Triad of the Elders

by Lan Dang

Chapter 18: Return of the Elder

  Eric took a deep breath before he pushed open the door. He didn’t know what to expect. A part of him was scared but another part was excited. He was finally going to return home. This door was the way to his freedom, for outside the safe walls of the Guilden Kingdom, were his first step towards going home. He still had the necklace and he was sure it would help him return back home. He was so confident about this that when he did open the door, his wide smile turned into one of shock as he was immediately greeted by a swarm of fireflies. It reminded him of his dream with the Elder as a prisoner. He hesitated for a bit before he entered the room. He continued to walk forward into the dark room, lit only by the fireflies. He had to make sure. He had to be positive that this was not some sort of trick.

  To his dismay, it was not a trick. This was exactly similar to what he had seen in his dream. In front of him, was the Elder, frail and unmoving, in the chair, chained from head to toe. He was disappointed.

  He thought to himself, “I guess I’m not going home after all.”

  He had been expecting to see a magic tunnel leading to the way out of the Guilden Kingdom but instead, he was going to free the captured Elder.

  As he walked closer towards the Elder, he could see that the man was deathly pale. Much of his face was covered by the cloak but he could see a pair of green eyes watching him. His face was thin and gaunt and his frame was tall but frail. He lifted his head towards Eric.

  “Who are you?” His voice was weak and had it not been for the quietness of the room, Eric may not have been able to hear him.

  “Zephler, the last of the royal family.” He hesitated before saying, “I have come to rescue you.”

  The Elder gazed for a long time at his face and then shifted his eyes towards the sword he held in his hand.

  “Ah, Zephler, you have returned at last and you also have Kaehlor. Who sent you here? How did you know where I was?”

  Eric shook his head. “No one sent me. I sent myself. I’ve been having dreams about this place. I honestly didn’t know where you were. I came upon this place by accident.”

  “I see.” He closed his eyes for awhile, trying to tap into his fading memory.

  His eyes opened slowly. “You must be the voice I’ve been hearing then. I honestly thought I was going mad, being locked up here for so long. I didn’t know if I could trust my own sanity. I am glad that it was real then. You were that voice.”

  Eric nodded his head. He had remembered the dreams as well.

  “So do you know who captured you? Are they still here?”

  The Elder sighed. “In all the time that I have been tied to this chair, I have not seen anyone other than you. I have no idea who captured me either. I just remember it was at night. I was resting in my chambers when I heard a beautiful voice singing out to me. It seemed to be calling to me to follow it and I was curious so I did. I left my chambers and all the lights were out on that floor. I couldn’t see a thing. The singing was my compass. I followed it until it got louder and louder until it seemed to be right next to me. But it was too dark. All I remember was I collapsed on the floor, unconscious with no idea as to what had just happened to me. When I regained consciousness, I found myself here and chained down. I thought no one could hear me so I sent for the fireflies, my only source of hope. They have kept me company throughout this ordeal.”

  Eric glanced around nervously. “Well then, in that case, we better get out of here before your captors realize that I’m here to rescue you.”

  The Elder nodded his head in agreement. “Good idea.”

  Eric whipped out the Guilden Sword and struck at the chains. He was surprised at the reaction because as soon as the sword touched the chain, the chains shook as if they were alive. He continued to strike until the chains finally loosened and slithered to the ground. He gently helped the Elder off the chair. He was very weak and was breathing in short gasps. He felt like he was holding a fragile and expensive vase that would break if he did let go. He firmly held onto the Elder to help him stand upright.

  Eric looked around at the room. He wasn’t sure whether he should go out the way he came but he knew the Great Sphinx wouldn’t let him leave with the Elder. She had already made a mistake letting him solve that riddle and he wasn’t about to push his luck before he became her next meal. But maybe he could distract her so that the Elder could escape safely. As he stood pondering this option, the Elder pointed at the small stream. Eric realized now what was making the trickling noise before in his dream.

  Together, the two followed the path of the stream and they walked in silence for a long time before they eventually found a ladder which led above ground. They climbed the ladder and opened the door which led to the cold air outside. At last, they were free. Eric realized that the tombstone they escaped out of was different from the tombstone he had entered. He was too exhausted to care though.

  As they sat on the ground, breathing in the fresh air, he noticed that the Elder was quickly regaining his strength when the chains were removed from him. Color was coming to his pale face and it looked flushed even with the misty fog enveloping the graveyard. Eric could see his eyes becoming brighter and more alert.

  “Thank you for rescuing me. I didn’t think anyone would know where I was being kept. I must say I was surprised to see that it was you. I didn’t expect it, Zephler. I didn’t expect for us to meet under these circumstances.”

  “Neither did I. But your fellow Elders have saved my life as well. I think you can say we’re even.” He grinned at him.

  “Ah, I see you met the rest of my family. I hope they didn’t give you a hard time. They can be quite strict with their rules but their heart is in the right place.”

  He laughed. His laughter broke the eerie silence and echoed into the far distance.

  Eric stared up at the sky before speaking, “Forgive me for being blunt, but I never planned on saving you. I was so concerned with getting out of here that I even forgot that you were being held captive. But I guess it’s been my fate all along except at the time, I just didn’t know it. Isn’t fate strange?”

