The Watcher Key

by Troy Hooker

  “I’ll do it,” Sam said suddenly, loudly, causing the arguing in the amphitheater to cease suddenly. “I’ll go to Ayet Sal with the dragon.”

  ***********************

  The grand hall of the Council was suddenly silent. Talister Calpher had stopped making his case for not sending Sam, and was now peering at Sam through his broken grin. Some other Council members looked puzzled, but there were also some that lifted their eyebrows in amazement at his words.

  “Not possible,” Talister dribbled out of his stunned lips. “You would never be able to resist the Darkness that place holds.”

  For some odd reason just then, Sam suddenly knew who Talister Calpher was talking about in the tower on the beach with the bald man. It was him. Sam was the dangerous one—the one that Talister believed would eventually destroy the people of Lior, and needed to be removed. Until now, he hadn’t even considered himself the threat, but now it made sense. Talister wanted Sam gone before the Darkness won him over. He believed the Prophecy the Metim held to be true, and Sam was the major threat.

  Perhaps Talister would obtain political support from regions wanting Sam removed. Maybe his goal all along was to divide the Council, and in ridding Lior of the threat that Sam posed, he would stand a better chance of becoming Chancellor someday.

  But the real question was, if they removed him from Lior, what would the bald man from the tower do with him?

  Sam looked over at Mr. Sterling, who was solemn in his expression. He wasn’t sure if he was angry at Talister, Sam, his grandfather, or anyone for that matter. Either way, he seemed to be holding his words for some reason, choosing not to release what lay within. One thing was for sure—Sam was just glad he had someone fighting for him.

  Sam’s grandfather stepped to the podium once more.

  “The boy is under my care, and it is his wish to go with the dragon to Ayet Sal, which means, with your permission Chancellor, he will go at once. That is, if the dragon is feeling up to the journey?”

  The Chancellor nodded wearily.

  “He is, Ramis,” he said. “But it is not the dragon I am concerned about.”

  Following another few moments of commotion from the Council after the Chancellor’s agreement to let Sam go, another member from the Telok section stood slightly and was acknowledged to speak.

  “And if the boy somehow returns and he is successful in determining his gift, what then shall we do with him? Shall we wait another Creation cycle to welcome him as a true member of Lior?” he said loudly, which raised a few nods and grunts of agreement from the rest of the Council.

  The Chancellor held up his hand.

  “Nothing will be done with the boy until the start of mentorship classes, after which we can discuss the Lazuli Jubilee ceremony. As I am told, the Sterlings will be heading back to White Pine when the week is out. I am sure my fellow Council members will allow him to be welcome in the City until then.” He looked around the room as if expecting resistance, but seeing none, looked to Sam. “I am sorry you have been caught up in this, young man, and I, personally, extend my promise to you that whatever is decided will be in your best interest as well as ours. Now as we adjourn, I would like to invite the High Council, former Chancellor Ramis, and Mr. Sterling to remain in my office for a few moments.”

  He then extended his hand and blue Light shot from his palm, dousing the large blue flames dancing from the three statues at the arch legs.

  All at once, Sam was again alone in a sea of conversation and robes, members standing and leaving the amphitheater, and the slow lazy blue Light crawling up the spires of the City outside the windows. His grandfather and Mr. Sterling had abandoned him without a word, but they shot him a quick wink as they left the platform. Apparently they knew something he didn’t.

  His grandfather Amos, Ramis as they called him, had led him to believe he was nothing more than a small farmer getting by in a small Northern Michigan town. But no, he was a Descendant—and former Chancellor of all of Lior.

  Why had he not told Sam about it? He knew Lior must be kept a secret, but why not tell him? Perhaps he was being protective. Although, they hadn’t been really close and he didn’t see his grandfather as the sheltering type. Obviously, if he was sending him to one of the most dangerous places in all of Lior on the back of a dragon, he wasn’t protecting him from anything.

