The Golden Fountain

by Zuheb Alep

  The evening passed happily as the three sat on the roof, joking and munching strawberries. The veil of the night-blue sky lay over them with its twinkling stars. It was a beautiful moment, and Prince Adam did not receive the Inheritance of the Ifrahail.

  *

  Hallowe’en was here, and Benjamin was very busy that night. The city had been thronged with children buying costumes in various shops, but Benjamin wanted to create one rather than look like a fake. He wore ripped jeans topped with a tuxedo and had large bats’ wings sewn on his back; his hair was spiked and his face powdered white. Benjamin fastened a pair of fangs onto his teeth and looked in the mirror. He was Count Dracula to the life! Kaileena and Prince Adam planned to go with him; she as a black witch and he as a mummy.

  As the last light of the day passed into dusk, the three set out as their siblings left to range far and wide with their own friends. Pumpkin lanterns decorated the doors of each house, while thin strings of pearly cobwebs and black spiders took up most of the windows. Jumping jacks and laughing scarecrows sprang from their boxes to scare the passing children, not to mention the flapping bats hung upon the bars and telephone wires of each street.

  The aroma of thick caramelised honey wafted through Benjamin’s nose. He filled the basket he carried, and could have filled it twice over again. Running from one door to the next, he and the two others rang the doorbell and shouted, “Trick or treat!” when the owner came to attend to them.

  It went on like that till three hours before midnight. Benjamin gobbled most of his sweet treats in his bedroom, with Kaileena and Prince Adam who ate theirs too.

  After a while, Sebastian entered the room with his Eidoncheir who took the form of a snow leopard.

  “Are you ready for tomorrow, Benjamin?” asked Sebastian.

  “Yes. I’ve already packed.”

  “Good. Remember to take that knife of yours; it came in very handy last time. Don’t forget that compass, as well; we’ll need it.”

  Benjamin smiled and nodded. He appreciated the fact that Sebastian was acknowledging his valuable possessions.

  “What about your band? Are they coming?”

  “Every one of them,” Benjamin replied. “Each of them called me on the phone recently to confirm. Prince Adam and Kaileena are coming too,” he continued, gesturing at the other two who were still shoving sweets into their mouths, “and so are Abel, Jama and Anouk.”

  “Brilliant. Ring them all up and tell them to be here in the morning before nine. We’ll have breakfast then and leave immediately afterwards.”

  Benjamin signalled that he understood.

  “See you all then.” Sebastian bade them goodnight before leaving the room with his Eidoncheir.

  When they were alone, Benjamin slumped back into his bed with Bana, who climbed onto his lap. Today was their last day in Springhaven.

  *

  At dawn the next morning, Jordanna and her Eidoncheir came to Benjamin’s room to wake the youngsters from their long sleep. Benjamin glanced at his clock and saw that it was already seven.

  “Have a shower, then come downstairs,” Jordanna told them.

  “Or we could splash you with some cold water, if you like,” warned her Eidoncheir.

  Benjamin raised his hands in surrender. He jumped out of bed and watched his little brothers carry their Eidoncheirs to the door.

  Herman was using the bathroom on the ground floor, while Nadine used the one upstairs. It was a long wait for some, but one by one the family managed to wash themselves before the set time. The dining table in the living room bore only a little food, mainly assorted fresh fruit and packaged muffins. They were in a hurry.

  Benjamin welcomed his friends and band who arrived not long afterwards, making the room look more like a wild jungle than a home. Jordanna invited them to eat what they wished from the table.

  “How far is the journey from here to Brytannia?” Musab asked Sebastian, taking some slices of apple.

  “About a day or two. Brytannia is quite a distance, you know.”

  “I’ve never been there, so I didn’t know,” Musab said, shrugging.

  Benjamin broke in to ask, “Isn’t Adam going to come?”

  “Yes, we’re going to meet him at the dock,” Jordanna said, putting a hand around his shoulder. “We’ve got half an hour left before we leave.” Then she went to the kitchen to wash the dishes.

