Feeling totally exhausted, Alk let the large sword fall to the ground and then slumped down onto the ground next to it and leant back against a large tree. He hadn’t had a decent rest for over forty-eight hours, and it was starting to take its toll on him, although he’d tried to hide it from others, especially the young, inexperienced officers. However, he would be the first to admit that he wasn’t the man he once was; but he’d tell himself and others that he was still a far better man than most. Tired, he rummaged through his tunic pockets and pulled out a rather unappetising-looking brown bar made up of dried fruit, oats and honey, took a large bite, and then offered it up to the others; but he was only too pleased when no one took him up on his offer. “All the more for me,” he muttered to himself. Poppy had purposely stayed back close to the tree line and well away from the others, but was watching Mylon like a hawk, who was now engaged in a conversation with the dog. Of course, she had heard of Bert and his talking dog; in fact, nearly every elf she knew could tell her stories of their visits to the elf kingdom. But until now, she didn’t really believe them all, although she hadn’t had the opportunity to speak to either of them as yet, and to be truthful, she wouldn’t know what to say if she did. Besides, she wouldn’t feel comfortable having a conversation with a dog, so it suited her to keep her distance from both of them.
Under Poppy’s watchful eye Mylon made his way across the clearing to where Sophia and Bree were sitting. In her eyes at least, they were both her competition for his affections. Again her face reddened with jealousy as he smiled and joked with them both. What he saw in them, she would never know. The nymph was always moody or crying, especially when her dear Henry wasn’t around; and as for Sophia… well, she was just old… and nearly human besides. Nymphs were closely related to elves, so she could at least understand a little of the attraction there. But then her thoughts were interrupted by a movement just behind her. Alk was already on his feet with short sword in hand, and they both stood perfectly still as they followed the movements. Sophia was now on her feet and indicated for Bree to stay where she was. “What do you think it is?” Mylon whispered, but Sophia didn’t answer, deep in concentration as she sent her senses out into the trees. Moments went by and still nobody moved. Sophia then turned to Mylon. “It’s the two brothers,” she said, sounding a little annoyed.
A moment or two later, Grog stepped out of the shadows, followed by Nog. “My lady Sophia!” Grog called out, as he rushed towards her. “Woo… calm down,” Mylon said, intercepting him. “But lady Sophia,” Grog called out again. Sophia pushed past Mylon. “Just stop a moment and take a breath,” she said. Grog went to speak again, but she put her hand up. “Stop,” she demanded. Grog did as he was ordered but looked a little upset at being shouted at. However, it was obvious to all that he had something important to say. Nog, as usual, stayed well back, allowing his brother to do all the work. “Now then… what’s your news?” Sophia said, having given Grog a little time to get his breath back. “Been to void, my lady,” Grog announced. “Nog and me.”
On noticing the shocked look on Sophia’s face, Grog looked down at his feet, afraid of annoying or upsetting her. Alk pushed forward but Mylon grabbed his arm and shook his head. “Go on,” Sophia said softly, trying not to frighten Grog any more than he already was. “To see our master… to make sure he was safe.” Sophia looked over to Mylon and then back to Grog. Bree was now up on her feet and standing next to her. “And was he?” Sophia asked abruptly. Grog glanced over to his brother but Nog refused eye contact. “Well?” Sophia said, but now in a softer voice, Grog nodded. “Yes… safe but with…” Sophia sighed. “He’s with the shadow master… right?” she answered for him. Grog nodded again. Bree placed her hand softly on Grog’s fluffy little arm: she had never touched either of the two brothers before and was surprised to feel how soft Grog’s fur was. “Can you tell us more?” Grog nodded again. “Yes, little miss.” Bree looked up at Sophia and could see that she was becoming annoyed with him, so Bree placed her other hand on Sophia’s arm. “Leave this to me… please.” Sophia pulled away but only after giving Bree a look that made it perfectly clear never to touch her again.
