by Andrew Symon
Smiling, Jack shrugged and handed her the sceptre. Carefully, Rana put the ring on the chain around her neck and pointed the sceptre at the whimpering beast. It looked up at her in mute appeal and wagged its tail.
Rana hesitated.
But just for a moment. A renewed gasp of pain from her grandfather removed all doubt from her mind.
“Til Helvete!”
The sceptre sparkled; a beam shot from it and hit the wolfhound as it lay on the bridge. With a great flash, the beast disappeared.
Silence.
“A Norse hex?” croaked Grandpa in wonder.
“It had to be: she was from Tula. Only a Norse hex would work.”
A distant howl began, and the sea, which had been calm, suddenly started to froth and foam. Waves hit the bridge and sprayed up, soaking Jack, Rana and Grandpa. A thunderclap rent the air and great lumps of rain began to fall.
The hexagonal columns started to sink down.
“The bridge is going!” Jack shouted.
He stooped down, picked up the swordfish stump and managed to lever his grandfather up to a sitting position.
“You’ve got to walk, Grandpa. It’s only twenty yards.”
But Grandpa Sandy was too weak for even this. Before he had managed to stand, the bridge was below the water. He stumbled forward, splashing as the waves rose up.
“Make sure the sceptre’s safe!” Jack shouted at Rana. And he pushed his grandfather off the bridge.
26
The Pit of Torment
Grandpa Sandy gasped in surprise, then sank beneath the waves.
He surfaced; an outraged splutter was mixed with an urgent intake of air, then he went under again.
Jack jumped in. Cupping the old man’s chin firmly in his left hand, he swam furiously for the shore. His grandfather’s struggles made the task no easier, but he thankfully had only a short distance to swim.
Rana had waded to the shore on the remnants of the disappearing bridge, but as she made the shoreline the last of the sea columns vanished. She helped an exhausted Jack to drag their grandfather clear of the water, and as they got further above the shoreline the sea became calm again. The wind blew the last of the clouds away as the moon rose in the darkening sky.
Jack huffed as he took deep breaths in.
“I’m sorry, Grandpa. But you were going to take ages, and the bridge was sinking.”
His grandfather’s feeble wave seemed to indicate that he understood.
“I’ve got the sceptre,” said Rana helpfully.
“Then let’s get a fire going. Is there any shelter?”
Rana scanned the rocky shore.
“There’s a rock overhang up there.”
Dragged upright by Jack, Grandpa Sandy leant on his shoulder as he hobbled up the beach.
At least last time I had Ossian to help me. Grandpa weighs a ton.
Rana, having scampered ahead, now came back and joined Jack in helping their grandfather to where a jutting rock provided some shelter.
“I must rest,” he gasped, collapsing down onto coarse, dirty sand.
“The last time we did this, a lion jumped out at us,” remarked Jack, as he stuffed a little of the dirt into his jomo bag.
“Well, Marco’s not here. Go and get some firewood. Then I can look at Grandpa’s wounds,” said Rana.
Jack soon returned with some driftwood and used the sceptre to light a fire.
“Ignitas!” Seeing Rana’s look of surprise, he added, “Ossian showed me.”
The fire smouldered in the stiff breeze, producing more smoke than light.
“Is that the best you could do?” demanded Rana.
“Well, why don’t you go and look for some dry wood? I’m cold.”
“We’re all cold,” Rana shouted back.
“Please.” Their grandfather’s hoarse whisper reached them. “Don’t argue. We must conserve our strength.”
“What happened to your leg, Grandpa?” asked Rana anxiously.
“It was Malevola, wasn’t it?” said Jack. “She opened the Phosphan wounds again.”
Grandpa Sandy nodded, wincing with pain. The Phosphan stench was unmistakable.
“What do we do now?” Rana grimaced as the fumes assailed her nostrils.
“We must find Phineas,” whispered Grandpa. “Jack, show me the timer.”
In the feeble light of the fire, Jack held it for his grandfather to see. There were only a few grains of sand left in the top chamber, and it still wouldn’t tip onto its side.
