by Blaine Hart
“On the Island of Chronis of course.”
Kell was about to speak but the boy held up his hand.
“Your Master,” he said, “is about to moan and groan about how far away it is and blah, blah, blah. But there is a way, and so I leave it to you, Longo el-farto. You happily landed on the only point on this island that would allow you to get into the maze. My beach.”
“Yes,” I said . “And?”
“I hear that you’re cunning. Figure it out.”
“Why?” I cried. “Why can’t you just tell us? Why must it be a yet another riddle?”
“Because that’s the rules, el-farto.”
“What rules? Whose rules?”
“It’s in all the stories and legends and myths. The hero always has to work out all kinds of riddles and puzzles to prove that he’s smart and cunning and, you know, just smart and cunning and like that.”
“Who says?”
“I just told you!” he said stomping his foot. “The legends. The stories and all of that.”
“Yeah,” I said eying him. “Well what if the legends and the stories lied?”
Huh? He exclaimed.
“What if the people in those myths and legends just made all that stuff up just to make themselves look smart and cunning? Huh? You ever think about that?”
“No, because it’s in the stories, so it has to be true.”
“Were you there?” I asked seriously.
“No.”
“So how do you know, smarty?” I asked. “What if they had help sometimes and just didn’t tell? What if they just made stuff up to make themselves look good. Ever think of that?”
He just looked at me, his lips twitching, his head bobbing to the side. I pressed.
“So,” I said. “So how come you can’t help us?”
“’Cause it’d be cheating.”
“Cheating only counts in games,” I said. “Cheating doesn’t count if your life is on the line. You ever had your life on the line?”
“Sure,” he said. “Lots of times.”
“Name one.”
“I can’t remember,” he said. “There’s been too many.”
“You ever cheat?” I asked, looking him dead in the eye.
He looked a little troubled. Then he placed his hands on his hips and said, “So what if I did?”
“So what if you cheated now?”
We stood there. I knew how to cock my head just right to stare him down, the same look Kell had used on many plenty of times before. I had him, but he wouldn’t budge. So I tried the ultimate weapon.
“What’s the matter?” I asked. “You afraid?” I then flapped my arms about like a chicken.
He looked down for just an instant and then looked back up. There was resolve in his eyes, and his nostrils flared just a little, and then he stood a little taller.
“No,” he said.
Then he spit on his hand and held it out. I spit on mine and we clasped and shook. And even as I made friends with some sort of young looking deity, the world around me began to glitter and sparkle. I felt a sudden sensation of swift motion while the shimmering engulfed me. And then I was on a beach. It was a different beach. It had a different shape than the one on which we had landed on, but the vines and the water were the same.
Kell and Wendfala stood beside me astonished as I. The boy was by the shore. He held his fingers to his teeth and whistled. Then from way down at the far side of the beach there came the pounding of hooves. In a moment we saw two winged horses galloping on the sand. One was a steed and as black as night. The other was a mare and had the color of ripe chestnuts in autumn.
“Pegasus?” Kell breathed.
“Pegasus’s,” Wendfala said in wonder.
They looked eager to see the boy and when they stopped before him they whinnied and bowed and nuzzled. The boy spoke softly to the horses. They snorted some then they looked at us. The mare’s flank rippled and her wings gave a quick flutter. The boy spoke some more. The steed stamped.
“They think that you stink too,” the boy said. “But they’re okay. They know the way to the island, but when you get there they will stay on the beach waiting for your return.”
“They’re beautiful,” I said.
“They said they know,” the boy said. “But they said to say thank you anyway.” I smiled at them, wanting to pet one.
“So listen,” the boy said. “You gotta promise to get them back before sunset tomorrow. I mean it.”
“Okay,” I said. “Promise.”
“Okay then. I better get to my nap time.”
“Okay. And thanks.”
“Wait,” Wendfala said. “The sands of time – how much? How much do you need?”
“As much as you can carry,” the boy shrugged.
And with that he sparkled away.
Chapter 5: Chronis
The mare strode up to us, her eyes straight on my master.
“I know you,” she said in a voice that spoke in all our minds. “You are of Kyrinna; a holy woman who helped in the time of the Welting Waste. She was a good woman, strong and true.”
“That was long before my time,” my master said. “I know her only from family lore”
“Yet she shadows your soul,” the mare said.
“And so honors my quest.”
The steed snorted.
“Your quest rests on the edge of a knife blade,” he said. Moanmalla promised ninety-nine days, but soon enough her curse will wash away whole islands. Already stores of food in houses and root-cellars around the Nine are beginning to rot. If you were to stop this devastation tomorrow your lands would still face ruin.”
“So why do we talk?” Kell asked. “Tomorrow is getting closer.”
“Spoken like Kyrinna,” the mare whinnied. “Climb on.”
