“God all mighty,” Leath replied his jaw dropping open.
Everyone watched in silence as Mathias stretched each wing, slowly unfolding, ruffling and shaking the feathers and bone into place.
“They’re so beautiful,” Zyphera said transfixed on the sight before her. “How on earth has he kept them hidden from us?”
Two massive bone structures protruded from Mathias’s back each spanning over eleven feet in length and arcing smoothly to nearly double that in height. The plumage gathered at the base of the ivory bone radiated in a flash of ebony before fading into emerald tipped, silver and white feathers. The larger feathers that fell across the wing span shimmered with jewel tone teals and blues. Flashes of amethyst and ruby burst forth when the wind rustled them. Three large feathers on either side fell longer than the others. Two appeared to have been stolen from the tail of a peacock while the other cascaded down the side of his legs in a waterfall of black.
“It must be hard to find a shirt that fits,” Leath whispered to Zyphera.
She rolled her eyes at Leath while marveling at the ease Mathias’s giant frame could leap into the air, catch a current, and float as though he were a feather caught on the fingers of the wind. Within moments he was nothing more than a tiny speck fading fast into the horizon.
Zyphera turned to Leath. “You know, sometimes you just need to keep your mouth shut,” she said shaking her head as she followed the Professor, Miss Mirdy and Alywin back into the house.
Leath watched her disappear with a baffled look on his face. “You know sometimes you just have to keep your mouth shut,” he mimicked her under his breath as he stalked through the door in time to hear her ask a question.
“Um Professor,” Zyphera hesitated slightly, “You never explained why Thad must become a Watchman at such a young age.”
“I am old, and no longer strong enough to manage such things on my own, and with such a threat on the loose, he will be safer this way,” He explained hoping the fear and concern in his voice was not detected. “Now to bed all of you, especially you Leath, you are beginning to grow warts on your nose,” he added with a smile.
“Well I must be off as well. It is very late and the elders will need to hear this information at once.” Alywin said gathering his cloak. The others had still not clued into who Mathias’ race was, but he knew, and if there was trouble on Fairum Celest it meant only one thing. He fully understood what the Professor was hesitant to tell the others.
“Oh Alywin, when you see Remy can you ask him to meet Thad and I here tomorrow before sunrise,” The Professor asked.
“Of course Professor Haynsworth,” Alywin replied. “Goodnight Ladies!” he said bowing low to a giggling Zyphera and Mirdy.
They all exchanged “goodnights” and wandered to their quarters.
“Nice to see your humor hasn’t aged,” Leath said giving the Professor a friendly slap on the back as he left the room.
“Well somebody has to shovel a bit of your own medicine back in your face,” Bartholomew hollered after Leath.
He could hear the young man chuckle as he ascended the stairs.
Bartholomew stood in the empty room remembering the days before his life as a Watchman. With a sigh and a heavy heart he retired to his bed wishing that when he woke up, this would all just be a very bad dream.
Leath listened for the sound of the Professor’s footsteps to fade and the small sliver of light to disappear below the door. Once he was sure everyone had gone to bed, Leath crept quietly out of his room. He tip toed quietly down the hall stopping in front of Thad’s room. Carefully twisting the knob he pushed the door open. A sliver of light from the hallway, cut through the darkness bathing the room in a soft glow.
Over the last eight years not much had changed. The room was still dressed as a nursery, full of Thad’s old baby toys mixed in with some of his more recent additions. His walls were still painted a light blue with a boarder of baby animals frolicking about. The old rocking chair still sat by the big bay window over looking the perfectly manicured grounds. The crib had of course been replaced by a twin bed with linens Miss Mirdy and Mrs. O had sewn themselves. Leath crept across the floor. Kneeling beside the bed he watched Thad’s chest rising and falling with every breath.
“Sleep soundly precious little boy
Sleep until the morning sun kisses your rosy cheeks
Fear not this evening darkness,
For beside you I will always be
Your eyes will not see me
But in your heart you’ll know
You’ll never be alone
So close your eyes and dream
My precious little boy”
Leath sat beside Thad till the stars began to fade and the first pink of dawn colored the stretching horizon. He slipped out the door, crept silently down the hall to his room. He curled up under the warm blankets, not caring that it was the dawn of a new morning.
A Breach
Thad……Thaddeus…… Thaddeus Fraser Birk wake up this instant,” a stern voice demanded, breaking into the boys dreams.
“Huh…...What,” Thad mumbled, sitting up in bed, rubbing his eyes.
“Rise and shine sleepy head,” His Grandfather grinned.
Thad turned his head and looked out the window. “It isn’t even light out,” he moaned.
“I know, but we have a big day ahead of us,” His Grandfather said nudging him awake again. “Hurry up and get dressed, Remy is waiting for us down in the kitchen.”
The Professor walked out of the room leaving it to good faith that Thad would get up without anymore poking or prodding needed.
