The Adventures of Brandar Odaron
Book 1: The Hidden Continent
Chapter 11 Arriving Upon Arzultaur
Untold days the Seven sailed those exceptional waters, where Brandar declared that the Elven maps showed the Mists spanning but five leagues across, though they had already sailed many times that distance. Yet, that very night a storm from the south proved to be the most terrible of tempests the Seven had ever experienced; lasting three whole nights and the days between. And not a few times therein did the men believe that Wingaron would be swallowed up by mountain-high waves, or torn to pieces by raging winds, or set ablaze by lightening. And once they came upon enormous god-like monsters among the waves; giant creatures of water and foam, who played a horrible game of tossing the ship back and forth, all the while laughing in the deepest and most thunderous of tones, like the roaring of the mightiest waves crashing upon the rockiest of shores, in the midst of a dire and deadly maelstrom so huge that it must certainly be battering the whole of the world.
But when the storm was gone, Wingaron remained, and the morning Suns shone as if no such storm had been. Then the men felt a breeze at which they eagerly set sail. And thus did they ride, urgently seeking land. Yet, upon the second day from the storm they spied from afar three great and green serpents of the sea coming swiftly towards them from the west. So they rowed, together with full-blown sails, in a desperate attempt to get away from the monsters.
Two days were they chased, while ever losing the race, for the men’s strength grew less with each day of rowing, and also the night, at which they must rely more and more upon sails alone. So the great serpents gained ever more on the ship. And while Wingaron was indeed a very fast ship, it could not break from the creatures’ pursuit.
On the third day of chase, Brandar sighted land in the east at the very moment ere exhaustion would cause the Volunteers to fall out from their rowing, one last time. And even in that instant the serpents turned away. But the Seven could not know, nor could they guess, nor did they care, why the serpents had forsaken their quarry, at that time; so glad were the Seven to be free, and to have found land toward which to sail.
Upon nearing the shore, they beheld long and wide beaches of bright white sand, behind which rolled many rows of rather grassy dunes. And beyond the dunes lay a forested land, dark and hazy. But in the distance arose snow-capped mountains, which they kenned must be the tallest they had ever seen. Therefore, the Seven grew eager to go and set foot upon land, hoping that here was yet another paradise in which they may get some well-deserved rest. But Alak called out in sudden fright: “Look! Flying above the mountains in the south! Do you see it? ‘Tis a Dragon! A very great Dragon; black as coal.” And he pointed it out, though the others could not see it. “Let us flee this place, ere it sees us and comes after us!” Then the others took Alak’s word and agreed to sail north, in search of a more safe place to anchor the ship.
Following the coast at the edge of sight for two and a half days, the Seven laid anchor at a seeming safe place, although four of them only, at Brandar’s orders, rowed a longboat to go exploring upon the land. Here went Brandar and Daram, and Khalen and Tomas, all heavily armed and armored. Yet, ere spying even half-a-league inland, they found that the peacefulness of the beach was a deception -- for all of the country was nigh overrun with monsters, and horrible creatures beyond description, and fell beasts of all kinds. And they realized that their armor would be useless against such numerous and dangerous enemies. So they hurried back to the ship, likely only barely escaping the notice of a whole host of unconquerable adversaries.
Then did the Seven sail again to the north, in hopes of finding a better place to rest, and in another three days Brandar led the same three companions to spy upon the land; anxious to find a suitable campsite, for their stores were getting low. But here, not far into the forest, the four were assailed by a mighty Devil-Beast, emerging suddenly from a dense grove of trees, and from whom they took many a grievous wound. Yet, they slew it, nonetheless, by hacking repeatedly about its head and its neck with their swords, but then fled as quickly as could back be to the ship.