“We must get away from the sea. Then we’ve a chance with the timer.”
With infinite difficulty, Grandpa Sandy forced himself to stand, leaning on Jack once more. He looked out towards the sea again.
“Where did the bridge end?”
“Just over there,” answered Rana. “Pretty much towards us if it hadn’t sunk.”
“Then the cave it is.” Grandpa Sandy held the sceptre aloft, its ruby glowing in the dark, and began to hobble towards the rear of the cave.
“Wait a minute. Grandpa,” said Jack, almost buckling under the weight. “What’s supposed to be at the bridge end? Cosmo said something about the pit of …”
He got no further. The floor of the cave opened, and all three tumbled into a slimy whirlpool. Nearly suffocating with the wet mud, they were all swirled around, faster and faster, and sucked deeper into the centre of the vortex.
“Keep hold of the Sph …!” gasped Grandpa, just before being sucked down below the surface.
Jack took a deep breath just as he too disappeared into the slime.
Jack knew he was falling, but it didn’t feel like regular falling. Sort of … slower; he had time to look around him. There was Grandpa, also falling, just a bit below him. And Rana was above him, still swirling round as she fell through the … what? What was this?
There was a jolt, and a crack. Jack suddenly felt very cold, and a wailing noise, which had started softly, now deafened him.
With a thump he came to land, partially over his grandfather’s leg.
“Ayabass …!” His grandfather stifled an oath as a wave of terrifying pain shot through him.
Jack rolled to the side to release his grandfather’s leg, but realised that he was on a narrow shelf of rock. A rock wall behind; in front, a long drop.
“Help! Jack!” screamed Rana as she half-landed on Jack and slipped off the rock shelf.
Jack thrust his right hand out and caught Rana’s arm … But her arm was all slimy, and his grip was slipping … He had her around the wrist now …
If I’d time, I could get myself free to lift her back up.
A flash of realisation. Jack whipped the sand timer out of his pocket and whispered, “Planus!”
The last dozen grains of sand in the upper chamber now halted.
Everything halted.
He had Rana by the wrist, but she wasn’t slipping any more. There was an eerie stillness all around him. Breathing heavily, he looked at the timer, now on its side.
Jack leant over and grabbed the bottom edge of his grandfather’s cloak, then reached down with his left hand and used it to wipe Rana’s arm dry. Then he reached down with both hands and hauled her up onto the rock shelf.
Rana made no sound as she lay there. His grandfather’s moans had stopped too. Jack looked again at the horizontal sand timer. The emeralds at either end glowed brightly, lighting up the rock shelf on which he was perched. Jack stared at it.
Have I stopped time?
Even as he watched, the upper chamber rose slightly, and with a loud clunk! a grain of sand slipped through the opening. Eleven grains left.
Jack peered over the edge of the shelf. There was nothing to see, really, just a long, dark drop. Finding a small pebble, he threw it down.
No sound from that.
Great. What now?
Use the Sphere. Jack untied the Mapa Mundi flag from around his neck and held it out in front of him. As he did so, it formed into the Sphere again. He looked inside,
expecting to see his father. But it was Rana’s face that he saw staring back at him. She had something shiny around her neck.
Looking over to where Rana lay motionless, Jack saw Tamlina’s ring on his cousin’s neck chain. Slipping the chain off, he put it over his own head. It nestled in comfortably behind his shirt. He turned back to the Sphere.
Blank. Nothing.
Perplexed, Jack looked around him. What had Cosmo said? The pit of torment. This was a pit, all right. But torment?
And then the wailing began again, from far below. Wails, worse than the worst journey along the low road. An icy blast ran through Jack.
Whose torment? Who’s here?
Ghostly wisps began to rise out of the pit now: tortured faces, whirling around his head, screaming in agony. And a coldness, too. The sea had been cold, and the wind on the beach. Then the whirlpool slime: that had been freezing. But this was something far worse: like a winter blast that drives ice right into your heart and brain.
