The Oak Lord

by Catherine Cooper

  THE OAK

  LORD

  THE OAK

  LORD

  CATHERINE COOPER

  ILLUSTRATIONS BY

  RON COOPER and CATHERINE COOPER

  Copyright text © Catherine Cooper, 2013

  Copyright illustrations © Ron Cooper and Catherine Cooper 2013

  The right of Catherine Cooper to be identified as the author of this

  book has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright,

  Designs and Patents Act 1988.

  First published in 2013

  Infinite Ideas Limited

  36 St Giles

  Oxford

  OX1 3LD

  United Kingdom

  www.infideas.com

  All rights reserved. Except for the quotation of small passages for the purposes of criticism or review, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning or otherwise, except under the terms of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 or under the terms of a licence issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency Ltd, 90 Tottenham Court Road, London W1T 4LP, UK, without the permission in writing of the publisher. Requests to the publisher should be addressed to the Permissions Department.

  A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

  ISBN 978–1–908984–21–0

  Brand and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.

  Cover designed by D.R.ink

  Typeset by Nicki Averill

  Printed and bound in Great Britain

  For

  all our friends around

  The Wrekin

  CONTENTS

  Prologue

  Chapter 1 Trouble

  Chapter 2 Proclamation

  Chapter 3 Ancient Knowledge

  Chapter 4 Steaple Lacy Wood

  Chapter 5 Protectors

  Chapter 6 The Mound

  Chapter 7 Recovery

  Chapter 8 The Gelston River

  Chapter 9 The Search

  Chapter 10 The Forest’s Edge

  Chapter 11 Disturbing News

  Chapter 12 Inside Information

  Chapter 13 Visitors

  Chapter 14 Glasruhen Mound

  Chapter 15 The Rightful King

  Chapter 16 Jubilation

  Chapter 17 The Oak Lord

  Chapter 18 Resolution

  Chapter 19 Restoration

  Epilogue Chronicles of the King

  Camelin’s Who’s Who, What’s What and Where Is It?

  Acknowledgements

  PROLOGUE

  Jack raced upstairs, threw his school bag onto the bed and opened his wardrobe. He smiled at the long list of numbers he’d stuck onto the inside of the door. He picked up his pen and slowly put a red cross through the last day of term. For the next nine days he was free to enjoy himself and in only seven days’ time it would be his birthday. He couldn’t decide what he was most excited about, his coronation in Annwn or the Hallowe’en party he was going to have at Ewell House. Grandad had promised to take everyone trickor- treating afterwards too. He smiled as he took three envelopes out of his bag and put them on the bed. His new friends, Techno, Danny and Benbow, had all said they could come.

  A loud tap interrupted his thoughts. Jack closed his bedroom door before opening the window. Camelin hopped quickly inside. His feathers were all windswept and Jack had to stop himself from laughing. Camelin shook himself, dropped to the floor and skipped over to the wardrobe. He examined himself carefully in the mirror before speaking.

  ‘Wind like that plays havoc with your feathers. Looks like your hair could do with a bit of attention too.’ Jack went over to the dressing table and ran the comb through his tousled hair. He wasn’t sure it looked much better. When he turned around, Camelin was on the bed next to the three envelopes.

  ‘They’re not coming to your birthday party, are they?’

  ‘They are.’

  ‘All of them?’

  ‘All of them.’

  ‘That’s not fair. I’m your best friend but I’m not allowed to be there, and you said we could go trick-ortreating. Some friend you are.’

  ‘They won’t be coming into Annwn for my coronation, or the feast, and that’ll be much more fun. It’ll just be you and me all this week. I’ll be staying at Ewell House from Tuesday and I won’t be seeing any of them until the party on Friday.’

  Camelin stuck out his beak and gave Jack his disappointed look.

  ‘It still doesn’t make up for not being able to go trick-or-treating. You don’t know how much I’ve been looking forward to taking my emergency ration dustbin out on Hallowe’en.’

  Jack nodded towards the black plastic cauldron on his dressing table.

  ‘I’ll let you have half of what I get.’

