feet deep and the constant blizzard made visibility awful, the attack would only be able to distract a small slither of Hans' army as the threat to the mountain would be so small. However the knights of the north were far better adapted to those conditions and would likely beat down each wave of the mountain's forces.

"Thank you." Mora spoke through sobbing. The Queen of the sea offered nothing, her men knew only how to battle on open water, they would be of little use. The vast journey would likely exhaust and kill many of them before they even arrived.

"Mora, you know I would but I have no army. The moors are devoted to peace. I wish you well and will help in other ways if possible. All you need do is ask." Daniel was sorrowful at his position but he was helpless. David, King of the wasteland sat in silence, he had often considered a grab for power but the timing had never been right. He tapped his fingers against the arm of his throne in thought, if he waited for the other eleven kingdoms to wear each other thin he would be able to swoop in and take the prize. The title emperor intrigued him.

"What think you Eithene?" Anne of the meadow asked the elf, she was deathly pale, she looked ill. She moved slowly to gaze upon Anne, her eyes were bloodshot. They knew there was no chance of Eithene participating in the fighting, elves were a peaceful race, they knew of education not war.

"I am tired." The Queen's voice was frail, she did not have anything left within her. "Do what you will." She resigned herself to the wheels of fate, she longed to return to the elven isles to lie in the sunlight and worry not about war and peace.