  He stood underneath the leg of the arch nearest the entrance to the amphitheater. He longed to talk with Emma, Gus, and Lillia, not about his future in Lior, but about the Council’s take on the Dark Prophecy. But even more, something compelled him to continue the search for the Watcher Stone.

  Turning and making his way out of the amphitheater and through the Thalo hall, he ducked past Achiam at the entrance to avoid having to explain why he was alone. Mr. Sterling didn’t tell him to wait, but he may have wanted him to. He wasn’t in the mood to talk, nor to pretend like he was pleased with what happened at the Council meeting.

  No, now he was adopting his foster father’s philosophy on going through difficult times—throw yourself into your work.

  When he reached the cabin, the others were eating breakfast. Bleary-eyed, they greeted him when he sat down to a cup of coffee Mrs. Sterling had waiting for him. Mr. Sterling had already instructed Mrs. Sterling to let the others know what was going on, so as soon as breakfast was over, they nearly pushed him out the door and to the pavilion. He was immediately cornered by Emma, who was very concerned with the outcome of the Council meeting.

  “So the whole Council met just for you?” she asked after he relayed most of the meeting details.

  “Yeah, I guess so,” he started to say.

  “Kinda ridiculous to be afraid of you,” Lillia interrupted. “No offense, newb, but you aren’t that intimidating.”

  “Yes, I suppose they do that with every potential great leader of Darkness,” Sam said.

  “That’s not funny,” Emma stuck her finger in his face. “Usually they only take them to the Research Office for a background investigation, during which of course they find out their Descendant roots and that’s the end.”

  “Maybe it’s his massive biceps,” Lillia added with a smirk.

  “If we just knew where his father was,” Gus added quietly.

  Emma paced furiously behind them.

  “So the regions are really going to accept this Dark Legend as real? What are they thinking? The Creator would never allow this to happen to someone like him! It’s just not true!”

  “We can’t know the Creator’s purpose in what He does, Emma,” Lillia reminded her.

  Once again, they were discussing him, not with him. Sometimes he felt that in doing the best thing for him, they overlooked his thoughts entirely.

  Emma stomped around for a moment longer, then sat down next to him, suddenly sympathetic.

  “I-I just don’t understand after what happened in the forest they would still think Sam is a threat!” she stammered. “Why can’t they just believe what we would tell them? That Sam fought Arazel with the Light! Not the Darkness!”

  Lillia looked strangely at Sam.

  “Yeah, newb, why didn’t you tell them about that?”

  “I didn’t have to,” Sam admitted. “A Seer saw it happen.”

  Emma threw up her hands.

  “And they still think you are a risk?”

  “I suppose so.”

  Gus looked Sam up and down, as if surmising his threat ability.

  “I suppose they really don’t have a choice but to be sure. If they don’t know his lineage, he could have been infiltrated by the Darkness and still produce Light for a time,” he said. “Maybe if you could tell us a little more about the outcome of the meeting.”

  Sam nodded and told them the whole story, how many of the Council members were concerned he may be connected to the Dark Legend, and how his grandfather showed up in the amphit
heater and suggested sending Sam to Ayet Sal with the dragon to determine once and for all if he was truly a Descendant of Light. It wouldn’t prove his lineage, but it would settle the Council’s—and many others’ fears of who he was. Return with the dragon, and they had no choice but to accept him as one of their own.

  Initially, Emma took it well, but as the day wore on, she began to show signs of anxiety, as though it was her that would be going. But that was something Emma always seemed to do—take on the emotions of others, whether good or bad.

  Both Lillia and Gus were silent the majority of the day, and instead of discussing the situation, they concerned themselves with helping Emma calm down before they were all called in to finish a few chores around the cabin.

  As Sam predicted, he caught them eyeing him throughout the day with disbelief and the slightest bit of fear in their eyes, even though they hid it rather well. It was almost as if he was a new person in their eyes, much different than the bloodied boy who lay on the floor after being pummeled by a bushy-headed bully.

