Mandala's Catalyst (Gardone Trilogy)

by Warren R. Henke

  Delorah frowned, trying to stop more tears. She slid away from the edge and reached out and took the necklace. Touching it filled her with warmth and love for her family, and a muffled cry escaped her lips. Trask stepped forward and put his arms around her and she rested her head on his shoulder.

  “I swore to your father I would protect you and bring you to him. Will you let me do that?”

  Delorah tried to answer but couldn’t talk. It was too hard trying to control herself from crying. So she just nodded and let Trask lift her off the edge and back to safety.

  “Well Trask, you almost had me fooled.”

  She turned away from Trask and saw the Guide standing behind the breakfast table.

  “Living beyond the mountain?” He said in an angry tone. He’d never talked mean like this. “Delorah,” now he was speaking nice again. What was going on? “Trask killed your father. That’s why he had that…thing you have.”

  “That’s not true,” Trask said quietly. “The Guide doesn’t care about you. He only wants you for his magic, to sacrifice yourself to the dragon, that’s all. He wants you to die.”

  “Silence Trask!” yelled The Guide. Then he was nice again. “Now Delorah, come here. Come to me. Trask, you let her go.”

  She looked at the Trask then at the Guide. “Is my family alive?”

  “No, I told you this morning, they died in the explosion,” the Guide snapped, then took a deep breath. “I’m sorry, I know this is hard but nothing we do, no amount of wishful thinking will ever bring them back.”

  Who was telling the truth? The Guide had been everything to her, he’d always been there for her. She should trust him…but then, something seemed different about him. Trask said the Guide wanted to kill her, she knew that was impossible. He would never do that. So maybe Trask was lying…but what if he wasn’t and her parents were alive?

  “Can Trask show me the place through the mountain? Can I see for myself?”

  The Guide frowned and shook his head. “After all I have done for you, this is how you repay me? With distrust?”

  She looked down. The last thing she wanted to do was disappoint him. But what if her family was alive? She lifted her head. “But if they are alive—”

  “—Enough of this!” he yelled. “Guards!”

  Soldiers with swords stepped out of the castle and began walking slowly around the table. Trask’s arm suddenly wrapped around and lifted her into the air against his chest. He squeezed her tight and ran away from the Guide. She wrapped her arms around his neck and tried to keep her head from bouncing wildly. She looked over his shoulder and saw the Guide and guards running after them.

  “I need her alive! She cannot escape!” the Guide yelled.

  “Hold on, Delorah!” Trask said.

  He jumped up onto the balustrade and she the ground far below. She squeezed her eyes shut. Moments ago it had soothed her; now it terrified her. She hugged Trask even tighter.

  She felt him running down the rail, jumping over posts, and she held him, petrified of the ground far below. Then he squeezed her tight and leaped hard…and far…and they seemed to hover in the air for a moment before her stomach twisted and they plunged down. He missed…he missed the rail. She squeezed and closed her eyes… they fell so long she thought it would never end. He kicked his feet, keeping balance…but what did it matter, they were going to die. A loud noise…spinning…pressure on her head. She opened her eyes and the world was dark. Where was Trask? She was cold and couldn’t breathe. A hand grabbed her arm and pulled her. Water, she was in water! They had jumped into the lake. She kicked her feet and flailed her arms. She was going to explode, she had to breathe. She broke the surface and sucked fresh air in long raspy breaths.

  “Swim!” he yelled and pointed to the far shore.

  She did, hard and fast. When she felt the ground beneath her she stood and ran, slipping and stumbled, but each time Trask caught her arm. They climbed out of the water and Trask grabbed her hand and pulled her into a run.

  “I know a safe place that’s not too far but we can’t slow down,” he yelled, still pushing forward at full speed.

  She was dripping wet, her clothes heavy, and gasping uncontrollably for air. It was hard to move her feet fast enough, he was pulling her faster than she’d ever ran in her life. Sometimes she stumbled and he’d jerk her back to her feet before she even hit the ground.

