Child of the Gryphon

by David Lugsden

  ‘You’ve got that right,’ Seth said, ignoring her tone.

  The pair had followed the second passage for over an hour before it had split into two. The first of the two forks had led them close to the surface entrance. Tolero had been standing guard there and discovered them after they emerged from the passageway. He had reprimanded them severely for trying to sneak out onto the surface and told them that having witnessed Master Tigris’ attack first-hand, they should have known better. He had then ordered them back the way they had come, which of course he thought was via the main passageway. It had then taken them another forty-five minutes to creep back into the secret passage unnoticed.

  Eventually returning to the fork, they had explored the second route. For over an hour they negotiated their way through the twisting, winding tunnel, made treacherous due to water leaching through the rock in such great quantities it was as though it was made of sponge. This in turn had brought about the growth of large patches of slimy cavemoss. At one point the volume of water was so large that it had formed into an underground waterfall. The rocks had become so slippery that both Seth and Tamera had stumbled and fallen several times and had the scratches and bruises to prove it.

  They had emerged sometime later, albeit a little worse for wear, near to the Elder’s Council Chambers. It had taken them a moment to gather their bearings, in which time the Council Guardsmen had set upon them demanding to know why they were there. They had been subjected to another verbal battering at the end of which they were warned that if they ever did anything so foolish again it would be reported to their parents.

  Unable to re-enter the secret passageway, the pair had raced back to Wingtail Lake just in time to find the Boatman mooring. There were just a few students that disembarked and when they realised that Gabriel was not one of them they had panicked. All the way to Gabriel’s house they had prayed that the tunnel he had followed had led him out of the school grounds as well and that was the reason he had not made it back to the ferry.

  ‘So at the end of this entire encounter, we still have no concrete evidence to prove that anyone is up to anything,’ Gabriel said.

  ‘Concrete...?’ Tamera repeated.

  ‘Conclusive,’ Gabriel corrected, ‘no conclusive evidence.’

  ‘Yes. Everything we have would only be viewed as hearsay, I’m afraid.’

  ‘But the secret passageways,’ Seth said, ‘surely they’ve got to count for something!’

  ‘But it’s not as though Bysonn built them himself is it? We’re not even sure whether or not they’re included on the school schematics. He could quite easily claim that he was never even aware of their existence. They prove nothing.’

  The three of them fell into silence. They sucked in breaths in slow gulps, exhaling the air even slower and noisier. Their attention flitted around the room, each avoided eye contact with the others, deep in their own profound thoughts at the hopelessness of their situation.

  Finally Gabriel broke the silence. ‘There was one other thing,’ he remembered, ‘Bysonn mentioned something about a prophecy. Have you any idea what he was talking about?’

  Seth shook his head and shrugged.

  ‘Tamera?’ Gabriel asked.

  She remained quiet, clearly troubled by something.

  ‘Tamera?’ he asked again.

  ‘I’m not sure,’ she began, ‘I seem to remember something about ancient prophecies... but I can’t remember where I heard it or even what they were. But the thing is they are really old. We’re probably talking thousands of years old! It just seems highly unlikely that anyone today would be basing their actions on what was foretold so long ago...’

  ‘Why have I never heard anything about this?’ Seth said.

  ‘Well, have you ever read up on Colony history?’

  ‘No more than was ever required for school.’

  ‘Well there’s your answer,’ Tamera said matter-of-factly. ‘Gabriel’ she said turning to face him again, ‘you should talk to Omari about this. I’m sure he’ll be much more knowledgeable.’

  ‘I would if I could, but I’ve barely seen him for more than about ten minutes at a time in the last two weeks. There’ve been times when I haven’t seen him for days on end. Something is going on. Something big. It has to be otherwise why would so much of his time be taken up?’

  ‘Gabriel, Omari is the Head Elder of Sanctuary. There’s always going to be things going on that require his attention and-’

  ‘No. It’s all connected. I’m sure of it.’

  ‘How can you be so sure?’ Tamera said.