  Half an hour to spare? That was good; Benjamin thought it’d be nice to look around the house before his departure. First he went to the roof with Bana, who leaped to the top to greet him. The rising sun hovered above the east, the silhouette of the volcano growing clearer each minute. He looked to the north where the royal palace lay: a powerful stronghold, sworn to reign until the end of time. Soldiers who had been accommodated there for the past few weeks were now pouring out onto Silver Street. They were all heading for the western docks.

  Soon after, Benjamin looked inside the rooms of each of his siblings. They were different to the way he had pictured them, bearing posters of their favourite bands and artwork made during their childhood. Sebastian’s room was in the loft, with blue walls; Edgar and Herman shared another on the floor below, favouring mostly orange and black decor. The girls had their walls covered in purple wallpaper.

  The last room Benjamin looked into was his own. Stepping in now, it felt quite different from the last time he’d come in to get dressed. The bunk beds belonging to Kevin and Alby lay on the right, now tidy; his own was on the left, larger than the others. He knelt on the carpet and let the soft fabric comfort his palms. Once more, he looked out of the window before leaving the room.

  Then he stopped.

  His parents’ bedroom was next door. Gently turning the handle, Benjamin walked in and was moved to tears. They weren’t here, and nor were their things. He walked over to their bed and sat with the Unique Compass in his hand. For many days, he’d been trying to pluck up the courage to ask about the well-being of his parents. It would be nice to know how they were faring, but fear had got the better of him. It still did.

  “You don’t have to ask,” Bana told him, placing a paw on his lap. “You can wait until they return. They’ll tell you everything themselves.”

  After five minutes there, Benjamin left to look at the family photos on the walls of the ground floor corridor. There were hundreds of them; Sebastian and Edgar’s victory at the kite-fighting tournament when they were younger; Jordanna’s successful beauty pageants; Herman cooking in the kitchen, with a chef’s hat on his short, curly head; Nadine sitting on the climbing frame in Dusty Park, gazing westward at the wind blowing past her hair.

  There were many of him, too: times he’d spent with Kevin, Alby and his friends, too many to count; playing in the garden, standing on the roof, cooking with Mama, birthday parties and many more. Memories of the Ishamara family were spread out here, never to be forgotten. Then Benjamin came upon the largest picture of all; fixed in frames of woven gold was a family portrait, all of them standing beside each other with their parents at the centre.

  Benjamin sighed. He would surely miss it.

  A clatter sounded through the house as the family cleaned up the kitchen. Fifty pieces of silver cutlery lay in the sink, sparkling as if brand new. It seemed no time before Sebastian turned the key in the front door to lock up the house. How long it would stay that way, Benjamin didn’t know. He sat in a taxi with his four closest friends, Kelindra and his band rode in another, while his family took the one at the front. Their Eidoncheirs flew in the form of birds to join them at the western docks.

  Uncle Merin took his car and bade a sad farewell to everyone. He was grateful for the long hospitality he had received at Benjamin’s house, but it was time for him to return to his village.

  Benjamin waved goodbye and watched him turn the corner, looking out of the taxi’s window. He gazed once more upon his house, wi
th a sigh. He didn’t know why, but he had a feeling he wasn’t going to see it in a very long time. He had left several times before, but this was different.

  He’d left to rescue the children in the Far South and the journey was unexpected. The next journey should have been a short visit to Hearth village, but he’d ended up getting abducted and taken to Egypta. This was the final departure, and it was fully planned. He must go; he’d promised Ruby that he’d help to rescue her siblings. Everyone else he knew had found their brothers and sisters, but she still hadn’t found hers.

  As the taxis set off for the western docks, Benjamin’s journey to the Far North began.

  Part 4

  The Far North

  Chapter 22

  The Three Kings

  Benjamin stood behind the deckrail and watched the peaceful sea flow past. Kaileena and Prince Adam had stood next to him all day, their Eidoncheirs keeping each other company further down.

