An Ancient Truth
Copyright© 2026 by Asa Strong
Chapter 18
It was several days before I heard from Gait. Early this morning, one of his scouts arrived in camp. The young elf immediately came to report to me.
“Sire, the Gods have blessed us. We have found a haven.”
I looked up from my breakfast plate, and then answered, “It is good that the Gods have helped us, but can you elaborate a bit more?”
The young elf blushed, and I’m sure he was embarrassed as well. He did manage to calm himself down enough to answer. “We found a great city, deep in the mountains. It is somewhat in disarray, but appears to be strong enough to house all of us. Some of the dwarfs that are with us believe it may have been built by their kind, a very long time ago — something to do with the masonry.”
Tag’ar must have seen the young elf ride into camp, as I heard him ask, from behind where I was sitting. “And, young elf, how far is this place from here?”
Again the elf turned red, but managed to answer, “Sire, it took me two days by horseback to get here. It probably will take at least five or so for those on foot to make the trip.”
The elf then glanced around the clearing, and realized there were many women and children that would be traveling as well.
“Maybe a few days longer,” he added.
“What are you called?” I asked.
“I am named Teisa, sire.”
I gave him a smile and said, “Teisa, you have done well. Later today, be prepared to give us a more detailed report of this place, and how to get there. Right now, find something to eat and rest.”
I could see that my words gave the young elf a sense of pride. He stood straight and tall, gave me a formal bow, and then said, “Thank you, sire.”
“No, thank you,” I managed to reply as he turned and departed.
Tag’ar strode across the fire pit and took a seat on the log opposite me. As he reached for the teapot, I asked, “Have you ever heard of a dwarf city or hamlet in the mountains, like Teisa describes?”
Tag’ar poured a cup of tea and then answered, “Donta, there are many old legends that speak of such a place. But, to my knowledge, that is all they are: legends.”
I nodded, stood, and flushed the dregs from my teacup into the fire. “Well, time will tell if we have found one of your legends or not.”
Tag’ar’s only response was a grunt. I managed not to chuckle as I left to find Torg and Saraid. Finding Dan’ar was not at issue; I could hear him bellowing on the far side of the camp as I walked away from Tag’ar.
I was finally able to gather all three for a short meeting. I passed on the information about finding a haven. It was well received, for where we were now located could not be defended. All were at risk while we stayed here.
My main concern and the reason for my seeking them out was to find out an assessment of our food situation. It was getting late in the year, and soon the snows would come. By that time, we would need to have enough to feed us all.
Torg and Saraid both had been keeping track of what was brought in and also making sure that we made the best use of what we had. No one was about to argue with Torg, so there had been little problem with smoking or curing the meat our hunters found. Saraid had taken upon herself the task of working with the elves to gather and store vegetables, root crops, berries, and other eatables. I was very satisfied to hear that both thought we would have more than enough to make it through the winter.
When I asked Dan’ar how soon we would be able to move the camp, he stated that he would need a day’s notice to make sure all was ready to travel. This was good news as well. I wanted to leave this clearing as soon as possible.
“Then consider this your notice, we will depart for the mountains in two days.”
Dan’ar nodded, Torg grinned, and the smile on Saraid’s face told all that she would be more than happy to be back with her husband.
The trek into the eastern wilderness was difficult, particularly on the children. Often the path we followed was steep and narrow; the going was so difficult at times that the horses had to be led. But we persisted, and slowly but surely, we made our way through the torn and tortured ground that lay in the low mountains.
“Donta, I can’t imagine what would have caused all of this destruction.”
I turned in my saddle to find Saraid behind me.
“Yes, I know. Gait and I crossed the mountains further south from here, but it was the same. It is as if the earth itself gave way in some spots and grew in others.”
I looked back at the wandering line behind me. Through the small valley, across the rift of open earth, and down into a ravine they came. Like a great snake working its way, it slowly moved. This was the first time I’d had the chance to get an idea of just how many of us there were. Ahead of me was a scouting party of a couple of dozen elves and dwarfs. The rest of our group was behind me, and I could see that we had many thousands with us. Man, elf, and dwarf walked the trail below me. Somehow, this was comforting for me. I didn’t understand why, but it had a significance I couldn’t quite understand.
“You going to sit there and gawk all afternoon?”
I shook myself out of my reverie and, with a sheepish grin, answered Saraid, “I’m afraid my mind was wandering a bit. Let’s get moving.” With that said, I nudged my mount forward and up the trail.
On the afternoon of the seventh day of our travels from where we had been camped in the glen, we crossed a mountain ridge. Below, in a long and narrow valley, was our haven. Even from this distance, I could see that at one time, this had been a large and thriving area. From this height, you could still make out the faint outlines of where stone fences stood between fields but had long ago tumbled down. It was difficult to gauge the condition of the small city that sat in the middle of the valley. From where I sat on my horse, it looked to be in reasonable shape. Anxious to get a closer look, I nudged my horse forward.
It was stone quiet as we entered the outskirts of the small city. The echo of our horses’ hooves on the uneven cobblestone and their labored breathing provided the only sound.
Tag’ar led and kept the pace slow and even. All the while, he was looking closely at the construction of the buildings as we passed. In a small square, he halted and dismounted.
After he was off his horse, he motioned for me to dismount as well. I did so, and quickly made my way to where he was standing, next to a tumbled-down well.