Labyrinth Junction

by Hayley Davenport-Smith

  LISTEN to his wisdom if you can.

  “There are many glens and I don’t know of any wise old man. Again, this is something we could ask the villagers about; if there is a man of great wisdom residing close by, they will no doubt know of him.”

  “It doesn’t mention finding a number in this verse!” added Amy curiously.

  “Perhaps it will become clearer when we find the wise man,” suggested Hal, before reading the next verse:

  Deep in the sea

  Rest the Ancient Scrolls.

  Be sure to read them carefully;

  Beware the deadly souls.

  “In history books, I have read that there was once an ancient city called Xallanpolis,” Hal advised. “It is rumoured that Xallanpolis was swept away in the floods. Our ancestors believed that the city is now under the sea, but as it has never been found, and many now believe that this is just an old wives’ tale. Divers spent many years searching for Xallanpolis, but no evidence of an ancient city was ever recovered.”

  “Maybe the wise old man can tell us more about this?” suggested a chirpy-looking Moonbeamer, with a round face and jolly sparkling eyes named Shadrack.

  “Maybe,” replied Hal. “Again, it never mentions a number. Perhaps the number is written in the Ancient Scrolls. I will ask the librarians to check the old books for any information about this ancient city and its scrolls.” He wrote something down on a piece of paper before reciting the final verse:

  The riddle reveals the spell,

  But the numbers are all mixed up high.

  Only one chance to get them right;

  They are all ‘pie in the sky’.

  “Maybe this implies that once we have discovered the numbers, we must rearrange them into a specific order,” added Ballin. “Only one chance to get them right. Perhaps something awful will occur if they are not arranged correctly!”

  “Maybe,” replied Josiah, very apprehensively. “What do you think pie in the sky means?”

  “It can mean a promise of something good that is unlikely to happen. It probably has a double meaning here, in that the numbers are jumbled up, and also that this mission is a hard one to achieve,” Hal answered.

  “It has another meaning too,” added Ben softly.

  The rest of the group looked at him intently.

  “I learnt about it at school. We were studying old sayings and their meanings. It also means ‘a reward that comes after death’!”

  The room was silent. Everyone had the same thought: if this was true, then whose death was the riddle referring to? Fear quickly spread throughout the room.

  Chapter 5

  The Gothic Well

  The next few days were spent at the Citadel making preparations for the forthcoming journey. There was some excitement about the mission, but they were also apprehensive about what dangers might lie ahead. It was decided that Hal, Josiah, Ballin, Shadrack, Amy and Ben would go in search of the Gothic Well. The rest of the Moonbeamers would stay at the Citadel and continue to search through the ancient books for any information that might help them to solve the riddle. The search party would take Shami and two other dragons by the names of Kamar and Sissy, fly to an old monument mid-way and rest there before commencing their journey.

  The evening before they were due to leave, the six members of the party met for a final time in the Great Hall. Hal handed each of them large, sandy-coloured pebbles.

  “I want you each to take one of these. They are called moonstones, and were used by the Moonbeamers in ancient times for communication.”

  “How?” Ben asked.

  “If you rub the stone between your hands to make it warm and then utter a person’s name, that person’s stone will begin to glow. If that person then looks into their stone, they will see an image of you and you will be able to communicate. For hundreds of years we Moonbeamers used these as a means of communication, but they do use a small amount of magic. King Ados has forbidden us to use magic, and if we do so we will be punished harshly. Because of this, we have not used the moonstones since the Orb was stolen from us. However, as the stones only use a very small amount of magic, hopefully the King’s spies won’t notice. But we do need to be cautious, and therefore the stones must only be used in an emergency.”

  “Can we experiment with them now?” asked Ben excitedly.

  Hal narrowed his eyes. “No! As I’ve said, they can only be used in emergencies. You must look after the stones carefully and keep them safe!”

  Disappointed, Ben reluctantly slipped his stone into his pocket.

