Red Leaves and the Living Token

by Benjamin David Burrell

  "I had the entire token at one time. And it didn't work like this."

  She listened.

  "It opened up a pathway. Paved with stone."

  Her eyes grew wide as she shook her head in disbelieve.

  Had he told her too much already? Handers thought.

  "Maybe..." she started. "Maybe with all that's happened..." She wrinkled her brow, thinking. "You have to start small. You know, prove yourself a little bit again."

  He looked away. Having to work at it a bit actually made him feel better, as though it wasn't so much an act of pity if he had to earn it. He nodded his head in agreement.

  She pat him on the leg and stood up. "I'm gonna go check on Sinesh."

  -

  Emret held the Token up high in front of him, trying to keep it steady from the jarring motion of the horse. He could see the glow stretching out in front of him molding the forest ahead into a clear cut path.

  He was surprised that no matter how fast they seem to go the forest was able to keep up with them. They hadn't yet outrun the effect. It was like having a custom road laid out in front of you going exactly where you want to go without any unnecessary bends or detours.

  He had no idea how long it would take to get where they were going as he still had no idea where that was. What he did know was this had to be the fastest way possible to get there.

  He glanced back at the horse behind him. He could see the old man still watching him intently. The old man smiled as they made eye contact.

  -

  Handers stared at the patch of dirt filled with insects, pondering what Moslin had said. He held up the small and seemingly insignificant piece of the Token. What could he expect from such a small thing? It made sense that if anything were to happen it'd be small.

  He got up and wandered over to the thin trail of insects. They were still there, moving towards some unseen destination.

  After all he'd done, he had no problem with the idea of having to prove himself. He deserved no better. He pushed into the underbrush again. This time he didn't stop until he came to the end of the bushes and ferns. Suddenly the leaves fell away, leaving only the darkening evening sky behind them.

  A beautiful mountain meadow stretched out below him, dipping down into a wide bowl. The forest continued on the other side, creating a wall around the slope of grass and flowers.

  Handers’ mouth hung open as he took in the sight before him. He was not alone.

  A rail of emerald light had appeared in the air near his feet that stretched across the grass and disappeared into the trees beyond the meadow. The light was made up of tiny glow bugs that had pulled together in a tight cluster, gently bobbing up and down.

  He lifted up the Token fragment. It glowed brightly now. This was clearly his answer, no longer any room for misinterpretation.

  The leaves rustled behind him. Moslin stepped into the clearing with Sinesh in her hand. Her mouth fell open, then pulled back into a smile.

  T he forest around Emret and his new entourage grew thicker and darker as they progressed. Those even a little behind Emret’s horse had to weave in and out of the trees as the range of the effect the Token had seemed to have narrowed considerably.

  As they pushed further, the forest on either side continued to thicken. Eventually the trees were so closely spaced, and the gaps between were filled with so much tangled underbrush, that it took the appearance of a solid wall. It made Emret feel a bit claustrophobic.

  A short time passed with a lot less forward progress than they had hoped. The Token’s effect constricted even further now, forcing the horses to crowd together in a tight pack, as anyone that fell back more than 10 feet from Emret would get stuck.

  One of the horses reared up on its legs and whinnied in pain. A tangled branch had left a nasty cut as it snagged on the horse belly. The other horses neighed and pushed from side to side as they struggled to get through tangled vines protruding into the path.

  “I think we’ll need to go on foot from here.” Valance said.

  The group dismounted. One of the men handed Emret to Rinacht to carry. Emret held the token out in front of him as Rinacht pushed him to the front of the group.

  As he held the Token up, the thick tangle of branches unwound slowly, allowing them to continue, step by step.

  We must be getting close, he thought. There’d be no way to pass through this without help.

  After what seemed like hours of slow progress the tangle of vines gave way to more thinly spaced trunks. Then the forest ended entirely, and they found themselves on a ridge overlooking a small but beautiful valley.

  The sight of it confirmed Emret’s suspicions. This place was like nothing he’d ever seen. They had to be close. The center of the valley looked like a manicured garden. But not like a normal garden that was cut back to shape. It was as though these plants themselves had grown in a specific ordered way, all of their own accord. Nothing was cut or trimmed. Yet everything was symmetrical with beautiful repeating patterns.

  The high rim of the valley extended all the way around, making the garden below appear to be in the bottom of a bowl. On top of the rim a row of incredibly large and old trees bowed in towards the center, forming a natural semi dome.

  Under the domed canopy, smaller Manae trees grew in a sideways pattern as though blown by a strong wind that had caused all their branches and leaves to point in one direction. Only, they were all pointing inward, making it look like they were kneeling or bowing down to whatever was in the center.

  Ferns and wild flowers danced in and out of the Manea trees, twisting together to form a ring around the garden, all swaying in towards the middle. Even the tall stalks of wild grass grew at a bent angle that slanted towards the middle.

  At the center of the garden, rose a small hill. Atop the hill was a dense thicket of gnarled thorny vines. From the rim, it looked like a small domed shroud. From with in the shroud, a red glow beamed through the cracks between the vines and branches, casting intricate curving shadows on the hill side.

