The Endless Forest

Tick… Tick… Tick…

Torm found himself in a barren room. A bed, too small, a chair and desk, not made for him, were the only furniture granted to him.

Tick… Tick… Tick…

An eye twitched as he impatiently tapped his foot against the cold hard stone floor.

Dong! Dong! Dong!

Clutching his head, his ears rang from the horrendous noise.

Tick… Tick… Tick…

“Gods damn it!” Where the hell is he?

Furious, Torm stood up from his chair and cracked open a door on the far side of the room. Outside was a small, dimly lit hallway with several closed doors, just past it was a storefront.

Tick… Tick… Tick…

Crouching through the small door, he crept his way forward. Staying within the shadows, he came to a stop and peered into the store.

It was empty.

With a mixture of fury and relief, Torm left the shadows and entered.

Tick… Tick… Tick…

The storefront was barren, save for the clocks that hung from the wall… Torm ignored them and looked at the counter-turn-workbench that took up the corner near the hallway.

Dong! Dong! Don-

A grinding noise screeched out.

“GODS DAMN IT!” Torm stormed over to the counter. Sitting on its surface was a partially disassembled clock.

Mana visibly radiated out from it, a bad sign. A very bad sign…

Tick… Tick… Tick…

Torm gulped, taking a step back. Nothing good ever came with messing with unstable mana, especially when it came to dwarven contraptions.

C-crazy bastard! He retreated further from the storefront.

Tick… Tick… Tick…

CLICK!

He threw himself into the hallway, expecting something to explode.

Tick… Tick… Tick…

Cursing up a storm, he picked himself up and retreated back to his room.

Tick… Tick… Tick…

***

Tick… Tick–

Suddenly, the noise stopped.

Torm waited with baited breath, clutching his hands over his ears…

Silence.

Cautiously optimistic, he peeled himself from his chair and made for his door. Cracking it, he peered back into the dim hallway.

In the store, he saw movement. Is he back?

Unsure, he crept down the hall before chancing a peek into the storefront.

There, at the worktable, was a dwarf. He wore a dull, gray-blue tunic and was quietly tinkering away at the unstable clock.

Torm drew a breath and entered fully, making sure to make enough noise so as to not startle the dwarf. It wasn’t necessary.

“Why are you skulking around like a thief?” The dwarf asked, never once taking his eyes off his work.

“I… It’s better if I keep a low profile,” Torm answered as he approached. He stopped a few feet away, not wanting to get any closer.

“Strange, don’t people already know you are here?”

“They do… But I still want to avoid any, uh, unnecessary interactions.”

“Fascinating. Why is that?” the dwarf asked with a monotone voice.

He gulped, feeling a cold sweat form. “I don’t know? I just thought it’d be better that way…”

“Is it normal for elves to be distrusting, or is it just you?”

That was a dangerous question, considering who it was asking it.

“Hanzel…” Torm paused for a moment, trying to think of the best way to avoid the question. His eyes landed on the clock being worked on, it was no longer glowing.

“The clock, what’s wrong with it?”

Hanzel smiled, a predatory smile. “Damaged. Its enchantments are old and it had a nasty fall. Luckily, it is a simple fix.”

“Right…” He did not believe the dwarf. “Where did you go? We were supposed to discuss–” Torm quickly checked to make sure they were truly alone before continuing in a whisper. “–Our project.”

“I told you this morning, I had a meeting at the temple,” Hanzel said in his monotone voice.

Torm blinked, baffled by the answer. “This…morning? I don’t remember this.”

“Of course, you were still asleep.”

He let his jaw hang open for several moments before responding. “You…didn’t wake me? Didn’t leave a note?”

“Why should I?”

His back grew drenched in cold sweat. “N-never mind…”

There was a nervous silence as the various clocks quietly ticked on the wall.

“Torm, you didn’t answer my question,” Hanzel suddenly spoke out, still focused on his work.

“Q-question?”

“About whether it was normal for elves to be distrusting.”

“Oh…” What should I say? No matter how I answer this, it’s not going to end well. “I suppose it, uh, depends? Elves are friendly, but it takes time to build trust.”

“I see, that explains why you don’t trust me. Don’t worry though, I don’t plan on killing you and experimenting on your body. Our employer would be unhappy, and I’d lose out on an amazing opportunity.”

There was no emotion in the way the dwarf spoke. Yet, Torm knew for certain Hanzel was being serious. That alone made him want to get as far away from him as possible.

The problem?

He was stuck here…

“S-speaking of our employer!” Torm stammered out. “O-our project…?”

“Ah. What about it?”

“When will it be finished?” he tried, hoping to drop that conversation.

“When I’m done with it.”

“I see… And do you have an estimation of when that would be?”

For the first time, the dwarf stopped working and looked up at him. “As soon as I’m able to get a hold of the key.”

The key.

It wasn’t an actual key, but an enchanted scroll that allowed people to bypass certain other enchantments. Important other enchantments…

Of course, getting a hold of this item wasn’t going to be easy. It belonged to the dwarven Sage, and was kept secure within his temple.

Thankfully, they had someone who could get access.

Unfortunately, that person was currently staring at him.

How is he an apprentice?! Hanzel wasn’t stable, that much was obvious. But, somehow, he had been selected as one of the few to become their Sage’s apprentices. A group made up of fifty individuals.

“Is… Is that what this meeting you had was about?” Torm asked.

“Yes.”

“What did they say?”

Hanzel smiled again, it was even more unsettling than last time.

“Soon.”

By the time Felix stepped out of the barn it was late evening. Well rested, he started making his way down a small path that joined the main road of the village. Over his shoulder was the important bag…

The village of Bernel was alive with elves returning home from their work. Many stopped and gave him a friendly wave, though some did their best to avoid him at all costs…

Hopefully that will change, Felix thought, returning a wave to yet another elf. At least not all of them are like that.

