The Girl with an Owl

Chapter 54

They were in such a hurry to reach the War Council that Ajana wasn't sure how they got there. If she had been asked to retrace their steps, she was sure she wouldn't be able to do so.

Still, they found themselves in a huge, bright space filled with flowers and sunshine. Ajana found it ironic that something as terrible as a War Council, would be held in such a lovely place.

"You didn't miss anything, don't worry. We were just getting started." Wallace said as he perched himself on Ajana's shoulder.

Soon enough, they were joined by Bluebells and Rex, who was precariously balanced on Bluebells' back.

"What happens now?" Ajana asked.

"I don't know. My brothers didn't know what exactly the War Council shall discuss, except, obviously, war." Kieran said.

"Patience, younglings," Wallace said

"You know, don't you?" Ajana asked.

"Of course. After all, I am one of the organizers of everything," Wallace said.

"Your father and I have made all the arrangements," Wallace told Kieran.

"Dear friends and family members," Mailliw started saying.

All the noise in the room quieted down immediately. Complete silence was offered as a sign of utmost respect for their royal leader.

"This war has lasted for generations.

Our beautiful world is saturated with blood and pain. We have all lost someone in the endlessness of this war.

However, I am here to tell you that it all ends now!

It's time for us to reclaim our land, our lives, the goodness of the elves of the past, or die trying." Mailliw said.

From the fascinated expressions on the faces of the elves, Ajana could see that the speech was inspiring, something they had waited to hear for a long time.

For them, being in the limbo between existing and being their true selves, was a fate worse than death. Their spirits were liberated by Mailliw's speech.

The energy buzzing around them was that of excitement and anticipation, not for bloodshed, but for the freedom gained.

They were ready to be free or perish so that others could gain the freedom they all cherished. They were ready to embrace the freedom of death so that others could have the freedom of living.

Ajana, however, was horrified.

In her young life, she had never been that close to the ugly face of war, and it was terrifying.

Her hands were shaking, and she did her best to stop her teeth from chattering.

The whole idea was such a distant concept to her that now that she was one step away from it, she was lost. Her mind was scattered, and she kept worrying about unimportant things.

It was a good distraction to stop her from thinking about the fact that some beings in that very room might not come back.

It could be anyone, Mailliw, Kieran, Wallace, even someone as innocent as Rex and Bluebells.

"To aid us in our quest for freedom and well-being, my friend Wallace has brought some reinforcements, despite the refusal of his world to officially lend a helping hand.

Wallace, would you please take over?" Mailliw asked.

"Thank you. As you are all aware, inhabitants of Mag are terrified of elves, and I must respect their wishes." Wallace said.

There was a loud noise of disapproval at those words, but it soon died down after one harsh look from Mailliw.

"However, I have reached a few of my friends, whom I felt would be ready to help out, on their own accord, not as official representatives of Mag," Wallace said.

As he said that he waved with one of his wings, and a small shimmering portal appeared.

Ajana was the only one shocked by its appearance since she was unaware that new portals could be created.

On the other hand, there was a lot she didn't know. Instead of panicking, she took everything in stride.

A sizable group of beings came out of the portal. The group was much bigger than anticipated. The helpful nature of some of the people in Mag was undamaged by what had happened in the past.

Some of the beings that arrived very familiar to Ajana as they turned out to be her teachers. Even Zephyr was among them waving at her as if it was just a social visit, not a call to war and scowling at Rex and Bluebells for running away.

It was obvious that not even the threat of war could change Zephyr's cheerful personality and friendly demeanor.

Ajana's teacher Wickedmartine Grangtthews was there as well, standing to the side as if she was there just to fight, not to chitchat and exchange pleasantries.

Seeing Ruby Fireborn, her witch teacher, and her assistant Abelard the troll, made Ajana feel much better.

She liked them and was sure that if her magic gave her any trouble, she could ask Ruby for help.

"Alright. What's with all these pleasantries? When does the fighting start?" Adahy, the wood nymph teacher, asked.

It was obvious that Wallace loved Adahy's bluntness, but he also knew they couldn't just rush to war with no preparation.

"Alright. That's almost everyone.

Dino will be joining us during the battle since I can't make a portal big enough for a dragon. He will go through the Inbetween and meet us on the battlefield.

Having a dragon on our side should help immensely." Wallace said.

There was a murmur of approval, and the elves sprites lifted.

Ajana assumed that, for the first time, they started believing that they might win.

She wanted them to win, but she couldn't help but wonder how high the price of victory would be. How many families would have to mourn a loss?

It was her biggest wish to be able to win without any causalities, on any side, but that wasn't in the nature of war.

War was a hungry animal that needed constant feeding until there was nothing left but empty homes and broken hearts.

It was obvious that a diplomatic solution was not a possibility, but Ajana wished that there was some way to stop or trap the Dark Elves without murdering them.

After all, they were once the same as the Light Elves, maybe there was still hope for them to change their vicious ways.

It was her dream to win without a fight, which she knew was an impossibility.

The best quality in a healer was the wish never to have to use their powers.

That would mean that everyone was well, that no one was in pain, which was all a true healer needed to be happy, what Ajana needed to be happy.

Still, Ajana decided to accept the inevitable and try to help as much as she could without killing anyone. Her soul was nowhere near ready for something as violent as that.

"Now that we are all here, let us discuss strategy," Mailliw said.

Then they dived into the strategic aspect of what needed to be done, which made the War Council meeting a very long one.