The Amulets (An 'Amulets of Andarrin' tale)

by Michael Alexander Card-Mina

  “More or less” Andrei smiled.

  “What? Discovery channel.” Jack explained seeing they were still looking at him as if he shouldn’t have known it.

  “It’s impossible” Hobbins said.

  “Nonsense! How can it be impossible? We use magic to do the same process, if we could only understand it…” he said thoughtfully.

  “Anyway I’m babbling, and who might these be, ah yes Jack, I presume. And Lily” he said pointing to Frankie who quickly corrected him, “ah apologies, and you must be Aaron?” he said.

  “Yes, how did you know?”

  “I am good friends with Delaius, he has told me much about you and your adventures and I presume that’s why you’re here is it not?”

  “Andrei here is on the council due to his mastery of the art of illusion.” Hobbins said changing the subject.

  “So what’s this council for?” Frankie asked. “Performers?”

  “Performers!” Andrei exclaimed as if wounded by the comment. “Nonsense girl. We safeguard and uphold the law. I’m part of the council for your world. We make sure you’re not bothered by anything you class as unnatural.”

  “So it’s a council comprised of wizards?”

  “Well yes, but we each specialise in something. Each wizard and witch studies many disciplines of magic but during their higher education they choose a specialty, much like your people do during their studies.” He paused before continuing.

  “Everyone on the council is capable of performing a lot of the same magic but each of us has an aptitude for certain skills, even if we have the same training. I specialised in illusion. I can make people see what I want them to see, with the right application of course, but I mastered it and I am able to do it on a much grander scale than most, much like you’ve just seen.” He smiled impressed with himself.

  “He wasn’t always on the council though, go on, tell them.” Hobbins said like an excited child. It was if he was doing his best to impress the group, especially Jack whose side he never seemed to leave.

  “Well I don’t know if you’ve heard about the Redmond rebellions?” Andrei started.

  “Well after the part I played in the rebellion the council offered me a place. They were short of numbers after that war and they had taken a shine to my abilities. Well of course if you get approached by the council you don’t turn them down. So I joined and have been a member ever since, two decades now I believe” he said and Hobbins nodded to confirm it.

  “Well, what did you do?” Jack pressed.

  “Well, in short, I gave a squadron of enemy forces something to look at whilst a number of allies snuck into the castle of Lygard. That was the day Redmond fell. It wasn’t easy either.” He said as his eyes seemed to be watching a scene from the past, and not with any pleasure.

  “But…that’s enough about me, you don’t want to sit here all night talking about war stories, go on and enjoy the festival” he said.

  Jack would have happily stood there a while longer hearing Andrei’s tales but he knew that they wouldn’t get another chance to see what a Nanantharim festival had to offer again and so he and the group said their goodbyes and carried on their way, weaving in and out of tents, stopping every now and then to look at the small stalls when something unusual caught someone’s eye, occasionally picking items up for a closer look.

  “What do you think” Frankie asked Aaron as she tried on a silver bracelet which had a serpent engraved around its circumference.

  “I think it looks ridiculous.”

  “Well I best get it then.”

  Aaron lifted his eyebrows and strolled on between the stalls.

  “You’re like an old married couple you two.” Jack laughed, following him.

  As they edged past yet more stalls they could see people making their way into a large tent further down the field from which the sound of applause could be heard.

  “Let’s go and check that out.” Jack said intrigued.

  They had been around the stalls for longer than they both would have liked and both were becoming fed up of the stalls and being hassled at every turn.

  “Oi you two” Aaron said shouting to the girls, who were enjoying the banter with the stall holders, as they checked out the exotic wares on display. “We’re just going to check out what’s going on in that big tent over there.” He told them before the girls waved back in acknowledgement.

  “How’s about a pretty necklace” the stall keeper was saying, waving a thin chain at them that look as if it was rusting “for pretty girl I sell cheap, only four crubles, or you pay in fenver, I sell for seven frehs. Ah come on maybe boyfriend buy for you” he said referring to Frankie who was shocked.

