Reflection

by S.C. Clarke

CHAPTER 1

  Today is the seventh day of the eighth month of the year,

  over one hundred years ago to the day; four young men

  from the nearby land of Aldenna were the first to

  discover Halcyon Isle.

  These four men were sent from Aldenna by their King to

  seek out a land that could be inhabited by its people.

  These four men were also the king’s elite men, all who in

  their early to mid-twenties, and the bravest and finest

  fighters that Aldenna had ever seen. King Frederick told

  them all that if something should happen to him, they

  are to work together and reign over the people of

  Aldenna. There was a great war going on in their land,

  destruction and chaos was everywhere, it was a battle

  between good and evil unlike no one has ever seen before.

  These four men, Charles Sterling, Benjamin Randolffe,

  Thomas Lyman, and Jacob Konzak, did not know at the

  time of their searching for a new land for the people of

  Aldenna would not only change their lives, but the lives

  of their family's for years to come.

  Their homeland was completely destroyed, the four had

  been on the quest for a new land for about two days

  now, and they landed their boat on what is now, Halcyon

  Isle, so named for the hope of peace that was so

  desperately needed. After exploring the land they

  decided that this was indeed the perfect place to

  rebuild. They headed back for home only to see that

  there was almost nothing left, the people who had

  survived were starving and without much shelter. The

  castle and their king were destroyed, the land was

  inhabitable. Those who were left packed what little

  belongings they could find set out on rickety built rafts

  following the four men in hopes of a new beginning.

  As they sailed away from what was known as home, one

  could hear the cries of the men, women and children

  who did not want to start over, it was more of an out

  -pouring of grief and anguish. Many were lost, and many

  also survived, but the lost were amongst friends and

  even family that they would never be able to see or hold

  again. Amazingly there were still hundreds that had

  survived, the outcome could have been much worse.

  Benjamin and the other three men helped everyone

  onto the shores of their new home, once all were off the

  rafts Charles went and stood up on a pile of rocks, “I

  know you all have sadness, we cannot look at that right

  now, rather it is time for us to come together and begin

  to rebuild.” He paused for a moment, “This friend is now

  what we shall call home, and in doing so never forget

  Aldenna, I welcome you all to Halcyon Isle.” Charles

  jumped down, and he Benjamin and the others began

  making tents for the women and children to sleep in,

  whilst the men only took a blanket or what they could find.

  It was the next day, despite all the turmoil they all had

  witnessed on Aldenna, there as they all watched was the

  most beautiful sunrise they had seen. Children who

  were watching with their parents or other care givers

  began to frolic on the water’s edge. Everyone, still

  unsure of what would come next, all smiled at one

  another; there was a sense of calm, a sense of knowing

  that everything was going to be alright.

  Immediately all that could work began to build houses,

  chopping down trees for lumber, and making mortar to

  seal the timber together, even women and children lent

  a hand where they could, going and collecting what

  supplies they could find. Charles and the other three

  were holding competitions for guards and knights for

  their kingdoms, although some of the knights and guards

  that had survived were automatically accepted into their

  kingdoms. After hours upon hours each of them had

  chosen twenty to twenty five men who were acceptable.

  The first task of these men were to go explore every part

  of Halcyon, and report back any and all findings of other

  people, resources, and anything else they may find.

  These men went along their way within the kingdom

  land they were chosen, on foot of course, for they were

  still finding a way to bring any horses and livestock that

  had survived the war on Aldenna.

  Charles and the other men decided that they were going

  to separate the land into four countries, that were

  divided by the two rivers that ran through the land, in an

  almost x shape. In the middle of the island there was a

  magnificent lake that was so peaceful to look at that

  they called it Lake Erewhon. Charles took the land to the

  west calling it Cyan, Benjamin took the north naming it

  Indigo, Thomas to the east, calling his land Hansa, and

  Jacob took the southern land and called it Sinopia. The

  people did not oppose to this at all, instead they

  welcomed it with great contentment, for they were just

  happy to be alive.

