Dryw Henge

by Jonathan Forth

  “Indeed,” added the boy, “word has reached even the Misty Mountains. Yet people are always dying. For one reason or another. It is the cycle of nature, days, months, seasons, generations grow and decay. We are attuned to these cycles, and are in harmony with them, but it is unclear whether Gorath’s actions will indeed bring a cycle to closure. As everything we do is interconnected, a druid senses this, feels the flows between all things, and how they resonate with the ley lines.

  “It is not clear if Gorath’s actions will irrevocably alter our world and change it to the detriment of all, or whether it is just another phase, one that will pass.

  “Just as a new moon will become a full moon. Its spirit rejoices in the part that it plays in life, but ultimately it accepts its flow to its destiny, the full moon. Perhaps Gorath will accept the same, whatever his endeavours, the natural world, human nature cannot be overcome and nature’s cycle will persevere.”

  “Really?” said Aron, astonished. “Am I hearing you right? You stood against him once and defeated him. This time though, his armies plundering our lands and killing its people, you are going to do nothing? Despite him seeking the totems that will give him untold powers, you are not going to do anything?”

  The old man frowned, “It is unclear whether the cycles signify the impending doom of the Four Realms.”

  “Well, the Four Realms are at war. Is that not enough for you? What about right and wrong?” demanded Leo.

  “Right and wrong is too simplistic,” said the old man. “Every action or choice can be right or wrong. It may change depending on your perspective. Is it right to eat chicken? It keeps you healthy and may fill your stomach, however, I’m sure the chicken would rather carry on pecking around and clucking.” The old man cast a withering stare across in the boy’s direction.

  “No, for the time being, the course that feels right is for us to continue the study of our rituals, meditation and to tend to our garden. If our ancestors or gods guided you here then they did so mistakenly. I am sorry that your journey was wasted.” The old man stood up and stretched.

  Prince Aron was about to protest further when there was a whoosh through the air and two arrows thudded into the chest of the old man. He stared down in shock and a third arrow sliced into his heart before anyone could react. His arms dropped by his side, his mouth opened and closed silently, blood spilled onto his cloak and he crumpled to his knees.

  The boy was the first to him and cradled him in his arms as his body fell backwards. “Janshai,” shouted the Prince. “Leo take cover!”

  The boy placed his hand on the old man’s chest as he took his last few breaths, closed his eyes and uttered a few words under his breath as the old man passed away in his arms. Aron grabbed the boy by his collar and wrenched him back towards the cave. The boy scrambled on his hands and knees, struggling to get some footing under him.

  He glanced up into the sky; an eagle came into view from the peak above, spread its wings, let out a piercing screech that echoed below and arched up directly into the sun. “Farewell old friend,” said the boy. “Glide on the winds and let your spirit soar among the clouds!” He turned to the others.

  “No, no, not into the cave, there is no way out,” yelled the boy. “To the right, follow the ridge!” Leo and Aron swerved to the right and followed the trail that curved round the mountain to the right of the cave. It came to a ledge just out of sight of the Janshai.

  “There is nowhere to go, there is a sheer drop over the edge,” exclaimed Aron.

  “It’s not,” said the boy. “It’s just an illusion due to the curve of the mountain. It is just a ridge of loose scree. So just jump, dig your heels in, lean back, use your staff for balance; if you sense you’re falling too fast, try and zigzag a little.”

  With that he jumped and disappeared over the ledge.

  Leo shrugged at Aron, “Well, who dares wins!” and leapt. He hit the side of the mountain perhaps ten feet below and pitched forward. Leo rolled, scraped his knees and then dug his heels and staff in and steadied himself. Looking down he realised that the stones were small and floating on a surface of dust which shifted down as his feet sank into it. He was almost able to slide down the mountainside letting his momentum carry him, using his heels as a break.

  He followed the curve of the mountain but it disappeared away from him, giving him the disconcerting sense that he was always just about to plunge over the edge. He momentarily glanced up and saw Aron following him down, and slowly he got the hang of it as he strode down the mountain, a loose arch of scree tumbling down behind him.

  As the angle shallowed they slowed down and both he and Aron caught up with the boy. They stared back up the peak behind them. “I don’t believe the Janshai followed us,” said the Prince.

  “It is certainly easier coming down than going up the mountain that is for sure, but we need to head to the monastery as quickly as we can and meet up with the others and decide what to do next.”

  They walked for the next day or so, each deep in their thoughts, especially the boy who remained silent, the hood of his tunic covering his face, hiding his expression and thoughts as he came to terms with what had happened.

  *

  As they entered the monastery, the other companions gathered around them, pleased to see that they had returned safely. The Prince suggested that they enter the main hall so he could bring them up to date on events on the mountain and the monk who had originally greeted them joined them. The boy remained in the background removed from the group.

  “I have sad tidings father,” said Aron. “We were ambushed by Janshai at the mouth of Saturnus’s cave. Saturnus was hit by three arrows in the chest, and he was dead before he fell to the ground. We only just managed to escape ourselves.”