Kell mounted the mare while Wendfala and I took to the steed, sitting just before his broad wings. The two horses turned and began to gallop to the shore line. Their hooves splashed sand and then water even as the steeds began to work their wings. I could feel the power of the beast run through me. As he raced faster and faster I saw the splashes get smaller and smaller until it was as if he were galloping over the water itself. Then with a great lunge I felt something in my stomach heave and the Pegasus tucked his legs.
Behind me the powerful wings clove through the air and the tickling inside of me was a delight as we climbed higher and higher. Wendfala, at my back, held me close and let loose a squeal of glee. The water below us sparkled in the sunshine and the feeling was unlike anything that I had ever known. The whole world came into my view as we rose and the Island of the Tree of Life became a dot in the vast ocean as we soared with the clouds.
But all around us darkness loomed. Moanmalla’s curse could not touch the blessed place of the Tree of Life, but the rest of the Realms were not so sacred. As we neared the wall of the storm ahead, I saw the clouds where lit by the sun and were glowing brilliantly, with silver rains coming down in raging torrents. Far behind us to the north, the dark was marked by explosions of lightning as the storm intensified.
Our Pegasus soared even higher and it was as if my breath was being taken away. His magic must have been truly strong, for even as we raced I felt hardly any wind rush past me. We climbed above the storm and the scene before me was so beautiful. The clouds were enormous bright puffs that cast shadows on each other, so that some places liked like beautiful bursts of snow while dark shadowy canyons ranged between them. Lightning leapt from cloud to cloud and I could hear the low roll of thunder almost constantly.
We flew on with a speed that was clearly magical. The storm below quickly faded to nothing but little white streams in advance of the moving front. To my left I saw a mass of land that just beginning to feel the effects of the massive storm. I thought of someone far below cursing the luck as their picnic plans were being spoiled and I thought my master wise in not raising an alarm. One can prepare for an army, but what could one do about a flood?
A smatter
ing of islands came into view, looking so lovely in the ocean. They quickly sped away and then there was nothing but open sea and clear blue sky. The moon had risen in the dusky sky before us and its light dappled the waters. The Pegasus’ magic had taken us well away from any places known to our charts or maps, and I wondered how far we had come and where we were. The air around us began to turn cool as we rushed into twilight. I scanned the sea below but saw nothing for miles. Then the Pegasus began to climb higher still.
Wendfala slapped my thigh and pointed ahead. There I saw yet another wonder. The Island of Chronis floated in the sky. As if some giant hand had ripped a piece of the earth and hung it there, the island in the sky was a wonder to behold. It was a lush and verdant land with rolling hills and valleys. There seemed to be paths or streams wandering those vales and I thought I saw a scattering of houses. Deeper inland the hills rose to small jagged mountains. The sky above was a deep, beautiful blue and the moon behind the mountains looked as if it had grown ten times.
From one mountain I saw a river thread its way down, growing and winding along the valleys until it had flowed to the very edge of the island and tumbled off in a stunning waterfall that dispersed into vapor in which arched a vivid rainbow. Below I saw the bones of the land all rocky and craggy, torn jagged and ripped. As we neared I saw something dark and wispy streaming from the pointed rocky center.
The island loomed larger and larger and then I saw a crystal shoreline just ahead of us. The Pegasus lowered his mighty legs and began galloping, and I thought that I saw the very air itself splashing under his hoofs. I heard the soft pounding of surf but saw no water as we galloped onto the glittering sands.
We all dismounted, somewhat reluctantly, as that had been quite an incredible ride. For a while we did not speak and just took in the moment and admired the awesome beauty all around us. From that far shore we looked across an ocean of sky. Wisps of feathery clouds floated all about. The sky above was the dark of night and sheets of stars twinkled, and yet we were lit as if in a lovely June evening. Before us the sun shone like a small yellow ball on a mist of rusty red, its rays stretching far on either side, but its light barely warming us.. Behind us the moon loomed beyond the mountains and bathed us in its cool glow. All around us the air itself was crisp and clean and tinged with blue.
“That path,” the mare said in our minds, pointing with her wing, “will take you where you need to be. No harm will come to you in this land if you act wisely. Go now and do not tarry. We must leave when we must leave and if you are not with us you will be marooned. Now go.”
Thanking them we turned and started jogging along the sandy path into the grass beyond. The ground on this island was something of a strange delight, for every time my feet touched the ground it was as though it shifted below and then bounced up to give me an extra boost in my step. Indeed, the land itself seemed to be slowly and gently rocking and bobbing. We came upon what I thought to be a small stream, but it was anything but. It was like the land had cracked and air was flowing between the banks. The rushing air almost had substance, but we could see through it down past the island roots and to the distant ocean below.