  ‘Because every time I’ve asked him about what he’s been so busy with, he’s either changed the subject or made his excuses and left in a hurry.’

  ‘Very few people are privy to Council matters other than the Elders themselves.’

  ‘All the more reason for us to figure out what’s going on, on our own,’ Gabriel said.

  ‘OK,’ Tamera exhaled in defeat. ‘How about we look up the ancient prophecies at the library tomorrow? We could meet a little earlier than usual, maybe nine o’clock, that way we’ve still got enough time to get our homework done.’

  ‘Nine?’ Seth groaned, ‘But it’s a Sunday morning!’

  Tamera thrust her hands onto her hips and said sternly, ‘We don’t have to look up prophecies at all, you know. But if we must I’d rather get it out of the way early on. Or would you rather stay in the library researching until midnight?’

  ‘No, no. Nine in the morning is fine,’ Seth rolled his eyes. ‘What a lousy weekend: getting up early both days, once which resulted in being told off twice, another for homework. Yippee,’ he added miserably.

  ‘Well I’ll see you two tomorrow morning then,’ Tamera said, ‘I’d better be heading home anyway. My mum and dad will be wondering where I’ve gotten to.’

  ‘I’ll come with you,’ Seth said enthusiastically. ‘I mean, I’ll walk with you and then go to my house,’ he chuckled nervously, more so to himself. Gabriel and Tamera exchanged peculiar glances. ‘My parents will probably wondering where I’ve gotten to as well,’ Seth continued, before adding, ‘if the baby’s given them any peace at all. Otherwise they probably wouldn’t have even noticed I was gone at all!’

  Gabriel waved goodbye to his two friends and waited until they were out of sight until he closed the front door. He walked into his grandfather’s quaint and cosy lounge and slumped down heavily into the old, tattered armchair. His head rocked backwards and he stared up at the ceiling. For the first time since his escape he reflected on just how lucky he had been. Once again he had narrowly avoided an almost certain doom. His life had changed so much in such a short time. Barely three months ago, he had been contented in his life in Upper Blessingford where creatures such as satyrs, werewolves and mermaids were about as real and believable a concept as UFOs, superheroes and Santa Claus.

  Now, here he was living hundreds of feet beneath the world he was once used to, in amongst those very same creatures of myth and legend, having stared down death on three separate occasions already. The thought put his stomach through a spin cycle. Was this the course for his life from now on, to put his very existence at risk on such a regular basis? Gabriel’s stomach leaped again.

  He needed to shed this train of thought. Turning himself into a nervous wreck was the last thing he wanted or needed. He cast his eyes around the room looking for some form of escapism. Three months ago he would have instinctively switched on the television or turned to his PlayStation, luxuries he no longer possessed. His eyes fell upon the dusty, old books piled precariously on top of the rickety, wooden shelves. Despite having lived in the apartment for several weeks, it suddenly dawned on Gabriel that he had paid little heed of its contents. In all honesty, reading had never been something he had held in great stead. Of course he had read books before, but not what many would surely class as great works of fiction, usually just novelizations of his favourite movies or, when he was younger, comic books. And even then it had never been s
omething that he had set specific time aside for, or done regularly. He had only really ever read in bed, either before he fell asleep or just after he awoke.

  He scanned through the eclectic selection of novels and journals. There were more titles and authors than his mind could process. The subjects too were seemingly endless. There were works of poetry, fiction and folklore, historical texts and encyclopaedias (some of which were almost a foot thick!). They detailed everything from anthropology to dendrology, entomology to herpetology, ichthyology to ornithology, palaeontology to speleology, and countless other ‘-ologies’ that Gabriel had never heard of.

  He settled for one of the less imposing novels. The cover was slightly frayed at the edges and the thick dust he blew off of the cover brought about a fit of sneezing, but at least it was of a manageable size. The novel was little bigger than a postcard and less than an inch thick, but more than anything it was the title that had intrigued Gabriel most: Fairy’s Tales from Days of Old. Fitting, he thought, as it was a fairy that signalled the start of my new life. He returned to the armchair and sunk deeply into the soft padding of the cushions as he made himself comfortable.

