Wandmaster

by Valerie Kramboviti

  "Don't touch him!" she cried and the guardians hung back, some whispering among themselves, others just staring gravely at the heap he formed, propped awkwardly against the rock face. And still the falls tumbled on, down and down with the rumbling roar that had now become familiar, and the mist haze hanging in the air probed with clammy fingers of fear through their clothes. The Wandmaster was down.

  The ledge they were on was narrow, but Jet came and took command of his guardians, leading them across and away to the other side where there was a wide flat area, too small to be called a plain, but large enough for them all to be contained, and here they waited. Vilma was seated at John's side crooning softly under her breath with her eyes closed, and Menoneth was standing beside her watching tensely.

  "What in bright crystals is going on, Vilma? Can you tell me?"

  Vilma spoke in a low, distant voice,

  "I am needed here. Allow me to work. We will talk when it is time."

  Menoneth knew it was pointless to argue.

  John could hear Vilma's low rhythmic voice from a long way off, and one part of him could feel her, but he had split now into fragments of himself, another piece hovered around Jazlyn. She was not dead, but he couldn't see what had happened, nor was he able to hear her. She was sleeping, he felt; sometimes at night he would feel her unawares, peacefully drifting, and they would come together in a world of dreams and walk together, who knows where. He couldn't understand what had happened to him. The wand was calling to him and he could feel its life coursing through him, nurturing him and recalling him, collecting the strands of his being and knitting them together with light. He searched the unfamiliar landscape, free of the tethers of his substance, and found he could fly where he would. He began to master his new lightness and freedom and hoped he wasn't dead, but even if he was, he decided to go and find Jazlyn. He thought of her with intent, and he was there, with her…….. she was indeed sleeping or unconscious, and……… she wasn't alone. Others were with her. Two others.

  "NO!" he gave a voiceless scream, and it pushed him off and away; he wasn't able to see her any more. He fought to return, but now he felt another pressure, one that filled him with cold dread.

  He was being sucked through a dark wormhole into a new place, and it was black there, grey there, cold there, empty there. Vilma's voice was even more distant, and the wand was singing at a higher vibration, working harder to retain him and piece him together.

  He was walking now, along a snaking tightrope, leading ever on into the dark. He knew he ought to leave this place, but there was a part of him urging him on to the finish.

  The tightrope ended, and he was standing on nothing, looking down on a sight that filled him with dread. The Akryd, the huge mother beast was scurrying along, dragging her bulk, being herded by Lo's. There were other lo's with some kind of dog-like creatures, noses to the ground, howling and yipping, and there were many, many tall spindly foot-soldiers coming on behind. As he watched, his eyes were drawn to a high stage of flat rock and he was locked on to it. He was magnetized, unable to retract his own eyes from the mask of the creature before him. It was wearing a counterfeit version of the head of the Akryd, which leered, with slit insect eyes, sucking him towards it.

  "Feast your eyes on my lovelies, Wandman! You will soon be seeing them close up and my beautiful Akryd will give you her precious gift of life!"

  John, in his confused state was unable to respond, and Ataxios pressed on.

  "You've lost your little guardian maid, I see. She will make a fine lo, and if you're very, very good, I may let you see her from time to time when you have also made the transformation!" A cruel and hideous laugh penetrated John's skull and shocked him into activity. Being faced with his enemy, John's anger started to resurface, and he felt himself coming together.

  "That will never be Ataxios, You are just a bug, and I'm going to crush you underfoot before you get the chance to set your fat-bellied lady friend on anyone!"

  Ataxios continued to cackle, but his hold on John was breaking up, and the wand's voice reached its master and overrode that of the abomination in the dark reaches of evil, and light shone out. From the depths of his being, John called forth his colours, his light, and mostly himself.

  "Looking forward to meeting you too, Bug!" boomed John's voice, and he saw Ataxios clutch at his ears, and all the collected creatures throw their heads around in discomfort, setting up their own cacophony of whines, clicks and hisses, staring madly around them in fear. His voice was a mighty roar.

  Having pulled himself together, he slid back along the wormhole, gathering together more and more pieces of his broken self, and slid back into his body with a jolt.

  Chapter 25

  The Convergence

  Tyloren inhaled the freshness of the morning air outside the little house by the trees in the hidden ravine, and hoped he would savour many more such mornings, but he was by no means sure of that. He had stepped outside not only to take in the view, but also to give the family inside a chance to talk. He knew that his prospective travel companions, Lenora and Loman were taking a huge risk in coming with him, and their hearts would be heavy with worry and sadness. From the most unlikely of bad beginnings, they had escaped two miserable lives of deprivation and degradation, and had somehow found refuge in this small forgotten paradise. There they had raised three fine boys, who were not yet old enough to fend for themselves, and now these two unlikely parents were risking everything for a cause, to maybe prevent others from suffering the fate they had in their younger years.

