CHAPTER I :
The Failed Flute

One year after the Liberation of Destriel

            Daecrynn stretched backwards, extending his arms against the thick, smooth gray barked icania branch, high above the forest floor atop a hill deep in the wildland of Tuitari.  Fishing a carving knife from its holster at his belt, he stopped at the rattling sounds of a woodpecker somewhere below.  Idly he sighed, and whittled away at a blunt stick for some time.  Sliding the knife inward to carve out a notch, his eyes diverted to the sky, momentarily following a formation of geese flying toward the shores of the Nali Bay to the north.

            Carefully, he dug into each of the ends with his blade, until the stick was tubular.  He carved twelve notches of varying size, parallel to each other, and a larger notch at the far end.  After gazing at it momentarily, he tapped the freshly carved flute against the side of the branch he rested on.  He blew into the pipe, attempting a chord with his fingers.  A horrible howl erupted from the failed flute.

            "Greh," he groused, tossing the flute to the forest floor below.  A few echoing taps betrayed the path of its descent through the layered canopies of the forest.  "Where is the renowned musical talent of the Tuvitor line?"

            He strapped his knife into its holster.  His hands free, he laid back, resting his hands head upon them.  Surrounding him, the fluttering flurry of swallows flew through the branches beneath him.  He opened his eyes, tilted his head to the right, and watched the swallows as they migrated to an adjacent hill.  Sighing again, he closed his eyes and let his mind wander.

            Far beneath him, a subtle blur of color betrayed the position of a small hand that reached out from under shrub to retrieve the flute.  Momentarily flutters of a hand fidgeting with the fallen flute and a long twig were invisible to Daecrynn, who lied idly on a branch far above him listening to the songs in his mind.  The hand and the flute disappeared long before Daecrynn could even notice.

            As Daecrynn's thoughts approached the loose flutter at the edge of slumber, he was jolted to attention by a sudden gust of wind.  The high tree buckled and moaned beneath him while Daecrynn grasped onto his perch tightly.

            "Okay gods, I get it," Daecrynn muttered.  "No break for the Kestiel."

            A large cluster of thunderclouds rolled in from the west, dimming the deep blue skies.  Hanging onto the limb with one hand, he swung a rope around another branch.  He fastened the line, wrapped it around a thick, sturdy branch covered in a deep gray bark.  Holding onto the rope with one hand, he let go of the tree-branch and dropped.  Passing through smaller leafy canopies, he swiftly rappelled from the highest canopy of the forest to the ground beneath him.  His feet hit the forest floor, plunging into mud and mulch.  He looked into his gloves.  The palms and undersides of the fingers were singed, smoking from the friction of the hurried long drop.

            "I just got these," Daecrynn complained as he slid them off and discarded them into a zenzeya bush.

            Dusting off a hardy green caterpillar, he retrieved his satchel that he had left atop a protruding root at the base of the tree.  He hiked around an icania trunk, through fern and bush to the bottom of the hill, and down a trail through a short canyon that lead to a cleared valley, where several large tents stood.

            Daecrynn strode merrily to the center of the camp as the distant rumble of thunder began above him.  He slid through the front door of the largest of the tents, built at the center, and tossed his bags on the floor.

            "Dae'nys, Father?" he called.

            No one answered.  He turned back to the front door of the tent, and was greeted by a slender, yet curvy elven woman with long, yet curly golden blonde hair.  She pulled him by the collar into a deep kiss.  He placed his hands on her hips.  She pushed against him, and softly savored his lips.

            "So does she kiss like I do?" she asked Daecrynn, probing him with her deep green eyes.

            "You're not jealous are you, Dae'nys?" Daecrynn sighed, turning his eyes away.

            "Naught but curiosity, love.  Does she kiss like I do?" Dae'nys sang.

            "Hers is a different kiss, that's for certain," Daecrynn said, avoiding eye contact.  "Different as..."

            She paused thoughtfully, and turned Daecrynn's face back towards her with a single finger guiding the chin.  "So who's the better kisser?"