With the look of a frightened animal and sensing the tension between the two, Grog took a step back. If they wanted to find out what he had to say, neither Bree nor Sophia could afford to upset him any more than he already was. “Grog,” Bree said softly, “no one here is going to harm you… you know that.” Grog risked a quick glance at Sophia and then looked back at his feet. “It’s important that you tell us everything you know about your master.” Seeing how upset his brother was, Nog stepped forward and stood next to him for moral support. “We see our master… but…” Grog couldn’t finish, so Nog continued for him. “Our master not in danger… the dark one speaks to him… will try and take him.” Grog looked up at Bree. “We must stop it before…” Again he couldn’t finish the sentence. “Before the Wyvern leaves,” Nog continued. Bree had no idea what he meant by that or how it would affect Henry, but she could tell by the reaction of Mylon and Sophia that it wasn’t good news. Sophia pulled Bree to one side by grabbing her arm. “You need to go back,” she demanded. “You and your brother will find him… and you will stay with him,” she ordered. “Tell him that Bree and I will try to join him when we can.”
Grog looked to Bree and then back to Sophia and nodded. “Will you find us?” he asked. Bree pulled her arm away from Sophia’s strong grip and pushed back in front of her to speak to Grog. “The old oak will take us there… not our bodies… but our minds.” She paused a second. “Do ya understand?” both Nog and Grog nodded. “Look out for us and take care of my Henry.” Again they both nodded. Until now, Alk hadn’t said anything but was a little concerned about how the two fluff balls could come and go to the void whenever it pleased them. “So what makes you so sure you can go back…? I mean, wouldn’t it be dangerous?” Alk asked. Nog smiled. “Not for Grog and me.” Grog stepped forward. “Not dangerous for us,” he confirmed. Alk looked over at Sophia for answers: he certainly wouldn’t get a sensible answer out of these two.
“The two brothers can, as far as I’m aware, go to nearly every realm… including the realm of the dead.” She paused to look at them. “They have special skills that allow them to disappear and reappear elsewhere… That, my dear Alk, is how they so readily visited your home.” She smiled. “I’m sure you must have wondered about how easily they seem to come and go,” she said, a little patronisingly. Alk glanced over at Mylon, who just smiled and shrugged his shoulders. “Not to be trusted… I’d say,” he huffed, and stomped off to sit back under his tree.
“You and your brother must leave now: your duty is with your master… You must see him safe until we find you,” Sophia said. Both Grog and Nog nodded with agreement. “Promise me,” she said in a stern voice. Nog nodded again. “Promise,” she insisted. Grog looked up from his feet. “My lady… you and little miss be careful… Nasty, dark things everywhere.” Sophia gave him a reassuring smile. “We will.” With that, both brothers started to shimmer, and seconds later they were gone, disappearing into thin air. “Strange little creatures,” Alk muttered to himself.
“Right,” Sophia said, clasping her hands together. “Let’s see if the old oak is ready for us.” Bree followed her to the base of the tree. Mylon, Bert and Ben watched as they both pressed their hands against the bark, and with their eyes closed and heads lowered they called to Acca to answer them. Alk, however, was still sitting under the tree, muttering to himself. “Might as well make ourselves comfy… we might be ere a while,” Bert said as he sat down on the same log Bree and Sophia had used, followed by Mylon. Ben slumped down next to Bert’s feet and closed his eyes as if he didn’t have a care in the world. “Are you going to be antisocial and stay over there talking to yourself…? Or will you join us?” Mylon said mockingly. Alk just grunted and lay back against the tree. He had never hidden the fact that he had always hated magic of any kind and couldn’t find it in himself to tru
st those who wielded it, and today was no exception. He needed an enemy that he could see and face head on: he had no time for all this faffing around, and so the only thing he was going to do was lie back, close his eyes, and hopefully get a little well-deserved shut-eye and leave all the other nonsense to the others.