  Resting the book delicately in his lap, he gently opened the tattered, leather bound front cover and sat bolt upright in surprise. His breath caught at the back of his throat. A message was inscribed on the inside cover. Over the years the ink had faded some, and the yellowing of the pages only decreased its visibility further, yet it was still distinguishable. It was a message from Omari to Gabriel’s father, his biological father, Tarik. It read:

  To my dearest son Tarik,

  Fear not the events that have befallen of recent times. So too, do not let your anger or grief consume you. Sometimes the most challenging task of all is to move forward. And in doing so, remember well these wise words that my father passed down to me: “The greater the challenge, the sweeter the reward.”

  Whatever challenges Gaia may present, know that you will never have to face them alone. I will always be at your side.

  Happy Birthday.

  Your ever-loving father.

  Gabriel was speechless. Of all the books in the room, he had stumbled across the one that his father had been given by Omari many years ago. But how many years ago? And what were the events that Omari was referring to? From the tone of the letter it was clearly something traumatic. Gabriel pinched the bridge of his nose, frustration welling up once again. More unanswered questions!

  Nevertheless, the book connected him to his long dead father. It was almost like a window into the past had been opened. A link to someone so dear to him, yet of whom he had no memory. His father had been given this book as a birthday present, and so obviously the subject was something he had been interested in. And now, years later, it was the only book which had piqued Gabriel’s own interest and curiosity. Images of his father curled up in the very same chair in which Gabriel was now sat, were conjured up in his mind (even though he had no idea what his father even looked like). He could see the young Tarik, engrossed in the stories told within. For the first time, he had discovered something he and his father had in common. What he held in his hands was no longer just an old book. It had morphed into a one-of-a-kind, priceless artefact. He was now keener than ever to read the tales within.

  With the utmost care, handling the book as though it were a most delicate flower threatening to disintegrate into nothingness at the slightest touch, he turned the pages to the first story.

  The Division of Gaia told of a time when all the lands of Earth were combined into one supercontinent called Pangaea. Gabriel remembered learning of this in Geography class. However the one major difference in this tale was of how the continents were ultimately divided. Beings of immense power once ruled over the different regions of Pangaea, regions that would one day form the separate continents and countries. Thor, Odin, Freya and the other Norse Gods ruled what would become Norway and Scandinavia; the Olympian Gods ruled the future Greece; the likes of Jupiter, Mars and Neptune ruled Italy; Anubis, Isis and Ra reigned over Egypt and so on. Although these beings had disagreements and confrontations amongst themselves within their own regions, these rivalries paled in comparison to the hatred they felt to the rulers of other regions. Over the millennia this hatred had only intensified and clashes between the rival Gods became more and more frequent and violent.

  As the violence escalated between the races it took a greater toll on the landscape: as the colossal beings smashed into the land during their battles they formed mountains and valleys. Huge rifts and craters filled up with rainwater and became lakes. Over time the strains put on the land were so great that tears began to appear. As the struggles continued, these tears grew in size. Eventually these tears became so great that the different regions of Pangaea began to separate. The surrounding seawater rushed in to fill the space and the countries were ultimately born.

  Engrossed in the tale, Gabriel had lost complete track of time. The events of the day starting to take their toll, Gabriel let out a long yawn. He glanced at the old grandfather clock hung on the opposite wall, still ticking by reliably. The polished wooden clock face read a quarter past nine in the evening. Gabriel’s stomach suddenly growled loudly, as if it too had been absorbed in the book and only now remembered that it hadn’t been fed since earlier that day. Leaving the book open at the second tale, he placed it carefully on the arm of his chair and walked into the kitchenette. He turned on the oven grill and placed in two slices of brown bread. As it cooked he took out a plate and knife and fetched the butter from the pantry. He flipped the bread and whilst the other side toasted, poured himself a glass of milk. After switching off the grill, he removed the toast and spread on a smattering of butter. He returned the plate of butter to the pantry and with another yawn, Gabriel took his snack back to the armchair. Taking great care not to drop crumbs or spill his milk on the book, he continued reading.

