" They waited until I had finished my meal, then Ishmay turned and took a seat opposite me.
"Is it true what you have told Habieb?" the Emperor of the Elfes wanted to verify his facts.
"It is. Connor and Reif know that I am not here indefinitely. I have received my orders, whether I like it much is no-one's concern. Neither is the timing. I just thought it better that you all know in advance. Then future long-term planning can be taken into consideration."
"Are you sure about this?" Ragghwaart wanted to know.
"As sure as Lord Brutrïum is that my Cosmic name has been written on the coffins, since their existence on Leilaka" I replied.
"You mean Berkmont" Berkmont corrected for me, entering through the back door.
"Yes, I mean Berkmont" I confirmed, still seeing him for who he truly was and not the Elf currently standing inside my home, dripping mud onto my floor.
"Sorry for the mess, but that Wolfsbain you are looking for kept on eluding us. You will have to come and claim it yourself tomorrow."
He hooked up a chair with a booted foot, plonked his body onto it and leaned back against the wall, looking around as if aware that he had missed some vital piece of information, his eyes coming to rest on me.
"Just how do you know about the day Emperor Jamal perished?" he asked me.
"I have seen King Dameous' original recordings. I know what happened there" I stated, not just for him but for the curiosity that had been unsatisfied within my own team for a long while now.
"Is that why the King of Gobajia claimed you to be the full incarnation of the Original King Dameous as well?" Ishmay raised the next question they had been wondering about.
"Yes" I stated. What else could I do but tell the truth. This was obviously a truth finding session.
"What do you mean by 'as well'?" Berkmont enquired from Ishmay.
"Being the son of Dameous, he was put to the Test of Kings before he could be initiated into Kinghood" Reif replied.
"So he was able to open the safe?" Berkmont asked suspiciously.
"Yes" Ishmay stated, frowning at the dwarf's obvious sense of pride in the matter.
"Well, what was in it?!" Berkmont stared at us, the suspense seemingly overwhelming.
"Nothing" Ragghwaart told his kin.
"Nothing?" Berkmont scowled. "Are you sure? After all those years of speculation to the content? Nothing?"
"Yes" Ragghwaart confirmed. "It was empty. There was absolutely nothing in there . . . "
"Where are the manuscripts, the weapon, the diary? Where did the artefacts go?" Berkmont ranted, as if he had been personally responsible for the King's treasure.
"What do you know that we do not?" Ishmay asked the upset Elf.
"I served with Emperor Jamal. I knew what Dameous had taken and supposedly hidden. I know what was supposed to be in that safe."
"Then, these items you have been talking about, you know the exact content?" Ishmay asked, keeping his temper about this irate outburst.
"These items, as you put it, are tools to rebuild our world. Now they are lost to future generations" Berkmont sighed, lamenting the loss of a national treasure.
"They are not lost" Reif stated, watching me while I silently shouted at him to keep his mouth.
"Oh, and now a Dwarf knows where they are!" Berkmont sneered.
"I removed them to a safe place" I came clean, making everyone stare at me in shock. "These artefacts are not for Leilaka's use at the moment. None of the old technology is. Someday these artefacts will be needed and will be found, but not in our lifetimes."
"What the heck are you talking about?" Ishmay asked, upset that there was something he did not know about. "When did you remove it? How did you remove it?"
"That is none of your concern. The artefacts in question are safe and will stay hidden until otherwise decided by a Higher Hand, not by Man nor Elf nor Dwarf!" It was my final word upon the subject and I stood up, allowing my huge Aura to build around the people in the room until it felt as if the roof would not be able to stunt its growth.
Stop it! Habieb told me, also standing up. You are scaring them. You do NOT need to play god with us.
Calming down, I turned and stepped out the door, allowing my Aura to be pulled outside with such force that the draft slammed the door shut behind me. "
Copyright © H Gibson Chronicles of Han 2009-2017
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