The Silver Dove

FOREWORD

Once, long ago, there was a land and age of swords, magic, and adventure. This was a time of legends. This time is now long forgotten, and these lands are long lost, but the legends of its heroes still live on. I'll tell you one of these legends. There were light ages of peace and prosperity, but there were also dark ages of war, cruelty and poverty. This is where heroes were born. The story I am about to tell you takes place during a Dark Age, where most of the known world is ruled by a cruel and evil king by the name of Virnodar. The people suffered, and anyone who defied him paid the price. Everyone feared and hated Virnodar, but his armies were too strong. But Virnodar overlooked one thing: fear and oppression are the seeds of rebellion - a rebellion that would erupt into a battle for truth and goodness, a battle of good against evil. This is where the soul of a hero is forged.


1 - FIRST BLOOD

Once, in a small village, there lived a boy named Talan. He was well built, had dark hair and brown eyes. He was a happy and cheerful young man, and aside from the stories his father told him, he didn't know of misfortune and despair. When he turned sixteen, however, his happy childhood came to an abrupt end, and all of this was lost forever.
"Can I go into the forest to pick berries now, mother? Can I?" asked Talan.
"Ok, but you must promise to do your chores right after you come back," replied his mother.
"Thank you mother! I will!" said Talan while he ran out the door.
After several hours in of picking berries and mushrooms in the forest, Talan went back home. But when he came back, he saw no village. Instead, he saw huts and crops in flames, corpses of the people he had known and loved all his life, and Virnodar's soldiers, grinning while they were leaving what once was Talan's home. No one was left alive. For the first time since he was a small child, tears rolled down Talan's cheeks. There were no traces left of the childish innocence he was full of just moments ago. He finally understood what his father felt when he told him stories of the past so vividly, and he finally took those stories, that he used to laugh at, seriously. He came to the burned-up pile of trash that was once his hut, found his father's sword in the ashes, and disappeared into the woods.

2 - THE STAND AT SANDROCK

Deep in the woods, Talan finally calmed down and decided what he would do. He knew that the only way not to let his despair and sorrow destroy him is to get revenge. He was determined to make Virnodar pay for everything he's done, even if it meant digging himself an early grave. He sat down to think why Virnodar chose to attack his village, and why now. Then it hit him. The people of his village, like many others, despised Virnodar. But what made them dangerous is there were many warriors and weapon smiths among them. In addition, they refused to pay taxes. Virnodar wanted to make an example of them. Talan learned a lot about Virnodar from his father. He knew that when Virnodar wants to "make an example" of someone, he never stops at just one. Talan knew that there would be another attack, and it would be nearby. Virnodar didn't like to let his troops travel long distances on foot, because they might get exhausted and slaughtered easily or they could betray him. He was afraid of betrayal because he brainwashed all his soldiers into following him, so they did his evil deeds simply because they didn't know any other way to live. Virnodar wanted to keep it that way.
Talan, however, didn't know where exactly the attack would be. He summed up what he knew about the surrounding area, and became pretty sure that it would be the village of Sandrock, which was only a few miles away. He quickly ran there. He knew he would get there first if he hurried, because Virnodar's troops would rest for the night before they went on. As for Talan, the last thing he was thinking about was resting.
He made it to Sandrock within less than 2 hours. He was exhausted, but he warned the people of that village about the upcoming attack. They set up traps and prepared for battle all night. There were some skillful warriors in this village, and that's precisely why Virnodar wanted it destroyed. In the morning, when the soldiers attacked, they were slaughtered like sheep. The people celebrated this victory, and were very grateful to Talan for warning them. They gave him a wonderful white steed as a reward.
But as in any battle, both sides took casualties. In this battle, only two of the villagers died. One of them was the father of a young man, who himself was a good warrior and was ready to avenge his father's death. Talan didn't know who the other one was.
Then he saw a beautiful young lady, and she immediately caught his eye. She had long brown hair that came down to her waistline, her eyes were sky-blue, she had beautiful long legs and her lips were blood red… but there was something missing: there was no smile on her face. She was the only one who looked so sad at the festival. Talan asked her what was wrong, and found out that she was left and orphan. Her father was the other man who was killed in this battle, and her mother was slain by Virnodar himself when she was a little girl. Talan repeatedly asked her to tell him more, but she wouldn't talk. He realized that his attempts were futile, and decided to give up. He knew perfectly well that this battle wasn't the last one, and that what they fought was only a small fraction of Virnodar's army. He needed to travel the world to find a way to defeat Virnodar. When he was about to leave, that girl spoke to him again.
