"Douglas Niles - Druidhome 2 - The Coral Kingdom" - читать интересную книгу автора (Niles Douglas)

"A time when there were as many elves as humans in the islesтАФmore, perhaps. The first verses tell of the
birth of the kingdom of Corwell.
"This part of Gwynneth was ruled by King Deric, a good man, brave and heroic. His people lived in
peace with the Llewyrr, the elves of Moonshae. Still, the two didn't mix much."
She started to sing the verse then, and her listeners saw the proud King Deric of the Ffolk, astride his
white charger. The steed pranced on the beach as his piratical enemies fled from the scene of a disastrous
battle. The warriors of Gwynneth had just defeated the greatest invasion ever to menace their shores. King
Deric was victorious and triumphant, and he used his prestige to forge all the cantrevs of southern
Gwynneth into the fledgling kingdom of Corwell.
The strains of the song floated across the field, compelling the attention of all who could hear. Time
passed swiftly as the bard wove her tale.
Deric was a good king, and Corwell flourished beyond any other kingdom in the isles. He was a leader
just and wise, decisive and merciful. Even the elves made peace with Deric of Corwell. This was in the age
when the numbers of elves and humans on Gwynneth were roughly equal, thus the forging of the peace
was no small accomplishment.
Many times Deric journeyed to the elven capital of Chrysalis, there to meet with Kaminas, monarch of
the elves.
Yet as the years of Deric's adulthood began to pass, his people worried that he took no wife, left no heir.
All the maidensтАФand a good many of the damesтАФin his kingdom sought his attention, but he paid them no
heed. Unsavory rumors circulated, and the king's loyal companions slew many a gossiper in late-night
tavern duels.
In fact, the king was in love, and his beloved would have granted a splendid heir to the kingdom, for her
blood was royal, too, of a strain that had ruled for far longer than the clan of Corwell. Yet the match was
unacceptable to both the Ffolk and her own people.
Deric's beloved was Herene, princess of Synnoria and daughter of Kaminas, the High Elven Lord.
The Synnorian ruler was appalled by his daughter's attraction to the human king. At first, he tried to
coax her toward other beaus, but she showed no interest in even the most handsome elves among all the
Llewyrr. Later King Kaminas resorted to sending Herene away from the valley when King Deric's visits
were anticipated.
But the lovers found ways to circumvent these precautions as well. The man would arrive unannounced,
or the princess would cut short her departure. Finally Kaminas faced a drastic action, but one he felt
necessary to the survival of his kingdom: He closed Synnoria to humans, barring their presence there for
any reason. The wizards and clerics among the Llewyrr, with the help of mighty Corellon Larethian, god of
all elves, weaved a pattern of spells around Synnoria, blocking all its borders against human intrusion.
Though he tried many times throughout the remainder of his life, King Deric was never able to find a
path into Synnoria. He never saw the elven princess again. Decades later, he died, childless, and a bitter
civil war resulted in a series of brutal tyrants holding the throne and wresting it away from each other.
Herene lived for many centuries, and eventually her father compelled her to marriage, yet she, too,
perished without an heir. And from that era to this, the bard concluded, the borders of Synnoria remained
closed.
On that note, Tavish let the notes of her final chord fade.
The harpist lowered her instrument and caught her breath. Noticing her own hunger, Alicia finally
realized that Tavish had been singing for a long time, though the minutes had seemed to pass with a
trancelike beauty.
Now the meat was served, and quickly the guests' attention turned to the food. Pitchers were refilled,
but the conversation faded away as men and women alike went to work on their plates.
"Where is the young Princess Deirdre?" Randolph inquired after a while, as they dined on beef and pork,
with bowls of thick soup and still more loaves of bread before them. "Will she attend the council?"
"She promised me that she would arrive by tomorrow," the High Queen replied in clipped tones, "though
I encouraged her to attend the feast today."