The Lord of Obsidian [Quest for Earthlight Trilogy Book 2]

by Laraine Anne Barker

  "Where are you?"

  "Right here with you."

  "What about Jamie and John?"

  "You can still be friends with them. We can both be friends with them."

  Peter sighed. With all the force of a lone child—a boy who but for his stepfather would be an orphan—part of him yearned to be the boy in the mirror. He certainly looks the part. No one knowing of the war between the Earthlight and the Evil One could possibly doubt that a boy looking like that is the First Chosen of the Earthlight and the ´Son’ of Arthur.

  He tried to reason things through logically. There was something not quite right in all this, he decided. But no matter how hard he tried he couldn't put his finger on whatever it was. He looked at the boy in the mirror again, and the boy looked back at him with his own earnestness and open honesty. He sent out a mind probe, and received back only his own thoughts and emotions. It was as though the boy in the mirror already was him. He went back to his logical thinking.

  But his mind seemed to be floundering around like a fly in treacle. Was there any logic to the proposal anyway? Did it really matter whether he accepted it or not? Wasn't it just ... Peter's fumbling mind suddenly seemed to come up against a wall that stopped him from thinking at all. Although he managed to keep himself standing, he started to feel unaccountably sleepy.

  Oh dear! I'll think about it when I'm more awake. I just want to go to sleep.

  And suddenly the sleepiness went as the boy in the mirror became agitated. “No, no! This is important, although it might seem trivial."

  "You won't always be talking to me like this as though we're two different people? I don't think I could live with that."

  "No, of course not. It's just that at the moment we're sort of like the two separated halves of a whole. Once we're joined we'll simply be one person."

  Peter had forgotten that Sujad the Great had been responsible for the change in his reflected image. He had forgotten that the reflection was so much like that of Jadus as a boy. He saw merely a likable, good-looking lad.

  As though to help him make up his mind, Sujad now gently allowed the black-eyed boy to fade, and Peter saw his own real reflection staring back at him, solemn and white-faced. Then it too faded and the dark-eyed boy returned.

  A big friendly smile—Peter's own smile, did he but know it—split the reflected face almost in two and lit up the eyes the same way that other people saw it light up Peter's. Peter's mind seemed to clear. It was suddenly obvious what he should do.

  He drew a deep breath. “Well—why not?” he said.

  ...and the mirror turned suddenly dark. The reflection of the black-eyed boy vanished like a puff of smoke. In its place was the sneering countenance of Sujad the Great.

  And the face of the Lord of Obsidian was part of Peter's own reflected figure.

  Chapter 15

  The Possession

  THE DREADFUL laughter of Sujad the Great echoed around inside Peter's head, creating a tight band around his brain. He put his hands to his forehead. But it made no difference. He blocked his ears with his fingers. But that only made it worse because he wasn't hearing the noise through his ears. He forced himself to look in the mirror, which gave him a full-length view of himself. But it wasn't himself that he saw. It was the stocky figure of a boy about his own age with a man's head on his shoulders. The face was that of the boy whom he had first seen in the mirror as he would appear in adult life. The figure had its fingers in its ears and its mouth was wide open in terrible shouting laughter.

  Part of himself felt Sujad's monstrous triumph. It charged over him in a tremendous surge—awesome and exhilarating. Suddenly he knew what it was like to have almost unlimited power—to have power far outweighing that of one's mightiest enemies. He knew with shattering certainty that as Sujad the Great he was the most powerful being in the world at that moment—with power enough to conquer the earth.

  At the same time he saw himself through Sujad's eyes—and ´Pukling’ wasn't an exaggerated expression of Sujad's view of Simon Peter FitzArthur. Peter now discovered that “weakling who makes me sick” was a very mild description of the Lord of Obsidian's feelings towards him.

