Chapter 16: Katara Isle

“That is our destination, the Katara Isle,” Galen said, his white hair bound behind him and flapping in the wind while we stood on the deck of The Last Sentinel.

The ship lurched up and crashed down after a massive wave. I gripped the railing of the ship and bent my knees to withstand the sudden fall and stop. An island had come into view over the past few minutes, and the crew sailed us right toward it.

Felix and I had asked several times over the last couple hours since dawn about the next and final “test.” Galen and Iletus had simply led us to the boat. The ship was crewed by the same two elves from before, and we all now gathered on the deck – me, Felix, Iletus, and Galen. Iletus and Galen wore their long robes with belts at their waist and fine swords that hung at their hips. Felix and I were again only in our knee long breeches.

An hour into the journey across the water, we spotted the island, and Galen began speaking, finally giving the details of what we would face.

“That island?” Felix said.

Galen nodded. “It is also called the island of the Cursed One.”

“Great,” I mumbled.

“It is a smaller island and once belonged to a great and wealthy wizard,” Galen said.

I raised a brow and stood straight. Magic?

Galen turned his face into the wind. “As you know, magic is easily corrupted. But thousands of years ago, the elves celebrated those that had the power of the gods. From the records, great beings of majesty and evil also roamed this world. It was different time.”

“Dragons?” I gazed over at the island, high mountains at its center. It seemed to grow as we sailed west. The scriptures of El spoke of dragons...

Galen turned to me. “Dragons were among them, along with many creatures we only have hints of now. Much has been lost from that time, and even all the elves of that age have passed into memory. The elven wizards were great heroes at first, protecting the common people, elves, dwarves, and humans, from those threats. Over time, however, those elven magicians became twisted in their mind. Those who were the most powerful were called Worldbreakers. It is dangerous when people with great power are also insane.”

I swallowed hard and gripped the railing tight.

“A few centuries ago, the human, elven, and dwarven kingdoms made it illegal to practice magic.” Galen turned back to the west. “It has been many years since any of those with the ability have developed it, but every now and then we must hunt down an elf who attempts to learn.”