"I want to go with you," she said. "There's nothing left for me here."
To this Talan replied, "It's too dangerous. You cannot go."
"But why?" the girl persisted. "You can go but I can't? You hold a personal grudge against Virnodar. I do too. I don't care how dangerous it is; I refuse to live out the rest of my life in misery. If you won't take me with you, I'll go alone."
"I know you hate Virnodar as much as I do," Talan argued, "but you'll be slain right away if you go. I can defend myself…"
She interrupted him at that. "You can defend yourself, huh?" she said. "So now you're this brave warrior who wields the mighty sword, and I'm just a poor defenseless girl. Is that right? I know I'll get killed out there if I go alone, and so will you. No matter how good you are, you cannot withstand an army. Together, however, we might have a chance."
"But you are a poor defenseless girl!" Talan exclaimed.
"Am I?" she replied. As soon as she said that, she did something extraordinary. She raised her hands into the air, and a fireball came out of them, hitting an old tree stump and burning it to ashes.
"WOW!" Talan exclaimed in excitement. "What was that? So you can defend yourself after all, not with a sword but with magic. It seems like it wouldn't hurt to take you along after all!"
"Great!" the girl exclaimed. "Then we will set off tomorrow morning?"
"Yes," Talan agreed, "tomorrow morning, bright and early."
3 - THE LEGEND OF THE SILVER DOVE
The next morning, they took some food and set off as scheduled. When they left the village, Talan said, a little bit embarrassed, "You know, I never quite did catch your name."
"Lydia," she replied. "My name is Lydia."
"Lydia - what a beautiful name!" said Talan.
"Thank you," Lydia said, smiling. "So," she continued, "where do we go now? You're the one who planned this journey."
Embarrassed again, Talan admitted that he didn't have a plan yet.
"Then may I make a suggestion?" said Lydia. "My magic is weak right now and so is your sword…"
Talan interrupted her. "This is my father's sword, and he won many battles with it! Don't insult this sword, because doing so would be insulting my entire family!"
"That's not the point," she said. "I know that it is a great sword and it means a lot to you, but it's not enough to stop Virnodar and his army. And neither is my magic. I've heard stories and legends about the Silver Dove. I only know that it's an extremely powerful source of Light magic. I only know basic magic of the Dark. My mother was a great Dark sorceress, and Virnodar…" she stopped there. "Anyway, we must find the Silver Dove, if it really exists."
"And does it exist?" said Talan.
"We can only hope and pray," Lydia replied. "It is our only chance."
"Ok," Talan said, "I take it that this Silver Dove will turn you into a powerful sorceress or something like that. But how will it help me? I'm not a wizard, I'm a warrior!"
"First of all," Lydia replied, "the Silver Dove won't just turn me into a great sorceress, it will turn me into a Light sorceress. As I said, I possess only Dark magic right now, and it can't harm Virnodar, for he is the source of the Dark. Most believe that he's a man, but he's not. He's not human. He is the source of all evil - on Earth, anyway. My mother was…" She stopped again. "Anyway," she continued, "that's not important. If I can cross over to the Light, the Silver Dove will embrace me and I'll gain its power. I am, however, deeply rooted within the Dark. Maybe someday I'll tell you how and why, but not today. If I fail to cross over to the Light… well, I hope I won't. As for you, let me see your sword, it looks familiar…"
She took Talan's sword and thoroughly examined it. "This is it!" She suddenly cried. "This is the Sword of the Silver Paladin! It once belonged to the great King Hellas, but when he was slain in fight with Virnodar, the sword lost its power, and Virnodar soon became the new ruler of the known world. That's where my roots come in… But as I said, I'll leave that story for another time. All the power and goodness was imprisoned in the Silver Dove, and the Silver Dove itself was lost. When your sword comes in contact with it, it will regain all the power that it once had. Only then can we stand a chance against Virnodar. But the Sword of the Silver Paladin was passed on to King Hellas's descendants… you? Can you truly be the prophesied Prince Talan who will take back the throne from Virnodar? And am I really the prophesied Lydia the Sorceress? It was never said that we will come together… but it was also never said if we would win or not. It was a double prophecy - we could win or loose… if we truly are the ones. Anyway, we must now start our journey; the sooner we will find the Silver Dove the better. If Virnodar finds it first, he will surely destroy it, and that will be the end of us as well. Let's go to the magicians' village of Magiville and see what we can find out there." Talan agreed, and they started riding towards Magiville.