Next, after another day of sailing, Brandar took with him Alak and Erek and Rosth. And they passed over dunes and entered the forest, but were attacked by a very tall Minotaur, wielding an axe in one claw and a whip in the other. And it chased them through its forest and out onto the dunes, where the men must perforce turn and defend themselves ere reaching the white beach. Thus, much blood spilled from the four as they fought the Minotaur, who proved exceedingly difficult to slay. And they felled the beast only because Brandar, by sheer luck and great skill, stepped in and cut off the claw which held the axe, whereupon the others took to stabbing the thing deeply with their swords until at last it lay dead. But the men returned limping to their ship, dripping blood all the way, and not one of them walked away unscathed.
Bleak was the plight of the Emissaries now. And they sailed north another day, sleeping the night while anchored well off the coast. But in the following morning’s light Brandar took with him all his Volunteers, only to be set upon by a pack of wolf-like Beasties; dank and ravenous. And while most of the monsters were killed ere their survivors ran away, Daram and Rosth were bitten deeply about their shoulders and fell into a swoon -- poisoned by venomous maws -- as the Seven were returning to the longboats. Thus must the others, sick from their own nasty wounds, carry the two to the boats and then hoist them onto the deck of Wingaron whence they had rowed wearily out to the vessel. And there they applied medicine, and bound their wounds, and rested. Next, the four remaining Northrons set sail once more, with no hope of comfort nor rescue, while Daram and Rosth became so pale and feverish that it was feared they would die by the end of the day. Yet, as night fell they lay themselves down to rest and sleep upon the deck after anchoring far out to sea, too weary to set a guard. But they were not troubled at that time.
In the morning, Daram and Rosth remained unconscious, but had not yet died. And that gave the others some hope that the two would survive after all. But there was little that could be done but to tend their swollen wounds with salves and clean bandages, and to keep wetted rags upon their foreheads.
Loath was Brandar to go ashore once again, but no real choice did he have, as the ship’s stores would soon be gone and he believed that what Daram and Rosth needed was quiet rest by a fire upon solid ground. And perhaps healing herbs could be found in the forest. So, taking with him only Alak, the least hurt of the Volunteers, he went warily ashore where a great hill blocked the view of the land beyond. And when the two crested that hill, they beheld a wide green valley amidst very high mountains, having snow-topped peaks, at the end of a long range that spread across a great curve to the southwest. But that range, had they known it, was the very same which they had seen upon their first sighting of that monster-ridden country; so far did it span. And in the midst of that valley was a castle of black stone, set with many tall watchtowers, and great pointed spires. Yet, about that castle flew a flock of winged creatures of many sorts; the largest of whom seemed instantly to be aware of the men on the hill and wheeled about to fly swiftly towards them. And those monsters were followed close by nigh the rest of that hideous flock.
With that, the Northrons ran as fast as they could to their longboat and rowed it so hard that Alak broke an oar. But well before they reached the ship, Brandar called for the others to set the sails. Yet, even while the frantic Brandar and Alak were scrambling up from the longboat, just as the sails caught the wind, the creatures swooped violently upon them, so that a fierce and bloody battle was fought upon the deck of Wingaron.
Here were flying monsters of various kinds; the largest being Harpies with man-sized bodies, but the others somewhat smaller, although all were wicked and deadly. And among them were things like bats, but others like deformed long-tailed lizards. Yet, others there were for which there are no ready names. But worst of all were the Harpies, strong and stinking, menacing and treacherous, with claws that could rip a man’s arm clean off should he be wearing no armor -- and even then, maybe so.
Now, the men kenned swiftly that these creatures were more fell than any such monsters they had ever seen before; for the things were more loathsome, and more odorous, and mightier than any of the same or like kind which the Seven had battled upon the Marches of Andaria. And while many of them were killed by the strong-armed Northrons, none would relent. But the Harpies were absolutely the most fearsome and tireless, and exceedingly ravenous, and caused thus the most harm. So the men lost much blood to the Harpies, and began to slip upon the gore-spattered deck. And they were hard pressed to stay alive; doing so mostly due to the thickness of their armor.
