Three weeks passed and the goddess's archway sat in the throne room, behind the King and Queen's thrones.
Xavier and Stefania loved their new armor and the King and Queen promoted the twins to the Royal Guard. Stefania learned how to use her shield as a weapon, and taught Mina to do the same.
Xavier's skills with the rapier were unmatched. Not only did he hold an unbreakable sword, his sword skills suited this style of blade.
He appreciated the helmet, as its crown boasted feathers fit for a general. The four of them were given white, lightweight cloaks, which were in the luggage bag. They weren't sure if the cloaks were for comfort, to conceal the armor, or if they had magical effects, but they enjoyed them nonetheless.
Several council meetings occurred over the three weeks and they could not come to a conclusion on which nation to take back first.
Half the council thought taking back SilverCrest, the Kingdom 25 miles north of MeadowSong, northwest of Sanctuary, made the most sense. They could setup one of their 'barrier of justice,' after reclaiming SilverCrest.
That way, if humans tried to attack them from three ways, they had three months of ultimate, impenetrable defense.
The other half wanted MeadowSong back. They felt this protected their interior and prevented a 4v1 counterattack on Sanctuary.
They also felt using the barrier on MeadowSong may trick humankind into thinking any nation elven kind reacquired from humans would have the same protection.
Scouting teams returned, making the decision much easier.
No civilians lived in MeadowSong. Because the elves wanted to protect as many human civilians as possible, they knew they could take back MeadowSong without unnecessary bloodshed.
The underground caravans and living quarters to MeadowSong and SilverCrest were complete.
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At night, Mina and Sora transformed into their human form and rode and checked the security checkpoints on and near the castle.
"From what we've gathered, they have catapults on each corner of the Kingdom, on top of the Kingdom's walls. There are roughly 10,000 soldiers on site, with lookouts on standby 24/7. Some of them don't take their job very seriously, especially those early in the morning, so a late night strike seems to be our best bet," Mina explained to the council.
"We will send 1,000 physical attackers underground to sneak in the castle walls. We will send another 2,000 to cast magical spells to hurt their interior. While they are distracted fighting in the interior, 2,000 soldiers on each side of the Kingdom can attack. 5,000 elves remain on standby underneath the interior walls. The remaining 1,000 must ensure no one alerts or escapes the kingdom," Xavier told the council.
"What about the magic and fighting special forces as well as the Royal guard?" Richmond asked.
"Jax and Eva will command the special forces, if they are willing," Xavier said with a smirk.
"That's one kingdom closer to SilverCrest, we're in," Jax said with a large smile.
Jax stood 6'2, exceptionally tall for an elf. His blonde hair flows elegantly to his shoulders and despite being SilverCrest's lone survivor, he always wears his blue tunic, embroidered with gold, with a hammer and a shield across the chest. He's the most muscular elf in Sanctuary and his magical fortitude can be felt just by his presence.
His wife, Eva, also wore the tunic of SilverCrest, despite growing up a Princess of Evergreen. She stood 5'9, also tall for a female elf and had gorgeous golden blonde hair she let eloquently fall to the middle of her back.
Sora and Mina couldn't believe how beautiful the elves were. Almost every elf in a position of royalty's exuberance and beauty amazed them.
"Eva will handle the fighting force, and I will handle the magic force. We will be the first to enter and ensure sprouts, vines, and spores spread quickly. Eva's group will target the catapults. Once those are down, we will signal the underground troops," Jax said, amped up and ready for action.
"Once the interior engages in combat, we open the front gate to the Kingdom and send in the 2,000 on that side. Xavier, Stefania, Mina and Sora, it's your job to ensure no one leaves that kingdom alive," Eva said with a polite smile.
"With 1,000 warriors in hand, I assure you no one leaves that kingdom and if someone escapes, Blaze and I will pursue and catch them," Sora said with a big grin.
"Tough words for a human," Richmond mocked.
"Enough Richmond. Would you like to have your council seat removed?" King Luther threatened.
"No, apologies your majesty."
