by Owen Crane
his chest and held him back.
“Let me go! I"m going to smash her face in!”
“What did I tell you?” said the gloating Theia, “barbarians.”
“Theia, I"m not in the mood for your garbage, so shut up or you"ll be
scrubbing the toilets with your toothbrush.” Karlov clearly meant it. “Everyone
get some rest, and be ready to ride at first light.”
Ariella and Jaron stepped in front of Indio blocking his view of Theia.
Ariella smiled up at Phoebe as she held onto Indio.
“Thanks Phoebe,” said Ariella.
“Come on Indio, let"s get out of here,” said Jaron as Phoebe eased her grip.
Ariella looked around the mess hall. The girls were drifting upstairs, Felix
had said something about practicing some more in the training ground and
Joachim was tucking into his third portion of dinner.
“Did Eleazar not come down?” she asked
Indio and Jaron shook their heads. “I didn"t see him after we came in
through the front door” said Jaron.
“Something"s not right,” said Ariella, “I saw him go upstairs. He looked
upset.”
“I"d be upset if I missed dinner,” said Indio
“Not exactly what I meant.” Something in Eleazar"s eyes had unsettled
Ariella but she couldn"t put her finger on it.
“Do you want us to go check on him?” said Jaron, noticing the look on
Ariella"s face.
“Yeah,” smiled Indio, “I could tell him all about the dinner he missed, that"ll
cheer him up.”
“Sweet Indio, I"m sure he"d love that,” said Ariella.
The three of them left the mess hall and made their way past the girl"s
landing up to the boy"s room. The door was closed. No one was around.
“Maybe he went to bed early,” suggested Ariella
The two boys looked at her as if she had said something stupid.
“Fat chance,” said Indio, shoving open the bedroom door and yelling, “hey
Ele, you missed dinner!”
The three strode into the room and stopped dead in their tracks. The door
swung open to the left and to the right they saw Eleazar sitting on his bed, a
resigned look on his face. He was watching the left hand window obscured by
the open door. A moment later all the lights went out and the room was filled
with an unnatural darkness so deep you couldn"t see your hand in front of your
face.
“Ele!” yelled Jaron.
Indio piled forward into the centre of the room and shouted in pain as he
whacked his toe against a bedpost.
“Find some light!” yelled Jaron.
Ariella grabbed her pouch of Sun Cubes, blindly untying the cord. She
pulled one out and crushed it in her hand. Instantly a warm glow broke out and
flooded the room, driving back the thick blackness. Indio was jumping up and
down on one foot clutching his toe, while Jaron was trying to get his bearings in
the now brightly lit room. Eleazar hadn"t moved. He was sat, motionless on his
bed, staring out of the open window.
Ariella and Jaron ran to the window, searching for someone or something
that had caused the darkness in the room. The courtyard below was still buzzing
with activity but there was nothing out of the ordinary.
“What the hell is going on Ele?” said Indio, sitting on a bed, still clutching his
foot. Eleazar still said nothing.
Jaron returned from the window and sat down next to him. “Ele,” he began
gently, “do you know what that blackness was?”
“It was creepy as heck, that"s what it was,” said Indio. “I"ve been in some
dark caves in my life but nothing like that. Speaking of creepy, what shifted it?
The darkness totally blocked the candles.”
Ariella opened her hand and showed them the crushed crystal. “It"s a Sun
Cube,” she said, “a gift from an old friend.” The light began to fade away
leaving only the candle light.
“Excellent gift,” smiled Jaron, “Thank your old friend for us.”
He turned back to Eleazar. “You want to tell us what that was about?”
Eleazar blinked. Breaking his long stare out of the open window, he glanced
at Ariella. “It was an old friend.”
“Jaron,” whispered Ariella, fear creeping into her voice, “Look” she pointed
to a spot on the wall a palm"s width above Eleazar"s head.
Imbedded in a crack in the stone wall was a long, slender dart. It was metal,
the bright surface reflecting the flickering candles. At the end of the needle was a
beautiful, delicate butterfly.
“What are you doing in here?” growled Joachim startling everyone in the
room.
“We invited her, so get over it,” said Indio, limping in front of Joachim,
shielding Ariella and the needle from his view.
“Don"t worry, I"m leaving,” said Ariella, patting Eleazar on the shoulder and
with her other hand snatching the needle from the wall and hiding it in her
pocket. “See you in the morning, at first light.”
“Oh joy,” groaned Indio, collapsing back on his bed.
Ariella skipped down the stairs, past her room and down again towards the
mess hall. The food had been cleared away and the fire was still burning in the
hearth. She dropped into one of the armchairs, checked to make sure no one
was around and pulled out the needle.
It was about the length of her hand, light but strong. The end had been
fashioned into a pair of butterfly wings.