            "Now that's an unfair question!" Daecrynn protested, throwing his hands up.  He crossed his arms and returned Dae'nys' gaze.  "You are jealous, aren't you?"

            "Well you're in love with her!  You swore to me an oath of betrothal, but you're in love with her!"  Dae'nys turned her eyes away.

            "And my feelings for you are unchanged.  Stronger even."

            "But I am not your d'nani," Dae'nys snapped, her eyes welling up with tears.

            "I..."

            "I have never, ever loved another, Daecrynn Tuvitor!" Dae'nys cried, glaring at Daecrynn.  "My whole life I have dreamed of ruling Tarligean justly at your side.  And who is your High Queen?  Some wench daughter of Naim from Fidralinia!"

            "Don't ever speak of Nadali that way," Daecrynn said coldly, as he hoisted his pack over his shoulder.  "And be mindful of your ambition, for it is said that those who love the crown shall lose it."

            Daecrynn slipped past Dae'nys to the walkway out the door.  Dae'nys stopped him, grabbing him by the shoulder.

            "It's not about the crown, Daecrynn," Dae'nys weeped.  "It's about our promise!"

            "A promise that has yet to be broken.  I will marry you, and you will be my High Queen yet--Nadali's returning to Fidralinia soon.  She has no interest in ruling the whole of Tarligean forever.  Nothing's changed, love."

            "Nothing but your heart," Dae'nys cried as she pushed his shoulder away.  She pushed her way through the tent door back inside.

            Daecrynn bit his lip, and followed.  "I still love you, 'Nys."

            "Go back to Andriel," Dae'nys cried from behind a tapestry partition.  "You belong with your d'nani, and on your throne."

            "I can't leave you like this," Daecrynn protested.  "Come on Dae'nys, I'm not going back to Andriel until--"

            She pushed the tapestry partition to the side, and tagged Daecrynn in the chest with her index finger.  "Go.  Back.  To.  Andriel."

            Daecrynn put his hands up in resignation.  "I'm sorry 'Nys."

            "Save your apologies love," Dae'nys softened her tone.  "You're a king now. Never apologize.  I love you.  Now go back to Andriel.  I will join you there soon."

            Daecrynn embraced her one last time, his brow furrowed in frustration.  A distant rumbling echoed from the skies.  He kissed her hand, and turned toward the trail leading out of the camp.

            As he hiked the dampened trail between tall ferns, he heard the approaching rumble of an arriving horseman.  Coming around the bend, Daecrynn spied a familiar rider approach.

            "Father!" Daecrynn hailed him, his arm raised.

            "Daecrynn," Kethral greeted him, as he dismounted.  "Headed back to Andriel already?"

            The thunder rumbled overhead.

            Daecrynn glanced upward.  "It may not be the best of ideas to travel back in this weather, but I really need to get back to the palace.  So much to do."

            "Business is never finished in Andriel," Kethral agreed.

            "I'm just glad I was able to steal a day away.  You've taken good care of the camp."

            "We're putting camp away before winter," Kethral stated as he looked up, as a sparse drizzle sprinkled his cheeks.  He looked at Daecrynn again.  "We'll be settling in the Southeast Quarter."

            "It will be a big change coming back to Andriel.  It was for me, anyways."

            "Pace will pick up, that's for sure.  It's been quiet out here since the Madroceans left."

The drizzle thickened, and leaves fell as the winds tore through the canopies above.  The trees creaked and groaned deeply as they swayed in response to the winds.

            "I should be going," Daecrynn said, turning away.  "It would be lunacy to hike down the Nali Road overnight in this weather."

            "I'm sure they're already scrambling to find you now," Kethral chuckled.  "You better head back before they send the Jea Daldani to get you."

            Daecrynn laughed.  "Of course, father."  He embraced Kethral, and turned away.

            "You can have Tarsei," Kethral said, offering the reins of his mount to Daecrynn.

            "Don't worry about it," Daecrynn smiled as he waved good-bye to Kethral.  "I've walked the Hidden Road to another world.  Andriel's just over those hills."