  The four men, who now were the kings of their own

  countries, each would need to choose a woman to be

  their queen, and seek out the land where their castles

  would be built. They, being king Frederick's elite men,

  never really spent much time with matters of the heart;

  they were too busy protecting their king. In no time at

  all Halcyon was beginning to take shape, there was only

  one task left to do, the now kings had decided that

  magic was not going to be a part of life here on Halcyon

  Isle.

  During this time the four new kings had each found

  themselves a wife, and all were wed along the lake with

  all the people watching. These four women, all showed

  such beauty and grace, and would prove themselves well

  as the new queens of their countries here on Halcyon.

  Charles, Thomas, Jacob, and Benjamin sat for hours

  alongside of the lake trying to figure out the best way

  possible to relinquish the powers of the people of

  Halcyon as well as their own. Jacob rises from the

  ground which he was sitting, goes over to one of the

  trees that was there near the shore of the lake, and

  begins to climb up it. The others watch Jacob looking at

  each other with curiosity. “Has he lost his mind?” asked

  Thomas as he gets up and follows Jacob. Charles and

  Benjamin follow and they go to where Jacob is. “Ahem.”

  says Charles looking up at his friend, “Nice day to climb a

  tree.” he continues with sarcasm “What are you

  doing up there?”

  Jacob jumps down from the branch from where he was

  looking out onto the lake. “I have found the solution,

  out there in the middle of the lake there seems to be

  what appears to be a rock formation.” he says as his

  friends are curious as to what he is getting at. “Go on, or

  is that all you have.” Benjamin says still puzzled. “Don’t

  you get it, it appears to be some sort of crystals, we of

  course need to go out there and see for ourselves.”

  Jacob continued. “I believe that our friend here hasr />
  fallen out of too many trees as a child and is starting to

  see things.” said Charles; they all had a small chuckle.

  Jacob now becoming offended, “If there are crystals out

  there, it can hold the magic of the people and ours, now

  am I still crazy or do we go out there and see.” It was

  starting to become dark; they decided that they would

  meet here tomorrow when the sun was at its highest

  point. They went their separate ways back to their

  castles, or what would soon be.

  Benjamin arrives to see his wife Charolette walking

  around outside with Amelia (Charles wife), Leah

  (Thomas' wife), and Cora (Jacob's wife). “Good evening

  ladies.” Benjamin says to them, “And what are you lovely

  ladies doing here on such a beautiful evening?” he asked

  “They were just about to leave for their homes; they are

  helping me to decide where to place a garden.” Said

  Charolette, “As we will be doing in all our kingdoms.”

  said Amelia. Then women then headed for their homes

  before it got any darker. “Do you think it is wise for

  them to be traveling alone?” Benjamin asked Charolette,

  “I think tomorrow I shall speak to Jacob and the others, I

  would feel better if you all had someone with you when

  traveling, especially at night.” Charolette took her

  husband’s hand, “You worry too much, I am sure they

  will be fine.” They walked over and sat upon a small

  stone wall, “Do you not remembered what happened in

  Aldenna?” he asked “Now no arguments, it is only for

  your own safety and theirs as well.” Charolette nodded

  in agreement as her and her new husband sat talking for

  a while longer.

  Morning came quickly and soon the time to see if Jacob

  was right about what he believes he has seen in the lake.

  They met as they said they would, used a raft that was

  sitting close by and ventured towards the center of Lake

  Erewhon. As they got closer Jacob let out a sigh of relief,

  there directly in front of them was an enormous cluster

  of crystals, and it had to be about five to seven feet wide

  in diameter. “See look closely into the water, what did

  I say.” “Yes you my friend have the eyes of a hawk, one

  problem though, how do we the crystals out of the

  water and to where our powers can be collected?” asked

  Thomas. “Hey I found it” said Jacob “What makes you

  think I have that answer too?” Charles was scratching

  his head as he was deep in thought, he then said to his

  friends, “all of you meet me at my castle tomorrow at

  dusk, we shall figure this out if it takes us all night.” All

  agreeing to this, they go back to the shore of the lake

  and proceed back to the castles.