4 - THE ELVEN FOREST

To get to Magiville, they had to go through a large forest. Strange things were known to happen there, but it was the only way they could get to Magiville. Soon after they rode into the forest, they met a pack of hungry wolves. While Talan distracted them with his sword and kept them running around in pretty much the same place, Lydia generated a fireball, and when it was ready she threw it at the wolves. With their tails fried, the scared and confused wolves scattered and ran away.
"That took long enough," said Talan.
"Hey, I'm only an entry level sorceress!" Lydia replied. "It takes me a long time to cast my spells!"
As they continued going deeper into the forest, they saw a strange beast. It was nearly as tall as Talan, and had large sharp teeth. It was attacking what appeared to be an elven village.
"Uh-oh," said Lydia, "My fireball won't be enough to stop that thing!"
"No," said Talan, "But it will help." He pointed up to the trees, where some elves were sitting and shooting at the beast. "Come on!"
While Lydia started generating a fireball, Talan charged at the beast with his sword and, just as he had planned, the beast charged at him too. He stepped to the side and the beast charged right past him and into Lydia's fireball. Lydia barely made it in time. One more second, and she would have been lunch. And she would be if the elves hadn't slowed it down with their arrows. The confused beast didn't know what to do; who to attack. Lydia hid behind a tree and started generating another spell, while Talan hacked at it with his sword and the elves showered it with arrows. In about 5 minutes, the beast was bleeding, but still not dead. Then, Lydia came out from behind a tree and signaled for Talan to get out of the way. When he did, many little sharp rocks started falling out of the sky right at the beast. The elves continued firing as well. When the beast tried to charge at Lydia, Talan stopped it. It was dead within less than a minute.
The elves came down from the trees and thanked Talan and Lydia for their help. They said that the beast would have destroyed their village, torn down the trees they were on, and eaten them if Talan and Lydia wouldn't have come. To thank them, the elves gave an enchanted whistle. They said that when one blows in it, elves appear from the nearby trees and help them. But they said that it could only be used in forests. Talan and Lydia thanked them for the Elven Whistle, and continued their journey. But before they left, they asked the elves what that beast was. The elves said that it was a demon sent by Virnodar to destroy the elves of this forest, because they wouldn't comply with his orders. The elves safely escorted the travelers through the forest and pointed the way to the village Magiville.
5 - THE LAST WIZARD OF MAGIVILLE

In a few minutes, they got to Magiville… or what once was Magiville.
"No!" cried Lydia, "This is Virnodar's work! He's destroying everything that's a threat to him. I just hoped we'd get to Magiville before him. Now I don't know where to go or what to do. I depended on the wizards of Magiville to tell us."
"We can't give up," said Talan. "Let's search this place for clues. There has to be something we could use here."
They searched the area, and in a couple of hours finally found something. It was a small hut. They went in, and found an old man in there. He seemed very happy to see them.
"Finally, living people!" he exclaimed. "After the horrible incident at Magiville 3 days ago, I got so lonely… How can an old man like me live by himself, with no one to talk to? I don't want to go crazy."
"Wait a minute," Lydia said, "You're from Magiville? Oh, thank god! We're on a journey and…"
The old man interrupted her. "Wait, you look very familiar… you're on a journey, you say? LYDIA? You're Lydia, daughter of Christine, right? Oh, I didn't recognize you! I remember you as a little girl, and you're all grown up now… oh I'm so happy to see you. And who's this young man?"
"My name is Talan," said Talan. "You know Lydia?"
"Talan? Wait… that sword of yours looks very familiar… that's… You're Prince Talan! You finally came! I started to think that the prophecies were wrong, but here you are! And yes, I do know Lydia. She grew up here. But then, when her mother died, we were afraid that she'll be killed too, so we sent her to Sandrock, where a few close friends of mine had lived."
"Remember how you told me that I had a special gift but I never believed you? You were right! I do have it!" said Lydia, as she demonstrated her magical abilities.
"Now I have no doubts at all," the old man said. "I had always thought so, but I was afraid to say it. You're THE Lydia the Sorceress! The prophecies talked about both Prince Talan and Lydia the Sorceress destroying Virnodar or being destroyed by Virnodar, but it was never mentioned that they'd come together, or even exist at the same time. Now I think I know what journey you're on."