  The next morning they were given supplies for their journey and Tia wished them luck. Although Ben and Amy were excited, they also felt sad to be leaving the safety and warmth of the Citadel. The Moonbeamers had been welcoming and they had both felt a sense of belonging there.

  Shadrack announced it was time to go, and they climbed aboard the dragons, travelling in pairs. Ben flew with Hal on Kamar and Hal told him tales of times gone by and how King Ados had come to rule. He told him how the King’s father, King Xen, had tricked the Moonbeamers and stolen the Enchanter’s Orb, keeping it for himself. The Unicerons had turned their backs on the Moonbeamers and sworn allegiance to King Xen. Hal did not think the Unicerons enjoyed serving King Xen, as he was a mean and evil king, but the Orb’s magic controlled and enchanted them. King Xen had ruled the land for fifteen years until his death five years ago. On his death, his son Ados was crowned and given the Enchanter’s Orb and the Sword of Gwyntog. King Ados was even crueller than his father, and nobody in the land favoured this new king.

  Ben told Hal about his family, about his parents and siblings and his dog. He wondered what they were doing and felt sad that he had not seen them for several days. They would be extremely fretful and upset about his disappearance, and this worried Ben greatly. Hal tried to reassure him and promised he would do everything he could to help Ben return home. Ben was grateful for this, for he knew that the Moonbeamers were good people and hoped that they would once again rule this beautiful land.

  Halfway through their journey, they rested by a huge monument, and Ben admired the scenery surrounding them. A long, narrow valley stretched out before him and the luscious green fields spanned for miles around. The monument was in the shape of a tall, slender man wearing a crown of flowers; he held a staff in his hand and children were seated at his feet. The inscription at the bottom read, In memory of King Semba, who served this land well.

  “Who was King Semba?” Ben asked.

  “He was my great-great-great-grandfather,” Hal said. “He was a very popular king, and the whole land mourned when he died. He was a great inspiration to the Moonbeamers.”

  The six members of the group sat and gathered their thoughts, resting before they continued on their journey. Shami grazed alongside the other two dragons, Kamar and Sissy. They were green like Shami, but taller and not as gentle-looking.

  “Amy, why don’t you and Ben ride on Shami and guide the way? Hopefully Shami will remember the route,” said Hal. “Ballin, you can fly with me on Kamar. Josiah and Shadrack, you both go with Sissy. How long do you think it will take for us to reach the well, Amy?”

  “I’m not sure. It’s hard to remember exactly how far it was, but I know we made quite a long journey that day. I would say it’s at least a two-hour flight.”

  “Then we must waste no more time and get on our way immediately. By the look of those clouds in the distance, a storm could be heading this way.”

  Shami led the way and they travelled at speed. They flew over tall mountains, deep valleys and green forests. They spotted villages dotted around and farmers tending their crops. Ben saw the coastline in the distance, with the sea stretching away far into the horizon. He spotted an island with what looked like a tiny church and a very small harbour. There were a couple of boats moored up, but he couldn’t see any people or any houses. T
hey flew past beautiful golden, sandy beaches and steep white cliffs which ran down to the shoreline. The air was warm and fresh, and Ben enjoyed the feel of the wind on his face.

  Eventually, they turned back inland and began to descend, heading towards a clearing in the middle of a thick forest. Once they were safe on the ground, Amy looked around, trying to gather her bearings. She noticed what looked like a pathway into the wood and signalled for the others to follow. The dragons stayed in the clearing, grazing on the rich green grass, whilst Ben and the Moonbeamers followed Amy into the forest. Ben looked up at the eucalyptus trees and hoped that their presence was a promising sign. The wood was very dense and thick, but luckily the sun still managed to shine through the tall trees.

  Eventually they came to what looked like a huge cluster of bushes, and Ben was intrigued when Amy went over to them and began peering through the leaves and branches.

  “It’s here, I’ve found it!” she screeched in excitement.

