03 The Qualinesti

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Dragonlance
~|~ The Qualinesti ~|~
The Elven Nations Trilogy
Volume Three
Paul B. Thompson & Tonya R. Carter
Prologue
The Cornerstone
Ten thousand footsteps rattled in the quiet mountain valley. It was early
morning, just before sunrise, and mist still clung to the low places between the
slopes. Five thousand elves, dwarves, and humans were assembling in this
remote mountain pass. Many were warriors, resplendent in burnished armor
and flowing capes, who had battled in the long years of the Kinslayer Wars, elf
against man, man against dwarf, and elf against elf. So protracted had been
the time of bloodshed that sons and daughters of warriors had grown up to
bear arms alongside their parents.
This was an army of peace, gathered in the Kharolis Mountains. They had
come from the kingdom of Thorbardin and the realm of Qualinesti to seal a
bargain and to erect a fortress. Pax Tharkas, it was to be called; the name had
already been agreed upon. In the elven tongue, it meant "Citadel of Peace."
From the southern end of the pass came the delegation of dwarves, led by
their new king, Glenforth Sparkstriker. It was he who had led the doughty
dwarven armies against the humans of Ergoth, checking their advance in the
high mountain passes around Thorbardin. The Battle of Raven's Hook had cost
Prince Glenforth an eye, but it had also put an end to the Emperor of Ergoth's
plan to subjugate the dwarves. Now, with his eye patch of beaten gold and his
magnificent coal-black beard rippling across his mailed chest, King Glenforth
led his people in an even greater endeavor.
Behind the king came the most powerful thanes, those of Glenforth's own
Clan Hylar. Richly dressed in crimson velvet and glittering with all the jewels
they could possibly wear, the Hylar each bore a ceremonial hammer on his
shoulder. Close behind the Hylar came the Daewar, for this great occasion
wearing midnight blue tunics, yellow sashes, and great wide-brimmed hats of
brown leather. The Daewar carried gilded rock chisels, as long as each dwarf
was tall.
The thanes of the other clans, the Klar and the Neidar, less richly dressed but
still proud, followed in the wake of their more powerful cousins. The Klar
carried ceremonial trowels, and the Neidar picks.
Where the valley floor began to slope upward, King Glenforth raised a hand.
The councilors and thanes halted and waited in respectful silence.
The delegation from Qualinesti approached the dwarves from the north end of
the valley. Most of the delegation were formerly of Silvanesti, and had the
chiseled features and light coloring of that ancient elven race. But sharp eyes
could see the mingled characteristics of the Kagonesti, the elves of the forest,
and even the broad features of humans. The new elven kingdom of Qualinesti
had existed for just eighty years, and so far had proven the truth of its
founder's dream: that elves and men and dwarves could live together in
harmony, peace, and justice.
The founder himself led his nobles and notables to meet the Thorbardin
thanes. In middle age now, as elves reckon time, the Speaker of the Sun was
by far the most commanding figure in the valley. Age and toil had sent a few
streaks of silver through his white-blond hair, but the clear, noble features of
the House of Silvanos were unaltered by all the years of strife.
Kith-Kanan, the Speaker of the Sun, the founder of the nation of Qualinesti,
stopped his entourage twenty paces or so from the dwarves. Alone, he went
forward to meet King Glenforth of Thorbardin.
The elf met the dwarf near a large boulder that rose up in the center of the
path. Glenforth extended his thick, powerful arms.
"Royal brother!" he said heartily. "I rejoice to see you!"
"And I you, Thane of Thanes!"
Tall elf and squat dwarf clasped hands about each other's forearms. "This is a
great day for our nations," Kith-Kanan said, stepping back. "For all of Krynn."
"There were many times I didn't think I would live to see this day," Glenforth
said frankly.
"I, too, have wondered if this new kingdom of ours could have been born
without the blood and suffering of the war. My late wife used to say that all
things are born that way-with blood and pain." Kith-Kanan nodded slowly,
thinking of days gone by. "But we're here now, that's the important thing," he
added, smiling.
"Praise the gods," said the dwarf sincerely.