And Jack remembered Trog’s misery, the torment he said he’d suffered each day. The torment he thought would only be relieved when he got hold of the Mapa Mundi. But Jack had had the vision; he’d been meant to find the Sphere. Jack tried to shrug the nausea off and looked at the Sphere again. Why wouldn’t it show him anything?
The upper chamber of the sand timer rose again, and with another clunk! another grain of sand slipped through. Ten grains.
Well, I’m obviously not meant to stop here. And I can’t carry the others.
Pocketing the timer and grabbing his grandfather’s sceptre, Jack stood up. Which way? The rock shelf stretched to right and left, but Jack couldn’t see anything in particular either way. He stared again at the Sphere.
Please. Please let me see which way to go. I have to find my father.
Slowly, agonisingly slowly, the limp figure of Phineas reappeared in the Sphere. His head hung down again, but next to him was a tall figure in a grey cloak. Her pale face was emotionless, her eyes staring directly forward. Then she raised her right arm and slowly beckoned with her index finger. Her eyes sparkled.
Which way?
“To your left.”
It was like a whisper in his ear, but Jack heard it clearly. He looked around, though he knew there was no one there. No one but the ghostly faces.
My left. Right.
Jack flipped the Sphere back to a flag and tied it around his neck once more. Then he started to edge along the rock shelf, but it was no more than a foot wide. Even at Shian size, there was precious little room for error. His grandfather’s sceptre gave off a dim light, but no more.
Don’t look down.
Jack felt a clunk from his pocket and knew that another grain in the timer had fallen. Nine left.
Quick, quick, quick. Got to get there.
But where? The inside of the pit had not changed in any way as Jack edged along the rock shelf. Where was he going? Water running down the rock walls made the shelf slippery. And then Jack began to slide. He tried to keep his feet close to the wall, but then his sceptre struck a jutting-out rock. He sprawled helplessly over the edge.
Oh no.
And yet as Jack fell, once again it was in slow motion. He saw a rope bridge, V-shaped with two handrails and a central wooden path, strung across the pit. As he approached, Jack grabbed it and clung on for dear life. Slowly the bridge stopped swinging and Jack looked down. Still no bottom in sight, and neither end was in view.
“This way.”
The same whisper in his ear directed him to his left, and he set off along the bridge. It swung with his walking movements, a giddy, unpleasant feeling that made him think about the long drop below. This would be easier using both rails. Jack tucked the sceptre into his waistband once more and started walking.
Without the glow from his sceptre, Jack was walking blind, but he kept going. Clunk! Another grain of sand fell. Eight left. Jack quickened his pace.
It’s all for nothing if I don’t get there soon – wherever “there” is.
Jack had been scurrying along the rope bridge for what seemed like hours. The thoughts inside his head whirled around: I’ll never get there. I’ll be walking this bridge forever, and my father will die.
He shook his head, trying to clear the bad thoughts.
Got to keep going. Rescue Dad, then go back for Rana and Grandpa. Got to keep going. Gosol will help.
After an eternity – Clunk! Only seven grains left now – Jack saw a light ahead. Increasing pace, he started to jog, then felt the sceptre work loose from his belt.
No, need to have that. Don’t know what I’ll meet at the end.
He took the sceptre from his waistband and advanced cautiously. The rope bridge gradually sloped upwards. I must be near the end.
And he was. Jack could see a rock wall looming in front of him and a small platform where the rope bridge ended.
Seven grains. At this rate I’ve got some time left.
Climbing gratefully onto the platform, he saw a doorway cut into the rock face. Passing through, he came upon a cavernous dimly lit chamber. The walls were in shadow, but in the centre sat an old woman wearing a grey cloak.
His footsteps echoed around the chamber. She didn’t look up.
“So, ye’ve come for Phineas o’ Rangie, have ye?”
The doorway behind him sealed itself over.
27
The Grey
Jack looked at the old woman, who sat surrounded by flickering candles within a small clearing. Her hood almost covered her head. Had she spoken? The voice had had a strange quality about it that he couldn’t define. Slow and husky, but not just dry: aged, somehow.
