Chapter Nine
The Blade of the Righteous
We stood a craggy cliff, overlooking the sea. Flashes of sunset bounced off the water’s surface far below, turning everything the color of honey.
I nudged Emma’s arm. “Look.”
“That’s not the king’s castle,” she said. “It’s a house.”
“But if you look close you’ll notice it’s surrounded by green grass and lush trees,” I said.
Her eyes lit up. “You’re right.”
“Hmm,” Cotton said, stroking his long beard. “It’s beautiful. But it wasn’t on the map. I don’t trust it. It’s probably a trick. One of the wizard’s snare. He wants to lure us in and then hang us up by our thumbnails from one of the tree branches.”
“Trick?” I repeated. “What kind of trick?”
“I haven’t figured that out yet.”
I heard the unmistakable …show more content…
“What are you waiting for?” He handed me a bowl. “Dig in.” He sat down across from me. At his side hung a sword so massive it made Cotton’s jade pendant tremble on his chain. Breathing heavily, the elf hoisted it onto the coffee table. “I thought you might need this.”
I picked it up and examined the writing on the blue blade. “Thank you, Link.”
“You won’t be able to read it. The inscription is written in Elfish, but it basically translates to, ‘The blade of righteousness.’ Underneath that there is a warning to others which reads, ‘Always tread cautiously on untainted souls.’”
“Good to know.”
“The sword is blue bronze. Forged by the elves, tempered in the heart of Shadow Mountain, cooled in the kingdom’s rivers. It’s so hard and sharp it’ll cut through steel.”
“Okay, that’s extremely cool,” I admitted.
A fairy flew in through the open door, circled around twice, and landed on the arm of my chair. “That’s a fine blade. It’s deadly to monsters and any other creature from the Forbidden Forest, provided they don’t kill you first.” She giggled and flew away.
Cotton stared at the wickedly sharp blade. “Be careful with that thing, Aiden.” He turned to Link. “You have a nice place …show more content…
That’s what I want. Long ago I protected the kingdom,” he said, and his voice trembled with fury. “Now I’m relegated to this little plot of land, and I’ll die before I let them take it from me.”
“You shouldn’t get too worked up, Link,” Cotton cautioned. Then he rubbed his belly and licked the drool from his lips. “And by the way, you certainly out did yourself. That sour porridge was the best I’ve ever had.”
“Thank you, Cotton. I’m sure you all must be exhausted after your journey.”
“No, we’re fine, really,” Emma said, stifling a yawn.
“I’ll hear none of that. Follow me.” He led us down a long hallway, past a small kitchen that was crowded with all sorts of strange gizmos and gadgets. Then he staggered for a moment and turned sharply to the right, into a light blue bedroom lined from floor to ceiling with pictures of different types of birch trees. Against the walls were dozens of green cots.
“You never know when a friend might stop by,” he explained and seemed a little embarrassed by the clutter.
Cotton laughed. “You have enough beds here for a whole battalion.”
Link nodded. “Probably so.”
I walked over to one of the cots, which appeared relatively comfortable, set my sword down, said, “Good night,” and without even meaning to, I fell
The Blade of the Righteous
We stood a craggy cliff, overlooking the sea. Flashes of sunset bounced off the water’s surface far below, turning everything the color of honey.
I nudged Emma’s arm. “Look.”
“That’s not the king’s castle,” she said. “It’s a house.”
“But if you look close you’ll notice it’s surrounded by green grass and lush trees,” I said.
Her eyes lit up. “You’re right.”
“Hmm,” Cotton said, stroking his long beard. “It’s beautiful. But it wasn’t on the map. I don’t trust it. It’s probably a trick. One of the wizard’s snare. He wants to lure us in and then hang us up by our thumbnails from one of the tree branches.”
“Trick?” I repeated. “What kind of trick?”
“I haven’t figured that out yet.”
I heard the unmistakable …show more content…
“What are you waiting for?” He handed me a bowl. “Dig in.” He sat down across from me. At his side hung a sword so massive it made Cotton’s jade pendant tremble on his chain. Breathing heavily, the elf hoisted it onto the coffee table. “I thought you might need this.”
I picked it up and examined the writing on the blue blade. “Thank you, Link.”
“You won’t be able to read it. The inscription is written in Elfish, but it basically translates to, ‘The blade of righteousness.’ Underneath that there is a warning to others which reads, ‘Always tread cautiously on untainted souls.’”
“Good to know.”
“The sword is blue bronze. Forged by the elves, tempered in the heart of Shadow Mountain, cooled in the kingdom’s rivers. It’s so hard and sharp it’ll cut through steel.”
“Okay, that’s extremely cool,” I admitted.
A fairy flew in through the open door, circled around twice, and landed on the arm of my chair. “That’s a fine blade. It’s deadly to monsters and any other creature from the Forbidden Forest, provided they don’t kill you first.” She giggled and flew away.
Cotton stared at the wickedly sharp blade. “Be careful with that thing, Aiden.” He turned to Link. “You have a nice place …show more content…
That’s what I want. Long ago I protected the kingdom,” he said, and his voice trembled with fury. “Now I’m relegated to this little plot of land, and I’ll die before I let them take it from me.”
“You shouldn’t get too worked up, Link,” Cotton cautioned. Then he rubbed his belly and licked the drool from his lips. “And by the way, you certainly out did yourself. That sour porridge was the best I’ve ever had.”
“Thank you, Cotton. I’m sure you all must be exhausted after your journey.”
“No, we’re fine, really,” Emma said, stifling a yawn.
“I’ll hear none of that. Follow me.” He led us down a long hallway, past a small kitchen that was crowded with all sorts of strange gizmos and gadgets. Then he staggered for a moment and turned sharply to the right, into a light blue bedroom lined from floor to ceiling with pictures of different types of birch trees. Against the walls were dozens of green cots.
“You never know when a friend might stop by,” he explained and seemed a little embarrassed by the clutter.
Cotton laughed. “You have enough beds here for a whole battalion.”
Link nodded. “Probably so.”
I walked over to one of the cots, which appeared relatively comfortable, set my sword down, said, “Good night,” and without even meaning to, I fell