Kith-Kanan turned back the folds of his emerald green cape to free his left
hand. Looking to his waiting entourage, he smiled and lifted his arm, gesturing
two figures forward. Glenforth squinted his good eye and saw that the two
were children, a golden-haired boy and a brown-haired girl.
"King Glenforth, may I present my son, Prince Ulvian, and my daughter,
Princess Verhanna," Kith-Kanan said, pushing the children forward. Ulvian
dragged his feet and hung back from the unfamiliar dwarf. Verhanna, however,
approached the king and bowed deeply to him.
"You do me honor," Glenforth said, a smile flashing amidst his black beard.
"No, sire. I am the honored one," Verhanna replied, her high voice ringing
clear in the mountain air. Her large, dark brown eyes appraised the dwarf
frankly, with no sign of fear. "I've heard the bards sing of your greatness in
battle. Now that I've met you, I see the truth of their songs."
"Memories of battle are a poor comfort when one grows old and tired. I would
trade all of mine for a child like you," he said gallantly. Verhanna flushed at
this praise, stammered a thank-you, and withdrew to her father's side.
"Go on." Kith-Kanan said to his son. "Make your greetings to King Glenforth."
Prince Ulvian took a small step forward and bowed with a quick, bobbing
motion. "Greetings, Great King," he said, running his words together in his
haste to get them out. "I'm honored to meet you."
His duty done, Ulvian stepped back and hovered just behind his father.
With a fond pat on Verhanna's cheek, Kith-Kanan sent his children back to
the ranks of nobles. Turning once more to the dwarf, he said softly, "Excuse
my son. He hasn't been the same since his mother died. My daughter never
really knew her mother; it's been easier for her."
Glenforth nodded politely. Practically everyone from Hylo to Silvanost knew
the tale of Kith-Kanan and his human wife, Suzine. She had died many years
before, in one of the last battles of the Kinslayer War. Her children matured at
a much slower rate than human children, but not as slowly as full-blooded
elven offspring. In human terms, both were still quite young.
The two monarchs exchanged more polite trivialities before returning to the
reason for their meeting this morning. At a sign from Glenforth, an elderly
dwarf came forward carrying an object covered by a red velvet cloth. It was
obviously very heavy, and he held it firmly in both hands. Glenforth took the
parcel, holding it easily. The elderly dwarf bowed to his king and was
introduced as Chancellor Gendrin Dunbarth, senior thane of the Hylar clan.
"My lord," Kith-Kanan said, scrutinizing the chancellor, "I once knew a wise
dwarf called Dunbarth of Dunbarth. Are you by chance related to him?"
Gendrin mopped his brow with a coarse-looking handkerchief. "Yes,
Highness. Dunbarth of Dunbarth, ambassador to the court of Silvanesti, was
my father," replied the dwarf, puffing from exertion.
Kith-Kanan smiled. "I met him in Silvanost many years ago and remember
him with esteem. He was an honorable fellow."
Glenforth cleared his throat. Kith-Kanan returned his attention to the king. In
loud, ringing tones, audible to the assembled thanes and Qualinesti, the dwarf
king declared, "Great Speaker, on behalf of all the dwarves of Thorbardin, I
present you with this special tool. I know you will wield it justly, for the benefit
of your people and mine."
He passed the velvet-wrapped burden to Kith-Kanan. The Speaker of the Sun
whisked the cover away, revealing a large iron hammer, wrought in traditional
dwarven style but made larger to fit the hands of an elf. The octagonal iron
handle was banded with silver, and the sides of the massive flat hammerhead
were gilded.
"It is called Sunderer," Glenforth explained. "Our priests of Reorx forged it in
a slow fire, and quenched it in dragon's blood to give it a worthy temper."
"It is magnificent," Kith-Kanan said in awed tones. He turned the great
hammer in his hands. "This is the tool of a demigod, not a mortal such as I."
"Well, as long as it's good enough," the dwarf king said with a wry smile. He
waved a beringed hand, and another Hylar thane came to him. This dwarf bore
one of the long iron chisels banded with silver. He gave it to his king, then he
and Gendrin Dunbarth withdrew.