  “Indeed it is. Perhaps fate can also change your mind to make you stay.”

  He shook his head vigorously. “Never. I have to return home.”

  “Which home?”

  Eric stared at him strangely. “My home on Earth. I don’t belong here.”

  “But technically, you don’t belong there either.”

  It was silent and Eric could see how creepy the graveyard truly was. There were rows and rows of tombstones, marking all those that had died. He shuddered in fear. He didn’t want to end up like them either.

  The Elder noticed. “Do you see all the tombstones here?”

  He nodded his head.

  “If all these people here can sacrifice their lives to save their families, their kingdom, and their people, then why can’t their king do the same as well?”

  “Because I’m not their king.”

  “Not yet. But you will be.”

  “I know, I know. My fifteenth birthday, just a couple of months away.”

  Eric scowled. He thought to himself, “Why do people keep reminding me of this impending doom? I hate my life. I hate all that crap about fate, obligations and responsibilities. Why won’t people leave me alone so I can just be a normal kid?”

  The Elder broke his thoughts. It seemed like he could read his mind for he said, “Some people would do anything to be in your position. You are quite fortunate and the sad part is, you don’t even realize it.”

  Eric sighed. “I know. I met one of those people. His name is Emmers. He really wanted to be a Questor and was very disappointed he couldn’t be one. Can you imagine how he would feel if someone offered the throne to him?”

  “They why do you feel sorry for yourself? As if life had handed you a curse rather tha
n a gift?”

  “Because this isn’t the life that I want. It isn’t something that I would choose for myself. Doesn’t anyone understand that? Why can’t I do what I want? It just doesn’t seem fair. I mean did you always want to be an Elder?”

  “I had no choice.”

  “Exactly. Neither do I.”

  The two sat in silence. Eric was still sulking and the Elder seemed to be meditating.

  The Elder stared at the stars and finally said, “I think we should return back to the castle for now. Come.”

  As they weaved around the tombstones in the fog, the voices that Eric had heard earlier started to get louder. He could hear them quite clearly. They were calling him by his first name again. He glanced at the Elder to see if he had heard anything either but the Elder continued to walk as if nothing had bothered him. Suddenly, he felt the hands pulling at him from the sides. They were stronger now. Eric took out his sword and tried swinging it back and forth at the invisible hands pulling him but the sword seemed to go through the hands. One of the hands pulled his leg and he tripped and fell flat on the floor. He struggled to get up but he couldn’t. The hand was pulling him back into the fog. Eric was terrified and started to scream.

  “Help! Help!”

  The Elder turned around and muttered something unintelligible. The voices and the hands disappeared. He even noticed that the fog had started to lift a bit and thanked the Elder for saving his life. He shuddered at the thought of what would happen to him if he remained lost amidst all these tombstones. The Elder simply nodded his head and they continued to walk to the end of the hill. He saw Ebony still standing there waiting for him to return. The horse made a low sound as it saw Eric and trotted over to meet him. Eric smiled and patted the horse.

  “Thanks for waiting for me. I brought a friend here. Can he ride with us?”

  Ebony nodded her head.

  He turned around to the Elder and told him to ride Ebony while he walked alongside. Ebony waited patiently as the weak Elder, gratefully got on the horse, while Eric led the horse back to the castle. It was very quiet when they approached the castle. He helped the Elder get off the horse and they walked towards the front door.

  The door was locked as it was after hours. The Elder politely knocked on the door but no one answered. It was cold and Eric started to shiver. The Elder noticed and as his hand brushed alongside the door, he slid it and the door miraculously opened. Eric watched in amazement.

  “How did you do that?”

  The Elder smiled. “Just a little handy trick.”

  As Eric walked through the door first, he was confronted by the two Questors. They were furious that he had broken the rules once again. In their fury and haste to punish him, they did not recognize the Elder standing outside the door in the dark, watching their reactions with interest.

  “How dare you force your way through. Wait until we bring you to the Elders to get punished.”

  As one of the Questors whipped out the black staff, Eric winced remembering the pain. But before he could use the weapon, the Elder had disarmed him very quickly and held the black staff in front of him.

  Both the Questors and Eric watched in awe at his speed. The Questors immediately recognized who this person was and opened their mouths in shock.

  “So this is how you treat people. No wonder they dislike us. It is because of people like you who abuse the powers given to you.”

  He held the staff high in one hand and with the other hand, he lifted a finger and touched the middle of the staff and it broke in two. The two pieces of the staff were tossed to the floor in utter distaste.

  “This is just a lesson. And before you go shooting off your mouths, make sure who you are talking to.”

  The Questors nodded their heads in obedience and shame.

  The Elder beckoned Eric to follow him and together, they went into the same room that Eric had entered on his first day here when he met the two Elders. It was completely dark but with a wave of the Elder’s hand, the candles on the chandelier were all lit. The room looked the same except this time, all three chairs were empty. The Elder made a slight humming sound and as if out of nowhere, his two fellow Questors appeared in their respective seats. Although, they generally showed very little emotion, it was obvious to Eric that they were shocked and elated at the same time, knowing that their fellow Elder had safely returned. After a brief moment of shock, they started to speak.