We came to a place where our path was crossed by such a chasm and we hesitated. It was an easy leap, but the sheer breath of the fall below was enough to make one wonder. Kell was the first to make the jump and as he did our side of the ground shifted away some as if he had kicked off of a raft. We watched amazed and the land slowed and then drifted back into place. Then Wendfala and I clasped hands and made our leap, then watched again as the island shifted.
Deeper inland the walking was firmer. As we followed the path shrubs and trees began to grow. We rounded one hill and we saw a small cottage. Smoke rose from its chimney and we called out, but no one came. We saw more little houses as we walked and while there were signs of life no one was at home.
Then we came to a place where the path became a road. A walled city stood in the distance. We ran. The city seemed alive, for we saw more rising smoke and smelled exotic aromas. As we reached the gates we found them open and welcoming, but there were no guards or watchers. Again we called and again there was no answer.
Inside the city we were completely baffled. Carts full of fresh produce or sacks of wheat or crated goods were all about on the main street but no one tended them. There was a small café with tables outside. The tables were set with food and drink but there was no one sitting. We saw one mug of tea still steaming.
“What is this place?,” I pondered aloud. “It’s as though all of the people vanished the moment we appeared. I can’t believe that everyone here is so shy.”
“I sense no magic,” Wendfala said. “Neither fair nor foul.”
“It’s a mystery indeed,” Kell said. “But it’s a mystery we will have to ponder on later. Time passes and we have a quest. Let’s make haste.”
Again we ran and again I felt my master’s Ancestor strength as we raced almost as fast as the Pegasus’ flew. Beyond the empty city there were empty farms, fields, and groves. Beyond them the mountain loomed and signs of life seemed to be just disappearing before they could see them.
In and among the foothills were more streams and then rivers of air. We crossed those over wobbly bridges of ropes and wooden slats. Our path led along one wide river that was flowing so thick that we could almost see the air underneath it, and it had bits of twigs and leaves rolling along in the strong current. The river path led along a valley between two small mountains. As the way curved to our right, the river grew broader and slower until we found ourselves at the edge of a vast mountain lake. A small breeze blew here and it was as if I could see wisps of the lake air being sprayed like white-caps on the sea.
Far in the distance, in the middle of the lake, was an island. It looked as if it were a plateau whose top we could not see. From the center of that island we saw rays of light reaching in a broad column to the heavens. The light was all streaked with grey lines.
The path wound around the edge of the air lake. There was no shore, no gentle sloping, just sheer cliffs that reached down for a mile. Below, the clouds floated by and below them we saw the distant glint of the ocean bathed in the blue of the moon. The lake’s island bottom was like a rough cone reaching well beyond the cliffs. From its center we saw a fine dusty mist falling and scattering on the winds below.
“The sands of time,” my master said as we gazed at the sight. “They stream down from the heavens to this place at the center of all things. Here they gather and are dispersed by the winds of our world.”
“So then,” Wendfala said, “that island is our goal. But I don’t think that I’d want to try my luck swimming in air.”
“There’s a bridge,” I said pointing.
A ways ahead and up a tall tor we saw thin lines stretching across the lake to a tower on the island. As the bridge stretched, it sagged low so that it almost touched the lake. We scampered up the craggy rocks and to the top of the pinnacle. There was a flat landing and a rope bridge. The bridge and the crossing looked terrifying.
Two cables as wide as a man’s hand span were slung from tor to tower. Beneath them was a single rope as thick as my arm forming a triangle with the other two ropes. Between the larger ropes was woven hemp. To me it looked as though the hemp was simply for stability, for it would be of no use as a net were one to slip off the tightrope crossing.
“How the hell are we –“
“One foot after the other,” Kell said, grabbing the hand holds. “And don’t look down.”
But how could one not look? One foot after the other was fine enough, but I had to see where I stepped, and when I looked down my brain reeled. As we trod carefully, the bridge sagged and we were sloping downwards. It was a strange thing to see my feet walking over rippling air and fine clouds beneath me. I had to look but I desperately tried not to lose my balance.
My master was in the lead and Wendfala was before me. I kept my eyes on my clunky boots and her delicate silk slippers. We were n
earing a low point in the bridge’s sag and I watched the hem of her skirt fluttering. Far below the ocean sparkled.
Then my heart froze as I saw her foot slip. She cried out and her leg was hanging. My instinct was to reach out for her, but as terror gripped my heart my hands gripped the cables. She lost her other foot and she screamed as she flailed. The bridge started rocking.
“Stop!” Kell shouted. “Easy. Easy woman. Your own panic will kill you.”
She calmed. She hung by her hand, her legs dangling. The bridge too calmed. It’s swaying ceased and all was still. Wendfala strained to lift herself and soon she had one foot, then the other back on the rope. She righted herself and we all took a deep breath.
“This will not do,” Kell said. “We crawl like frightened children when our need is for courage and speed.”