  ‘Half! Only half? That won’t help me feel better.’

  ‘You can have whatever I collect then, if it means that much to you.’

  ‘It does.’

  ‘I’ll make it up to you. It’s half term, we can have some fun.’

  ‘Every time you say that, something happens.’

  ‘We had fun at the end of the summer, before I went back to school.’

  ‘But we didn’t go pond dipping in Elidon.’

  ‘That couldn’t be helped.’

  As Jack sat down on the bed, Camelin humphed loudly.

  ‘What would you like to do tomorrow?’ Jack asked.

  ‘Aw! You really mean we can do what I want?’

  ‘Within reason,’ Jack added quickly.

  ‘You could come over and cook me a fry-up, and then we could go for a flight.’

  ‘I’m not sure Nora would agree to breakfast.’

  ‘She’s not going to be here.’

  ‘Where’s she going?’

  ‘Here, there and everywhere. She’s been very secretive this last week. I’m not allowed secrets because apparently I can’t be trusted to keep them.’

  Jack tried not to laugh.

  ‘Maybe it’s something to do with my party.’

  ‘What’s not to know? You’re all getting dressed up, having loads to eat then going out to collect lots of sweets. There’s no surprises there.’

  Jack thought he’d better change the subject.

  ‘Breakfast and a flight then, see you nice and early.’

  ‘Not too early,’ Camelin replied as he hopped back onto the window ledge.

  When Jack was alone he went back over to his wardrobe. Before he shut the door, he looked at the clothes on the first hanger. They were the ones he’d been wearing the last time he’d left Annwn. They looked quite ordinary but he knew once he went through the portal, they’d transform back into the robes he’d worn the last time he was there. It was hard to believe that in a few days’ time he’d be attending his coronation. The three pieces of the King’s torc were safe at Ewell House, Lloyd the Goldsmith was making him a special crown and Nora had said his green and gold ceremonial robes were all ready and waiting for his return. There wasn’t anything else he needed to do except enjoy his half-term holiday.

  TROUBLE

  ‘Anyone home?’ Jack shouted as he entered Nora’s kitchen.

  There was a scuffling sound from inside the pantry. Jack was about to investigate when Camelin’s head appeared from behind the door. He looked pleased with himself as he shuffled over to Jack.

  ‘You’re early.’

  ‘No I’m not, it’s nearly lunchtime, but it looks like you’ve eaten already. Is that jam on your beak?’

  ‘Blackberry jelly.’

  ‘Nora will know if you’ve had your beak in the jar.’

  ‘Naw she won’t, it�
��s in a bowl and I stirred it round so I didn’t leave a hole.’

  Jack bit his lip so he wouldn’t laugh. At least it meant he didn’t have to cook Camelin any breakfast.

  ‘Are we still going for a flight? Only it’s really misty out.’

  ‘Course we are, any time you’re ready.’

  ‘But we won’t be able to see where we’re going.’

  ‘Trust me, it’ll be amazing, we’ll fly above it.’

  They transformed in the kitchen and hopped out into the garden. Jack shivered as the damp air hit his feathers.

  ‘Follow me,’ croaked Camelin as he took off.

  Jack quickly lost sight of him. He felt as if he were flying through cotton wool.

  ‘Where are you?’

  ‘Just head upwards, you’ll be fine.’

  Jack pulled hard on his wings and in the space of a few downbeats he soared out of the blanket of mist. Before him rose Glasruhen Hill. It looked like an island in the middle of a swirling white sea. It was an incredible sight. He followed Camelin to the summit. They flew in a large circle. In the distance the tips of the Gribeira Hills and Moel Hened could be seen but their slopes, like icebergs in the sea, were hidden from sight.

  ‘Didn’t I tell you it’d be great?’

  Jack nodded in agreement; he’d never seen anything like it before. He didn’t want to say anything to break the spell of the magical landscape that lay before him.

