Mandala's Catalyst (Gardone Trilogy)

by Warren R. Henke

  Jewell turned, shook her head, and threw up her hands. “I give up.” She started to walk away but stopped and turned back to face Sharel. “Do what you want. We should have let them beat some sense into you.”

  “You are a bunch of murdering criminals and I demand you to take me back to the city right now.”

  “If we were murderers, you wouldn’t be standing here alive. You want to go? Go ahead. Nobody here is going to stop you.”

  “I need somebody to show me the way back,” Sharel said, as if expecting volunteers.

  “I won’t, but feel free to ask around for help.” Jewell motioned to the others.

  Sharel glanced around but avoided eye contact with anyone. “Untie the guard you have taken prisoner and let him take me back!”

  “No chance. He’s the murderer.” Jewell pointed to the hut where the only surviving guard was bound and gagged. “I have watched him kill before and we are not letting him go.”

  “Well, I don’t know the way back,” she said loudly, again like she thought somebody to jump to her aid.

  “Not my problem.” Jewell walked away.

  “Don’t you walk away from me!” yelled Sharel.

  Jewell passed Crazybeard and muttered, “I give up. Do what you can with her.” Then she walked past Jasper and up the hill towards her hut.

  Crazybeard, armed with a massive frown, crinkled nose, and burrowed eyebrows faced off with Sharel. “Listen you old hag,” he boomed and approached her. “I don’t want to hear another word. You hear me? Not another word!” He placed his big burly head inches from her face and yelled as if she was across the river. “If you don’t want to stay here, fine. Do what you want. In fact, right now I’d prefer you tried your luck with the dark ones!” He motioned wildly with his hand towards the river. “If they don’t get you, the wolves and panthers will! And you can bet when you’re out there screaming for help that I sure won’t be risking my life to save you this time!”

  She stared back, her mouth stayed closed.

  “Now,” he continued, backing away and lowering his voice a little, “You have two choices, leave our camp or go into that hut over there. If you take the hut, I expect you to crawl into the skins, go to sleep, and wake up in a better mood. If I see this rude bitter woman again,” he pointed, his finger inches from her face, “I’ll drag you out to the dark ones myself! You understand?”

  She nodded quickly, turned, and walked to the hut. Crazybeard watched her every step of the way. When she’d closed the door flap behind her, he turned, cocked his neck until it popped, and, with a smug smile, began walking towards Jasper. Jasper quickly looked away and tried to appear as if he was minding his own business. When the big man passed, Jasper slipped away and went to Jewell’s hut.

  He pushed aside the skin hanging over the entrance and saw Jewell kneeling over Migun. Uncertain what to say or do, he crept inside and sat, trying to think of something useful to say. Before he found it, the flaps flew open and Crazybeard filled the doorway.

  “She’s trouble!” he said in a low, gruff voice. “She puts us all in danger. She’ll tell the Guide about us if she ever gets back.”

  Jewell put her finger to her mouth, silencing him, and motioned him inside.

  “I know,” she whispered. “But she’ll never make it to the door and I think it’s safe to assume nobody here will help her. She doesn’t strike me as the type who knows her way around a forest.” She looked at Jasper. “Don’t you agree?”

  He nodded, longer than he needed to.

  “Is the door into the mountain still open?” she asked.

  Crazybeard nodded. “Yes, we left it how we found it…but we have a key now. Marchello had one.”

  “I think life here is about to change. We’d better hide the weapons we pulled off the guards. The last thing we need is Sharel getting a knife or something..”

  “She’s not good for morale,” he said.

  “I know, but we aren’t throwing her out. If she leaves, it’s by her choice.”

  He grumbled again and turned to leave.

  “Wait,” Jewell said. He turned around.

  “Did you take care of the guards?”

  “Yes. We made a mess,” he shook his head, disgusted. “We dragged ‘em to the river and left a nice bloody trail. Hopefully when the search party comes they assume it was an ambush. I mean, it looks like the work of the dark ones to me.”

