Eluriel Nenluin

The Sorrow of the House of Mindothir
I am known as Eluriel Nenluin of the House of Mindothir, one of the Twelve Houses. I once was one of the protectors the greatest city of my people, Cendriane, and I failed in my duties. Cendriane is not a city you may have heard of, only the noble eladrin were permitted within its sacred walls. I haven’t spoken of the fall in over a hundred years, it’s not something I desire to remember. Even now the memories haunt me, my greatest regrets, and failures.

I was a Shiere Knight, a proud protector of my people. I was sworn to the Order of the Golden Radiance, tasked with the security of Cendriane. We believed we had no enemies that could muster a force to threaten us, our arrogance blinded us from the threat of the dark elves. They mustered within the Feydark, alongside the Fomorians, our ancient and most hated enemy. I was stationed within the Central Glade, tasked with overseeing the training of the next generation of Shiere Knights. Over a score of novitiates relied on me to protect them and I failed ever single one of them…

“Neston, you have a shield. Use it!” I said to Neston, one of the youngest of the novitiates to the Order.
Before the boy could respond, his sparring partner, an older boy named Doldaer struck him with his wooden scimitar. Neston cried out in pain, dropping his quarterstaff.
“Dropping your weapon spells your doom, Neston. You must also learn to use your shield; it can save your life.” I chided the boy, words I repeated many a time to him.

Neston nodded, bowing his head in reverence. “Of course, Lady Nenluin. I-It’s just really heavy.”

I smiled, walking up to him, and gently patting him on the shoulder. “The more you train the stronger you’ll get.” Neston brightened at that and readied himself once more to spar with the older Doldaer.

Out of the corner of my eye I saw a man approaching, a knight from Leithriel’s command. “Sentinel Nenluin, I bear news from Sentinel Leithriel.”

Nodding for him to continue the elf kept glancing back towards the gates, where Leithriel was station. “A great force approaches Cendriane, Sentinel, hundreds of Dhaerow and scores of Fomorians. Sentinel Leithriel has sent me and others to warn yourself and the other Sentinels. My lady does not believe the gates will hold against so many of the wretched giants and Dhaerow magic, and requests aid.”
“I shall gather my knights, inform Sentinel Leithriel that I will be at the gates presently.” The elf nodded, rushing off towards the gate.

“Novitiates return to the Spire. Knights Raithion and Orthellon shall escort you all. Make haste.” Both of the knights gave me wary looks, an army of Dhaerow and Fomorians were unheard of, what we considered an impossible alliance. Gesturing towards the novitiates the knights went to their duties, while I strode towards the glades garrison.

When I arrived at the garrison, the knights were already mustering, word was quickly spreading of the invasion. “The time has come to fulfill your duties as Shiere Knights,” I cried as I neared them. “The wretches of the dark dare to lay siege to the High Home of Summer, let us show them the wrath of the Firre. Forward, to the gates!” Drawing my sword, I led the gathered knights.

By the time, the battalion and I neared the gates the knights were pulling back. “The gates are breached, my lady! Sentinel Leithriel is dead,” The soldier, who first bore the news to me, spoke. He was holding his arm, fresh blood flowing from the gash. “We hadn’t the numbers to hold off so many fomorians.”

Before I could speak a robed elf magically appeared, forming out of grey and blue mists. “Sentinel, I bring dire reports from Grand Magister Gwestion. Enemies have broken through the southern walls, Dhaerow warriors pour through the rubble. Sentinel Belo’vir and his knights rush to aid them but they request more aid.”

I shook my head at the sorcerer. “I cannot spare any of my knights, we must make our stand here, or the Central Glade will fall,” I paused looking to the elf, one of the knights, a healer named Kelmarin, tending to him. “Get anyone behind us unable to fight to retreat to the Golden Palace, our lady will protect them.”

The injured knight nodded before rushing off, soon after more survivors from Leithriel’s command were rushing past, the healthiest melding into our ranks. The sorcerer had already begun a spell of teleportation, I assumed back to the Grand Magister.

“We must hold here. Lieutenant Vor’athil, you and Kelmarin must focus on bolstering us for as long as you can.” I ordered the two high magi within my command, who nodded in response. He was already in deep meditation, beginning their songs of war.

The survivors ceased to appear, now only the dark tide of those wicked elves came forth. I enacted enchantments on my crystalline sword, the six crystals glowing with power as they shifted into a bow. “Do not cease your arrows until your quivers lie bare. Fight in the name of our Lady, in the name of Cendriane!” I cried, loosing my first four arrows, hastened by Vor’athil’s song of war, soon accompanied by hundreds of arrows. The knights, releasing a flurry of arrows during their quickened state. Every other volley hummed with our fey magic, the arrows glittering in the now darkening skies.

To combat the darkness blotting the sun, Kelmarin chanting in the ancient tongues of the elves, soon leading a city-wide chant of High Magic, pushing back the darkening.
The first of the dark elves closed, our arrows slowly becoming less and less. Releasing the rage within me I teleported forward, my bow warping back into a blade and cut him down before he could react, vanishing again I did the same to a female bearing a greatsword and again and again, and again. Multiple knights followed suit.

