Chapter 2

The edge of 'I Bein Taurë' near the border of Northern Helenium...

Aelfric had been hiking through the woods for several days, following the clear stream along its winding path. During that time he had seen numerous woodland creatures, but so far none that would look out of place in a forest back on his world. It was for this reason he began to wonder if he really had gone to another world. Maybe that device had only created some sort of wormhole through space and time, and he wasn't really on some parallel world with Elves and Magic.

His nights had been restless, as he kept having dreams that woke him up. He was sure it was just the stress of his situation that was causing it. He'd dreamed of a beautiful blonde elfess with a bow and sword, wearing various bits of armor and riding a pure white horse. Her eyes were blue like the sky, and her hair was the color of golden wheat. Her skin was bronzed as though she spent a lot of time outdoors. Just thinking about her made his heart beat more quickly in his chest and he became short of breath. She was perfect. Just perfect.

Aelfric's imagination ran wild about her. Sometimes he saw her as a friendly confidant with a ready smile, sometimes he saw her as a passionate lover sharing his bed, and sometimes he saw her as a small inconsolable child that was weeping with great shuddering wails. The visions of her jumped between all those versions of her and the more Aelfric saw, the more he wanted to know her. He felt a sense of peace during the scenes with her smiles, and he felt aroused during the scenes of passion. However, it was the scenes of her as a young girl that most deeply affected him, pulling at his heart strings and nearly bringing him to tears when he thought of it.

As he continued to follow the stream he felt a sense of foreboding. There was nothing he could place his finger on exactly. The landscape itself seemed as peaceful as it had been. He just couldn't explain the feeling, not even to himself. He felt as though he were heading towards a car wreck, or something like it. During the day he was haunted by the feeling of dread, and at night he was visited in his dreams by an elfen angel that made him feel like he was drowning. While the dream was happening he felt he would gladly drown for her sake. Then when he awoke, her image seemed to drift away, only to be replaced by the foreboding. It was not a comfortable circumstance.

There was a small hill ahead, and the stream became a gully between to cliff faces on either side. Aelfric climbed the rather steep hill and finally he made it to the top. He bent down with his hands on his knees to rest and catch his breath. Once he'd done that for a short few moments, he straightened up and looked down the hill where he saw a small bridge. On the bridge was a majestic white horse and its rider, slowly making their way across. The rider looked up and turned her head in Aelfric's direction.

He stopped short, and his breath caught in his throat as he looked down to the bridge. She was there. It was as though she had stepped out from his dreams and took form in the material world. What was more, she was looking right at him too, as though she was only slightly surprised to see him, and he got the sense he wasn't exactly where she had expected him to be. Then, without moving at all, she called out in a clear beautiful voice, saying, "Greeting."

Artemis was very surprised, she hadn't expected to meet up with the human quite so soon. She had just reached the small bridge only a few minutes ago, and before she'd reached the other side the man was standing on the hill looking down at her. He seemed surprised himself, but certainly not hostile. She began to feel a bit uncomfortable with the way he was staring at her, and she could feel his emotions even from the hill top, once she'd noticed him up there. She sensed from him a feeling of familiarity with her.

That confused her not a little bit. It was more than just a feeling of familiarity, it was more like an infatuation. How could that possibly be? They hadn't even met before, and still weren't even properly introduced, but the feelings were clear and strong. Artemis couldn't help but blush, because his feelings were also tinged with a bit of ... lust. No, it wasn't just lust, but it was clear he desired her body as well as wanting a relationship with her.

Artemis was well practiced in knowing her own feelings from those she felt from others, and she felt from within herself that he too seemed familiar to her, but she couldn't understand how. She had never seen him before, yet looking at him, she knew there was a deep connection between them that went beyond words or explanations. She just couldn't understand what it was.

Still, she had a job to do. Carefully and watchfully, she asked one of the few words she knew of "I Kallo's" language, "Greeting" The man's eyes lit up in surprise and he called back uncertainly, "Hello, uh, greetings." Artemis guided her horse to slowly walk forward and off of the bridge, and to the side of the road. There she got off of the horse and cautiously walked towards the man. Artemis held up her hands, showing that she had no weapons in them, and then stopped.

The man slowly walked down the hill, and he too stopped a short distance away. Artemis gestured to herself repeatedly, and said, "Artemis, Artemis." The man then spoke in a language she didn't understand. The only word she had recognized was Aelfric. Was he asking to see her king? She gave him a blank look and shook her head, then again gestured to herself and repeated her name. She asked him what his name was in Elvish, "Man eneth lín?"

The man finally followed her example, and gestured towards himself and said, "Aelfric, Aelfric". Artemis eyes grew wide in shock. She finally understood that he had been saying that his name was Aelfric. The people of Helenium spoke a language called Englisc, and in their tongue 'Aelfric' meant Elf King. Very rare indeed was the human that would give their child such a name. Even the humans that were on friendly terms with the elves, as the people of Helenium were, would not give their children such a name, for various reasons.