  But Sujad's abhorrence of Peter seemed to be out of all proportion to such a low opinion. The deadly emotion of hatred rushed over and through Peter with the force of a hurricane. And he knew with grim clarity that it would have the same destructive effect. The part of Peter that was still himself knew it would be the downfall of the Lord of Obsidian. He strove to convey this to the part of him that was Sujad the Great. It was worse than past battles between the part of himself that wanted to do something difficult and the part that insisted it was beyond his capabilities. The personality of Sujad the Great forcefully rejected the idea that anything on earth could be powerful enough to destroy him.

  I don't like feeling this way! the part of him that was still Peter cried silently. He knew he had never experienced such overpowering hatred before—even for the boys whose bullying he had endured at school before Dreyfus had come into his life. “Get out of my body and out of my head, Sujad!” he shouted in mind-speech. “I don't want to be Lord of Obsidian! I just want to be myself!"

  "A puny, whey-faced, sniveling boy so powerless he always needs to call on the Lady or Merlin to rescue him?” sneered the part of him that was Sujad.

  The shaft hit home—like a bullet in the heart. No! I'm not like that! the part of Peter's mind that was still his insisted. Oh, but you are, the other part asserted. How many times have you called upon the Lady—listened for her music?

  It was I who rescued her and Merlin last time from the Obsidian Dungeons! It was I who took the power from the walls of the Obsidian Dungeons! the first half cried. And of course I listen for her music—simply because I want to be near her. Her presence brings happiness and peace....

  "Maudlin fool!” sneered the part of him that was Sujad. “You will learn to be self-sufficient! Sujad the Great will not tolerate any sentimentality or emotional attachment to another being. You have agreed to become Sujad the Great, Lord of Obsidian—and you will feel, think and act as the Lord of Obsidian dictates!"

  "But I don't want to be Lord of Obsidian!” Peter whispered softly but vehemently. “I just want to be myself."

  As he spoke, Peter saw the lips of the face in the mirror form the words he was uttering. Then the face distorted hideously and Peter received Sujad's seething thoughts in a blast of mind-reading—thoughts Sujad didn't intend him to sense. “This boy is not as weak as he seems. Nothing belonging to the Earthlight is what it appears to be. But I will conquer!"

  Peter heard his own voice say to him, “You're too late, Pukling. Whether you want it or not, you are now Sujad the Great, Lord of Obsidian."

  He looked at himself in the mirror. He was still looking at Sujad's face. Suddenly it was as though someone took away his ability to feel any emotion and he found himself eying the reflected face with detachment. After all, did it really matter who he was or what he looked like?

  He opened his mouth to say, “All right; I will become Sujad the Great,” but a noise at his back and a movement behind the figure in the glass distracted his attention. He looked towards the movement in the mirror. The door had opened and Jamie stood in the doorway behind him, gazing open-mouthed at Peter and his reflection.

  What Jamie saw horrified him. The figure that he thought at first was Peter because it was wearing Peter's clothes didn't have Peter's face or hair. Only as Jamie met the coldly blazing hostility of the black eyes in the mirror did he realise the face belonged to Sujad the Great. It was Sujad, not Peter, who turned from the glass and bent his icy gaze on Jamie. Peter, now nearly submerged in the personality of the Lord of Obsidian, looked at Jamie through Sujad's eyes. But there was still enough of himself within him to feel dismay at the sudden cold abhorrence in Jamie's eyes.

  But Jamie understood the situation in a flash. “Peter, are you still there?"

  Peter's voice called to him desperately in mind-sp
eech, “Jamie!” It was all he was able to say. It reached Jamie like the last gasped cry of someone drowning.

  Jamie extended his hand towards the mirror. His index finger pointed straight at the face of Sujad the Great. “Get out of here, you evil fiend!"

  "I am here by invitation,” Sujad answered coldly in Peter's voice.

  Jamie's eyes blazed. “Peter, do you want this vile creature to possess you?"

  "No! No! I want to be myself!” The voice was faint and heard only in Jamie's mind.

  "Then tell him to go!"

