The sun sends light through the thick canopy of trees, causing dappled light to dance upon the forest floor, warm and majestic, humble and serene. Haeldaris walks through the dense underbrush, his leather boots damp with the morning dew. For twenty years he has lived in the citadel upon the mountain, and for as many … Read More “Dawnbringer Epilogue” »
The spring sun shines warm and full upon the face of the land, bathing the mountains and valleys, and the plains rippling away to the east, in a gentle and yet brilliant light. Peaks still capped with snow look down, as if turning a kind and gentle eye, upon the small hamlet—but a group of … Read More “Dawnbringer 4.16: Radiance and Wonder” »
“To confront the heart of darkness, now, all we have is our weakness. No longer can we wield the light as a weapon. It is the light itself, alone, far beyond ourselves, upon which we must rely for deliverance and salvation.” Saying this, Eldarien reaches out and takes Elmariyë’s hand within his own, looking at … Read More “Dawnbringer 4.15: At the Heart of Darkness” »
Were it not for the encouraging and consoling words of Hiliana, the grief may well have crushed Eldarien and Elmariyë into incapacity, but as it is they proceed on their journey after only a short rest. But this does not mean that their hearts are not grievously sorrowful and filled with lament for the terrors … Read More “Dawnbringer 4.14: Ascending into the Depths” »
Elmariyë wakes to Eldarien’s voice and to the touch of his hand upon her shoulder. In a whisper he says, “Wake up, but remain still and quiet.” As the grogginess of sleep fades away, she sits and tries to look at her brother in the darkness, but she can see nothing. The fire has burned … Read More “Dawnbringer 4.13: Mærdenási” »
Turic’s company passes along the eastern edge of the castle as he leads them, with his expert knowledge of the city, to a low side garden. It is reached through descending five tall steps and overshadowed by lattices from which, during the warm months, grow richly interlacing vines, though they are now dry and brown. … Read More “Dawnbringer 4.12: Setting Captives Free” »
As they emerge from the other side of the spillway and step into the city itself, climbing up to a wide stone platform a couple feet above the water, which serves as a harbor of small boats, they find nothing but silence and stillness. The city itself, were it not for a pervading sense of … Read More “Dawnbringer 4.11: Minstead” »
They draw near to the city of Minstead on the twelfth day after their departure from Onylandun, though they know this not through sight of the former city but because they are intercepted by survivors from the siege. The landscape to the south of the city is rocky and rough, with mountains rising both to … Read More “Dawnbringer 4.10: The Beginning of the Assault” »
When all the able-bodied fighters have been gathered in the city of Onylandun, they stand four-thousand in number. Fifteen-hundred of these are trained warriors, guardsmen and soldiers, and the rest are simply townsfolk who have volunteered to lend their arm to the cause. Bryma refuses to draft any of the men of his city unwillingly … Read More “Dawnbringer 4.9: On the Road to Conflict” »
And so the events are set in motion which all have awaited and feared, expected and desired, hoped for and yet wished to avoid. As a stone on a precipice high in the mountains is loosed and falls with nothing to stop its descent, so now begin events which shall continue to their conclusion without … Read More “Dawnbringer 4.8: The Sorrows of Farewell” »
