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possibly they could escape. And if these invaders carried weapons, then that meant they could bleed and die like the rest of us. I made that my goal, to save what prisoners I could and take them somewhere safe, possibly into the northern wastes or deep into the Blackrock Mountains.
    With a renewed sense of focus, I pressed on. It didn’t take long to find the invaders leading a group of captured Tal’mar through the city. I followed them, slipping silently from shadow to shadow as they exited the gates and marched into the surrounding woods. They led the captives to a broad, grassy clearing southeast of the city, where they had clear-cut dozens of trees to widen a landing area for one of their massive ships. I watched from the safety of the surrounding woods as they guided their prisoners up a ramp and disappeared inside the enormous vessel.
    I moved closer, edging along the trees, ducking under the fallen logs, straining for a closer look. The behemoth ship rose up before me, almost lifelike in shape and movement. The dragon’s head was frighteningly realistic, with shining black scales carved into its throat and red eyes that glistened with the moisture of condensation. I could see from my vantage that the creature’s mouth was open and that the ship’s designers had mounted some sort of cannon inside the opening. I wondered if that was the weapon they had used to destroy the palace. Then, on closer inspection, I realized that guns and cannon ports lined the sides of the ship as well. This may have been a cargo vessel, but it was armed to the teeth.
    Up on the main deck, thick black smoke churned out of the furnaces, drifting up to vanish in the night sky. The flickering light of the fires cast dancing shadows on the surface of the great black balloon that held the ship aloft. The propellers near the aft section idled slowly, temporarily disengaged from their drive shafts.
    Giant black sails billowed in the wind high overhead as the vessel drifted slowly back and forth, tugging gently against its chains like a living creature testing the bonds of captivity. I noted the movement and saw that massive balloon up above strained to pull the stakes from the ground and launch the ship heavenward, but the restraints held firmly in place. The ship, caught in the middle, could only creak and moan in distress. The wooden hull groaned with every gust of wind.
    I scanned the area, taking note of the guards and soldiers on patrol. I couldn’t even count them as they stomped in and out of the ship, some of them going back into the city, others heading out to patrol the woods. They seemed beyond number. How many more ships did they have like this, I wondered. How many more soldiers? It seemed that an entire nation had invaded us in one night.
    I was about to leave when a rustle in the branches nearby caused the hairs on the back of my neck to rise. I snapped my head around and stared, trying to find focus in the darkness. Gradually, my eyes adjusted and a cool purple light became visible in the branches just ahead. I could tell by the size that it was one of the Tal’mar. I scanned the trees around the clearing, but I didn’t see any others. He appeared to be alone.
    The Tal’mar crept noiselessly forward and looked down at me as he reached the end of the branch. He seemed to be about my age, with dark green hair and riveting violet eyes. His skin was pale and flawless like all of his kind, and he was dressed in woodland clothes with a deep green hooded cloak. He wore an elven bow across his chest and a quiver full of arrows hung from his shoulder.
    He tilted his head sideways, pressing a finger to his lips, and smiled at me. “You’re as clumsy as a human,” he said in a whisper.
    I frowned. There was enough truth in that statement that it hurt. I may have inherited many of my mother’s racial abilities, but my human blood and the many years I had spent living among humans had assured that I would never be as stealthy as a