  “Well, we can only wait and hope,” she said.

  “I’m going to head back out and make sure our tracks are covered, figure I’ll take a couple others with me. You sure you can handle that beast?” he said, motioning in the direction of Sharel.

  “I’ve handled worse,” Jewell said.

  “If you two get in a fist fight, just wait until I’m around to watch,” he said and winked at Jasper.

  Jewell rolled her eyes and Crazybeard left.

  “So you have never attacked the guards?” Jasper asked.

  “No. The only reason we are still alive is because they think we aren’t…we can’t afford to attract attention.”

  “Oh,” he said, realizing he may have ruined that for all of them by starting the attack. “I’m sorry if I messed things up. I just couldn’t let him—”

  “—It’s alright, this time we would have attacked. We have been close before. It’s never easy to just stand back and wait.”

  “What’ll we do next time?”

  “I don’t know, but we’ll think of something. Don’t worry about that now. How is your mother?”

  He crawled to Mother. Her eyes were bruised and blackened, nose swollen, and cheek raw. Everything else was covered in bandages. Her breath was hoarse and raspy, but at least she was sleeping and oblivious to the discomfort.

  “She’s going to be fine, Jasper. The herbs will help her sleep and heal. She just needs rest. I know she looks terrible, but when she wakes up you’ll see a big difference.”

  “I can’t believe they would do this,” Jasper said, choking on his words.

  He felt a hand on his shoulder.

  “I’ve seen a lot worse. Gareth was the worst. I didn’t expect him to live at all. That’s why he won’t shave, he doesn’t like the scars.”

  Jasper suppressed a laugh.

  “What is it?”

  “It’s nothing.”

  “No, tell me, what is it? You can’t keep something that makes you smile all to yourself,” her eyes sparkled and she flashed a smile at him that could have made him tell her anything she wanted.

  “Well, I didn’t know his name, so I’ve been calling him ‘Crazybeard’ in my head all day.”

  Jewell laughed. “Crazybeard. I like that. I think that’s what I’ll call him from now on.”

  “No! You can’t tell him.”

  “Oh, don’t worry. He’ll like it.”

  Jasper shook his head, trying to change her mind.

  “He will. Believe me. Gareth, uh, I mean, Crazybeard will be flattered.”

  They laughed together.

  “He’s a good man. I was here alone for months until he showed up. There were some before him, but they didn’t survive.” She swallowed and thought for a minute. “He talked me through sewing up his wounds and treating his injuries, told me what herbs to find, and somehow he pulled through. I never would have survived the first winter without his help.

  * * * Len watched, fascinated as China called upon spiritual powers to heal Endell’s wounds. He had never been an unbeliever when it came to magic, but he’d always been skeptical. In his youth, he’d loved the idea of magic but never known anyone who studied it. Magicians were fanatics, power hungry dreamers unfit for any role in organized society. Besides, during the wars there wasn’t time for magic. All energy and resources were used to support the army. Anyone not in active battle forged weapons, prepared supplies, cared for the injured, or trained for battle.

  When the war ended, the Guide warned the kingdom against the evils of magic, saying it could open portals to terrible plac
es and invite evil powers into their land. The Guide had even theorized that the entire nation of the dark ones had been inadvertently started by the innocent study of magic by curious minds. It was convincing enough that Len had not only agreed with the Guide, he had even participated in the protests to lobby the council to ban all forms of magical experimentation. Although he hadn’t believed anyone still retained the ancient knowledge of real magic, he worried about the zealots manipulating the people with claims of supernatural powers. And worse, what if their ignorant experiments might stumble upon something really dangerous? There could be dire consequences to such foolhardy attempts to manipulate spiritual forces. So Len had stood with the Guide, magic was better left untouched.

  When he had first learned the Resistance was researching magic, he considered telling the Guide. Magic still frightened him and the fact that the Resistance sought it hadn’t felt right. He watched dubiously but tried to keep an open mind. As he learned more, his ideas changed and he became a believer. More than that, he gained a deep respect and appreciation for the forces that existed beyond the physical world around him.

