Free Forever Knight (The Champion Chronicles Book 3) by Brad Clark Page B

simply gave a nod to accept the apology.  “The king would be displeased if he knew of the conversation.  To defy him would not be wise.”
    “My mind will not be swayed,” Glaerion said calmly.  “The king sits upon his throne in the center of a dark chamber half a world away.  He has entrusted me to carry out this duty, and with that comes the responsibility for making decisions that will protect our people.  Mankind is a threat, and I must do all I can to eliminate that threat.  If I were to leave that threat alone and return back home, it would be late spring by the time we could return.  That may be too late.  We need to be prepared to act now.”
    Janari nodded towards the bow of the ship.  “There she is.  You can just see her at the edge of the horizon.  The land of Man.  The great new star is back high in the sky and it will guide us to our destination.  If it is to a city, then I will moor my ship in their harbor or at their docks.  If it is to an empty beach, then I will weigh anchor and I will leave you there.  The king has entrusted you with this task, so I will defer judgement to you.  But I will not risk my ship or my crew.  You will be on your own.”
    Glaerion nodded his head in agreement.  “That is fair.”  He turned and looked up at the mysterious bright star in the sky.  “We will let this star guide our fates.  It is has brought us here, so we will see how far it takes us.”
    The ship cut through the water swiftly, riding over small, choppy waves.  Gone were the deep swells of the sea now that they were in the Gulf of Taran.  The elves had no name for this body of water, nor did they know the human name of the land they were approaching.  Their original homelands were far to the west across another large body of water.  The lands to the north had always been an unknown.  Fishermen such as Captain Janari had traveled far from their home, but never as far north as the continent Man had named Krania.  The excitement of a new land brought all the sailors to the top deck and even those that had nothing to do found something to keep themselves busy.
    The clouds stayed away, allowing the sun to warm them despite the cold air of winter.  With the wind still at their backs, they did not feel any wind, allowing them to feel even warmer.  The thick wool cloaks and shirts were tossed aside as the sailors climbed ropes to trim the sails or scrubbed the decks clean of the salt of the sea.  But one eye was always on the ever growing land on the horizon.
    With excruciating slowness, the land of Man came close.  With no clouds to hide their guiding star, Captain Janari kept the bow of his ship directly on course with the star, which was now just a small point of light in the brightness of the day.  The winter sun crossed the sky behind them, keeping their backs warm and their eyes free to see ahead of them.  At first all they could discern was a long stretch of grey shadows on the horizon.  As they neared the coast, the land played out before them, stretching to either horizon from east to west.  One of the lookouts who had climbed to the top of the main mast had called down that he could see land to the east, just at the limit of his sight.  But there was only open water to the west.  He was also the first to see the city, not directly underneath the star, but just a degree or two off to the left.  Janari adjusted the tiller to head directly towards it.
    The coastal land was mostly flat, so there was little to see.  With the lack of an extensive forest or towering cliffs, Glaerion considered the land of man pretty benign.  But he found the city quite interesting.  He could see tall buildings that were made from stone and brick that were two or three stories tall.  There were many buildings, more than he would have expected.  A long pier stretched out into the water, but there were not any boats or ships tied to it.  Two ships, their masts bare, sat anchored off to