  It had been many hours since they’d left the western docks. The sky had grown dark, chilling the air. Unlike the previous time Benjamin had been here, when the ships had carried only the Aradian army, there were three more ships which were filled with the rest of the Aradian Alliance. There was something to see every minute. He watched the dwarves and elves march along in troop formation. The birds, Tuaryans and witches flew in groups, passing on any news of land or danger. The Aradian soldiers, the Spartans and the Orellions could be heard below training to the best of their strength. As for the elephants, they stayed fore and aft because their weight would unbalance the ship if they moved around. Princess Elma was the exception; she sat in the lobby, feasting on a pile of mangoes with some of her kin.

  “It’s crowded, isn’t it?” Benjamin commented, liking this more and more. He inhaled the salty smell of the sea in a deep breath.

  “But three more wouldn’t hurt, would they?”

  Benjamin looked around to see who had spoken. To his surprise, he saw the dark cloaked man, the lion and the ghost all standing before him.

  “Until now,” said the dark cloaked man, “We’ve made ourselves visible only to you, Benjamin. Now there is no need to hide.”

  Benjamin smiled to see the faces of Kaileena and Prince Adam; their mouths had fallen open at the sight of the mysterious trio. They could see them now!

  “At last,” Kaileena murmured, smiling.

  Benjamin folded his arms. “Why me?” he asked the dark man.

  “You are special,” the lion responded. As he spoke, Prince Adam gripped Benjamin’s arm and leaned his head forward, staring at the lion’s golden eyes; they were unmistakeable, and he recognised them at once.

  “You! You’re the lion from my birthday carnival!”

  The lion nodded gently, “Yes, it is I. We meet again. My intention was never to attack you.”

  The three children shook their heads in confusion, not knowing what to believe. They waited for the lion to explain what had really happened that day.

  “The three of us were trying to arrange for the three of you to meet for the first time.”

  Benjamin and Prince Adam exchanged bewildered glances. Kaileena looked up with a frown.

  “Before the birthday carnival, my companions and I formed a plan to bring you three together,” the lion explained. “We found that the carnival would take a route which passed Benjamin’s house, just as we had hoped. A circus had been hired as entertainment, including a caged lion which was to be paraded behind you as a symbol of bravery. With some manipulation, I took the place of the circus lion. When the carnival began, my dear friends walked beside my cage. As we drew near Benjamin’s house, my friend here – the ghost, as you call him – unfastened my cage. I hesitated to jump out, worried that I might frighten the crowd, but Lagunar insisted.” The lion tilted its head towards the dark cloaked man.

  “I caused Benjamin to save Adam, so that you would get together at the birthday party to talk. Adam, you were a lonely child and there were two good friends that you needed to meet: Benjamin and Kaileena. We needed to attract Benjamin’s attention and no one else’s; it was the only way. If anyone else had seen what had happened, they might have tried to save you instead. We made ourselves visible only to you, Benjamin, so that you would go to Prince Adam’s aid; you and no one else.”

  Benjamin couldn’t believe what he was hearing. It had all started to make some kind of sense. If it hadn’t been for these three, he would never have become friends with Prince Adam. “I see,” he said thoughtfully.

  “The whole plan was designed to bring you three together; and Benjamin’s bravery showed the prince that he could trust him,” the ghost pointed out.

  “Exactly,” said the great lion. “I apologise if we caused you distress. I would never have attacked you; it was all a tactic. Forgive me if I alarmed you, sire.”

  Prince Adam nodded and looked at Kaileena and Benjamin, who followed suit.

  “Why did you want us to meet each other?” asked Kaileena.

  “Without your friendship and the promise it involved, you two would not have been saved by Benjamin in the Far South; nor would he have been saved in Egypta without your help. We three are all-knowing.”

  “The Unique Compass was another reason for your friendship,” added the dark cloaked man. “It was transferred back and forth between you after you lost it, Prince Adam. This was an important factor.”

  The three children nodded; what the mysterious trio had said was true. If none of this had happened they would not have met, nor would their friendship have grown to its present point. Silence fell while they thought about all they had learnt. Benjamin wondered at the fateful events that had turned his life around.

