Bloodsword: War of the Leaf

Chapter 7: Dragon's Blood

It took the small column of soldiers almost fourteen days trudging through the jungle to reach their destination.  But what they saw at the end of their journey was enough to wipe away any trace of fatigue.

"A city!" Kora breathed as they staggered to a halt at the top of a low hill that sat on the riim of the broad flat that now stretched out before them.

"Aye, but no kind of city I've ever seen," Lax noted, peering down at the jumble of buildings that seemed to stretch to the very edges of the flat and beyond into the jungle itself.  A tall wall, crumbling in some spots but almost entirely intact surrounded the whole of it.

"That's because it's a S'ia city," Tev said as he stepped by them, seemingly untouched by either the heat and humidy, or the fifty stones of equipment and supplies he carried on his back, nearly four times what everybody else carried.  Strapped over the top of it all was the sword he found at Kuosh.

"A S'ia city?" Kora asked as she ran to catch up with the powerful human.  "How do you know?"

Tev smiled as he looked over at the short Ajanti woman.

"Trust me, I know.  You don't spend as much time around ghosts and the like without learning something about them."

Kora frowned at that answer, her mind working.

"You mentioned the S'ia back at Mar Tolvanos but didn't explain.  Nor did you say anything before that about the S'ia and all of these creatures that they seem to be sending to talk to you.  Why not, Tev?  Have we not earned your trust through the battles we've fought together?"

Tev grimaced and turned to stare straight ahead.

"It has nothing to do with trust, Kora," he replied.  "It was just something that I felt was best kept secret.  Especially in light of all the interest the prophesied Sword of Blood seems to garner.  You and the rest of the team were determined to accompany me.  And now that I've started a quest of my own to find the legendary weapon, I didn't want to bring any more danger down on your heads than absolutely necessary."

"You are questing for the Sword of Blood?"  Kora was puzzled.  "I heard you mention it before, but I thought it was in reference to that Solavar that was hunting it.  I don't understand, Tev.  The Sword of Blood is one of the oldest stories and legends belonging to the elves.  Even the Freeholders have heard of the prophecy that tells of it being used to wage the T'sar, the war to end all wars.  Yet it has always been an elvish legend.  Why would a human want it?

"While it's true the Sword of Blood will be used in the T'sar, it isn't something that's restricted in use to the elves," Tev explained as they walked over the crest of the hill and began to make their way down into the flat.  The column of Mardish soldiers stretched out in front of them, seemingly anxious to reach the ancient city.  And the city itself stretched out before them, resembling nothing more than an old graveyard with sun-bleached bones jutting out of the naked earth.

"It's something that can be used by whoever manages to find it.  And I intended to do so to protect my people from the ravages of the T'sar when it finally does descend onto Quelaezaun."

"So you hope to get the thing for the humans?" Kora asked, looking over at the big man, her even strides on the dirt road not wavering even as she struggled to match Tev's much longer ones.  The human quickly nodded in confirmation.

"At least, that's my hope."  He turned to smile at her before returning his attention to the city before them.

Again the image of a graveyard rose up in his mind.  The building themselves were the bones, burned a pale gray by the sun's heat and long years of exposure.  Around them, the gravestones in this ancient cemetery, were the tattered walls that protected each individual building.  And, over them all, like a great tomb, stood what one of the Mardish soldiers simply called the temple one night in discussion around the fire a few days ago.