  When they reached the trees at the edge of the mountain he stopped and they both caught their breath.

  “None of those guards would dare follow us off the balcony so we have a good head start, but we can’t stop. Are you doing alright? Can you make it?” He panted.

  She didn’t feel like she could, but what choice was there? She had to. She nodded and they ran again. They ran until her chest was going to explode, rested, and then ran again. The sun set and they ran in the dark, up the mountain.

  He led her to the mouth of a cave and she wanted to cry; her body hurt. She gagged and threw up blood. Trask left her and went into the cave. She fell to her knees and collapsed to the ground, crying. What had she done? Why had she followed him? Her arms were shaking and her chest quivered…then more coughing.

  A blanket fell across her body and hands lifted her. “I’ll get a fire started and there is food here. You are a strong young woman, that was a long hard run but it’s over for now. We can stay here for as long as you want,” He said and carried her into the cave.

  Within a short time she was lying on a soft pile of blankets. Her legs ached and she felt sick. Trask gave her water to sip and it felt good trickling down her throat.

  “What now?” she asked.

  “For now, you rest. Every guard in the kingdom will be looking for me and we need to go south but we are north. I’m afraid we’ll have to travel around the Great Lake and stay in the Blue Mountains.”

  The lake? The Blue Mountains? That would take forever…

  “Then we’ll travel south. Your family is going to Mandala to start a new city. I haven’t been there, but I have seen maps. We’ll find it one way or another.”

  Delorah tried to hide her disappointment by forcing a smile. She had thought they’d see her family tonight or tomorrow. But now she knew it was going to be a long time. She looked at the necklace still clutched tight in her fist. They were alive, at least. That was better than what she’d thought this morning. They were alive and she would see them again. She closed her eyes and slept, dreaming again of exploring a new forest with Jasper, Migun, and Endell.

  * * * Thamus knew there wasn’t much time. The sun was rising and a choice had to be made. He wanted Len to tell him to stay, that protecting Sharel was the right thing to do. That if he stayed Sharel would change her mind and eventually both of them could make the journey.

  “I’m sorry,” Len said. “Only you know what is right. I don’t know what you should do.”

  “But our son will be there, how can she not want to see him?”

  Len shrugged.

  “I know people don’t like her because she can be harsh and sometimes I wonder if she even likes me, but I can’t leave her. I can’t just walk away from her. She’s my wife!”

  Len nodded and smiled, but remained silent.

  “What would you do?” he asked, again.

  “That doesn’t matter, it’s your choice, your life.”

  “But what about Sharel?” Thamus asked. “You wouldn’t leave Tari would you?”

  “Tari would never stay behind and abandon her son,” Len said, and then held up his palms and pressed his lips together. But after a moment, the hands fell.

  “Listen Thamus, you’re my best friend and you know I care about you. I don’t want to tell you what to do. I admit I have my preference — I want you to come with us. Sharel has never been good to you, she only cares about herself and always has. And you have a son that needs you. There, I said it. You wanted to know…well, now you do.”

  Thamus stared at the ground. It’s not what he had wanted to hear.
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  “But whatever you do, I’ll support you. If you stay, I’ll give Endell your book and look after him like my own son when we arrive in Mandala.”

  This wasn’t fair, it couldn’t be happening. Why should he have to choose? Why couldn’t Sharel see that going to Endell was the right thing? It was too much, he began to cry. “Why is it so hard…can you tell me? I know you are right so why can’t I leave? Why is it so hard to walk away?”

  He felt Len’s hand on his shoulder.

  “Thamus,” Len said, embracing him and speaking into his ear. “You have spent your entire life trying to win her love. You have been good to her and given her every chance to change.”

  Thamus nodded, it was true. He had been a good husband.

  “So do you feel like you failed?”

  “I haven’t failed.”

  Len didn’t respond.

  “I haven’t failed,” he said, and moved away from Len.

  “It’s okay to give up. Maybe you are trying to accomplish the impossible.”