"Then it's settled, we move tomorrow night," the King said and slammed his gavel on its pad.
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Exhausted from all the meetings over the past three weeks, the twins wanted to go to their rooms and sleep.
They walked out, talking softly so no one could hear, as other members of the council were leaving the council room.
"Don't die tomorrow, please. I don't want to start this over," Sora teased, while giving his sister a playful nudge.
"Same goes for you, let's get some sleep, I'm beat. These meetings are long and boring," Mina complained.
"You're not wrong about those council meetings, in SilverCrest, we kept them short and sweet," Jax said with a smile, causing the twins to jump.
"Your secret is safe with us," Eva said with a wink.
"We haven't formally met, but this is my better half Eva and I am Jax, it's nice to meet you Mina and Sora Hart."
"The pleasure is ours, your tunics are beautiful. It's great the council allows you to wear them with pride. Why doesn't anyone else wear their original kingdom's colors?" Mina asked.
"Fear of not having anywhere to go and not having a place to belong, I think. If they wear Sanctuary's council attire, battle attire and regular attire, they feel they belong," Eva said.
Suddenly, Sora noticed Stefania walking towards them and his face lit up with excitement. He waved her over and she joined the group.
"Mina, Sora, you are not up to speed on elven tradition but the General, Commanding officers of the Royal Guard and any other Commanders, like Jax and Eva here all sit down to dinner with my parents to honor the fallen and to ensure a better future." Stefania said with a smile.
A giant smile crossed Sora's face and he didn't feel tired anymore.
"Lead the way! Are you coming sis?"
They followed Stefania and entered a large banquet hall and to their surprise, beautiful meals were already on the tables and the King, Queen and Xavier were already there.
With a polite bow and thank you, the twins sat down and enjoyed a nice steak dinner, something Mina and Sora never enjoyed as humans, with potatoes, vegetables, and although Jax, Eva and the King and Queen enjoyed alcohol, the twins, Xavier and Stefania, drank elven tea.
The twins enjoyed seeing the lighter side of the elves. They were loud, rambunctious, singing frequently and everyone got up to dance.
A small quartet of musicians played hand drums, a guitar, a flute and a tambourine while singing. The music was lively and upbeat.
Eva took Sora and Jax took Mina and taught them the dance, where the male and female would dance together, then switch partners until every male and female ended up with their original partner.
Once they learned the dance, Sora started with Stefania and Xavier started with Mina, and although Mina and Xavier felt awkward, Sora and Stefania seemed to enjoy themselves, both beaming with smiles while chatting away.
They rotated partners, and Sora was with the Queen, still beaming with smiles and chatting away with the Queen about loving life as an elf, bringing the elves back to glory and enjoying every moment of it.
"You are good to my daughter. Luther and I are ok with it," the Queen said.
Taken aback, Sora's face went beat red, and everyone noticed.
Mina, who was dancing with the King, smiled and thanked the King for welcoming them with open arms and how much she enjoyed being an elf.
"I'm happy to hear that. Let Stefania know that her Mother and I are perfectly fine with your brother courting her," the King said with a polite smile.
Mina laughed, agreed to tell her and said, "it is that obvious, isn't it?"
The King nodded and after two partner swaps, the dance concluded. They spent another hour enjoying each other's company.
Around midnight, they returned to their rooms.
"Mina, the Queen told me I had their blessing to ask Stefania out!" Sora said with a gleeful smile.
"I know, but remember these are different times and a different race. The King asked me to tell Stefania that they approved of you courting her. Take it slow."
"Of course I'm going to take it slow. She's a Princess and I never bothered kissing a girl as a human. Plus we're going into battle in less than 24 hours!" Sora exclaimed.
"Yes, hopefully everything goes smoothly. I wonder who they'll keep in MeadowSong to protect it?" Mina asked.
"Get some sleep sis. You're the witty and smart one and if I can answer that and you can't, you need rest. It'll be the Royal Guard as well as Jax and Eva," Sora said.
With a goodnight, they both fell asleep wondering how long it would be until they got a wonderful night's sleep again. They always slept better as elves.