Chapter 3 Dove of Peace

One morning, King Dracon greeted Valnar inside the palace with a haggard man leaning on his wooden staff with wretched clothing poor people would have tossed away. Valnar assured his friend that this man was very important for him to see.

“Sire, I have a message from King Triton of the Northern Seas. He begs you to discover why many of his mermaid subjects are disappearing from the sea. They leave for the surface to give birth with the seals, but they do not come back to their husbands. He has sent out patrols to find no trace of them or the new mothers who had just left for the surface. He pleads for aide in finding his mermaids.” says the man wobbling on his staff.

“You are a merman. Come sit at my table and rest yourself. Maris! Fetch a meal for our guest.” commands Dracon. “Itza!” A white bird flies down to land on Dracon’s arm. “Take this bird for His Majesty King Triton. It was given to my great-grandfather Rurick by the elf wizard Alaric. It sends a message to whomever you wish. Your king may use it in his quest.”

“Thank you, Sire. Bird, tell King Triton that his has gained aide from King Dracon.” ordered the servant and the bird flew out the door.

King Dracon inquired about the missing mermaids and heard the most tragic of news. King Triton’s son Prince Wilz frantically searches for his pregnant wife Princess Lexie. Dracon recalls the mermaid princess’s name from listening to the tales of The Wizard, this princess is his daughter. Homer leaves Illium with Triton’s servant immediately for the Haunted Forest to find out if this tale is true. Homer then continues sailing north to the Black Forest to ask for the assistance from The Wizard’s sister goddess Queen Gilda’s magic mirror to find Princess Lexie. Meanwhile, King Dracon in Illium bans mermaid hunting in his kingdom. Mermaids still remain missing. He soon feels the merfish pangs of worry and anger when Queen Amazon gives birth to a son named Demetrius. Great celebration echoes all the way to The Wizard. Days later, Queen Amazon dies of fever and is buried in full royal regalia in the Temple of Aphrodite. Dracon receives a wonderful gift from The Wizard, an amulet to call upon the healer when Dracon needs him. Soon he uses it when the great General Viminaski dies three months later. Dracon ordered a funeral fit for a king. Many humans came to drop flowers along the path and stairs of the temple. Soldiers and musicians marched in front of the royal family. The palace guards carried the decorated wooden coffin to the Temple of Athena to be placed inside the crypt of Emperor Rurick. King Dracon spoke to the crowd on the temple steps.

“General Viminaski was born to a poor leprechaun family in Devon along the Anasazi River. He was taken a slave by cliff dwellers of Dragon’s Pass and traded to live in Brightsburg. There the great hero Alaric the Great saved little Viminaski from further suffering of the destruction of Brightsburg and adopted him as a son. Alaric the Great sent him to school, but my great-grandfather Emperor Rurick the Conqueror needed his friend in peacetime as he did in war. They remained best friends until my great-grandfather was murdered by rebels of Anaki. General Viminaski returned a hero to be placed in a wretched town as a priest. He faithfully served his human followers in Rosewood Ravine for many years until I asked for his appointment as financial advisor. General Viminaski shall be laid to rest with his good friend and admirer where he belongs. The great leprechaun general will forever be remembered best by the epic tales told by his loyal soldiers.”

Alone in his bed chamber, he prayed for The Wizard’s return. He was viewed as a man by his subjects, but still felt insecure as a child. His advisor uncle Grigor was self-serving and spent gold as if there will be no tomorrow. In a puff of smoke, The Wizard appears. He asks if His Majesty truly desires his council. When he disagrees with His Majesty, he will affirm it. He will do what he believes is best, whether His Majesty likes it or not. The Wizard will never follow His Majesty’s command nor desire to gain his favor like the servants he is surrounded by inside his palace. And The Wizard will never fight against anyone he loves and shall only serve to protect the royal family who wish it. King Dracon nods his head with tearful eyes of hope. The Wizard promises to come back to Illium after he settles his affairs at home. Then disappears. Relieved, Dracon waits for his hero’s return. In his grief, an official announces the death of Queen Simone of Kadacia. Her heiress Kazaria Andromeda has no husband. Dracon sends a letter of condolence to the new Queen of Kadacia with implications of a shared sympathy from losing his wife that could be resolved upon a visit to Her Majesty. An invitation to Kadacia arrives a month later along with a gift to the year old prince, a rattle.