  “She’s a good woman!” How could Len be so insensitive? How could he just even suggest giving up on another person, on his wife? “She’s the mother of my son. People just don’t understand that everyone in her life has abandoned her, that’s why she’s the way she is. What she needs is somebody to be there for her…for once!” Was he yelling at Len? He hadn’t meant to. “She is so full of fear and pain…she needs me.”

  “She needs you alright. Just like the Guide needs us…for selfish reasons,” Len said.

  Len didn’t understand. He was like all the others that had left her, turned her away when she needed them most.

  “Thamus, you deserve more than this. You’re a great man and have so much to offer and she sucks it out of you. There are people here that love and appreciate who you are…we want you in our lives yet you continually turn us away for a woman who constantly cuts you down.”

  He cried again.

  “How many years have you lived like this?” Len said.

  He didn’t answer.

  “How many more do you want? She won’t change. If this is the life you want, I can respect that. But choose it knowing that this is the life you’ll always have.”

  An image of Sharel laughing and smiling raced through his mind. He saw tender moments when Endell was a baby and a flash of them building their house together. It was so much to give up. She had good in her, he couldn’t walk away from his life with her. “Len?” Tari’s voice echoed from the campsite in the distance.

  “Be right there,” he yelled back.

  “I have to go, but if you stay, you know I’ll always be there for you.”

  “You’ll take care of Endell?” he said, cutting Endell’s name short so he wouldn’t choke on it.

  “You know I will.”

  Thamus stood and finally looked Len in the eyes. “Thank you.”

  They embraced, patting each other’s back.

  “Take care of yourself...until we meet again,” Len said.

  “You too. Tell Endell I’m sorry and I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

  Len turned and walked back to the camp. Thamus stayed. He wanted to say goodbye to the others but couldn’t face them. He sat on the ground and fell back into the grass and stared at the trees all around him. He thought of China and Rudolfo and his throat tightened. And Endell, his little buddy. Tears crept out of the corners of his eyes. Endell was in good hands. Sharel needed him.

  He heard them leave. Rheno, Walther, and Leon also stayed behind. And the bound guard, who would soon be freed. Sharel wanted him set free and she would get her way now. Each had a different reason for staying and Jewell had tried to frame it in a positive light; they needed people here in case more were brought through the mountain. But with the collapse of the tunnel, they all knew it was just an excuse. Nobody would be coming through for a long time.

  When the sounds of the departing crew faded, Thamus stood and walked back to the campsite. Sharel and the others were talking around the fire. Not far away, his new armor and weapons were ready for travel. He had assumed they both would go to Mandala and had prepared for the journey. It hadn’t even crossed his mind that she wanted stay behind.

  “Good riddance,” Sharel was saying. “They are so shallow minded and caught up in crazy ideas they’ll do and say anything to convince people the Guide is evil.”

  “Well, I don’t doubt he’s evil,” Rheno said. “I believe in the Resistance. I just don’t think it’s possible to co-exist with the dark ones and I think they are marching to their deaths.”

  “At least we agree on that,” she said.

  Thamus walked towards her and she turned and looked at him. He smiled warmly but she didn’t return it.

  “See the mess you got us into?” she said.

  Thamus stepped forward and reached out to embrace her; he wanted to hold her, smell her. But she turned away. He stepped again, and walked past her.

  “Where do you think you’re going?”

  He picked up his pack and threw it over his shoulder.

  “Good luck Sharel, I’ll always love you,” he said as his eyes filled with evidence of his pain.

  Then he ran down the trail, hoping to catch the others before they reached the cliffs.

  * * * Horvold stood on a ridge, anxious to run forward yet wanting to run back at the same time. In the valley behind him, Endell and the girls still slept. He had enjoyed traveling with his young companions. They were smart, intuitive, and eager to learn the ways of the ataiki. They had the faith and desire, now he just hoped they wouldn’t be discouraged with the trials ahead. The journey had taken longer than he’d expected, but now, across the grassy fields ahead of him was Lake Mandala>. Four large ataiki were making their way through the grassy field to greet him. He thought one was Char, but what if it wasn’t Char and what if they weren’t Resistance? His stomach churned, pleading with him to run away, but he stood tall and waited. It was Char, who was smiling.