  The people of Halcyon were still busy building their

  homes and looking for resources they needed, there

  were even some who were trades men and women who

  along with building homes were also looking to rebuild

  their businesses as well. Everyone worked together to

  help one another, they have only been on their new

  place of living for just about a little over a month, it was

  amazing to see what all was built in this short amount of

  time, rations of course were still slim at the time. Also

  there were now horses and livestock they had brought

  from Aldenna; everyone was planting gardens in the

  yards for fruits, grains, and vegetables. It was indeed a

  time of struggle, no one seemed to mind though, for the

  simple fact it was also a time of new

  beginning and rebirth.

  The four founding men of Halcyon and now kings of their

  own lands were sitting outside of Cyan's castle discussing

  a way that they could have their magic taken away, but

  also they needed to have a way to have it returned as

  well. What seemed like hours passed by, with no

  solution to all this in sight, when Charles jumps up and

  shouts, “I've got it!” The others still sitting there with

  puzzled looks, “You got what?” asked Thomas. “Yes

  please do fill us in.” adds Jacob. “Don't you all

  remember what King Frederick had taught us?” asked

  Charles who is now pacing back and forth. Benjamin

  gets up and starts walking around as well, “he taught us

  many things, would you like to be more to the point.”

  “The Atoll, The Elementals, How to call for them.” Says

  Charles. They all stop and look at each other then at

  Charles, “You, my friend are brilliant!” exclaimed Jacob,

  “Now do we have what we need in order to do this?”

  They all sit back down as they begin to think of what

  they need and how exactly to do this. “First we need a

  plan on how we are going to make this work.” said Jacob.

  “I say we each take the element that is representative of

  where our countries reside.” He added. “Fine, now that

  we have that part figured out, we still need a way to lock

  down the crystal in the lake.” Thomas stated.

  Once again they sat there in silence, each of them having

  a brief thought, then shaking their heads and rethink

  again. “We build key locks on the north, south, east and

  west parts of the lake.” started Charles. “Not bad,

  however, how to we assure that these locks cannot be

  opened just by anyone?” asks Benjamin. Jacob who was

  sitting there with his sword tip upon the ground, twirling

  it around as he was deep in thought, “Our swords.” he

  states, “We find the best forger we have here and have

  him forge them with the gems and crystals that pertain

  to each element.” “We of course have to use magic to

  make this work.” Thomas was beginning to see where

  Jacob was going with this, “Then when all is said and the

  magic is stored within the crystal in the lake, we place

  our swords into the keyholes.” “This will once again

  submerge the crystal deep within the bottom of the

  lake.” Adds Benjamin. It was like a bolt of lightning hit

  them all at once, they were all thinking the same. “Now

  we need to find a forger, summon the elements, make

  the magic keyholes, which of course need to be well

  hidden, and collect the gems and crystals we will need

  for our swords.” Said Charles. Thomas then looks

  around at them, “And of course don’t forget how we are

  going to have the elements hold onto the powers, and

  how to have them returned to either us if need be or our

  future kings.” “The stones and crystals, we have the

  elements hold them, keep them safe.” Jacob states.

  Benjamin and the others, quite puzzled all in unison ask,

  “How?” “Simple” Jacob begins, they are magical,

  powerful, and they can acquire the gems through

  magic.” This indeed was going to work, it had to, there

  weren’t any other options any of them

  could think of.

  Charles and the others decide to end their meeting with

  this, they will seek out the gems they need and a forger,

  they will meet again in a few
days to continue their

  discussion. Thomas, Benjamin, and Jacob return to their

  castles. They had much to do, and still had to write the

  laws for Halcyon's people, which was mostly the same as

  the ones on Aldenna, with the added no magic law. They

  all agreed the laws would be the same for all who

  resided there.

  It did not take long for each of them to return to their

  castles, they were all built close to Lake Erewhon, within

  in this area was the kingdom land where townsfolk

  dwelt. Also in each land was another town that was

  built. The town in Indigo was called Woodstream;

  Timber was in Sinopia, Arawinn in Hansa, and Aquea in

  Cyan. The people within each country decided

  peaceably as to who would live where.