  Now magic fascinated him. He longed for the power to master its forces but knew it wasn’t an option for him. It required complete dedication — a lifetime of study, research, sacrifice, pain, and loneliness. As a husband and father, he couldn’t do it; he wouldn’t abandon his family. But, he could support others, people he trusted, who were willing and capable of making the required sacrifices. He would work to ensure that these individuals had the resources they needed to unlock the hidden mysteries.

  Before this morning, Len had seen what he thought to be impressive magic. He had been amazed by his few encounters with items such as the soul orb. But the explosion and now the rituals performed by China went far beyond. She had called upon a power that filled the entire room with force that had moved all of them to tears, a rush of intense emotion that reminded him of the moment he’d first held Jasper, his tiny newborn son, in his arms. Although the moment had passed, his body still tingled with a sense of love and pleasure. He felt rejuvenated. The pain in his leg and back had vanished. His body felt relaxed, his mind was soothed, and his heart was again filled with hope.

  Hard footsteps on the wooden floor above them ended the tranquility. China blew out the candles and they waited in fearful silence as footsteps passed overhead and began to descend the staircase. A flash of steel caught Len’s attention as Rudolfo moved silently forward with Thamus’ sword.

  The footsteps reached the bottom of the stairs and Len held his breath, watching the dark opening at the end of the room while his chest pounded. From the silence came a clicking sound. Then, from behind him again…click click click. A voice whispered from the darkness across the room.

  “Safe?”

  “Sound,” China whispered back.

  “It’s alright, everyone,” China said. “We’re all friends here.”

  “Who are friends?” It was Horvold.

  Nobody answered and Len finally spoke, “Len, Rudolfo, Thamus, Endell, and China. We were in the marketplace and Endell was nearly killed by the explosion.

  Horvold walked out of the darkened hallway. “Len?” He moved closer until he stood in full view. “But they said you were killed,” his voice filled with relief.

  “Who said I was killed?” Len said.

  “The guards, the decree!”

  The room was silent.

  “You haven’t heard the decree?” Horvold asked.

  “What decree?” Len said.

  A light flickered behind him as China lit the candles. Horvold walked into the room and looked at Endell, somewhat apprehensively.

  “What exactly happened in the marketplace?” Horvold asked.

  Len told the story.

  Horvold dropped to the floor, sitting on the lower end of the furs and shook his head. His face turned pale.

  “What is it?” China asked.

  Horvold looked at Len. “You’re sure Endell didn’t cause that explosion?”

  “Yes I’m sure. It happened just like I told you. I think somehow the Guide was controlling him. Why?”

  “The Guide has issued a state of martial law because of an attempted coup. He’s told everyone that an evil band of rebels, us, will stop at nothing to overthrow the kingdom. He’s got everyone terrified that we’ll kill innocent people, including children, to overthrow the kingdom. Right now thousands of people are out there searching for our dark cloaks and anything unusual that might help them find us. According to him, we left a message at the site this morning threatening more attacks if he does not step down from power.” Horvold swallowed uncomfortably, “he has the entire nation at his fingertips.”

  The room became animated as everyone but Len began talking at once. He remained silent, disturbed at the warped combination of truth and lies that the Guide was spreading throughout the kingdom.

  “That’s not all…he also claims that our leader is one of the dark ones.” The noise subsided and Horvold pointed at Len. “And that you and the queen were assassinated this morning.”

  “Assassinated?”

  “That’s right. The Resistance began their attack on Gardone by assassinating the king and queen. The princess is the only remaining member of the royal family and will be kept safe in a secret location.”

  Len felt heavy and weak. Delorah. The Guide had Delorah. He reached for his neck and felt for his necklace…the stone hanging from a leather thong. He closed his hands around it and he heard the excited shriek of a much younger Delorah in his mind.

  Look! It’s green just like my eyes!