  The companions gasped. Daylon said, “It is our fault. We came all this way to seek his help, in the end we just led the Janshai to him. It was probably Gorath’s plan all along. We have been too foolish, too wrapped up in ourselves to take the appropriate precautions. We may have well have fired the arrow that killed him ourselves.”

  The monk seemed a little confused and tried to interrupt them but Aland continued, “Who is going to aid us now? Who is going to help us understand prophecy and the part each of us has to play to overcome Gorath?”

  The monk raised his hand again but Daylon added, “Father was there anything in the teachings, the fables, the traditions that may be able to guide us?”

  They all turned to the monk who held up his hand once more, “I can assure you not everything is as you believe; not all is lost; Saturnus is very much alive.”

  Chapter 5

  The Black Boar

  “But we saw him die with our very own eyes. There is magic in this world, but it is very difficult to cheat death,” said Leo.

  “Indeed, well it is with a very heavy heart that I hear that the old man has passed. We shall pray for him in time. Though Saturnus is very much alive and I know this because I can see him standing right behind you!”

  Everyone turned and stared at the boy resting quietly behind them. His face still hidden by the shadow of his cloak. He slowly raised his head and pulled back his hood from his face and stood before them. There was a gasp around the room.

  “Well,” said Daylon. “This just got very interesting.” Saturnus was the spitting image of Leo. In fact, they could have been twins.

  “I must apologise if I misled you. But then I believe you yourselves jumped to many assumptions. Why should a being that has been on this earth for a millennium have to look like a seventy-year-old man? Is it not just as likely that he will take the form of a boy, surely, if not more so, don’t you think?

  “Father Rupert was my latest pupil. We had been together for thirty years. Fear not father, before his body took its last breath I released his spirit into an eagle. It was always his wish.

  “He will be floating on the air
streams above us as we speak, probably still muttering to himself as was his habit.

  “Perhaps introductions are in order,” said Saturnus. They went around the room then came to Leo. “It is well that you made it thus far, but don’t be fooled by appearances. I may look like you on the outside, which is strange I guess, but I am still a thousand years older than you!

  “Now if everyone would excuse us I want to talk to Aron and Leo and Leo bring that staff of yours with you. Let’s go to the cloister.”

  “Don’t take too long, the Janshai are still on our tails, the quicker we move on from here the better,” said Ailin.

  Aron and Leo followed Saturnus and they sat on a bench bathed in the end of day sun.

  “Father Rupert loved the dawn, the energy and vitality it brings. For me I always preferred the solemn contemplation of dusk. It always felt like the end of a chapter and as such a time to consider the steps we have taken that day and whether we have continued on a path of enlightenment.”

  “So are you going to help us?” asked Aron.

  “You mean battle and defeat Gorath?” retorted Saturnus. “Prince Aron, you, like many, take a very narrow, practical view of what needs to be done. Most people are predisposed that way. It is very natural, a comfortable way to map out your life. I am hungry, eat; I am tired, sleep; I am threatened, fight. Some are more enlightened; they take our teachings and apply them to their lives.

  “Through spiritualism and philosophy you can appreciate the fundamental relationships between all things, and us. None of the paths that are taken can be predicted with any certainty; the decision to go left or right; to go back or press on forward.

  “Human nature, such that it is; there is a certain predictability and pattern to our lives. It is through this we can tap into these patterns and cycles to understand how the world flourishes.

  “In the spring the soil softens from the winter freeze, and so farmers plant their seeds; the rains and the warm summer sun helps the crops to grow; the dry late summer sun ripens the fields prior to harvesting. So, if you want to understand a farmer’s spiritualism, you will find that the existence of water is never far from their thoughts; they hope for rains or droughts at the right time of the year.

  “In understanding the interconnectivity of things we can see what is important to a farmer and how that may influence him and his life at any point of time. Apply the same principle to all beings and you paint a picture of what is to come and with a level of predictability.”

  Aron shook his head, “That’s all well and good but Gorath is no summer rain. He is a crash of thunder, a gale or a sharp frost on an autumn afternoon. He undermines the cycles and distracts the world from its presumed path and makes its outcome become unpredictable.

  “What you also fail to consider is the passion, the spirit of people. Respect, loyalty, love, anger, rage. If that farmer sees that this unpredictability will undermine his cycles, his future, then surely he must drop his hoe, pick up a sword and protect it. Because his is a future that may not exist when an anomaly like Gorath enters the cycles. Hence you cannot simply predict the emotion of a man faced with losing everything.”

  “Though,” said Saturnus, “Gorath is really a cycle in himself. As a volcano scorches the ground, a drought destroys crops, a flood levels homes. Despite all of these the world ultimately returns to a level of normality. Patterns that are hidden from our ordinary gaze can be understood through stillness, contemplation and meditation. This evolution might be slow and full of setbacks, but it continues because of, and in spite of, all our best efforts.”

  “Fine,” said Aron, “but you intervened many years ago and changed the futures of our worlds, created a completely different path. What is the difference between now and then?”

  “Well,” said Saturnus, “we may have overreacted, but what is done is done.”

  “Overreacted?” asked Aron.

  “Yes,” said Saturnus. “If we left things as they were, Gorath may have had his day. In human nature; the peoples longing for freedom; the desire for wholeness; the willingness of self-sacrifice; it probably would have re-established a balance.”

