ISOF

by Pete Townsend

  Every now and again, a figure would amble up to the kiosk, throw some coins into a large pot and the old man, in return, would throw one of the cards he was holding at the money-thrower. Ben was fascinated by these antics. The old man never looked up to see who was purchasing a card and the purchaser never spoke. It reminded Ben of some of the shops near where he lived. He recalled the times that he’d pointed at an item on the shop’s shelf, placed his money on the counter and been handed the chosen article without anyone saying a word. Ben felt a nudge.

  Noj placed his mouth next to Ben’s ear. ‘Are you with us?’ he asked a smile playing across his face. He jerked his head. ‘Take a look at that.’

  In front of them stood a tall, imposing fence made out of a sort of linked-chain and topped with vicious curls of barbed wire. Behind the fence, a large, dead oak tree rose majestically out of the soil. Its branches hung in a sad arc, its tips pointing at the ground, as if begging for water. Just in front of the fence, tethered by chains to metal posts rammed into the ground, prowled two huge beasts. If anyone passed close to the fence, the two beasts would launch themselves at the passer-by, straining their chains to the limit. At that point the beasts would simply stare, open their large mouths and expose rows of needle-sharp teeth. If that didn’t have the desired affect, the beasts would arch their backs and flex their skeletal wings and swish one, or all three, of their long, bony tails across the dusty ground.

  Ben watched, open mouthed, as the hounds patrolled the area surrounding the tree. Trep tapped Ben’s chin.

  ‘You’d better close that before something flies in to it.’

  Ben snapped his jaw shut. He nodded towards the hounds.

  ‘What are they supposed to be?’

  ‘They’re not supposed to be anything,’ replied a tight-lipped Noj. ‘They are Trilligs.’

  ‘Anyone got a bone?’ smiled Ben.

  ‘You offering?’ snarled Mak.

  Ben ignored the comment. ‘So?’ he asked. ‘What do we do now?’

  ‘The bridge,’ said a voice next to his ear.

  Ben looked around but there was nothing or nobody to see. He stared at the old man in the kiosk who continued to fumble with the cards, his head gently bobbing up and down. Suddenly, he offered Ben a card.

  ‘I’ve no coins,’ shouted Ben. The old man continued to thrust the card at Ben.

  ‘Take it,’ suggested Alisha. ‘People are beginning to look at us.’

  Ben took the card and placed it in his pocket.

  ‘Read it then,’ said the voice next to him. Again Ben turned but there was nobody next to him. At the stall the old man still fumbled with his cards, throwing a card at anyone who dropped coins into his pot. Ben removed the card from his pocket and stared at the rows of numbers.

  The voice sighed with exasperation. ‘On the other side,’ it said.

  Ben looked at the words scrawled on the back of the card.

  ‘What’s it say?’ asked Noj.

  ‘It just says…’ mumbled Ben frowning at the card.

  Alisha grabbing the card impatiently from his hand looked at both sides and shrugged her shoulders.

  ‘What does it say?’ asked Trep, as Mak made a grab for the card.

  Alisha held the card out of Mak’s reach and shrugged again. ‘Bridge,’ she replied. ‘Just the one word, Bridge, nothing more.’

  ‘Sorted,’ said Noj ushering the others away from the market place. He said nothing more until they were well away from the hubbub of noisy buyers and sellers. Finally, Noj pulled the others members of the group into a side alley.

  ‘We’re to go to the bridge,’ he said. He held a warning finger as the others began muttering about stating the obvious. ‘Before you say anymore,’ he said with a grin. ‘I realise what the card said and that there are many bridges that cross the various stretches of water. But,’ he added with a flourish of his hand. ‘There can be only one bridge that matters and that is the one where the three rivers meet.’

  ‘So what do we do when we get there?’ asked Ben hurriedly following after Noj who had strode off without waiting for the rest of the group. In reply, Noj simply gestured for the others to keep up with him.

  The group quickly became disorientated following the seemingly confident footsteps of Noj. His stride never faltered and, without looking either right or left, he led the group away from the market place and towards an area where the houses gave way to more regular shaped and styles buildings.