  A pond circled the base of the hill then trickled down into a stream that traced the outward edge of the garden.

  “Its beautiful,” Emret whispered.

  Rinacht carried Emret down the steep ridge, dropping them down into the garden. The others held back for a moment, giving the boy room.

  Emret felt invigorate. At the end, finally, of what felt like an impossible journey. It was hard to fathom that his life, the promise of a future, of survival, all of it, everything he'd hoped for, was here, in the center of this garden. The excitement of it, the hope, gave him a new energy. Something he hadn't felt since he stepped into the forbidden courtyard in Shishkameen to touch what he had thought was the Red tree.

  He felt the urge to make the final few steps on his own. Under his own power. He asked Rinacht to set him down.

  Sure enough his legs took his weight. He stepped forward, and his confidence grew. Some thing was giving him renewed strength. He could feel it, as if it were a promise of what lay in store for him just ahead.

  He stopped in front of the stream that flowed down from the pond below the glowing hill. The beams of soft red light that radiated out from the holes and splits in the thicket fell across his body. The red glow felt warm like he was bathing in sunlight.

  -

  Handers carried Sinesh as he jogged through the forest, weaving in and out of trees and hoping over fallen logs. The beautiful trail of light formed ahead of him, not only showing them the direction but indicating the easiest way through the thick under brush. Moslin ran up ahead of him, not having near the trouble or making near the noise as Handers. She could slide her slender frame through the tight spots where Handers had to force his way through, breaking hundreds of tiny branches in the process.

  As they progressed, the forest around them become more congested and harder to pass through. The green glowing trail started weaving back and forth to get around obstacles rather than staying in a more direct line as it had previously
.

  Eventually the walls of the forest had become so thick with vines and brush that the only way they could get through was by following the trail of light through small gaps that forced them to either crawl on their knees or climb up to reach.

  Handers wondered how long he’d be able to continue, being the largest of the three. Would he have to send Moslin up ahead? He thought. But each time they came to what seemed like an impasse, with a little work he was able to squeeze through.

  Handers pushed his head out of a twisted corridor, formed by the thick vines, and saw Moslin and Sinesh standing still. They had stopped and were looking down at something.

  “I think we’re here.” Moslin said.

  Handers pulled himself the rest of the way out and climbed to his feet. They were standing on a ridge overlooking a bowl shaped valley.

  He could see near the center of the small valley, his son standing near a pond of water, bathed in a soft red light coming from a hidden source. His heart jumped in excitement. It worked! He had found his son!

  His moment of jubilance was cut short. His son wasn't alone. He knew he wouldn't be. But... Lord Valance! He wasn't expecting him! How was this possible? And Rinacht? He was there next to Valance. How could he have partnered with that man?

  There was Bedic too! With Valance's soldiers on both sides. At least his son had a friend close.

  He watched the group of adults hold back as his son broke his frozen stance and took a slow, burdened, step towards the glowing hill. He crossed through the shallow pond and stopped before tackling the incline.

  Suddenly, Lord Valance and his two friends whipped around and drew their swords. They seemed to be staring straight at Handers. Did they hear them come in?

  In answer, he heard something whiz through the air, come down, and hit the boy with a loud crack. The impact caused Emret to shutter. As he stumbled backwards, Handers caught a glimpse of what hit him. The head of a thick black arrow stuck out from his chest, having pierced through his back. Emret collapsed to the ground and slid down the hill.

  Handers screamed, "Nooooo!” and charged forward towards his son. Half a minute away, at least, he scanned the forest for the source of the arrow. The border of the garden was almost solid. Nothing. He couldn't see anywhere that the arrow would've come from.

  Something moved, then he saw it, behind him. There was motion on top of the barrier of vines and branches. Several figures moved forward and stopped at the edge. They were walking on top of the trees! Botann. They didn't have to go through it. They went over it!

  One after another, Botann soldiers flowed in over the rim of the western barrier. As soon as they were visible he saw what he was afraid of. Bows lifted to the air. Then a volley of arrows raining down on the garden.

  He turned back towards the center of the valley. Lord Valance, Barnus, and Whiting held their strange swords up in the air. The darkness from the blades spread out to cast a dark purple shroud over them.

  Bedic, Rinacht, and the two remaining soldiers ran for cover, while Lord Valance and his two friends held their ground.

  The darkness spread from their three blades down onto their clothes, turning them black, and continued on to their skin and fur, having the same black effect. The arrows came down in a thick barrage, falling heavy and fast. As each arrow hit the purple shroud, it slowed then puffed into a tiny cloud of vapor.

  Hander's attention was drawn away by a strange sound. The outer barrier shook with a low rumble along the northern rim. With a loud crack of splitting wood, vast blocks of plant life fell under the weight of stone. A host of Petra soldiers rolled like boulders over the impenetrable thicket. They filled in and stopped in a line along the northern rim.

  The Botans responded by dropping down into the garden and forming a line in between the Petra and the heart of the valley.

  Handers paused. Distracted by the armies now surrounding the garden. What were they doing here? He thought.

  He noticed Valance hadn’t moved since the arrival of the Petra army. What ever they were doing it was clear they weren't backing off. Even in the face of the now two armies.