“My … my father …” Jack managed to stutter.
“And ye hae used that accursed timepiece tae cheat yer way in here.”
Jack took the sand timer from his pocket. With a sense of relief he saw that it remained almost horizontal – there were still seven grains left. Jack edged cautiously forward; still the old woman didn’t move. Jack looked around anxiously. Where was his father?
“Ye bettered Konan, eh? That scheming Brashat would never surrender his meddlesome sand piece.” Her sluggish voice was no less harsh. “But to bring it here was foolish. Meet my Taniwah.”
A splash from behind her confirmed to Jack that the cave was far from dry, but wetness was not his main concern. Even in the dim light Jack could see the Taniwah lizard rising slowly at the back of the cave, its single eye glinting in the gloom.
Taniwahs! Quick! What’s Finbogie taught me about them?
With a rising panic, Jack could think of nothing about these creatures, except that you must avoid their gaze – that was instant death. Jack grasped the stump of his sword – well, it had helped him against the Nucklat. But a short stump would be no use against this monster. And the creature was emerging from the pool in which it had been resting. Jack backed away, but found the entrance way gone. He squinted at the beast.
I’ve heard something else. Who else was talking about them? If only I could see better. It’s a full moon outside.
The moon!
Taniwahs hate moonlight. Murkle had shouted that at Cosmo. But we’re deep underground.
“Up, Balor, my friend.” The Grey’s husky voice called out triumphantly.
I’ve heard it somewhere … Of course! Armina!
Jack had no time to act. The Taniwah now rose several feet above the surface, water splashing towards Jack. Caught unawares, he dropped the sand timer. As it fell to the ground, a tiny splash of seawater caught it and it uprighted itself.
No!
Jack tried to turn it horizontal again, but some unstoppable force was pushing it up. The last few grains quickly dropped into the lower chamber. And Jack saw to his horror that the old grey woman was starting to rise.
“Now devour him, my Balor.” Her voice was no longer slow and was even more menacing.
With a roar that echoed around the cave, the Taniwah lunged at Jack. His heart in his mouth, Jack thrust his g
randfather’s sceptre towards the great lizard.
“Lunalumen!”
It wasn’t like a human light switch being flicked – Jack had seen that – but the cave filled rapidly with a moonlit glow. The Taniwah dropped, motionless, just a foot short of Jack. Its mouth agape, Jack could see dozens of sharp, pointed teeth.
That was close.
With a shriek, the Grey shielded her eyes from the unaccustomed light. Jack gripped the swordfish stump and drove the full six inches into the top of the Taniwah’s head. There was a spurt of blood, then a steady trickle. And then Jack saw him. Suspended behind the Grey, near the cave wall’s hexagonal columns, was his father. His limp body hung with no visible means of support. Tattered rags did little to hide his emaciated condition.
“The sand has run out, ye meddling boy.” The Grey, still shielding her eyes, cackled triumphantly. “See, he breathes his last.”
A muted gasp emerged from Phineas’ gaunt frame.
No. Please no. I can’t have come all this way for him to die on me.
Jack sank to the ground, a great wave of despair rising from his core. Tears welled up, and without thinking Jack wiped his eyes with the flag still tied around his neck.
The Sphere!
The Grey was still shielding her eyes. Hurriedly, Jack untied the flag, and it formed into the Sphere once more. Jack gazed at it. In one circle the sand timer appeared, then inverted itself.
I’ve got to turn it over!
Hurriedly, Jack turned the timer over and saw with relief that the grains were running through.
I guess that buys me some time …
Jack saw a shape emerging in the other circle … the Chalice. It was as Jack remembered it from Dunvik the previous year. Comgall the monk had given him the Chalice, and it had revived his grandfather.
It can do the same for my dad! But … it’s in the Stone Room in Edinburgh.
Then the Chalice image turned into the fiery outline he’d seen in Claville and Edinburgh.
The memory of the Chalice is enough?!