She looked at him curiously and asked, "Pedich Edhellen?" (Do you speak Elvish?) The man just looked at her with a puzzled expression, showing clearly that he hadn't understood what she asked. Artemis knew she wasn't going to get any further with him by trying to use her own language with him. She would have to try to work things out from his language, if she could.

Suddenly, she understood what he had said before. In Englisc, he would have said, "Min Nama is Aelfric." He had said his name was Aelfric. Artemis couldn't believe her luck. She knew a spell that would allow a person that spoke Englisc to be able to understand Elvish. She knew that he wasn't speaking Englisc exactly, but it seemed close enough that the spell should work. The spell would use Artemis' own knowledge of Elvish and Englisc, and combine it with the knowledge within Aelfric's mind to fill in the gaps.

She slowly held out one hand towards him and said, "I lustfullice helpen." In Englisc, it translated, "I will help." She slowly reached towards the crystal hanging from the necklace around her neck with her other hand, and she closed her eyes and recited an incantation with great concentration, "Englisc a Edhellen, Edhellen a Englisc, yamen alye lin lambe, lhaw, ar sinta."

Aelfric watched in amazement as the crystal around the beautiful elvish woman's neck began to glow while she spoke. Was he seeing magic at work, or was it something else? She had said a word that almost sounded like 'english', but was a little different. He wasn't sure what to make of what he had just seen.

Then she opened her eyes and asked, "Can you understand me now?"

He hesitated, but he finally said, "Yes, I can. Did you just do magic?"

She looked at him rather curiously and replied, "Yes, I did. You do not know any spells of tongue translation?"

"Uh, no I don't," Aelfric answered. "I don't know any magic at all."

Her eyes grew wide and she asked, "Then how did you get to this world?"

Aelfric was slightly concerned then, and asked a question of his own, "How did you know I'm not from here?"

She silently regarded him for a moment, and then answered, "Your arrival was felt by many who are sensitive to the magical field, and I was told by the greatest elder among my people about where to find you."

That certainly seemed to explain why the elf woman wasn't too surprised to see him. Artemis; her name was Artemis. Had his crossing over through the portal device really caused that much of a disturbance in this world? It seemed that it had.

"Oh," he responded to her statement.

Aelfric decided to answer her question, since she had answered his, "I came here by means of a device that I built, based on an old book I found."

Her eyes grew wide again, and she asked, "A ... device? You mean a machine?"

"Yes, a machine," replied Aelfric.

She regarded him intently again, and finally asked, "So then, you build machines in your world?" Aelfric was a bit confused about the significance of her question, but it obviously seemed important to her.

"I was studying how to design and build machines in my world, and I built the machine that brought me here," Aelfric told her.

She gave him a strange look and then said, "Perhaps you are the one we have been hoping for, the successor of 'I Kallo'." (Ee-Kal-low)

"Who is 'I Kallo'," Aelfric asked her.

She then smiled and said, "'I Kallo' was the saviour of my people more than one hundred years ago. He came to our world from your own, and then he lived with us for many years, before he finally returned to your world."

Aelfric was stunned about this news.

"Then this 'I Kallo' must be the same one who wrote the book I found," he said.

"That may very well be the case," she replied. "In any case, I was sent to find you and bring you to Laurina Dor. The great elder Idhrenion wishes to see you, and we hope that you will help our people as my grandfather did."

"Grandfather?" asked Aelfric. "That 'I Kallo' character was your grandfather?"

"Yes, I have human blood in my veins, but I am an Elf woman," stated Artemis. "My grandmother was mated to 'I Kallo' and she bore my mother, who gave birth to me."

The title 'I Kallo' kept tickling a small memory in the back of Aelfric's mind, and finally he took his back pack off and opened it. Inside he found the book and opened it to the inside leaf attached to the front cover. It read, "This is the journal of he who was called 'I Kallo', also known as Aelfwine and his companion Aelfthryth, also known as Bellethiel."

"Well damn," Aelfric exclaimed.

"What is it?" Artemis asked.

"It says here that this book was written by 'I Kallo'," replied Aelfric. "And his companion Aelfthryth, who ever that was."

Artemis sighed. "My grandmother will be pleased and saddened to hear of it," she said.

"Why?" asked Aelfric.

After some deliberation, Artemis explained "Aelfthryth was the human name used by my grandmother's dear friend Bellethiel, who was appointed as the guardian of 'I Kallo'. Aelfwine was indeed the name of 'I Kallo', but my people will always remember him as the hero he was. Your book proves that they both survived the journey back to your world. Since Aelfwine never returned to Upper Earth then it seems something prevented him from being able to do so, which means that Bellethiel would've stayed by his side as she was ordered to do. If they followed custom, then Bellethiel served Aelfwine as his bedmate in my grandmother's stead, and in your world that would have meant she would be seen as his wife. Unless customs have changed since the Elves last walked on Middle Earth."