With the evening sun slowly setting in the distance, he worried about finding his destination. He needn’t have. The building he was looking for was one of the biggest in town, perhaps on par with the Chief’s home.

Easily finding it, Felix came to a stop before its double doors. The Setting Sun, read a sign above them.

So this is the tavern? He examined the building a moment longer. During the celebrations, he’d spent most of his time outside. The tavern hadn’t even registered to him then…

The tavern itself was, like most of the village, a wooden structure. Only it had a faded and worn out look to it, as if it had been standing here for a long, long time. Outside of that, however, very little actually stood out. There were no decorations, save for its sign.

Its name is kind of fitting…

Stepping up closer, Felix could make out a heated discussion taking place inside. From what he understood, Aluin had gathered all the various tribal leaders and brought them here.

With a deep breath, and a final check of his bag, he threw open the doors and stepped into the tavern.

All shouting stopped.

The first thing he noticed was a large gathering of elves, all sitting or standing by several tables pushed together. At the closest end towards himself was Aluin. Sitting to the Sage’s left was Chief Yorlen. Both elves looked frustrated.

Felix glossed over most of the other elves until his eyes met another familiar figure. Chief Calsen, the one who had disparaged him when he first arrived. The tribal leader still had the look of disdain for him.

“Sorry I’m late,” he said, making sure the doors were closed behind him. “Zira can be a heavy sleeper…”

That got a slight smile from Aluin and Yorlen, but the others either didn’t get his joke or didn’t care. He did his best to ignore the awkward and conspiratorial stares and approached the Sage.

“You made it at the very least,” Aluin responded, gesturing to an empty seat on his right.

“That I did.” He picked up his bag and dropped it onto the table, letting it make an audible thunk as it landed. That done, Felix took his seat.

“Right,” Aluin started, taking advantage of the silence. “Now that Felix is here, I would like to offer a solution to our problem.”

That only increased the amount of people watching him.

“You see, Felix has come to the village to ask for help in building a new structure within the grounds of the Dragon Queen’s manor. Now, with summer coming to an end and autumn approaching, he has come at a rather inopportune time.”

Felix could hear a few elves muttering, wondering where this was all going…

“While construction of this new building could wait until after winter, both Chief Yorlen and I have come to another conclusion.” The Sage paused, waiting until he had everyone’s attention.

“We shall use this as an opportunity to test our candidates. Felix has also stated that he will pay all those who help upon completion of this new building. As for what he is offering as payment, I shall let him speak for himself.”

As Aluin finished, Felix stood up and awkwardly adjusted his clothes. “Thank you, Al– Master Aluin. However, before I go into detail…” He reached for his bag and opened–

Felix dumped its contents onto the table.

Gasps sounded from all around while many of the elves took on a pale look that reminded him of Yedril.

He continued, “I have already made a generous donation to Chief Yorlen and his village. I am extending my gift to all of you, free of any obligations. Each tribe will receive ten dragon scales. What you do with them or how you distribute them, is up to you.”

Felix glanced down at the large pile of scales, all of different colors and shapes. It really does pay to have a dragon.

He felt a mental snort come from Zira across their bond.

Ignoring her, he turned his attention back to the tribal leaders. “Now with that out of the way, let me explain my plans…”

***

How did it go? Zira asked as Felix walked back into the barn.

He let out a groan. Weren’t you watching?

Not really, I got bored and then hungry. She gave him a dragon’s shrug.

Oh, I see– Wait, did you eat?

Well, I went hunting… Zira trailed off, not wanting to finish her sentence.

Did… You know what, I don’t want to know. I just hope it was a good meal, he said, shaking his head.

It was. Though, nothing compares to Chef’s cooking. The amethyst dragon licked her lips, much to his disgust. Now tell me, how did it go? she asked again.

He plopped down next to Zira and leaned against her side. Could have gone better… But I suppose it could have gone much, much worse.

Her wing lowered around him as she began a deep, rumbling purr. That bad? What happened?

Shifting to get a little more comfortable, Felix answered. They spent most of their time arguing. One group wanted to skip all the pomp and just select Eri as the next queen. Another group thought it all was a waste of time, and that they don’t need another queen. But then there was the last group…

Felix took a moment, slowly unwinding. The last group were the ones that wanted to pick their own candidates. That one asshole, Calsen, managed to get his daughter put into the running. Though, he didn’t get it all his way. Another candidate was selected, apparently one they believed would be more neutral.

Neutral? Zira asked.

Yeah, despite my best intentions, there were several Chiefs who weren’t happy about me being here. Not just at their meeting, but in the Endless Forest period. They think Aluin made a mistake.

He let out a sad chuckle. Of course, only Calsen would speak out. And enough rallied behind him to push his daughter into the running. Thankfully, at least how I see it, there were enough who didn’t like him but didn’t want Eri either. Those Chiefs chose to support a third candidate.

Zira waited until he finished, but it was clear that she didn’t like any of that. Maybe I should have gone. Let them tell me what they think, and I will tell them why they are wrong.

Felix reached out and patted her side. It wasn’t all bad… Aluin did get them to eventually agree to make me judge. Personally, though, I think enough people were getting fed up with Chief Calsen and either just wanted to end the conversation or make him mad.

That’s good, she said after a moment of calming down. Did they agree with the proposal?

Yeah, they will send help to build our dormitory. He answered nonchalantly. However, he immediately let out a yawn.

Using her wing, Zira pulled Felix closer to her. So what happens now?

Felix laughed.

Now? We rest. Tomorrow will be busy…