“Where did ya get the sword?” Bert asked Mylon, looking over to where Alfwald’s sword lay on the ground next to Alk. “Does ya think it’s a little too big for an elf to be lugging around?” Mylon smiled. “It is… We’ve had to take turns carrying it.” He smiled. “It’s Alfwald’s… or at least it was… We are to give it to Henry once all this mess is over.” Bert nodded. “I knows that sword from old… when e was alive, Alfwald would never let it out of his sight… Told me it was his first love,” Bert paused and shifted on the log. “Bree told us what appened… back at the falls… Must ave been a bit of a shock for ya all.” He paused again, looking back over at the sword. “And our Alfwald must feel a strong bond with young Henry to leave him that… I mean… to give away the only fing that linked him to this world must mean somefink, don’t ya fink?” Mylon didn’t answer, considering what Bert had just said. He was right: Alfwald must have a lot of faith in his son. To start with, he seemed so sure that Henry would return that he left him his only and most precious possession… his sword. Suddenly the old tree started to vibrate. Mylon sat forward in anticipation of what might happen next. Bert, however, was still studying the sword: having communicated with the old tree many times before he knew exactly what to expect.
Half-expecting Sophia and Bree to disappear into the tree, Mylon watched intensely, but to his disappointment and to his eyes at least, nothing really happened. They both still stood leaning against the tree motionless, their eyes squeezed tightly closed as they concentrated on communicating with Acca. The vibration slowly stopped. At that moment the whole woodland went quiet, giving it an unpleasant, almost eerie feel. Bert noticed the concerned expression on his face as Mylon looked around expectedly. Bert grinned from ear to ear. “It’s alright old friend… the tree has that effect on the old woodland… Fings will go back to normal when it’s done,” he said, now looking at the old tree with affection. He paused and looked back at Mylon. “Tell me a little more of what appened back in that cave… Bree were a little sketchy with the details.”
When Bree and Sophia opened their eyes, they were no longer in the clearing around the old oak, but standing on a hilltop overlooking a massive cemetery that stretched as far as the eye could see. The whole void was bathed in a glary, blue haze that forced both of them to squint. Thick, black mist moved freely amongst the headstones and monuments, seeking out its prey as if it had a life of its own. The headstones were of all shapes and sizes, some old and plain, others elaborately carved, and scattered amongst the large, blackened and misshaped trees were much larger and more elaborate monuments that stood proud, whilst other less important-looking headstones lay broken and tilted at odd angles. However, there was one monument that stood out from all the rest, a large, Egyptian-type obelisk about fifty feet or more square at the base, tapering up to the sky. It reached up so high that the top was hidden, swallowed by the strange, blue, low-hanging clouds that swirled slowly around it. Bree placed her hand over her nose to try and ward off the smell of death and decay, but was unsuccessful. Sophia, however, was unaffected by the stench and took a moment to scan the area, but unfortunately found that she couldn’t use her powers. She and Bree were only in this godforsaken place in mind only, so instead, she had to use her keen eyesight to see if she could find any sign of her sister and Henry, or, in fact, any other signs of life at all, but they were still too far away to see anything. The blue haze distorted the air around them, making it next to impossible to see anything clearly further than just a few yards.
“This is Morphen… the realm of restless souls… It is not the underworld as many may think…This is where wicked, evil and selfish souls wait for their judgement!” Acca boomed out, and for a moment said no more, ensuring that Sophia and Bree took in what they were being told. “There’s no more sorrowful a place than this… Here the dead are not allowed to rest…They are to be harvested and shaped and then used as the shadow master demands… their souls torn apart… as the master they serve feeds upon them, making it stronger with each poor soul it consumes.” Acca paused, again to allow Sophia and Bree to take in the importance of what he was saying.
“We call the shadow master the dark one… but nothing could be further from the truth… it is not one soul… but many thousands… controlled by just one being … and it cannot survive in our world without the power it gets from those tortured souls that lie around you… sending their twisted spirits into your world to feed on man’s hatred and greed… making the darkness stronger…” Acca paused again. “Releasing these souls is the only way to weaken and defeat the darkness, the host must free them from its grasp … Then and only then would it lose its hold on our world… allowing the human species to mature to its full potential and giving our world the time it needs to heal… Look to the tall obelisk.” They both did as they were asked and looked towards the large, shadowy monument some distance away. “It is the centre of the dark one’s power… it must be destroyed… Then and only then can the souls be released.”