  Finally, Noj paused where several groups of people had gathered in small clusters. To one side of the buildings, a long line of metal railings marked the boundary between the buildings and a sluggish river of mud. Beckoning the others, Noj nodded at the river.

  ‘This is one of the three rivers that flow into Janring. The other two,’ he said pointing along the line of railings, ‘meet this river down there and that is where we’ll find the bridge.’

  Ben looked at the river of mud with disgust. ‘Firstly,’ he said frowning, ‘how did you know where to go and, secondly, that’s not a river,’ he said with disdain. ‘That’s more like the overflow from a slurry pit.’

  Alisha wrinkled her nose. ‘It does stink.’ She held a finger under her nose. ‘It can’t be doing the other two rivers any favours.’

  ‘There all the same,’ sighed Noj. ‘Since the Jaresh have occupied the area, the rivers have become nothing more than a repository for their waste.’ He looked at Ben’s face. ‘Yes,’ he added. ‘All of their waste!’ He grinned at the facial expressions his comment had caused. ‘To answer your first question,’ he added indicating the river. ‘I made sure to take a good look at the layout of the buildings and where the rivers flowed when we were halfway down the mountain. Always a good vantage point.’

  Ignoring any further questions, Noj led the way for the others to follow. It wasn’t long before they reached the point where the railings butted up against the round, brick pillar that formed one side of the bridge structure. At one time, the bridge would have looked a majestic piece of architecture with its intricate patterned brickwork and swirling metal framework spanning the rivers. Now, time and neglect had wrought havoc with the structure leaving it a jaded and precarious monument to the past. Standing next to the pillar, Ben gestured at the bridge and the gurgling confluence of three rivers.

  ‘Now what?’ he asked.

  ‘Throw the bell and diamond into the point where the three rivers meet,’ said a voice.

  ‘What? Hey? Who?’ asked Ben anxiously looking around. ‘Where are you?’

  ‘Just do it,’ said the voice with an edge of irritation. ‘Are you always this contumacious?’

  ‘If I knew what it meant I’d deny it,’ snapped Ben.

  Mak, who was growing increasingly impatient, nudged Ben. ‘Why are you talking to yourself?’

  ‘I’m not,’ replied Ben defensively. ‘I’m answering the voice I keep hearing.’

  ‘Oh great,’ said Trep, ‘he’s hearing voices and holding conversations with them.’ He shook his head in disgust. ‘Absolutely brilliant.’

  Ignoring the comments, Noj looked directly at Ben. ‘What have we to do?’ he asked.

  Ben shrugged. ‘We’ve to throw the bell and diamond into the point where the three rivers meet.’

  ‘That’s not going to happen,’ said Alisha sternly. ‘This bell goes with me. After what I’ve been through I deserve to keep the one thing that aided my escape.’

  ‘I thought I helped you escape,’ said Ben with a grin.

  ‘Sort of,’ replied Alisha, allowing a slight smile to form. ‘But you’re not only too big to keep in my pocket, you don’t resonate quite so sweetly.’

  ‘I think,’ said Noj firmly. ‘That we have no choice but to do as we are bid, otherwise why are we here?’

  Mak spat on the ground. ‘You’re surely not acting on the say so of that idiot?’ he said pointing accusingly at Ben. ‘He’s a fully qualified nutter!’

  ‘He’s here for a reason,’ growled Noj. ‘And for t
hat reason we’re going to do what is necessary.’ He turned to Alisha. ‘I’m sorry,’ he said. ‘But it’s the only way.’ He held his hand out expectantly towards her. Slowly, Alisha removed the bell from its resting place and placed it in his hand. With a nod of thanks, he then turned to Ben. ‘The diamond.’

  Ben felt the rough shape of the diamond inside his cloak. ‘We could do a lot of good with this stone,’ he said thoughtfully. ‘Just think of how many people could benefit from the sale of the diamond. Hundreds or even thousands,’ he added.

  Noj shook his head and gestured with his hand once more. ‘It’s not up for discussion,’ he said calmly.

  Reluctantly, Ben took the diamond from his cloak. Placing the stone in Noj’s hand, Ben left his fingers touching the surface of the diamond.