  Peter was now breathing fast, like someone who had been running hard. Sweat broke out on his brow as he strove for the words of the spell to banish Sujad. Just as vigorously, Sujad strove to prevent him discovering them. The image of fluttering leaves that had come to Peter in the lake now superimposed itself over Sujad's face in the mirror. He delved into his trouser pocket and brought out the willow twig. The image in the mirror did the same, but the mirrored face looked at the twig with horror. But it's got no leaves! Peter thought with dismay. He turned to the mirror and extended his arm, pointing the twig at the reflection, which copied his every move.

  "Depart this instant, Sujad the Traitor!” both Peter and Jamie cried in ringing voices that sounded almost as one.

  Sujad's snarling face wavered in the mirror. The image, no longer reflecting the twig that Peter still held, hurled its right hand at the two boys, with index finger pointing. Peter thought he saw something inside the hand. There was an almighty crash. The mirror shattered as though a bullet had hit it. To Jamie's horror, Peter sank to the floor amongst the shards with a loud cry, covering his head with his arms.

  Oh no! Sujad's shot him! Jamie rush to Peter, knelt over him and pulled his hands from his head. To Jamie's relief the wan face looking up at him was Peter's.

  "Are you all right?"

  "Am I myself?” Peter croaked, and saw by Jamie's expression that he was.

  "You aren't hurt?"

  Peter sat up. He checked himself all over, even running his hands over his hair and face. “No, I don't think so."

  They turned their attention to the mirror. But before they could work out how Sujad had shattered it, the door opened and Susan's voice broke in. “What on earth's going on?” She looked in disbelief at the smashed mirror. “Oh no! How did that happen? Are you both all right?"

  Peter and Jamie scrambled to their feet, carefully avoiding the pieces of glass.

  "Yes, thank you; we're fine,” Peter gasped and stooped to look among the fragments. He picked something up. It was round, black and shiny—like a marble but slightly bigger. Peter felt the power surging within it as soon as he touched it. He held it up.

  "What on earth are you throwing marbles around for?” Susan demanded, puzzled and annoyed.

  Peter ignored her. Spirit of Obsidian! he called silently, and felt the throbbing on every side. Then the light of the Essence of Obsidian pulsed around him. Jamie watched with bated breath. Through the corner of his eye he saw Susan's eyes widen. Peter held the black marble between finger and thumb at eye level and extended his arm towards her. Behind his hand his face was stern, his mouth set in a grim line. “You will forget."

  Susan immediately relaxed and turned back to the door. “Well, come down when you're ready,” she said over her shoulder as though they had just had an ordinary conversation. She went out and closed the door.

  Jamie turned to Peter and opened his mouth. Still with the light pulsing around him, Peter brusquely waved his friend to silence. He turned to the broken mirror and extended the black marble towards it. Jamie heard him mutter a few words but was unable to catch what they were. And the mirror was whole again. The shards on the carpet disappeared. Peter went to put the black marble into his pocket but it suddenly vanished. He gave an exclamation of annoyance, glanced at himself in the restored mirror and shrugged resignedly. He grinned broadly at Jamie's reflection. “Oh well, we can't win them all!"

  He turned to face Jamie and the grin abruptly disappeared. “Thanks, Jamie. If you hadn't come in just then I'd no longer exist. I'd be Sujad the Great, the most powerful man in the world.” He shuddered.

  Jamie looked from Peter to the mirror, his face full of awe. “I can't believe what I've just seen. And if Sujad is the most powerful man in the world your own powers must be pretty strong. You managed to fight him off."

  "No, Jamie. He was just about to win. It was your interruption that saved me. Our two powers combined fought him off."

  "Where's that marble thing gone?"

  "That was a piece of obsidian. Sujad threw it at the mirror—or, more precisely, at me—in a fit of temper; a serious mistake. You don't hurl obsidian at an enemy who has the right to control it before performing some sort of spell to make it return. I used it to repair the mirror and help with my spell of forgetting before he realised his error and took it back. He doesn't know I was able to call upon the Essence of Obsidian for the working of my spell.” He made a wry face. “I guess I made a mistake, too. I should have tried claiming the marble before fixing the mirror."

  "Can you claim something made of obsidian from Sujad while he's got the Obsidian Orb and calls himself Lord of Obsidian?"