  The eldest son, Braedon, some 17 summers old, the two younger brothers, Jed and Hal, about 10 and 5; no age at all to be left alone in the Realm to fend for themselves. Lenora had been snatched at a much earlier age to serve Ataxios. The spindlies were taken not much older than two, in order to be raised in the dark tunnels of Athrak. The lack of light and the poor food sources caused them to grow tall, thin and lanky, with pale lamp-like eyes and sunken cheeks – in other words – spindlies. Lenora, who had stumbled accidentally into Dianthus Valley, Nithrania from the Athrak darkness at the age of 17, had not panicked, like most who chance to find an exit. She had made no attempt to get back into the tunnels, and had been found wandering in the trees, much as Tyloren had been found. The race of tiny people, the slints, whose garden Dianthus was in the valley of Nithrania, had tracked her for a couple of days and when they were sure she was not an enemy spy, they had brought her before Mahoo.

  There was no fooling the slight ginger man. He could see souls, and he saw that Lenora was a gentle, kindhearted individual who had suffered badly. He became her protector, and she became his housekeeper, learning shyly from the slints all the secrets the wild valley offered. She flourished and lost some of the angular characteristics of the classic spindly, her smile spreading across her wide mouth often, so that despite her height, she was adopted as a slint, often helping to gather fruit at heights they could not reach. And so time went by.

  It was Lenora who had, in turn, stumbled upon Loman, a ranting beast fighting with the lo head planted firmly between his shoulders, like some lunatic who on the one hand wanted to damage himself and on the other to escape the terrible beast that controlled him. Lenora at once pitied him, and saw in his eyes a kindred spirit. She kept him hidden in the forest for a while, providing him with food and attempting to reach the man she felt was still within. The wicked eyes of the lo-face taunted her every time she approached, but she kept her own eyes averted and fixed only on the human face struggling to contact her. In frustration one day, she had thrown a cover over the grotesque, sickly head of the lo, and it had at once lost its power and its orientation. Loman, as she had named the human part of her find, then looked at her for the first time with only his own eyes, and saw the same qualities that Mahoo had seen. He had reached out for her hand, and she had taken his in trust. And the rest is history, as they say.

  The cottage door opened and the family emerged to join Tyloren in the early morning ligh
t. Three packs of food and water had been prepared and Loman hoisted one over his shoulder with difficulty, while Braedon presented one to Tyloren. The lad was grim, and his younger brothers were sticking close to their mother for as long as they could. Tyloren thanked Braedon simply and the boy nodded before taking a step backwards and leaning into his father's chest. Loman placed his arm around his son's shoulders and kissed him on the top of his head. In a gentle voice he soothed him,

  "You're our hope here, Braedon. When we're away we will have one less worry knowing that you are taking care of the home for us. Do it well, and when we return, I know we will find you all safe. That thought will help us through whatever we find."

  "What will help us, father? What thought shall we have to help us while you're away?"

  "That we love you and that what we are doing is for your good as well as for the Realm in general. I never want to see any of you become a lo. And you must know that while Ataxios and his Akryd are powerful, it would always be a possibility."

  The two smaller children were silent during this exchange, but listened carefully. They were not too young to be afraid but they did not fully appreciate the implications. Tyloren had memories of his own childhood, and this family, though unique in its fashion, was not that much different from his own. As a priest, he had devoted himself to the study and protection of the crystals in the trove in Wandguard, and had never considered marrying or having children. Watching the painful separation before him, he was at once both grateful and sorry for that turn of his life.

  "Well," said Lenora eventually, "It's time we were going, I think. Come along boys, give your mother a farewell kiss and hug."

  Tyloren moved off with his pack on his back, leaving them time to say their goodbyes, deeply regretful that he was playing a role in their parting. He gazed off into the treetops, reluctant also to quit this haven of safety. He felt he would not return.

  After a few minutes, Lenora, sniffing softly, and red-eyed, joined him with Loman at her side, and the three of them set off in the direction of Mahoo's cave. A strong smell of burning herbs was wafting out of the dark recess and Tyloren stepped inside.

  "Ah, you've come. The crystal tree shows many possibilities this day, yes, many possibilities, and some of which I sincerely hope will not come true. But it is good to know what might be in order to guard against it."

  "I suppose so," agreed Tyloren, "but when a situation arises, you act on instinct I think, and to an extent, freedom of choice is just an idea we like to cherish to make us feel we're in control. I'm pretty sure things happen as they are meant to happen and that there's little we can do to change them."

  "Then I suppose we must go and see where this adventure takes us."

  "We are going because we have to. We were brought together as a small group here with very particular characteristics, and I believe that what happens around us or because of us will have more to do with who and what we are than why we go."

  "You are a wise man, Tyloren."

  "I only know that what must be done must be done and if today I am wiser than I was yesterday, then wisdom tells me this is a continuing process, and I will be wiser tomorrow because of my actions today, for good or for ill."

  Mahoo chuckled, and came down off his rock to stand at Tyloren's side.

  "Let's walk through the door to the next scene, then, and see what new wisdom we shall gather there, Tyloren my friend. It will, at the very least be interesting."