  “But there’s one thing,” he quickly said, “the king and my father were friends for many years so how come they never bothered to introduce me to Prince Adam when he was a lonely child.”

  The lion, the ghost and the dark cloaked man looked at one another.

  Benjamin folded his arms and waited for an explanation.

  After a while, the lion shook his mane. “I would give you the answer if I could about your fathers, but I cannot. Only they can tell you.”

  Prince Adam waved his hand, “Why are you here now?” he asked, frowning. “You said that three more wouldn’t hurt; what did you mean by that?”

  “We are here to offer you a contract, to fully watch over you three and guide you to where you are going.”

  “Fully watch over us? What kind of contract?” asked Kaileena.

  “Before we accept or refuse, please tell us who you are.” Prince Adam folded his arms and waited for the introduction.

  “Like your Eidoncheirs, we are from the realm of light; I am the great lion, Aloncheir.”

  “And I am Lagunar Cheirloire,” said the dark cloaked man.

  “I have another name, but call me ‘Ghost Boy’,” said the ghost.

  “We are known as the Three Kings,” they said in unison.

  “Kings of where?” asked Benjamin.

  “You need not concern yourselves with that.” Lagunar pulled back his hood, revealing a handsome olive face; he had a strong jaw, dark lips and eyes black as ebony. His hair was long, styled in a Mohawk with braids weaving down the side of his head. Lagunar looked no older than fifteen.

  “As you know,” began the Ghost Boy, his voice melodically sending butterflies to the stomach of anyone who heard it, “the Aradian army is reinforced by many other clans and races to help fight for their empire in their cause to rescue the missing children, and now they have all gathered together officially in a group known as the Aradian Alliance, as the king has recently announced. We also offer our services to you; just the three of us from the realm of light.”

  “Why do you want to fight for us?” Prince Adam asked.

  “Because we believe in your cause and want to help rescue the children, too,” answered Alonch
eir.

  “But what good are three extra to the Aradian Alliance?”

  “We have powers which others do not. Remember, we are all-knowing. We also have an army under our leadership – that is, of course, the army of light.”

  Prince Adam considered all this. He frowned deeply in thought and scratched his head.

  “We can give you more time to decide, if you like,” suggested the lion.

  “No.”

  Benjamin knew that Prince Adam was a royal, attending to daily political duties concerning matters that benefited his country. However, to rescue the children from the O.O.H. from the Far North would require a lot of soldiers, especially when many had died in the previous battles, so refusing this generous offer seemed senseless.

  “No,” Prince Adam repeated. “My father is not here, so I am acting on his behalf. We don’t need more time because I accept your offer.”

  Benjamin felt relieved and, by the look on her face, so did Kaileena.

  “Kings,” continued Prince Adam, “If you join us, will you promise that some more of your people from the realm of light will give us their aid if necessary?”

  “Only if you grant us a condition,” replied the lion.

  “What’s the condition?” asked Prince Adam.

  “Once all has come to righteousness, our service to you will be over. Then we will no longer be bound to you.”

  “Agreed.” That was Prince Adam’s final word on this matter.

  “Now that we’re your new guardians, please tell us all that has happened since you became friends,” said the Ghost Boy. “Although we’ve been watching over you, we’d like you to tell us everything yourselves.”

  Benjamin and Kaileena walked along on Aloncheir’s left and Prince Adam on his right, and in this way they strolled around the ship’s decks to tell their story.

  Tears were shed at the mention of Benjamin’s missing parents, frowns prevailed at the memory of Kaileena and Prince Adam’s days at Halamaband in the south, but smiles were beamed at the memory of times spent on the roof of the royal palace. Night had turned to morning by the time the three children had finished their tales. In the end, they slept with their Eidoncheirs on a bench on the upper deck. The magical shawl expanded into a blanket, warming all three in the creeping chill. The Three Kings watched over them while the stars twinkled brilliantly above.