This is exactly like the one the Captain pulled out of my shoulder. The question is, what’s it doing stuck in the wall above Eleazar’s head? Was whoever threw it trying to hit him? Did they miss? Was it a warning? Is it the same person that attacked me? If it is the same person that attacked me, were they actually after Eleazar and I just stumbled across them? What did he mean by ‘an old friend’? Did he know who threw it? He looked so passive, like he knew something was going to happen. Steady Ari, you’re going to drive yourself nuts with all the questions. One thing is for certain, Eleazar knows more than he is letting on. I think I’ll just have to go and drag it out of him. I’m sure Indio and Jaron will help, we just have to find somewhere quiet.
She was just about to climb out of the armchair when she felt a soft hum in
her pocket. The Echo Orb! She pulled it out and held it to her ear.
“… .it"s like I was telling you Theia, Khan can"t be trusted. Ever since the
splitting of the Kingdoms Khan has only cared about itself. First they poison
Trevena, then Darcian will be next, just you wait and see.”
That’s Eugenie, the stirring cow!
Theia was agreeing, “They"re barbarians, filthy freaks,” she muttered.
“My Father always says, „you can"t trust the mountains" we have to watch
them Theia. Karlov"s on their side, typical Guardians, so focused on keeping
everyone happy that they miss the danger.”
Ariella heard the sound of the bedroom door opening through the Echo Orb.
Theia and Eugenie fell silent.
Great, that’s just what we need. Eugenie spreading that kind of garbage around, like Theia needs any help in being a witch.
She pushed herself out of the soft chair and made her way up the stairs.
Indio’s going to explode when I tell him this. I better make sure Phoebe’s around to stop him re-braking Eugenie’s perfect nose. At least it’ll distract Eleazar and maybe we can get him talking.
As she approached her landing she found the staircase up to the boys floor
blocked by Yvette and Karlov talking in whispers.
“Ah, there you are dear,” said Yvette kindly. “The other girls are in the
room, you can join them and get some rest. You"ve got a busy few days ahead of
you.” Yvette spoke in such a way that you found yourself doing exactly what
she asked before you even realised.
Ariella"s hand was on her bedroom door when she remembered that she was
trying to get to see Eleazar and the others tonight. She hesitated and looked
around. Karlov and Yvette were still blocking the stairs, watching her. Yvette
was still smiling, Karlov was not.
“Bedtime, Ariella” She said in a tone that didn"t allow for any arguments.
Ariella sighed. It’ll be a long ride tomorrow, we can talk then. “Goodnight,” she said and slipped into her room.
The Knot were up and ready before first light. The mood Karlov was in
yesterday meant no one wanted to be late. The streets of Stonegard were quiet as
they left through the main gate, picking up the southern road that took them
along the eastern edge of the Willowbank River.
Karlov had given the Knot five small wooden boxes to carry. Each of the
boxes contained a dozen small glass tubes with cork stoppers.
“The trip to Lake Evermere is over two hundred miles and will take us the
best part of a week. We"re going to take samples of the Willowbank all the way
down. Malum wants to run tests on them,” explained Karlov.
“What kind of tests?” asked Felix.
“I have no idea,” he growled. “Do you want to go and knock on Malum’s
door and ask him?”
Felix shut up and avoided Karlov"s gaze.
“Didn"t think so. Let"s move.”
The journey was long, slow and thoroughly boring. Eleazar made a point of
avoiding Ariella so there was no time to talk about the butterfly dart or „old
friends". During one of the night stops, camping by the Willowbank, Ariella,
Indio and Jaron were sent off together to gather wood for the cooking fire. When
they had collected a few bundles and were far enough away from the others she
filled them in on the conversation she overheard. She left out the details of the
Echo Orbs that would be her secret.
“That scheming, vicious, vindictive harpy,” roared Indio
“Shhh,” said Ariella, slapping Indio on the arm.
“Sorry Ari,” he mumbled, “They make me mad.”
“I know, we"ll just keep on eye on them okay?” she nodded
“You don"t think there"s any truth in it do you?” Jaron asked
“Don"t you start,” snapped Indio. “Of course there"s no truth in it. Queen
Abalyne loves Dawnhaven; she"d never do anything to hurt it. The Elders of
Everfrost feel the same. My uncle adores the Guardians, he"d never allow
anything like that.”
“Your uncle?” enquired Jaron
“Aye, my uncle. Ketil Griffinfriend, commander of the Griffin Cavalry and
General of the Armies of Khan,” said Indio proudly, puffing out his chest. “I"ve
lived with him ever since my parents were killed.” Indio"s normally joyful
demeanour tumbled down and his eyes filled with sadness.
“I"m sorry Indio,” said Jaron.
Ariella put her hand over Indio"s. “I know how you feel, my father was
killed too, about eight years ago.”
Indio looked up at her, and spoke softly, “I don"t remember my parents, not
really. Just fuzzy images.”
“How did they die?” Jaron asked.
“They were both in the Army, on patrol way up in the Northern fishing
villages. They hunt whales and seals up there. Tough people, hard as nails.
There had been reports of Ghost Raiders coming in as the ice melted. They
caught a group of them attacking one of the villages. The fighting was intense.”