  They started ripping away the branches and, to their delight, inside the overgrowth they found a circular stone wall. It was built from a very old, thick grey stone and was beginning to crumble in places. The circle of stones was about fifteen feet in diameter, and Ben thought he had never seen a well of such enormous size. The six friends cleared a path to the wall and approached it to peer over the edge. They were unable to see the bottom of the well; it looked like a dark pit which went on forever. Hal picked up a stone and dropped it into the abyss. They listened to see if they could hear it hit the bottom, but no sound emerged from within, and Ben imagined it must be a very long way down. Ballin shone his lantern into the well, and they noticed steps that spiralled downwards against the walls. In the middle was a steep drop. There were no railings and the steps looked old, crumbling and extremely dangerous.

  “What do you think?” asked Josiah apprehensively.

  “It certainly looks like the well described in the riddle. This wood contains lots of eucalyptus trees and this well is definitely very old,” replied Hal. “The only way to find out for certain is to go down and have a look.”

  “I’ll go!” said Ben hastily. “Those steps look very narrow and I’m much smaller than you Moonbeamers. I’m less likely to fall!”

  “I’ll accompany you; you can’t go down there alone,” replied Hal. “Three of us should go down and three stay up here and act as lookouts. What about you, Ballin – will you join us?”

  “Yes, I would be happy to,” replied Ballin, not looking very convinced.

  “We each need to count the steps,” announced Hal. “The riddle asks how many steps there are to ring the golden bell, and it looks like quite a long way down. If we all count the steps, there is less chance of an error being made.”

  Ben and Ballin agreed and quickly climbed over the wall to where the steps began. Hal went first, with Ben following and Ballin at the rear. Ben tied a lantern to his chest, freeing his hands to give himself as much balance as possible. The bright lamp and the shimmering lights produced by the Moonbeamers lit up the well, and they began their descent. The steps were old and worn and Ben noticed that they were damp, cracked and crumbling in places. He chose not to dwell on this too much and carried on descending, carefully counting each step as he went. He used the wall to guide himself, and it felt cold and wet beneath his fingertips.

  Suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, Ben thought he saw something move and stopped in fear. A chill went through him as he pointed to the far side of the well. The others followed his gaze and to their astonishment saw what appeared to be a pair of eyes in the stone wall. Hal felt a sense of trepidation as he moved his lamp to the right and to his horror saw hundreds of pairs which shone angrily from within the walls. Ben’s blood ran cold as he quickly moved a few inches away from the stone side, held up his lamp and soon realised that there were eyes everywhere, even just inches from him. He had an incredible urge to step away from them, but knew that if he did so, he would lose his balance and fall to the bottom of the well.

  “What are they?” he blurted, horrified.

  “I think someone must have cast a spell on the well to make these eyes appear,” replied Hal nervously, trying to hide his fear. “They are probably here just to frighten us away. I think we have found the Gothic Well, and someone or something does not want us here. We have already descended nearly one hundred steps and I’m sure we must have passed many of these eyes. If they could harm us in any way, they would have done so by now. I think we are nearing the bottom of the well. We should continue going down!”

  He turned and carried on descending. In all the confusion, Ben had almost forgotten how many steps he had counted, but thankfully his memory did not let him down. So far he had been feeling his way along the wall of the well whilst counting the steps. This had helped him to balance, but now that he had seen the eyes, he was too afraid to touch the rock. Worry snaked through him as he continued down.

  After descending a few more metres, Hal shouted up that he had reached the bottom, and Ben felt an overwhelming sense of relief and quickly joined him.

  “How many steps did you count?” asked Hal, eager to escape the strange well.

  “I counted 162,” stuttered Ballin.

  “Me too!” said Ben anxiously.

  “Excellent,” replied Hal. “That’s the same as I counted, so we can be pretty certain that we haven’t made a mistake. The riddle says, How many steps to ring the golden bell? Let’s look around to see if we can find this bell.”

  They held out their lanterns, searching in the darkness.

  “Over here!” shouted Ben, trying to sound hopeful through the anxiety that swirled around him.