Homer returns months later reciting fantastic stories of searching for mermaids and rescuing a few from human hunters. The most fabulous was the rescue of Princess Lexie. He met with The Wizard in the Haunted Forest who traveled village to village selling herbs and inquiring about any mermaids gone missing. It was The Wizard’s son Eurick who made a grossly discovery about the missing mermaids. Eurick is a darman, half deer and half elf with an elf body but with tail and horns of a stag. Peddlers in the marketplace of Litsy along the eastern coast displayed medicines of mermaid hair, mermaid charms, mermaid scales, mermaid bones, and mermaid eyes. Abhorred at the peddlers, he jerked away to tell his father.

“Father, I would not look over those stalls.” was all Eurick had to say to set his father into a frenzy digging around the body parts for any sign of his daughter.

“Father, remember Lexie is immortal. She can not be here.” whispered Eurick.

He then picks up Lexie’s necklace of coral and whelk shells.

“That will be two gold coins for the mermaid charm,” demanded the merchant.

The Wizard snatches it out of his son’s hand and weeps in sorrow.

“My daughter, my poor daughter is gone.” The Wizard cries clinging to the necklace.

“Two gold coins please,” repeated the merchant.

Eurick turns his head with unimaginable hatred gleaming in his dark deer eyes.

“I made that mermaid charm for my sister. We will give you nothing for it.” replied Eurick.

“Now see here, darman!” shouted the merchant.

Sparks exploded from Eurick’s staff and the merchant’s stall was on fire.

“Come, father. Time for us to go.” pled Eurick as he clutched his father’s arm.

The darman and the elf walk out of the village unchallenged by the helpless villagers rushing to put out the fire. The Wizard weeps an inconsolable cry holding his daughter’s necklace. On the way back to the Haunted Forest, they discover a half eaten, half decomposed body with missing head and hands. Eurick prays it was not a missing mermaid. Then a thought of dread engulfed Eurick, maybe the baby Layla that Prophetess Lilia found abandoned was the result of mermaid hunters. The Wizard’s wife Nix fixed the pair a meal upon their return to Aurora Falls. Eurick relayed the sad discovery to the family. He asked Lilia, The Prophetess of Nix, to concoct a potion to see if Layla’s mother was a murdered mermaid leaving her baby behind the massacre. Lilia’s potion revealed a stunning truth, Layla’s mother is alive. She is hiding in the mountain caves with other mermaids. Homer sought help from the goddess Gilda’s magic black mirror. Upon his return, he found Lexie’s magic crystal in the sand of a turtle nesting spot and tried to follow the ambush trail inland. The next morning as The Wizard picked mushrooms, he felt a cold knife touch his heart and knew someone he missed a great deal was coming back to him. His heart filled with joy, he smiled and announced to his granddaughter Cassandra picking mint berries covered in dew that Ricky was coming.

“Ricky who?” asked the child goddess.

“My giant friend Ricky who left me behind at the beginning of the Elf War.” answered The Wizard.

“Oh, that Ricky. I don’t see him, Grandfather.” gazes Cassandra around the mountainside.

“That is because the mystic Cup of Hades forbids the drinker to return to life in the same form.” answers The Wizard.

“Like Grandmother Nix,” observes Cassandra.

“Yes, child. Like Nix.” responds The Wizard.

An elf lad appears over the bushes looking about 12 years of age wearing human clothing. He stops upon glancing at The Wizard with a large grin. The Wizard embraces the elf lad to ask on his appearance. He looks exactly like he did when he was that age. Ricky the Elf states how he admired his friend’s courage and strength. The love goddess Ishtar came to him in the afterlife to inform him of his friend’s nostalgia of their friendship lost in the sands of time. He asked the goddess to return to life as his heroic friend at an age he could be apprenticed to such a beloved warrior.

“For many years I want to be just like you, Alaric the Great. I envy your courage.” asserts Ricky.

“That is most amusing because for many years I wanted to be just like you until I found the courage to be me. There is only one Alaric the Great, Ricky, and he now only exists in epic sagas sung by peasants. Today, they call me The Wizard or The Hermit.”