  Horvold continued. “The citizens of Gardone have been instructed to be suspicious of any strange behavior. There is a curfew and anyone walking the streets past dusk will be taken for questioning. Armed guards are constantly patrolling and homes can be searched at any time day or night. And anyone found with items belonging to the Resistance will be imprisoned. They’ve urged everyone to search their homes, farms, and property for strange objects and the guards can arrest anyone for any reason.”

  “This is insane,” Len said. “The people won’t accept it.”

  Horvold was silent.

  “Well?” he looked around for support. “Would you stand for that?”

  “The entire land is pulsing with vengeance, they want blood…our blood,” Horvold said.

  “They believe his lies? They want curfews and strict rules?”

  “They are afraid; they think there is a secret organization ready to attack. They have seen the carnage in the marketplace. Many have lost family members today so, yes, they want curfews and strict rules. They want to feel safe. They have been told we are working with the dark ones and are practicing dark magic to overthrow the kingdom,” Horvold said.

  “They said I was assassinated. I’ll just go out and show them I wasn’t. Then that will prove the Guide is lying.”

  “I think the Guide wants you to come out of hiding. He knows your body was never recovered in the marketplace and probably assumes you are alive. He’ll charge you with treason and you’ll be executed.”

  “Nobody will believe him; the people know I am a good honest man.”

  Hovold shook his head, “it’s mayhem out there. Right now, the Guide could tell them whatever he wants and they’ll believe him. You don’t stand a chance.”

  Len sat back down. He felt detached and numb as Rudolfo explained to Horvold how Trask had made contact with Resistance members on the other side. He tried to ignore Rudolfo’s excitement when he told Horvold that Jewell was alive and well. Then he completely tuned out when Rudolfo told of how Tari, Migun, and Sharel had been taken through late last night.

  He held the necklace again. Tari had made it from his gift from Delorah, a rare gem she had found. He hadn’t removed the green jasper necklace since he’d put it on years ago. It had given him strength on many occasions but now, as his tears fell, he was afraid the jasper had failed him. Supposedly, jasper eliminates despair and de
pression and brings mental clarity. He raised it to his face and looked at the opaque, creamy green swirls.

  Help me, please.

  He felt light-headed. The room became hazy and from what sounded like a long ways away, he heard China call his name. When he focused again several faces huddled around him.

  “Are you alright?” Hovold asked.

  Len looked past Horvold in a blank stare. He felt weak. The late nights of the Festival, the stress of Jasper’s banishment, a sleepless night traveling to visit Char, and the explosion in the marketplace were too much. He didn’t know if Tari and Jasper were still alive, he didn’t want to think about it. Now the news that the Resistance had been crippled by the Guide was too much. He closed his eyes and tried to lie down, but several sets of hands pulled him back up.

  “Len, we need you,” Horvold said, looking directly into his eyes.

  Len turned away. “I just need to sleep for a while. I want to be alone.”

  Len tried to gently push Horvold away, but Horvold didn’t move.

  “I want to be alone!”

  “Horvold,” said a soft voice. “Let go of him. Let me talk to him.”

  China took Horvold’s place. Something about her made him afraid and he looked away.

  “Len, it’s alright,” she said. “You have every right to want to be alone. And we’ll give you that if it’s what you really want. But we are here for you. We know you have been through hell. We know you are worried about your family and I can only imagine how you must feel. Yesterday you were king of this land — wealthy and living with your royal family safe in the castle and now today, you are a refuge.”

  Len frowned and tried to stop the lump that was forming in his throat. The corners of his mouth quivered. He felt her arms pull him closer and embrace him. With his head on her shoulder, China spoke softly in his ear.

  “Len, let it out. You can’t fight this battle alone. We are here with you.”

  He resisted. He had cried earlier while China called to the earth for healing, but this was different. He was scared. But China was somehow making him weak and his body shook. He sucked in heavy breaths of air, which he held as long as possible to try and keep the fear and pain from escaping.