  Emerging from the cave, Mahoo gave a soft bird-like call, and from among the trees stepped his slints, bronzed, armed with spears and dressed in leather girdles and crossed chest straps, so that their lithe muscular limbs were free, though, Tyloren thought, horribly unprotected. They were small and slight, but despite that, menacing in their lack of protection, as if they felt it unnecessary to defend themselves. In the subdued valley light, Tyloren observed that Mahoo was dressed in a lightweight jerkin and loose pants, his hair was braided and hung down his back and on his brow was a twisted circlet of silver which held a deep purple stone in the centre of his forehead.

  The company was now assembled, and the slints formed a small forward company, which led off at a brisk trot to the secret exit from the hidden valley and into the region of Nithrania, which bordered on and led to the subterranean world of Athrak, from where Tyloren, Loman and Lenora had all escaped. It occurred to Tyloren that he had never asked Mahoo for his own story, but there was time for that and it wasn't now. Tollaman was directing his slints, who penetrated the trees on either side of the group of four, and returned periodically. All was well, and Tollaman was satisfied that they could move ahead safely. They made good time and presently emerged into Nithrania, leaving behind them the hidden valley.

  For Tyloren, the reality of the situation began to loom as the party made their way through the dense forestation and memories of his hardships there came flooding back giving him a deep sense of trepidation, and he was not alone in his misgivings. Lenora and Loman were also going through their own private recollections of their escape from Athrak and their wanderings in the thick vegetation before their eventual and respective rescues.

  The slints came and went, and Tollaman continued to direct proceedings, urging the party on. They made camp at midday and settled down beside a brook to eat some of their provisions and sip the cool water. They were subdued, and conversation was limited and in low voices. The slint scouts were efficient, darting off in small groups and returning periodically with reports for Tollaman, but there was nothing out of the ordinary to relate.

  "There are few expeditions into Nithrania from Athrak at the best of times," explained Loman to Tyloren. "It is usually assumed, I think, that when a Lo or a spindly goes missing, they either return or die."

  "I assume Ataxios has his will bent on the Wandmaster," replied Tyloren, "and it may not have occurred to him that there is any other threat, but we cannot take that for granted. We must be wary; I know he is a powerful seer and he may have sensed something of our coming."

  "We are being wary," interjected Mahoo. "But the sooner we get out of the open and into the tunnels, the sooner we can try to find the Athrak crystal trove, and then we will have a very strong card in our hands."

  "Do you think it likely that it will be unguarded? I doubt it very much," said Tyloren, "and I don't know how well prepared we are to take on Lo guards. There won't be more than one or two, I'm sure," said Loman. "Mostly, the Crystal Trove is unprotected, because not many would be prepared to enter Athrak of their own free will and face Ataxios and the Akryd, but there will probably be a few spindlies, and they are good fighters. We must be careful not to draw attention to ourselves."

  Tollaman, serious and intent, urged the party to their feet after a short rest and soon they were on their way again. The journey was uneventful, belying the perilous nature of their venture. At nightfall they were led into an area enclosed on three sides by craggy rocks and approached by way of a meandering path through the greenery. It was, they were told, a hideout known only to the slints, and guards were posted at vantage points so that the company could enjoy probably the last night of sleep in the open air before they reached their destination. The crystal cave which had been Tyloren's exit point was well known to the slints, but none had been aware that there was access into the tunnels of Athrak from there. Tyloren was not sure he could find his way back in, and the thought nagged at him as they approached. His night's sleep was disturbed by intermittent nightmarish scenes where he was alone, hungry and thirsty in the pitch dark, and waking fears of leading his companions back in and losing them in the gloom. It was a responsibility he had to bear, and he hoped he would be able to recognize landmarks or at least ‘feel' his way in with the help of the very rock, which he was certain had helped him to find his way out.

  Morning broke with a silvery light and hung, sullenly in the cold air. It had not been a comfortable night and Tyloren felt stiff and cramped after uncomfortably trying to sleep curled up in a blanket on the h
ard ground. One by one, the party emerged and took themselves off into the surrounding greenery for a little privacy before setting off once more. Tollaman was up and flitting from place to place, communicating with his slints, and Tyloren wondered if these little balls of energy had slept at all. He doubted it. On the all clear, and having packed up their bedrolls and broken the night's fast, they stood ready to set off again.

  "Tollaman says we seem to be undetected, as yet," said Mahoo, "so we can move off directly towards the crystal cave now. We should reach the foot of the rock face by lunchtime, and then if all is well, we can make the ascent and should have completed the climb a couple of hours later, in the early afternoon." Tyloren had climbed down from the cave, and apart from a few steep slopes, it had been relatively quick, he thought. Although he had been very weak at the time, and his timekeeping had probably been pretty inaccurate, his only thought had been to get down into the cover of the vegetation below, and he had not lingered. The way back up might be a different matter.

  Lenora and Loman walked side by side, their heads close together in low conversation, and from time to time, Loman placed a protective arm around his wife. Tyloren heard gentle sniffs from Lenora and he hoped, yet again, and very dearly that he wasn't leading these two devoted parents and partners to their destruction.

  "Crystal fire!" he thought, "Ataxios has a lot to answer for!"