  ‘You have to let it go, Ben,’ said Noj gently moving his hand. ‘You know it’s the right thing to do.’

  Ben, closing his eyes, removed his fingers from the diamond and stepped away. He felt tired. The whole adventure was gradually becoming so frustrating that it held little appeal for him. With a sigh he opened his eyes and immediately gasped. Directly in front of him, and holding Noj firmly by the shoulders stood two enormous Jaresh guards, each holding a spear directed at Ben’s throat.

  Chapter 35

  The two guards towered over Ben. Making strange ticking noises in their throats, they slowly moved forward.

  Ben stood frozen with fear. Several thoughts flashed through his mind. If he ran, Noj might be harmed and if he didn’t run, he might be harmed. What would happen to the others? Where was he going to run? More to the point, how was he going to run, his legs wouldn’t work?

  While the thoughts were racing through his mind, Alisha decided to take action. She watched for a split second as Ben appeared rooted to the spot and then ran headlong into the stomach of the nearest Jaresh guard. Her head made satisfying contact with the scaly creature’s midriff as he folded neatly under the impact, which suddenly deprived him of air. The second guard instantly released his hold of Noj and ran forward to protect his colleague. In the confusion, Noj threw the diamond and bell at Ben.

  ‘You know what to do,’ he shouted.

  Fumbling the items, Ben finally managed to hug them to his chest and immediately ran onto the bridge. Pausing part way along the wooden pathway, Ben quickly looked behind to where the Jaresh guards appeared to be struggling with a small crowd of people. Ben climbed onto the parapet and looked down into the murky depths of the three rivers.

  For a brief moment, Ben couldn’t see where the three rivers met as the glutinous looking surface simply appeared as one heaving mass. Frantically, he scanned the rivers for any difference in their surfaces. He looked back to where the rest of the group should have been but it was impossible to determine what had happened to them in the melee of jostling people and guards. Ben was just about to jump back to the pathway when he suddenly noticed a small spray of muddy water leap into the air. He watched closely and, after a few seconds, it happened again. Ben traced the flow of each river and decided that the small spray was approximately where the three rivers might meet, or at least he tried to persuade himself they might.

  Behind him the noise was increasing and occasional cries of anger and pain could be heard. Ben couldn’t see anything else that looked remotely possible as the spot where the rivers met. For a second he dithered over throwing the bell and diamond into the water. What if he was wrong and this wasn’t the correct place? How could he retrieve the objects once he’d thrown them into the murky water? With a last look behind, Ben placed the diamond and the bell into his hands and aimed the two objects where the spray of water leapt slightly skywards. Holding his breath, he threw the bell and diamond at the same time. The objects seemed to take forever as they arced in the air, tumbling and turning as they neatly hit the exact spot where the last muddy water spray had erupted. Both the diamond and bell sank without a sound, each embraced by the muddy waters.

  Ben waited, nothing. The small spray of water leapt above the surface once again and, as quickly, disappeared. By this time, a number of Jaresh guards had extricated themselves from the crowd and were quickly making their way across the bridge towards Ben. He looked again at the rivers but nothing had changed as the murky depths churned much as they had done for decades. Just as he was about to jump to the ground, Ben saw one of the guards launch a spear in his direction. The shaft of the spear twisted in flight causing little flecks of light to reflect from its surface as if it was lit by a myriad of small lights. The effect was mesmerising. Ben couldn’t take his eyes off the spear as it travelled ever closer. He felt strangely calm, as if what he was seeing and hearing was a distant dream and he was simply an observer of events evolving somewhere else, cocooned as he was in the warm embrace of indifference.

  Suddenly, a huge explosion burst into his consciousness. He turned to see a massive spout of mud and water erupting from the point where the three rivers met. The spout climbed ever higher, its foul fingers clawing their way skywards until, at the point where density and gravity argued, the murky water returned to earth, covering everything and everyone as it fell.

  Ben looked around as shocked figures stood paralysed with fright and surprise. He smiled and then everything went dark as the spear found its mark.

  Chapter 36

  Ben felt himself drifting, wrapped in a warm cloud. He was vaguely aware of voices, distant, almost ethereal. Somewhere beyond his understanding, a voice called his name. He smiled. It was nice to be remembered. He allowed the warmth to penetrate every part of his body. It felt good.

