Noah wondered how much wisdom it would take before he considered the consequences of his actions on the front end. This thought came to him as he stared out at apparently over a thousand waiting elves, with little idea of what came next. It was only then that he remembered the original purpose for his trek to the elven city. Kyle. His eyes went wide as he considered his own oversight. The people most likely to know his location were dead, and as he looked out over the crowd, he could only hope that others were entrusted with the care of their hostage. He found that a certain clarity often came in these moments as thoughts of decorum were thrown out the proverbial window. He moved forward on the table, signaling that he was about to speak.

  “I am sure that this has been a rather overwhelming day for many of you. In a moment, you will be free to return to your homes and come to grips with the new life ahead of you. Before that however, I came here in part to free a captive human boy that was taken some time ago. If you know his whereabouts, please stay for a moment so that we may speak. Everyone else, I ask that you take the next few days to meet and appoint leaders amongst yourselves whom you trust to represent your interests well. As I am unaware of your culture and factions, I will leave it to you to determine how many representatives are needed to fill this role adequately. I will meet with those leaders three days from now at the same time and place. That is all.” Noah finished.

  The crowd dispersed quickly after that, and his companions joined him as they waited for any news of Kyle’s location. As the grounds cleared, a few elves remained behind, each making their way toward Noah. One member of the group suddenly broke into a sprint, directly toward his position. The elf was clothed in the same greens that many of the elves favored but seemed different than the rest. Noah braced himself for a fight on instinct but suddenly stopped as recognition set it.

  “Kyle!” Noah shouted, running to meet the young man.

  “Noah! I knew you had to be the reason for all of this!” Kyle said as he threw his arms around Noah. Noah laughed, relief settling in. After their embrace, he held Kyle at arms length and examined him for any sign of injury.

  “You look… Well,” Noah admitted. Kyle nodded emphatically.

  “I am. At first, I thought it was weird when my sister ordered that I go train with the elves, but now I’m so glad I did! Did you know that they are experts in the bow? I even learned a bit of magic!” Kyle exclaimed. Noah’s smile grew as he saw him in such high spirits, it seemed that his worst fears were never realized.

  “King Noah, I assure you that no harm came to Kyle in our care.” The voice came from one of the two remaining elves that had closed the distance. The couple, as it seemed, were among the oldest elves that he had seen in the crowd. A quality that seemed rare amongst the gathered elves.

  “Ah please just call me Noah,” he said, holding up his hands. “Were you the ones responsible for him in his stay?” This time, the woman spoke.

  “That is right, Noah. Kyle has been with us since his first day in the city. We were ordered to train him in our ways, and especially in illusion magics. After learning of his propensity toward the bow, however, we felt compelled to share some of our insights, even if we could not pick up the weapon ourselves.” She explained. Noah let out a breath.

  Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

  “What are your names? I am very grateful for your care of Kyle.” Noah asked.

  “My name is Melody, and my husband is Saban. As elders, it is only fitting for us to teach the young. It has been quite enjoyable and insightful to spend this time with Kyle.” Melody said, her eyes crinkling at the corners.

  “Noah, I am ashamed of the actions of my people and our own inactions.” Noah began to protest, but Saban raised a hand.

  “As an elder, I bear the responsibility of my people, it was my duty to keep the king in check. It is not right to leave this task to the younger generation, much less a foreigner. So I thank you, Noah, for carrying this weight on your shoulders. Please consider forgiving my people for the error of the few.” Saban pleaded. Noah took a long breath and nodded.

  “I have seen my own people do things I am not proud of and fail to do what is necessary. I will not hold this against the elves. If for nothing else, we will need your strength in the times to come.” Noah responded. Saban looked deeply into Noah’s eyes, longer than would have been comfortable in human circles. Feeling the weight of the moment, Noah held his gaze. After a few moments had passed, Saban smiled lightly before turning to Kyle and repeating the gesture. Noah turned to a smiling Melody.

  “I want you to know that you can count on us in your times of need. This is not your burden to carry alone.” she said, staring intently into his eyes for a long moment before following Saban toward their home. Noah found it hard to place the feeling that had welled within him as the couple spoke. Or perhaps he struggled to accept what he already recognized. He had felt that feeling before, talking with the woman in his dreams, in rare moments with his sister, and perhaps a time or two with his parents.

  “I really am thankful for my time here.” Kyle said, interrupting his thoughts. Noah turned to him and smiled, the residual warmth in his chest making the expression easy to come by.

  “I can see why,” Noah replied, wrapping his arm around Kyle’s shoulders. “You know that your sister didn’t actually send you here to train, right?” Kyle nodded.

  “I do. Saban and Melody talked to me about it after the oath was lifted. I guess that means we won’t be able to stay for long.” He thought aloud.

  “That’s probably for the best, she is eager to see you again. I am also willing to bet that she would be happy to meet the couple that took care of you while you were gone though.” Noah replied. Kyle smiled at that.

  “You’re right, I will go ask them to come back with us.” Kyle said, leaving before Noah had a chance to respond. Ta’Ku walked up to Noah as the last of their guests left.

  “Is it okay to let him go off alone?” He asked. Noah shrugged.

  “From what I understand, he might be one of the stronger people here. Now that Balkendar’s illusions are gone he should be safe enough. We will have to train him to use his domain, though.” Noah mused. Recter chuckled.

  “I think we should take him with us when we return. He has the makings of a warrior.” Recter added. Noah laughed.

  “I agree completely. He wanted to join me when I first left up the mountain, but felt responsible to watch over his sister. Perhaps this time we can talk the pair of them into joining.” Noah considered. His thoughts turned to the future as he looked out over the empty fields. So much had changed since the day started. Enemies had become friends, and his kingdom had taken a huge step forward in its advancement. Now he had decisions to make. Would it be best to bring the elves up the mountain? He struck that idea down. If any of them survived the trek at their level, they would have wasted most of the year on the journey. No, time was their most limiting factor. They needed to move quickly and expand the kingdom now. If he wanted to get to Bronze, then they would need a serious marketing campaign to find all of the willing people, not to mention the infrastructure they would need to sustain the increased population. He also couldn’t ignore the growing threat from the beasts. Sooner or later, their armies would march, and they would need to be ready.