  “What about the pain and suffering? Why put people through that?” asked Leo.

  “From pain and suffering comes a new strength; courage and values that in the long term makes the nature of men stronger. I believe now we cannot deny man his chance to become more remarkable based on the greater trials he may have to face in the coming months.”

  “So, let me get this right. After a thousand years sitting on a mountain you came to the conclusion ‘what will be will be’.”

  “Yes. Pretty much,” said Saturnus.

  “What about Leo’s story? What is his place in this? The grandmother, that was you wasn’t it?”

  Saturnus nodded, “Yes and no. The grandmother was in fact Leo’s natural grandmother. I channelled myself through her to save the boy, and then sustained her so that she could bring him up and support him.”

  “What happened to my family?” demanded Leo. “Do you know?”

  Saturnus nodded, “They were part of an old and ancient sect, one that had remained hidden for hundreds of years. One based on myth and superstition. While I sensed that the sect would take a child to serve its master’s purpose, I never knew who their master was, or indeed why they wanted you. I assumed your parents were members of the sect and died in the fire.”

  “Does Leo still have evil in him?” asked Aron.

  “His life spirit is still opaque. I do not know. It could be whatever remains of the malevolent essence within him still muddies my ability to read him.”

  Aron was exasperated, “So, he could still be a creature of Gorath?”

  “Do you think he is?” asked Saturnus.

  Aron shook his head, “All these questions but no answers!

  “My gut says no but what if we are wrong. What if Leo is even more powerful than his master?”

  “Leo do you feel you are evil?” Asked Saturnus.

  “I feel like I have always felt. Like me.”

  “So, what about the Staff of Talisien and the totems? What if Gorath gets them all, what can he do and how can we stop him?” asked Aron.

  “Frankly I don’t really know,” said Saturnus. “It’s just another battle, another war, as there have been many in the past and will be more in the future.”

  “Well that does not sound very promising, but still is this not something you’d want to fight against?”

  “Sorry Aron, what power is it that you think I possess? The grove took a great risk in casting the incantation a millennium ago. Only my meditation and closeness to nature has sustained me as the quintessence has sustained Gorath. I am not a wizard; I can’t go tapping into Earth’s energies to create fireballs and the like. There is no fight that I can bring that cannot be brought by any other man.

  “I wake up in the cave every morning with deep longing for silence and solitude. I no longer have the urgency for any further sacrifice. My enlightenment is such that I share my thoughts so that they can be helpful to others and I do not long for more than that. I do not need bolts of lightning; my awakening was a dawning of awareness, like the onset of sun rising in the morning sky.”

  “Well the crystal and I seem to be linked, can I wield any power with the staff and stop him?” asked Leo.

  “Are you a druid or a wizard?” responded Saturnus.

  “No.”

  “Then I think it’s unlikely,” shrugged Saturnus.

  “So,” said Leo. “The Chronicles of Durik, the prophecy. Two that become one, both in mind and body across space and time. That the goodness in mankind can prevail. Pay heed and stay close at hand. These words cannot be destroyed and will endure through time.

  “That has to be you and me, surely. That’s why we look identical. We were to seek you out, bring you to Dryw Henge, and then
you and I will defeat Gorath together.”

  “It sounds a little over dramatic don’t you think?” suggested Saturnus.

  Aron shook his head, “You. This was not what I, we were expecting. You were supposed to be our saviour. Are you saying that you will simply return to your cave and continue as you did before?”

  “That just about sums it up, though I will of course wait for the Janshai to leave!”

  “Listen,” pleaded Aron. “Everyone believes in the prophecy, trusts in you. Take that away and any hope that they will prevail will diminish and fade. People made sacrifices to find you and put their lives on the line to fight for the Four Realms. Do not abandon them now. At least come with us, help us how ever you can, give them faith that they can defeat Gorath and preserve the life they know.”

  Saturnus remained silent in thought. “I get the impression that you will not take no for an answer.”

  “No,” said Aron. “Or I could simply hit you with this stick and drag you to Dryw Henge.”

  “So be it, perhaps after all it will be refreshing to stretch my legs a little.”

  “That’s the spirit!” said the Prince.

  *

  The storm subsided and the seas settled. A cry was heard from the crow’s nest and an arm pointed to the east. On the horizon, plumes of black smoke could be seen curving into the sky. The Queen and her men joined the crew on decks and Captain Blade raised his spyglass and peered into the distance.

  “Aaiiyyaaii, the Aquamurans have engaged the pirate fleet. It seems like a pretty even match as far as I can tell, so let’s see if we can join them and tip the odds a little.”

  “Captain don’t forget we need to capture Emissary Gowan and retrieve the totem at the very least. How will we identify which ship he is on?” Asked the Queen.

  “Fair point milady, I can only assume he is on the flagship which is used by the commanding officer. It tends to be the biggest ship so that the commander has enough space to plan the battle and issue orders.

  “So, we’re looking for a big galleon flying the Gamuran flag and its likely she’ll display lots of flag signals up and down her rigging if she is communicating to the rest of the fleet.