  ‘Ben!’ called a voice softly, urgently. ‘Ben!’

  Ben smiled again. He was so comfortable and wanted to relax, allow the feeling of safety to last forever. Suddenly, he was aware of a different sort of warmth, something soft and gentle on his cheek.

  ‘Come on, Ben. It’s time to wake up.’

  He felt the gentle kiss against his cheek again. Ben murmured appreciatively. He turned his head to allow the other cheek to feel the luxuriously soft kiss. He felt himself lurch upright, his hand against his cheek where it had just received a stinging smack.

  ‘Ben, you slob,’ chuckled Alisha. ‘Stop frightening us and wake up.’

  Shaking his head, Ben tried to force his eyes open but failed. He didn’t want to try again. A hand pressed itself against his cheek.

  ‘Are you asking for another smack?’ asked Alisha.

  Ben’s eyelids allowed themselves to be lifted slightly. A groan escaped his lips as the light hit his senses like a hammer-blow.

  ‘Come on, Ben. We need you to wake up,’ coaxed Alisha.

  Ben took a deep breath and groaned once again as a searing pain exploded inside his head. He began to lift a hand to his head but felt another hand hold his.

  ‘Don’t touch,’ said Alisha. ‘You have a nasty gash on your forehead.’ She stroked his cheek. ‘You’re lucky to be alive.’

  ‘What happened?’ mumbled Ben. ‘All I remember is an explosion, muddy water everywhere and…’ he groaned at the memory. ‘And a dirty great spear!’ He went to touch his head but, again, Alisha held his hand away from the wound.

  ‘Don’t you listen to what you’re told?’ she asked grinning. ‘Now, come on. We need to get away from here and back to the anonymity of the market place.’

  Gradually forcing his eyes open, Ben could just about make out his dim surroundings. He appeared to be resting against someone’s door, which sat inside a covered porch. By his side knelt Alisha while the others crouched close by, each looking anxiously at Ben. Noj gave him a smile.

  ‘Ready to move?’ he asked indicating world outside of the porch.

  Ben nodded and winced with the accompanying pain. Trep and Mak, supporting him with their arms, helped him stand upright. For a moment the world and everything in it moved in rhythm to a silent song. Before he had a chance to grow accustomed to the sensation of movement, Ben felt his body partially lifted and dragged out into the confu
sion of noise that the recent river explosion had caused.

  The world outside of the porch was one of chaos. Those people who had heard, but not seen the watery explosion were eagerly trying to get near the bridge. Unfortunately, those who had been caught up in the immediate aftermath and who were now drenched in filthy, muddy water, were as eager to get away from the scene.

  Ben stared at the competing mass of people. The noise was deafening as bodies tried to force themselves passed each other. The Jaresh guards, bemused by the explosion and what looked like a mass brawl, reacted in the only way they understood and began lashing out indiscriminately with their fists, occasionally using their spears to herd small groups into doorways.

  In one group, close to where Ben stood, a couple of young children were being pushed and kicked by two guards as they tried to force the group away from the bridge.

  ‘Hey!’ yelled Ben. ‘Leave them alone you pair of overgrown prawns.’

  The guards, taking a final kick at the smaller of the two children, quickly turned and began to head straight for Ben.

  ‘Strewth, Ben,’ shouted Mak as he and Trep virtually lifted Ben off his feet and started to run.

  ‘Talk about shooting your mouth off,’ panted Trep. ‘I’ve a good mind to…’

  ‘Where’s Alisha?’ interrupted Noj as he jogged beside them.

  ‘She was here a moment ago,’ stuttered Ben as his body was dragged over the uneven surface of the street.

  For the next few minutes, Ben felt himself bumped and jostled as Mak and Trep half carried, half dragged him away from the pursuing Jaresh guards. Every now and again, Ben would call out a plaintive ‘Sorry’ or ‘Excuse us’, but nobody heard, nobody listened or cared, their only concern being to avoid injury from the guards who had suddenly multiplied in number and were chasing some poor unfortunates.