            "May the Song of the Stars be with you," Kethral blessed him as he watched his adopted son depart.

            * * *

The drizzle had turned to rain, splattering through the broad leaves high above, dribbling down the carpets of deep green moss growing on the mammoth trunks of the high trees of the Tuitari forest.  The waters condensed onto the flora in larger drops, converging into rivulets upon the foliage of the lower canopies, to splatter about wildly on the muddy forest floor.

            Daecrynn hummed a tune of his own creation, as his thoughts drifted to dreams of a bright future.  He envisioned celebrations that would fill the streets every night.  Many generations to come would live in less of a kingdom, but perhaps a confederation where the common folk could rule their own destiny.  A rivulet of rainwater splashed Daecrynn directly in his face, breaking his daydream.  In the distance, he thought he heard the sound of a flute between the howling wind and the groaning trunks of the giant trees swaying in the wind--playing the very song he was humming.  He paused momentarily, looking around him as the rivulets of water poured about.  Curling his lip in annoyance, he pushed the water off his face, and pulled his hood over his head, refastening his cloak.  He continued walking and returned to daydream.

            'Today Tarligean is free,'  he pondered.  'But how will I ensure the comfort and well-being of our nations?  Certainly I will be well cared-for, but what of those who fought by my side and have returned to their homes?  Surely I can assign authorities to assess the regions, but how can I trust them to do their job impartially?'

            Momentarily, Daecrynn reflected on the tales of the days before his birth father was crowned.  It was said that Meldehan would vanish from the courtiers and nobility, and live as a commoner.  His daydream was broken again by what sounded like song in the rain.  He lost his footing on the slick octagonal stones of the Nali Road.  He caught his balance again, averting a fall.  Silvery-white lightning crossed the skies overhead.  The thunder rolled lowly, and the rain paused momentarily.

            'That song is only in my head,' Daecrynn rebuffed himself as his thoughts returned to daydream.  'So I will hide in plain sight again, as a common elf.  A bowyer from Namakiera.  I'm good at that anyways.  If I find life amongst my people comfortable, then I'm doing well.  If there are problems, then I know what to address when I return to my throne.'

            With new-found vigor, Daecrynn skipped down the muddy trail as the crash of thunder rumbled above.  As the skies darkened and night fell, Daecrynn kept track of his bearing by the light that flashed through the wood from the lightning above.  Through the muddy darkness, he danced down the highway, leading out of the wood alongside the stones of the Starlight Circle, just across the Nali River from Kynder's Mound, where the city of Andriel stood.

            "I'm home!" Daecrynn shouted--the second word of his declaration muted by the loud crash of thunder as a massive spider-web of lightning blanketed the skies above him.

            From atop the nearest stone of the Starlight Circle, a familiar voice addressed him.

            "My skill with a crossbow is known from here to Tanathiel.  Identify yourself, outsider!" she demanded.

            "I am a traveler!  A son of Anda!"  Daecrynn said, pausing momentarily.  "And a kindred to the House Tartali, and the um... younger brother of the last Kestiel.

            She spoke in a sing-song voice.  "I am Nadali, daughter to Threis the Warrior-Sage, of the House Murana and of the House Tuvitor.  Brother to the last High King?  Please.  Give me more reason to trust you."

            Reaching for something in his satchel, Daecrynn quipped, "Well I have this crown here my bag, you see.  Can we just skip to the part where you're on top?"

            In a mock tone of annoyance, Nadali countered, "That's not what you said last time!"

            As the thunder crashed, she leaped from the top of Daecrynn, pinning his shoulders down with her knees.  The thunder rolled again as the rain fluttered over them.  He stared upward to behold the lightning's flash reflect off a carefully polished sword with a lethal edge and a green jewel in its hilt.

            "Must we go through all the motions again?" Daecrynn smiled broadly.

            "Uh huh," Nadali responded.  "I introduced myself to you, now you introduce yourself to me, and I won't kill you.  Is this 'sign of trust' enough for you outsider?'

            Daecrynn pulled her by the inverted tear locket around her neck, and pulled her into a soft kiss.