  They flew in silence, skimming the top of the mist and racing each other around the visible slopes of the hill. When they needed to rest, they landed on the outcrop of rock near the Raven’s Bowl. ‘We’ve been through a lot together since we were last here,’ said Jack, as he hopped over to the hollow in the rock and peered into the water. ‘It’s hard to believe I’m going to be a king in a few days’ time.’

  ‘Aw, you’ll always be Jack to me. I won’t be bowing down to you or doing your bidding when we’re not in Annwn, you do know that, don’t you?’

  ‘I wouldn’t expect you to. Besides, who else could I have so much fun with?’

  Jack hoped Camelin wasn’t going to launch into a grumble about his new friends. It was a relief when he looked towards the sky. Jack followed his gaze. He couldn’t see anything but he could feel the thin warmth of the sun directly overhead.

  ‘Must be nearly lunchtime,’ announced Camelin. ‘Time to go.’

  As they flew back to Ewell House, the mist wasn’t as thick and Jack didn’t have any problem following.

  Once Jack had transformed and dressed he joined Camelin by the range. The dampness from the mist hadn’t affected him when he’d been flying but now he felt chilled inside.

  ‘Mist makes your feathers all druffled.’

  ‘Druffled?’

  ‘You know, damp and ruffled, but if you dry them out too quick they get fluffled.’

  Jack laughed as he watched Camelin slowly rotating.

  ‘How long will you need to do that for?’

  ‘Ten minutes and thirty-two seconds,’ croaked Saige as she hopped out of the pantry.

  ‘She’s been spying on me,’ grumbled Camelin. ‘Why else would she have been in there?’

  A loud rap on the patio door stopped the conversation. Jack and Camelin exchanged a look before Jack went to open the door. Raggs almost tumbled into the kitchen. He leant heavily on his stick and fought to get his breath back.

  ‘Take your time,’ said Jack, as he lifted Raggs onto the dresser.

  ‘It’s Peabody,’ he wheezed, ‘he’s gone!’

  ‘Good,’ said Camelin.

  Jack upturned a beaker for Raggs to sit on.

  ‘What do you mean, gone?’

  ‘He’s disappeared.’

  ‘Skulking around somewhere more like,’ grumbled Camelin, ‘never trust a Bogie.’

  Raggs took a deep breath.

  ‘No, he’s gone, from Ewell House.’

  Camelin stopped in mid-turn.

  ‘As in not here?’

  Raggs nodded and took several deep breaths. Jack filled a thimble full of water for him.

  ‘Did you see what happened?’

  ‘Oh yes. As soon as you two flew off, he was out of the house at a fair old rate of knots… went straight down to the hedge and into the tunnel.’

  ‘He’s probably back by now,’ said Camelin.

  Raggs shook his head.

  ‘He’s not. I followed him. He headed straight for Newton Gill Forest. It wasn’t easy keeping up and I kept losing sight of him in the mist, but I presumed he was heading for his home so I just kept going in the direction of the Gnori.’

  ‘And was that where he went?’ asked Jack.

  ‘I don’t know, I never got that far. I saw him again when we got to a bit of a clearing, then, Bam, one minute he was there, and the next he was gone. Just seemed to disappear into thin air.’

  Camelin humphed loudly.

  ‘So why didn’t you come and tell us as soon as we got back?’

  ‘I couldn’t, it’s a long walk to Newton Gill Forest and back again, especially when you’ve got a bad leg. If you’d not gone off you’d have been able to stop him. I wasn’t the one Nora left in charge. If you’d been here he wouldn’t have left the house.’

  Camelin glowered at Raggs. Jack sat down at the kitchen table and put his head in his hands.

  ‘This isn’t good you know, Nora isn’t going to be pleased with either of us when she gets back. You didn’t tell me you weren’t supposed to leave Ewell House.’

  ‘You didn’t ask. Besides, if Peabody’s gone he can’t have been as scared as he was making out. I still say he wormed his way into Ewell House to spy on us. He’s done us all a favour by leaving.’

  Jack sucked in a breath of air then exhaled slowly.

  ‘You do realise we’re going to have to go and look for him.’

  ‘Why?’ grumbled Camelin.