  “My fellow Elder, at last, you are finally back, safe and sound.”

  “We were worried about you. We sent a search team for you but found no information as to your whereabouts.”

  “So where were your captors keeping you and how did you manage to escape?”

  “How did you come to be captured in the first place?”

  Before any more questions came out of their mouths, the fellow Elder raised up his hand to silence them.

  “Zephler, here, saved my life. He rescued me from where I was being held captive. I do not know who my captors are for I never saw them clearly. I was kept underground in the graveyard during this whole time and I was chained down so I could not move or call for help. But this little fellow here, he has saved my life. He is indeed a hero, whether he wanted to be or not.”

  For the first time, Eric saw him crack a smile and look at him with grateful eyes. Eric smiled in return. The two Elders finally noticed that Eric was standing alongside their brother. They were so occupied with their brother’s return that they had not even noticed him.

  “Thank you, Zephler.”

  “For the safe return of our brother. You are a hero and will be rewarded.”

  The Elder smiled and said, “Zephler looks very tired. Let him return to his room and get a good night’s sleep. He deserves it.”

  They all nodded. Eric was allowed to return back to his room. He politely bowed to all three of them and retreated to the safety of his room. The Elder was right. He was so tired. He fell immediately asleep on his bed.

  He woke up to the sound of heavy knocking on his door. At first, Eric thought it was Yulik but then he remembered that he never knocked. He was curious to see who it was so he went to open the door. Kathy practically knocked the wind out of him when she ran to hug him. It was like a football tackle, except in this case, Eric had to admit he enjoyed it. He smiled broadly.

  “Hi, Eric. We missed you.”

  He was smothered by her hug.

  “We?”

  There was a polite clear of the throat.

  “Ahem, I’m here as well.”

  Eric saw Janet out of the corner of his eye. When she finally released him, he felt his entire face instantly turned red. He must look like a nervous wreck. He had just gotten out of bed, his hair was all tousled up, and he still hadn’t taken a shower or changed his clothes from last night’s excursion.

  Janet snickered, “I see you’ve been busy catching up on your beauty sleep.”

  She looked at Kathy and said, “We shouldn’t have bothered him.”

  Kathy stared at him. “Oh sorry, it was my idea. I was just so impatient to see you again that I dragged Janet to see you early in the morning. We kind of just arrived ourselves, to be honest with you.”

  He smiled. “Uh, it’s okay. I just wasn’t expecting any visitors today. Come into my room.”

  He opened the door politely and motioned for the two girls to come inside. Kathy went over to the window and stared outside.

  “It’s beautiful. Just like how I remembered it.”

  Janet glanced around at Eric’s room, which remained plain and undecorated. “Oh yeah, our room’s bigger than this. We wanted to share rooms. We’re downstairs from your room.”

  Eric looked at both of them. “So how did you guys arrive here?”

  Janet answered him. “The Elders sent for us. My dad couldn’t come because he was busy with work. And don’t wo
rry about your mother. Kathy took care of that.”

  She turned around to grin. “I just implanted a false memory of how you were chosen to study abroad, an all expense paid trip to Germany. You should have seen your mom’s face. She was ecstatic.”

  Janet looked at him. “You should have told us that you were going to return here. We were all worried about you. Your mom kept saying how she came home on a date and you weren’t in your room. She thought you were upset and ran away.”

  She grinned. “But we knew better. We just needed the Elders to help us get back.”

  Kathy joined in the conversation. “So did you make any friends here yet?”

  “Yeah. His name is Emmers. He’s really nice. His dad works in the stables and his mom works as a cook in the castle.”

  “Stables? Oooh, can we see the horses then? I really miss riding horses.”

  “Sure. I’ll introduce you to him. I don’t know if you can ride the horses though. They belong to the knights and there might be a rule against that.”

  Kathy rolled her eyes. “Rules, schmules. Rules are made to be broken. Besides, you’re forgetting who you’re talking to. I can make people do anything I want.”

  Janet yawned. “I’m bored too. Let’s go outside now and see if your friend is around.”

  Eric stared at both of them. “Uh, sure. But wait. I have to change my clothes first from last night.”

  Janet looked him up and down which made him blush.

  “I think you need a shower too. We can wait. We’ll just be outside eating your breakfast. Don’t worry. We’ll save you something.”

  Eric muttered quietly to himself as he retreated to the bathroom, “How did the Elders know?”

  As he closed the bathroom door, he saw a small note attached on the door. It read in neat, elegant writing:

  To Zephler,

  I hope you like your gift. Just a small token of gratitude.

  Your friends,

  Triad of the Elders

  Eric smiled as he read the note.

  He thought to himself, “The Elders sure don’t give ordinary gifts. This might take some getting used to.”

  He shook his head. He knew that this act of kindness was an attempt to persuade him to stay. The Elders had proven their point that he could still have friends no matter where he lived. Although they could not help him return home, they could bring some of what he missed at home, back here.

  He smiled and whispered, “At least this would be my home, for the time being.”