Acca paused again, whilst Bree and Sophia looked out across the eerie landscape that lay out before them. “Only the host master has the power or the strength to destroy it… but he is lost… lost to the world in which he was born… and soon he will be lost to himself…You must find him… lead him… show him the way… For the shadow master has already started to twist his mind.” The tone in Acca voice changed. “The Wyvern will not allow this: it will kill its host if it feels that he is weakening… Now close your eyes.” Again Bree and Sophia did as they were told.
Seconds later, Acca told them to open them again, and when they did, they found themselves standing somewhere amongst the headstones. Bree gagged again on the smell of death: here it was a lot more pungent. “The host is here,” Acca announced. Sophia took a moment to look around but could see no one. “What of my sister?” she asked. “They also search for the dark one… but unlike you, they lack the knowledge to defeat it… Destroy the obelisk… it’s the only way… Now go… I will leave you until it’s time for you both to return.”
Henry felt as though he’d been falling forever. Time slowed down as he seemingly fell through the coal-black void in slow motion, then suddenly hit the ground with such force that it knocked the wind out of him. Moments later and holding his ribs, he sat up, taking his time to get his breath back and to see where he was. At first, he couldn’t see much of anything through the dense, black mist that surrounded him; but when it cleared, he was surprised to see that he, too, was sitting amongst headstones. Still holding his ribs, Henry gingerly stood up so that he could have a better look around him. Using the Aelfgar as a support, until now it had been nothing more than an inconvenience carrying the thing around, but he was pleased that he had it with him here. He had been told several times that it was a formidable weapon, especially against dark powers.
Looking around, he was amazed by the brilliant blue haze that surrounded him. But there was no sun or any other obvious source from which the blue light was being emitted. Putting the matter to one side, he looked up to see where he had fallen from, but all he could see was the strange, low-hanging blue clouds. He tried another deep breath, but cringed with the sharp pain in his ribs and the stench of death. “Welcome to our home,” a deep voice boomed from behind him. Henry quickly turned around to see that the shadow master was standing just a few yards away from him. It stood nearly twice Henry’s height, a tall, thin, blacker-than-black figure, dressed in a long, black, ankle-length cape with its collar pulled up and a large, floppy-brimmed hat shadowing nearly all of its long, pointed face. The tall, slim figure stared down on him with its lava-red eyes burning into his as if it was trying to penetrate his very soul. But luckily for Henry, the Wyvern int
ervened, forcing back any intrusion, and making the shadow master flinch.
“We have waited a long time for your visit… centuries in fact.” It paused. “No matter… you’re here now.” It took a step closer, forcing Henry to back away a little. “You must not fear me, host… I only wish to befriend you,” it said with an air of sarcasm in its voice. Henry didn’t reply, his mind working overtime as it raced to find a way out of this situation. “We are alike… you and I,” it continued. “We are nothing alike!” Henry shouted in his defence. “More so than you may think…” the shadow master continued, ignoring Henry’s outburst. “You have never really belonged in your world… a world of weak humans… You have no friends and the only person you really cared for betrayed you… your mother… She had lied to you… deceived you… yet you still hang onto her apron strings like a helpless little pup.” It almost spat out the words in anger.
Henry took a step closer: he could feel the burning of the Wyvern inside him. “Leave my mother out of it!” he shouted, but the shadow was unperturbed by Henry’s outburst, and instead it gave a wicked grin and continued. “Look around you, host,” it said, “this is your ultimate fate… nothing can change that… whether you decide to join me, or reject me… Like me, you do not belong and will eventually finish your days here.”
The anger Henry felt slowly subsided, leaving only fear and uncertainty. “You lie!” Henry shouted. Now sensing that Henry was where it wanted him, the shadow master gave another wicked grin and continued. “We never lie… we have no need to… It’s your mother and your uncle who lie to you… we have never lied, nor will we…” It paused, ensuring that it was getting the right reaction from Henry. It could ill afford to upset him too much at this point. It needed to break him down bit by tiny bit: any other way might result in its own demise. It could sense that Henry had nearly mastered the Wyvern’s full powers and could bring it to bear down on him at any time. But as long as he kept Henry calm and unsure of himself and of those around him, it may have a chance of winning the boy over to his side.
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