  ‘We need to get him back before Nora comes home. Anything could have happened. We can’t just leave him out there.’

  ‘He’ll come back; he’s onto a good thing here. Besides, it’s lunchtime.’

  ‘What if he’s been Bogienapped?’

  ‘Who’d want to Bogienap him?’

  ‘I can think of one person who might. That’s why he was here in the first place, don’t you remember? Velindur mistook him for Pyecroft and tried to grab him.’

  ‘You don’t think he’s stolen the torc, do you?’ said Raggs. ‘I’m sure he was carrying something.’

  Camelin gulped.

  ‘What kind of thing?’

  ‘I couldn’t see, it was too misty.’

  Jack’s heart missed a beat.

  ‘Can we check to see if the torc is safe? Do you know where Nora’s put it?’

  Camelin shook his head.

  ‘She said it was safe and that no one would find it.’

  ‘We’d better hope Peabody hasn’t taken it, not after everything we went through to find it. There’s one thing we do know for sure; Peabody can’t do magic so he didn’t just disappear. Where was he the last time you saw him, Raggs?’

  ‘He’d reached the clearing just before the inner ring of Gnarles and was heading towards the path that leads to the Gnori. I went over to where he disappeared and tried to find him but there was nothing. His tracks just stopped. I don’t think I can walk there and back again, but I can show you if you carry me.’

  Jack smiled kindly at Raggs.

  ‘You stay here in the warm. If Nora comes back before we do, you can tell her everything that’s happened.’

  ‘Everything?’ exclaimed Camelin.

  ‘Everything,’ confirmed Jack. ‘Are you ready to go?’

  ‘What about lunch?’

  ‘That’s going to have to wait, this is urgent.’

  ‘Could I at least have a biscuit?’

  Jack ignored Camelin’s last remark.

  ‘Come on, the sooner we get started, the sooner we can eat. I’m not sure we can do this on our own though. You go and round up Motley and
the rest of the Night Guard and I’ll go and pay the Fairies a visit. I’ll meet you in the meadow by the Mound.’

  ‘Why don’t you just shout it out to the whole of Glasruhen? If you tell the Fairies it’ll be all over the forest in no time.’

  ‘They might be able to help. They can see into Elidon, so if Peabody has been Bogienapped they can at least try to find out where he’s gone.’

  Camelin humphed and grumbled to himself as he left the kitchen. Before Jack followed, he went over to the biscuit tin and got Raggs something sweet to eat. ‘I’m sure Nora won’t mind. Thank you for all your help. If it hadn’t been for you, we wouldn’t know where to start looking.’

  Jack left Raggs nibbling the biscuit. He raced down to the hedge and didn’t stop running until he reached the stile on the back lane. It didn’t take him long to climb over and cover the short distance to the Fairy Mound. He bent over and peered into the tunnel.

  ‘Twink, Netty, Rhoda, is anyone there?’

  There was a faint popping noise from inside. At first Jack thought it might be the Dorysk but when a high-pitched voice answered him, he realised the sound had been the doorknob transforming.

  ‘No one’s in, goodbye.’

  ‘Wait, don’t go. Do you know when they’ll be back?’

  ‘When they arrive… goodbye.’

  ‘But when will that be?’

  ‘They’ll be back at Samhain, they’ve got a coronation to go to.’

  ‘I need to find them before then. Do you know where they could be?’

  ‘No one at home, no one to ask, not seen them in a while. Goodbye.’

  Another faint popping sound told Jack the conversation was over. He stood up and looked around the meadow. The mist had lifted and Jack could see Motley and the other rats bounding towards him.

  ‘Night Guard, ready for duty,’ said Motley as he came to an abrupt halt at Jack’s feet.

  The rest of the rats quickly formed two ranks and stood to attention. Jack smiled as Motley straightened his back and waited for the rest of the guard to do the same.

  ‘Isn’t the Dorysk with you?’ asked Jack.

  ‘Top secret, hush-hush, my lips are sealed,’ replied Motley. ‘He’s had leave of absence from the Guard until after your coronation. Very important mission he’s on.’