Kith-Kanan and Glenforth walked in matched step to the boulder that lay in
the center of the pass. As they proceeded with appropriate dignity, Kith-Kanan
said softly, "Will you make the announcement, or shall I?"
"This was your idea." Glenforth replied in a low voice. "You do it."
"It's a joint project, Your Highness."
"Yes, but I'm no speechifier," said the dwarf. They stood by the boulder.
"Besides, everyone knows elves are better talkers than dwarves."
"First I've heard of it," Kith-Kanan muttered.
The Speaker of the Sun turned to face the delegations. King Glenforth stood
resolutely beside him, his hands resting on the long chisel as a warrior rests on
his sword pommel.
Kith-Kanan listened for a moment to the stillness of the valley. The mist was
vanishing, burned off by the rising sun. A flock of swifts darted and wheeled
overhead. Somewhere in the distance, a dove made its mournful call.
"We have come here today," he began, "to erect a fortress. Not a stronghold
for war, for we have too long followed that path. This fortress, which we of
Qualinesti and our friends of Thorbardin shall build and occupy together, shall
be a place of peace, a place where people of all races can seek haven and find
protection and rest."
The Speaker paused as the first direct rays of the sun lanced over the
mountain peaks into the valley. He was facing east, and the sunbeams warmed
his face. A surge of resolution, of the rightness of what they were beginning
here today, passed through Kith-Kanan.
"This boulder will be the cornerstone of Pax Tharkas, the Citadel of Peace.
King Glenforth and I will carve it out ourselves, as a symbol of the cooperation
and friendship between our countries."
He turned to the rock and set the great hammer Sunderer on his shoulder.
Glenforth butted the chisel against the rock and steadied it with both of his
thick, powerful hands.
"Swing true, Speaker," he said, half-jesting.
Kith-Kanan raised the hammer. Ulvian and Verhanna, standing with the
Qualinesti nobles, stepped forward to get a better view of their father's work.
Sunderer came down on the chisel. A torrent of sparks fell across the
boulder, spraying the dwarf king with fire. Glenforth laughed and urged Kith-
Kanan to strike again. The third blow Kith-Kanan delivered was a mighty stroke
indeed. It echoed through the valley like a roll of thunder and was quickly
followed by the dry crack of cleaving rock. An entire side of the boulder fell
away, leaving the rock with a face clean and straight. Cheers erupted from the
onlookers.
Sweating in the cool mountain air, Kith-Kanan said to Glenforth, "Your
hammer strikes nothing but true blows, Thane of Thanes."
"Your hammer, Great Speaker, like all tools, strikes only as its wielder aims,"
replied the dwarf thoughtfully. He blew on his hands and rubbed them
together.
"What do you think of that, Ullie?" Kith-Kanan called, looking to his son. The
boy had his head down, a hand pressed to his right cheek. The Speaker
frowned. "What's wrong, son?"
Ulvian looked up slowly to meet his father's eyes. The boy's face showed
pain. When he took his hands away, a small cut could be seen on his cheek.
Gazing at the blood staining his fingers, Ulvian said softly, "I bleed."
"A rock chip hit you," Verhanna said matter-of-factly. "Some landed on me,
too." She shook the folds of her boyish clothes and bits of stone and grit fell
out.
Prince Ulvian's face twisted in anger. "I bleed!" he cried. He backed away
from his father and bumped into a wall of courtiers and nobles. They parted for
him, and the panicked prince fled into the crowd.
"Ulvian, come back!" Kith-Kanan shouted. The boy did not heed him.
"Want me to catch him?" Verhanna offered, sure in the knowledge that she
was swifter than her brother.
"No, child. Stay here."
Kith-Kanan summoned his castellan, the elf in charge of his household,
Tamanier Ambrodel. The elderly, gray-haired elf, dressed in a gray doublet and
mauve cape, stepped out of the crowd.
"Find my son, Tam, and take him to a healer if he needs one," said the
Speaker.
Tamanier bowed. "Yes, Highness."