His eyes welled up. “They died together, defending people weaker than
themselves, defending Dawnhaven.” His sadness turned to anger. “That"s why
people like that hag Eugenie really hack me off. They don"t know wha t they"re
talking about.”
“My father was killed by Ghost Raiders too,” said Ariella softly.
“Really?” said Jaron, “I thought your father was a King. What was he doing
fighting Ghost Raiders.”
Ariella smiled sadly, “My father was a sailor at heart. He didn"t care much
for the palace. Diplomacy and politics weren"t his thing. He died like your
parents Indio, defending a fishing village, people weaker than himself,
defending Dawnhaven.”
Speaking about her father brought on a wave of emotions and she wasn"t
ready for the intensity. Within moments tears were rolling freely down her
cheeks.
The three sat in silence, allowing the grief to pass. After a while Jaron began
to sing softly, his voice was deep and rich. There were words to the song, but
Ariella couldn"t make them out, instead she was captivated by the sorrow of the
melody. Fresh tears flowed as she sat and listened.
As Jaron neared the end of the song its tone changed, from deep sadness to a
steadfast hope. Ariella had never heard anything like it before. She felt changed,
like the sorrow of her father"s death had lifted.
“That was beautiful,” she whispered, blinking away the last of her tears.
“Crikey, Jaron, I"ve never heard anything like that. I"ve heard the best
singers in Khan sing for the Queen in the Great Hall of Everfrost and none of
them can hold a light to that, it was stunning.” Indio"s eyes were wide in
wonder. “What was it?”
Jaron blushed and dropped his gaze at their comments. “It"s called the
„Ranger"s Farewell". It"s the song we sing when a Ranger passes from this life to
the next.”
“When I pass from this life to whatever is next I want you to come and sing
that for me.” The look in Indio"s eye told Jaron he wasn"t joking.
“Sure Indio, I"ll come sing for you, just not anytime soon, ok?”
“Deal,” laughed Indio.
A far off shout interrupted them
“Hey! You lazy idiots! Where"s our firewood, I"m starving!”
“Joachim,” the three of them said in unison.
“What a jerk.” Muttered Indio, “shall we ignore him and stay here for a bit?”
“We could do,” said Ariella, “but that means dinner will be late.”
Indio"s face dropped, “Great point Ari, well made.” He lifted his voice and
called back. “Keep your pants on! We"re coming!”
They grabbed up the firewood they had collected and jogged back towards
the camp.
Chapter 15
The mood in the Knot was sombre. Conversations were short and the banter
had ceased. The eyes of the young Sojourners were wide with the weight of the
tragedy unfolding around them. As they had travelled down the eastern side of
the Willowbank they had encountered bloodied crops, decaying fish and a
despairing people.
The river was devastated. The water had been tinged red. All along its
length the Knot found dead fish, their bloated bellies turned up to the sky, the
thick dark blood filling their gills.
Inland, it seemed that no farm or crop had escaped the poison. The wheat
and barley fields of northern Trevena gave way
to the vineyards and olive
groves of the south. But they had been laid waste by the Blood Curse, the name
people had given to the poison they saw all around them. Rich green olives had
been tinged red with the poison they contained. Grapes hung heavy on the vines
but they too had fallen victim. No crop was spared. Along the roadside they
found mounds of fruit, lemons and oranges that had been piled up and left to
rot, their bloodied pulps staining the earth red.
“This is awful,” said Esther, riding alongside Ariella. “I"ve never seen
anything like this.” The Erestian girl look horrified, unable to tear her eyes away
from the rotting, blood filled fruit.
It was a thoroughly depressing sight, but worse still was the plight of the
people. Trevena and indeed, all of Dawnhaven relied on the crops here to
sustain them through the winter months. The people along the road were
acutely aware of what a failed harvest meant for them and the kingdom. The
hopelessness was evident in their eyes.
The rumblings against Khan were growing louder with every day. It seemed
more and more people were anxious to point the finger at the mountain
kingdom. The Guardians also weren"t spared people"s anger.
“Some Guardians you are,” spat a worn out looking woman as she trudged
along the road, her baby strapped to her back. “Supposed to protect us, that"s
right isn"t it?” she looked accusing at Ariella as they rode past. “Some
protection!” she shouted after them as they carried on down the road.
The woman"s words shocked Ariella. “They"re blaming us,” she said,
glancing over at Karlov. His face was as grim as ever but at her words she saw a
flash of pain.
“Yes,” he muttered, “they"re blaming us.”
“Why?” asked Esther.
“Because we can"t stop it,” said Eleazar darkly.
Karlov glared at him but didn"t reply. He kicked his horse on, away out in
front of the Knot, lost in his own thoughts.
By the end of the week they had collected nearly sixty water samples for
Malum"s tests. In front of them lay the end of their journey. Lake Evermere was
the holiday destination of the wealthy of Trevena. Its crystal waters expanded
out of the Willowbank and stretched away south as far as the eye could see. The
shoreline was dotted with private estates, vineyards and picturesque towns and