"Yes," said Lydia, "we're on a journey to destroy Virnodar. But before we can destroy him we're searching for the Silver Dove."
"Silver Dove!" said the old man, "So you know about the Silver Dove. I warned your mother not to tell you about it, but she still did. This will complicate things, as Virnodar knows about you and will do his best to track down and kill you - both of you. All I can say is be careful. Lydia, I will give you this Amulet of Hope. It will protect you against misfortune and make your spells more powerful. It will also make your wounds heal faster, but I hope you'll never have to use it for that purpose."
Lydia thanked him for the amulet and put it on. She immediately felt her magical power increase. The old man apologized to Talan for not being able to give him anything, but told him that there is a swordsman guild not too far from here. They will surely recognize his sword and give him something that will help him on his journey.
Before they left, the old man also gave Lydia his black horse. "I no longer need her," he said. "I'll probably go to another village and live out the rest of my days there. I will always help you two in any way I can." The old man pointed the way to the swordsman guild, and Talan and Lydia left.
6 - THE SWORDSMAN GUILD

Talan and Lydia got to the swordsman guild in about half an hour. The guard outside the guild house first didn't want to let them in, especially Lydia.
"This is a guild for swordsmen! You don't look like one, little girl!" the guard said, pointing to Lydia. Then he continued, "As for you, you're not a member of our guild, but you seem like a fine young man, and I see that you carry a magnificent sword. If you'd like to join our guild, please come in."
"Careful," Talan said to the guard, "don't call her a little girl. You don't want to insult her. She may appear harmless, but she's a sorceress. Don't get her mad."
The guard started laughing, but he immediately stopped when he saw a fireball forming in Lydia's hand. He then apologized, and was relieved when he saw the fireball disappear. Talan then explained to the guard who he and Lydia are and where his sword comes from. The guard was skeptical, but he let them into the guild house and led them to the guild master and briefly explained to him who Talan and Lydia claim to be and what they told him about Talan's sword. He then left them and returned to his post.
"So, you claim to have the Sword of the Silver Paladin, eh?" the guild master said. "If you're lying, you'll regret it. We don't like liars, especially ones that say such things. But if you're telling the truth, I may have something for you. Let me see your sword."
Talan showed the guild master his sword. The guild master disappeared into another room and then came back with some sort of a book, which looked really old. He blew the dust off it and opened it. Carefully flipping the pages, he searched for something. Then he found it - a picture and description of the legendary Sword of the Silver Paladin. It matched Talan's sword exactly. The guild master looked at Talan in awe.
"Where did you get this sword?" He asked.
"It was my father's. When my village was destroyed by Virnodar's army, I took it."
"Unbelievable…" said the guild master. "This is really it. That makes you… PRINCE TALAN! So, this day is finally here. Prince Talan finally came to save us from Virnodar. But… I've also heard of another prophecy, where it says something about a 'Lydia the Sorceress', and how she defeats Virnodar. I wonder who it will be… could it be that we've been waiting so long just to see your defeat?"
"This is where she comes in," said Talan, pointing to Lydia. "She is Lydia the Sorceress. An old man from Magiville confirmed it. We seem to have come together somehow."
"So, this is it," said the guild master. "I've been wondering for a long time why both of these were double prophecies. I understand it now: if either one of you goes against Virnodar alone,you will fail. But if you unite, you will defeat him. This way both prophecies will come true. Come, Talan, I have something for you. I've been waiting to give you this for a long time."
Talan followed the guild master through a secret passage into a room that seemed to be uninhabited for a very long time. There was dust and spider webs everywhere, and the air was so thick you could cut it with a knife. The guild master pushed in some of the books on the bookshelf; it looked like he was entering some sort of a code. When he was done, the bookshelf turned around and there was an old suit of armor there.
"Here," said the guild master. "Put this armor on. It once belonged to the original Silver Paladin, just as your sword did. I believe you already know some of the sword's history. Let me tell you the rest. There was once, long ago, a great warrior who was called the Silver Paladin. He defeated a great evil and was a great hero in everybody's eyes. Tales of his great deeds are still told today. However, now that Virnodar is in power and the world is once again in peril, the people need another 'Silver Paladin'. It was long prophesied that Virnodar will one day rule the world and Prince Talan would come and defeat him, freeing the world of his evil rule. However, there was another prophecy saying that Lydia the Sorceress will defeat Virnodar. Both of these were double prophecies, meaning that they had two possibilities. It was never guaranteed that either one of them would win. Nobody understood how there could be two of these prophecies, and why they were both double-prophecies. Now I know why. Lydia, I would tell you your side of the legend too, but I'm afraid I don't know it. I was caught up in Talan's part, that's why I became a swordsman and ultimately started this guild."