Remy was in the kitchen happily munching on a burnt piece of raisin bread when Bartholomew walked in. “Well top of the morning to ya Professor!” Remy greeted him cheerily.
“Top of the morning to you too Remy,” The Professor replied in an equally cheery tone. Despite the events that transpired of the last days, Bartholomew felt a small amount of hope pumping warmly through out his veins.
“Oh come now, you can do a better accent than that,” Remy insisted with a grin, “You got to say it with a little more feeling.”
“You know, not all of us are gifted with the marvelous ability to disguise our voice the way you are,” Bartholomew laughed.
A moment later a blurry eyed Thaddeus stumbled into the kitchen.
“Alright I am up,” He mumbled, “Now, WHY am I up this stinking early. The roosters are still asleep.”
“We have something very exciting to show you,” Remy replied eagerly.
“This better be good,” Thad muttered.
He walked over to the cupboard and poured himself a bowl of cereal. He walked over to the fridge and grabbed the milk. He was so tired he put the milk in the cupboard and the cereal in the fridge. Remy and the Professor both started to laugh. Thad appeared to be none the wiser about his actions. He plopped himself down on one of the stools and went to work on his cereal.
“Could you stop watching me?” He demanded. “it won’t make me eat faster,” He said annoyed by Remy and his Grandfather’s gaze.
“Right, sorry,” They both replied.
Soon as he was finished, the threesome set off towards an old oak tree at the far end of the property. Thad stumbled half asleep across the dewy, green grass.
“So I here you are having a birthday next week,” Remy said, trying to help Thad wake up.
“I suppose so,” Thad replied groggily.
“Nine is a pretty big number you know. After that you will be in the double digits,” Remy said with a smile.
“Imagine what it feels like to roll into the triple digit category,” Thad added thinking of Gabriel.
“Oh I remember that day,” Remy replied with a chuckle.
“WHAT! You too!” Thad shouted in amazement, his eyes suddenly wide open. “Man what is with all you people that live for hundreds of years?” Thad shook his head shoving his hands deep into the pockets of his favorite jeans. “Here I thought Grandpa w
as old,” he added with a sly smile.
“See why I feel so young,” His Grandfather chuckled.
“Yup, I am beginning to feel more like a baby than a nine year old,” Thad agreed.
They were nearing the edge of the property when Thad began to wonder if they were actually going some where. “I am not seeing anything exciting out here,” he stated hoping one of them would divulge some info.
“We are here to show you this,” Remy replied, pointing to the large oak tree.
“It’s an oak tree,” Thad said rather unimpressed “It better do tricks, cause if you brought me all the way out here to look at…..” His sentence faded away as Remy disappear inside the thick tree trunk. He ran around to the other side to see if he’d emerged on the other side. “Where did he go,” He asked bewildered.
“Here,” came a voice from inside the tree. An arm popped out, grabbing Thad and yanking him inside. “Welcome to the realm of Tuathia,” Remy grinned as he helped Thad regain his composure, “This way.” Remy gestured for Thad to move forward.
“I can’t believe this,” Thad gasped looking around in awe, “All of this is inside a tree.”
“No, we are in a separate dimension inside your world; the tree is just a portal,” Remy explained.
“Right, I remember Gabriel mentioning something about this,” Thad nodded his head not taking his eyes off anything. “This is really cool.”
“This is just the Guard post, wait till you see the actually city,” Remy boasted, a wide smile sparkling on his lips.
Remy lead Thad past seven enormously scary armed creatures and two massive stone towers. Each housed a hundred of the most highly skilled Elves and Gnomes.
“Remy, what were those big things back there?” Thad asked once he was sure they were out of hearing range.
“Those are Goblins,” Remy answered.
“Goblins, but I thought that they were mean and nasty creatures who hated everyone,” Thad gulped nervously. Of course his knowledge came from fantasy books and movies.
“They are, but if you save the life of a goblin they are forever indebted to you. The citizens of Tuathia saved those seven from a very violent death at the hands of the Shadow Breathers. They serve on our guard now.”
Thad shivered, “Don’t you worry about them…” He couldn’t finish.
Remy shook his head. “It is an unspoken contract that binds the Goblins to us. Even if they tried to escape or kill anyone, the contract will force them to stay their hand.”
“Still, can’t say I feel safe with them around,” Thad admitted.
“The seven have been with us for as long as I have been around,” Remy assured him, “Lets just say that the citizens of Tuathia have grown on them,” he added as the two continued on.
Rising in the path before them stood a colossal stone archway with a delicate inscription carved into the beautifully marbled surface. The language was obviously one Thad could not read nor one he recognized so he asked Remy. “What does that say?”
“It is a very old protection charm. Roughly translated into you language it says “Look upon this sacred land and see the breathing of it’s soul, let no one untrue breath it’s air or mark the life it sows,” He explained. “Our ancestors spoke the charm when they first settled here many thousands of years ago. It was the first time Fairies, Gnomes, Elves and Dwarfs peacefully co-existed under one ruling government.”