“Just like your mother The Sorceress. Speaking of The Sorceress, can you make me immortal like she did to you and your sisters.” requests Ricky.

“Certainly,” replies The Wizard.

“Wonderful,” gleams Ricky. “Tell me how we get to the Atlantis Mountains to be submerged in the Pool of Immortality.” asks Ricky.

“We fly,” answers The Wizard. “Oden! Yutzi!” A fairy and sprite flew down from the treetops.

“Take us to Atlantis, please.”

The sprite and fairy alter into giant eagles and grab the pair on their way up to the skies. After much time flying over the Plains of Julia, they rest upon a hill. One eagle bows its head at a patch of grass and scratches up dirt. Large red crocus flowers bloom sending off a pleasant aroma.

“That is my father Leander’s resting place. I must beautify his grave and mourn him for a moment. I was a small sprite when he left to fight the Elf War with cousin Alaric.” explains Yutzi.

The eagle sheds a few tears with his head lowered in salute. Ricky pulled on blades of grass waiting for the mourning to pass over. The crocus flowers died and Yutzi straightened up to take off again. The eagles flew day and night across the fruitful and barren landscape for four days when they reached the border of the Atlantis Mountains. A dragon greeted them with a spit of fire. The eagles landed and bowed their heads. The Wizard and Ricky followed suit.

“We desire for this elf child Ricky to be blessed in the Pool of Immortality, Almighty Alano.” declares The Wizard.

“Follow me, Alaric.” replies the dragon.

In the great hall of Atlantis, the creator god Alano welcomed his visitors changing into an old elf. He cast a fortune spell over Ricky and observed the misty fog hanging over his head. Alano did not speak of what he saw, but brushed away the mist.

“Blessed by my granddaughter Ishtar, have you. A loving heart for your aching friend. An enigma difficult to solve, were you. Left your friend Alaric in grief and returned after many years. Cursed by Maya, have you. Drank from the Cup of Hades, yet tried to steal it. Desire adventure and heroics told for generations, are you. Was a boastful fiend, yet earned the heart of humble Alaric here beside you.” Alano paused a moment. “Immortality shall I give thee.” finished Alano.

Ricky jumped with delight. He was promptly submerged in the boiling Pool of Immortality and given a crystal. Alaric tied it to a string and attached it to his belt. Once the visitors slept off their meal, they bowed farewell. In five days, they were home again.

Now Ricky the elf needed the proper weapons for learning to fight like a true warrior. Eurick presented arms that used to practice with Ishtar, Cassandra, Layla, and Addison. Homer bid farewell to rescue Lexie. The Wizard soon had Ricky chop wood to build strength. Then the went berry picking to learn patience in time consuming tasks, observance of small objects, endurance from all the walking around, and learn to look in the right place. They each returned with a basket of blackberries and cherries. A meal was enjoyed before further training. Ricky learned to maintain the luster of his gifted knife and sword. He practiced stabs and thrusts with the wood pile he created. He learned to parry with his idol towards the end of the day. The evening meal passed with cooking lessons. The stars appeared to a navigation lesson. Ricky played games with his fellow students into the night. A bed was made for the elf lad and he fell fast asleep. Sweet dreams of becoming a great warrior were interrupted by the crow of the rooster.

The Wizard arrives at Alexis’s home in Laurel to say farewell to find it locked up. His boat was ashore, but his crew did not know where his was. Alexis received a visitor named Homer who said Gilda would aid him in his quest so the pair took off. Why would she choose Alexis and Homer to rescue Lexie? What exactly was Gilda up to? The Wizard walks home confused. He continues the preparations to leave Aurora Falls once again. Next came another issue, Ishtar wants to come to Illium.

“Homer sails on his boat around the northern and southern seas, he rarely touches Illium to see you.” interjects The Wizard.

“I still want to go. I want to see a human city, Grandfather.” answers Ishtar.

“Why does Ishtar get to live in a human city and I have to stay here in the forest?” asks Cassandra.

“Ishtar is not going to Illium. You can not use your goddess powers there. You will not like it at all.” responds The Wizard.

Nonetheless, his granddaughters persist.