Kith-Kanan watched his castellan disappear into the crowd. Hefting the great
hammer, he said, "Ullie will be all right." Glenforth cleared his throat and
pretended to be studying the boulder before him.
Verhanna and the rest of the crowd stood back as the Speaker of the Sun and
the King of Thorbardin resumed their places at the stone. The valley rang with
the sound of iron on rock.
In short order, the stone became a cube, square on four sides and rough on
top. King Glenforth wasn't tall enough to bring the chisel to bear on the top of
the boulder, so his thanes formed themselves into a living stair, that he might
climb onto the rock. It was quite a sight, all the richly bedecked dwarves of
Clans Hylar and Daewar, their thick arms locked together, bent over and
braced against the cornerstone. Glenforth set aside the chisel and climbed up
their backs. Once he was atop the stone, the thanes passed the chisel to him.
"Well, Great Speaker," said the dwarf from his lofty perch, "now I am higher
than you! Will your councilors elevate you as mine did me?"
Kith-Kanan tossed the hammer to the top of the boulder, then faced his
people. "You heard the Thane of Thanes! Will the nobles of Qualinesti stoop so
that their Speaker can rise to the occasion?"
Half a hundred elves and men surged to the rock, ready to aid Kith-Kanan.
Laughing, the Speaker ordered them back, then chose three elves and three
humans. They looped their arms around each others' waists and bent to the
rock. As the others cheered, Kith-Kanan climbed nimbly atop the boulder. He
and Glenforth stood side by side, and the cheering continued. Finally Kith-
Kanan raised his hands and waved for silence.
"My good and loyal friends!" he cried. "Many times in the recent past I have
wondered if our coming to this new land was wise. Many times I have asked
myself, should I have stayed in Silvanost? Should I have fought to establish in
our old homeland the ideals we now share?"
There were shouts of "No! No!" from the crowd.
"And now-" Kith-Kanan again waved for quiet. "And now, I see us here today-
men, elves, and dwarves-working together where once we fought, and I know
I could have done nothing less than lead you to this new land, to make this
new nation. You have all suffered and struggled and bled for Qualinesti. So
have I. We did not fight to make a country like my father's, where tradition
and age count for more than truth and justice. I do not want to rule for
centuries and see all my ideals grow hoary with time. Therefore, on this rock,
with this great hammer, Sunderer, in my hand, I will make you this pledge:
The day this fortress is finished, I shall abdicate in favor of my successor."
A loud murmur of surprise spread through the assembly. The dwarves
stroked their beards and looked concerned. Some of the Qualinesti elves cried
out that Kith-Kanan should rule for life.
"No! Listen to me!" Kith-Kanan shouted. "This is what we fought for! The
ruler and the ruled must be bound by a solemn pact that neither shall suffer
the other unwanted. Once this fortress of peace is complete, let a younger,
fresher mind lead Qualinesti forward to greater happiness and glory."
He nodded to King Glenforth. The dwarf placed the chisel against the surface
of the rock. The gilded head of Sunderer flashed in the sun. Sparks flew as it
smote Glenforth's chisel, and the blow Kith-Kanan struck reverberated down
through the boulder into the stony ground of Krynn. Every elf, every dwarf,
every human present felt the mighty stroke.
1 - Shadow Talk
When Kith-Kanan led his followers west to found a new elven nation in the
ancient woodland known first as Mithranhana, he had no goal, no plan in mind
except that the mistakes of Silvanesti would not be repeated. By this he meant
not only the autocratic, inflexible government of the first elven nation, but also
the baroque, ornamental layout of the city of Silvanost itself.
The site of the first city in the new nation was chosen not by conscious
thought, but by a lost deer. Kith-Kanan and his closest lieutenants were riding
ahead of their column of settlers one afternoon when they spied a magnificent
hart with ice-blue antlers and gray hide. Thinking the beast would make a fine
trophy, as well as provide much needed meat, Kith-Kanan and his lieutenants
gave chase. The hart bounded away with great leaps, and the elves on
horseback were hard pressed to keep up. The deer led them farther and farther
from their line of march, down a steep ravine. An arrow nocked, Kith-Kanan
was about to try a desperate on-the-fly shot when the ravine ended at the
precipitous edge of a river gorge. Kith-Kanan pulled his horse up sharply and
gave a yell of surprise. The deer leapt straight off the cliff!