Thad began feeling overwhelmed. Remy gave him a pat on the back “Don’t worry about it. You’re not being quizzed on anything.”
Thad exhaled. “Good, knowing Grandpa….. Wait….Remy where is my Grandfather?” he asked, a tone of worry in his voice.
“I am sure he got distracted talking to one of the guards. He has many friends here. It has been a long time since they’ve seen him,” Remy replied looking back towards the stone towers.
Seeing the concern written on Thad’s face he reassured him “Don’t worry we’ll go find him.”
The two began retracing their steps. They stopped at the patrol barracks, Goblin quarters, checked the command posts and galley. They asked everyone they came in contact with if they’d seen the Professor. Everyone gave the same response, “No.” Thad’s worry turned to fear.
“We must return to the estate,” Remy said with great concern as he practically dragged Thad along behind him.
They soon approached a carved rock wall. Thad looked at the wall he couldn’t see a way through or around, yet he was sure this was the passage they’d taken. “Remy, is that the same inscription……” He stopped abruptly.
The Gnome was nowhere in sight. He suddenly felt himself being lifted, then hurled towards the solid rock wall. As he flew through the air he caught a blurry glimpse of Remy’s face. “Remy what are you doing,” Thad screamed as He was propelled into the wall. Thad raised his arms to protect against the impact, but instead he rolled to a soft landing on the estate grounds, Remy close on his heels.
Thad lay there for a moment. “Give me a heads up next time,” he said breathlessly, glaring at the Gnome. “I didn’t know you could throw someone twice your size,” he added dusting off.
“Size can be deceiving,” Remy hastily answered, “Right then, lets spread out. You go that way and I will go this way,” Remy said pointing to the left.
Not long after the two parted ways Remy heard Thaddeus scream. Remy ran as fast as he could in the direction of Thad’s voice. He stopped dead in his tracks. On the ground in front of him was one of the Gargoyles, bits and pieces of him strewn across the grass.
“What happened,” Thad asked his eyes filling with tears.
“It appears as if he were tortured,” Remy replied, seeing no reason to hide the truth.
“Tortured, but how, why?” Thad tried choking back the sob that was rising, “Who would do such a thing.”
“I am not sure, but I promise I will find out who did this. They will be punished,” Remy promised hoping to mask the fear he felt. “Come on, we must head to the house to make sure everybody’s okay.”
The two took off running. Thad was amazed by the speed Remy’s little legs moved. He had to push himself hard just to keep Remy in sight. In no time at all the grand estate home came into view.
“Mirdy, Zyphera, Grandpa, Leath,” Thad called out as the pair burst through the front door. He immediately found Zyphera lying unconscious in the front hall. Her head was bleeding badly from above her left eyebrow. “Oh no,” he gasped. Thad’s heart began beating faster.
“I must stop the bleeding,” Remy said in a hushed tone kneeling beside her. “Take this,” he said handing Thad a warm metal object “it will help protect you. Now go find the others.”
Thad’s heart pounded with fear. His vision blurry with tears, as he scurried away to see who else might be hurt.
In the kitchen he found his nanny Mrs. Osbourne crumpled at the base of the open refrigerator in a pool of blood. She was dead, her face a mask of surprised terror, her cold hands clutching an oval blue stone. Panic streamed through Thad’s veins. He didn’t know what to do. He tried to force his feet to move but they remained rooted to the spot. Suddenly his adrenaline kicked in as his thoughts turned to the rest of his family.
He checked the remainder of the downstairs, finding no one else he returned to Remy. “Mrs. O is dead,” he told Remy in a hoarse tone. He was still in shock.
“Oh bless her soul,” Remy replied with great sadness, “We must find the others Thad.”
Thad nodded his head, rose to his feet and quietly heading up the magnificent old staircase. He could hear a muffled sound coming from his Grandfathers study on the third floor. He tip toed softly towards the noise. Grasping the brass door knob he slowly pushed opened the door. His face fell when he saw her.
“Miss Mirdy, are you okay?” he said rushing to the older lady’s side careful not to cause any additional pain. From the shallowness of her voice he knew she was hurt very badly. He could tell right away that her right arm and left leg were broken. Her b
louse was ripped and bloody along with her brown tweed skirt. Hundreds of wounds covered her body. “You’ll be alright. I’ve got you,” He spoke in a soothing voice.
She opened her eyes. “I am so sorry Thad,” She choked, her voice strained. “I tried to stop……” Her sentence broke.
“Tried to stop what?” Thad prodded as he scrambled to find some fabric to cover her wounds. “Mirdy” he said, gently nudging her awake. “Mirdy what happened here. Where are Grandpa and the others?” He urged, becoming increasingly frightened with every passing second.
“He tried to…… but they took him…… he’s gone,” She managed to say. Her eye’s flittered a few times then closed.
“Mirdy,” Thad whispered softly, “Mirdy you must stay with me,” He pleaded.
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