  But there was a real threat out there, and now they knew it. The Council, buried in their own confusion over the validity of the Legend, was bent on sticking their heads in the sand. But at least now they had something to agree upon. If Sam came back from Ayet Sal in one piece, they would allow him to stay. It was a start.

  But somehow, they had to get the Stone back. Since Arazel in the forest, Sam felt the Stone was the key to the lifting of the curse, even if he didn’t know how. But something told him that the search for the Stone and its purpose was to begin at Ayet Sal with the dragon.

  He couldn’t explain it, but as the day went on, he felt more peace about the ordeal. Something was there for him to see, and he was committed to going. Perhaps it was the Stone, and perhaps not. Maybe old Wrenge was telling him of the place only so his curiosity would drive him crazy. Or perhaps it was a trap so Arazel could finish him off.

  None of the scenarios made much sense, but it wasn’t going to stop him from going. Risky or not, he was tired of not knowing who he was, and for whatever reason, he believed there was a clue that waited for him at the other end of the journey with the dragon.

  It wasn’t long before Mr. Sterling, Cooley, and Sam’s grandfather returned from the meeting with the Chancellor. The dragon was being prepared immediately, and directly following Mrs. Sterling’s mandatory snack of coffee and cakes, Sam was to go and pack a small backpack, which he would take with him for the overnight trip.

  ***********************

  It was surreal to sit at the table with everyone and listen to the cheery conversation. They all seemed reluctant to talk with Sam about the trip. Every so often Mr. Sterling glanced in his direction, but his grandfather didn’t acknowledge him even once. Following the Council meeting, neither Mr. Sterling nor Sam’s grandfather told him what they had met with the Chancellor about, and Sam resisted the urge to ask. He had decided to go to Ayet Sal—alone. It seemed once again he was on his own, which was what he was used to anyway.

  His friends watched as he packed water, some root cakes and dried meat, a Lazuli lantern, and his leather journal into his backpack. There were a few other odds and ends, but they had told him he should return late that night or early the following morning, so there wasn’t much to prepare for.

  He gazed at a small note that Emma had slipped into a side pocket while no one else was looking.

  I believe in you, was all that it read. But it was enough.

  He could tell she was genuinely afraid, so he did his best not to show her he was too. There may be a time when he could show his true emotions, but now was not the time. He had to show resolve, confidence, and aloofness; otherwise those emotions would get the best of him. His foster father, Phillip, taught him that.

  When it was time, Mr. Sterling, Sam’s grandfather, Cooley, and Emma were waiting at the door when Sam came down the stairs. Gus gave him a rather awkward hug, and Lillia nodded to him from the living room. Oddly, when Sam glanced at her a second time, he thought she looked like she had been crying.

  Mrs. Sterling rushed from the kitchen with another small package that smelled like hazelnut and wine, and she kissed Sam on the cheek while she handed him his robe. Instinctively, he threw his arms around her and hugged her, feeling for the first time in his life like he had a mother figure that truly cared for him.

  His grandfather put a hand on his shoulder, signaling that it was time to go, and the five of them headed for town. He didn’t want to ask any questions, although there were a million to ask. He only wanted to walk in the quiet of the afternoon, and he sensed the others wanted the same.

  They passed the City Center and through the trees to the same path where they had returned from the Sons of Light Center after battling Arazel. Before reaching the gate that led to the beautiful garden and ivy-covered pavilion, they forked left and headed down a steep path nearly to the shoreline. Behind them, the cliff that led to the great spires of the City Center towered over the grainy beach, giving a sovereign air of grandeur over the entire scene.

  In front of them, propped up against the coastal horizon, in a clearing of a tall clumped-grass garden surrounded by thick pines, stood a large stone building with a spire protruding directly out of its deeply sloped roofline. Beyond the trees, the waves from the breezy afternoon pounded the shoreline just below the garden.