  The others walked over to where he was standing. A little alcove was set in one of the walls and within it was what appeared to be a small well, a miniature version of the one they had just descended. It looked identical, except that this well had a bell above it, hanging from the stony ceiling of the alcove. The bell was golden in colour and had a small, thin cord hanging from it.

  “Do you think we are meant to ring it?” asked Ben quietly. It struck him as odd that they were whispering when there was nobody else around, but he felt uneasy in the darkness.

  “I think we should,” replied Ballin. “The riddle asked how many steps there are to ring the bell. We have climbed a long way down and I certainly don’t want to have to come back here because we missed something.”

  “Me too,” answered Ben, shuddering at the thought.

  “Very well, stand back just in case something happens, though I’m sure everything will be fine,” Hal advised.

  Ben and Ballin took a few steps backwards and Hal reached out to take the end of the cord. He slowly drew his hand to the side and released the rope. It swung back, and the bell let out a loud and piercing chime. They hadn’t expected it to ring so loudly, and immediately covered their ears with their hands. The bell chimed once and the cord slowly stopped swinging. Then they heard a different sound coming from within the small well. It was a grating sound, like rocks being dragged along a stone floor. They approached and looked downwards. To their surprise, what they thought was the bottom of the well was moving to one side and an opening began to appear. The three of them watched until the stone panel came to a standstill and Hal peered inside to see what was beneath. They found themselves looking at an axe, and a shiny glass box bearing a lock. The box was quite large, and placed on top was an old, rusty-looking key.

  Hal cautiously lifted the box from the well, not certain whether this could be some kind of trick. He slotted the key into the lock and it fitted perfectly. Slowly, the lid was lifted to reveal a small box-shaped jewellery case made of red velvet. They looked at each other dubiously. Hal bent down to retrieve it from the well, and as he opened it, the others eagerly looked over his shoulder to see what was inside. Wrapped in a soft, white piece of cloth was a round turquoise coin. On one side was a picture o
f a bear, and on the reverse was a dragon’s head. The coin was smooth and appeared to be made out of some kind of gemstone. Its discovery posed many questions: why was it here, and what was its purpose? They looked at each other in confusion, before deciding not to dwell on the matter until they had escaped from the strange and sinister eyes. Hal put the small box inside an inner pocket of his cape and then bent down to reach the axe. It was about a foot in length, with a wooden handle and a silver-tipped blade.

  “What do you think the axe is for?” whispered Ben.

  “I have no idea, but I think it would be a good idea to take it with us,” advised Hal.

  He picked up the axe and they quickly turned to leave. There was tension in the air and they felt uneasy. They ran back to the steps and started their ascent, trying to ignore the perculiar eyes in the walls which watched them with intent. All of a sudden, to Ben’s horror, he felt something grabbing at his legs and he let out a roaring scream. Hal looked in Ben’s direction, and with dread saw that beneath the scornful blinking eyes, a nose and mouth had appeared, and arms were protruding from the walls. The hands had long fingers with razor-sharp claws. The mouths were muttering uncontrollably, and hissing sounds could be heard loudly. Ben tried frantically to shake his leg free as claws ripped through his trouser leg and into his flesh. Immediately realising what the axe was for, Hal turned to Ben and struck out at the moving arms. As the blade bit into them, the accompanying face in the wall seemed to howl in pain and the hands disappeared back into the stone. Ben’s blood ran cold as he clambered as fast as he could up the steps, in such a panic that he could no longer feel the pain in his leg. More arms appeared, and Hal hacked at them as they tried to hurry up the steps. They had to climb close to the edge, as far away from the stone wall as possible, but underfoot was very slippery and if they lost their footing they would topple and fall to the bottom of the well. Ballin had taken out his sword and he too was swinging at the arms, trying to stop the hands from grabbing at their clothing and legs. More and more faces were appearing the higher they climbed, and brave Hal battled to keep the arms at bay. The more he hacked, the louder the wailing sounds became, and the noise was piercing. Ben felt a sense of helplessness and bit back a scream.