  “Boyfriend? I’m a girl” she said shocked whilst Lily burst into laughter, but the stall holder looked just as shocked.

  “You not boy, then why you dress with these boy pants, come, all the more reason to buy, pretty necklace make you look less like boy and more like woman, hmm” the man was saying to Frankie in his foreign accent.

  “Boy! And boy pants?” she retorted angrily and open mouthed at his rudeness whilst looking from her pants and back at the man, Lily thought she was going to attack him. “She’s wearing pants” Frankie argued referring to Lily.

  “hey don’t bring me into this” Lily laughed.

  “Yes but she has teets, see” he said gesturing suggestively towards Lily’s breasts.

  Frankie’s noticed her hoody concealed the outline of her own breasts “that’s because I’m wearing a hoody, you pig. And you can stick that rusty old piece of rubbish up…”

  “I think what the young lady here is trying to say” Hobbins rushed in, ushering the girls away “is that she’s not interested, thank you.”

  “…and my breasts are just fine I’ll have you know…” she shouted as Hobbins marched them off to catch up with Jack and Aaron. They caught up with them just as they were about to enter the large tent. Lily immediately began to tell them about what had just happened, complete with mock accent and elaborate hand gestures. A few minutes and a lot of laughs later from an amused Aaron and Jack, they headed into the large tent that Jack was keen to investigate.

  When they moved inside there were benches either side of the aisle by which they had entered. They were arranged around a large wooden circular stage occupying the center of the room. All the seats were full and so the five of them stood in the passageway to observe the stage.

  In the centre of the stage sat a small wooden cage in which half a dozen birds flapped around trying to escape. A trapeze hung from two ropes above the center of the circle and, on either side of the stage, a set of steps led up to a platform to which was fastened a trapeze; on each platform was a monkey.

  One was a Japanese macaque with thick grey fur and a bright red face. It stood unmoving and it seemed to have an almost human gaze. The one on the opposite platform was a howler monkey, with black fur all over its body gazing serenely at the audience through big brown eyes. The monkeys were glancing at the cage of birds and each other as the air of expectancy in the tent became unbearable.

  A drum roll sounded and the howler monkey stood up opposite the grey macaque. Simultaneously, the two monkeys grabbed their trapezes and leapt off their platforms. After a couple of swings to syncronise their timing, the howler monkey somersaulted through the central trapeze wires and over the macaque whilst the grey macaque swung from its own trapeze skimming the central trapeze bar. With immaculate timing, the monkeys caught the opposite trapezes and swung back up to the platforms to boisterous applause from the audience.

  Moments later both monkeys swung out on their trapezes, clutching them with their prehensile feet and swinging their trapeze in increasing arcs. Suddenly a light shone on the cage below and the top shot off, the birds flew out and up towards the roof.

  The monkeys grabbed a bird in each hand as they flew by and, as they reached the top of their next arc, they performed a graceful backflip, falling unnaturally slowly to land side by
side on the stage. As they landed the lights went out for a moment and when they came on, the two monkeys now appeared to be a man and a woman holding the birds. They bowed to the audience and, as they did so, they were enshrouded by a cloud of smoke which cleared to reveal an empty stage but for the birds perched on the empty box.

  Jack, Lily, Aaron and Frankie were all in awe, they couldn’t believe their eyes. The crowd burst into applause, making the tent walls billow with their roars of appreciation. Everyone was on their feet and the group couldn’t help but join in, it was truly amazing.

  As they were walking off they turned to Hobbins, eager now to have him talk and explain what they had witnessed.

