Free Lorik The Defender (The Lorik Trilogy) by Toby Neighbors

exerting himself without limits.  He could run with Stone or fight with his volunteers, but in both cases he had to keep himself in check, allowing the others to stay with him even though he was capable of so much more.
    His jog soon turned into a hard run.  The tree trunks were nothing more than dark shadows and the gloom of the forest was fading into total blackness.  Then the mist rose up, ghostly and somehow luminescent.  It swirled and flowed between the massive trees.  For anyone else, the mist was a complete mystery, but for Lorik the mist beckoned him deeper into the forest.  It was like a road map through the darkness and he followed it without hesitation.
    He ran for almost four hours, covering more distance than a strong horse could travel in an entire day.  He still hadn't gone far enough to reach the massive King Tree at the center of the forest, but he reached his goal.
    He came to a stop, his heart beating steadily and his muscles humming from the run, but he wasn't tired.  In fact, the long run had only seemed to energize Lorik.  He looked up and in the darkness saw an innocent looking face staring down at him.  It was the face of a child, but the eyes held the wisdom of the ancients.
    "I've come to see Hennick," Lorik explained.
    "We know," the elf said.  "Come, I will take you to him, tall one."
    A vine descended and Lorik wrapped his arm around it and put one foot into the small loop at the end.  Suddenly he was rising up through the air, the mist swirling below him.  Before Lorik knew it, he was in the tree's canopy.  The vine stopped moving and Lorik stepped onto a thick limb that was wide enough that a horse could have walked along it without fear of falling off.  There were several figures waiting for him on the wide limb.  The Drery Dru were small, hardly bigger than toddlers, and each had a look of joyful anticipation as they waited for Lorik.  One of the group stepped forward.
    "It is good to see you again, tall one," said the elf.
    "Shayah," Lorik said happily.  "Thank you for meeting me."
    "It is our pleasure," Shayah said.  "It is not often that the King of the tall folk honor us here in Erkadine."
    "This was the first Drery Dru village I ever saw.  It has a special place in my heart."
    "It is not as grand as the King Tree, but it is our home," Shayah said.  "Come, Hennick is here.  I will take you to him."
    Lorik heard the singsong voices of the elves speaking in their native language behind him.  It was almost impossible to tell the difference between their voices and their giggles.  The Drery Dru lived in a world that was so much different than his own, yet he felt at home among them.  He was different, yet he was accepted as one of their own.  Their magic had changed him and it flowed through him now.  He was taller than most men, broader and stronger, his muscles thick and powerful, his stamina almost without limit.  They were small, fragile looking people, but they possessed amazing abilities and lived much longer lives that humans.
    Shayah led Lorik into the heart of the tree, which was hollow.  There were homes and shops carved into the wood to form a circular city that rose up higher and higher into the canopy.  Most of the structures of the village were too small for Lorik, but some were large enough.  Shayah took Lorik into what seemed like a feasting hall.  It was a long curving room, with a high roof.  Hennick waited by one of the many windows.  Fire was strictly forbidden by the Drery Dru, and instead they used a brightly glowing moss to light their village at night.  The moss grew in spectacular designs along the smooth wood of the village structures.  The light it exuded was soft, but bright, much like candlelight.
    "Ah, Lorik, you are well met, my friend," said Hennick, who looked like a chubby toddler except for his eyes.  There was a timeless look in his eyes.  His face was angelic and full of innocence, but his eyes revealed a person who was