  The new guards and knights of Halcyon returned to their

  castles, they searched the entire land with nothing to

  report. They had not come across any other humans or

  even creatures, except for the typical ones, although

  they did find any other intelligent life throughout the

  land, the kings put men on different parts of the island

  just in case. Something told them that even though they

  did not find anything, it didn’t mean that no one was out

  there.

  Jacob and the others met by the lake, not knowing they

  were all going to be there. Thomas was the first to

  speak, “I think we should take a trip to Aldenna today,

  see what resources there still may be.” All were in

  agreement, they found a few of their men who were

  nearby to go with and assist them with anything they

  may find.

  The four along with five each of their men journeyed

  back to their olden homeland, nothing was changed,

  everything was as it was left, the only difference was the eerie

  silence that was all around them. “I never thought

  a place where I grew up could give me such a strange

  feeling.” said Charles as he gave a shiver. Hopping off of

  the boat to take the line into shore Benjamin could not

  have agreed with Thomas more, nor could the others.

  They walked up and down searching for anything they

  could take back with them. Jacob was heading to where

  the castle once stood along with his men, “Only look for

  anything of value.” He stated. One of the men made a

  valid point, “Shouldn’t we collect what coins we can find

  as well, and other means of currency? We could then

  divide it amongst the kingdoms to be given to the

  people.” Jacob stopped, looked at the young man, he

  couldn’t have been more than eighteen years old, but

  was a very wise youth. “Your name is Sebastian,

  correct?” asked Jacob as he was now walking along

  besides him. “You are extremely observant, you know I

  still need to choose a head knight, keep your chin up and

  it might be you.” Sebastian was honored beyond words

  that he could not speak correctly, Th-- Thank you K—

  k--k king Jacob.” He said as he was trying to bow and walk

  at the same time. Jacob placed his hand upon the young

  man’s shoulder, “Relax my friend, you shall do fine.”

  After searching Aldenna they returned and went back to

  Hansa to divide the money and items evenly, sending

  more of their men back to Aldenna several more times,

  to collect all that they possibly could. The gold, silver,

  and other valuables were sorted out into categories as

  far as monetary, and wares for homes, then divided

  evenly between the four kingdoms, and then rationed

  out fairly to the people of each country. The kings and

  queens of course also choosing some for themselves.

  During this time the kingdoms also needed to select

  those who would serve as cooks and servants, the kings

  wives were the ones to do this since their husbands

  were busy with other matters.

  Three days later, Charles, Thomas, Benjamin and Jacob

  met again, this time they went to Indigo, with the

  gemstones they needed they went off to the forger that

  was residing nearby. They went to the forgers shop with

  their swords and gold in hand and ready to offer him a

  decent price for his work.

  Walking into the shop, they all looked around, it was

  nicely done, but also needed work to make it complete.

  “Hello.” said Benjamin over the noise coming from the

  back, “Is there anyone here?” he continued. “Be there in

  a moment.” a voice yelled from the back. Some time

  went by, not too much, although enough to almost seem

  rude. “I see you are too busy to help out, we shall take

  our business elsewhere.” Shouted Charles. No sooner

  than Charles finished speaking a man darted to the front

  of the shop.

  “Your majesties, my apologies.” The man said bowing.

  Thomas walked over to the man, “We have a huge order

  for you, and do you think you can handle it.” “That

  depends, what I can do for you.” The man said back, “By

  the way call me George.” “Fine, George, we need our

  swords rebuilt with these gemstones, also with each of

  our last names and kingdoms etched onto them, is this

  something you will be able to do.” said Jacob as he and

  the others placed their swords upon a table along with a

  bag of gems besides each one.

  George took a closer look at each sword, “These are

  indeed very well made, it won’t be easy but I do believe I

  will be able to do this for you.” said George still

  examining each sword meticulously. “However, it will

  take me a little time on each.” he continued. The four

  new kings were aware of what George was trying to get

  at, “We will pay you quite generously for your time, we

  also need four key locks that the swords will fit into, they

  also must contain the same gems as the swords.” said

  Thomas, handing the forger a nice bag filled with gold

  and silver, not giving him the bag just yet, Charles asked,

  “Can you handle this?” then handed him the bag.