Verily did the five Northrons who stood feel their doom approaching; deeming that their deaths were now close to hand. And thus did they believe that Brandar’s quest had come finally to an inglorious and bitter end. Yet, while no hope did they see, they were resolved to die fighting upon those strange foreign waters, beyond the knowledge of other Men.
Battle raged as the ship sailed pilotless, where all of the deck became covered with the black and red blood of both monsters and men. For the Northrons were taking the deepest of wounds, even the unconscious Daram and Rosth. And clear it was that the five remaining men could not stand much longer, so worn were they now from lack of proper rest, and so starved had they been for fresh water and rations.
Khalen and Tomas were smitten by the Harpies, and so fell to the deck with their life’s blood gushing from long slashes across their necks and arms. Then did Brandar, believing them killed, fly into a rage and took to hacking off the heads of the Harpies, and any of the other monsters who came near, and all those he could catch. And so swift and dauntless was Brandar that the remaining monsters became bewildered, which turned the tide, so that the creatures flew up and went to swirling about high above. Yet, the creatures did not fly away, but must have been preparing to attack again, with a mind to whelm the men still standing; Brandar and Alak and Erek.
Then Brandar went to hacking upon the ship’s railing and screaming up at the monsters, daring them to return and fight him, crying: “Come on, filth! Here I am! You! Come and slay me! Cowards you are! Craven and putrid!” And he spat upon the deck, then yelled: “Cowards, one and all! Come and slay me, if you dare!” Hack! “Come down!” Hack! “Come down, I say!” Hack! “Fight me!” Hack! Hack! Hack!
At what must have been a commanding call from one of the Harpies, the things made to dive upon Brandar and his fellows. And here indeed was come the end of the Emissaries; for there was no escape, and no chance of survival. But there occurred a great explosion, with a very bright flash, in the midst of the diving monsters, at which they scattered; some falling like stones, burnt and charred, to get tangled in the rigging, or landing upon the deck, or in the water, or upon an upturned sword.
What monsters escaped the explosion flew swiftly away, screeching in anger, desperately winging it as fast as they could back to their castle.
The three standing Northrons were at once shocked and mystified by this event. And looking out, they beheld a great ship to the northeast, from whose deck shot forth bolts of blue light which impacted with terrible devastation among the fleeing monsters. Then did Brandar come to his senses. Yet, so surprised where the three that they failed to realize that not all of the fallen monsters were dead, for some which had fallen to the deck had merely been wounded. And one of these, a lizard-like thing, suddenly clamped its jaws about Brandar’s leg. Then the angered and maddened Brandar swung mightily his sword, severing the creature’s head from its body, at which he must pull the ugly thing’s head off his leg. But the monster’s jagged teeth, set haplessly in its jaws, left the proud Northron with a terribly ragged wound, and later a scar upon his leg that would remain for the rest of his life, though he was already highly battle-scarred. With that, the three took to killing all of the living but wounded monsters on the deck, then tossed those and the rest of the lifeless creatures’ corpses into the sea.
Brandar then asked Alak and Erek to help him tend to the wounds of their fallen friends, and here they found Khalen and Tomas were not slain after all, though the two had lost a great deal of blood and may die if aid should not come just then. But neither had the feverish Daram and Rosth expired, by a god-given miracle, despite the wounds they had received while lying unconscious during the battle.
Nevertheless, the three knew that they must act quickly and could not take the time to fetch bandaging from storage. So they tore off scraps of clothing from their garments, and with those dressed the many wounds of their fellows. And they therefore neglected their own bleeding, but next sat with their backs to the railings, too tired to bandage themselves. Thus did they rest, awaiting the arrival of their saviors.
When the three looked up again, the great ship had come close enough for them to see that there were various Men aboard, of different races, in strange garb; some waving a greeting, but none calling out. And the vessel was tacking against the wind so that it would take a little more time to reach Wingaron. So, patiently the three rested.