  “They’re Fenverau … some Fenverau can change can’t they, when they reach adolescence, usually about the age of twenty I think, though sometimes it happens sooner, and in some cases later, I knew a guy…” he began but seeing their expressions he decided to get back on track “yes well, when they reach adolescence some of them find that they are able to change form. It is only ever into one form but they can develop the ease of change by spending time with that species, or so I believe, but I’m no expert, some say it’s just magic. Another surprising thing is that they age very slowly, living up to twice the age of a normal man or wizard. It’s rather annoying really. I know one guy who’s a hundred and fourteen and he doesn’t look a day over fifty…but anyway, there is a lot to see and not much time, we had best be moving on.”

  Despite some protestations, he bustled them out of the tent. When they had left the tent they could hear the sound of music in the distance, so they headed off to take a look.

  chapter eleven

  Delaius’ Council

  Whilst Jack and the group had been sleeping at Delaius’ house the night before, Delaius had sent out a message to those closest to him and, after leaving Jack and his friends at the sleeping tents, he made his way to a rendezvous which was less busy than most.

  The atmosphere was still buzzing with the music from the surrounding areas and the chatter of crowds as they moved around but, compared to the rest of the festival, this was a quiet area.

  When Delaius had arrived he’d been greeted by a large man with a rough face and strong jaw. His nose seemed like it had been broken a few times and he looked at Delaius with tired eyes but greeted him with a tight handshake and a happy smile. His name was Ruffalo Jadick and he wore a long brown and dusty coat and carried a wooden staff.

  Ruffalo and Delaius had been tasked by the council to find a criminal who was wanted by every council and kingdom on Nanantharim. Eleven months previously, the man had stolen an artifact of great power from the high council at Greymir and he was number one on their most wanted list. But it hadn’t always been the two of them who had been tasked with solving this crime, Delaius had requested the task at the time the amulet was stolen but it had been given to Larcus Bracken, a rising member on the council. But as fate would have it, Larcus was promoted to second in command of the council on Earth and his existing responsibilities had been re-allocated. Finding the thief and recovering the artifact had been assigned to Delaius, to cover Earth and Ruffalo was tasked to search Nanantharim.

  They had been working tirelessly for the past six months to hunt him down, but they were still no closer to locating him than when Larcus had been given the task. All that Larcus had determined was that it was believed that the thief’s name was Kalerum and that he had fought for the rebels in the rebellion. He was referred by most in Nanantharim as a ghost because he would appear and cause havoc and just as quickly go unseen for months on end and there had been no word, sightings or any leads whatsoever of him for the past three months, it was as if he’d vanished.

  The only lead they’d had were increased banshees and other creatures filtering in to Earth from Nanantharim, which Delaius believed was due to Kalerum, but he didn’t fully understand why.

  “Any word on Kalerum?” Delaius said.

  “No, and worst thing is, the council’s had me running about this countryside for the past two weeks looking for that bloody Noru-Varem, though I ‘eard it’d been sighted three days ride east of here in Brightwater. So it’s off to Brightwater in the morning. What about you?”

  “I’m not sure, come on I’ll tell you inside. Are the rest here?” he asked.

  “Aria and Andrei, but Nathaniel ain’t shown” Ruffalo told him as they headed inside the blue and red tent.

  The inside of the tent was spacious enough to comfortably hold a dozen people. All the tent held was an oak table and six chairs which stood on the grassy earth and a few small wooden boxes which were dotted around the edges of the tent, each held a glass lantern giving illumination to the room from every angle and radiating warmth into it. On the table was a tray holding five battered pewter mugs and a large jug.

  Delaius walked to the table and, nodding to Aria and Andrei, poured wine for each of them from the jug.

  Ruffalo and Delaius sat down as Andrei sipped his wine as he waited for Delaius to start.

  “How’s the wine?” Delaius asked.

  “Gredaqui wine, unbeaten for potency, but I see they still haven’t come up with a better taste.” Andrei joked.

  “Forgive me Delaius” Aria started “but shouldn’t Guinevere be here? After all, given her position and her relationship to you, I would assume it a necessity.”