  The second tale, The Elements and Fates, began eons before the dawn of man, before in fact, time itself. Obviously the tales aren’t in chronological order nor even connected, Gabriel thought. According to the tale, there were once four mystical beings that ruled all, they were known as the Elementals, and were the physical embodiments of the four elements: Earth, Air, Water and Fire, and were as terrifying to encounter as they were to look at. Similar to the Gods of the previous tale, the Elementals did not get along and quarrelled and fought continuously. It was in the aftermath of one particularly violent clash that time, the universe and even life was born. With the creation of life, so too its fate needed to be managed, which gave rise to the Fates: three immortal sisters who between them spun, measured and cut the threads of life.

  As time progressed, the power of the Fates grew and with it their reach. Fearful of the Fates’ reach encompassing even themselves, the Elementals banded together and forged gifts for the Fates in order to appease them. The gifts to the Fates were a spindle that would not break, a measuring rod that would not buckle and shears that would not blunt. However, unbeknownst to the Fate sisters, the Elementals also forged themselves a blade that could not be beaten.

  Unfortunately Gabriel failed to discover the eventual fate of the Elemental Blade, as it was at this point that Gabriel succumbed to sleep. His head drooped forward onto his chest and the book slipped from his grasp, off of the side of the armchair. The old book clattered off of the coffee table leg and bounced with a dull thud as it hit the floor. Already fast asleep, Gabriel was undisturbed by the clatter of the book. His subconscious was already busy editing together the events of the day and recent weeks, into a highly confusing and yet forgettable plotline that Gabriel watched as one would a movie.

  ***

  At twenty-three minutes past eight o’clock the following morning, Gabriel awoke with a violent jerk. He shot a look towards the hanging grandfather clock and stared aghast at the time. He had overslept again! Forgetting completely about the book, he gathered up his glass and plate from the previous evening, rushed into the kitchen and qui
ckly washed and stacked them. He tore into the bathroom, turned on the shower and jumped in before the water had even had a chance to warm. Letting out entirely unflattering squeaks and squeals at the stinging cold drops, he privately thanked the fact that he was alone in the house. Seconds later he was patting himself dry and brushing his teeth simultaneously. He sprinted into his bedroom and threw on the first clothes that were on hand as he opened his wardrobe. A moment later he was back in the kitchen, grabbing two slices of bread and one of ham to make a sandwich. Then cursed himself for having already brushed his teeth. Still munching his way through the dry sandwich, he picked up his bag and headed out the front door, taking a last fleeting look at the grandfather clock on his way out. Eight thirty-seven. He had made it out of the house in fourteen minutes. A new record. Traversing the stairways and interconnected platforms he hurried onwards in the direction of the Library of the Ancients.

  At two minutes to nine o’clock Gabriel skidded to a halt at the far side of the field leading to the library. Bending forward he leaned heavily on his knees, his chest heaving. As he caught his breath, Gabriel looked across the field. With the warm golden light beating down, families had already begun to gather on the field. Young children were already skipping merrily through the grass, their parents sat watching them adoringly. On the opposite side of the field, resting against the library doorway and partially hidden in the long grass was Seth.

  ‘How long have you been here?’ Gabriel said as he approached.

  ‘Not long. A few minutes only,’ Seth replied.

  ‘Any sign of Tamera yet?’

  ‘Yeah, she’s right here – I’m sat on her.’

  ‘Funny,’ Gabriel replied dryly. ‘Seriously though, that’s unusual for her to be late.’

  ‘I’m sure it’s nothing. Probably was up late doing extra studying and over slept.’

  ‘You’re probably right,’ Gabriel said as he sat down in the grass next to Seth.