  George opened the bag, glancing in quickly. “Most

  generous of you, I do have other work to attend to as

  well, and yes it will be more than an honor

  to do this task.” “This is half of the payment, you will receive

  the other half when the swords and locks are done and we

  approve of the work.” Charles added. “Now how long

  shall all this take?” asked Benjamin. George thought for

  a moment, “I can have them ready for you in about

  seven days.” George responded. “Very well we shall

  return then,” Thomas said then they went back to

  Indigo's castle to converse more about their plans.

  After more hours of discussing and debating they finally

  found a solution that would work, at least they hoped

  so. Once they had the details to what needed to be

  done, the only thing left was to get their swords and

  locks, then chose the right time to summon the Elements.

  A week later the kings retrieved their swords and the key

  locks, they were much impressed with the work
that

  George had done, paid him most graciously, and headed

  back to Indigo to finalize their plan. They would meet at

  the lake later that night, place the key locks into the

  ground, and cover them over so not to be seen. After

  doing this they decided that the night after next, during

  the full moon, they would have the people as well as

  themselves assemble around the lake at the starting of

  the sunset.

  The country folk began to assemble around the lake,

  talking amongst one another, all unsure of what this will

  bring, but also trusting in the men who ruled them. The

  ceremony had finally begun to relinquish their powers to

  the elements. Benjamin, Jacob, Charles, and Thomas

  were now stood where they had placed the key locks the

  other night. They had contacted the elements days

  before through meditation and all agreed to help and

  were nearby, although unseen. The four men,

  uncovered the key locks, took their swords in their hands

  and waited for the moon to be perfectly centered above

  the lake.

  They had to do this together, simultaneously, and not

  being able to see one another made this much more

  difficult than they had first thought. Sebastian took his

  horn from his pocket, let out a few short blows, and after

  he did so they placed their swords in the locks. The

  people watched as out of the lake stone walkways

  emerged, this took several minutes, then there was

  nothing, the crystal was not rising out of the water.

  Jacob and the other kings had felt they had failed their

  first immense task, and then out from the center of the

  lake a spectrum of colors radiated out and swirled

  around as the crystal began to slowly rise up and out of

  the water.

  One by one the people, men, women, as well as children

  of Halcyon walked the path towards the crystal, placed

  their hands upon the crystal in the middle of the lake

  that was now accessible by four walkways from each

  country. After some time, all the people were done and

  their magic was gone to them. Lastly, the queens of

  Halcyon and then its kings placed their hands upon the

  crystals. Charles, Jacob, Benjamin, and Thomas then

  walked to where the key locks were, and in unison,

  placed their swords into the locks, then turned them

  clockwise three times, pulling them out after the third

  turn.

  And at that moment, the walkways began to crumble

  into the lake, the gems that were so exquisitely placed

  upon the swords started to vanish, with other ones

  replacing them. The locks sinking into the ground, going

  deeper and deeper until they were seen no more. The

  lake from the center started to recede around the crystal

  that then slowly descended down, deep beneath the

  surface of the water, and under the ground, until it was

  completely gone. The water, filled back in as quickly as it

  receded, their magic was now locked away safely, and

  from that point on life on Halcyon was as peaceful as

  everyone could have hoped.

  The four Elemental beings, circled around the lake and

  all the people of Halcyon, creating a beautiful mist of

  colors all around them. Then with a flash they

  disappeared into the night, leaving a protection upon the

  land.

  The last thing the kings had left to do was leave

  instructions on how to retrieve back the magic, they had

  four amulets made, small ones that they would wear

  upon a rope around their necks. Each had a different

  colored stone in them, a sapphire for Cyan, an Amethyst

  for Indigo, a topaz for Hansa, and a ruby for Sinopia. In

  the mountains to the south they had secretly hid the

  instructions, only the four of them knew where it was,

  the amulets are the keys, and all four are needed in

  order to open it. Their sons or daughters would one day

  learn the secret, but until then will remain locked inside

  each of them.

  Years past by as the Halcyon grew, each of the kingdoms

  now each had a new prince who would grow up and one

  day become king. And with each passing kings and

  queens, there remained peace, and during this time, the

  people of Halcyon learned that they did not live on the island alone, finding many new friends.