"I know my side of the legend," said Lydia.
"Will you please tell us?" asked Talan.
"Some other time," Lydia replied. "It gets a little too personal for me to just blur it out right now. Maybe one day I'll tell you, but that day isn't today."
"I have one other thing to tell you," said the guild master. "There is also the Shield of the Silver Paladin. Our guild once had it, but it was stolen from us long ago. You should find it in the Dwarven Mountains. The Forest of Darkness is about 5 miles east from here. If I'm not mistaken, the Dwarven Mountains are right next to it. You'll have to cross the forest to get to the part you'll be able to climb, though."
Talan and Lydia said goodbye to the guild master and left. They were now headed for the Dark Forest.
7 - THE DARK FOREST

When they reached the Dark Forest, Talan and Lydia found out why it's called that. It really was very dark because broad-leaved trees grew very close together and they let through very little light. They thought that it was named the Dark Forest just because of that. Little did they know what awaited them inside…
They left their horses before entering. As they went on, their surroundings started looking stranger and stranger. The trees started looking more and more demonic - as if they were monuments of ancient evil. There were also more and more wild animals, and they were abnormally aggressive. They were also hideous, and they too looked like they were not of this world. And this was just the edge of the forest. A large pack of what once might have been wolves attacked them once. These were not like the wolves that attacked them in the Elven Forest. They were larger, more aggressive, and much more hideous than those were. They looked like some sort of horrible mutations. Their eyes were red, filled with blood. Their fangs and teeth were almost a foot long. Their faces were deformed, and their skin was all in scars, as if they had a horrible skin disease, and their fur was falling out. Talan and Lydia guessed that the beast that they fought in the Elven Forest was from around here. These wolf-like creatures were in a wild frenzy. It seemed like all they wanted to do was tear human flesh, and they had an irresistible lust for blood. Talan and Lydia shivered at this site.
"So this is why it's called the 'Dark Forest'," said Lydia. "This place is so creepy. I just hope that these monsters won't attack us. How will we fight them if they will attack?"
As soon as she said that, the wolves smelled human flesh. With evil grins on their sickening faces, the wolves faced Talan and Lydia and slowly started advancing. Even their dehumanizing growl made the adventurers' bones hurt. Then, one of the wolves, which appeared to be the leader of the pack, gave out a battle cry that made Talan and Lydia's hearts stop. Then the wolves charged straight at them. Talan took out his sword and defended himself against the wolves as well as he could. Lydia started generating a spell, but she knew that by the time she casts it, Talan would be in a hundred pieces, and so will she. Then she remembered about the whistle that the elves gave them. She quickly blew in it, and suddenly, elves appeared on the nearby trees. Arrows started raining down on the wolves, but they were in such frenzy that a hundred arrows wouldn't stop them until they have killed their prey. Then Lydia got behind one of the trees and started charging a large fireball spell. She knew that it would take away a lot of her energy and even wound her, but she still decided to cast it. Meanwhile, Talan was chopping off the wolves' ugly heads. He had many wounds now and he was bleeding, but he knew that if he stopped fighting the wolves would tear him apart. Now, the numbers of the wolves were decreasing, thanks to the elves and Talan's sword. When Lydia was ready to cast her spell, one of the wolves caught her off-guard and attacked her. She already had the fireball in her hand, but the wolf made her drop it. Thankfully, however, the amulet the old man gave her at Magiville saved her. She got seriously burned, but at least she wasn't completely incinerated. The wolf that attacked her also got burned, but he continued attacking her. Talan noticed that and ran to Lydia's aid as fast as possible. He got there not a second too soon. Another moment, and the wolf would have slashed her throat and chest open and rip out and eat her heart with his huge teeth. However, Talan's sword went into the wolf's body before its claws and teeth could enter Lydia's. That was probably the leader of the pack, because the other wolves got frightened after they saw him being slain. The elves finished the rest of them off. As soon as the battle was over, the elves disappeared into the woods before Talan and Lydia could thank them for their help. Then Lydia turned towards Talan.