Astonished, the elves dismounted, hurried to the rim of the gorge, and looked
down. There was no sign of the hart; no carcass lay smashed on the riverbank
below. Kith-Kanan then knew the animal had been a magical one, but why had
it deliberately crossed their path? Why had it brought them here?
The answer soon became obvious as the elves surveyed their surroundings.
Across the wide gorge was a beautiful plateau, lightly wooded with hardwoods
and conifers.
After only a moment's reflection, Kith-Kanan knew this was to be the site of
their new city, the capital of their new nation.
The plateau was bounded on the north, east, and west by two rivers, which
converged at the north end of the plateau and became a tributary of the White
Rage River. These two streams ran through deep, wide gorges. The south side
of the roughly triangular escarpment was a labyrinth of steep, rocky ravines,
and the land rose eventually to form the mountains of Thorbardin. From a
natural point of view, the place was ideal, offering beauty and natural
defenses. And as for the gray hart-well, the Bard King, Astarin, the god most
revered by elves, is sometimes known as the Wandering Hart.
So the city of Qualinost was born. For a time, there was much sentiment to
name the town after Kith-Kanan, as Silvanost had been named after the great
Silvanos, august founder of the first elven nation. The Speaker of the Sun
would not hear of it.
"This city is not to be a monument to me," he told his well-intentioned
followers, "but a place for all people of good heart."
In the end, it was Kith-Kanan's friend and war companion, Anakardain, who
named the city. That middle-aged warrior, who had fought beside Kith at the
Battle of Sithelbec, remarked one night over dinner that the noblest person
he'd ever heard of was Quinara, wife of Silvanos. The palace in Silvanost was
called the Quinari, after her.
"You're right," Kith-Kanan declared. Though Quinara had died before he was
born, Kith-Kanan knew well the stories of his grandmother's virtuous life.
Thereafter, the budding city in the trees was known as Qualinost, which in Old
Elven means "In Memory of Quinara."
The ranks of the immigrants were swelled daily by arrivals from Silvanesti. A
vast camp grew up along the bank of the east river as more permanent
dwellings sprouted among the evergreens on the plateau. The buildings of
Qualinost, formed from the rose quartz that occurred naturally there, were
domelike or conical in shape, reaching like leafless trees to the heavens.
Greatest effort was reserved for the Tower of the Sun, a tremendous golden
spire that was to be the seat of the Speaker of the Sun's reign. In general
design, it resembled Silvanost's Tower of the Stars, but in place of cold, white
marble, this tower was covered with burnished gold. The metal reflected the
warm, bright rays of the sun. The shape of the Tower of the Sun was the only
likeness Qualinost bore to the old elven capital; when it was done, and Kith-
Kanan had been formally installed as Speaker of the Sun, then the break
between East and West was complete.
* * * * *
One spring morning in the two hundred and thirtieth year of the reign of Kith-
Kanan, the calm of Qualinost was shattered by the tramping of massed
hobnailed boots. City folk gathered outside their rose-hued homes, in the
shade of the wide, spreading trees, and watched as nearly the entire Guard of
the Sun, the army of Qualinesti, marched across the high-arched bridges that
spanned the four corners of the city. Unlike human fortified towns, Qualinost
had no walls; instead, four freestanding spans of wrought iron and bronze
arched from tower keep to tower keep, enclosing the city in walls of air. The
bridges were designed to aid in the protection of the city, yet not interfere with
the free passage of traders and townsfolk. Not unimportantly, they were
breathtakingly beautiful, as delicate as cobwebs but obviously strong enough to
hold the troops that even now marched across them. The bronze of the
cantilevered spans flashed fire in the sunlight, and at night, the black iron was
silvered by the white moon, Solinari. The four keeps had been named by Kith-
Kanan as Arcuballis, Sithel, Mackeli, and Suzine Towers.