"My grandmother loved Aelfwine very much, and she was heartbroken to lose him," continued Artemis. "Knowing that her friend and cousin continued to share his bed, even though it was at her order, will sadden her somewhat. Still, she will be pleased that they did survive. Do you know what became of Aelfwine?"

"No, I don't," answered Aelfric. "I had never heard of him until I read this book."

"Well, I want to learn more about you, but we need to get moving. We can talk as we travel," said Artemis.

"Where are we going?" asked Aelfric.

"We are going to Laurina Dor, The Golden Land," replied Artemis. "It is the chief nation amongst elven kind, and it is where the great elder Idhrenion 'The Wise' dwells, as well as being the land of my birth."

Aelfric put the book back in his pack, and Artemis jumped back on her horse. He put his pack back on, and was again dreading the long walk to where ever this 'Laurina Dor' was. Artemis smiled and reached her hand down to him and said, "Come, we have a long way to ride." With her help he got on the great white horse behind her. He wasn't quite sure what to do with his hands until she offered, "You may place your arms around me if you feel you are going to fall off. Do not fear, Thorontur (Thore-on-toor) is the swiftest and strongest of all the horses born of the Nostarion bloodline. He was a gift from my grandmother."

The idea of wrapping his arms around Artemis excited him very much, and he couldn't help but notice Artemis' blush. Did she know? There was no way she could know how she affected him, was there? Aelfric really hoped not, as he would be mortified if she did. But why else would she be blushing? Perhaps she was just embarrassed about something and he just didn't understand. He really hoped that was the case.

On the northern border of Helenium, almost to 'I Bein Taurë'...

Delilah Lorelei's troop was riding hard, and she could feel that soon they would catch up with the elfess and the outworlder. Only a little closer and she would kill the elven bitch, and Bar-Abaddon would reward her for her efforts. They were already on the northern king's highway leading out of Helenium and into the Beautiful Forest, where the outworlder seemed to have appeared in Upper Earth.

Lieutenant Jorgan and the 14 men under his command were seething at the grueling pace they had been forced to endure. Delilah had told them it was necessary to catch up to their quarry in time, but secretly the men believed she simply enjoyed seeing them suffer. The truth was that she did in fact enjoy seeing the men suffer, but it wasn't why she ordered the punishing schedule they'd kept. She wasn't lying about needing to speed up to catch the outworlder. Delilah was concerned for her own welfare, should they fail to get him.

They were less than a mile from the border, and only a few miles away from the southern Bein Taure bridge. Delilah felt they couldn't be far from that elven bitch now, not after the pace she'd set to reach this place. The horses had been traveling at a swift canter for some time, but they seemed to be doing well enough. Each night Delilah had cast a spell of healing and restoration upon them, using up the energy she had stored in crystals for just such a purpose. It beat using her own life force, which she wouldn't do. She would use one of the men first.

As they crossed the border Delilah felt magic in use nearby... ! It was Elvish magic... ! Damn, the elven bitch had already found him! She spurred her horse to a full run, and the men did the same when she screamed at them to move quickly.

Lt. Jorgan asked, "Lady Lorelei, what has happened?"

"That damned elven bitch is nearby and she just used her magic," replied Delilah. "I could feel it in the magic field. Hurry!"

Just south of the Bein Taure Bridge...

Artemis and Aelfric rode at a leisurely pace, continuing their discussion from earlier and learning a bit about each other. Suddenly Artemis commanded her horse to stop, and to Aelfric, "Wait. Please, be silent a moment."

Aelfric obeyed, but he was curious why she had requested it. Artemis slowly turned her head back and forth, straining to listen to whatever noise had caught her attention. Suddenly she wheeled Thorontur around and told Aelfric to hold to her tightly. He obeyed her, and then she gave a sharp whistle and the great white horse began running at a pace that Aelfric could scarcely believe.

"We are being pursued," Artemis explained shortly. "Riders are coming towards us from the south, and one of them is a formidable magic user. We must flee quickly."

In mere moments they were speeding across the bridge they had only crossed a short time before, going in the opposite direction. Aelfric was sure that Thorontur could best any racehorse on Earth, even on a relatively slow day for him. Soon the place where they had met was well behind them, and Aelfric could only hold on for dear life.

The Hall of Wisdom in the Elven Nation of Laurina Dor...

Idhrenion watched Artemis and Aelfric as they sped along the highway that trailed through 'I Bein Taure'. He knew what it was that had caused them to speed on their way, and he began taking measures to slow their pursuers down. He cast a subtle spell that caused a mist to form in the wake of Thorontur. It would not stop the agents of Bar-Abaddon, but it might slow them down.

The aged elf had listened to the conversation between Artemis and the outworlder, Aelfric, and his hopes about the young man rose, despite his better judgment. The youth had built the machine that had brought him to this world himself. If he could decipher the books of Aelfwine, he might be able to figure out how to make more of the power cores that powered the many machines that Aelfwine had built.