  The fact that Valance and his two friends hadn’t moved seemed to have given pause to both the Petra and Botann. They both held their position.

  He had to get to his son, he thought. This might be his opportunity. At least the first time he'd seen the weapons with the dark blade, it hadn't had any effect on him.

  He charged forward leaving Moslin and Sinesh on the ridge.

  Lord Valance, Barnus, and Whiting turned as Handers came down the hill towards the center of the garden. They didn't advance on him, but they didn't back away either.

  Handers hit the edge of the darkness coming from their weapons and passed through it without trouble.

  "Go help you son!" Lord Valance yelled at him as he passed. "We'll defend you."

  His son was laying still at the edge of the shallow pool circling the small hill. Handers dropped to the ground next to him and lifted him up, cradling him in his arms.

  “Emret? Emret!” He pulled him close listening for a heart beat, for breathing. Nothing.

  Blood poured out from the wounds of the arrow. It looked as though it might have pierced his heart. He shook him again. “Emret? Don't do this!”

  He stood up with his son in his arms. Rage began to swell up inside him. He closed his eyes and saw the arrow that had fallen through the air towards his son. He saw the Botann soldiers standing on top of the barrier. Why? Why would they shoot a helpless boy? What threat could he possibly have been? The Rage boiled over.

  He put his son's lifeless body down on the soft grass and turned to the Botann army.

  His arm began to swell like liquid boiling up under the skin, pushing, stretching out. He stomped forward. “You killed him!” He screamed. “You killed him!” All he could see was revenge, blood.

  “Wait, Handers, stop!” a voice yelled from behind a nearby tree. Handers looked back to see Bedic running towards him.

  “If you attack you’ll bring the storm! You can’t do that. You can’t bring the storm here! It’ll destroy the RED!” Bedic yelled.

  Handers blew past him, not listening, not caring.

  “What about your son? Are you just going to leave him there, lying in the mud?” Bedic argued.

  Handers stopped. Bedic was right. His son’s body. But what could he do in the middle of a battle? He'd go back, he thought, as soon as they were all dead. Every last green body.

  “Look!” Bedic yelled, pointing up into the sky. Fingers of the black storm stretch out from the mountain top in the west and were angling across the sky towards them.

  “Your son still has a chance if he finishes the journey that he started.” Bedic yelled as he chased after him. “Look at him, he’s only ten feet away! But he won’t be going any further on his own. He needs help. He needs his father!”

  Handers slowed down.

  “What was it that your son wanted more than anything else in this world? What did he come half way across the world to do?” Bedic asked, catching up to him.

  Handers stopped and turned to the old man. “What does it matter,” he asked. “He's dead.”

  Bedic responded quickly. “The boy came here to be healed of death didn’t he? Death was coming to him. If the boy was going to be healed of death before, why couldn’t he still be healed of it now?”

  Handers strained against the pull of the old mans words. He tried to ignore him, to push his thought back to the army in front of him. He wanted to punish them. He wanted to feel them hurting under the crushing pressure of his clenching fingers.

  “Finish it.” The old man continued. “Finish what you came to do. What you came to help him do. You are the only one who can grant him his last wish. Take him to the Red.”

  Handers resisted. “These men, they murdered my son.” He wanted to make them feel more pain than he felt. He wanted them to know the full reality of what they did. He wanted them to see the brutality of their actio
ns on a helpless child.

  “Even if you don’t believe that your son would be healed, your son believed it. Grant him that last wish. If you attack them, I promise you will not have the opportunity.”

  He looked back at his son’s lifeless body. So close to end of his difficult journey. So close to finding what Handers had refused to help him find. Perhaps he could make things right in that way. He could give his son the help he'd asked for.

  Arrows slipped through the air and landed in the grass a short distance away.

  But these soldiers, he thought, they were unrelenting. His fingers clenched. He wanted to feel their skin ripping under his fingers.

  “There is no time! In a moment your chance will be gone!” Bedic yelled.

  Handers closed his eyes and remembered the voice of his son pleading with him for help. To be taken here to this place to be healed. Then he heard his own voice in response, telling him no, telling him he couldn't. He wouldn't.

  He shook his head, trying to shake away the mistake. The shame of his choice.

  This time he would not refuse his son. He would fight for what Emret wanted rather than what he wanted.

  He turned back towards the lifeless body of his boy laying a just beyond his reach. "I'm sorry I didn't help you, Emret." He whispered.

  He ran to his son and picked up the limp body. As soon as he was on his feet he heard the low blare of a war horn.

  Behind him a sea of Botann soldiers swarmed down towards the center of the garden. A row of archers raised their bows into the air and released another volley of arrows that came slicing down through the air around him, cutting into the grass with a violent cacophony of noise.

  He spun around to face his attackers. Again the anger surfaced. They would all die before the end of this, he swore.

  He noticed that Valance was watching him, his weapon still held in the air to form the protective shield with the others. “Listen to this man, you fool! Go take your son!” He yelled.

  Several new fingers of darkness shot across the sky from the storm hovering over the peaks of a mountain in the distance.