Free The Chronicles of Lumineia: Book 02 - The Gathering by Ben Hale

army. I suspect you will figure out their tactics from that.”
    Braon shrugged
and nodded, conceding the point. “What else can you tell me?”
    “Let’s start
at the beginning, shall we?” Sirfalas answered and led the young man into an
enormous cavern lined with shelves. Scrolls and parchments were organized and stacked
into every available space in shelves that towered to the ceiling.
    Braon looked
around in wonder and squinted into the distance where he couldn’t see the back
wall. “I had no idea you had so many records.”
    The ancient
historian chuckled until he coughed again. “This is one of three archives, but
it is the oldest. We will have to go to the back to find what we need.”
    Braon followed
the old elf into a maze of bookshelves. After several minutes they reached the
back wall and Sirfalas turned to follow it until he came to a cracked archway
in the stone. Through the doorway they came to a small room, with a single
bookshelf on the wall and a desk on the opposite side.
    “These are all
of the records that mention Draeken. I have collected them throughout my time
here.” He shook his head. “I thought I was just satisfying my curiosity about
what drove the elves to migrate, but now I know it was for you.”
    “Wait,” Braon
said, raising his hand, “I thought no one knew who forced the elves west.”
    Sirfalas
smiled a sad smile. “I believe it was Draeken ten thousand years ago, but when
I shared it with the high council they thought there was insufficient
evidence.”
     “Why don’t
you start at the beginning and tell me everything you know.”
    Sirfalas
nodded and pointed to a wooden chair. “This might take a while. There is quite
a bit of material beyond the descriptions I sent with the messengers,” he
wheezed and pulled on a small rope hanging from the ceiling. A distant bell
chimed in response and he sat down across from Braon. “They will bring us food
and drink. The juice will combat the dust.” As if on cue the ancient elf
coughed again.
    Waiting for
Sirfalas to finish, Braon said, “Tell me what you have learned.”
    He nodded and
sighed. “Forgive me if I repeat things you already know. I tend to do that
these days.” He chuckled, gathering his thoughts. “In truth, there is little we
know of Draeken. Most believe that Draeken was a demigod of sorts, and many
called him the God of Chaos. The legend tells that his meddling into the races
of Lumineia caused too much havoc for Ero. Together, the gods imprisoned him in
our world, and that is when Skorn gave him a way out. ‘If chaos reigns in the
land of light, then your chains will be no more.’ I believe it was meant to be
an eternal mockery of what Draeken desired, but they had no idea what the God
of Chaos had been planning.”
    The historian gave
a dry whispery laugh, and shook his head. "At least, that is the way the
myth tells it. With few facts, it is difficult to say otherwise, but I believe
that Draeken was just a man once. He may have even been an elf. The one thing
we know for sure is that he intended to slay every living soul in
Lumineia."
    “He’d gathered
an army,” Braon said, and Sirfalas nodded soberly.
    “It would be
more correct to say he created it, as the fiends are not natural to our world.
Comprised of four kinds, these dark creatures are each deadly. United, and with
so many, they are unstoppable.”
    “What can you
tell me of the different types?” Braon asked.
    Sirfalas stood
and searched for a scroll on the shelf. Finding it, he brought it to their table.
Unrolling it carefully, he pointed to the first drawing on the yellowing paper.
“This is a Quare, a man-sized fiend that grows a red mane. As you can see, its
fangs are like that of an animal, and it wields no weapon. Several accounts describe
the Quare as agile as panthers, and strong enough to tear men apart. They are
also the most abundant fiend, and comprise over two-thirds of the entire army.”
    Sirfalas then
moved his finger to