Finally, the ship came alongside Wingaron, where Brandar waved and called out. “Hail, friends! Well met you are, in the very nick of time. And many thanks, for saving us from the creatures of the airs.” But the strangers did not reply. “I am Brandar Odaron,” continued Brandar, “of the Northrons of Andaria.” Now, one of the rescuers gave a response in a foreign tongue, while the men beside him threw ropes to Alak and Erek, with which they lashed Wingaron to the larger ship. And Brandar surmised that the one who spoke was the Captain of that ship, which was like none the Emissaries had known. Larger and more grand even than any made by the Elves of Sealoam, it towered over Wingaron like a mighty castle next to a farmer’s cottage, so that Brandar found himself looking up the side to that Captain leaning over his own railing, as if Brandar were at the foot of a fortress wall having words with men upon the parapets. But, for a moment, Brandar mistook the rescuers for pirates, as the sailors seemed hard and were dressed somewhat like the pirates the Seven had fought in the past, though of differing heritage. Yet, his fears were soon assuaged, as no pirate would be so well-groomed, nor so friendly as these men.
Try as they might, neither the Northrons nor their rescuers could ken each other’s speech just then. But using hand-signs, Brandar made it known that his fallen men were in need of aid. Then the Captain ordered his ship’s Surgeon to board Wingaron. And that one had bandages and medicines brought to him, after kneeling and seeing the severity of the fallen men's wounds. Meanwhile, the Captain had food and drink lowered to the three standing Northrons, at which he climbed down himself, bringing a great map that he spread out before Brandar and with simple gestures indicated a point on the map to show that Wingaron was in the midst of an ocean due north of a massive body of land; a huge island continent. Then the Captain made it known that he wanted to tow Wingaron to a port upon the coast away east of their present position. And having nowhere else to turn, Brandar nodded his assent ere settling down to quench his thirst and assuage his hunger. And when the Surgeon came to tend Brandar and Alak and Erek, the three had managed to give their names, and learned that the Captain’s name was Ergon, and that his ship was called the Pavanar, which they would learn means Defender of the Waves.
Thus did the Northrons begin learning the speech of the rescuers, who call themselves “Sereghran”, meaning “People of Wanderer Blood”. But their land they call “Arzultaur”, which is “Protected Land”, when rendered into ancient Northron, or else “Guarded Kingdom” in the Common of Andaria. But that land we name now The Hidden Continent. And later Brandar referred to the speech of the Sereghran as “Arzurian”, which is what Andarians thus came to name the tongue after Brandar’s return, and by which it eventually became known in all the wide world.
So it was that the Seven were saved by the Men of the Hidden Continent, upon which their country they named Arzultaur. And the Northrons were gladly taken in and all healed, and came to dwell in that land, set within mystical oceans, enclosed by the Gods own Mists of Time.
The Emissaries remained in Arzultaur for many generations of all Men outside of the Mists, but to the Seven ‘twas a large number of decades of their lives. And those were days filled with their greatest deeds of daring do, as bespoken in this tome.
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Here ends the story of how Brandar went east of East over the sea, in the days of the Long Siege, and came at length, through many trials, to the legendary Hidden Continent of Arzultaur. That land the Elven Loremasters of Eastwold had named “Bherdhema Belsminah”, which is “The Magical Land of the Gods”, though this was said by the Elves to be the ancient Garden of the Gods, and which they call Kothimika. And there did Brandar and his fellows would win great renown while they were there, while the Tells of their exploits there would later be sung of in later in every land.
Abrupt and incomplete has the telling of this story been, so far, as many acts of the Emissaries, to this point, were not given to the fullest extent. More complete accounts can be read in the Chronicles. I was concerned here with relating briefly Brandar’s early years, and adventures leading to his braving of the Mists. But now can be told how the Seven fared among the people of Arzultaur, who name themselves Sereghran. But that story is called “The Emissaries Upon Arzultaur”, which is part of “The Tell of the Magic Seven”. And it is a long tale, when told in full. So, I likewise give that in brief, else would I make this work too great to read in a comfortable span. I give you, therefore, my account of The Emissaries Upon Arzultaur.