  The massive dragon they named Orono stood calmly in front of the building, his iridescent scaled coat glimmering in the warm fall sun. There was no silver and white armor on his body, and no lights adorned his wings. The only unnatural item on his body was a large man-sized basket harnessed around his lower neck.

  The wrinkled old Keeper with long silver hair and a thin braided beard that nearly touched his midsection stood just beneath the dragon’s belly. With a hand on the dragon’s mighty foot, he scowled as he watched the five persons emerging from the pathway in the trees. His red robe was faded, but he still looked the part of a distinguished professor or an aged wizard.

  Sam’s heart began to beat faster the closer they drew to the great beast, until he was sure it would beat right out of his chest. Somewhere along the way Emma had grabbed his hand, and as they got closer, she squeezed tighter. Something stirred inside him once again when she touched him, forcing him to walk carefully so he wouldn’t trip over his own feet. His knees too wanted to buckle with every stride. Perhaps it was anxiety mixed with anticipation of what he was about to do, maybe combined with a renewed affection for the girl walking steadily beside him in one of his most fearful moments.

  His grandfather, Ramis, ignored the massive creature standing calmly above him and greeted the Keeper as if they were old friends. They kissed each other on the cheek and exchanged firm hand grasps before admiring the color and gigantic tail of the dragon as if they were judging a dog show.

  As the old Keeper invited the rest of them to join in greeting Orono, Mr. Sterling pulled Sam aside briefly, a deep look of concern in his eyes.

  “Samuel, you know I already consider you as one of my own …” he started, emotion quickly rushing to his face, “and I don’t pretend to like this decision one bit, but this is, in fact, what is best.”

  “You, my grandfather, and the Chancellor planned all of this, didn’t you?” Sam remembered their curious behavior in the Council meeting.

  Mr. Sterling nodded.

  “It was the only way to get the Council to agree to let you go.”

  Unbelievable. They set the whole thing up without his knowledge. They played the bad guys in the meeting so that the Council would have mercy on him.

  “Mr. Sterling, what is this place—Ayet Sal?”

  “As I am sure you have heard, Ayet Sal is dangerous. It is the place of untethered souls—of those who have chosen the Darkness over Light and have finally withered under the strain of the Darkness. They are now awaiting true death, a release from their pain,” he c
ontinued. “Others have gone before you and never returned. The souls—the Darkness—will feed on any emotion you have, but most of all, they feed on fear. They will test you to the point of insanity—and lure you to their prison. You must not give in.”

  “I still don’t understand why I must go.”

  “Ayet Sal is the only place that can reveal your spiritual or earthly identity. Since we do not have the records to prove your descendancy, this is the only other way of determining you’re a child of the Light. The dragon will lead you to where you will be the most vulnerable and the most spiritually aware. If you are truly a Descendant of Light, the dragon will see it. The Watchers were very clear about not allowing Humans in Lior. It upsets the balance of Creation.”

  “Too bad I can’t just produce a Light bolt in the Council chambers and be done with it.”

  Mr. Sterling smiled.

  “Unfortunately, you can’t,” he said. “Mystics, humans, and even Metim have learned to mimic the gifts. They have an appearance of goodness, but in effect, are just the opposite. Dragons are the only creatures that can see Light and Dark in their truest forms.”

  “I just don’t want to end up like Miss Wrenge.”

  Mr. Sterling laughed.

  “More like her are showing up these troubling days, although no one will admit it, but don’t you worry about it.”

  “Thank you for your help, Mr. Sterling,” Sam said genuinely.

  Mr. Sterling put a hand on his shoulder caringly while the wizardly-looking Dragon Keeper motioned for them to come closer.

  “Do not worry, Sam. After today, we will see your true purpose in Lior. Then you can rest assured you belong here.”

  Sam followed Mr. Sterling as they approached the great winged creature. His grandfather and Emma were busy admiring the scales on the dragon’s tail when the Keeper, with a glassy but coherent look in his eye, extended his hand to Sam. He briefly held a small grin as they shook hands, but it disappeared quickly beneath his grey mustache.