That morning, the people stood with their faces turned upward as the
companies of guards left the tower keeps and converged on Suzine Tower, at
the southeast comer of the city. The elves had been at peace for over two
centuries, and no such concentration of troops had been observed in all that
time. Once the two thousand soldiers of the guard had gathered at the keep,
quiet returned once more to the city. Though the curious Qualinesti watched
for long minutes, nothing else seemed to be happening. The arched bridges
were again empty. The people, their faith in their leaders and their troops
strong, shrugged their shoulders and went back to their daily routines.
There were too many warriors to fit inside Suzine Tower, so many stood on
the lower intersecting ends of the bridges. Rumors circulated through the
ranks. What was happening? Why had they been summoned? The old enemy,
Ergoth, had been quiet a long time. Tension existed with Silvanesti, and the
frightening idea formed that the Speaker's twin brother, Sithas, Speaker of the
Stars, was attacking from the east. This grim story gained momentum as it
spread.
In ignorance, the troops waited as the sun passed its zenith and began its
descent. When at last the shadow of the Tower of the Sun reached out and
touched the eastern bridge, the keep's doors opened and Kith-Kanan emerged,
along with a sizable contingent from the Thalas-Enthia, the Qualinesti senate.
The warriors clasped their hands to their armored chests and cried, "Hail,
Great Speaker! Hail, Speaker of the Sun!" Kith-Kanan acknowledged their
salutes, and the soldiers fell silent. The Speaker of the Sun looked tired and
troubled. His mane of blond hair, heavily shot through with silver, was pulled
back in a crude queue, and his sky-blue robes were wrinkled and dusty.
"Guards of the Sun," he said in a low, controlled voice, "I have summoned
you here today with a heavy heart. A problem that has plagued our country for
some years has grown so much worse that I am forced to use you, my brave
warriors, to suppress it. I have consulted with the senators of the Thalas-
Enthia and the priests of our gods, and they have agreed with my chosen
course!"
Kith-Kanan paused, closing his eyes and sighing. The day was beginning to
cool slightly, and a breeze wafted over the tired leader's face. "I am sending
you out to destory the slave traders who infest the confluence of the rivers that
guard our city," he finished, his voice rising.
The guards broke out in subdued murmurs of surprise. Every resident of
Qualinost knew that the Speaker had been trying to suppress slavery in his
domain. The long Kinslayer War had, as one of its saddest consequences,
created a large population of refugees, vagabonds, and lawless rovers. These
were preyed upon by slavers, who sold them into bondage in Ergoth and
Silvanesti. Since Qualinesti was a largely unsettled area between these two
slave-holding countries, it was inevitable that the slavers would operate in
Kith-Kanan's land. Slavers who drove their human and elven "goods" to market
through Qualinesti territory frequently captured Qualinesti citizens as they
went. Slavery was one of the principal evils Kith-Kanan and his followers had
wanted to leave behind in Silvanesti, but the pernicious practice had insinuated
itself into the new country. It was time for the Speaker of the Sun to put an
end to it.
"Lord Anakardain will lead a column of a thousand guards up the eastern
river to the confluence. Lord Ambrodel will command a second column of seven
hundred and fifty mounted warriors, who will sweep the western branch and
drive the slavers into Lord Anakardain's hands. As much as possible, I want
these people taken alive for public trial. I doubt many of them will have the
stomach to fight anyway, but I don't want them dealt with summarily. Is that
clear?"
Most of the guards were former Wildrunners who had fought with Kith-Kanan
against the Ergothians; they were the sons and daughters of Kagonesti elves
who had been held in slavery in Silvanost for centuries. Slavers could expect
little kindness from them.
摘要：

Dragonlance~|~TheQualinesti~|~TheElvenNationsTrilogyVolumeThreePaulB.Thompson&TonyaR.CarterPrologueTheCornerstoneTenthousandfootstepsrattledinthequietmountainvalley.Itwasearlymorning,justbeforesunrise,andmiststillclungtothelowplacesbetweentheslopes.Fivethousandelves,dwarves,andhumanswereassemblingin...

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