Surrender

Prologue “Things are not always what they seem. Though the world may seem like it’s coming to an end, okay, so in this instance things are exactly what they seem. Sucks to be us.” ~ Elora From the Diary of Elora, half dark elf extraordinaire: So, I just might die a virgin after all. That’s what sucks about the end of the world. You just don’t plan for it and once it’s upon you it’s too late. It’s been a few weeks since I’ve had time to actually write anything down, which sucks because more has happened in my life in the past three weeks than it has in all my seventeen (soon to be eighteen) years. So, I’m going to give you a quick recap, as if my diary is a living breathing thing and really cares. I’ve told you about Trik―the dark elf assassin that Cassie, my best friend, has fallen for. Apparently, elves have these things called Chosens and it’s like their soulmate or whatever. Well Lorsan, the dark elf king, didn’t like his favorite assassin being distracted by a human especially since said human was causing Trik to have a conscience. It kind of puts a dent in a wicked king’s plans when his assassin stops killing the people the king wants dead. Trik comes to realize that he doesn’t want to be the dark elf assassin anymore for a couple of reasons. First, because he has Cassie and second, because the Forest Lords, those are the creators of the elves, came to see Trik and reminded him of who he is—or who he was supposed to be. Okay, so hold onto your butts because this is going to blow your mind. Okay, maybe it won’t because really what do you care about the elf people? Trik is the one true king of all the elves. Long story short, he got dethroned, went into exile, and has been a douche for the past few centuries. Fast forward, Lorsan wants Trik dead. Trik wants to reclaim his throne and help heal the rift between the light and dark elves and Cassie is meant to be his queen. Of course, that means Trik had to be all caveman and drag Cassie to the altar, not that she gave up much of a fight (no fight at all actually). They got hitched and meanwhile little old me found out a few other interesting things as well. First, I am not just human. Just blew your circuits, didn’t I? Turns out dear, old, departed dad was a dark elf. My mom, Lisa, totally went for the bad guy. For some reason, I’m not surprised. That means that Oakley, my brother, isn’t fully human either. On top of finding out that I’m not fully human, I also found out that I’m a Chosen to a light elf warrior, who I call Cush. Why, you ask? Because his real name means butt cushion. Okay, maybe not that exact translation but you get the idea. We had a rough start because we’re both as stubborn as hobbled mules, but we finally realized that not only are we destined to be together but we actually like each other. Go figure. Basically, we are on the run from Lorsan, while at the same time attempting to shut down the sale of Rapture, a liquid drug the dark elves devised to enslave the human race. If you ask me their goals are a little lofty, but then nobody asked me, and therein lies their problem. But our problems don’t end there. On top of trying to get Rapture out of the human realm and taking out Lorsan, we also have to rescue Cassie’s parents. Apparently, there’s a dark elf who is delusional and believes Cassie is his Chosen reincarnated. So naturally he thought kidnapping her parents would win her heart. Loser. What happened to love notes and flowers? Anyways, now you’re caught up, roughly. The point is life is about as jacked up as it can get at the moment. I would like to be able to give some Braveheart worthy speech and say that we totally got this, but honestly, I have no idea if we can pull this off. If this turns out to be my last entry, then I have to say that at least I get to go out with a bang and a hot elf as my boy toy. Cush just asked me to write that he is not my boy toy, however, I got the hot part right (eye roll). We’re off to save the world. Don’t wait up for me. P.S. I have to rub it in that Cassie’s dark elf carries a quiver. My warrior carries a sword. Can you guess who got the short end of the stick (pun totally intended). Cassie, if you live and read this, I love you, but you know I can’t be anything but brutally honest. Bye. Lorsan looked down at the book he held in his hands. It had been a very, very long time since any elf had actually seen The Book of the Elves. It was finally his. “How did you get it from him, my love?” he asked his Chosen who stood across from him with a smug smile on her beautiful face. Ilyrana held her hand up and examined her nails as she spoke. Her voice was light, as though she was talking about the latest fashions of the human realm, and not an ancient, powerful book. “Tarron made the mistake of returning to his home away from home. He thought we didn’t know that he had a place of his own in the human realm.” Lorsan pinched the bridge of his nose as all of the centuries of living weighed on him like bricks being stacked one on top of the other. He had lived a long life, and yet he wasn’t to give up until he had all the power he deserved. “He also forgot that at one time we employed the greatest spy our race has ever seen.” He looked over at her, taking his eyes off the book for the first time since she handed it to him. “It took some convincing, but once he realized that there was no way I was letting him leave alive, he handed it over. He did seem to be in a bit of a hurry, however. When I questioned him about it, he simply handed over the book and told me he would be checking in with you later. He said he had loose ends to tie up.” “Where is a good spy when you need one,” Lorsan muttered. “Apparently, too busy attempting to gain control of our race,” she answered, though she knew the question had been rhetorical. “I hope that Tarron hasn’t lost his mind and done something foolish.” Ilyrana let out a cackling laugh. “You assume that he was ever in his right mind, king of mine. You, of all people, know that Tarron is a step beyond wicked. You’d be better off hoping that he hasn’t started making Rapture on his own and passing it out to the humans like candy. He hates humans more than any other elf I’ve ever known.” “If your mate had been human and had rejected you, then you might also harbor the tiniest bit of ill will.” “I didn’t say he doesn’t have a good reason for disliking the humans,” she pointed out. “I’m simply saying that his hatred goes a step beyond just words. Tarron is not one to sit by and just let an insult go. It may have been centuries ago that his Chosen walked away from him, but he has not forgotten. Like any good hunter he has been patiently waiting for the opportunity to strike.” “I just hope his endeavor to exact his revenge doesn’t interfere with my plans,” Lorsan bit out. His Chosen waved her hand as though batting away a fly. “I don’t think you need to worry about that, my love. If there is anyone he hates more than the humans, it’s Triktapic. His jealousy of our former assassin runs deep. Once he has taken care of whatever plan he has fleshed out, he will be going after the self-pronounced king. Who knows, he might even solve that problem for you and kill Trik himself.” Lorsan shook his head. “We’d be better off looking for a new chemist than believing that Tarron has the power to overtake Triktapic. Even I would be a fool to underestimate him. He is sly, cunning and fearless.” “Perhaps, but he also has something he has never had before,” she pointed out. Lorsan brow dipped low as he tilted his head and looked at her. “What?” “Something to lose.”