(https://img00.deviantart.net/1eaf/i/2012/337/3/0/elven_forest_2_by_thephoenixdark-d5mx7ug.png)<br/><br/>The Forest road was not often used for human traffic, it was an offshoot of the main trade route, called the King’s Highway. Bordering the river Thangris and skirting the edges of the Elven territory.<br/><br/>Most of the humans avoided the Forest trail, if only because of superstitious rumors of a haunted Woods just beyond the bend. Their tales were not far off the mark, as the Elves made it a point to discourage any humans from venturing down the path to their small village. It was not known by most of the population of the Midlands, but this elven village of Thorncliff was one of the oldest settlements in the land.<br/><br/>It was near this village that the elves had hidden a tunnel that connected elven lands with human lands. The tunnel was ancient, and damp, taking a long and deep route beneath the Thangris River. Some say the Dwarves built it, in an attempt to mine for mithril, the scarest and most valuable of metals.<br/><br/>The elves did not get along well with the dwarves, an ancient and really petty squabble over the ways of mining the mithril and using it to craft armor and jewelry. Each race had claimed their ways were the best, but the truth was, both methods worked. The petty squabble did not lead to a war, but it came close.<br/><br/>The elves forbid the dwarves from crossing into Aluvia, the elven lands to the east of the Thangris. For their part, the dwarves refused to trade with the elves, and so lost their ties to the trade that had been sporadic at best. Some of the elves took it more seriously and would go out of their way to make things miserable for the dwarves, who reacted in kind.<br/><br/>Humans would trade with both of course. Dwarven armor was the finest made and was highly valued, even if it was not mithril. Mithril armor was so expensive, only Kings and favored royals could afford it.<br/><br/>Elves fashioned very potent enchanted blades with mithril. Daggers and swords were favored by the elves, though they might use mithril tipped arrows for shooting very dangerous prey. The mithril held enchantments well, and would deliver a potent punch to the shot. Useful on magically created creatures that were summoned by rogue sorcerers.<br/><br/>The Forest trail was often used by bandits, who only went a short ways down it to hide in the woods, there to spring out on unsuspecting travelers. This added to the general suspicion of the trail, as the travelers were often killed and disposed of off the main road. The elves discouraged this, but even regular patrols could not keep track of all the bandits who ventured there.<br/><br/>Eril Meleneth was a sergeant in the Ranger patrols who regularly policed the Forest trail. It was her job to see to it that humans and their wicked ways of theft and general mayhem would not reach the village of Thorncliff. There was a patrol stationed at all times on the trail. A tall tree near the King’s Highway served as a vantage point for the scouts to observe. A signal was used to alert the village if any bandits decided to use the Trail. It was a magical signal that the invaders would not see or hear.<br/><br/>When the signal was sent, Eril gathered her rangers, ten of her best warrior archers. Mounted on the swiftest of steeds the agile horses were bred specifically by the elves for their use. It took them a short time to reach the crossroads, and what they found was mind boggling.<br/><br/>The bandits had been waiting for the wagon and it’s guards. The ambush was nearly successful, as the surprise caught the guards unprepared. A furious battle had been fought, and the wagon stood abandoned, the horses still hitched to it, and tangled in a thicket dangerously close to the river below. The driver was dead, and the guards had all died defending the wagon. But the bandits did not count on the ferocity and dedication of the guards and they all perished as well.<br/><br/>The elves took note of all the dead and caught and calmed the horses, before the wagon and it’s contents would be lost over the edge of the cliff. In the near darkness settling over the land as the sun went down, Eril found a bloody trail leading away from the wagon. “Someone might still be alive. I will see if I can find him. The rest of you stay with the wagon, and bury the dead.”<br/><br/>The bloody trail was easy to follow, and Eril grew increasingly worried. The amount of blood lost would make the victim very weak, and she would be lucky to find him alive. What worried her most, however, was how close the trail was getting to the cave system. She knew many of the smaller branches of the mine were scattered over the hillside and hidden in the rocks. Most of these were too small for anything larger than a dwarf, but predatory animals often used them as dens. It was not something she wished on even her worst enemy. Being torn apart by bears or the vicious sptted cats that roamed the hills would be horribe.<br/><br/>Then she spotted him, a man facedown in the rocks, with arrows in his back. How in the world had he managed to get this far? She hurried to him and felt his neck for a pulse, and to her amazement, he was still alive, but barely! She could not lift him by herself, and whistled for help. Two of her rangers came quickly and they made a litter to carry him, out of two long branches of the nearby poplar trees and their cloaks.<br/><br/>Gently carrying him back to the wagon, where they laid him down in the back. Moving a crate aside, they had no idea what was in it, but no time to look. “We have to take him back to Thorncliff for treatment, or he will die.” Eril’s orders were frowned at, but she was in command.<br/><br/>Only one of her rangers, Kaelen, dared to voice his opinion. “Is this wise? We are charged with keeping humans away from Thorncliff.”<br/><br/>Eril nodded. “Yes, but this man was a victim of robbery and we need to investigate why they were attacked. He might have some answers. He is unconscioius, so we need to hurry. The Healers will know to keep him sedated. Once he is awake we can return him to the human settlement of Graystone Keep. It is the closest. They will know what to do with him.”<br/>As they traveled with the horses going at a moderate clip, Eril examined the crate. What she found inside made her gasp in surprise. “The Sceptre of Hawkwind! How did this group of humans come to possess it? Were they stealing it?”<br/><br/>“The Council must be told, Sergeant Meleneth. We can send a scout ahead to let them know…” Kaelen could get away with speaking to her this way, he was her brother.<br/><br/>“Yes, that is a good idea, Kaelen. You are volunteering?” she smirked at him. He was often trying to usurp her authority, but it was normal behavior between siblings. He was younger than she by twenty years, and still learning.<br/><br/>Kaelen blushed, not really wanting to be the one, but he nodded graciously. “Yes, I will go ahead and tell them what we found, and alert the healers.” He raced off on his black horse.<br/><br/>When they reached Thorncliff, the healers were standing by and carried the wounded man to their treatment building, a stone and wood shelter with the tall maple trees flanking it. Inside, they set to work on examining his injuries. He was alive, but fading fast. The head healer, Grendel, prayed over him, while the assistants carefully attempted to remove the arrows.<br/>