  Aria was a young and beautiful elf with bright green eyes and long dark hair which hung down behind her shoulders, sticking out through her hair were long pointed ears. Bound across her forehead was a leather headdress with a white circular crystal at its center. She wore a long sky blue dress and gazed thoughtfully at Delaius, awaiting his response as he filled a mug for himself.

  “I gave it much thought but Guinevere is head of the council and she has enough to deal with without having to worry about this. Until we know for sure that Jack is the one I believe him to be then I would rather not trouble her with such things.” he said, placing the jug back down on the tray by the last empty mug and taking a seat at on the chair next to her.

  “No word on Nathaniel?” he asked after taking a moment to sip his own drink.

  “No and I wouldn’t have expected any. I know you still hold on to hope for him, and I can’t say I blame you, but Nathaniel lost a lot during the rebellions, I fear he may have lost himself.” Aria told him.

  “Yes, we’ve waited long enough; I should have known he wouldn’t come. I didn’t expect him to forgive me but I had hoped, given this new set of events, he would have shown.”

  “He is a broken man Delaius but you cannot blame yourself.”

  “Aria’s right, the man’s just as much a ghost as Kalerum is, he won’t be found if he doesn’t want to be and no-one’s seen him in years. How do you even know he’s still alive?” Ruffalo added.

  “Wurslo.”

  “Ah!”

  Delaius sat gazing thoughtfully at the table for a few moments before he regained himself and addressed them; “You are all aware of the boy I found who was attacked by Banshees which somehow got through into their world”

  They all nodded and Andrei started as if reminiscing “yes I met him briefly before this meeting, very curious set of folk, seems like a good lad but I have to be honest with you, Delaius, I have my doubts about what you expect of him, even if what you believe is true. He is, after all, only a young man and to thrust him into a world like this would be madness.”

  “That is not my intention; he is to return home tomorrow and I will have him watched for his protection, regardless of what or who he may be, and there is no credible reason to thrust him into danger until there is danger to thrust him into.”

  “Why did you bring him here?”

  “He is resistant to spells, so I cannot read him, though you are trained in the Tratairie Arts of the Elves” he said looking at Aria.

  “Hmm”

  “I need this doing quickly and you are the only one I trust that is skilled in these areas. And there is something else, the bo
y has a banshee wound on his shoulder, I need you to heal it”

  “Heal it, sky’s end have you lost your touch Delaius or are you just getting lazy in your old age.”

  “It was the easiest way to get him here without him resisting. I am still a stranger to the boy having only met him yesterday.”

  She let out a small sigh and smiled at Delaius’ methods. “Very well Delaius but I’ll need time to prepare, bring him here but give me sufficient time to prepare. And if he’s resistant to spells then I’ll need an herbal remedy, he’ll need to be asleep, unless you want him thinking that we’re going to butcher him.”

  “Yes of course. Though I’ll prepare one and give it to him on the way. That way it will kick in before you start.”

  Aria nodded her agreement before Andrei cut in with a confused expression.

  “So what of these Banshees? I thought they didn’t attack humans.”

  “They don’t, which is precisely why Jack may be who we think he is. The resemblance is uncanny.”

  “Yes, yes it is.” Andrei agreed thoughtfully.

  “But the increase in Banshees on Earth is why I have gathered you here. I need your support on the council when I return with my findings and I wanted you to hear me out and give me your thoughts without the pressure of your peers.”

  “What of them?”

  “Myself and Ruffalo believe that they have not simply wandered into Earth but rather they have been directed there.”

  “You believe they were sent there? By whom?” Andrei asked.

  “I couldn’t say, Redmond had many followers and just because he died doesn’t mean his followers abandoned his cause.”

  “So you think they were after the boy.”

  “It’s possible, but I think it was more coincidence that Jack happened to be up there. I think they were searching for the amulet, maybe they believe that they can somehow use its power.” Delaius told them.

  “It’s not possible unless you have the blood and the bloodline ended with Elysia and Redmond.” Andrei argued.