  “Ocht tot grobken,” Horvold said, in his best ataikish.

  The literal translation, as best he and Char had determined, was ‘hello my brother.’ But it was more than just ‘hello’ and more than just ‘brother’. It was a phrase that had no human equivalent; a sacred phrase that would either touch them or anger them. Char would appreciate it, but he was taking a chance with the others.

  “Ocht tot grobken,” Char greeted back with open arms and enveloped him in thick brown fur.

  “Gorvald my Bruther,” one of the new ataiki said, extending his paw-like hand.

  They shook. He hadn’t seen another ataiki since the prisons of Toq, where he’d spent most of his life, and it was unsettling. Char had always been ataiki to him, but now he saw dark ones, creatures that had killed his family and then locked him in a small room and tortured him for most of his life. But he smiled and nodded. He would make this work. But if he felt this uneasy, how could he even hope the others could make it work?

  “Hoorvaald,” the black one extended a hairy arm. Weren’t the black ones royalty? He couldn’t remember. “Chockten da schockt.”

  Horvold bounced his shoulders to show he felt the same, and shook. He felt better. The giant had stated he was afraid and nervous, but full of hope. It was nice to know they were all a little uneasy but optimistic for the future.

  “Where is Endell?” Char asked.

  How did Char know about Endell? Then he saw several smaller figures running across the meadow, human figures, and he laughed. He could stop worrying about how the others would accept the ataiki.

  “They arrived seven nights ago,” Char said. “They are good people.”

  “Endell?” Thamus yelled as he sprinting through the tall grass towards them.

  Horvold turned to call into the valley for Endell, but he and the girls were already halfway up the hill, running. They reached the top, panting, and greeted Char with huge smiles and wide eyes.

  “Endell, it is an honor to meet you,” Char said. “You and I have m
uch to discuss about the strange book you uncovered.”

  Endell nodded. “I am looking forward to it.”

  “Endell!” Thamus yelled.

  Char stepped aside and Thamus zipped past and collided with Endell. The two fell two the ground laughing and crying. China embraced Horvold and planted a large kiss on his cheek, making Horvold grin which scrunched up his face.

  The girls screamed and ran to their long lost mother, Jewell. Rudolfo and Migun were also there and the entire family embraced. They fell into the grass, laughing and crying.

  Jasper, Tari, and Len had stopped running across the field and stood alone a short distance off. Tari and Jasper both leaned on Len, who stood in the middle with his arms around each of them. Horvold walked down to them.

  “We hoped that maybe Delorah would be with you,” Len said. “But deep down, we knew…”

  Horvold frowned. “I know,” he said. “I wish she was here too, but we’ll get her back. We have a year and the Guide won’t hurt her, he needs her. I promise we will get her back.”

  Len released his family and embraced Horvold. Jasper walked up the hill. He smiled warmly at Migun and she grinned back, from underneath her sisters. Continuing up the hill, he walked up to Endell, who was sitting with his arm around his father. Endell stood.

  “I’m sorry Jasper. I didn’t mean to get you in trouble.”

  “Don’t be sorry,” Jasper said and wrapped his arms around his best friend. “It gave us Mandala.”

  * * * Far to the north, the Guide watched Gorath and the young guard, Mirrin, pull the last rocks from the collapsed tunnel. Finally, he would have answers. The young dragon was missing, tracks leading into the rubble. If dead, it was only a matter of time until Nix would find out and then turn on him. If alive, the small army of guards with him would pour out of the cave and with the help of his magic, track and subdue the child. Neither scenario was good. The loss of the dragon coupled with the escape of Delorah had caused heavy lines to carve his face into that of a haggard old man. Light appeared and within moments, he stepped out into the daylight.