"Thank you," she said. "You saved my life. If it weren't for you, that wolf would have been feasting on me right now."
"Thank the old man at Magiville who gave you that amulet," replied Talan. "That fireball would have easily burned you to a crisp. And besides, I could have gotten to your aid sooner. Look how badly the wolf wounded you! If I would have gotten there a second later… I'd never forgive myself."
Smiling, Lydia said, "But you have gotten there in time. You did save me. That's what counts. But anyway, thank you for caring about me so much. I won't forget it."
"I won't let you," said Talan, smiling in return.
"But what now?" asked Lydia. "We are both seriously hurt. We cannot go on like this, we must rest and heal our wounds first. But that will take too long, and if we fall asleep we'll be eaten by hungry beasts for sure."
"The old man said that the talisman will heal you," replied Talan. "Also, my mother taught me about healing herbs and plants. I will find some and heal our wounds with them. But we will have to sleep, at least for a short while. Maybe we'll take turns - while one of us sleeps the other one stands guard."
"Yeah, that will work well, if you want to feed the wolves," replied Lydia. "We're both exhausted. If I'll stand guard, I'll fall asleep in a few minutes. And I'm sure you will too. How about… we call the elves and ask them to guard us while we sleep? At least one or two scouts, who'll wake us up if there's trouble."
"Sounds like a good idea," Talan said. "Let's try it! But first, I'll go collect some healing herbs." He did that. In approximately 15 minutes he had a bunch of different plants and herbs. He prepared each in a certain way, and applied them to their wounds. Then they decided to rest.
Lydia blew the whistle, and a group of elves appeared. They asked Lydia why she called them; there was no battle to help them in. Lydia and Talan explained the situation, and the elves agreed to keep a few guards around the place while they slept. They thanked the elves and went to sleep. The night went fairly well, only once did the elves wake Talan and Lydia up. There was a hideous snake creeping close to them, and the elves only noticed it when it already wound its tail around Lydia's throat. Talan told her not to move, took his sword, and struck. He struck just hard enough to cut the snake in half and kill it, but not hurt Lydia. After they got rid of the snake they went back to sleep, and the next time they woke up was the morning. The elves left their posts when they saw that Talan and Lydia were awake. Then the adventurers discovered that their wounds healed remarkably well. It seemed that Talan's healing herbs worked extremely well. Lydia's wounds were almost completely gone because the Amulet of Hope was also healing her.
"Wow!" she exclaimed, "You sure know a lot about healing herbs!"
"My mother was the village healer, and even people from other villages and towns came to her for help. She taught me most of what she knew. She didn't have enough time to teach me the rest because Virnodar destroyed my village."
"Your mother was indeed a great healer," said Lydia. "I can see that by your work. I don't suppose you know what mushrooms and berries to pick too?"
"As the matter of fact I do," said Talan. "My father taught me that. I also know how to hunt, but we better stay away from the animals in this forest. Even if they won't tear us to pieces, who knows if their meat is edible? But mushrooms and berries - that's not a problem."
He started looking around for berry bushes and mushrooms, and soon had enough to fill their stomachs for the day. They eagerly ate the unusually delicious food, and then continued their journey to the Dwarven Mountains. They were getting deeper and deeper into the heart of the forest, this time doing their best to avoid encounters with wild animals. They did have to face predators a few times, but they managed to avoid large bloody fights like the one before. Finally, they got out of the forest and to the Dwarven Mountains, with only minor wounds. After what happened to them in the forest, Talan and Lydia felt much closer to each other than before. Now, when Talan looked at Lydia, he saw more than just a beautiful girl with magical powers; and when she looked at him she saw more than just a handsome young man who was a skilled swordsman and healer. They saw more… much more.
8 - THE DWARVEN MOUNTAINS

Talan and Lydia just got past the horrors of the Dark Forest and were still a bit shaken up by it. Now, tall and steep mountains stood ahead of them. But they still had to go on. And so, they carefully started climbing the mountain. After a few minutes of climbing, they encountered a dwarf.
"Who dares enter the realm of the dwarves?" he said. "We don't want your kind here. You will leave this place in peace or in pieces!"
"I carry the Sword and Armor of the Silver Paladin," said Talan. "We are looking for the Shield. Have you heard of these artifacts?"