Then came the tragedy I had expected and feared all along: the magical barrage, bursts of fireballs and lightning, lines of consuming magical energy and spinning bolts of destruction.
The assault focused on the bulk of the knights, blew apart the ranks of the elves, consuming them in a matter of moments. Many drow to close fell as well, mere fodder and of no concern to the wicked drow wizards.

Tears streamed down my face as I watched that catastrophe, I heard the agonized cries of my soldiers and saw the once pristine marble walkways and gardens had become charred under the sheer power of the barrage.

The massacre went on for many seconds, seeming like hours to me. It went on and on, the explosions and the cries.
I found my rage again, commanding the nearest to defend me. And I saw it, and came to realize that the drow wizards, in their ignorance of the surface world, had erred.

The wizards were concentrated within a copse of thick trees, under cover and hurling out their deadly volley of spells.
My features brightened into a wicked smile, a smile of vengeance. And ordered the knights around me to follow. Flying like an arrow for the heart of our enemies, we teleported.

The dark elves had erred; they were in the trees.
As we crossed the battlefield, blinking in and out of sight, I cried out a command, and my crystalline sword ignited into bright flames. Around me, others did the same.
Into the trees we charged, a tremendous fireball leading the way, exploding in the heart of the copse. We cut into the woods, taking revenge against the drow, or igniting branches wherever there was no wizard.

The dark elven wizards had erred!

We knew the drow had likely set up wards against countering magic-perhaps even over themselves- that would defeat even the most intense fires, but the did not understand the flammable nature of trees. Even if our blades or the fire did not consume them, the flames would blind them and effectively put them out of the fighting.

And the smoke! The thick copse was damp from the previous rains and watering, and billowing black clouds thickened the air. Even worse for the dark elves, the wizards countered as they had always countered fire, with spells creating water. So great was their response, that the flames would have been quenched, except that we did not relent, continued to rush around the copse, even cutting into the copse whenever we found a break. No water, not even the ocean itself, could extinguish the fires of our enchanted blades. As we continued to fuel the flames, the drenching spells by the wizards added steam to the smoke, thickened the air so that the drow could not see at all and could not breathe.

We pulled back, the smoke and steam becoming too dangerous to continue. With the drow wizards removed from the fight, we only needed to worry about the fomorians. The huge and ugly abominations lumbered forth, engaging the line of knights.

A clap of thunder echoed from the Central Glade. My heart stopped, the novitiates.

“Ashielle!” I called, she nodded and blinked out of existent, I followed suit.

Under spells of invisibility, we rushed back to the central glade, panicked elves, some with a variety of injuries, making their way towards the Golden Palace. Smoke rose from the northern gates; I feared the worst.

Ending my spell, I reappeared, startling a woman carrying a babe. “Take her, run!” I shouted at her. I saw a group of six drow approaching, led by a woman in a breastplate and robes and wielding a longsword and shield.

Growling I leapt forward, my sword transforming into a bow, I put two of them down, silver arrows protruding from their skulls. Teleporting to the side as a warrior brandishing two short blades attempted to skewer me lunged. He too fell, gargling as an arrow piercing his throat. Going down on one knee I killed the forth with my arrow flying through his open mouth. The fifth died beside the female, two of my arrows in his chest.

Out of arrows, my bow transformed into a blade, as I parried females strike. Grinning wickedly at the stern-faced drow, I pressed my attack. Sweeping my leg low, I forced her back, and following with an upward cut of my sword. She parried with her shield, expertly raising her sword arm over the shield, and slashing down at me. Too slow, as I teleported behind her, a few feet above her. I brought my blade down, cutting through some of her mystical wards, but to no harm of her. She spun, her arm once more over the shield, guarding her body.

Her expression changed from stern to shocked. An arrow had struck her from behind, Ashielle appearing from afar, bow in hand. Two more arrows struck the drow, her wards too weak from my assault to be of any use. The woman tried to cry out in her dark goddess but was silenced as a fourth arrow from Ashielle pierced the back of her skull, erupting from her mouth. The woman slumped down, and we continued.

I glanced down towards the lower levels of the city. My heart swelled as I saw the glittering hosts of knights holding against the tides of darkness. Then to my horror, a band of fomorians had somehow slipped past the ranks of knights and scrambled towards the Spire.

We had arrived at the Spire. Once we arrived, Raithion and Doldaer met us.

“We have a number of citizens with us, many are offering what weapons and skills they have.” Raithion said, taking his gilded helm off. “Many nobles are attempting to gather possessions.” He pointed towards the nearest house, a two-story house.

I nodded to Raithion and ordered those who could not fight to head to the Palace as quickly as possible. Marching into the house.

“Take nothing,” I said as a woman nodded and hurried to ascend a ramp to the upper area. Then turned to leave the noble born.

“But our rooms upstairs have-“

I whirled on her, my eyes flaring. “Do you not yet understand?” The fomorians are marching upon us ! They do not tire, they do not slow, and they take our fallen and add them to their ranks! We have delayed them, little more. Take your family and go!”

The woman seemed taken aback by my response, but obeyed, wasting only a few moments rounding up her family before hastening down the road towards the palace.

The fomorians would arrive within moments. I cast a sweeping, appraising glance over novitiates. None of them could stay here. They, too, would need to be evacuated to the palace. As for the knights, few though they were, I would need to ask yet more from them. Perhaps everything they had. They, like I, had sworn to defend their people. Now was the day of reckoning.