HS 3 – The Elf Queen of Shannara by Brooks, Terry

forage and hunt and stand guard against any enemy while the

Elves remained safe.

“It was all right in the beginning, it seemed. The creatures

flourished and served as they were intended to do, and all was

well. But as time passed, some among the wielders began to

advance new ideas for use of the magic. They had been suc-

cessful once, the argument went. Why not again? If animals

could be formed of the magic, why not something even more

advanced? Why not duplicate themselves? Why not build an

army of men that would fight in their place in the event of an

attack while they remained safe behind the walls of Arborlon?”

Eowen shook her head slowly, delicate features twisting at

some inner horror. “They made the demons then-or the things

that would become the demons. They took parts of themselves,

flesh and blood to begin with, but then memories and emotions

and all the invisible pieces of their spirits, and they gave them

life. These new Elves-for they were Elves, then-were made to

be soldiers and hunters and guardians of the realm, and they

knew nothing else and had no need or desire but to serve. They

seemed ideal. Those who made them sent them forth to estab-

lish watch on the coasts of the island. They were self-sufficient;

there was no need to feel concern for them.”

Her voice dropped to a whisper. “For a time, they were

almost forgotten, I am told-as if they were of no further con-

sequence.”

Again she reached for Wren’s hands, clasping them tight.

“Then the changes began. Little by little, the new Elves started

to alter, their appearance and personality to change. It happened

away from the city and out of the sight and mind of the people,

and so there was no one to stop it or to warn against it. Some

of the first creatures created by the magic, like the Splinterscats,

came to the Elves and told what was happening, but they were

ignored. They were just animals after all, despite their abilities,

and their cautions were dismissed.

“The new Elves, already changing to demons, began to stray

from their posts, to disappear into the jungles, to hunt and kill

everything they came across. The Splinterscats and the others

were the first victims. The Elves of Arborion were next. Efforts

were made to put an end to these monsters, but the efforts were

scattered and misdirected, and the Elves still did not accept that

the trouble lay not with just a few but with all of their creations.

By the time they realized how badly they had misjudged the

magic’s effect, the situation was out of control.

“By then, Ellenroh was Queen. Her father had infused the

Keel with the magic of the Loden to provide a shield behind

which the Elves could hide, and in truth they seemed safe

enough. But Ellenroh wasn’t so sure. Determined to put an end

to the demons, she took her Elven Hunters into the jungles to

search them out. But the magic had worked too well in its spe-

cific intent, and the demons were too strong. Time and again,

they threw the Elves back. The war went on for years, a terrible,

endless struggle for supremacy of the island that ravaged Mor-

rowindl and made living on her soil a nightmare beyond reason.”

The hands tightened, hard and unyielding. “Finally, all other

choices stripped from Ellenroh by the magic’s intractability and

the demons’ savagery, she called the last of the Elves into the

city. That was ten years ago. It marked the end of any contact

with the outside world.”

“But why couldn’t the same magic that made these creatures

be used to eliminate them?” Wren demanded.

“Oh, Wren, it was far too late for that.” Eowen rocked as if

comforting a child. “The magic was gone!” Her eyes had a dis-

tant, ravaged look. “All magic has a source. It is no different

with Elven magic. Most of it comes from the earth, a weaving

together of the life that resides there. The island was the source

of the magic used to create the demons and the others before