"Yeah, I've heard those legends," said the dwarf. "Don't know if there's much to them though. And yes, there is some kind of an ancient shield in these parts. We didn't touch it though. It looked like it was a magical artifact, and we dwarves don't like to mess with magic. No telling what it will do. We just stick to our battle-axes. Our king knows more about it than we do. We've long suspected that there's something he's not telling us. But we're afraid to say anything; he has a really bad temper. He's not as nice as the rest of us. But don't tell him I said that!"
"If this is considered kind," Talan whispered in Lydia's ear, "I don't think I even want to meet this king; I'd rather talk to the wolves in the Dark Forest!"
"Hush!" she replied. "We don't want to insult the dwarves! What if he'll hear us? I don't know about you, I want to leave this place in one piece. Besides, we need to get the Shield!"
"All right," Talan whispered to Lydia, "I'll be careful with what I say." Then he turned to the dwarf. "Will you please lead us to your king?" he asked.
"Lead you - that I can do," said the dwarf. "But don't expect me to stick around! If you want to loose your heads, that's fine with me, but I'd rather keep mine!"
The dwarf then led Talan and Lydia to the dwarf king, not saying another word. They had a hard time keeping up with him, because he has lived in the mountains all his life and climbed it with ease, while they didn't have that luxury. Once, Lydia slipped, and held on to a rock with one hand. She knew she'd fall soon, and if she would, there would be a big bloody mess at the bottom with her body parts all over it.
"Help!" she cried, "Help me, I'm falling!"
Talan quickly turned around. "Grab my hand!" he said. Lydia tried to give him her loose hand, but Talan had a hard time trying to grab it.
"I'm too frightened!" she cried. "I can't stretch out my arm all the way, I'm afraid I'll fall!"
Talan then got down on his knees and reached out to Lydia. He too was afraid he'd fall, but that didn't stop him. He was more afraid of loosing Lydia than his own life. He still didn't quite reach Lydia's hand, and time was running out. He saw that Lydia barely held on to that rock, and was still slipping. Desperate now, Talan grabbed the arm that Lydia was holding on with. She screamed and her face filled with even more fear, but it also showed a little confidence. She trusted Talan to save her life more than a muddy, slippery rock. Talan held on to the mountain with his other hand. Lydia's weight was pulling him over, though, and he too was slipping. He called the dwarf for help. The dwarf first hesitated, but then put down his axe and grabbed Lydia's other hand. They finally pulled her up to safety. Both Talan and Lydia thanked the dwarf for his help, but being a dwarf, he only croaked something under his breath and turned around to pick up his axe.
"We have got to stop doing that," said Talan. "I saved you once, I saved you twice, but on the third time I might not."
Talan said that as if he had foreseen what would happen in the near future…
Lydia noticed that concerned look on his face, but did not know what it really meant. She promised him she'd be more careful, but that's where it ended. They then continued on to meet the dwarf king. When they finally got there, the dwarf that was with them left immediately.
"Who are you and what do you want?" croaked the dwarf king. "Whatever it is you want, you cannot have it. Now leave us in peace!"
"But why do you hate us, when you don't even know who we are and what we want? Maybe the answer is not what you expect it to be," said Lydia.
"I know who you are, you're humans," said the dwarf king. "Whenever humans come to our mountains, they always start digging them up for gold and jewels. You can't have them! These mountains and everything in them belongs to us!"
"We are not here to dig up your mountains," said Talan. "I carry the Sword and Armor of the Silver Paladin. We are looking for the Shield, and we were told that we could find it in these parts."
"You're liars!" the dwarf king yelled. "Humans always lie to us! We hate liars! Leave our mountain, while we're still letting you do it in one piece!"
"You don't know that for sure," said Talan. "We were told by one of the dwarves that you know a lot about these legends. Let's make a bet: If the sword and armor are fake and we are lying, you execute us. If they're genuine, you tell us where the shield is and let us take it. Do you agree to these terms?"
"Yeah, why not," the dwarf king croaked. "After we execute you, we'll use your corpses as a means to keep humans away from our mountains. Show me the sword and armor." Talan gave him the artifacts, and he closely examined them. Then he looked at Talan as if he was a ghost.
"Y…you are Prince Talan!" he finally said. "You really did come! The whole world has been waiting for you for so long… too long. I have already dismissed that legend as a fairy tale. But here you are! And I see that you have already gotten the Sword and Armor of the Silver Paladin.