  "I'm the only one of the Earthlight's Chosen who can—now that I'm coming into my power. Unfortunately Sujad knows that now. He'll do his best to make sure I don't get another chance."

  "Will he try to take you over again?"

  "I certainly hope not.” Peter shuddered and drew a deep, steadying breath. “My goodness, Jamie, I would hate to feel as he does! His loathing of anyone and anything concerned with the Earthlight is eating at him like a cancer.” Determinedly he dragged his mind back to the present and looked from the mirror to his rumpled bed. “By the way, what brought you upstairs?"

  "I thought I heard something. I don't know what it was but somehow I knew you were in trouble."

  Peter gulped down his tepid tea and they remade the bed before going downstairs to the kitchen. Susan looked at Peter inquiringly. Her face instantly registered relief. “Oh, you look much better."

  John looked from his brother to Peter and, apparently realizing something crucial had happened upstairs, instantly demanded, “Are we going for this walk?"

  Peter grinned at him. You just want to quiz us about what's happened, he thought with a mental chuckle.

  In no time at all they had donned their coats and hurried outside. Frowning in puzzlement, Susan watched them running across the yard. What a funny lot they are. They look excited about something but they're not saying a word. Most boys would be talking at the tops of their voices.

  The boys, however, ran until they were well out of earshot. Even Dreyfus loped along with a purposeful stride, resisting all distractions. Peter took them into a field next to one where Bart's sheep were grazing. There was nobody around and he led the way to a stand of poplars. “These will give us a bit of shelter from prying eyes, but nobody can come upon us without being seen."

  He then told the others the full story of the drama in his bedroom.

  John looked aghast. “This means we're not safe from Sujad anywhere. And he's much more powerful than the three of us put together."

  "At the moment he's more powerful than all the twelve Chosen combined, plus Merlin and the Lady,” Peter said with adult bitterness. “Merlin must be desperate to have left us on our own. He said he had no choice. This is where we're needed. I just don't know what to do next."

  "How come Sujad was able to try taking you over?” Jamie asked.

  "I think he found a way to use the wax image that Morgause made and which she gave to Jadus to bring to his father.” Peter frowned and sighed heavily. “As I see it, there are four things we have to do before we can say we're ready to defeat Sujad the Great and the Evil One: we need to get back the Obsidian Orb, the Book of Obsidian and the wax doll, and we need to get rid of the monster in the lake so we can return the statue to the City of Light."

  "That's five things,” Jamie sai
d gloomily; “each one of them a tall order on its own."

  "I'd like to hear any ideas you might have."

  Peter had seated himself on a small hummock, from where he was able to see anyone who approached long before they came within hearing range. He now rose and walked slowly away. The others followed. There was a long silence. They wandered along looking like bored youngsters wondering what to do to amuse themselves, now and then aimlessly kicking stones found in their way.

  "Where are we going?” Jamie asked, looking around for the first time when the stone he had been kicking landed on the other side of a barbed-wire fence.

  Peter looked up—to find himself staring straight at a line of weeping willow trees along the horizon. It was only then he became aware of something on the other side of the willows, something beckoning to him. Unexpectedly a picture of the Lords of Corruption hiding their boat sprang before his mind's eye.

  "Come on!” he cried with sudden decision and started running.

  "Where are we going?” Jamie demanded again as he and John also began running.

  "I've just remembered I saw the Lords of Corruption hiding their boat in some reeds on the other side of the lake. Let's see if we can find it."

  "Great idea! Maybe we can hide it somewhere to stop them from using it again."

  "I doubt it."

  They ran on in silence. When they reached the bank where Peter had caught his first sight of the Lords of Corruption, he pointed at the spot where he had seen them hiding the boat. “I'm sure it was over there."

  "Can't see anything from here,” muttered Jamie, shading his eyes against the glare. Peter led the way along the banks of the lake. It was further than he had thought and they had to make a detour to cross a bridge over the stream that fed the lake. They were all panting by the time they reached the other side.