Chapter 3: The Forest

Saevel woke from his slumber the instant he felt Vestele stirring under his wing. He pulled it away so she wouldn't know and quietly got to his feet. The only sounds he could her were the occasional grunts and murmurs of the orcs, which we're quickly quieted. A feeling of doom permeated the air and it was obvious the orcs were afraid of something. It was almost pitch black, the only sources of light were the hundreds of torches carried by the orcs. Saevel's keen eyes picked out the indistinct shapes of tree trunks surrounding them and realized that they must have entered the forest of Lethyr. He gazed up to see if he could see the sun, but no traces of it managed to find their way through the thick curtain of branches that concealed the caravan from the open sky. Not being able to see the sky as well as being in a cage only served to further crush Saevel's spirit. He was surprised when a delicate hand brushed a tear off his cheek, and he turned to smile at Vestele.

"Did you sleep well?" he asked, "I didn't hear you get up."

"Under the conditions I slept like an angel, if you didn't hear me then it means I haven't lost my touch," she said with a smile. "Where are we and why is it so dark? I can't even see the stars…"

"We're in the forest of Lethyr, I was correct in my guess last night. The branches of the trees around us form such a tight canopy above us that it is impossible for any form of light to enter." Saevel replied.

"I'm… afraid of the dark…" Vestele whispered.

Saevel glanced around checking where the nearest orcs were before furtively reaching into his robes and grabbing a piece of phosphorescent moss from a secret pocket. He then knelt down, whispered a few words, and touched a piece of straw, causing it to flare with light. He quickly covered it with the hem of his robes before gesturing to Vestele to sit. Once they were crouched in front of each other with their knees touching Saevel made a small hollow and stuck the brightly glowing piece of straw in before slightly covering it up.

"I thought you couldn't use magic without your spellbook," Vestele remarked in confusion.

"I spent a lot of time learning to cast Light without needing to memorize it since its such a useful spell," Saevel responded. "It's the only useful spell I can do that with though."

"Thank you for caring, even this small amount of light brings me cheer and lifts the weight of the darkness off my back," Vestele said with a smile.

"I'm glad I could be helpful, to pass the time will you tell me about your home, Evermeet? I've always wanted to learn more of the fabled island of Elves."

"It's a beautiful island over eighteen hundred miles to the west of Faerun, across the Trackless Sea which no human would ever be able to sail. The entire north section of the island is a grove dedicated to the father of all Elves, Corellon Larethian. The capital city, Leuthilspar, is located on the shore of the island near the center and is the most beautiful city I have seen in my life. All the buildings are grown; none of them have been built. Crystals as tall as mighty trees are riddled with spiral passageways and glass-floored living quarters. Trees grow into citadels, linked by their branches. Soaring arches and shimmering fields of magical force support airy palaces that seem too fragile to exist even in a dream. Eternally vigilant warriors and mages in armor of gleaming glass guard the city from potential invaders. Although if those defenders actually had to fight something it would be a serious matter, Evermeet's true defense is the island fifty miles to the east, Sumbrar. The island is a series of interwoven magical fortresses each with thousands of wizard-warriors. Deep below the island, the last twelve dragons of Evermeet lie sleeping alongside their riders, waiting for a threat worthy of their tremendous power. Uninvited ships that actually manage to make it this far are sternly warned off or completely destroyed if they fail to comply. Despite all this protection we are still not completely safe from those who wish us harm. Forty-three years ago Queen Amlaruil's husband King Zaor was murdered in the heart of his palace, surrounded by all the strength and splendor of his realm. Drow, using magical portals were able to sneak into his throne room and kill him before any of his guards realized what was happening."

Saevel was so enraptured in Vestele's story he barely heard the cries of panic coming from what he assumed must be the orcs sentries.

"Did you hear that!" he shouted as he leaped to his feet and started looking for what was making the orcs scream.

Vestele got to her feet as well, and together they watched as the forest around them went crazy. Bears, wolves, and even tigers were pouring out of the darkness and slaughtering any orcs they encountered.

"That tree is moving!" Vestele shouted over the screams of dying orcs, pointing at an enormous tree that was crushing orcs with its branches.

"A treant…" Saevel whispered in surprise.

"Gyt tny vogirl ord tny phaliryhl iet ij tnal mehlyd jihylt ord tny hylt ij uie lmecbogl ltoht kassarg tny oracosl! Lyt jahy ti tny thyyl aj uie nozy ti!" the largest orc screamed.

"He's shouting to get the prisoners and the wagons out of the forest and for them to kill the animals and set fire to the trees," Saevel explained to Vestele, translating what the orc had said.

The orcs rallied to their leaders cry and started setting the forest on fire while brutally attacking the animals. When the first one was finally cut down, everyone was shocked as it blurred and suddenly was a human instead of a wolf.

"Druids!" Vestele exclaimed in shock. "They're trying to free us!"

"Um… I don't think so…" Saevel remarked as a huge pillar of flame engulfed one of the wagons. "That was one of the druids casting Flame Strike, I think they just want to kill all the trespassers."

The battle raged on and slowly passed behind them as the orcs drove the oxen away from the battle and further to the south. As the sound and smell of the battle faded away Vestele collapsed to the floor of the cage and started crying.

"I was so sure we were going to escape," she sobbed. "And all those poor people and trees were killed by these stupid orcs! Why are there so many races devoted to killing and torture!" she sobbed.

Not knowing what to do Saevel went down on his knees and wrapped his arms around Vestele, trying to comfort her. They sat like that for a while until a brilliant beam of sunlight suddenly shattered the darkness. The two of them looked out the bars of their cage and saw that they had left the forest and were now in a wide-open grassland. The sun was nearing the horizon, making the fields of grass look as if they were on fire. The orcs hurriedly set up camp before forming a steel wall around the wagons and preparing for anything to charge out of the forest.

After two hours nothing had emerged, neither orcs nor druids, and Saevel figured they all must have perished. He too wished the druids had been there to rescue them, but the spells directed at the wagons told him it was just an attempt to destroy intruders. The two caged elves went to sleep next to each other for the second night, each wondering how much longer until they managed to get out, and what would happen once they did.

A/N: Oops… I went a little crazy on the description of Evermeet. I hope your enjoying the fic so far, I'm planning on introducing a new char in the next chapter and Saevel and Vestele should manage to escape by then.